The Ten Plagues In Egypt

Exodus 9:1–10:29

Water turned to blood? Frogs and gnats? Boils and hail? Total darkness?

These plagues, starting in chapter 7, seem strange to us and foreign to our experience.

But they weren’t chosen at random.

Though we might not always be able to discern it, the God of omniscience does nothing without design.

In fact, as we look closer at the various plagues, we see that they struck at the heart of the many gods worshiped by the Egyptians, directly undermining the credibility of various false deities.

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Today we make into gods things like wealth, power, beauty, talent and intelligence.

There’s nothing wrong with these things, but when we worship them, they become cruel masters.

God redirects us back to love for him above all else.

Remember the ten plagues in Egypt.

Joseph Forgave His Brothers

Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.” When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will be no plowing and reaping. But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance. “So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God. He made me father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt.
(Genesis 45:4–8)

Joseph’s brothers were guilty on all counts.

They had plotted to kill their brother Joseph and then sold him as a slave.

They had cut him off from the family, ending his life as he envisioned it.

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There was no making up for it.

There were no excuses.

They were all guilty.

But they still had one hope: forgiveness.

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Joseph forgave his brothers.

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Joseph declared one of the most profound theological truths of the Bible: God had been sovereign over the whole matter.

Joseph was able to see God’s purposes and be free of bitterness.

Lesson: When we are wronged, we need to look to see how God can bring good from it. God can and He will.

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.
(Romans 8:28)

Then we need to forgive and let God work out His purposes.

Joseph forgave his brothers.

Let us forgive one another.

Resist Temptation

Genesis 39:6–18

Joseph is a good example of the fruits of righteousness.

When he resisted Potiphar’s wife, it looked as though he set himself on the road to ruin.

In reality, he set himself on the road to being Pharaoh’s second-in-command over all Egypt.

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If Joseph had given in to the temptation before him, he would have failed the moral test of leadership.

Joseph demonstrated to God that he could be trusted, that his character was suited to the role he would step into as a leader.

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When we face temptation to do wrong, we need to resist and to do what is right.

There is more at stake than meets the eye!

A Devoted Mother

Just as a nursing mother cares for her children, so we cared for you. Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well. (1 Thessalonians 2:7-8)

Motherhood involves a life of sacrifice, commitment, and faithfulness.

A devoted mother would give everything she has for her children and husband. Besides, she is also their tower of strength.

The Apostle Paul reminded the Thessalonian church that the apostles could have become a burden to them. Instead they treated the new growing church gently, like a mother caring for her little children, willing to give everything, even their lives.

Just as a devoted mother cares for her family, we must continue to reflect the example of the Lord Jesus Christ in sacrifice, commitment and faithfulness.

Let us support one another
in our struggles with life’s issues.

Let us help one another
to live a life of
sacrifice, commitment, and faithfulness.

Morning Has Broken

Fix Our Eyes On Jesus

The letter to the Hebrews was written to first century Jewish background believers who were being severely persecuted.

Some were even considering giving up their faith in Jesus.

The unknown author penned about the superiority of Jesus over anyone else and everything else.

He slowly built his case to culminate in the great faith chapter. In that chapter, he pointed out that some great men and women of faith lived to see the fruit of their faith while many others—also men and women of faith—died prematurely because of persecution.

Now in chapter 12, the author made his critical statement or main point of the letter.

How do we walk by faith? We walk by faith by keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus! Not fixed on our problems or difficult environment of opposition.

Jesus was the pioneer and perfecter of faith. He endured opposition to the point of crucifixion.

We will follow His example and we will patiently endure because of the joy we know that is yet to come.

Fix our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.

Noah's Ark

Faith is believing in what God has said, not merely hoping for something.
It is rooted and grounded in God’s purposes and promises.
God told Noah to build an ark and save his family and the animals from the coming deluge.
Noah believed God.
He was obedient to what God had said.
He took God at His word and acted accordingly.
That’s faith.

The Greatest Is Love

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love.

But the greatest of these is love.
(1 Corinthians 13)

The Disciples Worked Together

All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. (Acts 2:4)

Passage

The disciples worked as a team. Each one was busy doing his or her part!

God saved us to serve Him; we are not to sit down doing nothing!

Every task in the Church is vital to its success. No task is unimportant or small.

And we must play our part for the success of our Church!

Response

Am I doing what God wants me to do?

Am I doing all I can do?

Prayer

Lord, use me in Your Church! Amen.