One of my favorite stories from the Bible is the story of the Israelites being freed from captivity. It’s really hard to believe Pharoah was so thick headed that he refused to let God’s people go after all the plagues unleashed upon him and his people. Pharoah refused to release God’s people from slavery even after the plagues of livestock, boils, hail, locusts, and darkness.
The Bible tells us many times that “God hardened the heart of Pharoah”. I thought it was odd at first that God would harden the heart of the man who was holding God’s people in captivity. I thought the whole reason for the plagues was to soften the heart of Pharoah. The more I read I started to realized that perhaps the plagues were not persuade Pharoah to let the Israelites go but to show God’s power.
Pharoah and the Egyptians were under the impression that Pharoah was all powerful, God stepped in with the plagues it showed everyone who was all powerful, God. Pharoah may have thought he was in control but as the plagues progressed it showed that Pharoah had no control over them. Pharoah’s heart was hardened out of anger, he realiezed there was nothing he could do to stop the plagues, except to give in and let God’s people go. Many times in our lives God uses tough situations to show us who is in control.
It it easy to believe we are in control, but then something happens in our lives to make us realize that we are not. God is always in control and we need to be reminded of that often. We need to completely surrender to God, it’s the only way to live. When we give God the glory for all He gives us we will have a life that is complete and truly faithful to God.
Allie, Thanks for the insight and for reminding me that God is always in control. Giving God the glory for everything is so important. I think of II Peter 1:3: His divine power has given us EVERYTHING we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness. We are blessed.