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[0:00] can go. I just turned 46, and I'm having problems with everything.

[0:13] Somebody texted me that day and said, I hope you're having a great day. I said, well, I haven't hurt anything, and I haven't lost anything. So, that's the stage of life I'm stepping into.

[0:27] Unlike some of you who have hurt some things already, and you've lost some things. I don't think I'm going to make it. I don't think I'm going to make it. All right, if you have a Bible, then please open it up to the book of Exodus.

[0:40] And we are in chapter 8. Exodus chapter 8. Going through chapter by chapter, even passage by passage through the book of Exodus.

[0:55] Exodus. And I didn't take account of how many weeks we've spent here already. It's been well over a dozen, I believe. Maybe 14, 15 different weeks, different sermons, working our way through this book.

[1:12] And so, I'm happy you're here this morning to catch this week. So, we're going to begin in verse number 16. What we were introduced with was the second plague of the frogs that came up out of the river and plagued the land.

[1:27] They covered the land of Egypt. And now we're moving on to the third plague. I'm going to back up just a little bit to get us kind of into the mindset of the Lord and the Pharaoh here.

[1:43] And God rid the land of those frogs. So, I'm going to back up to verse 12. I'll begin reading there. And we'll read down to verse number 19. So, follow along if you can in Exodus chapter 8 and verse number 12.

[1:56] And Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh and Moses cried unto the Lord because of the frogs which he had brought against Pharaoh. And the Lord did according to the word of Moses and the frogs died out of the houses, out of the villages, and out of the fields.

[2:08] And they gathered them together upon heaps and the land stank. But when Pharaoh saw that there was respite, he hardened his heart and hearkened not unto them as the Lord had said.

[2:19] So, here comes number 3. Verse 16. And the Lord said unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch out thy rod and smite the dust of the land that it may become lice throughout all the land of Egypt.

[2:33] And they did so. For Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod and smote the dust of the earth and it became lice in man and in beast and all the dust of the land became lice throughout all the land of Egypt.

[2:47] And the magicians did so with their enchantments to bring forth lice, but they could not. So there were lice upon man and upon beast. Then the magician said unto Pharaoh, Pharaoh, this is the finger of God.

[3:02] And Pharaoh's heart was hardened and he hearkened not unto them as the Lord had said. Let's pray together. Now God, as we have read this passage, we're familiarized ourselves with the placement of it, with the context, the people.

[3:18] Lord, I pray now that you'd take these thoughts, these words and apply them and speak to us today. We need to hear from you today in the lives that we live today here in Southern California.

[3:31] As much as this took place in Egypt, God, speak to our hearts today where we are. You're eternal, you're alive, and your words are eternal, and they're alive. And these things were written for our admonition.

[3:44] Admonition, please speak to us and teach us something. Help us to see ourselves and hear your words. And may Jesus Christ receive glory. May we receive help and edification, correction and comfort where needed.

[3:58] We pray it in Jesus' name. Amen. Amen. Now this is an interesting situation that we just kind of came across on in this third plague. There's a, you might call it a new development in the conflict, which is between Moses and Aaron and Pharaoh, where Moses and Aaron say, let God's people go.

[4:21] God sent us here to tell you this, so let them go. And beyond that conflict of words, you have this conflict of the magicians of Egypt doing so with their enchantments so far and God and what he does.

[4:38] And so this is a new development, something that has not happened yet, just happened here in this third plague. The magicians came up short. They said in verse 19, this is the finger of God.

[4:52] It says in verse 18, they tried but they could not. And they came up powerless. And so now they're acknowledging before Pharaoh their inability to reproduce this miracle and they gave it a shot.

[5:07] In verse 18, it says, the magicians did so with their enchantments. Earlier in verse 17, it speaks of Aaron and Moses and they did so. But what they did with smiting the dust of the ground, it brought forth life.

[5:20] But when the magicians did so with their enchantments, just like they had every other time, this time they fell short. This time it's over their heads.

[5:31] It's beyond their capability. And they come up to Pharaoh saying, this is the finger of God. And they're acknowledging, we can't do this.

[5:43] Only God can do this. God is more powerful than we are. Now, earlier, back in chapter 7, in verse 12, they cast down every man his rod and they became serpents.

[5:58] These magicians, they're called wise men and sorcerers. In verse 11 of chapter 7, they cast down their rods and they turned into serpents.

[6:08] Big deal, Aaron and Moses, because we did it too. And later in that chapter, in verse 22, the magicians did so with their enchantments.

[6:19] What's that? They turned water to blood, just like Aaron and Moses did. Big deal. Not to be outdone, chapter 8, here comes the frogs. And the magicians in verse 7 did so with their enchantments and brought up frogs upon the land of Egypt.

[6:37] And so, three successive and successful imitations of God's miraculous wonders, three for three, these magicians of Pharaoh came upon the scene, called up to his throne room, said, hey, Moses and Aaron are here again.

[6:54] They're working their magic. Go ahead and show them. And they were successful three times in a row. But this time, they could not. And so, finally, after three things, in this fourth one, when they say, this is the finger of God, finally, finally, there's a verbal acknowledgement by the magicians that the God of the Hebrews is greater than we are.

[7:18] He is doing things we cannot do. You might argue that he's already done things they can't do. He's turned water to blood. And if they were stronger or could not just imitate, they would have turned it back to water and fixed it and said, you don't have to worry about that, God, because we got you covered.

[7:34] When they brought the frogs up, they would have said, get rid of the frogs. But they couldn't do that either. All they could do was imitate and, as I pointed out previously, make matters worse. Typical man. But in this third plague, God separates himself from all other powers, from all the powers of Egypt and all the magicians of Pharaoh.

[7:52] He elevates himself. He distinguishes himself and his ability. Now, Pharaoh's heart is hardened. In verse 19, par for the course. That's how it's been.

[8:03] That's how it's going to continue to be. So it's not Pharaoh that's getting the lesson here, is it? It's the magicians. The magicians are getting their eyes open today.

[8:17] And today, they're learning some things and they're admitting some things. And so I want to preach and I'm going to title this message this morning, God's Message to the Magicians. God's Message to the Magicians.

[8:29] When the magicians are confronted with this miracle, they're confronted with their own ineptitude. And there's a few points that just come through loud and clear in this scene and I want to point them out to you.

[8:45] Now, come back and read again verse number 18 with me. Where the Bible says, And the magicians did so with their enchantments to bring forth lice, but they could not.

[8:58] Now, I pointed out to you the other three times where they were able with their enchantments to do and to imitate what Moses and Aaron were doing by the power of God. But this time, four words, but they could not.

[9:13] And the first message or the first point that comes through in God's message to the magicians is, Magicians, you're not as strong as you think you are. You're not as strong as you think you are.

[9:25] They expected to perform this miracle. They had, boom, boom, boom. I mean, can you turn water to blood? I can't do it. But they did.

[9:37] And when Moses and Aaron went out there and they did so with their enchantments, they just, this is just another day, another walk in the park for us because we have powers. We're in touch with some power and everybody knows it.

[9:50] And that's why Pharaoh has us as his magicians. And then it was exposed that they're limited in their ability. They tried.

[10:02] They failed. Yes, these magicians, it's recorded. They have done some wonderful, some wondrous, some breathtaking, if you want to call it, feats already in the past.

[10:16] They have a resume. They are powerful men. They are brought into Pharaoh when he needs them and they accomplish what he needs to have accomplished. That's true. But today, it seems they've met their match.

[10:34] Today, all those amazing works that they've done, all of the people that they've had under their spell, so to speak, all that have been wondering at their ability and power, now are noticing, saying, oh, there's a ceiling on that power, apparently.

[10:52] Oh, you're not as strong as you think you are. You have limitations. God would say, hey, I don't, but you guys do. And I'm sending a message to the magicians to let them know you're not as strong as you think you are.

[11:07] Hey, magicians, how does it feel to try and to fail? How does it feel to work and to come up short? Is it embarrassing?

[11:19] Is it a little bit humiliating? It should be because they got humiliated in front of Pharaoh, in front of all of Egypt, in front of all of the Hebrews. They showed up expecting to be successful with their enchantments and they learned a lesson.

[11:39] They learned a lesson that they're not as strong as they think they are. And Christian, whether you're a man, a woman, a young person, an old person, this message of God ought to be heard loud and clear by you as well.

[11:57] If you've got a little bit of that magician attitude in you, you need to hear the message. You're not as strong as you think you are. You're not as wise as you think you are. You're not a wall.

[12:10] You're not a rock. You will break. You're tender. Oh, you think you're tough. One day, one day could drop you to your knees.

[12:24] You know, you can go to bed confident and feel strong and feel like I know what I'm doing tomorrow and it's all set up and I've got my plans laid out and it's happened to me. It's happened probably to you.

[12:35] You wake up in the middle of the night full of sweat and just something's not right and by morning time you're done and the flu gets you or whatever the virus is it just lays you on your back for a week sometimes two weeks at a time and all of those plans and all, they're gone.

[12:56] You're not doing one of them. Even though, how bad do you think you can or want to? Your body is just zapped and that happened by a little microscopic thing you didn't even know it was in you for probably a few days getting lined up and working and attacking.

[13:12] You didn't even know it. Something microscopic could take you down because you're not as strong as you think you are. You know, you've got some wisdom. You've done some things in your life.

[13:22] You've maybe got an education, maybe a career. Maybe you've done some things and you feel pretty confident, pretty calm and things just, you know what? My portfolio is where it should be.

[13:34] My friends and family are who I want to be and just comfortable. And you don't realize, unless you're just on your knees before God begging for His grace, you don't realize that in a day, in a day, you could be like Job on your back, sore with boils from head to toe, everything gone, all of it gone.

[13:56] You don't realize how quickly, even on your way home today, you could be in a car wreck at this intersection. Literally, like a week ago, I was making a left-hand turn to pull into church and the car never stopped.

[14:08] Vroom! And I just was watching them and I hit the brakes as I'm already in the intersection. That could have been me in the hospital for months. Just like that.

[14:18] The Bible says, Thou knowest not what a day may bring forth. And if you've got a little bit of the magician blood in you that you need to hear this message too, you're not as strong as you think you are.

[14:31] You're not invincible. You're not untouchable. You're not as wise. You're not as capable as you think you are. Look at, I want to keep your place, but would you run to the book of Romans?

[14:43] Romans. And there's a few verses here that Paul puts down that I want us to pick up. Romans chapter 12. Romans chapter 12.

[15:02] And Paul's got some words that he has to tell every man, every human being. And he tells us these words based upon his own experience.

[15:13] In verse number 3, Paul says, For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you.

[15:24] Now, pause. What are you talking about, Paul, through the grace given unto me? Let me explain why Paul uses that phrase before he says what he's about to say.

[15:36] In 2 Corinthians chapter 12, Paul tells us that he had a thorn in the flesh. He calls it a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan that was sent to buffet him.

[15:50] That all sounds horrible. And it was. And it was so, such a distraction and probably a painful thing that Paul says, I besought the Lord thrice. I asked God, would you please take this from me?

[16:05] Something in his flesh, in his body, he calls it a thorn. Something had to be painful. Something that had to be dragging him down daily, working him over. And he said, God, would you please take this away?

[16:20] And the Lord says, no, I'm not going to take it away. I gave it to you so that you wouldn't be exalted above measure because you've been given revelation and all knowledge and because you're elevated up here as an apostle of Christ.

[16:33] I had to do something to make sure that you stayed down here. But while I'm holding you down, I'm going to give you grace. My grace, he said, I'm going to give you grace that will be sufficient for you to continue on and do the work I called you to.

[16:49] You're not going to, this pain is not going to keep you out of the race. This handicap, this thorn, this messenger of Satan, it's not going to knock you out because I'm going to give you grace as well to lift you up.

[17:01] So, Paul had grace given unto him in a way that was to allow him to overcome the hardship that he had to deal with in his flesh on a daily basis.

[17:17] And so, he's speaking as a man who knows what it's like to suffer and as a man who knows what it's like to be brought low. Now, back in verse 3, Paul says, for I say, through the grace given unto me, because I learned a lesson already about this, to every man that is among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.

[17:44] When a man thinks more highly of himself, God might have to bring him down. He does it through the scriptures. He did it with Lucifer from the beginning. He did it with Nebuchadnezzar. He abased him. And you can see he did it with Paul so that he wouldn't be exalted above measure.

[17:59] He gave him something to bring him down. And he gave him the grace. And that's why Paul says, through the grace given unto me, this is what I'm telling you, every one of you, don't think of yourself more highly than you ought to think.

[18:12] You're not as strong. You're not as wise. You're not as capable as you think you are. Look at, to the next book to your right, just a few pages at 1 Corinthians chapter 10.

[18:26] And here's the second passage. God can bring you low quickly. And things can fall apart quickly.

[18:38] And you can find out in just one moment of one day how fragile you truly are. Now, 1 Corinthians chapter 10. And in this passage, the Apostle Paul recalls a lot of these terrible things that the Israelites did against God when they were in the wilderness back in the book of Exodus.

[19:00] And they were idolaters, and they lusted, and they were fornicators, and they tempted Christ in verse 9. And in each case, they were destroyed. In each case, there fell among them, 3 and 20,000 in verse 8.

[19:14] God was dishing out His judgment upon them because of their sin against Him. Now, verse number 11, he says this, Now, all these things happened unto them for in samples, and they are written for our admonition upon whom the ends of the world are come.

[19:31] Wherefore, this is why he wrote all of this right here, Wherefore, let him that thinketh he standeth, take heed, lest he fall.

[19:46] Somebody thinks something. They think they're strong. They think they can stand. They think they can take it. That man better take heed, lest he fall.

[19:58] Because verse 13 describes, there's a temptation that's going to take you. And there's no temptation that's taken you, but such as is common to man. That is, whatever it is that God will send your way, whether it's a thorn in the flesh, whether it's some trial through life, whether it's a hospital stay, a car accident, in trouble with this or that, whatever that is, it's not that you're the first one to ever have to deal with it.

[20:24] It's a human thing. It's a human experience of life. You've gotten yourself into a mess, you're not the first one. Or bad things happen to you and it's a bad day, a bad week, a bad year, you're not the first one.

[20:37] It's common to man, this issue that you're facing and dealing with. But understand, if you think you're standing on your own two feet, if you think you can, you better take heed because when that temptation comes and that trial comes, you'll be falling flat on your face because you're not as strong as you think you are.

[20:57] But, good news, verse 13 says, but God is faithful. God's faithful through that whole thing. He won't allow you to get buried. He won't allow it to take you out. He'll give you the grace if you'll seek Him and the strength that you need.

[21:11] And so let us come boldly to the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and grace to help in time of need. Now come back to Exodus chapter 8 and understand God's message to the magicians is to enlighten them that they're not as strong as they think they are.

[21:30] And His message to each Christian and each man, woman, and child alive is neither are you. Plater words, you need Him and you need Him more than you think you need Him.

[21:42] You don't know how badly you need Him if you think you stand because when the temptation comes and you fall flat on your face, oh God, oh God, I need your help.

[21:55] Yeah, you do. You did the whole time. So take heed. You're not as strong as you think you are. You need the Lord. And number two, the second thought here, this passage, we see this message to the magicians.

[22:09] Pharaoh didn't get it. Pharaoh's heart was hardened, but the magicians got it when they said, this is the finger of God. It's not the finger of their God.

[22:22] It's not the finger of the ones that they're worshipping in Egypt and the idolatry that goes on there of this heathenistic nation and they're so pagan and they were proud of themselves with their idolatry.

[22:34] No, it's not their God. It's somebody else. It's the God of the Hebrews. This is the finger of God, they said to Pharaoh. They were addressing the God of the Hebrews.

[22:46] And so in the message, something that the magicians came through loud and clear in this was that we're on the wrong side. As God said to them, not only you're not as strong as you think you are, fellows, but secondly, you're on the wrong side.

[23:00] You're fighting against me. Now take a look back at chapter 7, chapter 7 and verses 4 and 5 where the Lord's just telling Moses and Aaron what his intentions are.

[23:17] Chapter 7 verse 4 of Exodus, but Pharaoh shall not hearken unto you that I may lay my hand upon Egypt and bring forth mine armies and my people the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt by great judgments.

[23:29] And we're reading some of those judgments. verse 5, and the Egyptians shall know the magicians, Pharaoh and all his servants, the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord when I stretch forth my hand upon Egypt.

[23:50] When those magicians were confronted with their inability to bring forth lice, to duplicate what these other magicians did, they realized in this message that they got from God, we're on the wrong side.

[24:08] We're serving the wrong master and now they know it. And if they'll just allow their minds to go a little further, this isn't going to end well for us.

[24:20] We're found in this moment to be fighting against a God that's stronger than us. What should we do? Should we concede? Should we repent? Should we cry out for mercy?

[24:32] Or should we keep serving this hard-hearted ruler, oppressive, wicked ruler of Egypt? They realize they're on the wrong side.

[24:43] This was revealed that while they're serving the king of Egypt, they're opposing the God of the Hebrews. And he's got greater power than they do.

[24:54] They're working against him and now they know we can't defeat him. We had a good run, we've impressed some people, we've made our king happy, but we've met our match and it's not going to end well for us.

[25:11] You know that people, it's really popular nowadays but it's always been a thing, is betting. Betting on sports, betting on a boxer, betting on a horse, whatever it is, wagering money in hopes of getting, getting the right one and getting rich and whatever.

[25:28] And while their horse is in the mix, while they're near the front, they feel okay, they're rooting. While their boxers are standing and delivering blows, you feel pretty good.

[25:38] And while your team's score is competitive or you're up, you feel like, yeah, I'm in this. But when the moment comes that you know, when the boxer's on the mat and they're counting to seven, that feeling of getting a payday is gone.

[25:57] When the horse just continually drifts back further into the field, the feeling of this is going to work out for me, that joy, that excitement, that anticipation, it just is sucked right out.

[26:10] Now, I'm not speaking from experience. I don't bet on this stupid stuff. I just had a vision. That's why I can describe this. It leaves your body, this excitement, that adrenaline.

[26:24] The hope is gone that you're going to cash in on this. You realize in those moments there that you've lost your money.

[26:35] You're not going to get it. It's gone. You've lost. You picked the wrong guy to wager on. And what it is, is in that moment, you've lost not just what you had, but what you stood to gain as well.

[26:49] It was within reach. It seemed like it was within reach for you. And now it's totally out of hand. It's gone. Now, consider that thought. And consider that if you put in your life, in your walk on this planet, when you get up in the morning, when you go to bed at night, and anything in between, if you put any effort and any energy into serving the king of Egypt, if you put any energy into serving yourself, this is energy that is lost, this is a reality will come that you picked the wrong guy, and you're on the wrong side.

[27:35] Giving in to your flesh, giving in to the lust of your flesh, you're helping the wrong guy. Jesus Christ said, he that is not with me is against me.

[27:48] And when you're working for your flesh and serving the king of Egypt, the devil, you're on the wrong side. When God is at work in your life and you resist him, you're serving the wrong master.

[28:04] When God speaks to your heart and directs you to his word and you say, no, not now, no, Holy Spirit, I'll do what I want to do. I'll fulfill my desires today. I want to do this today.

[28:18] You're serving the wrong master and you're on the wrong side. If you're consumed with laying up for yourselves treasures upon earth, in that passage, Christ said, no man can serve two masters.

[28:35] You either hold to the one and despise the other or hold to the other and despise the other, hold the one and love the other, etc. Messed that up. Butchered, Matthew chapter 6.

[28:49] You're on the wrong side. There's a song that's kind of a hymn. I don't know that it's in our hymn book at all. It's called The Winning Side. And it says, I'm on the winning side.

[29:02] Let me think here. Well, I'm on the winning side. Yes, I'm on the winning side. Out in sin, no more will I abide.

[29:14] I've enlisted in the fight for the cause of truth and right. Oh, praise the Lord. I'm on the winning side.

[29:26] It says, I've enlisted in the fight for the cause of truth and right. That's where I'm going to fight. That's where my mind and my energy and efforts are going to be.

[29:37] on the cause of truth and right. If your cause, your cause this morning, your cause in your life, your cause in your plans is not truth, if it's not right, if your cause is your own pleasure, your own wealth, your own fleshly satisfaction, you're on the wrong side.

[30:03] God, and you're serving the wrong master, and it's not going to end well for you either. There's another thought here that kind of couples with this and finishes this thought, is as these magicians got this message from God, the message to the magicians that they're not as strong as they think they are, and they just had their eyes open, they are on the wrong side.

[30:28] So far, it felt like, this is pretty cool, we're pretty good, anything they can do, we can do, but now they found out, oh no, there's a power higher than us, and we're against that power, we're in the ring with somebody, that punch hurt, I don't want to stand in this ring anymore, because it's going to hurt more and more until we're done.

[30:53] And so the third thing that's coming through in this message is you're going to regret serving the king of Egypt. That is, you're going to regret who you chose to serve.

[31:05] Look in the Bible with me, you can lose your place here in Exodus, we're going to go to 2 Timothy, flip over to the New Testament now again, in 2 Timothy, and here the Apostle Paul brings up these magicians, and he mentions that men in the last days are going to be in pretty bad shape, and he's going to bring up and liken men today to two magicians that stood before Pharaoh and he gives us their names.

[31:43] And look in verse number 8, Paul says, now as Janus and Jambres withstood Moses, he's talking about the magicians that Pharaoh called up.

[31:54] I don't know if it was only two of them, I don't know how many there would have been, but there's two that we know their names, that said to Pharaoh, this is the finger of God. Now before we get to this verse, I want you to just understand the context in 2 Timothy 3, that this is referring to men that are lovers of their own selves in verse 2.

[32:15] They're unthankful and unholy, they're proud, these are men that are despisers of those that are good. These are men that are high minded, that in verse 4 are lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God.

[32:30] They have a form of godliness. They look spiritual or religious or they look okay. Maybe they show up to church Sunday morning, but in their heart they love pleasure more than they love God.

[32:44] And in their heart they love their own selves. And now in verse 8, Paul reminds us of two magicians and it's funny that he ties them into this and mentions them by name.

[32:57] Just kind of out of the blue, nowhere else in the Bible, but boom, right here. Verse 8, Now as Janice and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these, speaking of these men of this last times, so do these resist the truth.

[33:14] Men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith. Now watch verse 9, men, but they shall proceed no further, for their folly shall be manifest unto all men, as theirs, the magicians, as theirs also was.

[33:31] Meaning, the magicians got exposed, and this is when it happened, when they couldn't do what the God of the Hebrews could do. And what was exposed?

[33:43] Verse 9 says, Their folly shall be manifest unto all men. It's telling us, while he's making a point about these men of today, that don't love the Lord with all their heart, but rather love themselves, and all the problems they have, this could be you, while they're living this lifestyle, he said, just like those magicians back in Pharaoh's day, Moses and Aaron, they withstood Moses, their folly was manifest to everybody.

[34:13] When this thing was done, everybody knew those magicians are nothing. Following them, serving the king of Egypt, what a waste. What a waste of a life.

[34:25] What a waste of ability. They had some gifts, and they spent them on the wrong side. They were on the wrong side the whole time, and in the end, thirdly, magicians you're going to regret serving the king of Egypt.

[34:39] The folly of the magicians was manifest unto all men. At that day, as we read, they couldn't hide it any longer. Their failure was on full display.

[34:51] Oh, they may have gotten through for a couple times, and maybe people were impressed with them for a few of their enchantments. Yeah, they lived it for a while, but it came down.

[35:02] Their folly was manifest. Their shortcomings, their weaknesses, the wrong side, it all came out in the end, didn't it? It all came out in the end, and there they are to regret that they were serving the king of Egypt.

[35:17] Their reputation's tainted. They don't have any high regard, not held in high regard anymore. Not as strong as everybody thought they were.

[35:29] Fighting against the true God, as it turns out, and the true God who, by these plagues, is displaying his power and displaying that his ability is unmatched. And boys, you just shouldn't have stepped in the ring with me, because now I have to show what you are.

[35:45] And they're going to regret that they ever served Pharaoh, because they found themselves opposing the true God. Now, you're in 2 Timothy. Flip back to the book before that, to 1 Timothy.

[35:57] Take a look at chapter 5. 1 Timothy chapter 5. These magicians are opposing the true God.

[36:12] And one thing we know about God is God will not be mocked. In 1 Timothy chapter 5, look at the last two verses of that chapter, verses 24 and 25.

[36:25] Paul says this to Timothy, Some men's sins are open beforehand, going before to judgment. And some men, they follow after.

[36:35] Likewise, also the good works of some are manifest beforehand, and they otherwise cannot be hid. There's some stuff that just, if you play with fire, you get burnt, and it's evident, and you see it.

[36:50] Sometimes, that's the case. And I could give examples, but that's not necessary. But there's other things. There's other sins of men that aren't open, and that aren't known, and that have not yet been manifest.

[37:06] It says that they will be manifest, like their good works will. They follow after, meaning it will be manifest one day. It will be manifest in judgment.

[37:21] And if you're serving the wrong master, sooner or later, it will be manifest, and your folly will be open to all men.

[37:31] look at 1 Corinthians chapter 3. It's the last place I'll have you turn. Back to your left, to the book of 1 Corinthians, the first epistle Paul wrote to Corinth.

[37:45] And there was a lot of things he had to say and lay some stuff down for them because they were just kind of in a mess. And one of the things he warned them about was their carnality when they weren't living spiritual.

[38:03] And so then he carries on from that thought, and I want to read in verse number 13 through 15 and pick up this language that he uses that describes something being revealed or manifest, being made known.

[38:19] Verse 13, But every man's work shall be made manifest. For the day shall declare it. because it shall be revealed by fire.

[38:34] And the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is. And if any man's work abide which he hath built thereon, he shall receive a reward. If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss. But he himself shall be saved, yet so as by fire.

[38:47] You saw the wording I've emphasized three times in verse 13. Manifest, declare, revealed. The day will come sooner or later when it's all going to come out.

[39:02] Who you are, who you're serving, where your affections lie, where your loyalty and allegiance lie, it'll come out. And the magicians, the message to them was you're going to regret that you're serving the king of Egypt.

[39:19] And Christian, when it comes out, I don't know who you're serving. You may have a form of godliness this morning.

[39:31] Or you may be in love with Jesus Christ and he has your heart. I don't know. But whatever the case is, it'll come out. Whether it's your sins that aren't open yet, or whether it's your good works, it'll come out.

[39:46] And it's not a matter of just like, well, I don't want to be embarrassed in front of my friends and family and Christians. Oh, you will be. But it's going to be a matter that you're standing before the Lord Jesus Christ.

[39:58] And in that day, you're not going to give a rip about anybody else standing there beside you, behind you, anywhere around you. When you're faced front with the God, the righteous judge, that's who you're going to be fearing.

[40:11] Like, dead on, face on the floor, I'm not going to say a word, I'm so afraid right now. Because I'm in front of His holiness, and He has the power to cast me into eternal damnation.

[40:26] Now, the blood of Jesus Christ, thank God, allows us to be the sons of God and to stand before Him in Christ's righteousness. But in the judgment seat of Christ, the day shall declare it.

[40:42] And there's going to be some things revealed. revealed. And some sins that aren't open, they will come. And they will be shown. They will be dealt with and revealed. You can live a double life.

[40:54] You can deceive people. You can pretend to be one thing here and another while you're at home or another while you're at work. And you'll regret, Christian, you'll regret any time, any energy, any moment that you spent serving yourself for the king of Egypt.

[41:09] you spent it in opposition to God. So we see in this short four-verse description of the third plague, the lice, we see that God had a message that came through to the magicians and they heard it.

[41:26] And they said, this is the finger of God. And He's stronger than we are. And we're on the wrong side.

[41:36] And we're not going to, this isn't going to end well at all for us. We're serving the wrong master. And we're going to regret this.

[41:52] And Christian, the message for the magician doesn't just have to stay back in Egypt. It can be picked up right here this morning that you are not as strong as you think you are.

[42:02] If you've got any of that in you that thinks I can do this and I can serve my flesh and do what I like and do it and I'm untouchable and I can get away with it and I'm smarter and I can deceive my parents, I can deceive my coworkers and the pastor and they'll never know and I can do, oh, you're not as smart as you think you are.

[42:20] You're not as wise, you're not as capable, you're not as strong and it could all come down quick and God will remain righteous and your folly will be open and you'll regret it.

[42:36] If you're giving any time to the flesh and to the world, you're fighting against God's spirit inside of you. The Bible says that you can quench the Holy Spirit.

[42:47] He's like a fire and you can just put him out and say, not me, not today, not burning in me, but yet he wants to. And any time you give in to the flesh and serve yourself, you're fighting against God and you know it well enough, I don't have to keep saying it, that judgment's coming and you're going to regret.

[43:10] You're going to regret that you didn't put the flesh down. You're going to regret that you didn't say yes to God and allow him to live through you and just give him the reins of your heart and your life and let him do what he wants to do.

[43:22] He's right, he's capable, you're wrong, you're not capable, just give it to him. It's really not that hard. But if you have a hard heart, you're Pharaoh there.

[43:35] You're not hearing this. You're not hearing this. Finger of God, just turn away. If you have a hard heart, you'll hear this and say I'll do what I want or so you think.

[43:49] For a little bit longer maybe and then you'll find out the Lord will not be mocked. God will win. His word will come to pass in your life.

[44:01] It will be manifest. blessed and so my advice is to get on his side, to get behind him, to get in line, to align yourself with the word of God in every manner and every way.

[44:14] Don't make him make an example out of you. Don't make him send his message to you so that you in some day and shape or hospital bed have to get the message. Take the message that the magicians got and turn from anything that you're going to regret.

[44:32] And yeah, you're not strong enough to fight against God so don't do it. Surrender to him. Surrender to him. God's message to the magicians.

[44:43] They had something they needed to hear. Pharaoh didn't hear it. It wasn't really for him after all, was it? It was something for them and we can take something home from it as well. Let's bow our heads.

[44:53] We're going to have a word of prayer and I'm just going to dismiss you after this. Thank you for being here. Father, as we dismiss, thank you that we could once again open up the word of God.

[45:07] I'm thankful to have it, to possess this holy text and to be able to go to it and Lord, I'm thankful that we were able to study it together in this place and in this context.

[45:19] I ask Lord that the word of God would have the ability this morning to work in hearts, to stay with us and to continue throughout this week, draw our minds to what you've taught us this morning.

[45:37] Let it not quickly pass. Help us not to be so in love with other things that we lose sight of what you spoke to us this morning. Thank you again for your powerful word and may we allow it to bear fruit in our lives going forward from this day, we pray in Jesus Christ's name.

[45:54]  Amen. Amen. All right, you are dismissed. Master's 소statl discomfort sind