Readings for today: Exodus 7-9, Psalm 19
I used to have little sympathy for Pharaoh. I would read through this section of Exodus and shake my head at the number of times he hardened his heart against the will of God. I considered him evil and therefore not really worthy of my attention. He was the enemy of God’s chosen people who oppressed them in all sorts of terrible ways and therefore didn’t deserve any mercy or grace at all. Furthermore, God seems to feel the same way about Pharaoh. After all, He tells Moses He will harden Pharaoh’s heart in order to demonstrate His greatness over the nations of the earth. He will display His glory for all the earth to see as He humbles the greatest ruler of the greatest empire on earth at the time.
However, as a pastor, I have sat across the counseling table with far too many people and have watched them harden their own hearts against the will of God. It is heartbreaking to witness. People I love dearly who are experiencing all kinds of crisis and still they resist God. Often they will take steps to follow God initially when things are at their darkest, just like Pharaoh does throughout our reading today. At times it seems he is on the verge of letting God’s people go only to recant once a particular plague has passed. The same is often true of the people I work with. As soon as the worst of the crisis passes, they return back to their old ways.
The mystery of who hardens Pharaoh’s heart is a challenging one to grapple with. Does God harden Pharaoh’s heart? Does Pharaoh have a choice in the matter? Does Pharaoh harden his own heart? Does God simply reinforce the choices Pharaoh is already making? I honestly do not know. Neither does the Apostle Paul who grapples with this very question in Romans 9. There he essentially asks, “What if God raised Pharaoh up so that He might display His power in him and proclaim His name in the whole earth?” Does this make God unjust? Not so, says Paul. For God is God and He is fully within His rights to show mercy on whom He will show mercy and harden whom He wants to harden.
At the end of the day, none of us can answer this question for anyone but ourselves. Are we hardening our hearts towards God? Are we thinking and acting in ways that reinforce sinful patterns in our lives? Have we truly humbled ourselves and surrendered to God? The Scriptures say God desires all to be saved and come to a knowledge of His truth. They say God so loved the world that He gave His only Son and whosoever believes in Him shall not perish - shall not have their heart hardened - but shall receive everlasting life. Do not harden your heart today. Respond to the call of the gospel. Give your life to Jesus Christ and He will give you a new heart, one that can never be hardened again.
Readings for tomorrow: Exodus 10-12, Psalm 20