In Exodus five, we find Moses and Aaron going to Pharaoh with an important message from God. The message: “Let my people go…” How did Pharaoh respond to these divine words? The response: “Who is the Lord, that I should obey him and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord and I will not let Israel go.”

This response from Pharaoh was both ignorant and arrogant. God gave Pharaoh a direct command and his response was “I will not.” That is the “Pharaoh Mentality.” Sadly, it is the common response of the masses in our society today when it comes to doing the will of God. People are naturally stubborn. We all want our way. However, when our way is not the way of the Lord, it behooves us to stop and think which is more important—doing God’s will or having our own way. It is too bad that most people lean towards the latter. There are times when many people violate the will of God not knowing that they are doing so. This ignorance of the will of God will not justify the actions of a person (Acts 17:30; 2 Thessalonians 1:8). But it might be that the person who acts ignorantly regarding the will of God, simply needs to learn what God wants from him is to comply. The “Pharaoh Mentality” is more rebellious. It proceeds from a heart that knows God’s will but will not comply because of a lack of respect for the Creator. This mentality is worse than simple ignorance. It represents a stubborn heart that selfishly determines that nothing is more important than getting one’s way. It often leads to self-deception and a denial of facts. “I will not,” after a while, turns into “I cannot.” The truth is people who rebel against God do so, not because they cannot comply to His will, but because they will not.  

Many people refuse to obey the gospel of Christ because of the “Pharaoh Mentality.” They know God’s will. They have heard the unperverted gospel proclaimed in simple, straight-forward fashion; yet, they refuse to obey. Why? They do not want to. They have determined that living life their way is more important than doing what God says. Their response to the command of God to repent and be baptized is the same as Pharaoh’s, that is, “I will not.”  

Many people in the church develop the same mentality. God commands members to attend every service of the local church (Hebrews 10:25). Preachers preach on this subject to the point of ad nauseum. Elders encourage members who refuse to comply. Other members beg them to do what is right. What is their response? “I will not.” What is the difference between these members and Pharaoh? The answer is there is no difference.

I once spoke to a sister, who had left her husband, to persuade her to return to him. I gave her scripture that shows why it is sinful for one spouse to separate from another (1 Corinthians 7:5). She claimed that her husband was not a good husband. I told her it did not matter and again gave her scripture (1 Peter 2:18-3:3). I warned her that rebelling against the will of God in this matter would hurt the church, thwart the cause of Christ and encourage others in her position to do the same thing. What was her response? “I will not.” This sister remained in a rebellious state before God until her husband died, and the truth is, it is likely that she never repented.

Jesus was the very opposite of Pharaoh. He knew it was God’s will that He die on the cross for the sins of humanity (2 Corinthians 5:21). It was not an attractive proposition. Jesus prayed to His Father that He would take this cup away (Matthew 26:42). But in the end, the response of Jesus was, “…may your will be done.” As Christians we must follow in the steps of Jesus, not Pharaoh. When God speaks to us through the Bible, what will our response be. Will we say with Jesus, “Let your will be done.” Or, will we say with Pharaoh, “I will not.” I pray that we will all learn to put God’s will before our own.