Learning the Hard Way

“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 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

He had attended church since he was a small child. As an adult, he took careful notes on every sermon. When the pastor would talk about specific sins, he would recognize some of the problems in his own heart and say to himself, “That’s me. I need to deal with these things.” But like many, by the time he returned from church, he would forget about his plans to ask God to change his life.

This man has a hard heart. “How is that possible?” you may ask. “He’s hearing what God says.” When you hear God’s Word and refuse to put it into practice, your heart is “hardened” against His truth. Eventually, if you continue to ignore His leading, He lets you follow your own slippery course.

God allowed Pharaoh to tell Moses no again and again. Pharaoh knew what he was supposed to do - release God’s chosen people, the Israelites, from slavery and oppression. Because Pharaoh persisted in his disobedience, he learned some painful lessons he could have avoided.

Ask God to sensitize your heart and make you aware of any tough spots of resistence. He will soften your spirit, renew your understanding, and set you on a course of true submission.

“...But Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he did not listen to them, as the LORD had said.” Exodus 8:19