Good
Morning Friends,
God
sent plague after plague on the land of Egypt. Horrible things happened to the
Egyptians, their livestock, and their crops. There was water turned into blood,
frogs, gnats, flies, livestock died, boils infected the people, and hailstones.
It was horrible.
“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.”’” (Exodus 9:13-14)
The
plagues that afflicted Egypt were not just a demonstration of God’s judgment. They
were also a demonstration of God’s mercy. The Egyptians deserved greater
punishment than God was giving to them. They deserved to the wiped out from the
face of the earth. That God only afflicted them instead of destroying them was kindness
from God. He was giving them more chances to turn to Him. Even if Pharaoh would
not because his heart was so hard, some of the Egyptians could have. They could
have seen what the Lord was doing, recognized it was the work of the Lord to
punish wickedness, and they could have repented. That is what the Lord wanted!
God’s
discipline in our lives is an evidence of His love. The Hebrew author declared,
“The Lord disciplines those he loves.” (Hebrews 3:12)
Even
God’s judgment in the lives of those who do not follow Him, His punishment of
sin, is an evidence of His grace and mercy. Most often His punishment does not
lead to destruction – certainly His initial punishment does not. It is
motivated by a desire to see people change, to come to Him in repentance.
So,
as Solomon reminded us, “Do not despise the Lord’s discipline and do not resent
His rebuke.” (Proverbs 3:11) They are an evidence of His grace, His mercy, His
love.
His,
by Grace,
Steve
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