Exodus 9:13-11:10, What’s It Take to Get Through?

Well, are you wondering Right now what it's gonna take To get through to him or her whoever you're thinking about maybe someone in your family, maybe a friend

They're making a mistake. They're going the wrong way. You can see it as plain as day.

It's obvious Maybe you try reasoning with them. It doesn't seem like anything gets through You don't know how to get through To him or her sometimes the more obvious it is

The harder it is to communicate You know, he's a bad guy How many arrests for domestic abuse does he need but have to have before you see it?

She might be pretty but her you know, her beauty is like a ring in a pig's snout Stop spending so much money money.

You don't have how high does your credit card debt have to get before you stop? How many scriptures?

Statistics or personal relationships. Do you need to see before you'll admit? That one race isn't inferior to another

What do we have to do to show you? Maybe that Buddhism is not the way the truth in the life

How plain does the Bible have to say it? About anything, you know human depravity

God sovereignty hell the sinfulness of sexual immorality, you know, whatever To make you believe it

See people making arguments out there and the scripture says exact opposite How plain does scripture have to be sometimes, you know, maybe some others

I know your mother constantly told you that every little thing that came out of your mouth was brilliant and great but How are we going to show you that?

You're wrong How overweight are you going to get before you start exercising and stop constantly drinking coca -cola?

How many times do you need to recite and sign the church covenant before you take it seriously How obvious does it have to be?

You know that if you're not a member of a church It seems just so obvious to me if you're not a member of a church

It's not a homecoming to go back to it. And if you are a member there, it shouldn't take a gimmick to get you to go back

This seems kind of obvious. I mean how plain does the Lord Jesus have to be before you'll Seek first the kingdom of God not girlfriends or money

On and on it goes, you know, there's just people living in a way. That's just It's obviously wrong.

There's a problem and the solution is often very obvious to it's it's so obvious It's it's hard to say it without sounding sarcastic, you know smart -alecky

In my opinion, I think the so -called gay rights movement has you know, the move to legitimize homosexuality

Which is what it's about has prospered on this very fact the fact that it's so obvious That what they're pushing is wrong.

I mean Come on, do we really need to point out the basics of anatomy? it's it's so obvious that many people are too embarrassed to say it and So we have this bizarre situation in our culture today when what is wrong with homosexuality is as obvious but the obvious is denied and And by many and often denied with a kind of weird combination of Relativism, you know relativism.

There's there's no absolute right and wrong. Who are you to say that's right or wrong? and that's oddly combined with Self -righteousness, you know, you are wrong for saying it's wrong and I'm right for saying it's right

But I thought there was no right or wrong. Okay, it's just weird What's it gonna take to break through to people when they deny the obvious?

And are self -righteous about sinfulness Well, some

Christians are alarmed at the high number of kids who are who were raised in church up to about 70 %

I've heard some statistics raised in church as a child and who drop out of church going to church in there When they're in their 20s, and they wonder what it's gonna take to keep them.

I Think maybe a better question would be what's gonna take to break through to them in the first place You know

Sometimes the kids were never really Christians at all. He's just kind of went along with the family They often have been raised with a kind of a pop psychology that told that told the parents, you know

You always got to be positive encouraging tell the kid how smart he is, you know, all of them All of them are above average

Okay, figure that out. I have never figured out I affirm every opinion give him a whatever he she wants and the churches

Too are often go along with that. They're too afraid they might lose them And so they treated them as they were raised up like their customers in a restaurant, you know

You want to cater to their every request? With the style of the music the style of the dress and the messages nuts.

Let's not call it sermons That's too off -putting, you know make all of that as they like it and lost in all of that often was

God Sometimes you forget about him. Don't you and all this the reality that he's not

God is not Whatever you want him to be That he's not like a waitress is supposed to jump whenever you know

You snap your fingers and so they they become adults when they're raised like that little princes and little princesses and never told never haven't been told they're wrong and Expecting God to be constantly telling them how adorable and lovable they are raised in this culture with this grotesque combination of relativism and self -righteousness and then

You know, is it any wonder they drop out? Maybe they actually start reading the Bible for themselves And they read it or maybe they hear biblical preaching and they're shocked and Without God's grace, maybe appalled maybe offended that God is

God and they're not They were raised thinking they were What's it gonna take to get through to people?

like that Well here Israel, you know in the land of Goshen. They have to be wondering.

Well, what's it gonna take? To get through to Pharaoh So we can go

God, of course, he's not wondering that at all He told Moses from the beginning all the way back at the burning bush

That he would harden Pharaoh's heart And in fact what he told him at the beginning what exactly it was going to take even said that Pharaoh Won't let

Israel his firstborn son go until God has killed

Pharaoh's firstborn son, so God knows exactly from before the first plague

Exactly what it was gonna take But then that's a question then, you know, we would fought last week was we did the first six plagues here

We'll do the last three we have to wonder. Well, then why these plagues why? And why go through these three rounds of three plagues literally the word

I think it betters blows Why pummel Egypt like that that's what's going on here.

God is pummeling Egypt. He's beating it up and Figure what

God knows from the beginning why what it's gonna take which was the Passover. Why did he go through all this?

And we're now at the beginning of the third round and the story pauses here and those first few verses starting verse 13

And and before plunging into the last round And before the final knockout punch and you know to to just sort of meditate on this

And it will be as we find as we'll see just as God said from the beginning and then so we could ask well

Why not just cut to the chase? Why not just go right to the Passover and be be done with all this why bother with all these blows

You know the river turning to blood the frogs the bugs the flies the livestock Dying off the boils if God really knows what it's gonna take to break through why not do that right away or What if some people can't be broken through to I?

Mean, it's just impossible. They're they're too hard. They're unreachable You know many will say that there are no such people you can always find

You find people talking about evangelism. You always find a key to unlock their heart Really what about Pharaoh here?

He is hearing here. Look at this. He's hearing from one of the greatest prophets ever

He's seeing something of the greatest miracles ever and yet He's hard What about Judas?

You know here he heard from a greater prophet saw greater miracles But Jesus called him the son of perdition

In other words fancy way, but the child of hell Oh, it's he's the one whose origin is from hell and whose destination is damnation

So there are some people as we saw this last week That there's no getting through to no matter what you do to them if that's the case then why did

God create them at all? You know go a step further now. Why did God do these plagues these blows? Why does

God create? people like that That there are is no getting through to Why did

God create people that he knows? You know in this is really isn't it even a predestination question because whether or not you believe

God has people have free will or Not, you know, God still knows what they're going to do. Why does God create people that he knows?

Before he creates them that he will only punish Well back here in Exodus 9 the

Lord pauses as this final round is about to begin and explains in verses 3 13 to 17 why he is pummeling

Egypt like this. There's two main reasons To know and to show

This is show -and -tell He's gonna show God's showing something and we're gonna tell First the

Lord says starting in verse 13. Let my people go. Okay, that's his command his will of command

God is commanding that to Pharaoh. Let my people go and this is the final round and he tells Pharaoh verse 14 this time

I will send all my plagues on you yourself And in your people before you know

Pharaoh, he's the king you could avoid most of them What's it gonna take to get through to Pharaoh? It's gonna take him feeling the impact of the blows personally

This time in this final round the Lord will break through to him at least to get him to at least maybe not break

Through to get him to really revere and believe in the Lord But at least to get him to do what God is telling him to do and he explains why the

Lord explains why at the end Of verse 14 so that there's the purpose statement. This is this is the reason you may know

To give him knowledge Give Pharaoh knowledge He first responded remember him first responded to Moses back in verse chapter 5.

Who is the Lord? I don't know the Lord Why should I obey the Lord? And so now Pharaoh is going to know something about the

Lord Four more blows to teach him a lesson about who the Lord is the lesson will be in particular

He says that there is none like me in all the earth That's what

Pharaoh should know so that you may know there's none like me in all the earth In other words, the the

Lord is not another pagan God like Isis that the magicians were probably devoted to you

No, so they could do their little tricks The there's a God called Senna him the God of the locusts you got to have a

God who oversees the locusts and Control those pests are raw the chief the highest

Egyptian God the the God of the Sun the Sun God And so he's going to find out

Pharaoh is going to find out that the Lord is of a different order altogether Now something the

Lord mean like today so people the Lord is just any other thing in their life that they have to juggle

It's like he's like family, you know, you got family you got business He got your country your love life your marriage your sports.

Hopefully a love life and marriage or for you married people are the same thing Yes, we got all these things and that long as the

Lord is in the mix somewhere, you know as long as he's getting a cut of your attention a

Slice of your commitment and your cash. Well, that's fine. Give him a little bit along with that other stuff

You know, you got to arrange it all maybe he's even your number one God, you're really dedicated You can still have others you might think but he's not looking to be one of your gods not even your favorite

God He he's saying there is none like him in all of your life

So he should be your all -in -all the Lord strikes for Pharaoh with four more blows So that he'll know that the

Lord is like nothing. He's ever known And he expects us to know the same

Well second the Lord will show The Lord tells Pharaoh, you know outright in verse 15 is it?

You know think of that verse you talk you're talking to this absolute ruler and the Lord says to Pharaoh, you know

Basically by now I could have destroyed you. I'm gonna just wipe you out with a disease You personally a whole country, but I didn't

I Let you live Pharaoh Now, why did the

Lord let him live? You know, he many people today well, he let him live so that he would have the opportunity to repent really

Is that what the story says? He tells us in verse 16, okay Exodus chapter 9 verse 16, maybe make a good memory versus it's an important verse

But for this purpose, I have raised you up. Literally. I've made you stand literally in Hebrew Which means

I've made I've you know, all these six plagues so far and yet you are still standing

Because of me the Lord is saying I've let you live in other words I have let you live up to this point in order to cause you to see

In other words to show him God has not destroyed Pharaoh, even though he easily could have that's what he's telling him to show you

Pharaoh my power So Pharaoh is is the example of the person who is made to live

Not to repent You know not to have a chance. If only he will use his free will and take it

No, it doesn't make any sense in this story Pharaoh Is made to live

So that he will know to show him God's power Now why?

Why does the Lord create someone? Keep him alive. It's what God has said to him right here

Pharaoh. You understand God has said I've kept you alive I've kept you standing up to now for a specific purpose and and he's not softened his heart

So we repent and believe Well Exodus 9 16 tells us so that My name may be declared in all the earth

Well, there it is God says he will pummel Pharaoh personally Egypt nationally for the very purpose of them knowing

His power and people showing his name

Read for yourself Exodus 9 16 now the breakthrough that God is after Really for everybody is not saving everybody

He saves his people sure the purpose that he's after is glorifying himself knowing and showing

Yet so many people read the Bible and assist what God has to give everyone a chance We have to have we have to be free have to be free and God has to be bound by our

Decisions. It's what I feel about God and it's got to be true If Exodus 9 16 will not break through to such people.

I don't know what will What such people are doing is really is exalting their opinions

They're what they feel should be true and at the root of that is is their assumption that they are the center of the universe and God Exists to cater to them that their will their choices are in control of the

Lord's Maybe they've been told all their life you know how great their ideas are that every you know, they can have whatever they want you are not to be denied and when such people come face to face with a

God who says I am the Lord and If in fact, they'll ever listen to him in this life they say

No, I am Just like Pharaoh here. God tells him in verse 17.

You are still exalting yourself Simply by refusing to let them go and our culture today is full of people exalting themselves against God so Sexuality and marriage and right and wrong and life is what they say it is even

God is what they say He is and they think and so they don't bother to read

God's Word much less study it But then they will proclaim I like to think about God as well

God has already revealed himself to them in his word. So And he's done that he's revealed himself so that they will see his power and declare his name

And if this won't do it What will get through to them? So the

Lord announces the beginning of the third and final round the blows there come in four parts

So for the last one kind of breaks down. There's the warning. There's the will the withdrawal and the willfulness

First well the hail Starting at verse 18 the Lord warns that tomorrow they still have a day to repent

Tomorrow he will send very heavy hail. They've never seen anything like it. They've been warned

And so if you believe then get whatever livestock you have your you know servants in those days

Out in the field get them in Otherwise, they'll be wiped out anything any of the animals left from the previous plague of you know

They killed off the livestock anything left get get them inside. They'll be killed get your kids in Get your dog in whatever is out there get your car under cover

Whatever indoors I guess chariots, you know and huddle for safety because anything unprotected will be destroyed

This is the only blow of the ten in which they're told how to The tenth one they're told how to protect themselves

This is the only blow with the first nine which they're told how to protect themselves from it kind of a natural way if they

Believe and so in verse 20, we see that those who says feared the word of the Lord Up to now that okay

They've heard it and they seen it come true That is they really believed and they acted to protect themselves and that's what it means to fear the

Lord It means that you believe him when he says that bad things will happen if you do what he says don't do

And so when he says that if you build your house, you know on your own opinions Instead of what he says on what you know

If you build your life on what feels good to you or what the world says is normal You've ignored the instruction to Jesus eventually.

He says your life will collapse You've been warned. So if you fear the

Lord, well, then you You build it on God's Word not your own now that means

You you will believe the warning and protect take precautions If if you believe that, you know, if you believe the weatherman that a tornado is heading your way right toward you

You'll go to your basement or someone else's basement if you believe that the Lord says If you believe what the

Lord says in any situation, then you'll you'll you'll flee temptation You'll believe what he says about sin how important it is to to avoid it

You believe that it would be better to cut off your hand and gouge out your eye Than to fall into sin

If your problem was really in your hand or your eye It's not really where it is. But you know if you could avoid sin that way you would do it

So you do you avoid compromising situation? So your hand won't roam you you do whatever you have to do to stop yourself from looking at pornography you rearrange your computer or whatever you got to do because you really believe what

Jesus said that you that Avoiding sin is worth that much whatever you have to do

Maybe you really believe what Jesus said that you cannot serve both God and money Said you can't do it.

So don't even try So you're willing to sacrifice some business for seeking

God? That's what you that's what you do when you fear the Lord if you don't fear the

Lord is in verse 21 But then you don't take his word seriously and you end up suffering for it like these people now, there's the warning and then there's the will otherwise there's

The purpose why did God will that this would happen? Moses told Pharaoh in verse 29, you know that this this blow of the hail is so that you will know

He tells him why? That the earth is the Lord's For that purpose you will know that he can

Pharaoh probably thought earth belonged to him and his other pagan gods but the

Lord will show that he can turn hail and lightning on and off He can pulverize everything left out in the open

He can show who really owns it all and then there's the withdrawal

You know Pharaoh confesses in verse 27. I've sinned the Lord is right and I and my people are wrong

No, he sounds so contrite. Let me he probably was tears flowing down his eyes That's not like a great confession that finally the

Lord has broken through to him, right? Pharaoh says he's had enough and pledges to let them go Pleads to stop the hail

Moses says he will he will pray for it to be withdrawn But he but he knows in verse 30 you do not yet fear the

Lord He didn't like the result Pharaoh didn't like the result that he was getting of Disobeying it's the way a lot of people are they don't like the result that the sin has brought in their life

But he didn't have a heart to obey Pharaoh wanted to avert the consequences like a lot of people Suffering, you know from something maybe today from the threat of some disease some problem from bankruptcy or divorce or prison

They want to avert the consequences of what they've done But when the threat of consequences is relieved, you know, the clouds are no longer booming

Hail is it following? The diagnosis is it terminal the summons to court is it being served

Then they don't care Well, so then comes the willfulness in verse 34 notice

Pharaoh sees it that hail and the thunder had ceased So there's no immediate threat

So he sinned yet again says he hardened his heart. Notice that chapter 9 verse 34

Pharaoh hardened his heart. He did it. He is responsible He broke his word as hard -hearted people often do when there's no cost foreseeable, you know, his commitments don't mean anything

Didn't see any cost to it So he went back on it his heart was hardened and he didn't let the people go and then notice

Chapter 10 verse 1 remember the chapter divisions are kind of artificial. So the stories is flowing and the

Lord says I Have hardened his heart Well now the

Lord says he did it You know, in other words God saying I've done the heart hardening

Before it said Pharaoh hardened his heart, which is it? Up to now.

We've seen Exodus kind of go back and forth after different incidents saying the Lord hardened his heart

Maybe one incident Pharaoh hardened his heart after another incident here It speaks of the same incident after the blow of the hail was withdrawn and says both

Says there are three different ways Pharaoh hardened his own heart. His heart was hardened the Lord hardened

Hardened his heart So who did the hardening? Well the conclusion by now is really obvious they both did

Pharaoh's will To be hard -hearted and the Lord's will For him to be hard -hearted

Or the same thing And so he doesn't let the people go But How can that be?

If the Lord is telling him let my people go. Oh, there's the puzzle, isn't it?

How can God command something and then work to ensure that the command is not obeyed?

Here we see perfectly God what the co -theologians call God's will of command He commands something and his will of decree that is he orders something

That will come about he commands Pharaoh. Let my people go But God didn't decree to get ordered as in his sovereign control of all things that Pharaoh's heart would be hard So that he wouldn't let the people go so that he wouldn't obey the command

So why is the Lord decreeing or ordering that his own commands?

Be disobeyed Well, he's already answered that in chapter 9 verse 16 Why we paid attention to that verse?

So that my name may be declared in all the earth and he answers it again in chapter 10 verses 1 to 2

The Lord says he is hardened Pharaoh's heart for three reasons that I may show

That you may tell and that you may know Show the

Lord will show his power. Why does God create some people again? Why does he do it?

So that you know that people he knows Whether or not you believe he predestines are not really not the question because he knows that some people will be damned to hell

He knows that before he creates them now why? Well, he tells us here that he might show his power and Show his mercy to those others.

He saved even when he didn't have to Tell the

Lord acts even hardening is here in chapter 10 that we met we may tell

Especially our children and grandchildren. I think other people's children and grandchildren too for that matter We may tell of how great he is.

Remember a couple weeks ago. What's it all about? What's it all about? What's all this about? Is it about our free choice?

Saving ourselves. No, what's it all about? It's about God's glory

No, the Lord hardens that we may know something about God in ourselves something we something we really need to know

His absolute power and our complete dependence

You know today people read the Bible the few who do and they probably only read the selected parts and Reason that you know if God said do something like repent like believe like be perfect It's already too late for that so I don't know how they do that but they reason you read these commands

Well, then it must be possible For us to do that. He commands it.

It's got to be possible to do it That God would never command people to do something that it's impossible for them to do

But here we see that that that reasoning is simply false Maybe God has another purpose in mind for commanding something that you can't do

Well, you know here we see his faults the Lord commands Pharaoh to let the people go but then hardens his heart

So he wouldn't now you can say well Pharaoh hard this heart. He got to take responsibility for his own hardening

Of course, he hardened his heart. He's a sinner. That's what sinners always do without the grace of God Now the key question is not that you're getting distracted

The key question is whether God has a will that he decrees he orders things to happen

Like Pharaoh refusing to let the people go that is different. That is the opposite of what he commands

God is commanding. Let my people go. He's hardening his heart to prevent him from doing it

Does God have such a thing? God commanded Herod and Pontius Pilate not to murder innocent people

But he decreed that they would murder the only perfectly innocent person who ever lived

See Acts chapter 4 verse 28 He can command and decree different things now you might protest that's not fair Sure It's not fair if you or I did that, you know, we told a kid to Slam dunk a basketball and he can't possibly get up that high

You know, it's not fair if we do that But you or I are not the one you know, you or I are not the

I am You or I are not the one that there is no other like in all the earth

All this is so we'll know who is the one there is no other like in all the earth and I wonder

What does it take to get through to us? that God is

God and We're not Well very quickly two more blows and a final warning starting in chapter 10 the second blow of the final round the locust first the warning

Moses tells Pharaoh goes into his throne room. Probably whatever whatever is left from the hail locusts will take care of They'll so cover the land

You want to even be able to see the ground? I mean there want to be as this all locusts everywhere and like the frogs and flies

Oh, you'll just be everywhere and Moses Moses is court by now feared notice how they're getting more and more fearful

Here first Moses is court I'm which his assistants fears this warning before they didn't look like they take the warning seriously now they do

And they implore Pharaoh in verse 7 chapter 10 verse 7. Do you not understand yet that Egypt is ruined?

In other words, what's it gonna take to get through to you his own assistants are talking to him like this That we're ruined this time before the actual blow

Pharaoh tries to avert it for the first time. He takes a warning seriously, but rather than confessing and surrendering

He tries to negotiate Verses 8 to 11 trying to negotiate with God Now people today try to negotiate with God, you know, if God if you'll heal me,

I'll go back to church If you make my business boom, I'll give 10 % You know if you give me that dream spouse,

I'll be a zealous servant of God and Maybe They reason, you know, they'll try to keep their end of the bargain first So they'll go to church and they'll give their 10 % and they'll actively serve hoping that one day

Soon very soon. It better be soon. God will come through with his end of the bargain

You can tell when they've been thinking that way thinking this is all about negotiations with God getting leverage on him getting something from him

When they finally get tired of waiting on God and they drop it all and they are quote angry with God You've heard of people who are angry with God, you know, he didn't come through.

I Went to church. I gave my money. I served he didn't give me what I wanted There's a scene from the

Breaking Bad series in which the main character Walter White, you know in his gang is to people They're debating on what to do with this woman they think has betrayed them

And they have her captive and are trying to decide whether to kill her or to believe her and of course

She is furiously trying to negotiate for her life. And so finally Walter White says to her

You're a smart businesswoman. You know what leverage is You don't have any

Here Pharaoh, you know like a lot of people today thinks he can negotiate with God, you know get some some leverage on him

To get him to do what we want to do As though and the the assumption is as though God is so desperate for us

So we can we can withhold ourselves. We have something God wants and we could hold it back

Get him to do what we want to do. You know, we'll withhold our church attendance our prayers. Let's stop praying

No, that'll show that'll show him. Well, hope withhold our giving his leverage to God Straighten that God out get him to do what we want

What's it gonna take? To get through to us We don't have any leverage with God Well Pharaoh has been pummeled by the

Lord seven times by now is being threatened with another blow he's repeatedly broken his word

He's hardened his heart and yet notice in verses 10 and 11 Chapter 10 verses 10 and 11

That he is the one after all this sin on his part that he is the one who is who is angry

He's self -righteous. He is the one accusing Moses of some evil purpose.

You have an evil purpose You've been throwing their boys in the river. You've been killing them.

You've been breaking your word. You're a liar. You're He's accusing of evil purpose.

He's sinful. He's self -centered He's self -righteous It's an impenetrable combination

So Locusts it is It was as bad as the

Lord had warned. No, it's the several verses. They're describing how bad it was So Pharaoh says hastily called

Moses and Aaron in verse 16 other they're panicking now and Again, he confesses

I have sinned He pleads in verse 17 forgive my sin, please only this once Only this once I'll never do it again

It's another shallow confession just to avoid the consequences, but Moses intercedes and the Lord does indeed withdraw the locusts

Result is the same Pharaoh lacking God's grace won't let them go and verse 20

Now sure sure Moses of Pharaoh hardened his own heart but verse 20 looks to the ultimate cause the

Lord Hardens his heart Well, the last blood with the three cycles of three is the darkness and here the

Lord takes on the chief Egyptian God Called rah or a rah the

Sun God And the Lord will blot out the Sun in Egypt except for where the Israelites live.

He'll do that for three days again There's something of a contest of the gods the

God they believed was the most powerful Would be defeated by the Lord. And so with every blow the

Lord has been discrediting their gods and he does the same today You know if we serve another

God other than the Lord He will discredit it. I Don't think it's a coincidence

I'm not saying I know for sure but I just don't think it's a coincidence that the culture our culture that made a god out of romance, you know so much of So much so that everything we believe in our culture today can be sacrificed for what we call love.

It's everything It's not a coincidence that that culture this culture

Is the one with the highest divorce rate? It says the Lord now is is discrediting that God I made a god out of pleasure.

So SDDs and AIDS are epidemic the Lord warned the Lord Jesus himself warned of the deceitfulness of riches.

Otherwise many people pursue Wealth is their God and he says it is deceiving you at the end

It will be discredited if you serve it sacrificing family children church for seeking first the kingdom of the dollar and its riches

You'll find your God discredited in the end Like Ra the

God of the Sun here who was blotted out by the Lord Well, there's no warning this time.

Just just pitch darkness for three days What does it take to get through to Pharaoh, you know, even with this he tries to negotiate with God, you know to torchlight

I guess because you know, it's dark everywhere. So they must have some torches lit and He's trying to negotiate

Moses has no deal We must serve the Lord with everything we have not a hoof she'll be left behind besides Pharaoh You have no leverage

You have nothing to bargain with And of course neither do we?

The Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart chapter 10 verse 27 again looking past the human cause Pharaoh to the ultimate cause the

Lord and without God's grace Most Pharaoh is angry the end of chapter 10

Threatening to kill Moses you ever see you again. You're gonna be dead in verse 28. Moses says so be it

But he has one last word as This furious confrontation continues into chapter 11.

There's a little interruption sort of a flashback I think in verses in chapter 11 verses 1 to 3 as we find out what the

Lord has revealed to Moses before this The Lord had told Moses yet one more blow

I will bring on Pharaoh and upon Egypt Afterward, he will let you go. Okay, the

Lord has told Moses this and they're gonna be able to plunder the Egyptians And so before this angry last meeting the

Lord told Moses what's it's going to take so imagine this scene then You know

Pharaoh is angry. He's threatened to kill Moses and Before storming off Moses tells

Pharaoh What's coming? He gets the last word the lantern light. It's dim of the night blow because it's dark outside He warns him

Moses warns Pharaoh about the knockout blow that's coming at midnight when it's dark, too Just like it is now every firstborn of the land of Egypt shall die

Even your son Pharaoh the heir to the throne Gonna be dead

Everyone to those to the lowliest slave grinding grain even to the animals in verse 6

He says there will be a cry in Egypt You know this story began

Remember, I'll be back in chapters 1 & 2 with Israel crying to the

Lord now at the end Egypt will be crying

Moses stands in the dimly lit throne room and warns Pharaoh one last time your child will die

Your country will cry but not even the dogs will growl at God's people that you may know

That the Lord makes a distinction he separates in this world his people from others

Now finally Moses's voice rising and hot anger Pointing to the men all around Pharaoh's age who by now by now revered

Moses Moses tells Pharaoh in verse 8 all these your servants will come down to me and bow

Down to me. They'll beg me to leave no longer willing to wait on you and after that I Will go out and with that Moses turns and leaves

Pharaoh. I should be enough. Don't you think to finally?

Get through to him Pharaoh's own son is now in the crosshairs

Is it the warning enough? No It's not

You know people today They have the warning of hell of eternal destruction of Destroyed lives if they build them on the sand of their own opinions lots of those warnings from Jesus himself and still

It's not enough to get through to them. The Lord tells Moses Pharaoh will not listen to you

Now, yes, he's hard in his own heart inexplicably. It makes no sense. His age have been begging him

He had to know by now with the Lord now triumphant over their highest

God He had to know that the earth and the Sun is the Lord's still he did what sinners do he hardened his heart?

But the Bible goes beyond the human cause here to the ultimate cause once again three times in a row

Up to the last two three times though. It says the Lord Says Pharaoh will not listen to you in order that this is the purpose

This is the reason the ultimate cause for Pharaoh stubbornness My wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt That's why he won't listen

Now that's not why Pharaoh did it of course You know, that's from God's point of view.

He's hardening Pharaoh's heart So he kept God can multiply his wonders from Pharaoh's point of view.

He's hardened his own heart because of pride Because he was raised being told he was a god that whatever he said was true

That his will would be done that nothing could be denied him. They could always have everything he wanted

But Pharaoh isn't in control here He isn't even in control of his ultimately of his own heart in that last verse of chapter 11

His Moses and Aaron did all these wonders But he still wouldn't believe

Now sure he hardened his own heart. That's all that he could do without God's grace in The end though, we're told the

Lord Hardened his heart. What does it take to get through?

to a man like Pharaoh or people like us We too we try to negotiate with God only like him we only take his threat seriously when we're being hammered by his blows

People like him who can sit in the darkness that God has created. Imagine that it's sitting in the darkness.

God has created discrediting our God our God of romance our God of the dollar whatever while we

We're angry. We're angry with God. We're self -righteous. We're demanding.

We're threatening. We're refusing We're angry with God because he hasn't jumped when we snapped our fingers.

What's it take to get through to us? Blows don't do it threats.

Don't do it. We're drawing blows and speaking nicely and sweetly Positively and encouragingly doesn't do it because deep down We're like Pharaoh Thinking we are

God What's it gonna take? To get through to hard -hearted people like us

Only that the God who can't harden Would graciously choose to soften it takes