"I Make You as God to Pharaoh…"
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February 15, 2015 |
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 "Then the LORD said to Moses, 'See, I make you as God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron shall be your prophet'…So Moses and Aaron did it; as the LORD commanded them, thus they did" (Exodus 7:1, 6)
Senior Pastor Dr. Jaerock Lee
God called Moses and sent him to Pharaoh to deliver the Israelites. However, it seemed impossible to bring them out of Egypt.
The Egyptians were benefiting greatly from the Israelites. There was no chance that the Pharaoh would set the Israelites free just because of the demand of Moses. But God was with him. God Himself attested to Moses' words and promised that he would perform God's power. Counting on this promise of God, Moses performed many powerful works in Egypt.
1. God's Power Was Manifested in Ten Plagues by Moses, the Leader of the Israelites
Moses arrived in Egypt and called all the elders of Israel. He said God had heard their cry and sent him to save them from the hardship. As the evidence, Moses showed them several signs.
Hearing from Moses and witnessing the signs, the Israelites were filled with joy and expectations of their departure from Egypt to a new place. However, the matter did not go as easily as they had thought. Moses and Aaron boldly went before the Pharaoh. They delivered God's message and asked Pharaoh to let the people of Israel go out from the country. But rather than letting them go, he increased the amount of labor and became harsher towards them. They thought the Pharaoh would free them immediately, but rather they had to face more hardships and they now began to bring complaints against Moses and Aaron.
Because God knew their level of faith, He did not blame them, but He began to show His works through Moses. These works were the 'Ten Plagues.'
These plagues started as a small thing, but because Pharaoh did not repent though faced with continuous disasters, in the end it resulted in the deaths of all the first sons of Egypt.
The first was the plague of blood. Moses told Aaron to hit the Nile with the staff, and all waters in Egypt turned into blood. There was the foul smell of blood and dead fish everywhere. Egyptians quickly dug wells to get their drinking water since they couldn't drink or use any water from the river. But when the magicians of Egypt turned water into blood, Pharaoh hardened his heart and didn't listen to Moses. Then, the second plague came.
Countless frogs came up from the Nile and filled the whole nation. Not only the streets but also the bedrooms and even kneading bowls were overflowing with frogs. Pharaoh quickly called Moses and promised him that he would let Israelites go if he removed the frogs. But after it was settled, he changed his mind.
As the third plague, Moses told Aaron to raise the staff and hit the dust of the ground, and the dust became gnats. Countless gnats came up onto the people and cattle. The magicians of Egypt could not imitate the plague of gnats nor any of the plagues that followed. They could not change the lifeless dust of the ground into living gnats. Works of this kind belong solely to God the Creator.
The magicians of Egypt confessed that it was the power of God, but Pharaoh was still stubborn. Then the plague of flies came about. The flies covered not only the houses of people but also the houses of Pharaoh's servants and his palace. Pharaoh once again asked Moses to remove the flies and then promised he would let the Israelites go, but when the flies actually were removed, he didn't keep his promise.
Next came the plagues of pestilence and plague of boils that were inflicted upon Egypt. Not only the Egyptian people, but also the livestock of Egypt suffered because of them.
Next the plague of hail rained down with fire from heaven. Not only were the crops all destroyed throughout Egypt, but also many animals and people who were caught outside were killed. The crops that remained after the plague of hail were gone completely because of the plague of locusts that followed.
Each time a plague came, the Pharaoh promised that he would let the Israelites go, but when the plague was gone, he changed his mind every time. Now, Moses lifted up his hand toward the sky, and the plague of darkness fell on Egypt. There was no light whatsoever. There was no sunlight or moonlight for three days.
2. Spiritual Meanings in the 'Ten Plagues'
How can these incidents that God let be written in the Bible in so much detail be related to us today? It is, of course, to remember that the power of God was manifested throughout all Egypt through Moses. But the more important reason is the spiritual meaning contained in the Ten Plagues that are for our instruction.
God used the situation because He wanted to show us the reasons why people face disasters and the ways to escape from those disasters. Egypt spiritually stands for the world full of sin and evil (Revelation 11:8). The Ten Plagues inflicted upon the Egyptians represent all kinds of calamities that can take place in our lives today.
The plague of blood caused the suffering of lacking water which is one of the necessities of life. So, it spiritually symbolizes the problems that we face in our surroundings, such as at home or at work. For instance, some believers lack wisdom in leading their believing lives and are persecuted by people who are close to them at work or at home.
The plague of frogs symbolizes the works of Satan taking place in our homes and workplaces. It causes conflicts between a husband and a wife or problems in work places or businesses. The plague of gnats spiritually symbolizes a situation where small things like gnats suddenly come up to the surface and develop into bigger problems, and they cause much pain and suffering. An example would be when some small problems keep mounting between brothers, or between a husband and wife, and later they lead to a big fight. Up to the plague of gnats, if we repent and turn back, we can recover immediately.
But from the plague of flies, a wall of sin against God is created, so we would need thorough repentance. Flies breed in unclean places and diseases are spread wherever they go. Likewise, spiritually, the plague of flies represents a situation where people speak out evil words from their evil heart, and those words are spread here and there. This becomes a snare to them, and they face diseases or problems.
The plague of pestilence causes serious internal diseases. More serious than this is the plague of boils that causes diseases revealed externally. The plague of hail refers to unexpected accidents or incidents that cause great damage to one's wealth and possessions. The plague of locusts leads to fatal damage such as a business going bankrupt. More serious yet is the plague of darkness that causes failure of hope in all aspects of one's life. If one doesn't turn back, then there is the plague of death of the firstborn, which can cause one's own death or one's close persons' death.
The Ten Plagues became increasingly more serious and more fatal as they were inflicted one by one. If one has a little bit of wisdom, even when he meets with a "plague", he should look back upon himself and repent and act properly in the sight of God.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, when the Ten Plagues came upon Egypt, not a single plague came upon Goshen where the Israelites dwelled (Exodus 8:22-23). While the whole land of Egypt was covered with flies, there was not a fly in Goshen! They were not affected by the pestilence, boils, hail, and the locusts.
Today believers who live in the Word of God are also experiencing the works of God who protected Goshen. They have nothing to do with any national epidemic. Even if they come down with a certain disease, once they repent and receive the prayer, they are healed quickly. There are many believers who have experienced the works of God.
Countless powerful works including the biblical works will keep unfolding continually. Therefore, I urge you to believe God the Creator who is almighty and obey His Word. I pray in the name of the Lord that by doing so you will fulfill His providence completely at this end time.
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