War in the Unseen Part 4

When blessings become burdens

Recap: Last time we saw something powerful, God struck the Nile and exposed Pharaoh—showing that only He is in control and the true source of life!

What we are seeing as we dive in for a closer look is God systematically tearing down fortresses of false security and trust.

God’s desire is to expose misplaced trust, not to hurt us, but to free us and to reveal Himself as the only true source of life.

Text: Exodus 8:1–15 “And the Lord spake unto Moses, Go unto Pharaoh, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Let my people go, that they may serve me. And if thou refuse to let them go, behold, I will smite all thy borders with frogs: And the river shall bring forth frogs abundantly, which shall go up and come into thine house, and into thy bedchamber, and upon thy bed, and into the house of thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thine ovens, and into thy kneadingtroughs: And the frogs shall come up both on thee, and upon thy people, and upon all thy servants. And the Lord spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch forth thine hand with thy rod over the streams, over the rivers, and over the ponds, and cause frogs to come up upon the land of Egypt. And Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt; and the frogs came up, and covered the land of Egypt. And the magicians did so with their enchantments, and brought up frogs upon the land of Egypt. Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron, and said, Intreat the Lord, that he may take away the frogs from me, and from my people; and I will let the people go, that they may do sacrifice unto the Lord. And Moses said unto Pharaoh, Glory over me: when shall I intreat for thee, and for thy servants, and for thy people, to destroy the frogs from thee and thy houses, that they may remain in the river only? And he said, To morrow. And he said, Be it according to thy word: that thou mayest know that there is none like unto the Lord our God. And the frogs shall depart from thee, and from thy houses, and from thy servants, and from thy people; they shall remain in the river only. And Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh: and Moses cried unto the Lord because of the frogs which he had brought against Pharaoh. And the Lord did according to the word of Moses; and the frogs died out of the houses, out of the villages, and out of the fields. And they gathered them together upon heaps: and the land stank. But when Pharaoh saw that there was respite, he hardened his heart, and hearkened not unto them; as the Lord had said.”

One thing to be mindful of is, many scholars see these plagues as confronting the gods Egypt trusted in.

As we look at the plagues we see God is not just confronting personal idols—He is confronting the powers behind them that keep people in bondage.

Keep in mind God moves from one false source of trust to another.

Here God is simply calling out the god Heqet who was known to the Egyptians as the goddess of fertility.

Frogs often were seen in the Nile river, ponds, and streams in the spring also symbolizing new life and abundance. And because frogs often laid hundreds to thousands of eggs at a single time were often viewed as fertile.

As we look in this passage we see what was supposed to symbolize blessing, fertility and abundance we see it becoming a curse.

Point :

What we often own begins to own us!

What we often count as blessing, apart from God becomes a burden!

These frogs had infiltrated every crevice of their lives, their homes, their bed chambers, even their ovens!

Same can be with us, rather its money, comfort, or success, apart from God these things can choke out our relationship with God, family, community and become a snare to us!

Reminder: What we call blessing often becomes a burden

Let me ask you:

1. When is enough, enough?

2. How much is enough money ?

3. What does it mean to be comfortable?

4. How high on the ladder of success must you climb to feel successful?

5. And when you get there, Then what ???

“What we call blessing often becomes a burden.”

Bottom line… Apart from God they don’t satisfy they suffocate!

“What we trust in—what we think we own—begins to own and rule us.”

After the frogs died they piled them up into heaps and they began stinking!

One good example may be buyers remorse !

Remember: God moves from one false source of trust to another

The next is lice / gnats … Geb - god of earth / soil

God is even in control of the dirt ! Even pharaohs magicians recognized they were powerless and this was directly from the Finger of God !

I'm reminded as Jesus and His Disciples were going across the sea that a storm of wind came up. The disciples were afraid and asked him to do something and Jesus rebuked the wind saying (peace be still ) and immediately there was a great calm in so much that the disciples asked what manner of man is this that even the wind and seas obey Him ?

Point : God is in control of the least of things big and small. He’s not just concerned with the big stuff, or big sins in our lives but every minute detail of any and all that leads us away from Him, small sins, small compromises, small habits, even the little ( white Lies ).

Next we have is Flies - god, Khepri - rebirth and order

What we see here is a separation/ division between God’s people and the Egyptian people. God causes grievous swarms of flies to come into the houses of the Egyptians and on the land of Egypt, but not in Goshen where God’s people lived.

Point: There ought to be a difference about God’s people

God’s people were called to be a Peculiar people a Holy Nation

1 Peter 2:9 “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:”

We as Professing Christians are to be Christ like or like Christ, always mindful of Who’s Name we are bearing!

We should display our faith in how we live, work, play, respond to others and in Whom we trust.

When God is with you, in you and upon you, it shows!

Remember: God moves from one false source of trust to another

Next we have Hathor and Apis the gods of - strength and provision - cattle= wealth

Now all the cattle of Egypt have died out, the economy has crashed and burned. Everyone's wealth is gone, the food supply is in jeopardy and trade and commerce are at a stand still !

This not only weakens them as a nation but has an trickle down effect to the individual families!

Question is, what or who does one trust in ? where does one go in such times when there are no jobs, the bank and the dollar fail, the government is broke and failing, and the markets are empty, when the money runs out?

Reminder What we own often owns us !

Now lets look at Sekhmet the god credited for healing.

Now things are getting personal with individuals as the plague of boils come upon the Egyptians. Nothing they did themselves, nor the magicians of Pharaohs court could alleviate their pain or facilitate healing .

The reality is very little is in our control including our health, strength, and or abilities. Its when we reach our limit we find out the True God is Boundless / limitless

So what is God doing through the plague of the boils?

He is dismantling our reliance on comfort, security, control, and our identity and redirecting our focus to Him.

He is using it as an opportunity to reveal Himself mighty, evident, and present in our lives.

He uses it to show us our weakness and need for Him

Opportunity after opportunity

Through all the plagues God sends Moses before Pharaoh time after time giving him warning after warning and opportunity after opportunity. This is not a just a picture of God’s judgement, but His love mercy and grace as He ultimately is revealing Himself Supreme !

The Awesome truth is He invites us to get to know Him in Matthew 11:28–30 “Come unto me,

And relentlessly pursues us in Revelation 3:20 “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.”

False gods promise life but produce bondage!

The same God who confronted the false trusts of Egypt… is the same God who, through Jesus Christ, has defeated the powers behind every false trust we cling to. What Egypt could not fix, what Pharaoh could not control, what their gods could not provide—Christ has overcome completely!

He doesn’t just remove the burden… He breaks the bondage.

Take aways:

What we often own begins to own us

What we call blessing becomes a burden

Apart from God, they don’t satisfy—they suffocate

Closing questions

What or who do you turn to when things get tough?

2. What controls my peace?

3. What do I fear losing the most ?