The Sovereignty of God in the
Egyptian plagues
Exodus 7:8-10:29
20/02/2011
By Christopher Stuttle
What is Sovereignty?
• “Sovereignty is the quality of having supreme,
supreme,
independent
independent
authority
authority
over aover
geographic
a geographic
area”
area everything”
Important phrases
1. Geographic area
2.Supreme authority
3.independent authority
The Story of the plagues
History given by God
Fiction
FACT
FICTION
Overview of talk
Trying to understand more of
• God’s supreme authority
• God’s independent authority
• And always taking what we have
learnt and each time applying it to
ourselves
The expression of supreme
independent authority in the story
• The story is like a competition:
God’s power Vs Stubborn ruler’s power
• The story is a changing of two people
▫ Both with very different responses to Gods power
▫ Both with different outcomes dues to response
▫ They ended up where they were from getting
closer to or further from God.
• All which is seen in this age and ourselves too
Supreme authority in the rod turning
into a snake
• Pharaoh’s Response
▫ Rejects the signs with a hard heart
 Rejects the one who sent them
▫ Turning to wisdom as authority
 Wisdom sustains for a while
 God shows supreme authority over wisdom
• Pharaoh moves away from God due to response
▫ Consequences for actions
Are we so far from pharaoh?
All of creation sings a song of praise to
God
• Do you hear this song or do you block your
senses with idols of today?
• Do you allow the song to change your hearts or
do you harden it?
• Do you fully free myself from idols, fully open
my heart and fully turn to the lord?
Supreme authority in the rod turning
into a snake for Moses
• Moses’ response
▫
▫
▫
▫
▫
He was prepared for what was going to happen
Steadfast in faith
Steadfast in God’s love
Steadfast in God’s power and his authority
Knows that God will provide
• Miraculous consequences!
How do we respond to seeing Moses’
actions?
• Do we know God has prepared us for everything
we face just as he prepared Moses resulting in
Moses being so faithful?
• Do you know you are exactly where you are
supposed to be right now?
• Do we draw our strength from God and his word
leaving us encouraged in faith even in the
presence of adversity?
• Do we know where our strength lies or do we try
and do things on our own?
Gods independent authority
• Independent authority is the
authority to do as you like without
control by others and without having
to ask permission
• Events
▫ The plagues
▫ Request for God to compromise from pharaoh
Egyptian Gods and their jobs
Name
god of/head of
Hapi
God of the Nile
heket
Frog headed
Geb
God of the Earth
khepri
Fly headed
Hathor
God of protection
Isis
God of medicine and peace
Nut
God of the sky
Seth
God of storms and disorder
Ra
Kings of the gods and god of the sun
Pharaoh
Ultimate power in Egypt
Independent authority in the plagues
• Egyptian gods were shown to have less than no
power over there area of governing
• All the plagues showed lack of power of Egyptian
gods
• No compromise for the Egyptian gods
▫ They couldn’t stop the plagues
 Pharaoh’s magicians could stop them either
• Can compromise for a fearful and loving heart
Our response to Independent authority
in the plagues
• What are our idols?
▫ God has power over them!
• What are the giants in our world
▫ God has power over them!
• The strength needed to see the idols and over
come them is in God
Independent authorityGod’s response to pharaohs request for
compromise
“Let my people go, so that they may worship me in
the wilderness”
• Requests from pharaoh based on;
▫
▫
▫
▫
His pride
His plan
Pharaoh’s idea that God lacks wisdom
His Selfishness
• God doesn’t compromise for those reasons.
Independent authorityour compromises before God
• Are you holding things away from God due to
lack of trust in him or his plan?
• Are you holding things away from God due to
you knowing better?
Conclusion
• No fear from guilt
• Be like Moses at the cross roads of life
▫ He was prepared for what was going to happen
 So be the same and strengthen yourself in God
▫ He was Steadfast in faith
 So be the same and strengthen yourself in God
▫ He was steadfast in God’s love
 So be the same and strengthen yourself in God
▫ He was Steadfast in God’s power and his authority
 So be the same and strengthen yourself in God
▫ He knew that God would provide and sustain
 So know the same and strengthen yourself in God
Takeaway
• Trust in God
▫ He is worthy of trust
• Be open to God’s will
▫ Don’t harden our hearts
• We are heirs to the supreme and independent
God
▫ Was are his children blessed by him
• We are more than conquerors
when with God!
Questions or comments
• I have skipped over a lot of material today so
please ask questions about any bits I didn’t bring
up.
• It may end up helping the people next to you
too.