Reaching the Egyptians
“And the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I stretch forth mine hand upon Egypt, and bring out the children of Israel from among them.” (Exodus 7:5)
Even though the Egyptians were holding Israel in slavery, God also cared about them. He wanted them to know He was the true God.
While Joseph was governor in Egypt, the Pharaoh heeded his wise counsel. God blessed Egypt and used Egypt to keep other nations from starvation. Yet one day a new king came to power in Egypt who didn’t care about Joseph or his God. Under his leadership, Egypt slid into wickedness. If you’re a leader, here is a lesson: yours is a position of great power and influence, but also great responsibility. You can choose to be used by God to encourage America to godliness, or used by the devil to encourage America to sin.
God cares about other nations, not just Israel. God told Abraham, “…and in thee shall all families of the earth [not just Israel’s] be blessed.” (Genesis 12:3) He also told Abraham’s grandson Jacob years later, “…and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.” (Genesis 28:14) The blessing from Israel to the world would be Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Saviour.
God loved the Egyptians, but they had to realize He is the true God. The ten plagues were: 1) the river turning to blood; 2) frogs; 3) lice; 4) flies; 5) murrain (a livestock disease); 6) boils; 7) hail; 8) locusts; 9) darkness; and 10) death of the firstborn. Historians say each plague was directed against Egyptian false gods. Thus the Egyptians would see from the plagues that Israel’s God is the true God, not their deities.
The magicians of Egypt could not replicate the plague of lice. They said, “This is the finger of God:” (Exodus 8:19) Not “This is the finger of one of the gods,” but “…the finger of God.” They knew there is one God. Looking at nature, we see that there is one God who is eternal and powerful: “For the invisible things of him [God] from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:” (Romans 1:20)
Yet people also tend to believe what they hear repeatedly. If people hear from an early age, for instance, that we evolved from lower life forms, they may believe it and not believe the Bible. Like the Egyptians, they need the truth. If we did evolve, then Jesus lied by saying, “…he which made them at the beginning made them male and female,” (Matthew 19:4) Jesus has been called a great moral teacher, but if He lied, He is not even a good moral teacher, much less the Saviour. Evolution and creation can’t both be right.
For those still skeptical that the plagues were of God, the plague of flies did not affect Goshen, where the Israelites lived. Nor did the murrain, hail, locusts, or darkness. God said the locusts would “…eat every herb of the land, even all that the hail hath left.” (Exodus 10:12) Apparently any land not plagued by hail–that is, Goshen—also would not be plagued by locusts.
Before the hail came, “He that feared the word of the LORD among the servants of Pharaoh made his servants and his cattle flee into the houses:” (Exodus 9:20) Even if Pharaoh did not take heed to Moses, others in Egypt did. Based on this verse, here is a thought: when you talk about Christ, you never know who else is listening as God deals with their hearts. Telling people about Jesus is never a waste of effort.
The Exodus wasn’t just about freedom from slavery for Israel. It was about salvation for the world. Please go to www.clevelandbaptist.org, click “Helpful Links,” then “How Do I Go to Heaven?” to see how to receive Jesus as your personal Saviour and have forgiveness of your sins and eternal life.
Brian Miller 1/31/2024
Cleveland Baptist Church 4431 Tiedeman Road, Brooklyn, Ohio 44144 216/671-2822