"Who is God?" 4-11-12

Exodus 5:2 And Pharaoh said, Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I know not the LORD, neither will I let Israel go.

Be careful what you ask, because you might not like the answer! This would have been good advice for Pharaoh, but I don't think that Pharaoh was ready to listen. The encounter between Pharaoh and Moses brings up an interesting question. The Bible actually says that God hardened Pharaoh's heart so that he wouldn't let the people go. Why would God do that? Because He is God, and He can! I do not claim to know what God was thinking, but consider what Pharaoh just said. "Who is the Lord, that I should obey His voice?" God has a way of answering those kinds of questions. God brought Pharaoh through a process until, in the end, Pharaoh had no doubt about why he should have listened. The sad news is that he still didn't listen and obey, and it was a tragic ending for him and his nation. With this in mind, how important is obeying the voice of God in your life? Our willingness to obey is a pretty good measure of our acknowledgement  of who God is. And remember this, in the end, every knee will bow, and every tongue will confess that He is Lord. It would be a wise thing to bow sooner rather than later. Just ask Pharaoh.