When Prayer, Revival and Deliverance Intersect

Edwin Sangster said, “We are combating something deep in the soul of the nation. For this deep malady, we need some deep X-ray therapy that we have not found.” I agree wholeheartedly about our nation. We are in a fight for the soul of the nation. But there is an answer.

Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in the presence of all the assembly of Israel and spread out his hands. 13 Solomon had made a bronze platform five cubits long, five cubits wide, and three cubits high, and had set it in the court, and he stood on it. Then he knelt on his knees in the presence of all the assembly of Israel, and spread out his hands toward heaven, 14 and said, “O Lord, God of Israel, there is no God like you, in heaven or on earth, keeping covenant and showing steadfast love to your servants who walk before you with all their heart, 15 who have kept with your servant David my father what you declared to him. You spoke with your mouth, and with your hand have fulfilled it this day. 16 Now therefore, O Lord, God of Israel, keep for your servant David my father what you have promised him, saying, ‘You shall not lack a man to sit before me on the throne of Israel, if only your sons pay close attention to their way, to walk in my law as you have walked before me.’ 17 Now therefore, O Lord, God of Israel, let your word be confirmed, which you have spoken to your servant David.

18 “But will God indeed dwell with man on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you, how much less this house that I have built! 19 Yet have regard to the prayer of your servant and to his plea, O Lord my God, listening to the cry and to the prayer that your servant prays before you, 20 that your eyes may be open day and night toward this house, the place where you have promised to set your name, that you may listen to the prayer that your servant offers toward this place. 21 And listen to the pleas of your servant and of your people Israel, when they pray toward this place. And listen from heaven your dwelling place, and when you hear, forgive.

22 “If a man sins against his neighbor and is made to take an oath and comes and swears his oath before your altar in this house, 23 then hear from heaven and act and judge your servants, repaying the guilty by bringing his conduct on his own head, and vindicating the righteous by rewarding him according to his righteousness.

24 “If your people Israel are defeated before the enemy because they have sinned against you, and they turn again and acknowledge your name and pray and plead with you in this house, 25 then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and bring them again to the land that you gave to them and to their fathers.

26 “When heaven is shut up and there is no rain because they have sinned against you, if they pray toward this place and acknowledge your name and turn from their sin, when you afflict them, 27 then hear in heaven and forgive the sin of your servants, your people Israel, when you teach them the good way in which they should walk, and grant rain upon your land, which you have given to your people as an inheritance.

28 “If there is famine in the land, if there is pestilence or blight or mildew or locust or caterpillar, if their enemies besiege them in the land at their gates, whatever plague, whatever sickness there is, 29 whatever prayer, whatever plea is made by any man or by all your people Israel, each knowing his own affliction and his own sorrow and stretching out his hands toward this house, 30 then hear from heaven your dwelling place and forgive and render to each whose heart you know, according to all his ways, for you, you only, know the hearts of the children of mankind, 31 that they may fear you and walk in your ways all the days that they live in the land that you gave to our fathers.

32 “Likewise, when a foreigner, who is not of your people Israel, comes from a far country for the sake of your great name and your mighty hand and your outstretched arm, when he comes and prays toward this house, 33 hear from heaven your dwelling place and do according to all for which the foreigner calls to you, in order that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you, as do your people Israel, and that they may know that this house that I have built is called by your name.

34 “If your people go out to battle against their enemies, by whatever way you shall send them, and they pray to you toward this city that you have chosen and the house that I have built for your name, 35 then hear from heaven their prayer and their plea, and maintain their cause.

36 “If they sin against you—for there is no one who does not sin—and you are angry with them and give them to an enemy, so that they are carried away captive to a land far or near, 37 yet if they turn their heart in the land to which they have been carried captive, and repent and plead with you in the land of their captivity, saying, ‘We have sinned and have acted perversely and wickedly,’ 38 if they repent with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their captivity to which they were carried captive, and pray toward their land, which you gave to their fathers, the city that you have chosen and the house that I have built for your name, 39 then hear from heaven your dwelling place their prayer and their pleas, and maintain their cause and forgive your people who have sinned against you. 40 Now, O my God, let your eyes be open and your ears attentive to the prayer of this place.

41 “And now arise, O Lord God, and go to your resting place, you and the ark of your might. Let your priests, O Lord God, be clothed with salvation, and let your saints rejoice in your goodness. 42 O Lord God, do not turn away the face of your anointed one! Remember your steadfast love for David your servant.”

As soon as Solomon finished his prayer, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple. 2 And the priests could not enter the house of the Lord, because the glory of the Lord filled the Lord's house. 3 When all the people of Israel saw the fire come down and the glory of the Lord on the temple, they bowed down with their faces to the ground on the pavement and worshiped and gave thanks to the Lord, saying, “For he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.” II Chronicles 6:12-7:3

That my friends is the answer. Prayer, revival and deliverance are all interconnected. Now, let move to the text we have been considering. We have been talking about the Exodus. My question for you is why did God do what he did and why did he do things the way he did them? What was his purpose? His purpose was to free his people but he did much more than that – a lot more. Yahweh humiliated the Pharaoh, who was considered a god or at least the gods representative to the Egyptians. He was going to show them it was really he, the God of the Hebrews, who was sovereign. The Egyptians had many gods and Yahweh was going to show them just how false and inferior their gods were. So, there is a lot going on with what God is doing. In Exodus 6:4 God tells Moses he has established a covenant with his people to give them the land of Canaan. Where were they? There were in Egypt. In Genesis 15 when God made a covenant with Abram he promised the land of Canaan for his people. The promise and the blessing would be in the land God had given his people by covenant. Now, as we move back to the Exodus our focus will be on the plagues and finally the Exodus from Egypt. However, I want to make something clear due to its theological implications. There are many passages in Exodus that deal with the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart. Some examples are Exodus 4:21, 7:3, 7:14, 7:22, 8:15, 8:19, 8:32, 9:7, 9:12, 9:34-35, 10:1, 10:20, 10:27, 11:10, 14:4, 14:8, 14:17. Douglas Stuart in his commentary states, “Most often God himself made Pharaoh stubborn. In some places, however, the wording of most translations properly describes Pharaoh’s making himself stubborn (hardening his own heart).” Basically what Stuart is saying is there are differences in the wording but they all essentially mean the same thing. But we should be careful here and remember the purpose of the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart was to allow the full demonstration of God’s power and to show that Yahweh was sovereign over Pharaoh, the Egyptians, their land and their gods. Now, I am not making light of God’s sovereignty and man’s free will in the least, but we must fully understand God’s purpose and what he was doing before jumping to conclusions. Stuart notes, “In terms of the classical theological-philosophical issue of free will versus determinism, none of the references to the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart is decisive. That is because God causing Pharaoh to be stubborn is simply not presented in the narrative as a general permanent phenomenon (eternal election or rejection) but rather as an ad hoc action of God, temporary in nature.” In other words, God made the Pharaoh stubborn temporarily to accomplish his purposes.

Now, let’s move to the miraculous signs that God performed to free his people. First, we should realize that the plagues are progressive, meaning the first few plagues are not as severe as the later ones and the magicians were only able to duplicate the first two plagues. We will look at the first nine plagues first because they form 3 cycles. Then we will consider the 10th, which is in a category all by itself, certainly the most severe which produces the Exodus. But also we will wrap up with the 12 miraculous sign, the parting of the Red Sea because that is the final sign of Pharaoh’s humiliation and defeat.

Now, there appears to be 3 cycles in the nine plagues. And we should remember this whole process was directed by God, he was in charge, and this process was a confrontation between God and Pharaoh. The first cycle is the first three plagues. However, as we often find in Scripture the cycles repeat. For example, the first, fourth, and seventh plague are all an outdoor early morning confrontation with Pharaoh. And as we already noted there is a progression of the severity of the plagues. The second cycle is plagues four, five and six, and the third cycle is seven, eight and nine. But like I said they repeat. Plagues two, five and eight are an indoor court confrontation with Pharaoh. And plagues three, six and nine do not include a confrontation but outdoor symbolic action. So let’s go through them starting at the beginning.

So, when we look at the text in Exodus 7:14-24, the first thing that happens is God tells Moses Pharaoh refuses to let the people go and he sends Moses to confront him. Now, there is no way to mistake this first plague. While it may not be as severe as later plagues, its significance is without equal. What is targeted? The Nile – and how important was the Nile to Egypt? It was everything, their source of water and life. And the Nile was seen by the Egyptians as a god. In fact as we proceed through the plagues you will notice God is dealing with a particular Egyptian god with each plague. The god of the Nile was Hapi, which meant “the giver of life”. I don’t think it is an accident God first strikes the Nile, since it was an essential part of the religious, agricultural and economic life of the Egyptians. We should also bear in mind that the first sign, the demonstration of God’s power, was private and small. But now with the plague of blood, it is going to affect the entire nation of Egypt. I think it is worth noting that in vs. 19 God tells Moses to stretch out his hand over the waters, rivers, canals, ponds and pools of water. This plague covers all the waterways in Egypt and there was blood throughout all the land including in vessels of wood and stone. The Nile god, Hapi, was powerless against Yahweh and for seven days there was no drinking water in Egypt. The text notes that the fish in the Nile died but there was no other loss of life during this plague. Interestingly enough the magicians were able to duplicate in some form the miraculous sign. But since the plague covered all the water of Egypt, whatever the magicians did was likely on a very small scale. So, what should we take away from this? Well, we can compare it to not having running water to wash in or drink for a week. Would we survive this – yes, absolutely, but it would be extraordinarily stinky and inconvenient. And I think this is how God begins, he doesn’t start with the most severe thing possible. He starts with something important that will make people very uncomfortable. It marks the beginning to get their attention. And of course, as the Lord predicted, Pharaoh is not moved – his heart is hard and he will not change his mind. I have already mentioned this but God always uses a process, he allows time for repentance and his judgments are short. In the beginning he is trying to get our attention. And honestly, it is hard to miss the similarities in our own nation – God has been trying to get leaders attention with environmental and economic signs for some time. Are our national leaders like Pharaoh, refusing to listen and working against God, or are they like Moses?

So, let’s bring things into a modern context for a moment. How does God deal with kings and those in authority when they oppress his people? On September 27, 1998 Secretary of State Madeleine Albright met with Yasser Arafat to discuss a plan for Israel to surrender 13 percent of its land. On this very same day Hurricane Georges hit the Gulf Coast with over 110 miles per hour winds. The storm did damage in Mississippi and Florida, and caused extensive flooding. The very next day on September 28 President Clinton met with Arafat and Netanyahu to finalize the deal, which was going to divide the land of Israel. Also on September 28, the very same day, Arafat addressed the United Nations speaking about the establishment of an independent Palestinian state by May 1999. This was celebrated in the UN with a standing ovation. But guess what was happening at exactly the same time? That’s right; Hurricane George was striking the Gulf Coast which caused a billion dollars worth of damage! Now, when do you think the hurricane dissipated? Right after Arafat left America. God still moves and acts on behalf of his people. And there are consequences for defying his written word. So then, let’s move on to the next miraculous sign. The next sign is the frogs. As we have already mentioned there is a progression as we move through each sign. For example, in the first plague Moses goes out to meet Pharaoh as he goes out to the Nile. However, in the plague of the frogs, Moses and Aaron go in to Pharaoh at his court. In Exodus 8:1 the ESV text says, “Go in to Pharaoh”, which implies he went in to Pharaoh at his court or the palace. The language Moses uses is also a little different this time. In chapter 7 Moses says, “Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness.” But now in chapter 8, he simply says, “Let my people go, that they may serve me.” This may seem like a minor difference, but really it is a transition from let my people go to worship in the desert, like a celebration or festival that is temporary. And certainly it is more like striking a bargain or compromise. But now in chapter 8 this type of language disappears and we have more of a demand from Yahweh. In other words, in the language we have moved from a temporary festival in the desert to a demand for permanent release of the Israelites. And in another way, God is saying that the Hebrews who have been serving Pharaoh as slaves will now be released to permanently serve Almighty God, their true master and king.

Now, we should realize that the Nile was known for its frogs. When the Nile would flood, there would probably be thousands of frogs in the Nile. The frog was also worshipped as a symbol for the Egyptian god Heqet or Heket. This particular goddess represented childbirth and fertility in ancient Egypt. The goddess was depicted as a frog or a woman with the head of a frog. To the Egyptians the frogs represented new life. But remember, what is God doing, he is showing the ineptitude of the Egyptian gods and the sovereignty of Yahweh. So, instead of the precious frogs remaining in the Nile, where would they be – everywhere else!

“But if you refuse to let them go, behold, I will plague all your country with frogs. The Nile shall swarm with frogs that shall come up into your house and into your bedroom and on your bed and into the houses of your servants and your people, and into your ovens and your kneading bowls. The frogs shall come up on you and on your people and on all your servants.” Exodus 8:2-4

Now, in this plague the magicians are able to mimic the miracle, although I would imagine this was on a very small scale. What are the magicians NOT able to do? They can’t get rid of the frogs. And how do we know that – because Pharaoh gives in, he asks Moses and Aaron to pray so the Lord will take away the frogs from the land. Pharaoh also promises to let the Israelites go and sacrifice to the Lord. Of course, it is an empty promise, but what Moses does here in vs. 9-11 is very interesting. You have to wonder why Moses would tell Pharaoh to choose the time or day when he wanted him to pray. But then again, it is really very clear. Pharaoh already realizes how powerful Yahweh is and this request of Moses would show that there could not be any natural explanation of the miracle. It would reveal that Yahweh is the most powerful and the only true God. And here we find a transition point because it is very clear nothing can match God’s power and the Pharaoh has every reason to fulfill Moses’ request and free God’s people. Yet, as we know, he doesn’t do that. Once the Pharaoh realizes there was relief from the plague, he hardens his heart and will not let the people go.

There is no doubt now who is running the show and after this plague the magicians will no longer be able to replicate the signs. As we have stated, the miracles progress and God continues to show his power in greater and greater ways. Now I want to point something out – this whole process is requiring Moses to not only confront Pharaoh, but also to pray for the Pharaoh and the people of Egypt. Prayer is a fundamental activity of the Christian faith. And God consistently responds to the prayers of Moses. Are we not also called to pray. We live in a culture that is experiencing the hand of God in many ways. We should make time to pray and seek God - to turn his hand away from judgment and seek his mercy. And I encourage you as we enter a season just prior to the election, seek God, pray for our nation, our leaders, for justice and righteousness to reign, and for him to heal our land.

Now, as we move to the third plague this will complete the first cycle of the plagues, and unlike the first two signs, in the third sign Moses does not confront Pharaoh. The Lord simply tells Moses to instruct Aaron to stretch out his hand and strike the dust of the earth. Depending on your translation, the plague is either gnats or lice. The Hebrew word used is “kinnim”, which means some kind of stinging insect. James W. Dixon suggests that the plague could be swarms of mosquitoes. So, the land was covered with mosquitoes or some type of insect, and as I already stated, the magicians could NOT, I repeat, could NOT produce these insects with their secret arts. Not only that, they tell Pharaoh, “This is the finger of God.” What a turn of events! The Pharaoh’s own officers are telling him Yahweh is working these miracles, and yet the Pharaoh still would not listen.

This completes the first cycle of plagues and as we move through the second and third cycles it repeats how Moses deals with Pharaoh. So, we are going to move quickly through the rest of the plagues and highlight some important points. The second cycle of plagues, the fourth, fifth, and sixth plagues, are the swarms of flies, the plague against the Egyptian livestock and the boils on man and beast. Now something I want to point out is starting with the fourth plague we have a transition. God sets apart his people and the plague only affects the Egyptians. He makes a distinction between the people of God and the Egyptians. And this really is how God works; it is a process of freeing his people. It starts out with demonstrations and warnings, but the further you go in the process the more serious the situation becomes. Then God separates his people and they are blessed while the people of the world suffer the consequences of oppressing those who know God. One other thing I want to point out, in the sixth plague of the boils, the text tells us that the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils. The plague was on them too! And as we continue to see God perform his miraculous signs, Pharaoh refuses to give in and let the people go.

And honestly, don’t we see this today as well. Even as God continues to show us his demonstrative signs, leaders still refuse to do what is right. And just like the Exodus there is a day coming when everything will come to a head and they will have no choice but to relent. God will have his way, his people will walk in freedom.

Now, the third cycle of plagues are hail, locusts and darkness. And we can see from these three plagues that Egypt is close to ruin. In fact in chapter 10 Pharaoh’s servants tell him, “Let the men go, that they may serve the Lord their God. Do you not yet understand that Egypt is ruined?” I also want to point out something about the ninth plague. It was pitch black in all the land of Egypt for three days. But in the land of Goshen where the people of God were there was light. The reason this is significant is because of the Egyptian god, Ra. This was the sun god of ancient Egypt. And Ra is considered one of the most important deities. So what is God doing? He is showing his power and that no Egyptian god can compare with Yahweh. He is sovereign and he will have his way. There is no god like Jehovah.

So, after nine plagues and the land of Egypt is ruined, the Pharaoh will still not let God’s people go. But of course there is a tenth plague, the most devastating of all. God tells Moses there will only be one more plague, the death of all the first born of Egypt, and this includes Pharaoh’s house. And not only are the Hebrews going to leave Egypt after this devastating plague, they will leave with silver and gold. We also should take a moment and think back to the beginning of the story when Moses was born. The Pharaoh at that time commanded that all the male Hebrew children be thrown into the Nile. And with this final plague God visits this great iniquity back on the land of Egypt. There are consequences for lifting your hand against God’s people and God’s law. This final plague moves the Pharaoh to quick action. Immediately the people are released. In chapter 12 the text tells us the Egyptians were sending the Israelites away in haste for they were afraid they would all be dead if they did not! Now, God had accomplished his purpose and the Hebrews were free. But we all know that is not the end of the story. There was in fact a 12th sign that occurs after the Exodus has begun. There is a final sign in the crossing of the Red Sea. This great sign deserves our attention. Let’s read it.

Then the Lord said to Moses, 2 “Tell the people of Israel to turn back and encamp in front of Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, in front of Baal-zephon; you shall encamp facing it, by the sea. 3 For Pharaoh will say of the people of Israel, ‘They are wandering in the land; the wilderness has shut them in.’ 4 And I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and he will pursue them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, and the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord.” And they did so.

5 When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, the mind of Pharaoh and his servants was changed toward the people, and they said, “What is this we have done, that we have let Israel go from serving us?” 6 So he made ready his chariot and took his army with him, 7 and took six hundred chosen chariots and all the other chariots of Egypt with officers over all of them. 8 And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he pursued the people of Israel while the people of Israel were going out defiantly. 9 The Egyptians pursued them, all Pharaoh's horses and chariots and his horsemen and his army, and overtook them encamped at the sea, by Pi-hahiroth, in front of Baal-zephon.

10 When Pharaoh drew near, the people of Israel lifted up their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians were marching after them, and they feared greatly. And the people of Israel cried out to the Lord. 11 They said to Moses, “Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt? 12 Is not this what we said to you in Egypt: ‘Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.” 13 And Moses said to the people, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. 14 The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”

15 The Lord said to Moses, “Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward. 16 Lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the people of Israel may go through the sea on dry ground. 17 And I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they shall go in after them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, his chariots, and his horsemen. 18 And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I have gotten glory over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.”

19 Then the angel of God who was going before the host of Israel moved and went behind them, and the pillar of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them, 20 coming between the host of Egypt and the host of Israel. And there was the cloud and the darkness. And it lit up the night without one coming near the other all night.

21 Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the Lord drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. 22 And the people of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry ground, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. 23 The Egyptians pursued and went in after them into the midst of the sea, all Pharaoh's horses, his chariots, and his horsemen. 24 And in the morning watch the Lord in the pillar of fire and of cloud looked down on the Egyptian forces and threw the Egyptian forces into a panic, 25 clogging their chariot wheels so that they drove heavily. And the Egyptians said, “Let us flee from before Israel, for the Lord fights for them against the Egyptians.”

26 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea, that the water may come back upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen.” 27 So Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to its normal course when the morning appeared. And as the Egyptians fled into it, the Lord threw the Egyptians into the midst of the sea. 28 The waters returned and covered the chariots and the horsemen; of all the host of Pharaoh that had followed them into the sea, not one of them remained. 29 But the people of Israel walked on dry ground through the sea, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left.

30 Thus the Lord saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. 31 Israel saw the great power that the Lord used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in his servant Moses. Exodus 14:1-31

So, once again even though Pharaoh agreed to let the people go, he changed his mind. And this event is really the final humiliation of the Pharaoh and Egypt for their oppression. The fact is the Israelites were still in Egypt and seemed like easy prey for Pharaoh’s chariot-based army. Now, what is so great about this story is that we can all relate to it. Have you ever been in what seemed like an impossible situation? The people were afraid as anyone would be if a 600 chariot army was chasing them. But in verse 13, Moses has the answer, he says, “stand firm…the Lord will fight for you.”

And honestly this is our challenge too. In the heat of the moment, we look only at our circumstances. But we should follow the advice of Moses, stand firm and know that God will fight for us. When our case is just, when we follow God commands and his principles, there is nothing to fear. Think about it for a moment, if you had been standing in front of the Red Sea, would you think God would part it so you could cross on dry ground - very likely not. Moses is the one who had to take action. The people simply needed to follow. The single greatest deterrent to seeing revival and restoration is the failure of leadership. Leaders often fail to act and do things God’s way. They want to do things their way. This is human and understandable, but ends in failure. Leaders have a choice to make, they can choose to be a Pharaoh or a Moses – it is their choice. I see a lot of little Pharaoh’s in our nation. Where are those that listen to God and lead like Moses. And lest we forget, Moses is a type of the ultimate leader, who is Jesus Christ! We have to make the choice to follow God no matter what happens because he is only one who can deliver from impossible circumstances. God makes the impossible possible! God’s way ends in deliverance, hope, goodness and blessing! The way of Egypt ends in the Red Sea. I am waiting for the day when godly leaders stand up to tyranny. The only way out is to depend on God to part the waters. What are we waiting for? Are things not bad enough for us to act like people who actually follow God? I firmly believe that when we get desperate enough, we will do things God’s way. Have we made to that point yet? Where is our faith in what the Bible clearly says?

During the Protestant Reformation there were many leading figures. One of them was John Calvin. One of the reasons for his great success and influence is how he viewed the Reformation. Do you remember when we said there is a difference between revival and an awakening? What we need today is an awakening. John Calvin saw the Reformation as a way to challenge and reform the existing structures and practices of the Church. It was a radical reform. It was not limited geographically. What Calvin was proposing transcended geographical, cultural and political divides. What I am proposing is a radical shift that permeates the whole nation and beyond. Things may start locally, but the goal is to reform and transform a nation - to set our feet on the foundation of God’s word and not the traditions of men. Another reformer was Martin Luther. Every year I celebrate Reformation Day, which commemorates October 31, 1517 when Luther nailed his 95 theses on the church door. A few years later Luther was put on trial for his writings. I think it behooves us to read or listen to his speech at this trial. He refuses to recant his written works because he knows it will open up the door to even more tyranny. He also is convinced that we should use the word of God as our standard and not the opinions of those in top leadership. Not only can we admire Luther for his courage and unyielding spirit in the face of enormous opposition. We ourselves can trust in the Bible, God’s authoritative word, and not the mere opinions of those in power. The truth is, no one is BIGGER, or GREATER or more POWERFUL than El Shaddai. Today, we may face enormous tyranny, but we can trust in God – our call is to stand firm!

Its heads give judgment for a bribe; its priests teach for a price; its prophets practice divination for money; yet they lean on the Lord and say, “Is not the Lord in the midst of us? No disaster shall come upon us.” Therefore because of you Zion shall be plowed as a field; Jerusalem shall become a heap of ruins, and the mountain of the house a wooded height. Micah 3:11-12

But there is more to the story -

It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and it shall be lifted up above the hills; and peoples shall flow to it, and many nations shall come, and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.” For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. Micah 4:1-2