Judges 6-8 Not Quite The Hero, It Seems

Gideon doesn’t seem to be the hero he’s first made out to be in these chapters:

-          He was reluctant to answer the call

-          God had to patiently work with him

-          He seemed to lack faith and spiritual perception

-          He never seemed sure and kept asking for signs

-          He was afraid and seemed to wonder if God really would take care of him.  That led him to tear down his father’s idolatrous altars at night

-          He was vindictive with his own countrymen

-          He refused the kingship but seemed to want the priesthood, even though he wasn’t from the tribe of Levi

-          He asked for a retirement account consisting of gold donated from his fellow countrymen and had many wives

-          He also missed an opportunity to knock down all of the Baal and Asherah idols when he had the chance

 

Pride seemed to play a large part in Gideon’s life, causing him to be less than God intended for him.

 

Father, show me in my own life where I’m holding back for safety or because I’m lacking the discernment I need to move forward with what You’re wanting me to do.  Help me to not have regrets about what I failed to do in Your will or for what I did that I shouldn’t have done because I didn’t trust You.  Thank You for Your forgiveness, Your mercy, and Your grace.

 

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

Judges 5 -- This Is WAR, Not Diplomacy!

One thing about it, unlike today, these people felt no need to apologize for God having a victory.  It seems that, for us, we’ve gotten to the point that when we as a nation need to step up and step in to a situation and do the right thing, the rest of the world attacks us for doing so, and even ascribes motives for our actions that are totally untrue.  Even in World War II, the U.S. stepped in after defeating our enemies and spent millions restoring what we had bombed so that our enemies at the time would be able to prosper and hopefully never fight us again.  That would certainly seem like the Christian thing to do. 

 

It’s not the way God had directed the Israelites to handle the godless people who’d been inhabiting the Promised Land, however.  He was done with “nice”.  They’d been given every chance, and by spurning His grace repeatedly, they’d rightly brought about His wrath.

 

Deborah’s Song therefore is less a political victory dance and more the way things ought to be when we let God have control.  It doesn’t mince words in pointing out which tribes sat back and did nothing.  In fact, it calls them to accountability!  It doesn’t shame the story’s heroine for incivility in war, but applauds the fact that she killed the enemy commander by driving a tent stake through his brain with a hammer!  That’s the way God says we need to deal with the sin in our lives!

 

There’s no compassion for the mother of the enemy either.  Instead, false hope is stirred up that just maybe he survived!

 

There is evil in this world.  There’s evil in this country.  And its biggest targets are the people of God.  We must not sugarcoat it or minimize its importance, but instead take decisive action against it before it destroys us.

 

Father, help me to never forget there’s a war on for the souls of people I know and love, and even for my own soul.  Help me to be a strong and brave soldier, starting each new day ready to battle Satan with the attitude I found in verse 21:  “March on, my soul, with strength!”

 

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

Judges 3-4 Crying Out WHY?

A common theme seemed to run through these chapters, and it isn’t particularly good.  “The Israelites did what the Lord said was wrong … so the Lord allowed their enemy to rule over them … When Israel cried out to the Lord, the Lord sent someone to save them.”

 

That says more about God’s mercy and longsuffering than anything else.  “The Israelites cried out to God, not to forgive their sins, but to relieve their suffering.  Had they truly repented, God would have done much more than deliver them from physical slavery.  He would have liberated them from their spiritual bondage as well.  To ask God for comfort and not cleansing is only to sow seeds of selfishness that will eventually produce another bitter harvest,” my commentary said.

 

Father, like my commentary mentioned, I don’t want religious reformation in my life.  I want spiritual revival – not temporary changes to outward conduct, but instead permanently altered inward character.  Please continue to be at work in my life, leading me not to cry out for relief from suffering, but always for forgiveness of sin.

 

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

Judges 2 -- The Root Of The Problem

Imagine hearing God say, “But you did not obey Me.  How could you do this?  Now I tell you, ‘I will not force out the people in this land.  They will be your enemies, and their gods will be a trap for you.’”

 

God had kept His hand of protection over the Israelites all through their wilderness wonderings and as they took the Promised Land.  God knew what those people in Canaan were like, and how they sinned to the max, and He didn’t want His children corrupted by them.

 

It’s still happening today.  We face pluralism with so many differing beliefs and lifestyles.  My commentary says, “It’s easy to get confused and start thinking that tolerance is the same as approval.”  Of course, Christians don’t eliminate people who disagree with the Christian faith.  “But we do have an obligation before God to maintain a separate walk so we won’t become defiled by those who disagree with us,” my commentary added.  “The Jews eventually became so accustomed to the sinful ways of their pagan neighbors that those ways didn’t seem sinful anymore.”  It also listed the steps in that process:

1)      Friendship with the world

2)      Being spotted by the world

3)      Loving the world

4)      Conforming to the world

 

God isn’t being mean when He disciplines us for our disobedience.  “God is always faithful to His Word, whether in blessing us or chastening us, for in both, He displays His integrity and His love.  God would prefer to bestow the positive blessings of life that bring us enjoyment, but He doesn’t hesitate to remove those blessings if our suffering will motivate us to return to Him in repentance.”

 

Perhaps the most profound word I read this morning came from my commentary:  “The sin in our lives that we fail to conquer will eventually conquer us.”  That’s what happened with the Israelites, and we’re no better.

 

Father, it does no good for us to pray that You remove the weakness within us that gives sin its root if we don’t also agree with You to fight it tooth-and-toenail ourselves.  You’d told the Israelites to remove the source of their temptation – the Baal altars and idols – yet they tolerated them.  Help me not to tolerate in my life the things You want removed from it.  Help me to defeat sin rather than giving it a foothold.

 

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

Judges 1 -- Going Back To The Start To See What Went Wrong

It’s always interesting to finish 2 Kings and then travel back in time to Judges, at the beginning of the nation of Israel, to see the seeds of apostasy sown from the start that would end up ruining the nation.

 

God had specifically told the Israelites to enter the Promised Land and remove the inhabitants they found there.  I remember years ago thinking how wrong it was for these people to invade land owned by others, killing them or driving them out or into slavery.  It took awhile before my soul was able to understand that God had been patient with the Canaanites for more years than they deserved, and they’d spat in His face.  He’d put up with their idolatry and sinful practices long enough.  The Israelites represented His judgment on them for their sin!

 

But the tribes of Israel had a problem, too, and it was settling.  You can see it over and over again in these verses:

 

“But they could not force out the people living on the plain … But the people of Benjamin could not make the Jebusite people leave Jerusalem … The people of Manasseh did not force those people out of their towns … They did not make all the Canaanites leave their land.  The people of Ephraim did not force out all of the Canaanites … The people of Zebulun did not force out all the Canaanites … The people of Asher did not force the Canaanites from the cities … the Canaanites continued to live with them.  The people of Naphtali did not force out the people of the cities … The Amorites forced the Danites back into the mountains … The Amorites were determined to stay …”

 

The Israelites had Deuteronomy 7, which warned them not to spare their pagan neighbors.  “The first step the new generation took toward defeat and slavery was neglecting the Word of God,” my commentary said.  And the sidebar in my bible brings it home:  “What sin did you purposefully commit yesterday or today?  Learn from Israel:  Compromise can be deadly!  Decide to try to be totally faithful and obedient to God.”

 

Father, Satan continually plants tiny seeds of what seem to be innocent thought, but which, like the way the Israelites allowed their enemies to remain among them, can lead to sinful thoughts and even sinful actions.  Please make me abundantly aware of the little landmines and help me to rid my life of them when they first show up, rather than nursing sin in my life.  Help me to learn the lessons that the Israelites did not, so that I won’t be doomed to repeat their mistakes.

 

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

2 Kings 25 -- Finally, It's Over

As the Babylonians laid siege to Jerusalem for almost two years, the hunger became terrible.  Once the walls were breached, the king and his army fled under cover of darkness, only to be captured a short distance away.  Jeremiah had prophesied that Zedekiah would be taken prisoner and see the king of Babylon, but he would never see the place of his imprisonment.  That happened when he was sentenced at Riblah to watch as his sons were killed and then had his eyes gouged out.  His sons’ deaths would remain his last vision.

 

Jerusalem was burned to the ground, the Temple treasures taken to Babylon, and the walls of the city destroyed.  All but the very poorest inhabitants were taken as prisoners of war to Babylon.  But the chief priest, second-ranking priest, and royal officers never made it there, for they were killed at Riblah.

 

The Babylonian king made Gedaliah governor over the region, but Jews who’d returned to the area from other surrounding countries rallied and killed him for collaborating with the enemy.  Jeremiah warned the rebels not to flee to Egypt, that God would protect them in Judah.  But instead they fled there anyway, even forcing Jeremiah to go with them.  None of them ever returned.

 

My commentary listed several valuable lessons to be learned from this tragic story:

1)       No nation rises any higher than its worship of God

2)      We become like the god we worship

3)      God doesn’t want conformers – weak people who follow the crowd and please people.  He wants men and women who are distinctively different and who seek to please Him.  He doesn’t want cookie-cutter, carbon-copy Christians. 

4)      Friendship with the world is enmity with God, and to love the world and trust it is to lose the love of God.

5)      Faith is living without scheming

 

Father, several things at work have been going on about as long as this siege did.  I’m so ready to close those chapters just as I was ready to close this book.  I’ve done my best to have faith by living without scheming, trusting solely in You and doing Your will.  Please bring resolution there as well.

 

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

2 Kings 24 -- Here It Comes

Instead of God appointing Josiah’s successor, the people picked his youngest son, Jehoahaz, bypassing his older brothers.  The Egyptian pharaoh Neco had subjugated Judah for 3 years after Josiah’s death, and Jehoahaz ruled only 3 months before Egypt replaced him with his older brother Jehoiakim and exiled Jehoahaz to Egypt.

 

All of this international political maneuvering is exactly opposite of what God had called the people of Judah to do.  God wanted them separated from other nations, not making treaties of protection, depending on Him alone instead.  Solomon had ignored that command, making treaties as part of the marriage arrangements for his 700 wives!

 

During Jehoiakim’s 11 years as king, the people had to be heavily taxed in order to pay tribute to Egypt.  Jehoiakim was so wicked that he cut up and burned Jeremiah’s prophecy scroll.  It wasn’t long before Babylon took over Judah, deposed Jehoiakim, and placed his son Jehoiachin on the throne.  He was 18 and only ruled for 3 months.  He led the royal family to surrender and 10,000 leading citizens were deported to Babylon.  Only the very poor remained.

 

Jehoiachin’s uncle (Josiah’s third son) Zedekiah was then put on the throne, but his faith was in Egypt, not in the Lord.  He ruled for 11 years, until Babylon returned to destroy Judah.

 

Father, we often sit stunned and amazed, looking with perfect 20/20 hindsight at how these rulers rejected You and trusted in mere humans instead.  Yet how many times do we also fail to heed Your word, ending up on opposite sides from You, too?  Continue to remind me of the utter folly of trusting anyone but You.  Remind me always not to trust in horses or chariots, but only in You and Your Word.

 

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

2 Kings 22-23 Too Late To Do Much Good

An 8-year-old boy became king.  Many would say that is foolish, but it was the best thing that had happened to Judah in a long time.  For 31 years, he ruled and brought the nation closer to God.  It’s unfortunate that everything he did pretty much amounted to being too little too late.

 

According to the genealogies given, Josiah had a son at age 14 and another at age 16.  That’s so hard to imagine!  When he was 26, a Temple repair project he’d started resulted in recovery of the lost Book of the Teachings.  Josiah wept and repented upon hearing what his nation had missed without it, and he set upon a massive campaign to bring the nation, and a large part of the seceded nation of Israel, back in line with God.

 

But his grandfather’s grievous sins had started the countdown to Judah’s demise, and no amount of good efforts could stop it.  Our faithful God did insure that His faithful servant Josiah was called home to heaven before his nation was destroyed.  Josiah went the extra mile that no previous king had ever done, removing the idol worship stations in the high places.  I’m sure it would have broken his heart to know that his three sons who followed him as king chose not to follow the Lord.

 

Father, help me to obey You lock, stock, and barrel – the way Josiah did.  But also, help me to impact my sons so that they will know You and obey You, too.  Help me not to shirk my duty of showing them what You’ve shown me about Yourself.  I want them to love You and cherish You as I’ve come to do!

 

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

2 Kings 21 -- A Father's Heartbreak

Hezekiah’s son Manasseh had likely been seven years old when he saw God’s healing of his father, and at 8 years old, he’d seen 185,000 Assyrian soldiers slain.  His father was one of the godliest kings in Judah’s history.  So what then happened to get Manasseh so far off track and set him up to become the most wicked king in Judah’s history?

 

A godly dad’s heart breaks when his son, despite all the father has tried to pass along regarding his spiritual condition, throws it all out the window and lives a life of sin.  God probably had been merciful to Hezekiah by taking him before he could witness the full extent of his son’s sin.

 

Manasseh, in 2^nd Chronicles, made a remarkable change to his life, but it isn’t mentioned here.  He too had a son – Amon – and unfortunately, it appears that Amon’s heart had been swayed by his father’s sins  way too long.  He had no desire to have anything to do with his father’s repentance in later years.

 

Manasseh had sought to undo all of the evil he’d done at the start of his rule.  But Amon’s heart had been so influenced and sickened and hardened by his father’s evil that he actually rebuilt what his father had torn down!

 

In the two years he reigned as king, Amon seemed to try to set new records for sinning!  His son Josiah was born when Amon was just 16 years old, and Josiah was 8 when his father was assassinated.  That experience, probably along with a desire not to have an ending like his father, surely gave Josiah the motivation to seek the Lord.

 

Father, help me to have the wisdom I need to be a good father.  Please reveal to me how to best shepherd my sons and how to keep them from yielding to the temptation to sin.  Don’t let them ever feel that I have simply left them to their own devices in their battles against Satan.  I want to be there for them and to help them fight off Satan’s deceptive attacks.

 

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

2 Kings 20 -- A Short Breath Of Fresh Air

Hezekiah had been one of the very best kings of Judah/Israel.  Yet he suddenly became ill, and when Isaiah arrived, he wasted no time in telling Hezekiah that he was about to die.  Turning away from everything and everyone around him and turning to the Lord, Hezekiah prayed, asking that God remember His covenant of protection of the Davidic line.  Isaiah received new words from God and returned to tell Hezekiah that God had heard his prayers and seen his tears.  His sickness would not result in death.  In fact, he’d live 15 more years and even be back worshiping in the Temple in 3 days!  That’s when Hezekiah asked for a sign and God graciously provided a miraculous one.  The shadow on the sundial regressed 10 degrees!  Whether God reversed time, moving everything in the universe back to where it had been a short time before, or whether he simply moved the earth and sun (easy for Him!), the miracle is still amazing!

 

My commentary did note that Hezekiah’s main stumbling block was pride.  When messengers from the king of the rising nation of Babylon showed up with gifts and get-well cards, that pride kicked in, and he took the messengers on a backstage tour, showing them all of his great wealth.  Of course, the messengers were also doing reconnaissance work for a future invasion, but Hezekiah in his pride totally missed that!  As soon as they left, Isaiah told Hezekiah what a mistake he’d made.  Accepting his own stupidity and sin, Hezekiah agreed with God’s will and didn’t try to change it.  He’d been incredibly blessed during his reign and had been granted 15 additional years of life, and he willingly accepted God’s judgment.

 

Father, pride does seem to be the parent sin of all other sins, and it gives us a feeling of false security.  Satan uses it in us to rob You of the glory that is Yours alone.  Please keep it at bay in my own life.  Help me to always remember that all I have comes solely from You in Your grace.  Don’t let me ever presume to steal Your glory.

 

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

2 Kings 18-19 Finally A Breath Of Fresh Air!

What a man Hezekiah proved to be in these chapters!  He became king at age 25 and ruled until he was 54.  He was the only king to tear down the places where gods were worshiped on the hills.  He broke up the Asherah idols.  God said that no other king had been like him!  "Hezekiah TRUSTED in The Lord, the God of Israel."  THAT was his strongest point!

Once, when Assyria attacked, he did remove the gold plating he'd had re-installed on the walls of the Temple (presumably, it had been removed before), and how that must have grieved him to do so, in order to pay Assyria to stay away.  Assyria had just overwhelmed Israel.

Later, the Assyrian commander came bearing a letter from his king and told the citizens and Hezekiah's advisors that they were FOOLISH to trust in God -- that Assyria had overcome all other gods of the other nations it had conquered and would overcome THEIRS as well.  Hearing this, Hezekiah tore his clothes, dressed himself in rough cloth, and went to the Temple, where he SPREAD THE LETTER BEFORE THE LORD, pleading for Him to HEAR and to SEE and to LISTEN.  He ACKNOWLEDGED the strength of his enemy, by he TRUSTED GOD and prayed for His salvation to be shown.

God ANSWERED with His OWN message to the Assyrian king.  His reply was that long ago He had PLANNED AND DESIGNED everything that the Assyrian king had accomplished, and He'd ALLOWED them to happen, but because the king had dared to insult God and spoken against Him and raised his voice to him and set a proud look on his face, God would TAKE ALL THAT BACK.  And He did.

Father, again last night I realized anew what You've given ME -- what You'd planned and designed for ME before the world was formed.  How You have blessed me, Father, despite the times I've disappointed You!  Please remind me of Hezekiah and how he spread HIS problems out before You and prayed for Your intervention.  Help me to remain a man after Your own heart!

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

2 Kings 16 & 17 Just How Stupid ARE We?

It wasn't so much a question of what King Ahaz of Judah DID, but what he DIDN'T do that made The Lord angry.  He EMBRACED the practices of the heathens who had once controlled the land until God had thrown them out.

When Aram and Israel attacked him, he didn't ask God for help, but called out to Assyria, even giving them the gold and silver left in the Temple and palace.  After Aram was defeated, Ahaz traveled to Damascus to meet his benefactor from Assyria and sent home new plans for an altar and changes for the Temple.  The old plans handed down by God to David apparently were as outdated to Ahaz as God's laws were.  He commanded that OFFERINGS be made on the NEW altar, with the original one used only when CONSULTING God.

Meanwhile, in Israel Hoshea didn't know it, but he would be the last king of his country.  He'd been paying Assyria to sit still and decided to pay Egypt instead.  With Judah paying Assyria, Assyria moved in and took over.  

Verse 2 said, "Hoshea did what The Lord said was wrong, but he was not as bad as the kings of Israel who had ruled before him."  Oh, wow!  He was the BEST of the WORST?  We certainly need to avoid getting THAT title, or assuming that it's a defense.

Chapter 17 did a quick rehash of Israel's sins since God cleaved them away from the tribe of Judah to preserve the lineage of David.  One sentence really struck me:  "They lived as their evil kings had SHOWN them, SECRETLY SINNING against The Lord their God."  Who was it a secret FROM?  Certainly not God.  But importantly, how goes a king, so goes a NATION.  America is treading on VERY thin ice.

Despite all of the warnings and punishments God had sent to set boundaries and to bring them back into His arms, they'd struggled to get FARTHER from Him.  Verse 17 says, "They ALWAYS CHOSE to do what The Lord said was wrong, which made Him angry."  It was a CHOICE, not an impulse or forced.  Verse 40 had an ominous tone about it:  "But the Israelites DID NOT LISTEN."  (Cue the 'danger ahead' music.)

Father, I see warnings for us as Christians today.  We don't need to revise and update Your commands to suit our culture today.  Your wisdom is timeless.  When we CHOOSE to ignore it, we do so at our own peril.  We'd better not be proud of sinning LESS than others, and anytime we think we SECRETLY sin, we're idiots, for You are all-knowing.  Father, please scream, "Stupid!" in my ears when I'm tempted toward any of this.  Wake me up and make it absolutely clear to me what I'm doing.  I certainly don't want to suffer the same fate as these people.

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

2 Kings 15 -- The Snowball Builds Into A Boulder

Same song, 59th verse....

About the kings of Judah, God kept saying that they did what He said was RIGHT, but the PEOPLE....

There CAN be a time when we have good leaders, even moral government, but the citizens themselves are the ones not caring and causing the downfall of a nation.  Such appeared to be happening throughout this time in Judah.  Kings were enjoying LONG reigns while in Israel they were lucky to rule TWO YEARS.  Poor Uzziah, one of Judah's kings, also did what God said was RIGHT, but "The Lord struck Uzziah with a skin disease, which he had until the day he died.  So he had to live in a separate house.  His son was in charge of the palace and governed the people of the land."

In Israel, though, one king ruled just 6 months, then was assassinated.  His successor lasted ONE month before meeting the same fate.  Then a super evil king hung on for 10 YEARS, followed by his son for 2 years, who was also assassinated by a man who ruled for 20 YEARS as Israel headed toward Assyrian captivity.

I found myself wondering WHY some of the evil ones were left in power for so long, and the only answer I could come up with was that God was letting them have their own way because they'd CHOSEN to forego His BEST way.

Father, regardless of what I might THINK is the best way, I want YOUR way.  Please show me what that is, and don't let me blindly go into something that will have dire consequences.  I trust only You for my well-being and protection -- even from MYSELF.

Sent from my iPad

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

2 Kings 13 & 14 -- Is It All Downhill From Here?

This is getting SO sad to read.  In Israel, it seems that about EVERY king the Bible ends up saying, "Jeroboam had LED Israel to sin, and ______ did not STOP doing these same sins."

God finally handed Israel over to Aram.  Jehoahaz, the king of Israel at the time, "begged The Lord, and The Lord LISTENED to him.  The Lord had SEEN the troubles of Israel.  He gave Israel a man to SAVE them (it never mentions his name here), and they escaped from the Arameans ... but they still did not stop doing the same sins that the family of Jeroboam had done."

Jeroboam had been chosen by God as the first true king of the northern kingdom, and he'd sinned so badly by introducing the golden calves that it led to YEARS of trouble, and yet the people never even seemed to CARE.  They wanted to DO what they WANTED.  It's almost like there was a disconnect between their actions and the punishments God would bring as a result.

In the southern kingdom, "Amaziah did what The Lord said was RIGHT."  He regained some territory then asked to meet with Israel's king, who dismissed him as prideful and arrogant, and went to war with him.  Israel tore down parts of the wall protecting Jerusalem and removed treasures from the Temple and the palace.  Then Amaziah's subjects KILLED HIM!

It seems so wrong that evil thrived and good men were taken down.  It reminds me too much of America today!  I know it all stemmed from bad leaders who LED the PEOPLE to do evil back then.  Unfortunately, that seems true today as well.  

Father, please don't let history repeat itself.  Help us by removing any judicial blindness You may have placed on us, allowing ALL Americans to see just how far we've strayed from what You established on this continent 237 years ago.  Don't let it be too late for US.

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

2nd Kings 11 & 12 When To Use The Spurs

Ahaziah had been killed because he was in the wrong place with the wrong person at the wrong time.  Several of his relatives were also killed.  Strangely, when his mother, Athaliah, heard about the deaths, her very first reaction was to round up everyone ELSE in her family to kill THEM, too! She was power-mad and wanted to rule as queen.  Thankfully, Ahaziah's sister was brave enough to save her newborn brother and herself.  She made it to the Temple, where they hid out for over six years.

In the seventh year, the high priest gathered the army officers, swore their allegiance, then revealed the crown prince, and shortly thereafter, Joash was revealed to the people.  Queen Athaliah was screaming, "TRAITORS!" as they unceremoniously captured and killed her.  You'd think that a mother would have been overjoyed to see her daughter and now 7-year-old son, but she was ruled by evil.

At the tender age of seven, Joash became king of Judah, and the high priest became his tutor and advisor.  Joash was quick on the uptake, and didn't mind telling his advisor when he saw something that wasn't right.  He'd seen the offerings pouring into the Temple for years, but his young eyes had also seen the rundown condition of the Temple and the deferred repairs piling up as well.

TWENTY-THREE YEARS of that was all he could stand, and he finally halted the Temple tax and told the priests to NOT make the repairs -- he'd have common laborers do the work.  They soon had the place in tiptop shape and the whole job came in within budget!

I feel that I'm a lot like Joash in this respect.  When I see a project that needs doing, I want to get it started, make sure it stays on track, and then see it FINISHED.  Anything else breeds real frustration within me.  Yet I can't IMAGINE what a 23-year wait must have done to Joash!  God must have given him a double measure of patience and diplomacy!

Father, help me when I find myself in situations where things aren't moving as quickly as I feel that they should.  Though a "Lead, Follow, Or Get Out Of The Way" philosophy sounds good, help me to have the patience and diplomacy I need so that I won't lose friends along the way.  Help me to be gentle with the spurs to keep people going, because nothing kills a project like apathy.  I trust You to guide me so that I in turn can correctly guide others. 

2 Kings 10 -- What It Takes To Take Out Sin

God had given Jehu the job of ridding Israel of Ahab's family.  He ordered Ahab's 70 sons to be beheaded, and their guardians were scared enough of Jehu to DO it.  He also ordered the death of Ahab's other family members, his close friends, and his priests.

He then said something that at first sounds very disturbing:  "Ahab served Baal a LITTLE, but Jehu will serve Baal MUCH."  That was a ruse to get all of the Baal worshipers together in their temple, where he ordered them wiped out.  Inside the temple, they killed them all, brought out the pillars and burned them, then tore down the stone pillar of Baal and wrecked the temple itself.

There's a little "reading between the lines" to be done on the next part to get the entire picture:  "And they made it into a SEWAGE PIT, as it is today."  In other words, everyone was asked to come "contribute" at the world's largest port-a-potty.

Baal worship appeared to be over in Israel, but there was something else that remained.  You can here it in God's words.  The Lord said to Jehu, "You have done well in obeying what I said was right ..."  But Jehu was NOT careful to follow the teachings of The Lord, the God of Israel, with ALL his heart.  He did not stop doing the same sins Jeroboam had done...."  The two golden calves were still up, representing God in place of the Ark of the Covenant in Judah.

The WORLD (and I imagine a great many Christians, to) would say this was horrible that men and women had to be KILLED for worshiping Baal, and they would deplore the beheading of those sons of Ahab.  The WORLD would mourn the loss of such an historically rich site as the Baal temple because of religious intolerance.  That goes to show how deeply sin becomes rooted into our lives, and the extent to which God KNOWS He must go to get it out.

The very reason we suffer from besetting sins is because we are doing the very same thing Jehu did -- we aren't willing to follow God with ALL our heart, holding back some just for ourselves with our entitlement mentality.

Father, please vividly point out to me what has to go in my own life to be able to say I'M following You with all of MY heart.  I know I've still got lots of work to do.  Help me to hate sin as much as You do -- enough to want to do to IT what those people did to the destroyed temple of Baal.

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

2 Kings 8 & 9 -- God Always Wins

My commentary said, “God not only knows what lies ahead, but He plans what is to happen in the future and executes His plan perfectly … No matter what occurs in history, God is in control.”

 

Jehoram, king of Judah, had married Athaliah, Ahab’s daughter.  Jehoshaphat, co-regent of Judah, had joined Ahab in fighting Syria.  “In other words, the wall of separation was gradually crumbling between David’s dynasty in Judah and the descendants of Ahab in Israel.  The future of God’s great plan of salvation depended on the continuation of the Davidic dynasty, so Jehoram was playing right into the enemy’s hands.  By compromising with the evil rulers of Israel, Jehoram displeased the Lord and weakened the nation,” my commentary said.

 

In Israel, Elisha sent a messenger to fulfill one of Elijah’s three tasks given to him by God at Mt. Sinai – anointing Jehu as king of Israel.  God would use him to wipe out Ahab’s family, executing God’s judgment on them.

 

Joram, king of Israel, and Ahaziah, his nephew and king of Judah, rode out to meet Jehu as he arrived.  Joram instantly was killed and Ahaziah was wounded and died soon after at Megiddo.  Joram’s death fulfilled a prophecy God had given to Elijah years before.

 

Jehu them rode to Jezreel and called for citizen loyalty to himself, whereupon several palace servants unceremoniously tossed Jezebel out of a high window to her death.  Jehu road his horse over her body just to make sure. 

 

The best-laid plans of men cannot overcome the sovereignty of God.

 

Father, when I feel like I’ve suffered setbacks in what You’ve directed me to do, please help me to remember this chapter.  It’s like the bumper sticker I once had on my car:  “I Know The Future – God Wins!”

 

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

2 Kings 6-7 Believing

These chapters tell of two enemy attacks and how God delivered the Israelites in two very different ways.

 

First, the king of Aram decided to go after Elisha after he was told that God was giving Elisha “military intelligence” on the Aramean troops.  While Elisha was in Dothan, the king’s army surrounded the city during the night.  Early the next morning, Elisha’s servant saw the huge encampment and ran to Elisha in fear.  With wisdom that we could use today, Elisha said, “Don’t be afraid.  The army that fights for us is larger than the one against us.”  Then he asked God to open his servant’s eyes.  God did, and the servant was able to see the vast angelic host waiting all around for the battle.  Then Elisha prayed that God would blind the enemy, which He did (apparently not in a physical way, but in a way that the army did not know where they were and who was leading them, much as Elisha’s servant had been).

 

Elisha led them to the capital city, and once they were surrounded, God enabled them to again see where they were.  They were fearing imminent death, but God directed Elisha to have the king provide them with a feast, and afterward they were allowed to leave, more as friends than enemies.

 

It wasn’t long, however, before the Aramean king decided to send his entire army against Israel rather than just border raiders.  They surrounded Samaria and laid siege to the city, planning on starving out the inhabitants.  The king reacted much as Elisha’s servant had – in unbelief.  When Elisha prophesied that food prices and availability would return to complete normality by the next day, one of the king’s officers scoffed at the suggestion, saying “Even if the Lord opened windows in the sky that couldn’t happen!”

 

But God is sovereign, and he caused the invaders to hear the sound of a huge invading army headed their way.  During the night, they abandoned everything and ran for their lives!  The next day, the unbelieving officer was trampled to death as the hungry citizens ran to collect the spoils of war the Aramean army had left behind!

 

Father, I’m used to seeing you do the impossible.  I even watched You do it twice yesterday!  Help me to help others to believe in You wholeheartedly.  Help them to know that they too can trust You if only they’ll believe.

 

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

2 Kings 5 -- Important To Read BETWEEN The Lines

This story was mentioned by Jesus in Luke 4:27, and when He mentioned it, in the synagogue in his hometown of Nazareth during a sermon, He got this reaction:  the people became angry with Him, interrupted His sermon, and carried Him out of the synagogue!  Why?

 

It’s a story about a Gentile – a non-Jew.  “He was outside of the covenant the Jews had with God.  He was the army commander for a nation who was fighting against Israel … He was an enemy who kidnapped little Jewish girls, and a leper who should have been isolated and left to die.  These people (in Nazareth) knew nothing about the sovereign grace of God.  Like Naaman, they became angry, but unlike Naaman, they didn’t humble themselves and trust the Lord,” my commentary said.

 

Seeing Naaman the way the Jewish people did is incredibly important to understanding the magnitude of this miracle, because it establishes him as the least-deserving of that miracle.

 

As Jesus would later say, “Many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, and none of them were cleansed, except Naaman the Syrian.”

 

The little Jewish girl he’d kidnapped in one of his raids into Israel saw his leprosy one day and told his wife (her master) that Elisha COULD heal him.  His wife encouraged him to try and he then went to his king to ask permission to see their enemy king (Joram of Israel) so he would order Elisha to heal him.  Expecting the usual worldly treatment, he took lots of treasure to “grease the wheels”.

 

Of course, King Joram wasn’t a godly man, and therefore didn’t see this as an opportunity to teach Syria about God and His grace.  He only thought it was a prelude to war if Naaman couldn’t be healed.  In fact, he didn’t even call for Elisha!  God told Elisha what was happening and sent word to send Naaman to him.

 

Naaman had a problem with pride because of his position.  He was probably really hacked when Elisha didn’t come to the king, and even more so when Elisha wouldn’t meet him, but only sent his servant with a message for Naaman to dip his body seven times in the muddy Jordan River.

 

Naamon almost lost his opportunity for healing, but his servant finally said, “If he’d given you some difficult thing to do, you would have done it!  So Why not just do it?”

 

“Naaman lost his temper; then he lost his pride; then he lost his leprosy;  that is generally the order in which proud rebellious sinners are converted,” D. C. Moody said.

 

That little kidnapped Jewish girl’s lack of fear and her trust in God converted the leader of the army attacking her nation and led him to accept God as his Lord.  We will not know this side of heaven how God will use ur testimonies to bring others to Him, if we will only dare to speak.

 

Father, You took me – Your enemy and a dirty sin-filled out-of-the-covenant Gentile – and brought me to You, forgave me, and cleaned me up.  Please let others come to know You by hearing what You’ve done in my life.  Break the walls of pride and self-importance so that they can and will come to know You.  Let me never make judgments about who is worthy of Your grace, because You saved even me.

 

 

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford