May 29, 2022
Pastor Ricky Smith
Sermon Notes
I. Gauntlet Laid Down
Exodus 7:1-7
And the Lord said to Moses, “See, I have made you like God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron shall be your prophet. You shall speak all that I command you, and your brother Aaron shall tell Pharaoh to let the people of Israel go out of his land. But I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and though I multiply my signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, Pharaoh will not listen to you. Then I will lay my hand on Egypt and bring my hosts, my people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great acts of judgment. The Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring out the people of Israel from among them.” Moses and Aaron did so; they did just as the Lord commanded them. Now Moses was eighty years old, and Aaron eighty-three years old, when they spoke to Pharaoh.
Philippians 2:9-11
Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Know that the battle belongs to the Lord
II. Going Eleven Rounds
Exodus 7:8-13
Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “When Pharaoh says to you, ‘Prove yourselves by working a miracle,’ then you shall say to Aaron, ‘Take your staff and cast it down before Pharaoh, that it may become a serpent.’” So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and did just as the Lord commanded. Aaron cast down his staff before Pharaoh and his servants, and it became a serpent. Then Pharaoh summoned the wise men and the sorcerers, and they, the magicians of Egypt, also did the same by their secret arts. For each man cast down his staff, and they became serpents. But Aaron’s staff swallowed up their staffs. Still Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he would not listen to them, as the Lord had said.
Rejection of God’s mercy leads to death
III. Glutton for Punishment
Romans 9:14-18
What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God’s part? By no means! For he says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy. For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I might show my power in you, and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.”So then he has mercy on whomever he wills, and he hardens whomever he wills.
God in His grace and mercy extends to you life and peace
Next Steps
- I repent of my sin and confess Jesus as my Savior and King for the first time
- I choose to acknowledge His power and authority in my life each day
- I confess that I have wrestled with God’s plan for my life
Deep Dive
- Read Psalm 121:1-8 and discuss the comfort that comes from knowing God is our warrior and keeper.
- Which of the plagues of Egypt do you feel was the most impactful? Why?
- How did God use the signs or plagues against Egypt to make His name known?
Springboard
- Share specific ways you feel God has blessed you. Express thanks to God for these gifts.
- Read 2 Corinthians 9:8 and discuss God’s sufficiency to provide us with grace in all things.
- How can you give glory to God when others acknowledge ways you have been blessed by God?