WHO'S IN CONTROL?

HE MAKETH NO MISTAKE

(A. M. Overton)

My Father's way may twist and turn

My heart may throb and ache,

But in my soul I'm glad I know

He maketh no mistake.

My cherished plans may go astray

My hopes may fade away,

But still I'll trust my Lord to lead

For He doth know the way.

Though night be dark and it may seem
That day will never break
I'll pin my faith, my all in Him
He maketh no mistake

There's so much now I cannot see
My eyesight's far too dim;
But come what may, I'll surely trust
And leave it all to Him.

For by and by the mist will lift
And plain it all He'll make;
Through all the way, though dark to me
He made not one mistake.

   

EASTER SIGHTS/SOUNDS

Easter 2011 was a good thing from above.

 

Brad's family from NYC came for seven nights and the week was chocked full of grandbabies and thunderstorms, Branson and chocolate and giggling and hair bows...and a fourth birthday party.

Blue sky for four hours in Branson!  

Nate loved playing with his three girl cousins, Mike and Brad had some good time together, Laura got her AQ Chicken fix, and Mimi read lots of stories.

 

We loved getting to know our new lil Lily!  She's a wonderful third child...easy-going and expressive. Lily just mostly watched all week.

Hanna and Caroline are on the couch, watching a Sleeping Beauty DVD birthday present.

Even the daily downpour didn't seem to matter so much.

Of course, now Hanna and Caroline associate Arkansas with loud thunder and lightning and rain.

And so do we.

Doubletree Drive went under water for the first time ever.

You can't see our house, but it is behind, at the top of the hill.

We have yet to hear the official rain totals, but we know just in the last week we got 12-15 inches.

This is what we call "the bottoms" down the hill from the house.


Our neighbor Phoebe said we added $100k to the home value because it is waterfront property.


The weather WAS a big story this week, but also we heard that in an alternate reality, Lady Gaga released a new tune @Easter, praising Judas.  The song was predictably provocative.  Gaga joins a list of those through the ages who would presume on Jesus' vulnerability.  I am awestruck to consider that the Rescuer would volunteer for His assignment considering the hostility...or worse, the apathy...that was His.  THAT is the passion of the Christ.

I wonder if Lady Gaga is one of the ones Jesus talked about from the cross.  Remember when He asked His Father to "forgive them because they know not what they do"?  Gaga is a moxie New Yorker who picked the time of the song's release specifically for maximum impact.  Can she plead ignorance of what she was doing?

No more than I.  Lady Gaga will stand to give her own account, but what I know is that when I sin, it is not out of ignorance.  I know I'm sinning; I do wrong because I want to.  I don't need a primer on WHAT sin is, I need to know how to get out from under it and keep from doing it again.  When Jesus made that statement on the cross, He meant that those around the cross had no clue that His crucifixion was their way out of sin and the Father's good plan.  The Romans didn't kill Jesus.  Nor did the Jews.  The things that I did against a holy God required Jesus' death.

And at His death, the Bible says several things happened...

DARKNESS
When the Light of the world breathed His last, God turned out the great light.  From noon (when the sun should have been highest in the sky) until three in the afternoon, it was dark.  God punctuated His Son's death with a global notification.  He gave us the darkness we asked for when we rejected the Light.

EARTHQUAKES
The Japanese might attest to how unsettling earthquakes can be.  But the Jerusalem earthquake was even more unsettling because that quake rattled the tombs open.  Then the Bible says the dead were brought to life and walked around and were recognized by many people.  Whoa!  Three days later, perhaps it was an aftershock that rolled the stone away from Jesus' tomb.  God had no problem moving the stone because we needed to see inside.


TORN CURTAIN
In the picture of the temple you can see three distinct areas.

The large area in front of the temple was the public area where a pilgrim would come bring their sacrifice for purification.

Moving to the back, the next section was for the priests to go about their daily maintenance and sacrifices.

Then the tallest area in back was the place called the Holy of Holies, home to the presence of God.  It was separated from the rest of the temple space behind a thick interwoven drapery, three stories tall. When Jesus died, the temple curtain was torn in two from top to bottom.

The torn curtain revealed what was inside the Holy of Holies...the Ark of the Covenant covered in pure gold.




The ark was said to contain the tablets of the Ten Commandments, Aaron's rod, and a container of manna.

On top of the ark was the mercy seat, guarded by cherubim.  


When the high priest brought in the sacrifice, the blood was sprinkled onto the mercy seat.  


God meets man on the basis of the blood sacrifice which covers sin.

The people and even the priests are separated from God because of their sin and His holiness.

Only the high priest was allowed behind the curtain and that was only one time a year, on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur).

He came into the Holy of Holies with a sacrifice for himself and for the nation of Israel for the past year.

Today Jesus is our High Priest.  When He died, the  curtain was torn.  We realize that man could not have torn the thick curtain. The tear was from top to bottom so that we would know Who did the tearing and what it symbolized.

Jesus' death made a way into God's presence.  Now there would be no more need to placate God by bringing animal sacrifices.  Through Christ, man can go directly into the throne room of God.  What a Savior!

Hebrews says "Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can take new courage, for we can hold on to his promise with confidence.  This confidence is like a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain of heaven into God’s inner sanctuary.  Jesus has already gone in there for us.  He has become our eternal High Priest."  Hebrews 6.18-20


Last week was a pretty special Easter for the Cruse family.  We were thankful for the grand privilege of celebrating the resurrection together, and thankful that all the adults have Christ in common.  


Mike and I sense that the crazy weather is just one factor pointing to the hastening day of Christ.  While some may call it "global warming", we continue to watch for the next prophetic puzzle piece from God's timetable as it falls into place.  When Israel builds her third temple and begins again the sacrificial system...things will heat up.


Keep looking above!

TRIUMPHAL ENTRY

Ever wonder why the Lord's ride into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday was called the Triumphal Entry?  In just a few days, some in this crowd may have migrated over to the crowd clamoring for Barabbas.  Talk about turning on a dime!  I've often trembled to think which crowd I would have been a part of...had I been there.

King Jesus didn't ride into town like the other nation's kings.  A king would have been seated on a majestic horse in a processional.  My Burden-bearer sat humbly on a small beast of burden.  Kings would not likely have touched a leper or washed men's feet or (in honor of April 15th) eaten with a tax collector.  This king was unique.  The One who came to seek and save also came to serve.

Not everyone came out to see Jesus although His message is available to everyone.  I like this picture because Jesus is painted in the center as the focal point.  Just off to the right, you see evidence of people calling out to Him and praising Him.  They "get it".  Just as today, Jesus is calling out to those who know they need a way back to God.

The doves are in the picture to remind us that without a sacrifice, there is no entry into God's presence.  When Passover worshippers came to Jerusalem, they were required to bring a sacrifice.  Some of them came a long distance, so they found it easier to buy a lamb after they arrived at the temple.  That is how the worship tenor morphed into free enterprise.  Livestock and doves were marked up and sold; foreign money was exchanged into Judean currency for profit.  If the common man was too poor to buy a lamb, the dove was in their price range.

This picture speaks humility to me.  The illustrator gave Jesus eyes that are cast down amidst the adulation.  To the left, the worshipper is in a penitent position.

"The sacrifices God desires are a humble spirit – O God, a humble and repentant heart you will not reject."  Psalm 51.17
   
The precious older man on the right has probably been looking for the Messiah all his life.  Now when he sees Jesus, he raises his hands to heaven in thanks.  The Book says that good gifts are from above.

 I love the way the mother is introducing her child to Jesus.  From the youngest to the oldest, Jesus is the Way.

In this third picture, there is much enthusiasm for Jesus.  Look at the faces of the crowd as they revel in His presence.  The green lushness is prominent and suggests new life.  The people lay their clothes down before Him as though they are rolling out the red carpet for the Lord.  They wave their branches and shout "Hosanna!" (meaning "save us").  People who know they need salvation are blessed by the joy of weightlessness.

The Messiah was described in the Old Testament in two different ways.  Some verses pictured the powerful Lion of Judah, while other verses talked of Messiah being a suffering Servant.  This crowd did not have our advantage of looking back over the timeline to realize the Messiah would come twice.  They were just looking for relief from the heavy hand of Rome...and that made the Lion of Judah very appealing.  But when they realized they had gotten the Lamb, not everyone was pleased.  I have been known to argue with God's plan, too.

Yet through it all, God's plan would end in unshakeable triumph.  Reaching out to mankind in kindness, God sent both His Son and His Spirit.  It was the power of God the Holy Spirit that brought the Son into the world (Matthew 1.18).  It was the power of God the Holy Spirit who filled Jesus and led Him into the wilderness to stand against the devil (Luke 4.1).  Then it was power of God the Holy Spirit who gave the Son confidence to trust the Father and bear the steep hill ahead of Him.  Jesus believed the Holy Spirit would accomplish His resurrection...so as the Lamb of God, He could lay His life down as THE sin sacrifice.

Now with accessibility (access ability), I can boldly go directly into God's throne room.  No more doves.  No more lambs.  And His once-for-ever sacrifice also accomplished my adoption.  Listen to Max Lucado explain Ephesians 1.5...

"God adopted you simply because he wanted to. You were in his good will and pleasure. Knowing full well the trouble you would be and the price he would pay, he signed his name next to yours and changed your name to his and took you home. Your Abba adopted you and became your Father."


In the kingdom of this world, a legal adoption does not happen without a petition to the court.  Similarly, we spiritually petition the final Judge that He would cleanse us and assume our guardianship.  And the hinge on that petition?  He waits for us to admit, submit, and commit.


Triumphal entry.

SEEING RED

Once upon a time, there was a man named John Smith who headed a family with financial woes.  In the red and under a pile of credit card bills, John stepped up to the bat and began to take financial responsibility.

He told his wife that they were going to have to tighten the belt and make some changes.  She knew it had to happen, but inwardly she began making a mental list of all the things she hoped weren't part of those new changes.

Family expenses were laid out on the table.  They had to eat (check), pay the mortgage (check), and there were some pay downs and monthlies that clamored to the top of the list.  What was left?

They had to decide about giving God a portion of their income.  There were school expenses....and they had to decide their basic needs for eating out/entertainment/gifts.  They needed a whole column for gas.  Where could they prioritize?  They looked for slack everywhere.

Mr. Smith decided the beginning place was to frame a budget. He got his children involved and his heart melted as he listened to how his kids wanted to help.  Mrs. Smith took comfort.  Although times were a challenge, her husband was protecting his family and they were pulling the load together.  What is a massage or getting her nails done...compared to that?  Larry Burkett says that being debt-free is the new BMW.

On a larger scale, the President is our leader, in charge of a DEEP debt hole (14.3 trillion) that has the potential to destroy our country without a shot.  Americans put the economic issue as second only to the issue of keeping us safe from terrorism.

WWtSD (What Would the Smith's Do?)  Think they'd spend their way out of the red?  What if the Smith's plan to cut spending was to just freeze their current uber-spending level?  Would that help?  That was the budget proposal the President offered back in February.  But that just plays games with columns of future figures.  The proposed budget didn't do one single thing that his "governing by committee" Debt Commission suggested.  Printing more money can't be counted as a real plan.  It is morally abject for America to continue to spend above what we have...and further hock ourselves to the Chinese.

The President SAYS the economy is important, but what does he DO?  The budget was "business not attended to" while his party was the majority from 2007 until last fall.  Why?  Claire McCaskill (Senator, Missouri) said in an interview that they didn't have the numbers.  The majority...short on numbers?  Translation:  WE can't even commit to what we wrote.   

If you are saying that Congress writes the budget and not the President, that's right.  But it is the President's job to cast the vision and herd the cats.  Now the Republicans have come up with a budget, so the President is working on a totally different one.  He is scheduled to tell us about it tomorrow night.  Well, good.  We need one.

But it will be interesting.  The man who made the excess debt is now in a position to have to cut his own doing.   Cut, baby, cut!

"Dependence begets subservience and venality, suffocates the germ of virtue, and prepares fit tools for the designs of ambition."   Thomas Jefferson

A PURE HEART

The newspaper reports that a man with child pornography creatively chose an autism defense.  Huh?  He's saying his autism made him do it?  Now THERE are some bodacious fig leaves.  Apparently his defense worked because our whomper-jawed justice system gave the man a suspended sentence.  Man's justice has spoken, but there is another justice system coming that understands a pure heart.

Just what would that pure heart look like?  I think of my sweet grandmother, Bessie Clough.  "Miss Bessie" was born and lived her whole life in Des Arc, a tiny Arkansas town beside the White River.  In it's heyday, Des Arc numbered  2,000 folks; now the number is pushing 1,600.


"Over the river and through the woods" were the GPS coordinates for getting to our Grandmother's house.  My younger brother Tim and I always dreaded going over Des Arc's famous swinging suspension bridge (1940-1970).  It was unsettling to meet another vehicle and sway with that old bridge.  
Born in 1889, my grandmother was the mother of three surviving children.  She never owned a car and walked everywhere she went.  She graduated from high school at 16 and was teaching school at 21.  The most amazing thing about her was that she NEVER said a bad word about anyone.  I actively (and perversely) tried her on this "never a bad word" trait.  Miss Bessie had a widowed sister-in-law who lived next door that could be...well...irritating.  The minute our car pulled up in front of Grandmother's, we would time Aunt Annie and place bets on how long it would take her to arrive.  Grandmother always just said "well, she's lonesome".  See what I mean?

If you know the personality types, Grandmother was phlegmatic.  Ask a phlegmatic if they would rather have coffee or tea, and they answer "whatever you have the most of".  It wasn't that she didn't have opinions or preferences.  She just didn't want to be a bother and most things WERE all right with her.  She had two daughters who lovingly served as her managers.  My mother Sue and her sister Margaret were 17 months apart in age and they pretty much double-teamed Grandmother.  They relieved her of her favorite tattered chenille robe.  They monitored her underwear drawer, removing worn britches and adding "good" underwear.  They might bring her new furniture and rearrange her living room.  She just let them...and then after they left, she moved it back.

Grandmother's last name was "Clough" and that rhymes with "rough" and "tough".  Bessie wasn't the least bit rough, but she WAS tough in the way a yellow crocus survives a cold March wind.  She weathered life circumstances that would have crushed a lesser faith.

Ransom Clough was Bessie's husband.  He crossed the White River in a boat one day to hunt squirrels in the bottoms on the other side.  On the way back, his boat capsized and his hip boots filled up and he was seen to call out for help before he went under water.

Grandmother waited as the men in town searched for her husband and it wasn't until the next morning that the river gave up his body.  Bessie later expressed her appreciation in the White River Journal for the townspeople's outpouring of love.  She wrote "...especially to those who worked so faithfully and so untiringly during the long hours of that never-to-be-forgotten night and day of our Gethsemane, while we prayed and waited...we truly thank you."

Now a 42 year-old widow with three children, Bessie concluded by saying..."I will bow humbly to the One who does all things well".  This sweet woman's acceptance of God's sovereignty set the trust bar for me.

 Life can be bumpy and Grandmother had already experienced the loss of one child to whooping cough and had made room for her blind mother to live with them.  But times got really hard in 1932 because she lost Ransom AND her Mama within months.

With her children to support, Miss Bessie went back to teaching school.  When she retired, she had taught the second grade for 32 years in the same room.  All those years she also taught Sunday School at her church.  So if you were from Des Arc, my grandmother probably taught you something.






This is a picture of the Prairie County courthouse, built in Des Arc in 1912.  Out behind this wonderful old building is the jail where Grandmother once was summoned.  One of her former students was a guest of the county and had asked to see his second grade teacher.

Each year Miss Bessie required her class to memorize a poem about the Ten Commandments.  As Grandmother visited with this man in jail, tears ran down his face as he recited the poem and said "Mrs. Clough, I sure wish I had paid better attention to what you taught us."

No gods before Me shalt thou own; 

Place not an idol on My throne

Speak not God's name in careless way;

Remember, keep God's holy day

Honor and heed thy parent's will;

Bear this in mind, thou shalt not kill
In all thy words and ways be clean,
For all things by God are seen.

Tell not a lie or act untrue,

And want no more than God gives you.

Tim and I had cousins named Rick and Chris who were about our age.  We all were carted to Des Arc for each holiday.  As teens, we thought it was a boring place with its one teeny-weeny Dairy Bar.  But when we were little, Grandmother spiced things up by paying us a penny for each bumble bee we swatted out on her honeysuckle vines.  That kept us busy and motivated, and the pace was fast for those three boys.  Each Christmas we had the same thing under the tree.  Bessie sat and picked out pecans during the fall, and we got a quart jar of pecan halves with a five dollar bill on top.  We were happy.  

A widowed schoolteacher with three children needed to watch her pennies.  So when Miss Bessie's firstborn son was 18, he left home to lighten her load and to be able to earn money to send back home.  My uncle went far from home in more than one sense.  He lived in Colorado as a bartender, imprisoned in an addiction.  Grandmother never seemed bitter about "losing" that son although I know it broke her heart.  His visits were few, but she always received him warmly.  And again, I never heard her say a critical word about her son.

When I see Grandmother, I want to ask her why she never remarried.  I can remember Sue and Margaret teasing their Mama about a tall man who was sweet on Bessie for a long time.  He was a gentle man who for years faithfully gave Grandmother a ride to church.  When I asked Mother about why Miss Bessie remained single, Mother sheepishly replied "because Margaret and I really didn't want her to marry".  Mother was embarrassed about that, but she and her sister had to get older to realize the full impact on their mother after they left home and Grandmother was all alone.  Sometimes you just have to live life to understand things.





Miss Bessie lived to be 86 and ovarian cancer was her final foe.  My regret was that when Grandmother needed spiritual encouragement, I did not know Christ and I had nothing to offer.  One night as she faced cancer surgery the next morning, I went into her room to kiss her goodnight.  Uncharacteristically, Miss Bessie confessed "I'm afraid!" and big tears came to her eyes.  I was embarrassed to not know what to say.  Probably I just meaninglessly said "oh, it'll be OK, Grandmother".  How I wish I had given her a Scripture or reminded her of a way that the Lord had supported me.  That would have pointed her upward and helped to calm her spirit.


From my vantage point, Bessie Clough lived on history's timeline when it seemed easier to maintain a pure heart.  Des Arc was like Mayberry!   I would venture a guess that she never was tempted by pornography and she wouldn't have the slightest idea what a snuff movie or a copycat murder was.  How could she begin to conceive of what drugs would free people to do?  Or in her worst nightmare, could she imagine that Islamofascists would be lopping off people's heads in their modern-day quest to take over the world?


The knowledge of evil takes up valuable space in a mind.  It takes away room for wholesome, edifying thoughts.  The knowledge of evil puts disobedience on a low, convenient shelf.  Wish Eve had passed on that garden Fuji.  


Of course, Miss Bessie didn't get her ticket to heaven because she was a sweet lady who thought good thoughts.  Everyone sins, and even the sin of a sheltered second grade school teacher would have separated her from God.  Grandmother's pure heart came when she said YES to Christ and God viewed her heart as covered.  


Matthew 5.8 says there's a reward for the pure in heart...they will see God.  I get a lot of comfort in thinking about Miss Bessie enjoying the Lord's presence now.  For all those years, He was her Savior and she served Him faithfully and pointed others to Him.  For her forty-four years as a widow, He was her Husband and she leaned back into His ability to protect her.  When she drew her last breath, she got to see His face.  


Now Grandmother is in my "cloud of witnesses" who encourage my walk.  I thank the Lord for the way He still uses her example of a pure heart, a good conscience, and a sincere faith.

SHOWDOWN

PART ONE:  PHARAOH @ OK CORRAL

Ever pretend you've slipped into God's shoes?  I'm ashamed to say I've done that.  But what if you ACTUALLY made the world and put lifebreath in man, only for man to turn and bow to an inanimate piece of wood?  No wonder the Almighty began His commandments "you are to have no other gods before Me".

One of the best visuals for that first commandment is in the epic movie, The Ten Commandments.  Remember the part when Pharaoh was busy saying NO to the Israelite exodus and God was responding with plagues?  I can still see Yul Brynner and Charlton Heston going toe to toe.  But the story was about more than just their conflict.  God paints His narrative with exquisite layers.

First and foremost, Moses and Pharaoh settle the question "are there many gods?"  God records a story in chapters 7-13 of Exodus that clearly illustrates the truth that there are many posers, but there is only ONE true God.  This story is particularly appropriate for our generation because men lift high tolerance and open-mindedness...and they assume inclusivity equals righteousness.  But God will not share His glory, so men should tread carefully in endorsing something the Lord does not endorse.

Pharaoh's showdown is also a tender picture of the Father's heart to faithfully pursue man.  Max Lucado says "we hide and God seeks".  Since the garden, God has continually offered Himself to mankind.  The Egypt of that day was an advanced and affluent culture much like America today.  Along with her progress came other familiar influences:  "alternate spirituality" and a fascination with the supernatural.  God is ever the consumate Teacher; He considered the audience and empowered His prophet Moses to come with miracles and signs.  He desires that Israelites AND Egyptians respond to the truth of who He is.  And so as Moses spoke, God authenticated with some great powerpoint presentations.

God's Egyptian classroom was also meant to communicate that His power is supreme.  Remember when Aaron's rod became a snake?  Court magicians are able to duplicate the supernatural with their snake, but then Aaron's snake swallows theirs.  God trumps the supernatural.  And when He reveals Himself as Almighty, the ball is then in man's court to respond.  Did Yul have the responsive gene?  That bald guy was pretty stiff-necked.  Lord, give me a teachable heart.

I know from my life that I listen better when I'm in hot water...and Pharaoh was in some pretty hot water.  But you know what they say about the sun.  The same sun that softens butter, hardens clay.  So adversity doesn't cause the condition of my heart, but it DOES reveal my heart condition.  God sends His word and at the point when Pharaoh has had his last chance, the Book says God hardened the king's heart.  Think of that.  God is so merciful.  He knew Pharaoh's heart and He knew Pharaoh would never change his heart.  But that didn't stop the Deliverer from sending Pharaoh and all of Egypt a lifeline.

As this story unfolds,  it might be compared to a National Geographic special on eagles.  Right before the mama eagle forces her babies from the nest, she hovers over her nest, suspended.  That is her way to demonstrate power and to build trust in her babies.  Similarly, God is hovering over His Israelites and Pharaoh in the Exodus story.  He is showing His power and asking for their trust as He prepares to jettison His people from their bondage.  So let's watch our God build trust as we consider the plagues one at a time.  Remember, this story happens over a period of nine-twelve months.  God was giving people lots of time to chew on His truth.

PART TWO:  BATTLE OF THE GODS

The First Tier of Plagues (1-3)

Discomfort Arrives for Everyone

#1  WATER TO BLOOD

What is it that we all need daily besides a Charlie Sheen report?  We need water, the most basic of God's good gifts.  We find out just how important water really is when it is in short supply.  Can you imagine how horrific it would be to look out and see your water supply running red?  The only thing worse than seeing a crimson Nile would be smelling it.  Know how long this plague lasted?  Seven days.  Think you'd be thirsty at the end of that week in a hot land?  The fish in the river died and THAT had to stink.  The Nile ran throughout the whole country, so this is an amazing demonstration of God's power.  The Egyptians had stained the river years before with the blood of the Hebrew children (Exodus 1.22) and now God answers in all blood.

Egyptians worshipped the Nile River because it was their provider in the desert around them.  If there was no Nile, there was no crop, or commerce, or drinking water.  They sacrificed one to two young people a year to the river.  God was about to show them that they worshipped the creation above the Creator.

So God told Moses and Aaron to station themselves along the bank of the Nile in the morning when Pharaoh went down to bathe.  They were to take a little memory jogger, the staff that had earlier turned into a snake.  Moses was to say to Pharaoh "The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, has sent me to say to you: Let my people go, so that they may worship me in the desert. But until now you have not listened. This is what the LORD says: By this you will know that I am the LORD: With the staff that is in my hand I will strike the water of the Nile, and it will be changed into blood.  The fish in the Nile will die, and the river will stink; the Egyptians will not be able to drink its water."  Exodus 7.15-18

Bet THAT news traveled fast when it came to pass.  And what was the response from Pharaoh's court?  The king's magicians pulled a similar trick (more blood) out of their secret arts bag.  Wonder why it wouldn't seem logical to prove their power by UNDOING what had been done?  Surely they tried.  Pharaoh's response?  "And he did not listen...Pharaoh turned and went into his house, neither did he take even this to heart."  Exodus 7.23

Bottom Line?  God is greater than Khnum (the ram's head god who guarded the Nile), Osiris (the underworld god whose bloodstream was supposed to be the Nile), and Hapi (the spirit of the Nile who brought the floods that watered crops).  None of those gods answered the 911 call from the people of Egypt.

#2 FROGS

Moses gives fair warning and then the Lord sends Pharaoh frogs.  Why?  Frogs were common along the river, but they were protected and worshipped as divine.  Their goddess Heqt was pictured with the head of a frog.  Heqt was thought to be the wife of the creator of the world, and goddess of birth.  Women thought Heqt protected them in childbirth and fertility.  Ironic, then, that God uses frogs to make His point.  Exodus 8.3 says "The Nile will teem with frogs. They will come up into your palace and your bedroom and onto your bed, into the houses of your officials and on your people, and into your ovens and kneading troughs."  Eeeeuuu.

Egyptian magicians then duplicated the plague.   Exodus 8.7 says "the magicians did the same thing with their enchantments and secret arts, and brought up more frogs upon the land of Egypt".  More?  Hey guys, why not get rid of the slimy amphibians?  But the magicians cannot reverse God's hand outstretched in judgment.  

Pharaoh begs Moses to get God to take 'em away and Moses agreed IF Pharaoh would name the time.  Moses explains that if God showed up on time, then Pharaoh would know it was God who had done it.  Pharaoh picks "tomorrow", God keeps His part of the bargain, the frogs died, they were piled in heaps, and the dead frogs fouled the land.  

What was Pharaoh's response?  "But when Pharaoh saw that there was temporary relief, he made his heart stubborn and hard, and he would not listen or heed them."  Exodus 8.14

Bottom Line?  Neither divine frogs nor the goddess Heqt were a match for the Lord God Almighty.

#3  FLIES THROUGHOUT THE LAND   

These could have been gnats or mosquitoes or sand fleas or lice.  Have you ever stood in a spot with sand fleas?  All of a sudden you realize you are being eaten alive, ankles first.   Exodus said these little buggers were biting man and beast.  God humbles this mighty monarch with a "fly in the ointment".  What army would Pharaoh call out against these?  All the kings horses and all the kings men couldn't win against this tiny enemy. 

The insects would have been an embarrassment to Geb, the god of the earth, because it was from this dust of the earth that the flies (sand fleas/lice) would have originated.  And it ruined the priests, who shaved their bodies daily to be able to serve in their temple without physical impurity.  So in this plague, the land is infested with lice and the priests are covered in bites and cannot even ENTER their temple to entreat their god to help them.

We notice that God adds something new with this plague.  Exodus 8.18 says the magicians tried, but couldn't replicate this plague.  In fact, listen to their assesment... "then the magicians said to Pharaoh, THIS is the finger of God!"  The magicians were getting a whiff of truth!   But Scripture says Pharaoh's heart was strong and hardened and he would not listen to them.  

Bottom Line?  It's God over Geb. 

Now God has demonstrated His power through the first three plagues, which brought discomfort to people.  God takes no pleasure in people's grief. He would have been overjoyed if the people turned from idolatry.  But they did not turn and the next tier of plagues comes along.

The Second Tier of Plagues (4-6)

Discomfort Becomes Destruction

#4  BLOODSUCKING GADFLIES

In Matthew Henry's commentary it says that in some parts of Upper Egypt, swarms of these insects prevail so as to drive cattle to madness.  The poor old cows run wildly till they die from exhaustion.

Plague number four has several interesting aspects.  First, it was sent in winter, an unnatural time.  Also, for the first time in the list of plagues, the plague was specific in target.  The plagues previously had affected everyone and the Israelites had suffered alongside Egyptians.  Now everyone is listening, so God starts to show the people that He knows who are His.  Listen to Exodus 8.22,23: "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. I will make a distinction between my people and your people. This miraculous sign will occur tomorrow."

Sure enough, the next day gadflies were everywhere but Goshen.  Pharaoh falls back into treaty-making with Moses.  "OK, go out of town a short way, but don't leave Egypt."  Moses says NO.CAN.DO.  Pharaoh relents and says OK, but just call off these swarms.  So Moses entreats the Lord, and the Lord removed swarms of attacking gadflies.  But with Pharaoh's motivation gone, so is his willingness to keep a bargain.  Pharaoh's response was to again harden his heart and he refused to let the captives go.

Bottom Line?  God is greater than Beelzbul, Egypt's god of the air, who was unable to enforce a "no fly zone" in his supposed territory.

#5  LIVESTOCK PLAGUE

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Go to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘This is what the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, says: "Let my people go, so that they may worship me.  If you refuse to let them go and continue to hold them back, the hand of the LORD will bring a terrible plague on your livestock in the field—on your horses and donkeys and camels and on your cattle and sheep and goats."  Exodus 9.1-3

Horses and cattle were highly valued in Egypt and Egyptians also worshipped them.  They used bulls and bull calves as sacrifices to their many animal-headed gods.   Hathor was the cow-headed goddess of the desert and was the symbolic mother of Pharaoh.  This particular plague was an insult to these gods, as well as a direct insult to Khnum, the ram-god, and to Bast, the cat goddess of love. 

Perhaps the flies in the last plague carried a highly infectious bacterial infection that had already killed the fish/frogs and now found it's way to the livestock.  The death of the beasts was a devastating economic blow since wealth was measured in cattle and sheep.  Again, the plague was only applicable to the Egyptian livestock.  The Hebrews' livestock that breathed the same air and drank the same water...were exempt from the judgment. 

This fifth plague on the livestock renders the Egyptian gods lifeless and useless.   God declared when the plague would happen and it happened right on time.  But still, Pharaoh's heart was like stone. 

# 6 BOILS

When the Egyptians did not repent about their cattle, God now sends a plague that afflicts their own body.  He instructs Moses to take handfuls of ashes from the furnace and sprinkle it toward heaven in front of Pharaoh and announce boils throughout the land on man and beast.  

I read that in several cities of Egypt, it was customary to sacrifice men by burning them alive in a furnace and then scattering their ashes in the land, believing that would promote blessing and fertility.  God, the Author of Life, is answering that pagan practice. 

Egyptians worshipped Sekhmet, a lion-headed goddess with power over disease.  There was also a pestilence god named Sunu...and Isis, the goddess of healing.  Note the irony in the fact that the magicians were unable to rid Egypt of the boils.  And because they too were afflicted, they are not even able to show up to stand before Moses.  It brings new meaning to "Physician, heal thyself".

With this plague, God now hardens Pharaoh's heart.  Matthew Henry says "Willful hardness is commonly punished with judicial hardness.  If men shut their eyes against the light, it is just with God to close their eyes."

Third Tier of Plagues (7-9)

Destruction Becomes Dread

#7  HAIL

Exodus 9.13-18 says "then the LORD said to Moses, "Get up early in the morning, confront Pharaoh and say to him, ‘This is what the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, says: Let my people go, so that they may worship me, or this time I will send the full force of my plagues against you and against your officials and your people, so you may know that there is no-one like me in all the earth...Therefore, at this time tomorrow I will send the worst hailstorm that has ever fallen on Egypt, from the day it was founded till now."  (Note:  Cairo gets an annual rainfall of between 1-2 inches.  This hail would have been very unusual.)

God continues..."Give an order now to bring your livestock and everything you have in the field to a place of shelter, because the hail will fall on every man and animal that has not been brought in and is still out in the field, and they will die.  Those officials of Pharaoh who feared the word of the LORD hurried to bring their slaves and their livestock inside.  But those who ignored the word of the LORD left their slaves and livestock in the field."  Exodus 9.19-21

That is a beautiful example of God's justice and mercy happening at the same time.  Pharaoh's heart is hard, but God took care to provide for those who have regard for His Word.  There must have been some in Pharaoh's household who believed and avoided damage.  But those in defiance to the warning could only blame themselves.

Moses stretched his rod to heaven and the Lord sent thunder and hail and fire unlike anything Egypt had seen since it's founding.  All the trees were broken except in the land of Goshen where there was no hail.  Pharaoh mustered some faux repentance, Moses came and appealed to God, God stopped the hail, but Pharaoh still would not let the children of Israel go.  

Since this plague came from the sky, it would have been an insult to Nut, the sky goddess who was considered to be the mother of five other gods.  But during all this hail, do you think the Egyptians wondered where Shu (the wind god) was?  Or Horus, the hawk-headed sky god of Upper Egypt?  Or Isis and Seth, the crop protectors?  The hail proved them all powerless.

#8  LOCUSTS

Now locusts will answer Pharaoh's eighth refusal to give the Hebrews freedom.  And finally, the Scripture records Pharaoh's servants find the nerve to say to him "how long will this man Moses be a snare to us?  Let the men go, that they may serve the Lord their God.  Do you not realize that Egypt is destroyed?" (Exodus 10.7)

Pharaoh attempts another insincere "mea culpa" and bargains for the release of "men only".  Talk about someone unclear on the concept!  So Moses stretches out his staff and the Lord directed an east wind on the land all that day and all that night.  In the morning, the east wind brought the locusts.  What poor trees had not been broken completely by the hail are now stripped.

Then did we hear from Nepri (the god of grain)...or Ermutet, (the goddess of childbirth/crops)...or Thermuthis, (the goddess of fertility/harvest)...or Seth, (another god of the crops)?  

No.  Jehovah doesn't even have to push the mute button.

#9  DARKNESS

God is stunning in clarity in this ninth plague that struck dread in the hearts of the Egyptians.  He gave Pharaoh one last chance, and then brings a "thick darkness in all the land of Egypt" for three days.  It was so thick that Egyptians could not see one another.  No one got out of bed for three days.  But as Exodus 10.23 said..."All the children of Israel had light in their dwellings."

Just as it is today, the difference in the one true God...and the "alternative spirituality"...is the difference between light and darkness.  

Egyptians worshipped the two great lights, the sun and the moon.  Their god of light (Horus or Ra) was a falcon-headed man's body wearing a sun disk as a crown.  The kings of Egypt were believed to be incarnations of this god.  But Ra/Horus was quiet, as were Ptah (chief god who created the sun/moon/earth), and Atum (the sun god), and Tem (the god of the sunset) and Shu, the god of sunlight and air).  Their gig was up.

This plague (like the third/sixth plagues) came upon the Egyptians without warning.  They couldn't prepare either physically or psychologically.  Pharaoh first offers to let the slaves go, but says their cattle must remain behind.  That offer rejected, Pharaoh hotly warns Moses that he should leave the kings presence, and if Moses returned, it would be his death.  Moses says "You are right; I shall never see your face again!"  

The stage is set for the final plague.

#10 DEATH OF THE FIRSTBORNS

Before the Pharaoh that Yul Brynner played in the movie...was HIS father, the Pharaoh who ordered Israel's baby boys be thrown into the Nile.  Punishment is now coming in kind.  After many graphic audio-visuals, and as a result of the king's complete unresponsiveness, the tenth plague requires the life of Egypt's first born.  Harsh?  Yes.  But I thought about how many chances Mike and I gave our children to obey...how many times we "counted to three" before acting.  I don't remember ever counting to ten.  

In Exodus 11:4-5, God says "About midnight I will go out into the midst of Egypt; and all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on the throne, even to the firstborn of the maidservant who is behind the handmill, and all the firstborn of the beasts."   

This dreadful plague is selective because God gave a covering for those who would take Him up on the offer.  But it is also potentially more devastating than all the other plagues together. In Middle Eastern culture, the firstborn received a double portion of his father's inheritance, as well as a certain quality of life (Genesis 49.3).  The major portion of the family estate would be inherited by that firstborn son when the father died.  So the death of the firstborn son would cripple a family legally and emotionally.

The plague was directed against "all the gods of Egypt" (Exodus 12.12), and it shows the total inability of the Egyptian gods to protect their subjects.  Where was Meskhenet, the goddess who presided at the birth of children?  Where was Hathor, one of seven deities who attended the birth of children?  Where was Min, the god of procreation?  Or Isis, the goddess of fertility?  Or Selket, the guardian of life?  Or ESPECIALLY, where was Renenutet, the cobra-goddess guardian of Pharaoh?  Nowhere.

Nobody rejoices in Egypt's loss because everyone knows what it is to put their will above God's will.  Therefore, we all tremble at this story.  I tremble when I remember how stiff-necked and far from God I was for thirty years.  God's mercy is deep and wide.  But ultimately, God will not be mocked.

PART THREE:  THE EXIT DOOR

The Lord used the plagues of Egypt for five different purposes:

1.  Judgment on the gods of Egypt (Exodus 12.12)

2.  Demonstrate God's existence and power (Exodus 7.5)

3.  Judge Pharaoh/Egyptians for their cruelty and harshness (Genesis 15.14)

4.  Force Pharaoh to release Israel from Egypt (Exodus 3.19,20)

5.  Picture God's future judgment 

(The book of Revelation tells of plagues poured out on the earth in the last days.)

It is recorded in Exodus that Moses led God's people out of Egypt and God gave them favor with the Egyptians.  The Israelites were given silver, gold, clothing, and livestock as they left.  (At this point, my Daddy would have said "here's your hat, what's your hurry?")  

Exodus 12.38 describes a "mixed multitude" that left Egypt with the Israelites.  Some may have been Egyptians desperate for the exit door, but others were souls who had come to true faith and were following Israel's God's.  God doesn't miss a soul.  Leaving the ninety-nine to go for the one, God's heart is for the lost.  He's gotten every soul who has ever reached for Him. 

And in this case, they reached for Him because God was so clearly defining Himself.  Each of the plagues that the Lord sent...in effect posted a sign over every Egyptian god.  The sign read "IMPOTENT". 

Last month you and I watched Egypt go through another sort of showdown as the crowds in Tahrir Square demanded that another Egyptian tyrant be removed from leadership.  We know Mubarek was the big loser in that struggle, but we are not sure who emerged victorious to lead Egypt.  But there is no confusion about the victor in the clash between Moses and Pharaoh.  Our God was the Victor!  Here are some of God's names that He demonstrated in the Exodus passage:

El Roi (the God who sees) saw Israel's bondage and answered her cry

Jehovah Roi (God is my Shepherd) led Israel's shepherd, Moses

El Shaddai (the Almighty God) showed His sovereignty and strength

Jehovah (YHWH, the promised name of God) the one true God

Now the ball is in our court.  How will we respond to this revelation of the one true God?  Will we continue to think of ourselves as righteous because we include everyone's god in the equation?  Will we figure out what our idols are...the things that we trust more than God?  Will we tremble at God's awesome power?

Psalm 83.18

"So that men may see that you only,

whose name is Yahweh,

are Most High over all the earth."