How do you want to be remembered when you finally die? Who do you know that would be faithful enough to follow you wherever you go? When we seek out God in prayer do we actually expect God to listen and respond to our request? Is there a relation between Baal-zebub in 2 Kings and Beelzebul in Matthew? These are the questions that I asked as I read about two moments in Elijah’s life related in 2 Kings 1 and 2. The first moment we see is Elijah telling Ahaziah that he would die for honoring pagan gods above the one true God and the second moment Elisha replaces Elijah as prophet. Continue Reading…
Archive - June, 2010
Rekindling the reverence, awe, and wonder of God: 2 Kings 1 and 2
Kingdoms come to ruin without God as King: 1 Kings Summary
The book of first Kings does not follow one fluid story like the books of Joshua or Ruth rather we follow a timeline of the kings of Israel with great detail given about specific moments in peoples lives while other people only have general highlights given. Why is the book written in this manner? It is consistently repeated throughout the book of 1 Kings, “are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?” What does this statement tell us about 1 Kings? The book gives us a summary of what happened to Israel as various kings took control and also the nation of Israel dividing into Israel and Judah. When details are omitted in 1 Kings it is referencing 2 Chronicles where greater detail of the actions of each king is given. Continue Reading…
Total insurmountable super-sufficiency in Jesus Christ: 1 Kings 21 and 22
The vanity of Ahab and Jezebel is evident in the importance they place on owning a vineyard to plant vegetables. The man Naboth was only seeking to follow God’s command forbidding him from giving the inheritance of his father to Ahab. The scheming of Jezebel leads to the stoning of Naboth all for a plot of land to plant a garden. It is sad when people claim that they have the right to do whatever they choose without concern for the people they hurt in the process. How would you feel if Ahab were in control of your country? Do people in leadership have absolute power or absolute responsibility? When people become so infatuated by the sinful lives they lead the bondage becomes so strong that the door to freedom can only be opened by God. Continue Reading…
Egocentricity defeated as we experience God in stillness: 1 Kings 19 and 20
How do you judge success in your life? How do you react when you fail? As you trust God and walk by faith do you become discouraged by the situations that appear be complete failures? When we view our successes and failures through human eyes we are not seeing the whole picture because the our baseline measure of life resides in faulty human emotions that shift like the wind driven sands of the desert. In 1 Kings 17 and 18 the prophet Elijah made a stand for God against the the prophets of Baal and Asherah showing the people of Israel that the Lord, He is God. After seeing God work in such a mighty way Elijah was faced with the wrath of Queen Jezebel in 1 Kings 19. Continue Reading…
The Lord He is God and His power reigns over idolatry: 1 Kings 17 and 18
In 1 Kings 17 Elijah a prophet of the Lord proclaims to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, surely there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.” 1 Kings 17:1 After these words Elijah follows heads away from Ahab and hides in the wilderness. Was Elijah concerned about having his needs met since he just prophesied a drought in the land? Did Elijah have the faith to trust that God was going to supply his needs. God proves Himself faithful as he sends ravens to bring Elijah bread and meat twice daily. Can God supply your needs? Do you need a road map to take a step of faith? Elijah didn’t know what was going to happen next but he trusted that God would supply for his needs as he followed Him. Continue Reading…
God’s faithfulness evident in destruction and death: 1 Kings 15 and 16
I am continually amazed at how profitable the Bible is even when I initially think the chapters I am reading will be boring. 1 Kings 15 and 16 comes across as a prelude to the book of 2 Chronicles because you are given very quick snippets of the kings who reigned over Judah and Israel making it a little boring to read about all of the kings, sons, and their complete depravity without getting more details. Why was I initially bored with these two chapters in 1 Kings? The pattern displayed by these kings of Judah and Israel has been continually repeated throughout the Old Testament where men fall away from God and I was desensitized from all the repetition. What is the question that I could have been asking about these chapters? Why is God consistently repeating the how unfaithful men are and driving home the insufficiency in the ability of man? When we are faced with our limitation and inability we start to look at our lives and actions in a different way and we start looking for the true way to make it through life. All the repetition that is given throughout the Old Testament is a signpost to the all sufficiency of Jesus Christ. Continue Reading…
Idolatry leads toward unfaithfulness and death: 1 Kings 13 and 14
What power is there in the idols of your life? Can you find true and lasting fulfillment in your iPhone, does Facebook satisfy the deep desire for fellowship that you have, can the joy you find in your family and friends carry you through the difficult moments of life, does the money you earn working incessantly form the foundation of who you are, or will the praise and adoration of men give you a sense of fulfillment on your death bed that you can die confident of what lies ahead? What is the driving motivation in your life? The state of our sinful inclination has not changed since the time of the old testament. We live in a sex saturated world that seeks to satisfy all the needs we have in an instant but the one true need we have for fulfillment can only be satisfied in God. Continue Reading…
Abiding in lust becomes a snare and trap: 1 Kings 11 and 12
After reading through 1 Kings 11 and 12 I find that my heart is burdened with sadness. Anytime I read about how people fall away from God after seeing His faithfulness in great and mighty ways I am filled with remorse and grief. These stories of peoples wavering faith reminded me that humanity is destined to a life of unfaithfulness in sin apart from God’s intervention. Our inherent sinfulness as the seed of Adam is consistently luring us away from devotion to and desire for God. I am thankful for the moments like this where I find myself reflecting on am my own inability to make it through life because it exemplifies the truth that I need Jesus Christ. Continue Reading…
The wisdom, wealth, and splendor of King Solomon: 1 Kings 9 and 10
“As for you, if you will walk before Me as your father David walked, in integrity of heart and uprightness, doing according to all that I have commanded you and will keep My statutes and My ordinances, then I will establish the throne of your kingdom over Israel forever, just as I promised to your father David, saying, ‘You shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel.’ But if you or your sons indeed turn away from following Me, and do not keep My commandments and My statutes which I have set before you, and go and serve other gods and worship them, then I will cut off Israel from the land which I have given them, and the house which I have consecrated for My name, I will cast out of My sight.” 1 Kings 9:4-7 NASB This exhortation spoken by God to Solomon mirrors the words spoken to Moses, Joshua and David emphasizing the need for the Israelites to cling to God and not stray away. Continue Reading…
