"One More Night With The Frogs | July 14, 2014

Scripture: Exodus 8:1-10; Genesis 19:15-16; Second Peter 2:7-8   

Good morning Strangers Rest. I am going to begin the message this morning with the first ten verses from Exodus chapter eight. It says, “(1) And the LORD spoke to Moses, ‘Go to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘Thus says the LORD: ‘Let My people go, that they may serve Me. (2) But if you refuse to let them go, behold, I will smite all your territory with frogs. (3) So the river shall bring forth frogs abundantly, which shall go up and come into your house, into your bedroom, on your bed, into the houses of your servants, on your people, into your ovens, and into your kneading bowls. (4) And the frogs shall come up on you, on your people, and on all your servants.’’ (5) Then the LORD spoke to Moses, ‘Say to Aaron, ‘Stretch out your hand with your rod over the streams, over the rivers, and over the ponds, and cause frogs to come up on the land of Egypt.’’ (6) So Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt, and the frogs came up and covered the land of Egypt. (7) And the magicians did so with their enchantments, and brought up frogs on the land of Egypt. (8) Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron, and said, ‘Entreat the LORD that He may take away the frogs from me and from my people; and I will let the people go, that they may sacrifice to the LORD.’ (9) And Moses said to Pharaoh, ‘Accept the honor of saying when I shall intercede for you, for your servants, and for your people, to destroy the frogs from you and your houses, that they may remain in the river only.’ (10) So he said, ‘Tomorrow.’ And he said, ‘Let it be according to your word, that you may know that there is no one like the LORD our God.’” (Exodus 8:1-10)

The title of my message this morning is “One More Night with the Frogs.” I first preached this message thirty-two years ago in Arkansas. God placed this message in my spirit two weeks ago and I had been meditating on it, but with everything going on, I sat it aside for later. Then last Sunday, my daughter called me and asked if I had the original message that I had delivered all those years ago because she wanted to read it. I told her that she would have to wait for this revised message as I had no copies of the original. This message is about putting things off that need to be dealt with. In other words, it is about procrastination. I want you to keep this in mind, Pharaoh had an immediate problem and when the answer to the problem was immediately available to him, he delayed it by one additional night. I will come back to this story shortly.

People often delay doing things or acting on a situation because they do not want to address something or are not sure how to address it or sometimes they are just too lazy to do it. When it comes to the things of God, we often delay what we are supposed to do because of the difficulty of the task, the time it will require to complete it, lack of support, fear, or the belief that I know what I am doing and so on and so forth. We have a lot of reasons why we do not act when God tells us to, and it causes us unforeseen issues in the long run. Many people will tell you that they do not act because they cannot tell when God is speaking to them or if it is just something within them. Others will tell you that they know what they should be doing, but life happens. What you are going to hear this morning is that even though life happens, it is not an excuse to leave our work undone. God expects us to must finish what is started!

I want to share some quotes with you from some famous people about procrastination before I get into the heart of the message. Here are just a few that I picked out of many:

·        “It’s the job that’s never started as takes longest to finish.” (J. R. R. Tolkien)

·        “Someday is not a day of the week.”  (Janet Dailey)

·        “You may delay, but time will not.”  (Benjamin Franklin)

·        “Only put off until tomorrow what you are willing to die having left undone.” (Pablo Picasso)

·        “You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today.”  (Abraham Lincoln)

·        “How soon ‘not now’ becomes ‘never’.” (Attributed to Martin Luther)

·        “In a moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing to do. The worst thing you can do is nothing.” (Theodore Roosevelt)

·        “A task left undone remains undone in two places — at the actual location of the task, and inside your head. Incomplete tasks in your head consume the energy of your attention as they gnaw at your conscience.” (Brahma Kumaris) 

I want to share a couple of stories with you about the seriousness of procrastinating and then we will come back to Pharaoh. There is a story about a man named Lot. Do you remember him? He was Abraham’s nephew and chose to leave with Abraham when God called Abraham to leave his family. So, Lot departed with Abraham and while Lot had his own possessions, he was still blessed because he was with Abraham. When they came out of Egypt, their possessions were so great that they could no longer travel together because where they had settled together could not support both of them. So, Abraham recommended that they split up and go in separate directions. He gave Lot the first choice and Genesis 13:10-11 records, “(10) And Lot lifted his eyes and saw all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere (before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah) like the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt as you go toward Zoar.  (11)  Then Lot chose for himself all the plain of Jordan, and Lot journeyed east. And they separated from each other.”

So, Lot took all his possessions and moved to Sodom and Gomorrah. I am not going to spend any time on this right now, but Lot, instead of choosing another part of the promised land, chose to leave the promised land and live in cities filled with wickedness and sin. Now let us jump to the end. When the angels arrived at the city to destroy them, they had to remove Lot from the city. The following is recorded in Genesis 19:15-16, “(15) When the morning dawned, the angels urged Lot to hurry, saying, ‘Arise, take your wife and your two daughters who are here, lest you be consumed in the punishment of the city.’ (16) And while he lingered, the men took hold of his hand, his wife's hand, and the hands of his two daughters, the LORD being merciful to him, and they brought him out and set him outside the city.” The angels told Lot they had to leave so that they would not be destroyed with the cities. Even at this point, Lot dragged his feet to the point that the angels finally grabbed him and his family and forcibly brought them out of the city. Now this is what I want you to pay close attention to. Because Lot chose to stay in an unpleasant situation, he lost all his possessions that he had when he arrived in Sodom and Gomorrah. Do you see this? He did not have to stay there, but he chose to live in a sinful place, and he called the place home even though he knew he should have gotten away from there. So why am I saying this? Because of what is recorded in Second Peter chapter two.

Peter wrote in verses seven and eight of chapter two, “(7) And if He rescued righteous Lot, who was tormented by the immoral conduct of unprincipled and ungodly men (8) (for that just man, while living among them, felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by what he saw and heard of their lawless acts).” (Second Peter 2:7-8) Why did Lot stay in a place that tormented his righteous soul? Why didn’t he pray and ask God where could he go from that city? Why did he remain there under those conditions? Lot chose to stay in a situation that ultimately led to him losing everything but his life and the lives of his two daughters. Had he left long before the sin of the city cried out before God, his wife would have lived longer. There are times when we need to move but God is waiting on us to take that step. God knew that He would be destroying Sodom and Gomorrah and He would have told Lot years before to get out – if Lot had asked! We know that he never asked because he was still there and even when the angels told him to get out he dragged his feet. Now here me closely on this because it will take us back to Pharaoh; even though Lot’s soul was tormented, he was comfortable being tormented! Lot, who had risen to a position of leadership in the city, had grown accustomed to seeing the wickedness, accepted it and never sought to leave it. Now let us go back to Pharaoh.

God sends Moses and Aaron to Pharaoh and demands that he let His people go. Of course, Pharaoh loves having slaves to do all the work, so he has no intentions of letting the people go. In Exodus chapter seven, Moses delivers the message to Pharaoh, and he denies the request, so the plagues begin. Now the first plague is important because it makes you wonder about the second plague, the focus of this message. In the first plague in Exodus chapter seven, God warns Pharaoh that if he does not free His people, He would turn the water into blood and all the fish would die. Pharaoh refuses and you know the rest. Exodus 7:20-21 records, “(20) And Moses and Aaron did so, just as the LORD commanded. So he lifted up the rod and struck 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) The fish that were in the river died, the river stank, and the Egyptians could not drink the water of the river. So there was blood throughout all the land of Egypt.” Please note that all the fish in the river died. Now let us go to Exodus chapter eight.

In chapter eight, God sends Moses and Aaron back to Pharaoh to tell him to let His people go. Beginning at verses one it says, “(1) And the LORD spoke to Moses, ‘Go to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘Thus says the LORD: ‘Let My people go, that they may serve Me. (2) But if you refuse to let them go, behold, I will smite all your territory with frogs. (3) So the river shall bring forth frogs abundantly, which shall go up and come into your house, into your bedroom, on your bed, into the houses of your servants, on your people, into your ovens, and into your kneading bowls. (4) And the frogs shall come up on you, on your people, and on all your servants.’’ (Exodus 8:1-5) Now notice that once again God warns Pharaoh of what will happen if he does not let His people go. This time God says He will send frogs. Now, I want to pause for a moment and have you focus on verse three. It says, “(3) So the river shall bring forth frogs abundantly, which shall go up and come into your house, into your bedroom, on your bed, into the houses of your servants, on your people, into your ovens, and into your kneading bowls.” Do you see it? The frogs are coming from the same river that had been blood and had killed all the fish. Why didn’t the frogs die along with the fish? Well let me tell you my thoughts. The frogs did not die with the fish because God had a plan for those frogs if Pharaoh refused to let His people go. I want you to remember this, if everyone around you is spiritually dead, God will keep you spiritually alive so He can use you. If you are surrounded by people with dead faith, God will sustain you as you continue to walk with Him because He has work for you to do. When the waters turn to blood and the fish die, God saves the frogs because He has a job for them to do! Now let us continue. 

God told Pharaoh that the frogs would be everywhere. Frogs throughout the house; frogs in the bedroom; frogs in the bed; frogs in the closet; frogs in the toilet; frogs in the kitchen; frogs in the oven; frogs everywhere! Can you imagine the noise they were making? The place was overrun with frogs! Finally, Pharaoh has enough, and he sends for his magicians. When they try to get rid of the frogs with their incantations more frogs show up. Frogs are everywhere except in Goshen! Now we come to the interesting part of the story. Pharaoh has had enough so he calls for Moses. Let us pick the story at verse eight. “(8) Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron, and said, ‘Entreat the LORD that He may take away the frogs from me and from my people; and I will let the people go, that they may sacrifice to the LORD.’ (9) And Moses said to Pharaoh, ‘Accept the honor of saying when I shall intercede for you, for your servants, and for your people, to destroy the frogs from you and your houses, that they may remain in the river only.’ (10) So he said, ‘Tomorrow.’ And he said, ‘Let it be according to your word, that you may know that there is no one like the LORD our God.’” (Exodus 8:8-10)      

Pharaoh calls for Moses and when he arrives Pharaoh asks Moses to ask God to take away the frogs. Now remember, at this point, frogs are everywhere and have the run of the place. Remember, even his magicians brought forth more frogs. Moses agrees to ask God to remove the frogs, but he wants to know when Pharaoh wants him to do it. Listen to this, “(9) And Moses said to Pharaoh, ‘Accept the honor of saying when I shall intercede for you, for your servants, and for your people, to destroy the frogs from you and your houses, that they may remain in the river only.’ (10) So he said, ‘Tomorrow.’…” When Moses asks Pharaoh when he should intercede for him Pharaoh answers “Tomorrow.” What is the world was Pharaoh thinking??? He has frogs everywhere. Frogs in his bed; in his kitchen; in his oven; in his bathtub swimming like they owned the place (which they did at this point.) He has frogs in every imaginable place in Egypt and when he is asked when he wants those frogs removed he replies “tomorrow.” So, what he ultimately asks for is one more night with the frogs.

I do not know about you, but I do not necessarily like frogs. I do not even eat frog legs. So, to have frogs everywhere in my house would drive me bananas! If I went to take a shower and they were already there; or if I turned the oven on and got a weird smell because they were inside of it, and I did not know it. Do you see my point? If it were me, I would have said “Get these frogs out right now, tonight, this minute!!!” Why did Pharoah ask for one more night with those frogs? Why did Lot choose to stay in a place that vexed his spirit? In some ways, we all have frogs we must deal with. Why do we choose to stay in situations that are not good for us? Why do we continue to tolerate things that we know are not right, but we just do not want to take the time to fix it?

What frog are you dealing with this morning? What frog keeps you awake at night? Is it your kids? Is it this Church? Is it a physical ailment that you know you need to tend to, but you keep putting it off because you just do not have time? What is your frog? How many frogs are you dealing with? If Moses were standing before you asking you when would you like for him to entreat the Lord on your behalf, would you say right now or would you be like Pharaoh and say tomorrow? Some of us have had our frogs for so long that we have adopted them. You can know that you have adopted your frogs when the first word you use when you talk about them is “My.” And the next thing you do is give your frogs names. For example, say your name is Carla and you have an alter-ego named Clarice that comes out to visit when people are getting on your last nerve. Well, Carla, Clarice is a frog with a name. Do you understand what I am saying? The issues that we refuse to deal with are frogs in our lives and until we deal with them we are just like Pharaoh saying “tomorrow.” Our personal frog(s) can only be dealt with by us individually with God’s help, but here is the thing: God cannot force us to get rid of our frogs. If we want to keep them He cannot stop us. If we are holding our frogs so tight because we cannot imagine our life without them then God cannot stop us or deliver us.

So, could it be we have frogs in our life because of pride? Could it be we have frogs in our life because we believe we can manage them on our own and we do not need God’s help? It is only when we decide to get rid of our frogs that God can do something to help us. I want to leave you with what is recorded in First Peter 5:6-7. It says, “(6) Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, (7) casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.” (First Peter 5:6-7) The first thing Peter wrote is that we must humble ourselves – demote, lower ourselves in our own estimation under the mighty hand of God so that, in due time, He may exalt us. The Apostle Paul put it this way in Romans 12:3, when he wrote “For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith.” (Romans 12:3) Peter then talks about casting our cares on Jesus. Who is doing the casting? We are! And when we cast those cares we are to leave them there! I remember fondly when my father was teaching me to fish. He would get so frustrated with me when I cast my line and then if nothing happened immediately I would want to pull it in. That is what we do spiritually. We cast our cares on the Lord and then try to take them back.

Peter tells us that we should cast all our cares on the Lord. Not some of them, but all of them. It is our responsibility to do the casting and when we take that step God does His part. But when we refuse to cast those cares, we are asking for one more night with our frogs. Do you see this? In the past, all of us, at one time or another, have cast our cares on to family members; friends; co-workers, etc.; everyone but the Lord. And we all know what happened. Sometimes they might have helped a little, but they oftentimes only offered moral support because some situations they were not able to fix. And to make matters worse, depending on who we confided in, we often received conflicting advice leaving us right back where we started. The Lord never gives us conflicting advice! Our loved ones and friends care about us, but they often do not have the answer that takes away our worries – our frogs. Only when we give our cares to the Lord and leave them will our worries be released.

Strangers Rest, what frogs are you living with that you need to allow to hop out of your life right now? Are you ready to ask God for help or are you desiring one more night with your frogs?

Until next time, “The Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord lift up His countenance on you and give you peace.”  (Numbers 6:24-26)