This last Sunday, Pastor Kyle continued in our sermon series through the book of Exodus. He opened by stating that there are times in our life when the only viable choice that we have is to keep fighting. We are living is a weary time in history, waking every day hoping for something pleasantly different than division and diseases in this challenging world. What other choice do we have? The good news for every Believer in Jesus Christ is that we do not have to fight this battle alone. We have the power of the Almighty Creator Lord God and the body of Christ, the family of the corporate church alongside us to find strength in this battle today.
Psalm 91:3-12 “Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday. A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. You will only observe with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked. If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,” and you make the Most High your dwelling, no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent. For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.”
In the plagues of Egypt off the Exodus, we have an all-out battle between the God of the Bible and the gods of the Egyptians. Moses and the Israelites had to endure the weight and weariness of this battle. But, Moses took the only viable choice to keep fighting alongside God. In Plague #1, God turned the Nile River into blood, opposing the great god Khnum, Hapi, the gods Sodpet and Satet, Osiris and Hatmehit to show the Egyptians that their gods were not really gods at all. Yet, Exodus 7:23 tells us that Pharaoh turned and went into his house. Neither was his heart moved by this. But, obedience is still obedience, even if it ends in seeming defeat. Plague #2 was an invasion of frogs, offending the goddess Heqet. Pharaoh made a deal that if Moses would have God rid the land of frogs, that he would let the Israelites go worship their god. But, Exodus 8:15 tells us that when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he hardened his heart and did not heed them, as the Lord had said. God was working but Moses had to keep fighting.
Psalm 91:15-16 “He will call on me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.” Believe unequivocally in the supernatural protection of the Lord your God. Trust in Jesus knowing that this is not our home; the kingdom of Heaven is.
Plague #3 was an infestation of gnats, judging the Egyptian gods Geb, Har-pa-khered and Imhotep. But, Exodus 8:19 tells us that the Egyptians magicians said to Pharaoh, “This is the finger of God.” But Pharaoh’s heart was hard and he would not listen, just as the Lord had said. The battle raged on. Plague #4 was an incursion of flies directed at the Egyptian god Kheper. This would have been exceptional difficult to endure, but the Israelites were spared of this plague. But, Exodus 8:32 tells us that this time also Pharaoh hardened his heart and would not let the people go. Plague #5 was the illness and death of the Egyptian livestock pitting Creator God against the gods Ptah, Atum and Re, goddesses Nut, Neith ands Hathor. Exodus 9:7 tells us that Pharaoh investigated and found that not even one of the animals of the Israelites had died. Yet his heart was unyielding and he would not let the people go. Plague #6 was boils on the skin of people and animals was an affront to a number of Egyptian gods - Imhotep, Thoth, Nefertem, Isis - wife of Osiris. Exodus 9:12 says that the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart and he would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had said to Moses.
Plague #7 was hail with a forewarning and opposed Nut, Shu, Horus, Seth, Neper, and Osiris. For those who think that God is cruel, you have to see the grace of God. God gave the Egyptians a way out. Everyone who feared the Lord avoid the consequence of this plague. In Exodus 9:27-30, Pharaoh sent and called Moses and Aaron and said to them, “This time I have sinned; the Lord is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong. Plead with the Lord, for there has been enough of God's thunder and hail. I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer.” Moses said to him, “As soon as I have gone out of the city, I will stretch out my hands to the Lord. The thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail, so that you may know that the earth is the Lord's. But as for you and your servants, I know that you do not yet fear the Lord God.” We need to have faith that God can turn even the hardest heart of unbelief back to the Lord. Yet again, Exodus 9:34-35 tells us, but when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunder had ceased, he sinned yet again andhardened his heart, he and his servants. So the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people of Israel go, just as the Lord had spoken through Moses.
Plague #8 was the swarm of locust judged Anubis, Osiris, Isis, Seth and Neper, Shu and Amun. Exodus 10:16-20 says that Pharaoh hastily called Moses and Aaron and said, “I have sinned against the Lord your God, and against you. Now therefore, forgive my sin, please, only this once, and plead with the Lord your God only to remove this death from me.” So he went out from Pharaoh and pleaded with the Lord. And the Lord turned the wind into a very strong west wind, which lifted the locusts and drove them into the Red Sea. Not a single locust was left in all the country of Egypt. But the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he did not let the people of Israel go. Plague #9 was the plague of darkness and a judgment on the supreme god Amon-Ra, Egypt’s religion and entire culture. But, there was light in Goshen. Exodus 10:27-28 tells us that the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he would not let them go. Then Pharaoh said to him, “Get away from me; take care never to see my face again, for on the day you see my face you shall die.”
Let's continue Pastor Kyle's message on "Keep Fighting" in the next Post.
In Christ, Brian
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