January 29
Ex 8:1-9 | PS 24 | Prov 6:1-5 | Matt 19:13-30
Now in my sixties, looking back, life in the United States has been good. Oh, we will always have some complaints about how things could be better, but for the most part we have lived in one of the most prosperous nations of all time. We pretty much can have what we want. I grew up without much financially, but I never really lacked for anything. I was educated. I was able to choose my profession. I never went hungry. I had friends and family all around me. Though I never went on an airplane until my honeymoon, we went on vacations, which I cherished, in the Poconos. Growing up in the United States you had the freedom to chart your own course, and enjoy what life had to offer. But that is also the danger in growing up in prosperity. Even though I was one of five children, and raised by wonderful parents, my father never made much money, yet I had everything that I needed. We might feel as though we were the most fortunate people in the world, but because of our prosperity, the multitudes never saw or sought after God. I know I never did until my late twenties. When we can have everything we desire, we can in effect become our own little gods. We miss the One True God, because we create our own reality. The sad thing is that we who thought had so much, in reality have so little. Without God, we truly have nothing of lasting value. Without emptying yourself of pride, you can't see Jesus, because you can't see the need for Him. As a result, if you never find Jesus, this is the best you will ever have. That is why Jesus said in His transformative message in the Beatitudes, in Matthew 5:3, "“Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven." Eternity will far surpass the best of what is possible on Earth, but most don't seek it or desire it, because they are filled and seemingly satisfied by their prosperous surroundings.
The Egyptians were the United States of that era. They were well educated and prosperous. They trusted their Pharaoh, who was elevated to god-like status. Not only this, Pharaoh had magicians who had supernatural abilities through demonic entities. This is why the majority of Egyptians had no interest in the God of Israel. So when God began to show Himself through Moses and Aaron, through the plagues, the Egyptians were unimpressed. Moses' staff became a serpent, so did the magicians. God turned the water into blood, God brought up frogs, so did the magicians. Though God surpassed the magicians in these plagues, the people were still blinded. These similarities all ended with the next plague, the lice. We see God's hand in Exodus 8:17, "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." But notice how the light bulb goes off for the first time in 8:18-19, "Now the magicians so worked with their enchantments to bring forth lice, but they could not. So there were lice on man and beast. 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." In the next plague, the flies, God continues to distinguish Himself. Not only does He do what the demonic entities through the magicians cannot, but He distinguishes His people from the Egyptians, as we read in 8:21-23, "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. 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. I will make a difference between My people and your people. Tomorrow this sign shall be.” ’"
As the story progresses, we will see that Pharaoh's pride hardened his heart, and he was unwilling to compromise and relent to the One True God. He held himself to be god-like. After all, he had everything he ever wanted. He eventually acknowledged God, though temporarily, as more and more things were removed from him. If you are like me, I'm not happy about the current state of my nation. For the first time we have experienced isolation on a large scale, lockdowns, mandates, over-reaching of power. We are losing our freedom. There has been loss of life which has been felt by most everyone. Many are having their livelihood threatened. With the supply chain chaos, many are not getting the things they desire and have come to expect. Vacations are ever changing as rules seem to be created at a whim. It took the loss of things for the Egyptians to see "the finger of God". We might not like this, but perhaps this is what it will take for our family, our friends, our neighbors, etc. to see "the finger of God" in the United States. God offers us so much more than this world has to offer, but most are blinded in prosperity. Those nations which have tasted persecution in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia are experiencing revival the likes our nation has not seen in a long time. It truly is and should be all about God. Perhaps these times will push many from complacency and they will seek God. Only the Father knows the time and the hour when He will usher in the "End Times" (Matthew 24:36). So we, the children of God, who see Him for who He is, should be about revival as we boldly move forward with the gospel truth and obediently accept our Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20).
Messages from Pastor Lloyd Pulley: