Israel had been slaves in Egypt for 400 years, driven and abused by the power of Pharaoh to build cities that would be a monument to Egyptian power and gods for many centuries. Some of those monuments are partially visible even today, thousands of years after the deliverance of Israel from bondage by the mighty hand of God.
Most of the time we read through that story and we don’t even give them much thought. That was a story for people who lived a long time ago and in a place far away. We don’t think of those plagues of Egypt that happened some 4500+ years ago as something that has just as much impact upon our lives of today as it did back then
Seven times in these chapters, God says to Pharaoh, “Let my people go!” (See 5:1; 7:16; 8:1, 20; 9:1, 13; 10:3.).
This command reveals that Israel was in bondage, but God wanted them to be free that they might serve Him.
This is the condition of every lost sinner: enslavement to the world, the flesh and the devil
Ephesians 2:1-3
1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;
2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worked in the children of disobedience:
3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
Some, like the Hebrews, will eventually listen to God’s message of deliverance, but others, like Pharaoh, will be hardened with self-exalting pride and be destroyed by the wrath of God.
“Who is the Lord, that I should obey His voice?”
Was Pharaoh’s response to God’s command (5:2). When we envision ourselves as a god, why should we be compelled to listen to another? The world has no respect for God’s Word; it is “vain words” to them (5:9). Pharaoh called the words of God a lie. Moses and Aaron presented God’s command to Pharaoh, and the result was more bondage for Israel! The sinner will either yield to God’s Word, or resist it and become hardened (see 3:18-20 and 4:21-23). In one sense, God hardened Pharaoh’s heart by presenting His claims, but Pharaoh himself hardened his own heart by resisting God’s claims. The same sun that melts the ice also hardens the clay.
The term plague is, by definition,
Something which is always compared to the plagues of Egypt. We hear people speaking of disasters of “biblical proportion,” because for thousands of years now, the ten plagues of Egypt have been benchmarks or standards against which all other disasters have been measured.
There are three specific things I want us to observe about the plagues this morning. First they were miraculous, secondly they were meaningful, that is, God had a specific purpose in each plague, and finally, they were merciful, even in His judgment against Pharaoh, we’ll see God’s mercy displayed.
List of the ten plagues
1. Blood (Ex. 7:14–24)
2. Frogs (Ex. 7:25, 8:–15)
3. Lice or gnats (Ex. 8:16–19)
4. Flies (Ex. 8: 20 –32)
5. Pestilence of Livestock (Ex. 9:1–7)
6. Boils (Ex. 9:8–12)
7. Hail and fire (Ex. 9:13-35)
8. Locust (Ex. 10:1–20)
9. Darkness for three days (Ex. 10:21–29)
10. Death of firstborn (Ex. 11&12)
I. The plagues were miraculous (Exodus. 7:8-9)
The Plagues were miracles, they were not natural events. They were miracles performed by God at a specific time, in a specific place and for a specific purpose.
II. The plagues were meaningful (Exodus. 8:17-19)
God’s purposes in the plagues were multifaceted.
• The plagues demonstrated the futility of worshiping false gods.
• God used the plague to reveal Himself and make Himself known.
• But thirdly, consider with me that through the plagues, God demonstrates to us that sins have consequences.
III. The plagues reveal the mercy of God (Exodus. 11:1-7)
The plagues serve as a warning to us this morning,
• A warning against disobedience,
• A warning against exerting our will against God’s
• And a warning that assures us sin has consequences.
Conclusion
God has worked miracles in your life and mine. If we cannot recall them it is simply because we have allowed our thoughts and attention to be captured by lesser things. He has worked His wonders in our lives through His provision, through His presence and through His salvation. And all of these things He has done for a purpose. He works in our lives to show us the futility of serving things which cannot save us. Some serve money, others serve power, influence or pleasure, but like the false gods of Egypt, they are not worth serving. He works in our lives to make Himself known to us, to reveal Himself to us, to receive the glory He is due and to speak to us, telling us what it is He would have us do and how He would have us live. If we listen and obey, things go well, it’s just when we don’t that He brings things into our lives to get our attention.
What is it that God is telling you this morning? What decision is there that you need to make that you’ve been putting off? What will it take to get your attention?
Matthew 24:3-14
During the coming of the Lord
6 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are but the beginning of the birth pains.
Rev. NORMAN BERNAD
BANGALORE, INDIA
+919036696832
normanmab07@gmail.com
