2 Peter, go to 2 Peter chapter
1. Our study is in Exodus 9, but
2 Peter 1. This needs to be, I say this
a lot, but this needs to be more than a Bible, mere Bible study. It needs to be more than merely
interesting. It will be interesting. But we need for God to speak
to us and our children, don't we, through his word. This is
his word, and we need him to speak to us. And it's full of... I ask that our young people be
up here this morning. Old and young alike need these
words of warnings and promises, exhortations, in these last days. 2 Peter 1, now the exodus or
going out of the children of Israel from Egypt and all the
plagues and crossing the Red Sea, the world scoffs at that. The world today thinks that's
fiction. They think it's Jewish fables. And even some so-called Christians
think it's just some kind of allegory. But look at what Peter said,
2 Peter 1 verse 16, we have not followed cunningly devised fables. When we made known unto you,
here's who we are making known or preaching, declaring the power
and the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He said we were eyewitnesses. of His Majesty. He's the only
one who deserves that title. Look at verse 20 and 21. Know
this, that no prophecy of the Scripture, no word of God is
of any private or personal interpretation. The prophecy, the word came,
not in old time, by the will of man. Isaiah didn't just step
one day and decide, I'm going to write a book. Or Ezekiel or
Jeremiah. No, no. God said, write. John,
the revelation, God said, John, write these things down. Came
by the will of holy men spake as they were moved by the Holy
Ghost. By the will of God, by the Holy Ghost. Look at chapter
3. Chapter 3 of 2 Peter says in verse 3, knowing in the last
days golfers walking after their own lusts, where is the promise
of his coming? Since the world, the fathers
fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning
of the creation. And he says they're willingly ignorant, that
is, refuse to believe two things, creation and the flood, that
God created all things. that by the Word, verse 5, the
Word of God, the heavens were of old and the earth standing out of the water and in the water.
God created all things. Men refuse to believe that. In spite of all the clear, the heavens
declare His glory, the firmament showeth His handiwork, day after day after day after
day after day after day after day after day after day after day after day after day after day
after day after day after day after day after day after day after day
after day after day after day after day after day after day after day after
day after day after day after day after day after day after day after day after day
after day after day after day after day after day after day after day after day after day after
day after day after day after day after day after day after day after day after day after
day after day after day after day after day after day after day
after day after day after day after day after day after day after day
after day after day after day after day after day after day after day after day after day
after day after day after day And the potter has power over
clay. Man don't want that. But it's
true. Verse 6, Then their willingly
ignorant refused to believe that the world that then was overflowed
with water perished. This God was angry with the world
and destroyed it. All of it and everyone in it
except Eight souls that found grace in the eyes of the Lord
and put them in an ark. Oh, that's a bunch of hogwash.
What a silly fable. It's just an allegory. A cute
way of saying that Noah saved the animals. No, that's salvation
of sinners by Jesus Christ. So, now go to Exodus 9, Exodus
chapter 9. So this whole story of the Exodus,
the going out of God's people. Most, do you know, most Bible
scholars so-called, and there's no such thing, is there? No such
thing. A doctor of divinity. In other
words, you're an expert. You're a master of divinity.
You've mastered the knowledge of God. Bernard used to say that
D.D. behind their name means dumb
dogs. Dumb dogs. But most Bible scholars don't
believe there was any exodus at all. You know that? They just
think it's just an allegory. They made up a fable. We don't know. God's people.
Ask a true Jew. Ask somebody that's been delivered
how they were brought out with a high hand. God's people. And this whole story is how God's
people are being saved out of this world. You hear me? We're in it. We're like Israel.
We're not of it. We've been chosen by God to bring
us out of it. Now that's a fact. That's a fact. And if you're a true Jew inwardly,
you want out. You want it out of you. You know, you're in captivity,
you're in bondage, and you're in sorrow because of sin and
the evil that's all around us and want redemption. So, chapter 9, verse 13, the
Lord said unto Moses, this was his chosen prophethood, were
there any more? Were there any more? And it says, he said unto Moses,
Rise up early in the morning, and stand before Pharaoh. The
Lord called Moses, and Aaron was his helping link, to go and
stand before the ruler of the world, Egypt, the whole world,
Israel. Stand before them and say, Thus
saith the Lord. And God still has men that stand
up with this message, that stand for the truth, that stand for
God and stand before people preaching. The world scoffs at and says
there's no need for this preaching anymore. Let's have share session.
There's never been more need for preaching than now. Thus saith the Lord. And men
still stand over Revelation 11. You read this for yourself sometime.
It's the story of the two prophets sent by God, two olive trees,
which stand for the word of God, Old New Testament, the law of
the prophet, the prophets of the gospel. These two olive trees,
okay, it said they stood up and preached and the world hated
them, the world hated them, and finally the world killed them,
and that is a silent story. That was the Dark Ages. That
was a thousand years on this earth when there were no Bibles.
Nobody heard the Word except here and there a little bit. After that, it says, after three
days, they stood up on their feet. Those two seemingly dead
prophets, that's the Word of God, stood up in the first century. Well, 14th century. Through Martin
Luther and men like that who started printing the Bible for
everyone to read, the Word again stands before men saying what? The same thing. Thus saith the
Lord. We don't believe that. It's true. Let God be true and every man
a liar. So that's what we do. That's
what the Word of God does. Acts chapter 5. They hated Peter
and John for preaching, and they told them, you cannot preach.
You're not to preach in the name of this Jesus and that. Don't
do that anymore. And they put them in jail. Put
them in jail. And they beat them. Well, the
Lord came, the Spirit of the Lord came and opened the jail
cell and said, go stand in the temple. There are no secret Christians
all over the world. No, no. Stand up. And they found
them standing in the temple. So here Moses stands. He's not
cowering. He's not begging for an audience.
He's commanding one. God commands. We don't ask people
to accept God or won't you please come and worship God. God commandeth
men everywhere to repent. So Moses stood before the people,
look at verse 14, and God said, tell them I'm going to send all
my plagues, all of them. Verse 14, that you may know there's
none like me in all the earth. I'm not a man, I'm God. You ought
to know. Romans 1 says, The wrath of God
is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness
of men who hold the truth, suppress the truth in unrighteousness. But still, the thunder rolls,
the lightning flashes, the floods come, the hurricanes come, the
hail falls, the fire consumes. Men are fools. We know God, just
natural phenomena. God didn't send this, it's just
natural phenomena. No, there's no sin, there's no
wrath, there's no judgment. It's just natural phenomena. We know better. Do you know better? Yeah, blessed you are. Verse 18, Behold, tomorrow I
will cause it to rain a very greedless hail that's never been
seen before. Hail. What is hail? Well, hail
is water that's turned rock hard in. Water. Now, water is a life-giving
substance. It's life-giving. We can't live
without water. Isaiah 55, go over there real
quickly. This is one of my favorite. This
is one of my 7,433 favorite passages of Scripture. Isaiah 55. Look at this. Water is a life-giving
substance. The Lord sends water to soften
the fallow ground, to bring forth fruit, to bring forth life. Water. What a blessing. You know what
a blessing? What a creation of God. There's
no life without water. And the same is true. There's
no life, no spiritual life, without the water of His Word. The Word
of God giveth life. Okay? That's why God wrote it. That's why God spoke it. That's
why He sends preachers to preach it, to give life, not kill, but
make alive. They're already dead. What a blessing the Gospel is.
What a blessing it is to hear a preacher. What a blessing it
is to have the Word of God. And it's meant to soften. It's meant to break the hard
heart. It's meant to give life. But if you don't heed it, It's
going to come down on your head like a rock. It's not going to
give life, it's going to take it. You understand? This is water
turned rock hard. It's going to come down on the
heads of men and women and young people. Isaiah 55, look at this. Oh,
everyone that thirsts, come to the water. Look how good God
is. Look how gracious God is. Look how merciful God is. This
is my Word. I've sent a preacher with it.
And there's salvation for all, anyone, whosoever will. Come! Take the water of life
freely! Isn't God good? Come! He said, why are you spending
money for that which is not bread? He says in verse 3, incline your
ear, come unto Me, hear, and your soul will live. Oh, I sat and sat and sat like
our young people. Sat and sat and sat. The rain
fell. God sent the rain. He said, my
word is like rain. Verse 10, as the rain cometh
down, the snow from heaven. Verse 11, so shall my word be. And I sat under message after
message after message, Thomas, with no effect. It came down
on my hard head, and my hard heart, and my blind eyes, and
my deaf ear, and I didn't hear a word. And like the prodigal,
I'm out of here. I want to go out in the world.
No, you don't. No, you don't. We've got two
cats. They're indoor cats. I know what
some of you think, especially you men. Why would you have a
cat? But we do. And don't make fun
of them, because they're our cats. You can't come in our house
if you don't like them. But both those cats, they want
nothing more than to get out of that house. They're all the
time escaping, and we're running after them all. Why? Because
they're our cats. What's out there? Predators. Disease. Lice. You name it. Death. Destruction. What's out there in the world? I've got to get out and see it.
No, you don't. You need to see Jesus Christ.
You need to see the world for what it is. The perishing place
it is. You need to see the danger. No,
we don't see it. I didn't see the danger. I didn't
see the danger. All I saw was the world was my oyster. I'm
about finished with it. God brought this prodigal back,
sat him down under the same preacher he rejected in the beginning,
and that rain came down. And life was given. And now,
I don't even want to leave this place. I want to leave this house. And that's what the Lord said.
Look at Exodus 9. This is what the Lord said to
all the people. Look at verse 19. Gather your
cattle and everything you have. This hail is coming down on man
and beast. Everybody's outside. It's coming
down on your head. Bring them home. Bring everybody
and everything you have. Bring them into the house. And he that feared God's Word,
verse 20, among the servants, they brought their cattle into
their houses, into their barn. They brought them out from under
the wrath of God's going to fall. They brought them into the house
of John. And everybody that was in the house was saved from that
hell coming down. And those that didn't, perished. Does that sound familiar? Exodus
12 is the Passover. And the Lord kept
telling them, now I've put the blood on the houses where my
people are. And he said, don't leave the
house. Didn't he? Whatever you do, don't
leave the house. You stay in that house. This
is God's house. This is the church house where
the blood of Jesus Christ, the gospel of God's Son is preached. There's safety here. This is
a city of refuge. This is a place where salvation
is obtained. Not this building, but where
the gospel is preached, able to save. Okay? Come to the house. Don't leave the house. Don't
leave the house. If you leave the gospel, if you
go somewhere where there's no gospel, this hail might come
down on your head. This is no allegory. This is
no fable. This is fact. This is fact. You know, I'd rather preach messages of
just comfort and comfort and comfort. But there is no comfort
except for those who are convicted. The gospel only means something
to those that are troubled by the world, by sin, the world
in them, who fear God. Right? You only run to a refuge
when you're afraid. Well, now look at verse 26. Verse 25 and 26. The hail smoked
throughout all the land of Egypt, man and beast. Verse 26. In the
land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, not one hailstone
fell on one hand. Not Like in that ark of Noah, not
one drop of water fell on Noah's head. Not one. There's no wrath for God's people
that are in Christ. No wrath. Not one. Not one sin will be found on
their record. Not one. Those that are found
in him. So, now look at Pharaoh. Pharaoh represents mankind in
general. Verse 27, Pharaoh sent and called
for Moses and Aaron and said, I've sinned this time. The hail was killing everybody
and everything. Destroying everything in the
land of Egypt and Pharaoh saw it clearly. And what did he do?
He got a religion. He got repentance. It wasn't
true repentance. What was it all about? Verse
28. He said in verse 27, oh, I'm a sinner. You know, people
get in trouble and they get religion. They go to church and some fella,
some charlatan, some fake, some phony prophet says, you're a
sinner, I'll give you an answer. You need saving, don't you? I
sure do. Well, repeat after me. say the center, you know, your
center and you accept Jesus, your personal savior. Now you
say, I'm sure for heaven is if you're already there. Where's
repentance in that? Where's a center calling on God?
Whosoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. That's
a center like David saying, have mercy on me, oh God, me. Against thee and thee only have
I sinned. That's not someone who's convicted
by the consequences. That's not someone who's convicted
by the trouble of the wrath. When the trouble ends, so will
the repentance. Look at Pharaoh, verse 28. Pharaoh
said, Entreat the Lord for me. Go and pray for me. Nuh-uh, Pharaoh. You pray. Oh, Ethiopian eunuch. He came to where Elijah was and
he stood outside and thought, Elijah come running out there
and waved his hand over and said, so glad to see you and glad you're
here and we could use your money to help First Baptist Church.
and so forth, Mr. Unick, and now go home, everything's
fine. He sent a servant out there,
a lowly servant out there to tell him, thus said the Lord,
go down. Get in that muddy river, Jordan,
and dip yourself. You get down and dip under that
water, not once, not twice, seven times, till you're full of mud
in your ears, in your eyes, till you feel like your flesh is no
good thing. I'm just a filthy, no-naked sinner
in the mud. He said, you do that. I'm not
going to pray for you. I can't save you. You get down. Repent. You call on the Lord. Whosoever shall call on the name
of the Lord shall be saved. Your parents can't do it. Your
spouse can't do it for you. I can't do it. I pray for you
all the time. But I can't forgive one of your sins. I can't make
one person in here interested in Jesus Christ. Not I ask God
to do it. He alone, he must do it. And
what he tells us to do, every one of us, call. Call on me,
he said. He's so good. Call, just call. Don't have to scale Mount Sinai.
Call! I can do that, can't you? If
he calls me. But don't wait, he said. Well,
I believe that, you know, the elect will be saved. That woman with an issue of blood,
she didn't know if she's elect or not. She's crawling. She's
not just touching him with his garments. Well, there she did. Call. Whosoever shall call. How many
seem convicted and serious in sickness and trouble and death,
but as soon as the funeral is over, so is the conviction. My
dad and I have both said, he preached many more funerals than
I have, but I've preached quite a few now. I'd like to never
preach another one. At any rate, neither one of us
have ever seen one person lastingly affected by a funeral. Not one. Not one conversion. Not one. Because that's not how people
are saved when they get in trouble. Esau repented because he got
in trouble. Cain repented because he got
in trouble. That's not repentance. Repentance
is to know we're in trouble with God. I've got this sin trouble
in me. I have made all this trouble
for myself. That's repentance. God help me. Help me. That's repentance. Please, I can't do anything about
this sin trouble. Please, may the blood of Jesus
Christ God's Son put away my sin. My sin. Sin, not trouble. Sin. Well, now look at these locusts. Chapter 10, it said Pharaoh's
heart was hardened. Now chapter 10 is the story of
these locusts. Verse 2, he says, Tell your sons
and your sons' sons. Tell them this story. That's
why I wanted our sons and daughters up here. Tell them this story.
This is not an allegory. This is not a fable. This is
true. God sent locusts. Actually, these were literal
things that happened back then, but they represent something
far more lasting, something far more terrible. Verse 4, he says, if you refuse,
I'll bring locusts on the cove. And verse 5, they'll cover the
face of the earth and one cannot be able to see the earth. You
won't be able to see the earth. And they'll eat the residue.
They'll just devour the earth. They'll consume the earth. Verse
6, your houses will be full of them. These locusts. Everywhere
locusts. What do these locusts represent? Go to Isaiah 40 with me. You
know what a locust is? You've seen them. It's a grasshopper.
It's a grasshopper. That's what a locust is. It eats
everything in its sight. I'll say it's 40. Turn over there.
Now, there are many things that these locusts can represent,
all true. Sin, lusts, demons are everywhere,
false prophets. In the last days, the world's
going to be full of them. Houses are going to be full of
them. TV, through TV and radio and internet and all that. They're
everywhere, like locusts. And they devour widows' houses,
and they eat up everything inside, and eat up people, and everyone
is devoured by them in perishment. They can represent that, many
things. But I believe, and this is certainly
true, that these locusts represent mankind in general, how the world
is going to be so populated, so full of people, that you won't
be able to feed them. and devour everything and everyone
inside. Devour and be devoured, like
lotus. Filled, earth filled. Right before
the Lord sent the flood in Noah's day, it says the world was filled
with violence. The whole earth He said, it's
corrupted my way. Most Bible scholars believe there
were 8 to 10 billion people on the earth during the flood. You
say it can't be. Hold on. Israel was in Egypt for 400 years. It went from 70 people to 2 million in 400 years. Do the math. People have done
the math. Earth is filled and covered with
people. Look at Isaiah 40. I've got to
read verse 1. Comfort ye, comfort ye, my people. Speak comfortably to Jerusalem. God's people cry unto her. Their
warfare is accomplished. Her iniquity is pardoned. You
see that? This is the best news on earth. The world doesn't need
this. Pardon. The poor God's people do. She's
received of the Lord's hands double for what? Sin. Not only pardon, but justification.
Not only forgiveness, but adoption. Isn't that something? Isn't God
good? He said to the voice, cry, verse
6, cry, what is it? Call, all flesh is grass. The
goodness thereof, the flower of the field, grass wither, the
flower of faith, the Spirit of the Lord is going to blow on
them, blow it all away. That's flesh, that's this world. Cry, verse 9, cry, behold your
God. Cry verse 10, Behold the Lord
God will come. He did. His name is Jesus Christ. God walked this earth. God. Our Creator. Verse 11, He'll
feed His flock like a shepherd. He'll gather His lambs. Are you
a lamb? Are you a sheep? You want to
be gathered. Now look at it. It says, Who
hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand? Who meted
out the heavens with a span? Verse 12. Who did all this? Verse
15. Behold the nations are as a drop
of a bucket. They're nothing. Verse 17. All nations before God are as
nothing. Nothing. Worse than nothing,
he said. Less than nothing. Vanity. It means useless. Completely
useless to God. Is that what they said? Everybody. Now look down at verse
21. Have you not known? Have you
not heard? Have it not been told you from
the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundation of the earth?
We're talking about Him that sits on this earth. Him in whose
hands our breath is and our ways and whose hands angels and principalities
and powers and spirits of wickedness in high places, and you and me
and our dogs and cats are in His hand to do with as He pleases. Read on. It says, the inhabitants
thereof are as, say it, grasshoppers. Just feel the plan. Feel the
plan. Look at verse 13, chapter 10
of Exodus, verse 13. Go over there, back there. Exodus
10, 13. Now, in the first century, I
told you, in the first century, a flood happened. I don't know
when it was, but anyway, the flood happened and the world
began to be populated by three men. You believe that? You believe
the world was populated by one man and his wife? You believe
that? Do you really? Well, he lived 930 years. How many children could you have
in 930 years? I mean, they're having children at the same time. But Noah's son, Shem, Ham, and
Japheth populated the earth, right? The first century there
were 200 million people. Most agree, around 200 million
people in the first century. 1900, there were 2 billion people. In 2023, just 100 years later,
8 billion people. It's just covering the world. It's covering the world like
grasshoppers. Now look at verse 13, Exodus
10, 13. Moses, when the Lord sent these
grasshoppers, it said, Moses stretched forth his rod, that's
the Word of God, over the land of Egypt. And the Lord brought
an east wind, east wind, on all the land that day. And there
were locusts from this east wind. Do you know that 82% of the world
population is in the eastern hemisphere? India, China, Asia, they can't
feed them. So many people. God's Word's been telling us
from the beginning. Men don't pay attention. Well, verse 16, Pharaoh called
for Moses and he said, I've sinned. I've sinned. We're starving.
Everything's being destroyed. I've sinned. Verse 70, forgive
me, I pray thee. Treat the Lord your God. And
treat him that he take away this death also. See, it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter. That's not
repentance of sin. The Lord turned, verse 19, a
west wind and took away the locusts. What's that mean? Well, I'm unsure,
but I do know this. There have been two world wars
that threatened to consume this whole planet. Two world wars.
What did the Lord send? Who did the Lord send to prevent
these eastern armies from consuming this world? The West. The West. This place that you
live in, the Western Hemisphere. These nations, Canada and the
United States, went over there to fight these... And they hate us. France hates
us. For liberating them. That's a
familiar story. Oh well. But it says... Turn and close
it. Genesis 19. Turn and close it. So the Lord took away all the
locusts. And you know, right before there
was darkness over all the land, the world was filled with these
locusts. And that's now, and it's become
populated. There are more Bibles than ever,
but less light. And darkness you can feel. That's the next thing we're going
to look at. Darkness, you can feel it. That
people can't even see each other for what they really are. Can't
see at all. Can't see yourself. Can't see
your neighbor for what you really are. Can't see the world. Darkness.
And then what happened? Right after the darkness, what
happened? Yisra'el went out. See? World population. Darkness. And we're out of here. Out of here. Genesis 19. What is the Lord teaching us?
What is He teaching us here? A lesson on locusts? The plagues
of Egypt? How interesting. He's teaching
us of the sovereign electing love and mercy and grace of God
in choosing a remnant out of this world. Noah and his family, they thanked God for his sovereign
electing grace. To His people, Israel, when they
were in those little houses, that blood over the door, and
they heard the screams of all of Egypt, they were so thankful
for sovereign, electing love and mercy and grace and the blood
of Jesus Christ. God, they're so good. And God
said, you do this forever. Forever. This blood, remember
this blood that brought you out, that saved you, that chose you,
that put a mark on you that nobody could touch you, that not one
hailstone would fall on you. The blood. What is the Lord teaching us?
Stay in the house. How many times do you have to
tell us? Stay in the house. It's safety. It's truth. Out there's lies.
The refuge, out there's trouble. Stay in the house. What's he
telling us? Come out from among them. Be
separate, said the Lord. Touch not the unclean thing.
I'll be your God. You'll be my people. Come out
from among them. You're in Egypt, but you're not
of Egypt. If you're of Egypt, you're going to perish with Egypt.
You're in the world, but not of the world. Come out now! Isn't
God good? Isn't God good? Look at Genesis 19, verse 14. Lot went out and spoke, and the
Lord came, sent his preachers, his angels, and said, I'm going
to destroy this place. How? Fire. It's going to fall. Hail
with fire. Hail with fire. And I meant to
read over in Isaiah where it says, the hail will sweep away
the refuge of life, and fire will destroy everything. He shall
come down as a consuming fire, a refiner's fire. He'll refine
his people, remove the dross, remove the sin, but on the world,
wrath, fire. Well, Lot went out to speak to
his sons, sons-in-law, who married his daughter, and said, Get out! Up! Get up! Get out! The Lord
will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked.
Oh, come on. Dad, you really believe that? Nobody in Sodom believes that. Dad, that's old-fashioned. That's out of vogue. Nobody in
Sodom believes that. Lot said, I do. And in the morning it arose,
verse 15, the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise, take your
wife, take your daughters which are here, lest you be consumed
in the iniquity of the city. Get out. Get a hold of your children. Get a hold of your children.
First of all, bring them in the house. And may the Lord lay hold
of them and bring them out of this world, lest they be consumed. And while he lingered, look at
this. Every eye read this with me, verse 16. While he lingered,
and we do, don't we? Every one of God's people, we're
in the world, sometimes the world, it has such a pull on us and
we feel like we've fallen back into it. Here's what's going
to happen. The man, the angel, laid hold on his hand, on his
wife and his daughter, the Lord being merciful to him. And what
did he do? He brought him forth and set
him without the city. And then later he said, I can't
destroy this place until I get you out. Oh, may those two be
one of me. May all these back there, may
these boys, these girls, oh, may the Lord lay on their hands. You do it, parents. You do it. Talk to them day and night in
your houses. Talk to them. I'm doing it in
this house. You talk to them in your house. Tell them. Tell
them, granny. Tell them, grandpa, mother and
father. Tell them. I'm telling you, call. Come out. Bible study? It's life or death. Okay.