Exodus 9:8-12
8 Then the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of soot from a furnace and have Moses toss it into the air in the presence of Pharaoh.
9 It will become fine dust over the whole land of Egypt, and festering boils will break out on people and animals throughout the land.”
10 So they took soot from a furnace and stood before Pharaoh. Moses tossed it into the air, and festering boils broke out on people and animals.
11 The magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils that were on them and on all the Egyptians.
12 But the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart and he would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the LORD had said to Moses.
People reject God and his word because their hearts are
.
The “heart” of a person is that person’s
.
A “hard” heart is a
heart that is unwilling to respond to God spiritually.
By “spiritually” I mean several things:
Our spirit doesn’t respond in faith and obedience when we’re hard hearted.
We resist the Holy Spirit of God who convicts us of our sinful stubbornness and calls us to repent.
We may say the right things in response to truth, but we won’t do them because our spirit is unwilling.
A person gets a hard heart by believing sin’s
.
- Our
state is hard because we’ve believed sin’s lies.
“The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” —Jeremiah 17:9
Every time we sin, our hearts get
.
“See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. 13 But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called ‘Today,’ so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. —Hebrews 3:12-13
A person who has a hard heart is
for that hardness.
“Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the YHWH our Maker; 7 for he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care. Today, if only you would hear his voice, 8 ‘Do not harden your hearts as you did at Meribah….’” —Psalm 95:6-8
“The LORD said to Moses, ‘When you return to Egypt, see that you perform before Pharaoh all the wonders I have given you the power to do. But I will harden his heart so that he will not let the people go.’” —Exodus 4:21
God is sovereign over the hearts of people.
The word “sovereign” describes a supreme ruler—like a
He created us and knows us better than anyone.
“This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence: 20 If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything.” —1 John 3:19-20
He can control human hearts
using force or coercion.
“In the Lord’s hand the king’s heart is a stream of water that he channels toward all who please him.” —Proverbs 21:1
“For God has put it into their hearts to accomplish his purpose by agreeing to hand over to the beast their royal authority, until God’s words are fulfilled.” —Revelation 17:17
“for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.”
He softens hearts to believe or hardens them in unbelief based on his will alone. —Philippians 2:13
Big Idea:
the Sovereign Lord to soften the hearts of people.
Ask him to soften
heart so that you desire to do his will.
“Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. 24 See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” —Psalm 139:23-24
“Hear my voice when I call, LORD; be merciful to me and answer me. 8 My heart says of you, ‘Seek his face!’ Your face, LORD, I will seek.” —Psalm 27:7-8
Ask him to soften the hearts of
.
- Ask him to open the hearts of unbelievers who have
over us.
“‘Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of this your servant and to the prayer of your servants who delight in revering your name. Give your servant success today by granting him favor in the presence of this man.’ I was cupbearer to the king.” —Nehemiah 1:11
Ask him to open
to give the gospel to others.
“And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. 4 Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should.” —Colossians 4:3-4
Ask him to open the hearts of unbelievers to be
.
“One of those listening was a woman from the city of Thyatira named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth. She was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message.” —Acts 16:14