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 hy does God set people free the way He does? Why did he harden Pharaoh's heart? Why not just set the people free and be done with it? Because He has another goal in mind beyond just setting people free: He wants to do it in a way that the world will know that He is the Lord. (Message: Eric Elder; Worship Song: "I Declare" written and led by Eric Elder; Running time: 30:41) Lesson 8 - God Sets People Free So All Will KnowWatch The Video
Read The Transcript Hi, this is Eric Elder and welcome to The Ranch. Tonight we’re going to look at a long passage of scripture. We’re going to look at Exodus Chapters 7, 8, 9, and 10. And yet we’re going to take just two quick lessons out of it. And there’s a lot happens in this, these plagues that come upon Egypt. But I think that there’s an even bigger thing that happens that I want to sort of back up. We’re going to look at it sort of from a high level view and see what God is trying to do through all these plagues. I know this question’s come up in our study and other people have asked this, too, of why does God harden Pharaoh’s heart? Why does He even bother going through all that process of hardening Pharaoh's heart? That seems like a strange thing for God to do and why does He do that? So we're going to take a look at the answer to that today, and what I feel God is doing when he hardens Pharaoh's heart. And we're also going to see some things that when God calls us to do something, that we need to do it fully to the extent that He wants us to do it. He doesn't want us to stop short; He wants us to go the whole way. And so I hope we'll get these lessons out of it today. If you haven't read it yet, I would urge you to stop the tape and just read these chapters on your own. We're not going to read it all here on camera. We're just going to start talking; the guys have already read it beforehand, so if you want to stop it and read it now, you can do that as well and just take a look at Chapters 7, 8, 9, and 10. You can skim through them, but there's some good stuff in there if you want to take your time and then come back and join us, and we'll be able to look at these lessons from Exodus. All right. Here we are back in Exodus 7. I think this whole idea of God hardening Pharaoh’s heart is sort of interesting. I've heard it said that the sun can have two different effects on clay on the one hand, or on butter on the other hand. That when the sun comes out during the day, what happens to clay or bricks? It gets hardened. It actually gets hard and bakes in the sun. And to butter, of course, what happens? ROB: It softens. ERIC: Gets soft. What's the difference? It's the same sun, the same exact rays. Why are there two different reactions? ALAN: The properties are different. ERIC: The properties of the clay and the butter. Their characteristics are different. Their nature, their inherent nature, their makeup is different. Here in these passages we're going to see God come out like the sun, and what do you think happens to Moses versus what happens to Pharaoh? One becomes malleable and soft in God's hands like butter and does what God wants him to do, yields to God and yields to that power. The other becomes hard and more callous and more hard. This is not surprising to God. He has seen both of their characteristics as we looked a while ago. We looked that God was looking for someone to carry out His plan, and He chose Moses because Moses' heart was burning for the things of God. What about Pharaoh's heart? What had he demonstrated all his life? ROB: His desires, what he wanted, not necessarily what God wanted or any god for that matter. ERIC: Right. Most of those kings were very happy to build up all kinds of things for themselves. They were worshiped as gods, treated as gods. ROB: Shrines to themselves. ERIC: Shrines to themselves. So I think a lot of this, what God does with hardening Pharaoh's heart has more to do with our response to it than it necessarily does with God being mean and vindictive and why he did pick on Pharaoh so much? Although God is God; He can do whatever He wants. But that whole idea of clay versus butter, our inherent nature, who we are, makes a difference. But there's a bigger picture that I want to back up and see here. We've got plague after plague after plague come. The plagues are what? Tell me some of the plagues that go on in this, that you just read about here. Plagues of the blood, frogs, gnats, flies, locusts, flies, boils, death of the animals, hail, darkness, and eventually the plague on the firstborn, which we'll look at in depth next time. But all these plagues keep coming, and each time what does Pharaoh say? It's almost like Pharaoh, they almost have an effect on Pharaoh, don't you think? And what's he usually do with Moses? What's he usually tell Moses after a plague hits? DEE: You win. ERIC: You win. Okay. And then what happens when the plague goes away? DEE: I'm still in charge, fooled you. ERIC: Pharaoh says, "Okay, things are back to normal, I'm in control again." We don't do that, do we? Come to God, say, "God, you've got to help me, help me, help me." He helps you. "Okay, all right, thanks, I'm going on with my life." The bigger picture here, though, is what I think God is doing overall with all the people. And that is, why is God is causing all these plagues in the first place? Why does He not just set the people free? Why doesn't He just open the gates of Egypt, unlock the chains off the slaves, and walk them on out? Is there something bigger going on that you read in here that God is also trying to accomplish? Not just setting people free, but something else that He's trying to do? ROB: I think one of the things is He's trying to set it hopefully in the mind of the Egyptians that there is one God, you know. Because the Egyptians had many gods. And then also in the minds of the Israelites that your God is greater than any manmade god, you know. I can do all these powerful things, just trust me, I'll care for you, you know. Because every time one of these plagues comes upon all the Egyptians over in Goshen, everything's fine. There aren't any gnats, flies, darkness, you know. The firstborns, they weren't killed. So in a sense they were treated differently than the Egyptians were, or anybody that was in Egypt truthfully. ERIC: Yeah. I think those two points that you mentioned; one, that the Egyptians, that they would see that there is one God, that the God of the Israelites is the God. And the second one, that the Israelites themselves would see God's power. Because this is the main lesson that I got out of reading this when I was studying it, was that God sets people free in a way that everyone will know that He is the Lord. God sets people free in a way that everyone will know that He is the Lord. Sometimes we're looking to be set free, or we're looking for someone else to be set free and we wonder: Why aren't they being set free. What is happening, what is holding them back? What kind of sin in their life or what kind of awful thing is keeping them back? But a lot of times it's because God wants to do it in a way so that they will know that He is the Lord and so that others will know that He is the Lord. DALE: You know, isn’t that exciting for healing? Remember Jesus says why did this man have this disease, was it from the child, and it wasn't from his sin or his parents, and he said for that the God would be given the glory because of his deliverance. ERIC: He said "Neither," right, "so God will get the glory." Exact same point, exactly. Let's look at some of these passages. ROB: Yesterday, today and tomorrow, He's always the same. We're the ones that change. ERIC: In fact, we'll see throughout the Bible, this is reiterated over and over. But we'll just look at 7, 8, 9, and 10 and look at some of these passages where God gives this overarching purpose and why He does this this way. Look at Chapter 7, Verse 5. Does someone have it there and can read that? Again, this is: Why does God do it in the way that He does it? Why does He do it this way?
ERIC: Right. And the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord. Jump onto 7, 17. Someone else have that?
ERIC: Right. By this you will know that I am the Lord. Look at 8, Chapter 8, Verse 10. Someone else have that?
ERIC: And it goes on about the frogs, you'll leave your houses and they will remain only in the Nile, right. He says even the Pharaoh says this is so that you may know that there’s no one like our God. Flip on over to 8, Verse 22. Bud, you got that?
ERIC: Right. And he goes on to say I will make a distinction between my people and your people. This miraculous sign will occur tomorrow. And why again? So that you will know that I am the Lord. Go on to Chapter 9, Verses 13 through 16. And this to me is the bottom line of this whole lesson tonight.
ERIC: Does it get any clearer than that? I could have wiped you away. I could have totally blown you off the face of the earth, but I didn't. I raised you up, Pharaoh and Egyptians and your harsh oppressions for this very purpose. So that you might know and my name might be proclaimed throughout the earth. I remember when I was saved and I put my faith in Christ. A couple months earlier I was wanting to pray with a friend, because I’d just seen this play and it was really inspiring and really made me go, "Yes, this is what I want to do; I want to put my faith in Christ." And after that I was sitting in the car with my cousin, and I said, "I really want to pray, I think I'm ready to pray, to really put my faith in Christ." And we got about ready to pray, and all of a sudden I just stopped and I said, "You know, I just don't think this is the right time. I don't feel like this is the time that I should do this." And maybe I shouldn't share this with some people that are struggling with this, I don't want them to put it off. But I waited a couple months and the things that God showed me in the next couple months really dealt with some course into my life, and the things I needed to repent of and change in, and that has become a key part of my whole ministry now, of the things that God changed me of when I finally did put my faith in Christ. It was so that the world would know that there is a God. And before it would have been a good thing and I'm sure God would have honored my testimony and my faith and all that if I put my faith in Him at that time. But by waiting a couple months and what God was doing in me, e went deeper and deeper and deeper. Maybe it was just because I was so sinful and wrong and I should have stopped long ago. Of course, the sooner we put our faith in Christ the better because our life can turn around. But I think that God, and this lesson here today, is that God sets people free in a way that He will be glorified, and that the whole earth will know that He is the Lord. So we as Christians, when we minister to people or share with people, sometimes we get frustrated with them because they're not coming to Christ or they're not turning their life around, but we don't know what God is trying to do underneath. You know, He may be doing something so huge that when they do come to Christ, it will be such a testimony to them that will carry them through as well as to other people. I know my conversion was so powerful, and strong, that it's been 17 years now and running, and not a day's gone by where I’ve doubted the power of God, the amazing God that, you know, my whole life changed that day, because it was so strong and so powerful. So God sets people free in a way that they will know that He is the Lord. I just want to look at a couple other Bible passages that reiterate this again. You might have to look at your index to find some of these, but there are several famous Bible stories that are great lessons. If you want to look at Jonah first, Jonah Chapter 3. And these are some good Bible stories. I happened to hear this the night that I put my faith in Christ and so it's really stuck with me as a lesson. The speaker was talking about these great Bible stories that we teach our kids, Jonah and the whale, and how if you disobey then God has to pick you up and put you back on the right path, and then He does what He wants to do. And you can learn how God can rescue you from the deeps or whatever you're going through. But Jonah Chapter 3 says that there's a bigger lesson than what we sometimes teach in Sunday School. Jonah Chapter 3, Verses 7 through 9. This is at the end of the book of Jonah, after Jonah has finally obeyed and gotten spit out of the mouth of the whale because he was disobeying. And when he comes back, here's the decree that the king issues. Does someone have that and want to read Verse 7 through 9?
ERIC: So because of Jonah's obedience and this whole story, it all leads up to here the king of Nineveh back at the -- just the short passage before, it says when the news reached the king of Nineveh he rose from the throne and he issued this proclamation in Nineveh. Here's the king and he announces it to everybody; he says let everyone call urgently on God, the God that Jonah is proclaiming. That's a pretty strong position to have somebody proclaim from. God is trying to make His name known and He'll use any means he can to do it. Look at this in David and Goliath back in I Samuel Chapter 17. 1 Samuel 17. You may hear about David and Goliath and how this little kid really goes up against the big giant, and there's a great illustration and lesson in there that you can teach your little Sunday School class kids or whatever, and say, "Even if you're a little kid, you can beat them, or even if your debt is overwhelming" -- you can teach adults the same thing -- "your debt is so overwhelming or your problems are so huge, you can overcome it, because David overcame his." And that's a great lesson, but it's really a lesson all about us, isn't it? And how we can overcome and we can be free or we can get out of something, which is a great thing to do. But there's a bigger thing that God wants to do. 1 Samuel 17 starting in Verse 45 and 46.
ERIC: And the whole world will know that there's a God in Israel. That's pretty strong, isn't it? Why does God do it? Yeah, He wants to set David free. He wants to set the Israelites free. But there's a bigger purpose, too. He wants to make His name known throughout the world. One more story. This is Daniel in the lion's den. Look at Daniel Chapter 6. This is right back over there by Jonah, just a little before Jonah. Daniel Chapter 6, Verses 25 through 27. First Daniel was honoring God and he wasn't able to obey the order of the king, and he was thrown into the lion's den because of it. But God shut the lions mouths. And again, there's a great illustration and story in there. "Even if you're facing lions in your life or whatever, that God can shut their mouths and God can take care of you?" That's a great lesson for you and what God wants to do for you. But there's a bigger thing that God wants to do for Himself. Look what happens when the den opens up and Daniel comes walking out and the king sees it and all of a sudden he writes a letter. Someone want to read that, Verse 25 through 27 of Chapter 6?
ERIC: Great. So why did God do all that with Daniel? Why did God let Daniel go through that whole thing, being persecuted and being thrown in with the lions and everything? Why? To get the attention of the king, so that he would issue a letter throughout the land to all the peoples to say people must fear in reverence the God of Daniel, for He is the living God and He endures forever. His kingdom will not be destroyed. His dominion will never end. He rescues and He saves. He performs signs and wonders in the heavens and on the earth. He has rescued Daniel from the power of the lions. You see this bigger picture that God is trying to accomplish? You may wonder why things are happening in your life, why are they happening the way they happen? Couldn't God have done it some other way? Maybe He could have. But the lesson is God sets people free in a way that the world would know that He is God. Let me give one footnote to this whole escapade here. I want to take you back to Exodus Chapter 7, 8, 9, and 10 and just look at one more thing, just sort of a "sub-lesson" that God taught me out of this. It seems that every time that Moses went to Pharaoh, Pharaoh gave a little bit more. He tried to compromise. He tried to say okay, you can go, but, and he would put a condition on it. He would put a condition on it. Did you notice that? He would say, "Okay, you can do it, but not this." But Moses never gave in, even though those were probably very appealing compromises. But Moses said "No, God told me..." what? He said, "You're going to worship me on this mountain, and you're going to go with the plunder of all the Egyptians." They’re going to be favorably disposed and send you with all their stuff. So Moses didn't settle for anything else and we shouldn't either. Just look at these things that Pharaoh tries to say. Take a look at 8, 25. Pharaoh said "Okay, Moses, go sacrifice, but do it to your God here in the land. Do it here." "No, no," Moses says, "not going to do that." Look at 8, 28. Pharaoh says "I'll let you go and offer your sacrifices to the Lord your God in the desert, but you must not go very far." Okay, you can go, but just not too far. That could have been attractive. How about 10, Verse 11. Pharaoh says "No, have only the men go and worship the Lord since that's what you've been asking for." He said leave the women and kids here. Moses, of course, says "uh-uh." Take a look at 10, 24. Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and said "Go worship the Lord, even your women and children may go with you, only leave your flocks and herds behind." How many times is he going to say okay, okay, you can do it but this. But this, but this. Moses wouldn't settle for anything less than total freedom. He knew what the goal was and we should, too. God wants to set us totally free, totally free. Don't settle for less. Don't compromise. Don't say, well, I'm free enough. Whether you're struggling with sin or addiction or something in your life, if God has said "I will make you free," if God has promised that we can be free of these things, go for total freedom. Don't settle for less or you'll be stuck back in Egypt the rest of your life. God wants you out of there. He wants you free and clean to go do what He wants you to do. So the main lesson that we get out of this, "Why does Pharaoh do this? Why does God harden his heart? Why does God do the things He does?" The answer is...? ROB: So that the world may know that He is God. ERIC: So all the world will know that He is God. And the subnote or the footnote is don't compromise. When total freedom is offered to you by God, take total freedom and go for total freedom. Don't settle for less, because God wants you there even more than you want to be there. I want to spend a little time just worshiping God. This is a song I wrote about how God set me free, and it said in there to declare the great works of God. And so this is a song called "I Declare" and we'll teach it to you here and we'll teach it to the guys watching and you watching as well. I declare that God is God. If you want to stand up, let’s sing. If you need to rearrange a little, that's fine. (Worship song.)
God really loves each one of us. He wants us to continue in our faith in Him. He wants us to know that He is God, and He wants other people to know that He is God, too. I hope this has been encouraging and a blessing to you as well as those that are watching or reading the transcript later. I pray that you would continue to put your faith in Christ for everything in your life, because He is trustworthy. Thanks again for coming. I hope you'll join us again here at The Ranch. |
