2026.02.08.Sermon Notes. KNOW THAT I AM THE LORD GOD. Exodus 7-8
The God Who Makes Himself Known
William Akehurst, HSWC
SCRIPTURES: Exodus 7:1-25, Exodus 8:1-32, Hebrews 1:1-3, 1 Timothy 2:5, John 1:14, 2 Corinthians 3:5, Isaiah 42:8, Colossians 2:15, Genesis 3:15, Psalms 20:7, Matthew 26:28, Hebrews 3:13, John 12:37, Psalms 115:4-8, Hebrews 7:25, Romans 1:20, 1 Peter 2:9, Romans 8:1, Luke 9:62, John 8:36, John 10:27, 1 Corinthians 5:7,
KEY WORDS: Revelation, Sovereignty, Authority, Mediator, Obedience, Hardness of Heart, Judgment, Idolatry, False Security, Divine Power, Spiritual Warfare, Intercession, Distinction, Covering, Deliverance, Redemption, Supremacy of God, Repentance, Compromise, Worship
BIG IDEA (Short)
GOD reveals HIS supremacy over every false authority, confronts hardened hearts, and delivers HIS people through a mediator - foreshadowing the greater redemption that would come through JESUS CHRIST. But True freedom comes only through complete surrender to the LORD.
BIG IDEA. (Long)
GOD demonstrates HIS supreme authority over all false gods, human pride, and hardened hearts. He exposes every false power, confronts resistance, and delivers HIS people through a mediator - pointing ahead to the ultimate redemption found in JESUS CHRIST. Partial obedience and half-hearted repentance only strengthen bondage, but true freedom comes only through complete surrender to the LORD.
INTRO
There are moments in Scripture when GOD does not merely speak - HE acts visibly, unmistakably, and powerfully so that no one can question HIS Authority.
Exodus chapters 7 and 8 mark the beginning of divine confrontation.
This is not simply Moses versus Pharaoh.
Pharaoh, who claims divine status, is confronted by the living GOD. What follows is not merely a series of miracles, but a theological showdown: Who is LORD?
Israel is watching. Egypt is watching. And Pharaoh’s heart is being tested.
This is YAHWEH versus the gods of Egypt.
Before the plagues begin, GOD declares HIS Purpose:
Exodus 7:5 “And the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I stretch out My hand on Egypt and bring out the children of Israel from among them.”
Notice the phrase repeated through these chapters:
“That you may know that I am the LORD.”
GOD is revealing HIMSELF not only to Egypt…
…but also to Israel.
Because sometimes GOD's people must see HIS Power again after seasons of oppression.
PRINCIPLE
Freedom begins with revelation.
Before GOD changes your circumstances, HE deepens your understanding of WHO HE IS.
CHRIST CONNECTION
Just as GOD made Himself known through mighty acts in Exodus…
Hebrews 1:1-3 tells us that GOD has now spoken fully through HIS SON.
Hebrews 1:1-3
1 God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, 2 has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; 3 who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
JESUS is the ultimate revelation of GOD.
The plagues whisper…
The Cross declares.
I. GOD STRENGTHENS HIS MEDIATOR
Exodus 7:1-7
1 So the LORD said to Moses: “See, I have made you as God to Pharaoh, and Aaron your brother shall be your prophet. 2 You shall speak all that I command you. And Aaron your brother shall tell Pharaoh to send the children of Israel out of his land. 3 And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and multiply My signs and My wonders in the land of Egypt. 4 But Pharaoh will not heed you, so that I may lay My hand on Egypt and bring My armies and My people, the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great judgments. 5 And the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I stretch out My hand on Egypt and bring out the children of Israel from among them.”
6 Then Moses and Aaron did so; just as the LORD commanded them, so they did. 7 And Moses was eighty years old and Aaron eighty-three years old when they spoke to Pharaoh.
1-7 establishes authority before confrontation.
NOTE: Vs. 1 “See, I have made you as God to Pharaoh, and Aaron your brother shall be your prophet.”
God = Elohim. Delegated Authority
GOD establishes a chain of mediation:
GOD to Moses to Aaron to Pharaoh
POINT
GOD works through appointed mediators.
Throughout Scripture, fallen humanity does not casually approach a Holy GOD.
We need someone to stand in the gap.
1 Timothy 2:5 For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus
POINT:
Pharaoh claims godhood
GOD assigns authority.
Vs. 3-4. Notice the divine realism of the passage: GOD openly declares that Pharaoh will resist.
Vs. 5. The signs are not designed merely to persuade Pharaoh, but to reveal the LORD to Israel and Egypt alike.
KEY PRINCIPLE: GOD’s servants succeed not by eloquence or strength, but by obedience. Moses is 80 years old. Aaron is 83. GOD’s power is never limited by human weakness or timing.
CHRIST CONNECTION (Major)
Moses is one of the clearest Old Testament shadows of CHRIST.
Consider the parallels:
• Both were preserved in childhood from a murderous ruler.
• Both renounced royal privilege.
• Both became deliverers.
• Both stood between judgment and the people.
But Moses was only a shadow.
JESUS is the greater and perfect Mediator.
Moses spoke GOD’s Words.
JESUS IS THE WORD.
John 1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
POINT
Never confuse the instrument with the source.
GOD uses servants - but the power is always HIS.
2 Corinthians 3:5 Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God,
If GOD calls you, HE will sustain you.
II. WHEN GOD CONFRONTS FALSE AUTHORITY
Exodus 7:8-13 Aaron’s Miraculous Rod
8 Then the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, 9 “When Pharaoh speaks to you, saying, Show a miracle for yourselves,’ then you shall say to Aaron, Take your rod and cast it before Pharaoh, and let it become a serpent.’ ” 10 So Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh, and they did so, just as the LORD commanded. And Aaron cast down his rod before Pharaoh and before his servants, and it became a serpent.
11 But Pharaoh also called the wise men and the sorcerers; so the magicians of Egypt, they also did in like manner with their enchantments. 12 For every man threw down his rod, and they became serpents. But Aaron’s rod swallowed up their rods. 13 And Pharaoh’s heart grew hard, and he did not heed them, as the LORD had said.
This is like courtroom language.
Pharaoh believed himself divine.
The serpent or dragon, symbolize royal and supernatural authority in Egypt.
When Aaron’s rod becomes a serpent and swallows the others, God is making a declaration:
‘There is no rival to the throne of heaven.’
Isaiah 42:8 I am the LORD, that is My name; And My glory I will not give to another, Nor My praise to carved images.
PRINCIPLE
This is the pattern for everything that follows:
False power can imitate; only GOD’s authority can overcome.
Satan (the enemy) can imitate - but he cannot overcome.
The magicians duplicated the sign…
…but they could not dominate the outcome.
CHRIST CONNECTION
This moment points forward to the decisive victory of CHRIST.
Colossians 2:15 Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.
Just as the serpent was swallowed…
One day the ancient serpent would be crushed.
Genesis 3:15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman,
And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head,
And you shall bruise His heel.”
Genesis 3:15 is the first whisper of the Gospel.
CHRIST did not negotiate with darkness.
HE triumphed over it.
WARNING
Exodus 7:13 “And Pharaoh’s heart grew hard…”
Miracles do not soften a resistant heart.
Only surrender does.
III. THE FIRST PLAGUE - WHEN GOD STRIKES FALSE SECURITY
Exodus 7:14-25 The First Plague: Waters Become Blood
14 So the LORD said to Moses: “Pharaoh’s heart is hard; he refuses to let the people go. 15 Go to Pharaoh in the morning, when he goes out to the water, and you shall stand by the river’s bank to meet him; and the rod which was turned to a serpent you shall take in your hand. 16 And you shall say to him, The LORD God of the Hebrews has sent me to you, saying, “Let My people go, that they may serve Me in the wilderness”; but indeed, until now you would not hear!
17 Thus says the LORD: “By this you shall know that I am the LORD. Behold, I will strike the waters which are in the river with the rod that is in my hand, and they shall be turned to blood. 18 And the fish that are in the river shall die, the river shall stink, and the Egyptians will loathe to drink the water of the river.” ’ ”
19 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, “Say to Aaron, ‘Take your rod and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt, over their streams, over their rivers, over their ponds, and over all their pools of water, that they may become blood. And there shall be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in buckets of wood and pitchers of stone.’ ” 20 And Moses and Aaron did so, just as the LORD commanded. So he lifted up the rod and struck the waters that were in the river, in the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his servants. And all the waters that were in the river were turned to blood. 21 The fish that were in the river died, the river stank, and the Egyptians could not drink the water of the river. So there was blood throughout all the land of Egypt.
22 Then the magicians of Egypt did so with their enchantments; and Pharaoh’s heart grew hard, and he did not heed them, as the LORD had said. 23 And Pharaoh turned and went into his house. Neither was his heart moved by this. 24 So all the Egyptians dug all around the river for water to drink, because they could not drink the water of the river. 25 And seven days passed after the LORD had struck the river.
The Nile was Egypt’s bloodstream, it’s lifeline, and a false god.
It provided water, agriculture, commerce, and life itself.
It was also worshiped as divine.
So what does GOD do?
HE strikes it directly.
Turns it to blood.
Fish die.
The land stinks.
PRINCIPLE
God will confront whatever we trust more than Him.
Psalms 20:7 Some trust in chariots, and some in horses;
But we will remember the name of the LORD our God.
Sometimes GOD touches the very thing we think we cannot live without…
…so we discover that we cannot live without HIM.
CHRIST CONNECTION
Water becoming blood foreshadows a greater redemptive sign.
At the cross, CHRIST’s blood would be shed to bring life - not death.
And remember HIS words:
Matthew 26:28 For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.
Egypt’s river brought judgment.
CHRIST’s Blood brings Salvation.
OBSERVATION
The magicians could imitate…
…but they could not reverse the plague.
They add blood, but they cannot restore life.
The enemy can deepen bondage.
Only GOD brings deliverance.
SPIRITUAL INSIGHT:
Satan can multiply judgment, but only GOD redeems and heals.
Pharaoh remains unmoved. Exposure to GOD’s power without repentance results in a harder heart.
IV. THE PROGRESSIVE DANGER OF A HARDENED HEART
Pharaoh was not neutral.
Every refusal made the next refusal easier.
Read slowly
Hebrews 3:13 but exhort one another daily, while it is called “Today,” lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.
Think about it. “Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts.”
PRINCIPLE
Hardness is rarely sudden.
It is formed through repeated resistance.
The same sun that melts wax…
hardens clay.
CHRIST CONNECTION
When JESUS stood before hardened leaders, many still refused HIM despite undeniable authority.
John 12:37 But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him,
The greatest danger in a church is not opposition…
It is familiarity without surrender.
V. THE SECOND PLAGUE - WHEN IDOLS BECOME MISERABLE
Exodus 8:1-15 The Second Plague: Frogs
1 And the LORD spoke to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘Thus says the LORD: “Let My people go, that they may serve Me. 2 But if you refuse to let them go, behold, I will smite all your territory with frogs. 3 So the river shall bring forth frogs abundantly, which shall go up and come into your house, into your bedroom, on your bed, into the houses of your servants, on your people, into your ovens, and into your kneading bowls. 4 And the frogs shall come up on you, on your people, and on all your servants.” ’ ”
5 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, “Say to Aaron, Stretch out your hand with your rod over the streams, over the rivers, and over the ponds, and cause frogs to come up on the land of Egypt.’ ” 6 So Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt, and the frogs came up and covered the land of Egypt. 7 And the magicians did so with their enchantments, and brought up frogs on the land of Egypt.
8 Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron, and said, “Entreat the LORD that He may take away the frogs from me and from my people; and I will let the people go, that they may sacrifice to the LORD.”
9 And Moses said to Pharaoh, “Accept the honor of saying when I shall intercede for you, for your servants, and for your people, to destroy the frogs from you and your houses, that they may remain in the river only.”
10 So he said, “Tomorrow.” And he said, “Let it be according to your word, that you may know that there is no one like the LORD our God. 11 And the frogs shall depart from you, from your houses, from your servants, and from your people. They shall remain in the river only.”
12 Then Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh. And Moses cried out to the LORD concerning the frogs which He had brought against Pharaoh. 13 So the LORD did according to the word of Moses. And the frogs died out of the houses, out of the courtyards, and out of the fields. 14 They gathered them together in heaps, and the land stank. 15 But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he hardened his heart and did not heed them, as the LORD had said.
FROGS!
Frogs were linked to Heqet, the goddess of fertility and life.
Imagine kneading bread and frogs jump out.
Opening your bed - frogs.
Your kitchen - frogs.
Your palace - frogs.
Frogs, frogs, and more frogs
What Egypt revered…became unbearable.
And the goddess Heget was being mocked publicly.
PRINCIPLE
Idols always overpromise and underdeliver.
Psalms 115:4-8 4 Their idols are silver and gold,
The work of men’s hands.
5 They have mouths, but they do not speak;
Eyes they have, but they do not see;
6 They have ears, but they do not hear;
Noses they have, but they do not smell;
7 They have hands, but they do not handle;
Feet they have, but they do not walk;
Nor do they mutter through their throat.
8 Those who make them are like them;
So is everyone who trusts in them.
Anything you trust above GOD will eventually disappoint you.
CHRIST CONNECTION
Notice something powerful.
Pharaoh asks Moses to intercede.
Moses stands between judgment and relief.
Again - mediation.
But Moses could only remove frogs.
JESUS removes sin.
Hebrews 7:25 Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.
WARNING
Once relief came…
Pharaoh hardened his heart again.
Temporary repentance is not transformation.
Many want GOD’s help…
without GOD’s rule.
VI. When Even Skeptics Say “This Is the Finger of God”
Exodus 8:16-19 The Third Plague: Lice
16 So the LORD said to Moses, “Say to Aaron, ‘Stretch out your rod, and strike the dust of the land, so that it may become lice throughout all the land of Egypt.’ ” 17 And they did so. For Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod and struck the dust of the earth, and it became lice on man and beast. All the dust of the land became lice throughout all the land of Egypt.
18 Now the magicians so worked with their enchantments to bring forth lice, but they could not. So there were lice on man and beast. 19 Then the magicians said to Pharaoh, “This is the finger of God.” But Pharaoh’s heart grew hard, and he did not heed them, just as the LORD had said.
Dust becomes lice or gnats shows creation responding instantly to its Creator.
Now the magicians fail.
They declare, “This is the finger of GOD.” Yet Pharaoh still refuses.
PRINCIPLE
There comes a point when divine activity becomes undeniable.
Romans 1:20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse,
POINT:
Creation testifies.
Providence testifies.
The cross testifies.
Yet recognition alone does not equal repentance.
Pharaoh acknowledges power…
but refuses submission.
Acknowledging GOD’s power is not the same as yielding to GOD’s authority.
VII. GOD MAKES A DISTINCTION
Exodus 8:20-24 The Fourth Plague: Flies
20 And the LORD said to Moses, “Rise early in the morning and stand before Pharaoh as he comes out to the water. Then say to him, ‘Thus says the LORD: “Let My people go, that they may serve Me. 21 Or else, if you will not let My people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies on you and your servants, on your people and into your houses. The houses of the Egyptians shall be full of swarms of flies, and also the ground on which they stand. 22 And in that day I will set apart the land of Goshen, in which My people dwell, that no swarms of flies shall be there, in order that you may know that I am the LORD in the midst of the land. 23 I will make a difference between My people and your people. Tomorrow this sign shall be.” ’ ” 24 And the LORD did so. Thick swarms of flies came into the house of Pharaoh, into his servants’ houses, and into all the land of Egypt. The land was corrupted because of the swarms of flies.
For the first time - separation. GOD distinguishes between Egypt and Israel.
Goshen is spared.
PRINCIPLE
Redemption includes distinction.
1 Peter 2:9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;
THE CHRIST CONNECTION shines here.
Just as Israel was protected…
Believers are covered by the blood of CHRIST.
Judgment falls - but not on those under the covering.
Romans 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.
You are not preserved because you are strong…
…but because CHRIST is sufficient.
VIII. THE DANGER OF SPIRITUAL COMPROMISE
Exodus 8:25-32
25 Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron, and said, “Go, sacrifice to your God in the land.”
26 And Moses said, “It is not right to do so, for we would be sacrificing the abomination of the Egyptians to the LORD our God. If we sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians before their eyes, then will they not stone us? 27 We will go three days’ journey into the wilderness and sacrifice to the LORD our God as He will command us.”
28 So Pharaoh said, “I will let you go, that you may sacrifice to the LORD your God in the wilderness; only you shall not go very far away. Intercede for me.”
29 Then Moses said, “Indeed I am going out from you, and I will entreat the LORD, that the swarms of flies may depart tomorrow from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people. But let Pharaoh not deal deceitfully anymore in not letting the people go to sacrifice to the LORD.”
30 So Moses went out from Pharaoh and entreated the LORD. 31 And the LORD did according to the word of Moses; He removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people. Not one remained. 32 But Pharaoh hardened his heart at this time also; neither would he let the people go.
Pharaoh proposes negotiation and compromise
“Sacrifice - but stay in the land.”
Go…
but not far.
PRINCIPLE
The enemy is comfortable with partial obedience.
Just enough Christianity to soothe the conscience…
Not enough surrender to transform the life.
Luke 9:62 But Jesus said to him, “No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”
JESUS never called anyone to halfway discipleship.
CHRIST CONNECTION
Where Pharaoh invited compromise…
JESUS demands surrender - and provides freedom.
John 8:36 Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.
GOD never negotiates with bondage.
APPLICATION - EXAMINE YOUR HEART
ASK:
• Is my heart tender toward GOD?
• Where is HE calling deeper obedience?
• Have I settled into spiritual compromise?
• What “Nile” have I trusted?
SCRIPTURE ANCHOR
John 10:27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.
CONCLUSION
Pharaoh once asked:
“Who is the LORD?”
Centuries later…
GOD answered with a cross.
JESUS is greater than Moses.
• Greater than the plagues.
• Greater than Pharaoh.
• Greater than sin.
The Exodus points forward to a greater deliverance.
We were slaves…
CHRIST parted the waters…
and led us out.
1 Corinthians 5:7 Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us.
FINAL REFLECTION AND APPEAL
Do not harden your heart.
When GOD speaks - respond.
When GOD calls - obey.
When GOD reveals HIMSELF - surrender.
Because the same GOD who judged Egypt…
is the GOD who saves through JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD.
PRAYER
LORD, soften our hearts.
Expose every idol.
Guard us from compromise.
Teach us immediate obedience.
Deliver us fully, not partially.
Hardened hearts we confess; soften them again by YOUR SPIRIT.
Thank YOU for the greater Mediator - JESUS CHRIST - WHO delivers us from judgment and brings us safely into YOUR presence.
Lead us out, all the way out, for YOUR Glory.
And may our lives declare that YOU alone are the LORD.
In JESUS’ Name,
Amen.
HYMNS
1 - A Mighty Fortress Is Our God
223 - Rock of Ages
297 - Trust and Obey
189 - There Is Power in the Blood
