This week we will be exploring Exodus 8:20-9:35 together, Knowing that He Is the Lord!
I originally titled this week, Confronting the Gods of Egypt, Part II. But since most sequels are not that good, I decided to change the title. 🙂
Actually, as I studied this week, I was reminded again of the primary purpose of the ten plagues.
By this you shall know that I am the LORD! (7:17)
This is Life 101. This is Reality 101. This is Wisdom 101.
The first truth that we must learn is a simple one: He is the Lord.
Once we acknowledge this truth, then other truths begin to take shape. Since He is the Lord, then that means...
I am not the Lord. The rulers of this world are not the Lord. The things of this world that I put my trust in will not satisfy me or give me security. I can't go my own way and find life. I exist to give Him glory. My purpose in life is to know Him and to follow His will. Salvation can only come through His grace. I can rest in His sovereignty. I can trust in His goodness. I can rejoice in His love.
God redeems us so that we can know Him.
And God confronts the false idols of this world so that everyone can know that He alone is the Lord.
This Sunday we will continue our journey through the plagues. With each plague, God reveals an aspect of His character, confronts the false gods of Egypt, shows grace toward His people, and exposes the hardness of man's heart.
As we study God's Word this week, may we bow in worship and humility and proclaim, "He is the Lord!"

This week we will be exploring Exodus 7:8-8:19 together, Confronting the Gods of Egypt.
We are all pretty familiar with the ten plagues. Their decimation of Egypt is one of the most well-known parts of the book of Exodus.
Blood. Frogs. Gnats. Flies. Pestilence. Boils. Hail. Locusts. Darkness. Death of the firstborn.
It reads like the apocalypse...and makes great special effects in the movies!
But what is the purpose of the plagues? Why did God send them on Egypt? And what are we to learn from them today?
The main purpose of the plagues is for the Israelites, the Egyptians, Pharaoh, and the whole world to know that the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is the LORD, Yahweh, the Great I AM.
He is the sovereign One over the universe.
He is the One who controls nature, who rules over humanity, who both judges and redeems.
To accomplish this purpose, God must also confront all the false gods that vie for people's devotion, allegiance, and worship.
Against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord. (Exodus 12:12b)
So each of the plagues points to two undeniable truths:
1. God is absolutely sovereign.
2. The false gods of Egypt are absolutely worthless.
We need to be reminded of these same truths today. We may not worship such false gods as Ra, Isis, Heket, Wadjet, Geb, Nut, Apis, the Nile River, or Pharaoh. But we do have our own objects of allegiance, devotion, and worship. Money, possessions, power, fame, technology, sports, pleasure, sex, alcohol, food, YouTube influencers, social media, etc., etc.
Whatever dominates our thoughts, whatever dominates our time, whatever dominates our heart is often our own false god. And we need to allow God to confront it in our own lives...for His glory and our good.
As we study the ten plagues over the next three weeks, may God open our eyes to His absolute sovereignty and His amazing grace and may He expose whatever hinders us from being fully devoted to Him.

This week we will be exploring Exodus 6:1-7:7 together, Getting Back on Track.
Have you ever messed things up in a big way?
Have you ever felt like you drifted so far from the Lord that you didn't know how to get back?
Have you ever been disappointed in God?
These can be common experiences in the Christian life.
When things don't go according to plan...or God doesn't come through in the way that we want or expect...or we find ourselves in a mess that we can't seem to get out of...then it is easy to drift away from the Lord. To get stuck in a rut.
This is where Moses is at the end of Exodus 5.
He has messed things up royally before Pharaoh. The people of Israel are suffering more. And God doesn't seem to be coming through the way that he expected.
Moses is rejected, dejected, doubting, and pouting.
It is at this point that God steps in and acts.
Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh... (6:1)
Exodus 6 is a key turning point in the book of Exodus.
"Super Moses" is gone. In his defeat and despair, Moses is now going to see God's glory, power, faithfulness, and redemption on full display.
Moses will come to know that He is the Lord.
Israel will come to know that He is the Lord.
Egypt will come to know that He is the Lord.
As G. Campbell Morgan once said:
The supreme need in every hour of difficulty and depression is a vision of God.
To see Him is to see all else in proper proportion and perspective.
May we catch a greater glimpse of the Self-Existent, Self-Sufficient, All-Powerful, All-Sustaining, Ever-Present, Ever-Faithful God as we worship Him!
This Sunday, we will also celebrate communion together as fellow partakers of God's grace!
A Bible study guide is available, walking step-by-step, verse-by-verse, through Exodus 1-13. Pick up a study guide on Sunday ($5 donation) and join us for this journey!