Definition of Leadership

Transcription

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2 Definition of Leadership "Leadership is discovering the company's destiny and having the courage to follow it. Joe Jaworski God has chosen YOU to lead others Your family needs YOU to be a spiritual leader Your neighbors need YOU to be a spiritual leader This church family needs YOU to be a spiritual leader Source:

3 Exodus 9-11

4 Mount Horeb = Mount Sinai

5 The 10 Plagues (signs, judgments) Water turns to blood Exodus 7:20 Frogs Ex.8:6 Gnats Ex. 8:17 Flies Ex. 8:24 Livestock plague Ex. 9:6 Boils and sores Ex. 9:10 Hail and lightning Ex. 9:23 Locusts Ex. 10:13 Darkness Ex. 10:22 Death of the firstborn Ex. 11:5, 12:29 *Each of the judgments smashed some aspect of Egypt s religious life (i.e., Satan s domain). *The 10 plagues may have occurred over a period of about nine months. -Bible Knowledge Commentary *They had their effect upon the Egyptians not only physically and mentally, but also spiritually. Each plague was directed against some phenomenon of nature worshiped by the Egyptians as in some way related to the gods. Wycliffe Bible Commentary

6 Then the Lord said to Moses, Go to Pharaoh and speak to him, Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, Let My people go, that they may serve Me. For if you refuse to let them go and continue to hold them, behold, the hand of the Lord will come with a very severe pestilence on your livestock which are in the field, on the horses, on the donkeys, on the camels, on the herds, and on the flocks. But the Lord will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt, so that nothing will die of all that belongs to the sons of Israel. The Lord set a definite time, saying, Tomorrow the Lord will do this thing in the land. So the Lord did this thing on the next day, and all the livestock of Egypt died; but of the livestock of the sons of Israel, not one died. Pharaoh sent, and behold, there was not even one of the livestock of Israel dead. But the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people go. Exodus 9:1-7 *With dead frogs throughout the land and with swarms of flies spreading germs, this pestilence, so destructive to animal life, may have been the infectious disease known as anthrax. (BKC)

7 Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, Take for yourselves handfuls of soot from a kiln, and let Moses throw it toward the sky in the sight of Pharaoh. It will become fine dust over all the land of Egypt, and will become boils breaking out with sores on man and beast through all the land of Egypt. So they took soot from a kiln, and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses threw it toward the sky, and it became boils breaking out with sores on man and beast. The magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils, for the boils were on the magicians as well as on all the Egyptians. And the Lord hardened Pharaoh s heart, and he did not listen to them, just as the Lord had spoken to Moses. Exodus 9:8-12 *The kiln was a symbol of the commercial and artistic wealth of Egypt. As disaster had come from the natural resources of the river and the land, so now industry provided the source of new trouble. Wycliffe B.C.

8 Then the Lord said to Moses, Rise up early in the morning and stand before Pharaoh and say to him, Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, Let My people go, that they may serve Me. For this time I will send all My plagues on you and your servants and your people, so that you may know that there is no one like Me in all the earth. For if by now I had put forth My hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, you would then have been cut off from the earth. But, indeed, for this reason I have allowed you to remain, in order to show you My power and in order to proclaim My name through all the earth. Still you exalt yourself against My people by not letting them go. Exodus 9:13-17

9 Behold, about this time tomorrow, I will send a very heavy hail, such as has not been seen in Egypt from the day it was founded until now. Now therefore send, bring your livestock and whatever you have in the field to safety. Every man and beast that is found in the field and is not brought home, when the hail comes down on them, will die. The one among the servants of Pharaoh who feared the word of the Lord made his servants and his livestock flee into the houses; but he who paid no regard to the word of the Lord left his servants and his livestock in the field. Exodus 9:18-21

10 Now the Lord said to Moses, Stretch out your hand toward the sky, that hail may fall on all the land of Egypt, on man and on beast and on every plant of the field, throughout the land of Egypt. Moses stretched out his staff toward the sky, and the Lord sent thunder and hail, and fire ran down to the earth. And the Lord rained hail on the land of Egypt. So there was hail, and fire flashing continually in the midst of the hail, very severe, such as had not been in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. The hail struck all that was in the field through all the land of Egypt, both man and beast; the hail also struck every plant of the field and shattered every tree of the field. Only in the land of Goshen, where the sons of Israel were, there was no hail. Exodus 9:22-26

11 Then Pharaoh sent for Moses and Aaron, and said to them, I have sinned this time; the Lord is the righteous one, and I and my people are the wicked ones. Make supplication to the Lord, for there has been enough of God s thunder and hail; and I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer. Moses said to him, As soon as I go out of the city, I will spread out my hands to the Lord; the thunder will cease and there will be hail no longer, that you may know that the earth is the Lord s. But as for you and your servants, I know that you do not yet fear the Lord God. (Now the flax and the barley were ruined, for the barley was in the ear and the flax was in bud. But the wheat and the spelt [inferior kind of wheat] were not ruined, for they ripen late.) So Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh, and spread out his hands to the Lord; and the thunder and the hail ceased, and rain no longer poured on the earth. But when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunder had ceased, he sinned again and hardened his heart, he and his servants. Pharaoh s heart was hardened, and he did not let the sons of Israel go, just as the Lord had spoken through Moses. Exodus 9:27-35 *Flax and barley blossomed in January and were harvested in March April. Wheat and spelt ripened about a month later (in April) and were harvested in June July. This plague may have occurred in February. (BKC)

12 Then the Lord said to Moses, Go to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the heart of his servants, that I may perform these signs of Mine among them, and that you may tell in the hearing of your son, and of your grandson, how I made a mockery of the Egyptians and how I performed My signs among them, that you may know that I am the Lord. Exodus 10:1-2 *Are we telling the next generation about the greatness of our God?

13 What were they thinking? (And Where do you fit in?) Pharaoh What is the minimum that I must do or say to get the judgments to stop? Moses and Aaron Why do we have to be the ones proclaiming God s truth to people who don t want to hear it? The Egyptian people If this God of the Jews is really the true God, why won t our leader acknowledge it? The Jewish slaves After all this pain, is our God really going to deliver us?

14 Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said to him, Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, How long will you refuse to humble yourself before Me? Let My people go, that they may serve Me. For if you refuse to let My people go, behold, tomorrow I will bring locusts into your territory. They shall cover the surface of the land, so that no one will be able to see the land. They will also eat the rest of what has escaped what is left to you from the hail and they will eat every tree which sprouts for you out of the field. Then your houses shall be filled and the houses of all your servants and the houses of all the Egyptians, something which neither your fathers nor your grandfathers have seen, from the day that they came upon the earth until this day. And he turned and went out from Pharaoh. Pharaoh s servants said to him, How long will this man be a snare to us? Let the men go, that they may serve the Lord their God. Do you not realize that Egypt is destroyed? So Moses and Aaron were brought back to Pharaoh, and he said to them, Go, serve the Lord your God! Who are the ones that are going? Moses said, We shall go with our young and our old; with our sons and our daughters, with our flocks and our herds we shall go, for we must hold a feast to the Lord. Then he said to them, Thus may the Lord be with you, if ever I let you and your little ones go! Take heed, for evil is in your mind. Not so! Go now, the men among you, and serve the Lord, for that is what you desire. So they were driven out from Pharaoh s presence. Exodus 10:3-11

15 Then the Lord said to Moses, Stretch out your hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, that they may come up on the land of Egypt and eat every plant of the land, even all that the hail has left. So Moses stretched out his staff over the land of Egypt, and the Lord directed an east wind on the land all that day and all that night; and when it was morning, the east wind brought the locusts. The locusts came up over all the land of Egypt and settled in all the territory of Egypt; they were very numerous. There had never been so many locusts, nor would there be so many again. For they covered the surface of the whole land, so that the land was darkened; and they ate every plant of the land and all the fruit of the trees that the hail had left. Thus nothing green was left on tree or plant of the field through all the land of Egypt. Exodus 10:12-15

16 Swarm of over 30 million locusts in Egypt in March 2013

17 Swarm of over 30 million locusts in Egypt in March 2013

18 Swarm of over 30 million locusts in Egypt in March 2013

19 Source:

20 Next week What is Passover?

21 Then Pharaoh hurriedly called for Moses and Aaron, and he said, I have sinned against the Lord your God and against you. Now therefore, please forgive my sin only this once, and make supplication to the Lord your God, that He would only remove this death from me. He went out from Pharaoh and made supplication to the Lord. So the Lord shifted the wind to a very strong west wind which took up the locusts and drove them into the Red Sea; not one locust was left in all the territory of Egypt. But the Lord hardened Pharaoh s heart, and he did not let the sons of Israel go. Exodus 10:16-20

22 Then the Lord said to Moses, Stretch out your hand toward the sky, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even a darkness which may be felt. So Moses stretched out his hand toward the sky, and there was thick darkness in all the land of Egypt for three days. They did not see one another, nor did anyone rise from his place for three days, but all the sons of Israel had light in their dwellings. Then Pharaoh called to Moses, and said, Go, serve the Lord; only let your flocks and your herds be detained. Even your little ones may go with you. But Moses said, You must also let us have sacrifices and burnt offerings, that we may sacrifice them to the Lord our God. Therefore, our livestock too shall go with us; not a hoof shall be left behind, for we shall take some of them to serve the Lord our God. And until we arrive there, we ourselves do not know with what we shall serve the Lord. But the Lord hardened Pharaoh s heart, and he was not willing to let them go. Then Pharaoh said to him, Get away from me! Beware, do not see my face again, for in the day you see my face you shall die! Moses said, You are right; I shall never see your face again! Exodus 10:21-29

23 Now the Lord said to Moses, One more plague I will bring on Pharaoh and on Egypt; after that he will let you go from here. When he lets you go, he will surely drive you out from here completely. Speak now in the hearing of the people that each man ask from his neighbor and each woman from her neighbor for articles of silver and articles of gold. The Lord gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians. Furthermore, the man Moses himself was greatly esteemed in the land of Egypt, both in the sight of Pharaoh s servants and in the sight of the people. Exodus 11:1-3

24 Moses said, Thus says the Lord, About midnight I am going out into the midst of Egypt, and all the firstborn (males) in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of the Pharaoh who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the slave girl who is behind the millstones; all the firstborn of the cattle as well. Moreover, there shall be a great cry in all the land of Egypt, such as there has not been before and such as shall never be again. But against any of the sons of Israel a dog will not even bark, whether against man or beast, that you may understand how the Lord makes a distinction between Egypt and Israel. All these your servants will come down to me and bow themselves before me, saying, Go out, you and all the people who follow you, and after that I will go out. And he went out from Pharaoh in hot anger. Then the Lord said to Moses, Pharaoh will not listen to you, so that My wonders will be multiplied in the land of Egypt. Moses and Aaron performed all these wonders before Pharaoh; yet the Lord hardened Pharaoh s heart, and he did not let the sons of Israel go out of his land. Exodus 11:4-10

25 The 10 Plagues (signs, judgments) Water turns to blood Exodus 7:20 Frogs Ex.8:6 Gnats Ex. 8:17 Flies Ex. 8:24 Livestock plague Ex. 9:6 Boils and sores Ex. 9:10 Hail and lightning Ex. 9:23 Locusts Ex. 10:13 Darkness Ex. 10:22 Death of the firstborn Ex. 11:5, 12:29 *Each of the judgments smashed some aspect of Egypt s religious life (i.e., Satan s domain). *The 10 plagues may have occurred over a period of about nine months. -Bible Knowledge Commentary *They had their effect upon the Egyptians not only physically and mentally, but also spiritually. Each plague was directed against some phenomenon of nature worshiped by the Egyptians as in some way related to the gods. Wycliffe Bible Commentary

26 The Plagues and the Gods and Goddesses of Egypt Plagues References Possible Egyptian Gods and Goddesses of Egypt Attacked by the Plagues 1. Nile turned to blood Exodus 7:14 25 Hapi (also called Apis), the bull god, god of the Nile; Isis, goddess of the Nile; Khnum, ram god guardian of the Nile 2. Frogs 8:1 15 Heqet, goddess of birth, with a frog head 3. Gnats 8:16 19 Set, god of the desert 4. Flies 8:20 32 Re, a sun god; or the god Uatchit, possibly represented by the fly 5. Death of livestock 9:1 7 Hathor, goddess with the cow head; Apis, the bull god, symbol of fertility 6. Boils 9:8 12 Sekhmet, goddess with power over disease; Sunu, the pestilence god, Isis, goddess of healing 7. Hail 9:13 35 Nut, the sky goddess; Osiris, god of crops and fertility; Set, god of storms 8. Locusts 10:1 20 Nut, the sky goddess; Osiris, god of crops and fertility 9. Darkness 10:21 29 Re, the sun god; Horus, a sun god; Nut, a sky goddess; Hathor, a sky goddess 10. Death of firstborn 11:1 12:30 Min, god of reproduction; Heqet, goddess who attended women at childbirth; Isis, goddess who protected children; Pharaoh s firstborn son, a god -Bible Knowledge Commentary

27 Pharaoh s heart was hardened What does this mean?

28 Pharaoh was not an innocent or godly man. He was a brutal dictator overseeing the terrible abuse and oppression of the Israelites, who likely numbered over 1.5 million people at that time. The Egyptian pharaohs had enslaved the Israelites for 400 years. - Hardening is God s way of respecting Pharaoh s own prior choices, of helping him to follow in his previously freely chosen path while imposing upon him full responsibility for those hardened acts. He has the opportunity to act in accordance with his true self. - The narrative describes this hardening in two ways. Although in the initial stages it is reported that Pharaoh hardened his own heart, later it is stated that God hardened Pharaoh s heart, as predicted in Exodus 4:21 and 7:3. By describing the hardening of Pharaoh s heart in these ways, the narrative emphasizes both the guilt of Pharaoh and the sovereignty of God. New Bible Commentary What is the antidote for a heart condition such as this? God will help us to see our heart s condition when we ask Him: Search me O God, and know my heart see if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting (Psalm 139:23 24). -

29 Last week What about my heart? Am I hardening my heart toward the Lord? Is my sin causing my heart to harden? Is my pride causing my heart to harden? Am I willing to repent of sin? Is my heart soft (humble) toward the Word of God?

30 Leadership principles from the life of Moses Exodus 9-11 Effective kingdom leaders: Keep hearing and obeying God See God s hand at work in all circumstances Guard against the worship of false gods in their own lives Recognize and remove the temptation to bow down to idols Trust that the one, true God can and will defeat all the false gods in their culture Recognize spiritual judgment and desire repentance Lead their followers toward God and righteousness

31 Why Egypt? It seems strange, but God did lead the people He loved into slavery. God had appeared to Abraham, and had given him great covenant promises. Abraham was to become a great nation. Through his offspring the entire race of man was to be blessed. And the chosen people were to enjoy God s favor and His protection. What s more, the family of Abraham was to inherit a land that, at that time, was particularly rich. Canaan was to be a Jewish homeland, a perpetual possession set aside for them. But after just three generations, God led the 70 people of that family out of Canaan into Egypt. There, as God knew, they would rest and multiply but would also become enslaved. God s leading of the people of Israel into Egypt was unquestionably leading them into bondage. Yet there were reasons for the detour into Egypt. During the years that the Children of Israel lived there, the Promised Land was a battlefield. Invaders from the north, Hurrians and Hittites, had surged south. During the decades when Egypt s power was great, Egyptian armies had flowed north. Palestine, a bridge between the two areas, knew the continual march of foreign armies, and often the devastation that war brings. The Jewish people could hardly have multiplied or have developed national strength in such a land. But in Egypt the people grew. The Bible tells us they multiplied greatly and became exceedingly numerous, so that the land was filled with them (Ex. 1:7). Exodus 12:37 reports that when the Jewish people left Egypt, there were some 600,000 men, plus women and children; a total of at least 2 million people. Strikingly, when Israel left Egypt, both northern and southern world powers were weak. A power vacuum existed, which permitted time for the Jews to become established as a nation. Source: The Teacher s Commentary

32 Why Egypt? The geography of the Promised Land gives us another reason why the captivity was in God s plan for Israel. The land was divided by ranges of mountains and hills. In a similar land the Greeks developed a structure of independent and warring city-states. The Greeks had a common heritage. But they lived divided lives. This could not be allowed to happen to God s people. Tribal distinctions could be retained, but the people must see themselves as one nation, linked forever by their common heritage in Abraham s God. A third and striking reason for the time spent in Egypt is found in Genesis 15:16. In making the promise to Abraham, God told him that his descendants would be enslaved and oppressed in Egypt for some 400 years. Following that experience of slavery, they would return. And then this puzzling note is added: For the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure. The Amorites were the people who lived then in the land God had promised to Abraham and to Israel. Archeological research tells us much about them particularly about their depravity. They were a people whose moral and religious decline was marked by cult prostitution, and even involved the sacrifice of babies, who were burned alive to their nature gods. For 400 years God, in grace, held back His judgment and permitted His own people to suffer. Only when the iniquity of the Amorites was complete when they had reached a point of no return did God use Israel to judge and to destroy this depraved civilization. And so for centuries Israel waited in Egypt. For centuries their suffering deepened. Only now, looking back, can we sense some of the reasons. Even in their agony God was at work, to do them and to do others good. Source: The Teacher s Commentary