|
18th April 2024
Pray (ACts) Read (Ecclesiastes 11v7-10) Message (Scott Woodburn) There is something very intoxicating about the months leading to the summer. The nights get shorter, the temperatures rise and our annual fortnight at the caravan gets ever closer. It’s human to day dream about the future and to long for a special day but it should never be our default setting. Ecclesiastes is a wonderful but uncompromising book. It is a challenging read and Solomon often hits us right between the eyes with his description of life under the sun. But we do the wise King an injustice if we pretend Solomon was always doom and gloom. Indeed he couldn’t have been clearer when he said “Light is sweet, and it is pleasant for the eyes to see the sun.” (v7) or to put it another way “Life is good” This is not an unbiblical statement. We know that to be with Jesus is better by far (Philippians 1v23) but we also know that life under the sun is sometimes very, very sweet. Every wedding I’ve ever conducted in Edengrove has seen the balcony filled with women of a certain age who have come without an invitation just to look at the Bride’s dress. Why? Because weddings are one of life’s joyous affairs. Another happy thing is to enjoy a meal with the one you love. It is a delight to witness your grandson’s first steps and it thrills our heart to see the Grand Canyon in person or to propose at the Eiffel Tower or to gaze in wonder at the top of Slieve Croob. Sometimes, life is good. Therefore, both young and old are to rejoice in all the days they are given (v8). There is no doubt that dark days will come in the midst of much vanity (v8b). There will be days of both mental vexation and bodily pain (v10) but nevertheless, we are to rejoice in our many years (v8a) and certainly in the days of our youth (v9). Does this mean we should live an unrestricted life of debauchery and sin? By no means! The Lord will certainly bring each one of us into judgement (v9b) but we should seek and expect days of joy and happiness this side of heaven. Brothers and sisters, God has spoken in Ecclesiastes and He has told us that life will be both bitter and sweet. The bitter days will certainly come and by God’s grace we will endure, but we should also be certain of days when the sun shines brightly upon our face. When those days arrive may we have the discernment to know that life is good and may we remember to sing praises to Christ our King. Pray (acTS) Sing WSC Q16 Did all mankind fall in Adam’s first transgression? The covenant being made with Adam, not only for himself, but for his posterity; all mankind, descending from him by ordinary generation, sinned in him, and fell with him in his first transgression.
0 Comments
17th April 2024
Pray (ACts) Read (Exodus 10:1-20) Message (Alan Burke) My kids love hearing stories about when I was a wain, every time they are in my mums company the topic normally comes up and most of the time they don’t paint me in the best light. I claim that I was practically perfect in every way but for some reason no one believes me but I will go to my grave claiming that even though it is a downright lie. Here’s the thing, none of the things I got up to when I was younger were done for the so that my own wains could be told a story about how great their da was. Look here though the reasons why we are told that the Lord was doing all this to the Egyptians, why he had brought the previous seven plagues and is bringing this the eighth plague of locusts. Well in v1-2 the Lord we are told was doing this so not only the Egyptians would know that the Lord is God and that his people would know that the Lord is God but also that his people may be able to tell them to their children and grandchildren of how the Lord dealt harshly with the Egyptians. I know it isn’t the thrust of the passage but in this we learn that it is the family that is meant to be the school of faith. It is the family, the parent to the child, the grandparent to their grandchildren, teaching the truths of the faith is to be handed down from one generation to the next. For those of you who have younger children in your lives, school age, you are responsible for teaching the truths of the faith, you are to pass on to them the wonder of what God has done for them, telling them the story of the salvation that God has brought. I’ve heard parents say they will let their children make up their own mind about matters of faith, when they are old enough they can decide, they do not teach their children the truths of the faith, and if their children decide not to go to worship, attend the different things on among the church. You ask the same parents as I have done do they do all they can to teach them their maths homework and make sure they go to school they say yes, they wouldn’t dream of letting their children decide for themselves at 15 whether on not to start doing their maths homework or go to school, it’s too late. We are to pass on the faith, teach our children to obey for their benefit and the glory of God. Once more Pharaoh is warned and he fails to humble himself. His officials were even telling Pharaoh to let the people go (v7). His officials saw what had and was befalling on Egypt but Pharaoh could not see it, his heart was hardened. While the magicians had abandoned their attempts to recreate the plagues, and his officials ask him how long. Pharaoh as a result tried to barter with Moses about who could go, look at v9, when Pharaoh enquired who would go to worship the Lord, some translations use the word serve and to this Moses answered “We will go with our young and old, with our sons and daughters, and with our flocks and herds, because we are to celebrate a festival to the Lord.” The Lord didn’t just want the adults to serve him to worship him, he wanted all of his people to worship, to serve him, from the oldest to the youngest. The Lord was redeeming his people to serve and to worship him. You could ask what is the chief end of the Israelites, to glorify God and enjoy him forever, as they serve and worship him and it is young and old, every man woman and child together. God was demanding from pharaoh his people, he didn’t say split them all up into age specific groups as we sinfully have done but the Lord wanted all his people together. In the worship and the service of him. Again throughout the scripture the same emphasis is given both in the Old and the New Testament. Pharaoh is obstinate and plague of locusts came. The crops that had been battered by the hail and left in the field were now devoured by millions of locusts. Pharaoh once more confessed his sin but was unrepentant, the knowledge of our sin should make us cry out to the Lord for mercy and turn from our sinful ways and know his mercy through Jesus Christ. Pray (acTS) Sing WSC Q15 What was the sin whereby our first parents fell from the estate wherein they were created? The sin whereby our first parents fell from the estate wherein thy were created, was their eating the forbidden fruit. (Gen. 3:6) 16th April 2024
Pray (ACts) Read (Ecclesiastes 11v3-6) Message (Scott Woodburn) It was the late Donald Rumsfeld who famously said “Reports that say that something hasn't happened are always interesting to me, because as we know, there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns—the ones we don't know we don't know. And if one looks throughout the history of our country and other free countries, it is the latter category that tends to be the difficult ones.” What did he mean? There are things we know we know, things we know we don’t know and things that we don’t know we don’t know. Still confused? Me too, but I think Rumsfeld was speaking about certainties and uncertainties, there are things that we can know and there are things we can never know. What can we know? If we see dark foreboding clouds overhead, we can be reasonably certain that rain is going to fall (v3a) and if a tree falls in a forest it will lie there until moved (v3b). What can we never know? It is God who breathes life into a child in the womb (v5) and while we know much about human reproduction and DNA, there remains something wonderfully mysterious about how the Lord brings forth life (v5b). No wonder David spoke of his creation in this way “I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.” (Psalm 139v14). So there are things entirely knowable and other things which belong only to God. How do we respond? Not by sitting at home. The individual who always waits for absolute certainty will never lift a finger. It’s like a farmer waiting for the perfect weather, he believes that tomorrow will be better and so he never gets round to sowing and reaping (v4). The right response is to understand that aspects of life are both certain and uncertain. There are things of which we can be sure whilst admitting that we cannot accurately predict tomorrow. Even so, we do the work in front of us today. In the morning we sow our seed and we continue to work when the evening comes (v6). We can’t be sure that our work will prosper or fail, nevertheless we honour Christ by not shrinking in the face of uncertainty. Brothers and sisters, you will never have all the answers and the “unknown unknowns” will remain unknown but this is perfectly okay. You can be sure that the Lord is good, He is for you and one day you will see the face of Jesus. Live and work in light of these certainties - for Christ’s sake. Pray (acTS) Sing WSC Q14 What is sin? Sin is any want of conformity unto, or transgression of, the law of God. 15th April 2024
Pray (ACts) Read (Exodus 9:13-35) Message (Alan Burke) We’ve been flying through these plagues which and as we come to the seventh plague, the plague of Hail the Egyptians were once more confronted with how there is only one God and this time it comes with a plague of hail. Hail doesn’t sound all that miraculous, we’ve all been pelted at some state by a few hail stones but this plague was nothing like what we have experienced, this plague left total destruction on the land of Egypt and just as before the Lord makes a distinction between his people and the Egyptians in the coming judgement. Once more Moses is to go to Pharaoh and ask for the very same thing that Pharaoh would let the people go so that they may worship the Lord, that they may serve the Lord. Pharaoh is again warned about the consequences of refusal and the consequences make the first six plages look like nothing more than a minor inconvenience. Why was the Lord doing this? Well it was so that the people would know that he is the Lord, this was the reason that the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart because if it was all over with just the first plague, Pharaoh had have let the people go then it would be easy to dismiss who the Lord God is. The Egyptians who were polytheistic and had multiple gods were hedging their bets and the Lord was showing his Lordship over all their false gods, there was no room for a pantheon of gods, there is only one living and true God who makes himself known. If the Lord had desired to wipe the Egyptians out so that his people could worship and serve him he could have but he wanted the Egyptians to know who he is. It was for this very reason the Lord had raised Pharaoh up for this very purposes. All that had unfolded was according to God’s plan and purposes so that his name would be proclaimed in all the earth. Throughout Egypt hail struck everything in the fields—both men and animals; it beat down everything growing in the fields and stripped every tree. The only place it did not hail was the land of Goshen, where the Israelites were. This was not a mere natural occurrence, this was the hand of the Almighty. Once more Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron, he said to them that he had sinned, he asked that they would pray for he and his people were in the wrong. We might think great he’s finally getting it the penny is dropping but no, Pharaoh may have been overcome but his remorse for his sin was only caused by the consequences of his sin, his repentance wasn’t true repentance, for no sooner had the plague ended than Pharaoh changed his mind again, Moses even told Pharaoh "But I know that you and your officials still do not fear the Lord God.” Nothing had changed in the heart of Pharaoh, he refused to let the Israelites go to worship, to serve the Lord the one and only God. While he should have known by this stage that he was only going to cause himself more pain, that every time he is confronted with how the Lord is greater than he is he was resolute, stubborn, he was unwilling to let the people go. While the Pharaoh and the people believed he was a god among his people and people would prostate themselves as they came before him yet he was a sinner, his knowledge of that sin did not mean that he was repentant of it because as soon as the prayer of Moses was answered he went right back to business as usual. Pharaoh may have hated the consequences of his sin but did not hate the sin. This is one of those things that we need to understand, because in our lives the issue is not the consequences of our sin it is the sin itself, it is the sin that we should hate, it is the sin that we should be repenting of not the consequences. And as we repent of that sin cry out for the Lord to be merciful. The Lord is merciful on sinners who come to him in repentance, who hate not only the consequences of sin but their own sin, he is merciful on all who repent because Jesus took the consequences of our sin on himself so that we might be saved. Pray (acTS) Sing WSC Q13 Did our first parents continue in the estate wherein they were created? Our first parents, being left to the freedom of their own will, fell from the estate wherein they were created, by sinning against God. (Gen. 3:6–8,13, Eccl. 7:29) 13th April 2024
Pray (ACts) Read (Ecclesiastes 11v2) Message (Scott Woodburn) If Ecclesiastes eleven and verse one urged us to take risks for the Lord then the lesser known verse two counsels us to proceed with caution. Do they contradict one another? By no means, but as we take bold decisions for the Gospel of Jesus we are to do so with wisdom. Using the same image of a loaf of bread, we are to divide it out among seven or even eight recipients (v2) for we do not know what disaster might happen on earth. To use a phrase that your mother used to say, "Don't put all your eggs in one basket." Let's imagine the pretend congregation of Ballydaisy Presbyterian Church. Ballydaisy had a substantial pot of money which they passionately believed should all be spent on the work of mission. They had as their motto William Carey's famous quote "Attempt great things for God. Expect great things from God." and so they gave every penny of their money to the work of church planting around the world. Who could fault such a decision? No one...except those who every Sunday had to sit underneath the hole in Ballydaisy's roof. Were our imaginary friends in Ballydaisy wrong for spending their money on mission? No! They made a noble decision but perhaps one egg should have been removed from the mission basket and placed into the church roof basket. Do you see my point? We are to be risk takers for the cause of Christ but never to the extent that cautious wisdom is ignored. It was the Rev. H.K. Williams who once remarked "if you fail to prepare you are preparing to fail." and I think his wisdom applies as we try to respond to Ecclesiastes eleven. A church that refuses to be knocked off course is wonderful indeed. It is exciting to hear about fellowships making grand plans and casting their bread upon the waters for the cause of Christ. Even better is a courageous, risk taking fellowship that has done the hard work of prayerful preparation before acting. Let me suggest that Solomon encourages us to be "cautiously risky" in our response to the Gospel. The risk taker should not trample the one who urges caution, nor should the cautious brother extinguish the fire of the risk taker. Both speak to one another and work together as the church wisely and cautiously casts its bread upon the waters for the sake of Jesus. Pray (acTS) Sing WSC Q12 What special act of providence did God exercise toward man in the estate wherein he was created? When God had created man, he entered into a covenant of life with him, upon condition of perfect obedience; forbidding him to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, upon the pain of death. 12th April 2024
Pray (ACts) Read (Exodus 9:1-12) Message (Alan Burke) The next sign and wonder that the Lord preformed, the next plague was on the livestock. Pharaoh was warned but unrelenting, again God’s makes a distinction between his people and the Egyptians. The Lord always makes a distinction between those who are his and those who aren’t eternally, here he did it in a temporal sense showing that he was their protector. I want you to notice though that these signs and wonders do not make the heart believe. Pharaoh was warned that the Lord would make a distinction between the Egyptians and Israelites and in v7 we are told he sent men to investigate. This is only mentioned here in this plague that Pharaoh sent men to investigate, but the response of what he was told “Yet his heart was unyielding and he would not let the people go”. Pharaoh had seen with his own eyes, he had heard the very word of God, others had testified of the truth of that word to him and yet none of it made Pharaoh a believer. He had a front row seat on one of the greatest displays of the signs and wonders of the Lord and it made no difference to him, he become more resolute in his unbelief. While God had hardened Pharaoh’s heart, Pharaoh had also hardened his own heart, he did not want to see, he was not willing to let the people of God go. This confronts us with a truth that we see again and again in scripture, Signs And Wonders Do Not Make The Heart Believe. Unless the Spirit of God works within us revealing our need of him and enabling us to repent and believe in Jesus Christ then no amount of signs and wonders will do anything. Maybe you think or have heard it say to you, if only I could see a sign, or a miracle, but these things will never be enough instead it is the work of God within (Jn 1:13), as the word is preached, for faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ (Rom 10:7. The only hope for any of us is that the Lord God himself works. God had promised to his people… I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. (Eze 36:26). The only hope for sinners is that God works within. When we think of those around us it is dependant on the work of God from beginning to end, it is God who must work salvation in them, let us pray that God would give them what they need, hearts not that are hardened, hearts not of stone but of flesh that hear and respond to the gospel. Signs And Wonders Do Not Make The Heart Believe Finally for this week the sixth plague, boils. If you’ve ever had a boil you’ll know it’s not pleasant, having one or two is one thing, it’s a different thing entirely being so covered in boils that you’re unable to stand and that is what we have here. Pharaoh was warned, Moses took the soot from a furnace as the Lord had commanded, tossed it into the air and festering boils broke out on men and animals. We also learn just how sever was the effect of the boils was on the Egyptians, there in verse 11, the magicians, the ones who were able to replicate the first two plages by their secret arts, well look what we are told, the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils that were on them and all the Egyptians. You have Moses and Arron standing there before them but so bad are the boils on the bodies of the magicians refer them unable to stand before them. The magicians were able to stand before the representative of the Lord God. The scriptures also speak of how the wicked will not stand in the Judgement. The scriptures make it clear that the only way to stand before the Lord is through his anointed the Lord Jesus Christ, those who have not trusted in him will never be able to stand before him, in the judgement that comes they will perish, they will face his wrath for all eternity. The sixth plague as the magicians could not stand reminds us of what will come in the final judgement at the end of time. Revelation 16 speaks of how on that day“…the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth, and harmful and painful sores came upon the people who bore the mark of the beast and worshiped its image. “Re 16:2”. While the magicians may have been oblivious to who they worshiped and likewise those who are not in Christ, they will all be judged and none will stand in his presence except those who have taken refuge in him (Ps 2:12). And the Lord is still calling sinners to come to him, to trust in the saviour Jesus Christ so they may escape the judgment, this is what we proclaim, this is what we hope for that sinners would come to the Lord and know the wonder of the gospel in Christ Jesus. Pray (acTS) Sing WSC Q11 What are God’ s works of providence? God’ s works of providence are, his most holy, (Ps. 145:17) wise, (Ps. 104:24, Isa. 28:29) and powerful preserving, (Heb. 1:3) and governing all his creatures, and all their actions. (Ps. 103:19, Matt. 10:29–31) 11th April 2024
Pray (ACts) Read (Ecclesiastes 11v1) Message (Scott Woodburn) In another time and place I was involved with a congregation who had big dreams. They were blessed with an abundance of property and so developed a plan to sell, tear down, build and grow. Many meetings were held and plans were drawn up. On some occasions it seemed we were weeks away from progress and then on other days the process slowed to a crawl. How did it all end? To this day the congregation continue to talk but nothing tangible has ever been done and frankly, I don’t think it ever will. It is good for a fellowship to give serious time and consideration to major decisions but a congregation that endlessly talks without action is a frustrating place. Ecclesiastes isn’t a well known book but chapter eleven verse one is quite famous. It says “Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days.” But what does this mean? Some argue that Solomon is speaking about maritime trade whilst others think it is a verse about charitable giving. Regardless of your interpretation, behind this verse is an encouragement to take risks for the Lord. In Solomon's day to put your wealth on a trade ship was a risky business indeed. You may have received a return but equally your goods may have ended up at the bottom of the Mediterranean. If you prefer the image of giving to charity, it too is not without risk. Your donation to your favourite charitable cause might be misused and who knows what that homeless man in Belfast will do with your fiver. So to paraphrase verse one, Solomon urges us to take our daily loaf of bread and throw it into the sea. This immediately looks like a foolish decision. We are taking something essential and throwing it to almost certain destruction upon the waves. Have you ever tried to eat untoasted sourdough? It is so tough that it would "choke a horse" but even it wouldn't survive floating down the Quoile. Nevertheless, Solomon was confident that you will find your bread again after many days. Does this verse mean that we should speculate to accumulate? If I give £1000 to the Lord he'll give me £10,000 back? By no means. This is no prosperity passage. Instead we should understand this verse in light of Calvary. There has been no more important event in all of human history than the death of Jesus upon the cross. He died, rose again and all who trust in Him will be saved. Would you be prepared to count everything as loss for the sake of Christ? Would you be willing to do something that seems foolish for the cause of the Gospel? An English cricketer by the name of C.T. Studd left his home and promising sporting career behind to take the Gospel to China. He once remarked "If Jesus Christ be God and died for me, then no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for Him." Brothers and sisters, be prepared to take risks for Jesus, casting our bread upon the waters for the glorious Gospel of Christ. Pray (acTS) Sing WSC Q10 How did God create man? God created man male and female, after his own image, in knowledge, righteousness, and holiness, with dominion over the creatures. 10th April 2024
Pray (ACts) Read (Exodus 8:20-32) Message (Alan Burke) The Nile to Blood, Frogs all over the land, Gnats everywhere on man and beast, and now Flies. Flies buzzing about, just like the frogs this would have been an audible experience and there would have been not relent from it. Here we are told Dense swarms of flies poured into Pharaoh’s palace and into the houses of his officials, and throughout Egypt the land was ruined by the flies” (v. 24). Again this just like the gnats is not going to kill you but having flies everywhere, constantly there, if you’ve ever had an infestation you’ll know that there is nothing pleasant but the swarms of flies, try working and living in the midst of it you’re going to be tortured, inundated. Look what we are told in v22-23; “ ‘But on that day I will deal differently with the land of Goshen, where my people live; no swarms of flies will be there, so that you will know that I, the Lord, am in this land. 23 I will make a distinction between my people and your people..’ ” The Lord made a distinction between his people and the Egyptians, his people dwelt in the land of Goshen since Joseph had been reunited with his family. The fact that there was no swarm in Goshen shows that this is not a mere natural occurrence this is the work of the Lord, there is no natural explanation of this other than God was at work, that he made a distinction between the Israelites and the Egyptians. God treated his people differently for there is difference between those who are the Lord’s and those who aren’t. Even though the Israelites were a sinful people they were still God’s chosen people who he was redeeming for his own glory. Today there is a distinction between those who are the Lords and those who are not, he redeems those who are his but those who are not will face his judgment. Now this doesn’t mean that the Lord is going to spare us from the sin and misery in this life because we are his chosen people, that he has chosen before the foundation of the world. Jesus warned his followers that they could expect trial, persecution, Jesus even going as far as saying, blessed are those who are persecuted, blessed are those who reviled on his account (Mt 5:10-12). God makes a distinction between those who are his people and those who are not. Those who are his people are the sheep of his pasture who go to eternal life and those who are not are goats who will go away to eternal punishment. Before we move on, notice Pharaoh’s request to Moses “you must not go very far. Now pray for me.”. Pharaoh had already asked Moses and Arron to pray for him back in v8 in the second plague. Back in chapter 5 when Moses had went to Pharaoh, Pharaoh had said, “Who is the Lord, that I should obey him and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord and I will not let Israel go.” (Ex 5:2). Now he is asking Moses to intercede for him and his people, he now knows who the Lord is but as a sign of his spiritual condition he asks Moses to pray but will not pray himself. There are many people who ask for prayer but are unable to pray for themselves often it shows their spiritual condition. But God’s children can come before him in prayer through what Jesus Christ has done, we can intercede on behalf of others and God will answer according to the council of his will. Pray (acTS) Sing WSC Q9 What is the work of creation? The work of creation is, God’ s making all things of nothing, by the word of his power, in the space of six days, and all very good. (Gen. 1, Heb. 11:3) 9th April 2024
Pray (ACts) Read (Ecclesiastes 10v16-20) Message (Scott Woodburn) The book of Proverbs declares “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people.” (Proverbs 14v34). In a similar manner Solomon pronounces “woe” upon a nation who has a child as a king and princes who feast in the morning (v16). What did he mean? Historically a child king was not an ideal situation for any nation. The young king could easily be swayed or overthrown and so a nation was quite unstable until the little one grew in years and wisdom. Equally, Princes who feasted in the morning were focusing more on entertainment than government. The morning should have been for work not a party. In comparison it is a happy nation that has a wise and mature king with feasting done at the appropriate time (v17). These feasts are to strengthen the leaders rather than to lead them into drunkenness (v17b). Righteousness does indeed exalt a nation and we should be much in prayer for our own land and our own leaders. This response pleases the Lord who wants us to pray for all people and “for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.” (1 Timothy 2v2). I have never been a politician and don’t envy the task of our elected leaders but I am convinced that a country is like a house. If the slates blow off your roof in a winter storm, you need to fix them quickly or soon the roof will fall in and the house will be flooded (v18). Politicians must be men and women who work hard, wisely and quickly. There is a time and place for eating, drinking and earning money (v19) but a nation with indulgent and slothful leaders will be a poor place indeed. Even so, we shouldn’t respond to our leaders with anger and cursing (v20). Solomon offered the counsel that your harsh opinions may reach the ears of your leaders by a “little bird”. I don’t fear a knock on the door from Rishi Sunak but nevertheless, I honour Christ by praying for our Prime Minister rather than cursing him privately. Brothers and sisters, this is an election year and it is no exaggeration to say that our country is in poor shape. I would urge you to vote with all seriousness and wisdom as you consider the various issues facing the land. There is an old saying that we should vote early and vote often but this is neither Biblical nor today’s application. Instead, I call you to pray for the country and her leaders. May righteousness exalt this nation for sin remains a reproach to any people. Pray (acTS) Sing WSC Q8 How doth God execute his decrees? God executeth his decrees in the works of creation and providence. 8th April 2024
Pray (ACts) Read (Exodus 8:1-19) Message (Alan Burke) The French eat frogs, actually there are many countries in this world that eat frogs legs and in Indonesia you can get them battered. Go to Scotland and you can get most things battered but in Indonesians outdo the Scotts when it comes to battering frogs legs. I’d be up for giving them a try, battered, curried, in Slovenian a specialty is fried frog legs žabji kraki with lemon and tartar sauce which sounds good to me. I say that but know that there are many of you trying not to wretch because you don’t want to see your breakfast again. That’s just an aside to where were are today or rather this week and that is the plagues that befell on Egypt. I decided to do something a little different with the plagues and rather than go through them all individually I’d focus on one by itself then two-six then seven-nine and finally ten. Maybe it’s not different but I just didn’t want to make the same application for ten weeks in a row. Today’s devotion then deals with the second plague ‘Frogs’ and the third plague ‘Gnats’ and I want to leave you with one application for each plague. Frogs, having a plate of frogs legs versus a plague of frogs legs is something entirely different. While a plague of frogs doesn’t sound too bad but it would sound bad. That’s a wee pun, doesn’t sound bad but it would sound bad because of the croaking, constantly, during the night, the soundtrack to this plague was going to be unrelenting the ear plugs wouldn’t make much of a difference. Frogs in your bed, in your wardrobe, in your toilet, this wasn’t going to be fun. The plague came, the magicians of pharaoh were just as with the first plague by their secret arts were able to reproduce it. Why on earth they would want to I have no idea, surely they had enough frogs but again the magicians did the same things by their secret arts. Moses does so, and notice what he says in v10, “It will be as you say, so that you may know there is no one like the Lord our God. What we miss in all of this is that once more God was showing his power over the gods of Egypt. The futility of worship another one of their god’s known as Hekt. The goddess Hekt had the head and sometimes the body of a frog, the frog was sacred in Egypt, it could not be killed, Hekt was the goddess of child birth, in effect the Egyptians were overrun with frogs that they would do nothing about and their gods were shown to be nothing but idols. The Lord is the only living and true God, he is the one and only God and as such he is omnipotent meaning that he is all powerful, it means that our God is the unique all powerful God. Pharaoh was blinded to this truth, he saw the second display of the power of the only living and true God and refused to see and hear. He had asked Moses to intercede for him and the Lord had answered and yet Pharaoh reneged on his promises once again. There Is But One Living And True God. Plague three was Gnats. In truth we don’t know if these were Gnats, lice, flees, midges, sand flies, mosquitoes for the Hebrew word is ambiguous. Either way there was a plague of these wee blighters. While pharaoh’s magicians were able to reproduce the first two plagues they came up empty handed with this one, look to verse 18, when the magicians tried to produce gnats by their secret arts they could not. Pharaoh and his magicians whether they realised that they were serving Satan or not they were, they were controlled by “the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Eph. 6:12), evil forces that had at least enough power to perform a few miracles but they could not produce all that God had done, the magicians could not reproduce it because there is only one God and Satan’s power has its limits. While he can produce all sorts of displays of power through signs and wonders (2 Thes 2:9) he is limited. In the end the magicians had to admit to pharaoh that “This is the finger of God”, the word that they use for God is the most generic of all names of God they had come to know the power of the living and true God who rules over all and they were forced to admit that before him they could do nothing, the God of the Israelites was more powerful than any god of Egypt, he ruled over them even though they did not call him Lord for while they knew his power they did not know him personally. The Living And True God Rules Over All even over the evil of this world and Satan. I know this devotion is a little longer than usual today but we come before the only living and true God who rules over all. While false gods remain in this world the day is coming when all will bow down before him, all will confess that Jesus is Lord to the Glory of God the Father (Rom 14:11, Phil 2:10-11). Pray (acTS) Sing WSC Q7 What are the decrees of God? The decrees of God are his eternal purpose, according to the counsel of his will, whereby, for his own glory, he hath foreordained whatsoever comes to pass. (Eph. 1:4,11, Rom. 9:22–23) |
Alan
|
RSS Feed