Israel's Deliverence
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
If we have not had the pleasure of meeting my name is John Colunga and I have the privilige of serving as lead pastor here at New Day Pasadena
I also have the privilige of bringing this weeks sermon
So if you have your Bibles, please turn to Exodus 12:21
If you forgot your Bible please use the one in front of you and if you dont have a Bible at all, please take home the one in front of you as a free gift to you
Opening
Tension
Many of you may not know this but my favorite is baseball
I played baseball all the way till my senior year where I gave up baseball because despite my love for baseball, I knew that I had no chance at going pro - and I wanted to focus on my future
But from t-ball till I got to High School - My dad was my coach
By that very relationship I was considered a coaches kid
And just like everything, there are pros and cons to being a coaches kid
And one of the biggest cons of being a coaches kid is that often when the team was practicing bad or acting up
My dad made an example out of me to get his point accross
If we were being lazy at practice or not focused and making errors,
He would intentionally hit a hard ball to me or make me do a hard play because if I made an error
He would tell me to go run for my error
And of course the other kids on the team dont want to be embarrassed and run so they get focused
I also remember during a game, my dad was coaching third base and our team was missing too many signs
And so when I was at bat, after a pitch, my dad blew up at me saying to stop missing signs
And he called timeout and calls me over to talk with him
And he said, you didnt miss the sign but they have been and it needs to stop
And at the end of the meeting his voice got louder telling me to get my head in the game
And then he looks over at the dugout and he says “Yall too!”
And of course they got the point of the message
And I tell you these illustrations because my Dad had a plan for us every game
He had a strategy for us to win
And he would use the fear of coach if he had too in order for us to get in line
In Exodus - God has a plan
God has a strategy for the plan to work
And he will display his wrath and judgement for the plan to come to fruition
Background
As we have been going through this book of Exodus we have been highlighting and seeing God’s providence
We have seen God act purposefully for the benefit of his people and to bring himself glory
Pastor Mac last week brought a great word and he was telling us not to get sidetracked with the people being mentioned
Don’t get sidetracked with Pharaoh, with Moses, with Aaron - this story is about God
God has promised deliverence and God will see it through
And by his might and power, he is governing the heart of Pharaoh
He has hardened it - And he is not controlling Pharaoh by doing this
Pharaoh isn’t going to release the people anyway
And God does not hide the fact that he is going to do this
He flat out tells Moses and Aaron in Exodus 7:3-5
3 But I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and though I multiply my signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, 4 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. 5 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.”
God is telling Moses and Aaron - Watch me work
I am about to show off -
And at the end of it all, my people will be free and the Egyptians will know
I am - I Am, I am Alpha and Omega, I am the one true God, I am King of Kings and Lord of Lords
Plan for today
And so for us today, we are going to read part of chapter 12
And then we are going to briefly talk about chapters 7-11
And then we will land in chapter 12 with application
If you are able to stand, I ask that you please do so for the reading of God’s word. I’ll read it as you follow along,
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Ex 12:21–32.
21 Then Moses called all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Go and select lambs for yourselves according to your clans, and kill the Passover lamb. 22 Take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin. None of you shall go out of the door of his house until the morning. 23 For the Lord will pass through to strike the Egyptians, and when he sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the door and will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to strike you. 24 You shall observe this rite as a statute for you and for your sons forever. 25 And when you come to the land that the Lord will give you, as he has promised, you shall keep this service. 26 And when your children say to you, ‘What do you mean by this service?’ 27 you shall say, ‘It is the sacrifice of the Lord’s Passover, for he passed over the houses of the people of Israel in Egypt, when he struck the Egyptians but spared our houses.’ ” And the people bowed their heads and worshiped. 28 Then the people of Israel went and did so; as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did. 29 At midnight the Lord struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of the livestock. 30 And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he and all his servants and all the Egyptians. And there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where someone was not dead. 31 Then he summoned Moses and Aaron by night and said, “Up, go out from among my people, both you and the people of Israel; and go, serve the Lord, as you have said. 32 Take your flocks and your herds, as you have said, and be gone, and bless me also!”
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Ex 12:21–32.
This is the Word of the Lord - You may now be seated
10 Plagues
10 Plagues
Staff to Serpent
In chapter 7 - we find that
Moses and Aaron go before Pharaoh
And Aaron drops his staff and it turns into a snake
And somehow Pharaohs magicians are able to replicate it but Aarons snake eats the other snakes
Still Pharaohs heart was hardened and he would not listen
Water to Blood
Then Moses took the staff and went to Pharaoh and Pharaoh again would not let the Israelites go
So the staff in the water turned the water into blood
And all of the fish of the nile died and it stunk, and so no one could drink
But again, the magicians were able to replicate it but could not make it go away
This lasted for 7 days
Frogs
Then God caused for frogs to come about the land from every water source
And the frogs were everywhere, in the bed, in the kitchen, there was no peace
Even though the magicians replicated the frogs coming out - they could not make them go away
So Pharaoh told Moses that if he were to make the frogs stop
That he would let the Israelites go
Moses did bring it before the Lord and they did stop
But Pharaoh went back on his word and did not let them go
Gnats
So God brought gnats to swarm all of Egypt
And it is at this point that the magicians are not able to replicate it
And they tell Pharaoh that this has to come from God
But Pharaoh still did not let the Israelites go
Flies
Then God brought flies upon Egypt
And to further display his power the flies were only where the egyptians lived
And they did not cross into Goshen where the Israelites were
So again, Pharaoh promised to free the people if God would stop them
And again, after the flies left, Pharaoh went back on his word
Cattle
Then the livestock of the Egyptians and only the Egyptians died off
But Pharaoh still wouldnt let them go
Boils
Then the Boils were all over the egyptians
And still Pharaoh would not let them go
Hail
Then God sent a hail storm which was unlike any other
It killed all who were outside - man, livestock, and plants
The hail did not fall on the Israelites in Goshen
Pharaoh again pleaded for it to stop
This time Pharaoh goes further into admitting he has sinned
And promises again to let the Israelites go
And again, after the hail, he went back on his word.
Locusts
God brought a wind that brought locust to cover the land
They ate every plant and left the Egyptians with nothing
And although the servants of Pharaoh pleaded with him to let the Israelites go
He did plead with Moses to have God take the locust away and God brought a wind which took all of the locust
And yet, Pharaoh still did not let the people go
Darkness
So dark no one got up or moved
Yet, not in Goshen where there was light
3 days the darkness was there and Pharaoh still would not let them go
This time Pharaoh tells Moses that if he were to ever see him again, he would kill him
First Born Sons
In chapter 11 - we see God telling of the 10th plague
That it will be so burdensome to Pharaoh that he will finally release the Israelites
And it will be the burden of death
His firstborn and all of the firstborn in Egypt, including livestock, will die
Passover
Up to this point, the Israelites have not had to do anything to be spared from the plagues
But God’s tenth plague will be the climatic act of his divine judgement
And in his judgement, his people will be identified by the blood of a spotless goat or lamb
That blood is to be put on the doorpost so that when the spiri tof God comes through Egypt
It will passover that house and spare the firstborn of that household
And while this plague would only happen once - this passover feast is now going to be memorialized for the Israelites to observe continuously
Where they are to pick the spotless one year old lamb or goat on the first day of the month and hold it until the 14th day,
And then on the 14th day they are to kill it, roast it, eat it all that night only, and to eat it in haste
They are to eat it with their belts fastened, sandals on, and staff in hand
God is very specific in his instruction to his people
What God wants made known is known and is to be followed
And so the Israelites do as they are commanded and death came that night to Egypt
Pharaohs son did die as did many others and a cry was hear that day in Egypt that had not been heard before
And Pharaoh released God’s people - he told them to go
New Testament
New Testament
Transition
The same God who displayed his authority, his might, his wonders, his love, his justice, here in the Old Testament
Is the same God who displays his authority, his might, his wonders, his love, his justice, in the New Testament
God was very specific about how the passover was to be observed
But on the night of the plague
If the Israelites had done everything right, except for putting the blood on the doorpost, they would not have been spared
It’s not the process or works of the passover that God was looking for
He was looking for his people to be identified by the blood of a spotless lamb
In the New Testament, God shows off
God displays his wonder and authority through a virgin birth
That in his love, the son born would be His son, Jesus
Fully God and fully man!
And why does he have to send Jesus to earth?
Because God’s people need saving!
Because His people have spots and blemishes called sin!
And there is a judgement God has to carry out because it is his nature and character to be the perfect Judge
And he knows that His people cannot be clean on their own
And so he provides the spotless lamb
He sends Jesus who is able to live a perfect life!
He sennt Jesus knowing that his one and only son would have to die for his people
That Jesus’ blood has the power to wash away the sin of the people and make them clean
That the people of God will be identified by the blood of the lamb, Jesus
And Jesus did this!
He went to the cross and willingly shed his blood for his people
But he did not stay dead
He conquered sin and death by rising again on the third day
Identification with Jesus
And because of his death and resurrection
He is the only one who can reconcile us to God
And so when we put our faith and trust in Jesus for salvation
We are identified as God’s people because of our identification with Christ’s blood spilled for us
That when we stand before God, God sees us without a blemish
He sees us fully righteous because of Jesus
Identification through Baptsim
But before we die and go to heaven, while we are here on earth,
We have been identified with Christ through his saving work
But then we are to also share our identification with Christ publically before others
And this is where baptism comes into play
Jesus himself was baptized and then he commands for baptism to take place in the Great Comission
And so believers express their faith publically and symbolically through baptsim
Going down into the water identified with Christ’s death
And then coming out of the water identified with Christ’s resurrection
We go down into the water signifying that Jesus paid the price for our sins
And we come out of the water righteous and spotless before God
But baptism happens one time
We only need to do it one time
Power in Salvation
After baptism going through life - we face fear, anxiety, suffering, and we are tempted to get negative about things
We are tempted to question God’s power in our life
We look at the Old Testament where it seems that these 10 plagues on display is God’s power
We just talked about his mighty work in the New Testament with Jesus
And we know, that one day Jesus will come back in full glory
And we will have new bodies and a new earth and we realize what a mighty disply of God’s power that is
So then we ask the question, what about now!?
Where is God’s power right now?
And this where I want to take a moment to point you back to your conversion
As years go by and as we continue in life, we have the temptation to minimize our conversion
Oh it was a nice thing that God did at that one time
And sometimes we minimize our salvation down to just a date
The power of God has changed your heart
It is great than flies, or gnats, or hail, and is a wonder that conquers death
Indentification with Lord’s Supper
And so in case your wondering, there is something we continuously do as an outward identification with Christ
And that is to partake in the Lord’s Supper
Remember that at the passover feast, Jesus was before his disciples
26 Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” 27 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, 28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Mt 26:26–28.
Paul teaches in 1 Corinthians about the Lords Supper and he says this
26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
So, we continuously come to the Lords table to remember that our identity is with the blood of the spotless lamb.
We do not observe Passover, but we do observe the Lords Supper.
Partaking of the Lord’s Supper
If we look at Exodus 12:43 God makes it abundantly clear that the Passover feast was for his people and no one else
And in the same way, the Lord’s Supper is a table set for only God’s people to partake in,
Because as believers in Jesus Christ, we are identified and unified with Christ and with each other
While we do partake of the Lord’s Supper, we want to remember 4 essential things.
We want to remember to look back, up, in, and forward.
Look back
First, we want to look back. We want to look back at the cross.
We want to remember what Jesus has done for us.
That it is because of his death and work that we can be made clean.
Look Up
Second, we want to look up.
We look up to God and give him thanks for his love, mercy, goodness, and grace.
We recognize that all that we have is from him and by him, and through him.
We are thankful for his plan of salvation and for his continued plan for us.
We look up to God and rejoice and give him glory
Look In
Third, we look in.
We take a serious look at ourselves and our life.
Have I been obedient to Christ?
Is there any unrepentant sin that we are not dealing with?
Are we reconciled with those around us?
Am I seeking to live for myself or for God?
We look inward and we confess to God.
We ask for forgiveness and for the strength and wisdom to discern temptation and to withstand it.
Look Ahead
Fourth, we look ahead.
We look ahead to Christ’s second coming.
That the new bodies and new earth that we will have will last for an eternity.
That in heaven we will be eternally unified with God and live in perfection.
We look ahead to the coming glory that is promised to us.
We look ahead to Jesus.
Application
Salvation
And so we come to the table today and I first ask, have you trusted in Jesus as your Lord and Savior?
This is a table for believers.
For those who have put their faith and trust in Jesus alone for salvation.
We need not to do any works to earn salvation or to deserve it.
Salvation is the free gift of God to us through Jesus.
There will be a time here at the end, that while we pray, you can put your faith and trust in Him.
Communion Participation
For those who have accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior.
You are walking in freedom.
You have been delivered and you can rest in hope and live in peace that you are identified by the spotless blood of the lamb, and you live:
in remembrance
and in gratitude
and in obedience,
because of that gospel.
The Israelites were not to envy Egypt.
The Israelites were temperarily living there and had promised land
As believers, we do not envy the world.
We are set apart because of a Holy God.
And it is because of his authority, his might, his wonders, his love, his justice, that we look upon him with awe and wonder of who he is.
That he who is set apart, would have a plan to set us apart, and because we remember, because we are grateful, we live in joyful obedience and submission to his Holy and Righteous name.