Don’t Wait Until Midnight

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Don’t Wait Until Midnight

Don’t Wait Until Midnight

Exodus 12:29  And it came to pass, that at midnight the LORD smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the firstborn of cattle.
30  And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he, and all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt; for there was not a house where there was not one dead.
31  And he called for Moses and Aaron by night, and said, Rise up, and get you forth from among my people, both ye and the children of Israel; and go, serve the LORD, as ye have said.
32  Also take your flocks and your herds, as ye have said, and be gone; and bless me also.

This final plague against Egypt was a hard hitting plague. God had already shown Pharaoh and the nation of Egypt that He was not someone to play around with. He showed them that He means what He says and that He is also capable of doing all that He says He will do.
Pharaoh was a fool. He rejected the true God, even though his nation had already been hurt a great deal. This last plague would hit him just as hard as it would hit his people.
We read that the “destroyer” passed over the land of Egypt at midnight. We read that the LORD smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt. This included the firstborn of Pharaoh as well as the firstborn among the captives and of all the cattle as well. This was a devastating hit against the entire nation of Egypt. It was not without warning. No one in Egypt could cry out and say they were not warned. Yet, sadly, the people did not heed the warning given.
In verse 30 we read that Pharaoh rose up in the night and all his servants and all the Egyptians. They had rejected the warning given them, but they were roused anyway to check to see if what Moses had declared had actually taken place. We read there was a great cry in Egypt. There was not a house where there was not someone dead that night. What a shock that would be. What a sobering reality they faced!
This action was not a pleasure to the LORD. He would much rather have seen the people repent and trust in Him. However, He had been very patient with them and they rejected all His efforts to show them He was in charge. Now they experienced His justice and they could not legitimately shake their fist at Him.
Pharaoh did not hesitate to call Moses and Aaron by night. Keep in mind, this was the same Pharaoh who had not long before this, threatened Moses not to appear before him again. Now he sought for Moses and Aaron. He was not in any position now to threaten Moses. Now he was hurting. Now he was ready to send the children of Israel away. He was willing to give them permission to go and serve the LORD.
Pharaoh now told Moses that they should take their flocks and herds with them. He wanted them out of his sight and out of his land. This was an emotional shock to him. Again, it did not need to be this way. Pharaoh had witnessed the power of God nine times prior to this event. Each time, he knew his magicians were powerless to stop the plagues. His magicians had been able to duplicate a few of them, but they could not stop or counter any of them. Pharaoh knew he was not in charge. Yet he chose to play with fire. He got burned every time.
This time, as a knee-jerk reaction, he broke. However, his heart was not broken. His emotions were deeply affected, but his heart was still just as hard. In a moment of weakness he gave in to the LORD’s demand.
Notice that Pharaoh even wanted Moses to bless him at this time. He did not know what a true blessing looked like. He wanted all his wickedness swept under the rug for a moment of blessing. He rejected the fact that the blessing he desired was only available for those who put their trust in the true God. He was not about to do that.
There are thousands of people who want a superficial blessing in a moment of grief or stress. They have no interest in truth, but their soul desires comfort. Many people hand on to lies when they face these difficult times. The wise person listens to God and trusts in Him. The wise person submits to God and receives His gift of eternal life. That is where true comfort comes from.
God had already instructed the children of Israel to be dressed and ready to leave at a moment’s notice. He knew that Pharaoh would soon change his mind. Thus the children of Israel were ready to pull out. Many of the Egyptians were also ready to give of their treasures to the children of Israel. The sorrow of what had just happened had deeply affected the entire nation and for the moment, they were just happy to see the children of Israel leave. There was no friendship there. There was no desire to try to make things work. It was now time for the Hebrews to leave.
This was God’s plan. He knew that the children of Israel would never be able to just leave peacefully. He knew the heart of Pharaoh. He knew that he was far too greedy and selfish to let the Hebrews leave. He had no attachment to these people. He did not have that much attachment to his own people but he was willing to leave them out of the hard labour that he required to get his empire built.
In a very short time now, he would lose all of that. However, at this time he was still a very vain man.
God is still capable of getting powerful people’s attention. He always works in a way that draws attention to Who He is. Man needs to know Him. Every man will stand before the LORD one day soon. The time we have on this earth is quite short. It goes by quite fast. That final breath often comes before we expect it. When that final breath is taken, there is no turning back. There are people who believe their loved one hung on for just the right moment. That might sound good, but it is not true. The government is using our tax dollars to assist people in killing themselves. They think they are very smart in doing that. There are people who are content to accept government funding to kill themselves. They do not stop to think of where they will spend eternity.
The wise person listens to the LORD. The wise person turns to God in repentance and trusts in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation. The wise person is the one who is blessed with salvation and eternal life.
Be sure you know the true God today. Submit to His will and know true peace in your heart.
Pastor Bartel

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