*MEDITATIONS ON DAILY*
*ⓂANNA*

TUESDAY, AUGUST 5TH, 2025.

*DANGER OF HARDNESS OF HEART*

*TEXT:* EXODUS 7:14-25.

14.And the LORD said unto Moses, Pharaoh's heart is hardened, he refuseth to let the people go.
15 Get thee unto Pharaoh in the morning; lo, he goeth out unto the water; and thou shalt stand by the river's brink against he come; and the rod which was turned to a serpent shalt thou take in thine hand.
16 And thou shalt say unto him, The LORD God of the Hebrews hath sent me unto thee, saying, Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness: and, behold, hitherto thou wouldest not hear.
17 Thus saith the LORD, In this thou shalt know that I am the LORD: behold, I will smite with the rod that is in mine hand upon the waters which are in the river, and they shall be turned to blood.
18 And the fish that is in the river shall die, and the river shall stink; and the Egyptians shall lothe to drink of the water of the river.
19 And the LORD spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Take thy rod, and stretch out thine hand upon the waters of Egypt, upon their streams, upon their rivers, and upon their ponds, and upon all their pools of water, that they may become blood; and that there may be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in vessels of wood, and in vessels of stone.
20 And Moses and Aaron did so, as the LORD commanded; and he lifted up the rod, and smote the waters that were in the river, in the sight of Pharaoh, and in the sight of his servants; and all the waters that were in the river were turned to blood.
21 And the fish that was in the river died; and the river stank, and the Egyptians could not drink of the water of the river; and there was blood throughout all the land of Egypt.
22 And the magicians of Egypt did so with their enchantments: and Pharaoh's heart was hardened, neither did he hearken unto them; as the LORD had said.
23 And Pharaoh turned and went into his house, neither did he set his heart to this also.
24 And all the Egyptians digged round about the river for water to drink; for they could not drink of the water of the river.
25 And seven days were fulfilled, after that the LORD had smitten the river.

*Timeless Truth:*_"Let favour be shewed to the wicked, yet will he not learn righteousness: in the land of uprightness will he deal unjustly, and will not behold the majesty of the LORD"_ (Isaiah 26:10).

*INTRODUCTION*

*1. Warnings Ignored Rudely*

a. This is the first of a judgmental miracle in Egypt. It was understandable that Pharaoh would find it difficult to imagine that his national work force was released voluntarily without a fight. It would be too costly for him. However ,the problem with him was not his initial reluctance, but his unwillingness to open his mind to supernatural persuasion that would make him understand that the God Who is greater than all his idols was the one sending Moses. In the same vein, God seldom condemns and destroys a sinner because he sins. His problem with them is their unwillingness to open their eyes to the light of truth shining and their love for darkness rather than light.
*"And the LORD said unto Moses, Pharaoh's heart is hardened, he refuseth to let the people go".* Pharaoh deliberately, hardened his heart and shut out the light that was shining at that time. Jesus also asserted that no sinner is condemned to hell because he sins, but because he refused to give in to the way of salvation or in other words, because he hardened his heart like Pharaoh did. *"And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil"* (John 3:19).
b. The next thing that followed Pharaoh intransigence was warning.
*"Thus saith the LORD, In this thou shalt know that I am the LORD: behold, I will smite with the rod that is in mine hand upon the waters which are in the river, and they shall be turned to blood"*. This is always God's way. Refusal or rebellion against the truth is always followed with divine warnings. These warnings come through different ways to the wicked and to those who pose to be children of God. It may be directly through His Word and ministers and at times he may use circumstances or even dreams to give warnings. God used Balaam's ass to warn him as the ass collapsed under him mysteriously for two times. Balaam did not bulge (Numbers 22:21-38). Believers should be discernful to know when God decides to use circumstances to warn them of an impending danger due to a wrong decision they are bent on making. Warnings of the Lord to sinners or saints should not be taken for granted at any time regardless of how the warnings come. Divine warnings is the next stage of actions for those who are desperately bent on doing wrong. After divine warning, and the person still hardens his heart, he would have crossed the line of God's mercy. Think of Judas Iscariot. *"He, that being often reproved hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy"* (Proverbs 29:1).

*Question*

Give examples of a sinner and a believer in the Bible who refused God's warning and exhausted the mercy of God.

*2. Wonders through "Insignificant" Rod*

a. The judgment was very strategic. All the nine plagues did not directly involve the loss of life except the 10th when their firstborns died. The judgment was targeted at the gods of the Egyptians in answer to Pharaoh who sincerely questioned, *"who is that God?"*. This first plague was to show Pharaoh that God is greater than all the prized and adored gods of the Egyptians. The first was River Nile. The Nile was worshipped as a god and ancient records show that they used to sing hymns and songs in its praise. Furthermore, there were gods worshipped as guardians of the Nile, the spirit of Nile and the bloodstream of Nile. All those gods could not help the Nile at all. They were all helpless. *"And all the waters that were in the river were turned to blood. And the fish that was in the river died; and the river stank, and the Egyptians could not drink of the water of the river; and there was blood throughout all the land of Egypt"*. That was a clear signal to Pharaoh who loved many gods that this God of the Hebrews is superior by all standards to his national and personal gods. Sinners also manifest the same foolishness. They can hear or see mighty miracles of deliverance, healing and blessings through the name of Jesus. Instead of totally submitting and accepting Jesus as their only Saviour and God, they still cling to their religions, idols, sins and the love of the world. The hardened heart will not behold the majesty of God no matter how strong God's glory is shining. What Pharaoh saw was enough for him to have had to rethink and retrace his way back to God, but he did not. We will see later how he succeeded in deceiving his heart the most.
b. *"And the LORD spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Take thy rod, and stretch out thine hand upon the waters of Egypt, upon their streams, upon their rivers, and upon their ponds, and upon all their pools of water, that they may become blood"*. It is good to think a little about this rod which was an "insignificant" shepherd rod of Moses. It soon turned out to be an instrument of mighty miracles by God. It shows how God can lay His hand on seemingly insignificant persons, properties and possessions, anoint them with the Holy Ghost and use them beyond human imagination. The only thing needed is to surrender that life or thing to God. None should ever underrate how God can use him because of his birth, background, colour, race, status or any demanding thing. Yield yourself to Jesus and you will be surprised how impactful your life will be in life. DL Moody was an unlettered shoe maker who became a mighty revivalist. Apostle Ayo Babalola was an ordinary government stream roller operator. After about 70 years, his great impact and power packed revival could not be erased. With faith and obedience to the Spirit of God, the sky is the limit for anyone who desires to live a highly impactful life.

*Question*

Mention some insignificant things and seemingly insignificant people that God turned to mighty weapons in His hand.

*3. Wicked and Imitating Rebellion*

a. Apart from the fact that Pharaoh himself hardened his heart and he bore the full responsibility, the deceivers, magicians, evil counsellors and false preachers and prophets of his day added to the hardness of the heart. *"And the magicians of Egypt did so with their enchantments: and Pharaoh's heart was hardened, neither did he hearken unto them; as the LORD had said"*. What did the magicians do? They dug into the ground for fresh water and turned it to blood through the power of Satan. The fact that it emboldened Pharaoh the more showed that it was not natural, but supernatural. It showed that it was not figurative, but physically real. The magicians could turn fresh water to blood, but could not turn bloody water into fresh as Moses did later. This is just the character of Satan. All he does is to imitate God and His works to deceive people. Furthermore, Satan is only interested in destroying people. Doing good and helping people out of their problems are never part of his economy. Even when he appears to do something good, the plan is to turn it to a razor bone in the mouth and throat of those who swallow it. That is how Satan brings different religions and offers under the camouflage of helping someone, but alas, the end result is to destroy. He has done this and sent multitudes to hell. Don't allow him to catch you with his deception. There is no single good in him.
b. Beware of false prophets, counsellors, companions, helpers, spouses and friends who smile at you as helpers and may even want to kiss you in love, but deadly poisons are in their mouth. Only Jesus is the truest and the most trustworthy Friend. *"And Pharaoh turned and went into his house, neither did he set his heart to this also"*. Beware of all those preachers who always pour water of confusion on the Word of God with "it does not matter". Well, we all saw the end of Pharaoh.
*"And all the Egyptians digged round about the river for water to drink; for they could not drink of the water of the river"*. Pharaoh was so hardened that he did not care about the plight of his citizens. *"And seven days were fulfilled, after that the LORD had smitten the river"*. A devilish leader thinks more of his ego, self and power than the welfare of people he is expected to lead and care for.

*Question*

What are the things giving you false security that you don't take some important teachings of the Bible seriously?

*Prayer Points*

1.Ask God to search your heart with His Word and Holy Ghost, reveal and remove any form of hardness in your heart .
2.Ask God to lay hands on you and use you mightily in this generation .
3.Ask God to deliver you and keep you from every form of deception that will damn your soul .
4.Pray that every believer will chose the path of wisdom and obedience to the Lord

*HYMN* Have you counted the cost

*BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:*
NEHEMIAH 9-11.

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