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Topic: Arrant Stubbornness
[DCLM Daily Manna 20 January 2020 Daily Devotional by Pastor William Folorunso Kumuyi]
Text: Exodus 9:1-12
1 Then the LORD said unto Moses, Go in unto Pharaoh, and tell him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me.
2 For if thou refuse to let them go, and wilt hold them still,
3 Behold, the hand of the LORD is upon thy cattle which is in the field, upon the horses, upon the asses, upon the camels, upon the oxen, and upon the sheep: there shall be a very grievous murrain.
4 And the LORD shall sever between the cattle of Israel and the cattle of Egypt: and there shall nothing die of all that is the children’s of Israel.
5 And the LORD appointed a set time, saying, To morrow the LORD shall do this thing in the land.
6 And the LORD did that thing on the morrow, and all the cattle of Egypt died: but of the cattle of the children of Israel died not one.
7 And Pharaoh sent, and, behold, there was not one of the cattle of the Israelites dead. And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people go.
8 And the LORD said unto Moses and unto Aaron, Take to you handfuls of ashes of the furnace, and let Moses sprinkle it toward the heaven in the sight of Pharaoh.
9 And it shall become small dust in all the land of Egypt, and shall be a boil breaking forth with blains upon man, and upon beast, throughout all the land of Egypt.
10 And they took ashes of the furnace, and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses sprinkled it up toward heaven; and it became a boil breaking forth with blains upon man, and upon beast.
11 And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils; for the boil was upon the magicians, and upon all the Egyptians.
12 And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had spoken unto Moses.
Key Verse: “And the LORD shall sever between the cattle of Israel and the cattle of Egypt: and there shall nothing die of all that is the children’s of Israel” (Exodus 9:4).
MESSAGE:
In the summer of 1986, two ships collided on the Black Sea, off the coast of Russia. Hundreds of passengers died as they were hurled into the city waters below. News of the disaster was further darkened when an investigation revealed the cause of the accident. It wasn’t a technology problem like radar malfunction – or even thick fog. The cause was human stubbornness. Each captain was aware of the other ship’s presence, but according to news reports, neither wanted to give way to the other. Each was too proud to yield first. By the time they came to their senses, it was too late.
Pharaoh was so stubborn that the terrible plagues coming upon his nation and the suffering it brought weren’t enough to make him change his mind, until God had no choice but to bring greater sufferings upon Egypt. Today’s text chronicled the plague of destruction upon the entire cattle of the Egyptians. Refusing to bulge, Moses was commanded to take some ashes and throw into the air to cause painful boils to break out upon the Egyptians. This particular plague was so severe that even the Egyptian magicians, who used their powers to duplicate the miracles and compete with Moses, were sick and could not report to their duties. Yet, Pharaoh hardened his neck and again failed to yield to the demands of God through Moses.
Like the two captains, some people linger in their sins because they feel too proud to yield, acknowledge their sinfulness, repent and be converted. They ignore the numerous threats of judgment clearly spelt out in the Scriptures and the possibility of spending long eternity in hell fire. Man is too powerless to do a face-off with Almighty God. The earlier we realise our faults, come down from the ivory tower of pride to accept God’s offer of salvation, the better. Otherwise, it may be too late.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: There is serious danger in stubbornness.
THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Exodus 12-16
