Exodus 8:25-32 (ESV)

Then Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron and said, “Go, sacrifice to your God within the land.” But Moses said, “It would not be right to do so, for the offerings we shall sacrifice to the LORD our God are an abomination to the Egyptians. If we sacrifice offerings abominable to the Egyptians before their eyes, will they not stone us? We must go three days' journey into the wilderness and sacrifice to the LORD our God as he tells us.” So Pharaoh said, “I will let you go to sacrifice to the LORD your God in the wilderness; only you must not go very far away. Plead for me.” Then Moses said, “Behold, I am going out from you and I will plead with the LORD that the swarms of flies may depart from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people, tomorrow. Only let not Pharaoh cheat again by not letting the people go to sacrifice to the LORD.” So Moses went out from Pharaoh and prayed to the LORD. And the LORD did as Moses asked, and removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people; not one remained. But Pharaoh hardened his heart this time also, and did not let the people go.

Pharaoh tries some shrewd bargaining. He’s worried that if he lets Israel out of the country, they won’t return. So, he offers to let them do the sacrifices, as long as they don’t leave Egypt.

But Moses makes an airtight counter-argument. The Egyptians worship many kinds of livestock. The Israeli sacrifices involve some of these sacred animals. That would be an abomination to the Egyptians – enough of one to start a riot.

So, Pharaoh caves. Desperate to be rid of the swarms, he says, “I will let you go to sacrifice to the LORD your God in the wilderness; only you must not go very far away. Plead for me.” Moses prays to the LORD and the swarms go away. Then Pharaoh reneges on the deal.

But Moses had anticipated this saying, “Only let not Pharaoh cheat again by not letting the people go to sacrifice to the LORD.” That wasn’t a whine; it was a threat.

So, guess which Egyptian god is going get hammered next.

Reneging on a deal with God sounds like the dumbest thing imaginable. Yet, we do it all the time.

Confessing Jesus as Lord and savior is a commitment to follow Him. What does “Lord” mean anyway?

But we fail, over and over. Our failures may not rank up there with Peter denying Christ three times, but they still count as reneging on a deal. How awful is that?

Well, it’s not the unforgivable sin. Like Peter, we grow in Christ over time, agonizingly slow though.

But here’s the point – we need to be agonized. Taking a lackadaisical attitude about our failures is poisonous. This leads to an unusual kind of prayer – for God to open our eyes to the ugliness of our failures.

This is actually asking for more, not less, pain.

The weekly study guides, which include discussion questions, are available for download here:

https://www.ailbe.org/resources/itemlist/category/91-deep-studies