The Last Plague
One God: The Ten Plagues of Egypt • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Intro
Intro
YHWH vs Pharaoh. In the last plague YHWH will defeat Pharaoh.
The king of Egypt will face this time the greatest fear, defined in the book of Job 18:14 as “the King of terrors”: death.
Men fear death as children fear to go in the dark.
Francis Bacon (English Philosopher)
The Tenth Plague. Of this plague I would like to consider some aspects that make it unique compared to the other 9:
The tenth plague is the only one with no hope of reversal. What dies will not come back to life.
God himself descends and passes through Egypt (Exodus 11:5). The Lord no longer uses instruments such as Aaron’s staff, nor mediators such as Moses. God strikes Egypt and does it personally.
After the announcement of the plague Moses becomes angry with the Pharaoh (Exodus 11:8) because of his rebellion and obstinacy. It is right to be angry at what displeases God, and it is a good symptom of spiritual health when we do not remain indifferent to evil and sin.
Another element that makes this plague unique is the length of the narrative (3 chapters dedicated to the plague), as well as its repetition. Chapter 12 repeats exactly everything that is predicted in chapter 11, proving that what God says, God keeps.
God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?
Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commandments.
Perhaps you are living in chapter 11, where you have only the words of God with you… Do not despise this chapter of your life, but be ready to live the chapter in which you would experience all the promises of the Lord.
1500 Illustrations for Biblical Preaching God’s Trustworthiness
Illustration.
Sermon's outline. Everything about this plague revolves around one expression: about midnight. It is a time that will mark the life of the Egyptians and that of the Hebrews.
I want to consider some elements that preceded midnight, and others that followed midnight:
It’s the time of God’s resources (Exodus 11:1);
It’s the time of the Church (Exodus 12:22);
It’s time to become great (Exodus 11:3);
It’s time to ask (Exodus 11:2).
N.1 - It’s the time of God’s resources
N.1 - It’s the time of God’s resources
Now the Lord had said to Moses, “I will bring one more plague on Pharaoh and on Egypt. After that, he will let you go from here, and when he does, he will drive you out completely.
God has infinite resources. This plague reminds us that heaven has unlimited resources, it reminds that the Lord has many arrows in His quiver.
The boxer cannot fight more than 15 rounds, the sea cannot go beyond its borders, but God can still send “another plague.”
God does not tire, the Lord must not rest.
Paul, describing to the Ephesians the abilities of God, states:
Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us,
The Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, is the only One who can say: "one more… salvation, liberation, baptism.”
The last plague will be enough. It is interesting to consider the fact that Pharaoh endured 9 plagues without bending to the will of God.
Why should this last plague be different? 430 years of slavery and 9 plagues have changed nothing, why should this make a difference?
This tenth plague reminds us that God can accomplish with one plague, what did not happen in 9 plagues.
Application. Maybe you too are wondering what difference another prayer can make. You have been waiting for months, years for an answer, but nothing seems to move your Pharaoh.
The Lord tells you: "one more plague… and he will let you go".
Keep trusting in the Lord and in His intervention.
N.2 - It’s the time of the Church
N.2 - It’s the time of the Church
Take a bunch of hyssop, dip it into the blood in the basin and put some of the blood on the top and on both sides of the doorframe. None of you shall go out of the door of your house until morning.
Proclamation. In the time of crisis, Moses calls the elders of Israel together, calling them to action, giving them instructions to survive the plague of God.
The time had come for the Hebrews to proclaim their relationship with God: they had to put blood on the doors of their homes.
They had little time to act in obedience to Moses’ command.
Application. When I read about this people called in a short time to proclaim they are eternally bound to God, the Church of Christ comes to mind.
We are living in the last hours of God’s grace and like the Hebrews, we are called to speak of the lamb of God to this generation:
For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.
Like the Hebrews, we cannot keep our connection with God hidden, private, but publicly confess that our lives and our families belong to Jesus!
We do not want to live our faith in Christ as nocturnal disciples, like Nicodemus:
He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.”
Faith is not a private wager (ueger) but a public risk that Jesus is worthy of trust when no other hope can be trusted.
James R. Edwards (American Teacher)
Let's be courageous: we have little time, let us give instructions to this generation and proclaim our faith in Jesus with actions of concrete obedience to God.
N.3 - It’s time to become great
N.3 - It’s time to become great
The Lord made the Egyptians favorably disposed toward the people, and Moses himself was highly regarded in Egypt by Pharaoh’s officials and by the people.
A respected man. Because of his bad choices, Pharaoh was losing the respect and favor of the Egyptians:
Pharaoh’s officials said to him, “How long will this man be a snare to us? Let the people go, so that they may worship the Lord their God. Do you not yet realize that Egypt is ruined?”
And it is precisely during a time of crisis that Moses gains more and more respect from the Egyptian people.
Application. In times of crisis and difficulty the children of God gain favor and respect in the eyes of this world.
When there is no more hope, when the night of judgment approaches, that is the moment in which the believer emerges with his character and integrity.
It is in a crisis that character is revealed.
Ellen Gould White
Paul on the Adremittine ship. No one would listen to Paul when they decided to sail to Rome:
“Men, I can see that our voyage is going to be disastrous and bring great loss to ship and cargo, and to our own lives also.” But the centurion, instead of listening to what Paul said, followed the advice of the pilot and of the owner of the ship.
When the crisis came, in the midst of the storm, the only one capable of encouraging the spirits, the only one capable of emerging from the darkness and earning the respect of all was Paul (Acts 23:23-25).
This difficult hour, this time of crisis will be used by God as an opportunity to bring out your testimony.
Crisis
The Chinese word for “crisis” is a combination of the symbols for “danger” plus “opportunity.”
N.4 - It’s time to ask
N.4 - It’s time to ask
Tell the people that men and women alike are to ask their neighbors for articles of silver and gold.”
Asking. For centuries the Jewish people had worked without ever asking for anything, but now the time has come to ask.
Notice how the Lord invites everyone, men and women, to ask, to inquire.
When the time came, the Israelites obeyed and asked the Egyptians:
The Lord had made the Egyptians favorably disposed toward the people, and they gave them what they asked for; so they plundered the Egyptians.
Application. In this time of darkness, rebellion and opposition the Lord invites us to ask Him.
Everyone needs to ask! This is God’s command. Every man, woman, old man, girl is invited to ask God.
The Lord is ready to open the windows of heaven and pour out on us what we are praying for.
In many assemblies, people no longer ask! In many churches, no one knocks on the doors of heaven in prayer to ask.
Maybe you are like that man who one day entered a church to buy “just 3 dollars of God”.
Illustration. I would like to buy three dollars’ worth of God, please, not enough to explode my soul or disturb my sleep but just enough to equal a cup of warm milk or a snooze in the sunshine. I don’t want enough of Him to make me love a sinner or a stranger or serve the poors. I want ecstasy, not transformation; I want the warmth of the womb, not a new birth. I want a pound of the Eternal in a paper sack (seck). I would like to buy three dollars’ worth worth of God, please.
Today do not ask yourself if God will answer you:
Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear.
Conclusion
Conclusion
It is time. It is in this time that we want to recognize the infinite resources of God.
It is in this time that God calls us to be His Church, to teach this generation and proclaiming that only through the blood of the Lamb there is salvation.
It is in this time of crisis that we are called to emerge and make a difference in society.
It is in this time that God invites us to ask Him.
