Sermon Slides
Sermon Notes
I. The ominous ____________ (7:8-13)
II. ____________ (v. 14-25)
This first plague is significant for three reasons:
1. It looks back to the decree to kill all Hebrew baby boys by throwing them in the ____________ .
2. It points forward to the ____________ .
3. It ____________ Egyptians mightiest gods.
IV. ____________ (8:1-15)
V. ____________ (8:16-19)
When God confronts us, we have two choices:
1. ____________ God
2. ____________ God
Going Deeper
- In Daniel 4 Nebuchadnezzar had to learn there is no one like the Lord. His arrogance reached its peak and he thought himself a god. Immediately he lost his mind and was driven into the fields to eat grass like an ox. His sanity is finally restored when he recognizes that the Lord is God and there is no other. Read Daniel 4:34-35. What does he do to humble himself?
- The plagues will be God’s judgment on Israel’s gods. Read Numbers 33:4. This is a spiritual battle. Read Eph. 6:12. What spiritual battles do you see in our world today? In your life? What should be our response?
- Read Deuteronomy 4:34-35. What do we learn about God? Peter Enns says: “[Pharaoh] represents an anti-God, anti-creation force, which the true God conquers.” In what ways can we become anti-God?
- Read Exodus 7:5. Why is God doing this? How do you need to apply this to your life?
- Tony Merida: “To whom are you looking to provide for your needs? While you may have ever heard of these Egyptian river gods, people are still tempted to trust in other things to provide for them, instead of God alone.” What do you find yourself trusting in, rather than in God?
- Read Exodus 7:8-13. How is this an ominous sign to Pharaoh? How does he respond to it? How should he have responded?
- R. Kent Hughes: “The average American is not very different from an ancient Egyptian. We still worship the same gods — only the names have changed. What we count on, what we work for, what we play at, what we dream about — these are the gods that we worship. And what matters most to most of us is personal prosperity. We depend on our economy every bit as much as the Egyptians depended on theirs.” How do you see this in our culture today? In your life? What will you do about it?
- James Boice says there were over 80 gods in Egypt! R. Kent Hughes: “[God] makes his attack right at the source of the sinner’s strength. If we crave power, God’s Spirit will show us how weak we are. If we live for pleasure, he will make us so miserable that the more we get what we want, the unhappier we become. If we think life is all about making money, he will take away our financial security. Whatever gods we happen to worship, the Holy Spirit will confront them head-on.”
- Read Exodus 7:22. What did the magicians do? Göran Larsson: “‘Magic’ was a main element in the Egyptian religion at this time, and those who mastered these powers were held in high esteem. The priests, belonging to the highest officials of Pharaoh, possessed secret knowledge and were skilled in all sorts of mysterious rites. By casting spells, they could allegedly overpower humans and control gods and thereby attain dominion over the world of nature and the world of the gods, realms which could not be separated since some animals were regarded as divine. Through magical formulas, the magicians claimed to exercise the power of the gods. The master of magic therefore became a player in the world of the gods.” Where do you see this kind of practice today?
- R. Kent Hughes: “Although Satan’s power is real, it is not absolute.” This is good news! Our God is much more powerful than Satan.
- Read Revelation 16:3-7. Many of the plagues in Exodus are repeated in Revelation!
- R. Kent Hughes “The very river that Pharaoh used as an instrument of genocide was turned to blood, and the first goddess to be humiliated was the one who governed labor and delivery.”
- Read Exodus 8:7. The magicians copy again. R. Kent Hughes says: “Satan can only corrupt, never create. Satan is always a counterfeiter, never an innovator…This explains why every false religion has ethical principles or sacred rituals that seem vaguely similar to Christianity. Satan is a knockoff artist.” How do you see Satan doing this today?
- John Currid points out creation coming undone in the plagues: When God created the world, he separated light from the darkness (Day 1; Gen. 1:1-5); but in the ninth plague light was blotted out (Exod. 10:21-29). When God created the world, he gathered the water into one place (Day 2; Gen. 1:6-8); but in the first plague the water was turned to blood (Exod. 7:15-25). When God created the world, he made vegetation grow on the land (Day 3; Gen. 1:9-13); but in the seventh and eighth plagues he destroyed Egypt’s crops (Exod. 9:18 — 10:20). When God created the world, he put two great lights in the heavens (Day 4; Gen. 1:14-19); but with the ninth plague, the sun ceased to shine (Exod. 10:21-29). When God created the world, he made the waters swarm with creatures of the sea (Day 5; Gen. 1:20-23); but the first and second plagues ended with the death of fish and frogs (Exod. 7:15 — 8:15). When God created the world, he made land animals and people (Day 6; Gen. 1:24-31); but the third through sixth plagues afflicted both man and beast with pestilence and disease (Exod. 8:16 — 9:17), until God finally killed every first-born son in Egypt (Exod. 11 — 12). The plagues brought such chaos that Currid concludes that God was “de-creating” Egypt.
- Will you obey God this week? What will you do to follow through on your commitment?
