God Alone is Worthy of Worship

We are continuing our study through Exodus. However, we're going to study a little differently the next three weeks. As conviction, we want to walk through the text of God's Word as He has revealed it, and we usually have been taking section and then another section after section. What we're going to do with the plagues is something different. We're going to look at all the plagues together, which is really we're going to begin in Chapter 6 and then through Chapter 10, at least the first three plagues. We're going to look at those together instead of taking three and three and three. And let me explain why. They all say one thing. They're all driving at one main point, so this morning we're going to take that main point and just drive it throughout or see how God has driven it through all the plagues. And then we're going to see another theme and another theme. So we're going to really have like a mini series here on the plagues in the midst of exodus as we walk through God's word. The main message that God is revealing here in chapter six versus chapter six through chapter 10 is this Yahweh is the one God we are to worship him alone. Yahweh is the one God. We are to worship Him alone. And he makes this message very clear to different groups. He's making this message clear to the Egyptians. That's actually the primary audience. He's proving and demonstrating to the Egyptians and the Pharaoh. He is the one true God. Yahweh is God. He alone is God. He's also demonstrating this to the Israelites. But obviously, the 10th plague is the main focus there for the Israelites. I will deliver you. And he's doing this for all the earth. All of the earth will be talking about the mighty work that God has done to destroy the most powerful nation on the earth. So the next three sermons are going to follow three different themes. Today, we're going to be looking at God alone is worthy of worship. That's the main point. God alone is worthy of worship. Next week, next week, we'll be looking at God is faithful to his people. We'll be looking at how God has been faithful to his promises and his people, and we'll follow that theme, that message throughout the those chapters. And then lastly, God is sovereign over the heart. We will look at his immediate interactions, his his commands and the hardening of Pharaoh's heart. And so that will be our last message in the series. The plague section is very interesting because it. God is written in a way that it stands out as extremely important. There's a lot of text here. God spends a lot of time demonstrating the one point he alone is God and he alone is worthy of worship. If you just look at how much text is sent here, it shows that this is an important message. But more so, any time there's a lot of space used for a message and any time there's a lot of dialogue and words from God used for a message, it's an important message. Here we have both. He is emphasizing this one point. He alone is God. Yes, well, why are we talking about why it's emphasized? It's because people never get it. If you follow the rest of Exodus, they're so forgetful. How did they not get it? The people who watched these miracles. The power of God, they didn't get it. This is why it's so emphasized, because we need to remember how great God is. So our message this morning is this. We were created and redeemed to worship God alone. We were created and redeemed to worship God alone, and that's specifically speaking to us as God's people. To the background, God has sent Israel into Egypt. God has established Moses as the man who will be used by God, the instrument of God, to deliver Israel from Egypt, Israel from slavery, their bondage. Moses has been carried so far that the beginning chapters were focused on Moses and his wrestling with God, his refusal, his rejection. God comes down to Moses, he says, I have heard my people, I have seen them, I know them, I will deliver them. And that's great news to Moses until God says, I'm going to use you to deliver them. And that's when Moses begins to try to back out. But God continues his promise to Moses in the same way promises God's people. I am with you. I will be with you. I will always be with you. I have always been with you. I am the God who has made promises to your fathers. I'm the God who is with you now. I will not forsake you. Oh, it's you. Earlier on, after Moses finally submits to the call, God starts picking a fight with Pharaoh. And this is the battleground. This is why he's going after Egypt. He's going after Pharaoh. He's picked a fight to show that he is the one God and the fight is over his people. Pharaoh says, no, they're going to stay and they're going to serve me as my slaves. And God says, no, they're going to go out as my people and they're going to serve me as my children. So the battles of Egypt, the battle is for for us, the battle is for his people. Pharaoh wants to hold them as slaves. God wants to free them to be his people. So let's look to chapter six. After God's people have rejected him, Moses has started questioning God, he says, are you going to deliver these people at all? God says, verse one. But the Lord said to Moses, now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh. For with a strong hand, he will send Israel out. And with a strong hand, he will drive them out of the land. God is already pointing out. We looked at this passage last week. God is already saying, I'm going to do this. I'm going to do it in such a way that I'm going to cause Pharaoh to do my will. He's putty in my hands. I am sovereign. And we looked at that passage. It's a rich passage that has the covenant formula. If you weren't here last week or if you were, go back and just look at all the eyes. I will. I will. God is making his promises clear, comforting and caring for his people. And they quickly explain the genealogy here because we're not going to go into much depth. The genealogy focuses on Aaron. The genealogy here is really focused on Aaron, and the point here, I think, is just to make sure that the readers recognize that Aaron has the right credentials to work alongside Moses. So the genealogy is simply focusing on Aaron because he's going to play a major role in the deliverance of Israel. We've seen Moses' calling, and now we've seen the credentials and the calling of Aaron. So, as we introduce the plagues, let me first explain the order of the plagues. So, this is somewhat of an introductory sermon for the plagues. There's a clear ordering of the plagues. There's signs. That's another key word there. They're not all literally plagues, but they're all signs for what God is doing. These signs all point to the fact that God is supreme. He is sovereign. There are ten. And they have a pattern. The pattern is this. First, God instructs Moses. Then there's an encounter with Pharaoh. And there's an important line here. They said they went to him just as the Lord commanded. Moses and Aaron are obedient children. It's very emphatic that it's repeated over and over again, just as the Lord commanded. So that God instructs Moses and Aaron, they encounter with Pharaoh just as the Lord commanded. There's a symbolic action of some sort, such as a throwing down of the staff. The action takes place before Pharaoh and his officials. The officials try to duplicate. Sometimes they do. And then Pharaoh's heart is hardened. That's kind of the repetitious series that we see over and over again, but not every plague series is the same. Those of you who have read it know that there are some differences, sometimes Pharaoh responds and then he rejects that response. The plagues are actually established in sets of three. So we have an introductory plague, that's the serpent staff sign. There's an introduction to them and then there's a set of three, a set of three, a set of three, and then the last plague, the killing of the firstborn, the Passover. There's three sets of three and there's a pattern here. The first plague, the fourth plague, and the seventh plague, blood, swarming insects, and hell, they all begin this way, in the morning and at the water. So, you already see a pattern. The three are separated because every third is introduced in that specific way. In the morning and at the water. So, Moses and Aaron are approaching Pharaoh as he is going down for a morning bath or a morning drink. We're not quite sure what he's doing, but each series begins in the morning and at the water. More so, the second, fifth, and eighth plague all say, go in. And the assumption there is the second, fifth and eighth plague, they're introduced by Moses and Aaron by going into the court. I know this is a lot of text, you can look at this later, but I'm trying to show you the patterns here. The last plagues. The third, the sixth and the ninth, they have no warning. They just happen. So the first one. Pharaohs warned the first of each series. The first one, he's one of the water. The second one, he's one of the court. The third one, he receives no warning at all. And the third six and eight, well, that's the biting insects, the boils and darkness. So there's three sets of three and there's there's a progression. They go from annoying plagues. To deathly plagues, they go from being nuisance. plagues to gradually, gradually progressing in destruction until it becomes death. And then really the most fearful of all is the darkness until we get to the tenth plague. So, let's look at the series here. The first through the third. There's blood and then the Nile turns to blood. There's frogs and there's what I'm interpreting as biting insects. Again, these are more of a nuisance. And what's amazing about this set is that the magicians, they duplicate some of them. But then when they can't duplicate, the magicians say, surely this is the finger of God. You see there, there's already a heightening, there's already progression. They are on a small scale duplicating the plagues, but then they can't. And they have to acknowledge this is the finger of God. You see that message of God. I am the one true God. The magicians, they get it. And then in the third, with the biting insects, we'll look at each one more distinctly. It even declares that Egypt is ruined. The second set, fourth to the sixth, what really makes this set stand out is this is when it's clear that God is making a distinction between Israel and Egypt. These plagues, there's a distinction between them. The plagues that happened in four through six, the swarming insects, the animal disease and the boils. These things happened to all of Egypt, but the land of Goshen, God's people, Israel, they don't have these plagues upon them. They're watching from the outside. So that's what sets those three apart. And then seven through nine, there's hail, there's locusts, there's darkness. This is just destruction and fear. The hell, it's the greatest storm Egypt has ever seen. It kills the animals. It kills the crops. Locusts, they come and destroy whatever crops are left. And it even leads pharaohs on council to say, do you not understand that Egypt is ruined? Let's check our ten for seven. And then darkness comes. So we've seen the pattern, I hope. Now I'm going to read. Chapter seven, and I'm only I'm going to. Well, I'm conviction out of conviction. I want to read every word of God's word, but I'm not going to read chapter six through ten today. I'm going to read chapter six through chapter eight, and I'm going to read the introduction, the introduction of the serpent staff, and then I'll finish in chapter eight, verse 19. And so every series will will pick up the next place. Listen for some key words. It's very important when God tells you why he's doing something. God is regularly saying, I'm doing this so that you will know. You will know that I am the one true God and there is no one like me. Listen for the first plague as it clearly is marked off by Pharaoh's heart being hardened in verse 14 and then again in verse 22, it's bookended. Again, we see there's a reason, there's a knowing. And then we hear the repetition, let my people go that they may serve me. Beginning in chapter seven, verse one. 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 80 years old and Aaron 83 years old when they spoke to Pharaoh. 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, and Aaron's staffs followed up their staffs. Still, Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he would not listen to them as the Lord had said. Then the Lord said to Moses, Pharaoh's heart is hardened. He refuses to let the people go. Go to Pharaoh in the morning as he is going out to the water. Stand on the bank of the Nile to meet him and take in your hand the staff that turned into a serpent. And you shall say to him, The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, sent me to you saying, Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness. But so far you have not obeyed. Thus says the Lord. By this you shall know that I am the Lord. Behold, with the staff that is in my hand, I will strike the water that is in the Nile and it shall turn into blood. The fish in the Nile shall die and the Nile will stink and the water from the Nile and the war said to Moses, say to Aaron, take your staff and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt, over the rivers, the canals and the ponds and all their pools of water so that they may become blood. And there shall be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, even in vessels of wood and in vessels of stone." Moses and Aaron did as the Lord commanded in the sight of Pharaoh. In the sight of his servant, he lifted up the staff and struck the water in the Nile. And all the water in the Nile turned into blood. And the fish in the Nile died, and the Nile stank, so that the Egyptians could not drink water from the Nile. There was blood throughout all the land of Egypt. But the magicians of Egypt did the same by their secret arts. So Pharaoh's heart remained hardened and he would not listen to them. As the Lord had said, Pharaoh turned and went into his house and he did not take even this to heart. And all the Egyptians dug along the Nile for water to drink, for they could not drink the water of the Nile. Seven full days passed after the Lord had struck the Nile. Then the Lord said to Moses, Go into Pharaoh and say to him, thus says the Lord, let my people go that they may serve me. But if you refuse to let them go, behold, I will plague all your country with frogs. The Nile shall swarm with frogs that they that shall come up into your house, into your bedroom and on your bed and into the houses of your servants and your people and into your ovens and your kneading bowls. The frog shall come up on you and your people and on all your servants. And the Lord said to Moses, say to Aaron, stretch out your hand with your staff over the rivers, over the canals and over the pools and make frogs come up on the land of Egypt. So Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt and the frogs came up and covered the land of Egypt. But the magicians did the same by their secret arts and made frogs come up on the land of Egypt. Then Pharaoh called to Moses. and Aaron and said, Plead with the Lord to take away the frogs for me and my from my people, and I will let the people go to sacrifice the Lord. Moses said to Pharaoh, Be pleased to command me when I am pleased for you and for your servants and for your people that the frogs be cut off from you in your house and be left only the Nile. And he said, Tomorrow, Moses said, Be it as you say that you may know that there is no one like the Lord our God. The frog shall go away from you and your houses and your servants and your people and they shall be left only the Nile. So Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh and Moses cried to the Lord about the frogs as he had agreed with Pharaoh and the Lord did according to the word of Moses. The frogs died out in the houses the courtyards in the fields and they gathered them together in heaps And the land stank. And when the Lord, when Pharaoh saw that there was a respite, he hardened his heart. It would not listen to them as the Lord had said. Then the Lord said to Moses, say to Aaron, stretch out your staff and strike the dust of the earth so that it may become gnats and all the land of Egypt. And they did so. Aaron stretched out his hand with a staff and struck the dust of the earth. And there were gnats on man and beast. All the dust of the earth became gnats and all the land of Egypt. The magicians tried by their secret arts to produce gnats, but they could not. So there were gnats on man and beast when the magician said to Pharaoh, this is the finger of God. But Pharaoh's heart was hardened and he would not listen to them as the Lord has said. We see there the pattern, you can see a sample of the pattern. He went out into the water in the morning, he went into Pharaoh, and then the third, there was no warning. We also see the progression. The magicians could duplicate the first two, but not the last. They had to confess this is the finger of God. This was clearly showing there's a qualitative difference between the first and the third. There's something else I did not mention that marks the three out. The first three are done by the staff of Aaron. The second three are not done by a staff at all. The third three are done by the staff of Moses. So let's consider these different plagues and what they mean. First, there's what I call the introduction, the preview of things to come, the serpent staff. This was a sign that God originally gave to Moses and Aaron to deliver the message to Israel. Now they are commanded to go and give that same message and the same miracle to Pharaoh. And again, the whole point here, the battle is who gets the people. Are they going to stay in Egypt? Are they going to go out and worship God? See, the staff and the serpent represent royal power. The staff, regularly in the ancient Eastern world, represents the royal power, a power and a right to rule over someone. As a shepherd rules over sheep, the staff was a representation of that power. And the Egyptians viewed the snake goddess as a symbol for royal power. Now, think about it, you're sent. To the most powerful, scary man in all the world. And you're told to do a sign and you throw down your your staff and it becomes a serpent. And then you think this is kind of this is the whole point. We're going to demonstrate to him that our God is a true God. Then the magicians, they throw on their staffs and they become serpents. If Moses has already had a hard time trusting God, can you imagine what overcomes him as he sees the other staffs become serpents? How did God let this happen? What's going to happen? Then God reveals that he is more powerful. His serpent staff of God, the staff of God, it devours the other staffs, symbolically showing that God is going to destroy and devour Pharaoh, and those were ruling over Israel. God will bring harsh judgment against this nation. The second, or the first plague, the second sign really, the Nile returned to blood. The Nile is the life source of Egypt. Without the Nile, Egypt's just another desert that no one ever goes to. But the Nile made it rich. The Nile is why the Romans wanted Egypt, and they called it the breadbasket. It provided for all their needs. The Nile is the life source. This declaration goes public now. You see, the staffs and the serpents, that was in the private quarters of the Pharaoh. The Nile is a public declaration that war is coming. God is at battle with Egypt. It's clear for everyone to see. But again, this is a nuisance plague. They can go dig up water elsewhere, but it's a horrible nuisance to the smell of the dead fish. It's really disgusting. There's an inclusio here again. Pharaoh's heart is hardened to begin with. Pharaoh's hardened heart is hardened to end. Most of all, we see here that God tells him what he is going to do. I am going to turn the knot of blood so that you may know that I am the Lord. We have the purpose statement. The second plague, the frogs. For the blood, God doesn't tell him, if you let my people go, that I won't do this. He just says, I'm going to do this so that you will know that I am God. The second one, he gives them a choice. If you release my people, I will bless you. But if you don't release my people, I'm going to send frogs. Now, this is somewhat funny to me. Because God is attacking Pharaoh, not just in business. It's very personal. I'm going to bring frogs, like you've never seen frogs before, and they're not just going to be along the riverbank, they're going to be in your home, they're going to be in your bedroom, they're going to be in your bed. God's getting real upfront and personal with Pharaoh with this nuisance. They're in his bedroom, they're in the oven, they're in the boiling pot. It makes life miserable. Even better is the magicians add more frogs. Alright, thanks for the demonstration, but that wasn't helpful. In both cases, the magicians do duplicate, but it's a small-scale duplication. They're not changing all the waters in the blood. They're not bringing the mass number of frogs. They're a small-scale duplication, whereas God is doing it nationally. The third plague, it has no warning. Not much is said. They're mosquitos. And again, this is a real nuisance. There's some kind of a biting insect. We don't know exactly the insect that's referenced, but it appears to be the biting insect. And what's great here is the magicians cannot duplicate. And it leads them to say, this is something beyond our power. This must be the finger of God. Well, no, it's the mighty right hand of God that's bringing judgment against you. In the first three plagues, God has demonstrated that he is the Lord of the land and the sea. He's changed dust to gnats. And again, they don't have windows on their homes. There are mosquitoes everywhere on beasts and every person. The fourth plague, the second series, the beginning of the second series, there are swarming insects. When I was in college, I was playing football, and I was running, and all of a sudden I ran into a big swarm of gnats. And I stopped and went home. Because there were so many in my eyes, my mouth, I couldn't breathe. It was just this one little local swarm, but I happened to run right through it. And I assume this is what it's like everywhere in Egypt. That's why in verse 24 it says, Egypt is ruined. No one would ever move somewhere where there's gnats everywhere. You can't breathe without bringing some in. You can't open your eyes without getting them in your eye. It is a swarm everywhere. Fifth, we see a clear heightening. There's a plague on the livestock. Now look at verses Look at the plague and the livestock. Then the Lord said to Moses, go into Pharaoh, say to him, thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, let my people go that they may serve me again. That's repeated. They are his people. They need to serve him. Verse two, for if you refuse to let them go and still hold them. You know, it's emphatic, the battle is for the people. And this is a very severe plague. The livestock dies. And livestock is really how you count who's economically prominent. Your livestock was a way of showing who was truly economically wealthy. So the attack of the livestock is an attack on the economic welfare of all of Egypt. Then there's boils. The physical health is attacked. Here the magicians can't even come to try to duplicate because they're so sore with the boils, they can't get out of bed. They can't come to the palace. Next, number seven, there's hail. A storm like never before. The flax and the barley harvest are harvested in February and March. And so that first, those first crops are ruined. The locusts will get the wheat and spelt, which are harvested just a month later. Look at verses 14, 15, and 16. It's the first time this word is used, but the word earth is used three times in these three passages. For this time I will send all my plagues on you, yourself, and on your servants and your people, so that you may know that there is none like me in all the earth. For by this, for by now, I could have put out my hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, and you would have been cut off from the earth. But for this purpose, I have raised you up to show you my power, that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth." We really get a narrowing in here, a focus. This word earth is drawing our attention with the repetition. You will know that there is none like me in all the earth. I could have removed you from the earth. My fame will go out to all the earth. That's God's mission. As we saw in chapter three, as we see throughout all of scripture, God desires the world to be full of those who worship him and glorify him. His fame, his name must be declared in all the earth. And God is using Egypt and the judgment upon them to bring that about. Plague 8, the locusts, whatever the hell did not destroy the locusts will. They fill your houses. Again, a personal attack. They're in your houses. What's interesting here is that what God says to Moses, then the Lord said to Moses, verse one, go into Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the heart of his servants, that I may show these signs of mine among them. that you may tell in the hearing of your son and your grandson how I have dealt harshly with the Egyptians and what signs I have done among them that you may know that I am the Lord." Here he's giving Moses a commission. You need to start telling your children and your grandchildren. You will have great stories to tell your grandchildren and your children about how faithful I was, how powerfully I demonstrated that I am the one true God. I am doing this not only to destroy them and bring judgment upon them, but so that you will know. Then the night plague. And this is a heightening. This is heightening the plagues. Three days of darkness. We don't know if the sun stood still. We don't know if it's a shadow cast down upon all of Israel, but there's darkness everywhere. And darkness equals fear. We just had storms and many of us were out of power for a long time and it was a nuisance. It was annoying to have to find candles and flashlights and we'll work without electricity here to have absolute darkness and not have the sun come up. The one thing that seems to be guaranteed in this world for an Egyptian, It brings fear. It's unknown. Darkness means you're vulnerable to attack. Darkness means you're confused. You don't know where you're going. You don't know what's happening. They have no light. This is a great judgment because of the fear. Well, then, of course, the tenth plague, which we'll work on individually, we'll work with it separately. But it's killing human life. It's killing the firstborn. Before we get into the purposes of the plagues, some have asked, what are the means of the plague? Some people have asked, is God limited to natural means to bring these plagues about? The reason they ask this question is that the Nile River may not have actually turned to blood. Maybe it just turned red because of sediment being washed in. And then the theory is that the sediment being washed in is what kills the fish. And the sediment being washed in is what drives all the frogs out of the Nile into the homes. Then the pile of frogs dying is what causes all the mosquitoes to come. And then that's what causes the gnats to come. And the boils are the product of being bitten by mosquitoes and gnat offspring. That's what causes the boils. And then that, of course, causes a hellstorm. That doesn't connect. I said that, and that's not a helpful question. I realize we're always taught there's no such thing as a dumb question, but there are good questions and there's bad questions. The whole point of this is to show that God is sovereign over creation. He does whatever he wants. He's not bound to the laws of natural law. He's not bound to the system. He's the creator of the system. A good question is, who is this God, and how do I properly respond? Not, how did he do it? We have to ask the right question. So why did God do it? Why did God bring these harsh judgments to demonstrate that Yahweh is the one God? There are three different focuses. There's Israel, there's Egypt, and there's all the earth. So we can look at one purpose is that this is fulfilling the purpose that God has throughout all of scripture. That everyone would hear of him, that everyone would hear his name and that everyone would come to know him. His mission is to be worshipped by all, because that's why every person was created. We were created to worship. We were created to know God. We were created to be loved by God. We were created to respond to his love. We were created to be God glorifiers. And so we can see it as one of the passages of Herod, all the earth will hear of this. The message to Egypt. Is very focused and it's very precise, there is no God like Yahweh, Egypt symbolizes world power, they're opposed to God, they're opposed to God's people, they've enslaved them. And we can hear over and over again, let me read these passages that tell us the exact intent. Before the signs even began, chapter seven, verse five, the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring up the people of Israel from among them at the beginning of the first plague, he says, and you shall say to him, the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, sent me to you saying, let my people go, but they may serve me in the wilderness. But so far you have not obeyed, thus says the Lord. By this you shall know that I am the Lord. Before the frogs and the plague of the frogs, chapter eight, verse 10, Moses said to Pharaoh, Be it as you say so that you may know that there is no one like the Lord, our God, and the gnats In the third plague, Chapter 8, verse 19, the magicians confess this is the finger of God before hail. Chapter 9, verse 13 and 17. Then the Lord said to Moses, Rise up early in the morning and present yourselves before Pharaoh and say to him, Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, Let my people go that they may serve me. For this time, I will send all my plagues on yourself and your servants and your people so that you may know that there is none like me in all the earth." Skipping on to verse 16, but for this purpose, I have raised you up to show my power so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth. Verse 17, you are still exalting yourself against my people and will not let them go. After the locusts in chapter 10, verse 10. Pharaoh says this. The Lord will be with you. If I ever let you go. He's threatening. Surely the Lord is with you if I ever let you go. And that, of course, is a prophecy unknown to him that it is a clear demonstration that the Lord is with Israel because Pharaoh lets them go. The message is clear. The message is hard. The message is even harsh. God is judging Egypt, God is judging Pharaoh, the Egyptians and their God, God himself says in Chapter 10, I have dealt harshly. He's made life miserable for them, he's destroyed their crops, he's destroyed their livestock, he's going to kill their sons. He's judging them for the abuse they've done to his firstborn son, Israel. He's judging them for refusing to worship him. See, God's plagues are harsh for the people, but they're also judgments against the gods. He's judging the God of Re with the sun. There's darkness. There is no light. The killing of the livestock would include bulls, which is a representation of Re. There's the goddess of family and love, and that is represented by a heifer. The Nile is worshipped in their panentheistic scheme as the god of fertility, happiness, and blessing. So Yahweh is proving himself as mightier and superior to all their gods. He's also demonstrating that he's not just another local deity that's coming into Egypt and beating up their gods. He's showing that he is the one God of creation. There's a lot of allusions to creation. And what God is actually doing here is he's de-creating. He's done this before. The flood, that was de-creation. He removed the boundary of the waters and the land so that he could kill everything on all the land except for those he kept in the ark. He's de-creating again to show that he is absolutely sovereign over everything. He doesn't allow light to come. He's taking out the order of things, he's moving his hand of protection, he's bringing destruction, he's bringing death. See, the Egyptians started worshipping the order instead of the one who brought the order. They were worshipping idols trying to control the order rather than worshipping the one who created all things. There is no one like him. He is the one true God. They believe the wrong God. They believe the lies, the message of judgment. What Paul says in Romans two can be said of them, therefore, God gave them up in the lust of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worship and serve the creature rather than the creator who is blessed forevermore. Amen. If you're not a Christian here this morning, you're probably saying, you know, I don't have idols. We're beyond idol worship. So what would I possibly guilty of? We still have idols. We may have little statues that we pray to and ask for help, but we still have idols. An idol is something you put before God. An idol is something you love and trust above God himself. We love our ease of life. We love our leisure. We love our health. Most of all, we love our money. If you're not a Christian, the message this morning is simple and it's the same as the message for Israel. God's judgment is against you. God is worthy of your worship. God has created you to worship him. And because you have refused him, because like Pharaoh, you've exalted yourself above God, his wrath and his judgment is against you. So I can hear some people say, well, this God is so ruthless, why would anyone want to worship him? He's ruthless, he's destroying, he's killing. Why would anyone want to worship him? See, behind the wrath of God is God's holiness. His righteousness, his absolute goodness, he is worthy of our worship and he has the right to bring his wrath and bring death upon those who do not worship Him. If we think He's ruthless in the plagues, you're going to be amazed by how He brings about salvation. The Father, God the Father, sends His own Son to be beaten, spat upon, mocked, nailed to a cross, stripped of all human dignity, beaten almost to death. That's ruthless. See, God is ruthless in Egypt because he is ruthlessly pursuing the freedom of his children. His children are what matter. God, the father, loves his children and is going to do whatever it takes to demonstrate to them that he loves them and he's going to deliver them. How much more is that message clear to us than Jesus Christ? He was ruthless. He did whatever it took. To save us from our sins, the father sent his son to die for us. See, friends, we exalt ourselves over God. We say we have the right to this life, we have the right to our decision, we have the right to worship what we want. Well, no, we do not have that right. God has the right to be worshiped alone. And his wrath is upon us when we do not. The God who is worthy of our Worship the God who brings wrath. He also is the God we must believe in to have forgiveness. He sent his son to die for us, because when the son died for those who believe in him, the wrath of God is removed from them. The wrath of God is removed from me when I believe in Jesus and put upon him. He died in my place and he arises again to give me hope of eternal life, the only way to live. is to believe in the death of Christ says, well, where do I start? You first have to acknowledge God is holy and worthy of your life. You didn't have to acknowledge. I have fallen short of that. I have refused God that right. And he is holy and just and righteous to punish me for that. And he has been gracious to send his son to be punished for me, and that's where you're forgiven. It's very helpful when God tells you why he's doing something. That's what's so helpful about these texts so that you will know that I am God. The Gospel of John gives us a purpose. Now, Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book, but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. If you want to pursue knowing more about Christ, read the Gospel of John. He has told you why he's written it. You will see the power of Christ. We'll discuss more of how God's people are to worship him next week. But this, again, is a major theme throughout all of Scripture. God has said, I'm doing these things so that you know that I am your God, I am with you, I will deliver you, I will keep you, even though you are so faithless, I am faithful to my promises. That call to know God alone, Yahweh alone as God is echoed throughout Scripture. Exodus 20, the first word in the Ten Commandments. I am the Lord, your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, you shall have no other God before me. Deuteronomy 6, for the Shema hero, Israel, the Lord, your God is one. The words of our savior, Matthew 22, 37. You shall love the Lord your God with all your hearts, with all your souls, with all your mind. This is the great and the first commandment. Do we worship God as we ought? Do we? Worship him who have been called out to be his children, or are we forgetful that we're sinners or forgetful that we always need grace or forgetful that we need that forgiveness or forgetful that every breath, every word, every action should be bent upon worshiping him. We have to remember. Who we were and who God has declared us to be. We are called to worship God. And here is how you will begin worshiping God. By recognizing how much he's loved you. That's what worship is. Worship is a battle in the heart. The only way you will ever know how to truly worship God is to know more of his love for you that is demonstrated on the cross and in the resurrection. If we want to worship more, we must recognize the love of Christ and respond in our own love to Him. Let's go to the Lord in prayer. Your acts, your words, your mighty deeds are great, O God. They cannot be contained in a book. We could never wrap our head around all that you've done. We can never know all that you've done for us and how patient you've been with us. Help us, Lord, to worship you. Help us to see every day of the day that you have given us grace. Lord, help us to see how desperately we need you. Help us, Lord. To exalt you with our lives. Help us to stop exalting ourselves. Amen.