July 17, 2014
You cannot align yourself with ungodly people and then expect to remain faithful to the LORD.
Jesus' calls for us to be separate cannot be followed when aligned with the ungodly. Jehoshaphat found this out when he aligned himself with Ahab (II Chronicles 16:3) and then again with Ahab's son Ahaziah (II Chronicles 20:35). He (and others) suffered the consequences.
Jehoshaphat is dead and now his son Jehoram (the son who married Ahab's daughter) becomes king. In his desire to have total control, he kills all of his brothers and some of the leaders of Judah. He did not follow in the footsteps of his father. Instead, because he married Ahab's daughter, he chose to follow her ways and to do what the LORD said was wrong. But, not everyone chose to follow Jehoram's sinful ways. The people of Libnah broke away from his rule because he had left the LORD's ways.
If you find yourself linked with others (in business or socially) who are not following God, you must break free.
God sent Elijah to warn Jehoram (by letter) what was going to happen. Jehoram and his people, his wives and children (plus everything he owned), were all going to suffer the consequences for his actions. He was going to develop a terrible disease that he would die from. Two years later he died a horrible death. His need for total control (II Chronicles 21:4), eventually led to his downfall (II Chronicles 21:20), and in the end it brought him nothing. No one was sad when he died. He wasn't even buried with honor.
God's promises are true and nothing can destroy or prevent God from fulfilling His promises. There are consequences for our life choices. Our decisions bring God's promised results: Blessing—or—Curses.
Because of his selfish need for control Jehoram killed all his brothers. And now years later, the exact same fate happened to his own sons by robbers. His youngest son Ahaziah survived, and he became king. He followed in the footsteps of his father, his namesake uncle, and the others in Ahab's family because his mother encouraged him to do what was wrong. His actions later led to his death. Ahaziah goes to visit his uncle Joram (the son of Ahab and king of Israel). While there, "God caused" (NCV) "brought about" (NIV) his death (KJV - "was of God"). There are consequences for our choices and actions.
Ahaziah's mom Athaliah (Ahab's daughter) either doesn't "get-it" or doesn't care. She doesn't take this opportunity to repent and change her ways. Instead, she kills everyone in the royal family so she can take over. At least she thought she killed everyone. But Jehosheba (Ahaziah's sister) takes Joash (Ahaziah's son and her nephew) and hides him in the Temple. No danger in Athaliah finding him there... she is not worshiping God in the Temple. Jehosheba, (along with her husband Jehoida the priest) hid him for six years.
When Joash was seven, Jehoida led the plan to make him king. God promised the king would be of David's descendants and nothing can destroy or prevent God's promises from being fulfilled. Joash is made king. Jehoiada appointed guards to surround him. (God's angels surround us.) When Athaliah realized she was no longer the ruler over Judah she screamed, "Traitors! Traitors!" Interesting how she felt anything and everything was permissible and acceptable for her as she maneuvered to get her way, but let someone do what God instructed and she screams—no fair! She was taken outside the gate and put to death. Sin must not be tolerated. It must be removed. That may mean that you have to separate yourself from an ungodly situation or person.
As long as Jehoiada was priest and advising him, Joash did what the LORD said was right. He rebuilt the temple. But later when Jehoiada died, Joash began to listen to others and he stopped worshiping the LORD. II Chronicles 24:19 - "Even though the LORD sent prophets to the people to turn them back to him and even though the prophets warned them, they refused to listen." God sent Jehoiada's son Zechariah to talk to the people. II Chronicles 24:20b - "This is what God says: 'Why do you disobey the LORD's commands? You will not be successful. Because you have left the LORD, he has also left you.' "
Did they listen to him and repent and return to the Lord? No. The king and his officers instead made plans against Zechariah and stoned him to death. Zechariah was the son of Jehoiada, the person who had done so much for Joash and was so respected by the people that when he died at the age of 135 years old, they buried him in Jerusalem with the kings! Yet by this time, Joash was so far away from the LORD that he didn't even remember what Jehoiada the priest (and his uncle) had done for him. As Zechariah was dying he said, "May the LORD see what you are doing and punish you." (II Chronicles 24:22)
By the end of the year it happened. The Arameans came against Joash. The Arameans were just a small little army compared to the large army of Judah, "but the LORD handed over Judah to them" because the people of Judah had left the God of their ancestors. So Joash was punished. Joash was wounded by the enemy, but it was his own officers who killed him as lay in his own bed. He died and was buried, but not with the kings.
How sad. Joash started well but ended in failure. I don't want to just start well. I want to finish well.
Next Entry: II Chronicles 25:1 – 26:23
You cannot align yourself with ungodly people and then expect to remain faithful to the LORD.
Jesus' calls for us to be separate cannot be followed when aligned with the ungodly. Jehoshaphat found this out when he aligned himself with Ahab (II Chronicles 16:3) and then again with Ahab's son Ahaziah (II Chronicles 20:35). He (and others) suffered the consequences.
Jehoshaphat is dead and now his son Jehoram (the son who married Ahab's daughter) becomes king. In his desire to have total control, he kills all of his brothers and some of the leaders of Judah. He did not follow in the footsteps of his father. Instead, because he married Ahab's daughter, he chose to follow her ways and to do what the LORD said was wrong. But, not everyone chose to follow Jehoram's sinful ways. The people of Libnah broke away from his rule because he had left the LORD's ways.
If you find yourself linked with others (in business or socially) who are not following God, you must break free.
God sent Elijah to warn Jehoram (by letter) what was going to happen. Jehoram and his people, his wives and children (plus everything he owned), were all going to suffer the consequences for his actions. He was going to develop a terrible disease that he would die from. Two years later he died a horrible death. His need for total control (II Chronicles 21:4), eventually led to his downfall (II Chronicles 21:20), and in the end it brought him nothing. No one was sad when he died. He wasn't even buried with honor.
God's promises are true and nothing can destroy or prevent God from fulfilling His promises. There are consequences for our life choices. Our decisions bring God's promised results: Blessing—or—Curses.
Because of his selfish need for control Jehoram killed all his brothers. And now years later, the exact same fate happened to his own sons by robbers. His youngest son Ahaziah survived, and he became king. He followed in the footsteps of his father, his namesake uncle, and the others in Ahab's family because his mother encouraged him to do what was wrong. His actions later led to his death. Ahaziah goes to visit his uncle Joram (the son of Ahab and king of Israel). While there, "God caused" (NCV) "brought about" (NIV) his death (KJV - "was of God"). There are consequences for our choices and actions.
Ahaziah's mom Athaliah (Ahab's daughter) either doesn't "get-it" or doesn't care. She doesn't take this opportunity to repent and change her ways. Instead, she kills everyone in the royal family so she can take over. At least she thought she killed everyone. But Jehosheba (Ahaziah's sister) takes Joash (Ahaziah's son and her nephew) and hides him in the Temple. No danger in Athaliah finding him there... she is not worshiping God in the Temple. Jehosheba, (along with her husband Jehoida the priest) hid him for six years.
When Joash was seven, Jehoida led the plan to make him king. God promised the king would be of David's descendants and nothing can destroy or prevent God's promises from being fulfilled. Joash is made king. Jehoiada appointed guards to surround him. (God's angels surround us.) When Athaliah realized she was no longer the ruler over Judah she screamed, "Traitors! Traitors!" Interesting how she felt anything and everything was permissible and acceptable for her as she maneuvered to get her way, but let someone do what God instructed and she screams—no fair! She was taken outside the gate and put to death. Sin must not be tolerated. It must be removed. That may mean that you have to separate yourself from an ungodly situation or person.
As long as Jehoiada was priest and advising him, Joash did what the LORD said was right. He rebuilt the temple. But later when Jehoiada died, Joash began to listen to others and he stopped worshiping the LORD. II Chronicles 24:19 - "Even though the LORD sent prophets to the people to turn them back to him and even though the prophets warned them, they refused to listen." God sent Jehoiada's son Zechariah to talk to the people. II Chronicles 24:20b - "This is what God says: 'Why do you disobey the LORD's commands? You will not be successful. Because you have left the LORD, he has also left you.' "
Did they listen to him and repent and return to the Lord? No. The king and his officers instead made plans against Zechariah and stoned him to death. Zechariah was the son of Jehoiada, the person who had done so much for Joash and was so respected by the people that when he died at the age of 135 years old, they buried him in Jerusalem with the kings! Yet by this time, Joash was so far away from the LORD that he didn't even remember what Jehoiada the priest (and his uncle) had done for him. As Zechariah was dying he said, "May the LORD see what you are doing and punish you." (II Chronicles 24:22)
By the end of the year it happened. The Arameans came against Joash. The Arameans were just a small little army compared to the large army of Judah, "but the LORD handed over Judah to them" because the people of Judah had left the God of their ancestors. So Joash was punished. Joash was wounded by the enemy, but it was his own officers who killed him as lay in his own bed. He died and was buried, but not with the kings.
How sad. Joash started well but ended in failure. I don't want to just start well. I want to finish well.
Next Entry: II Chronicles 25:1 – 26:23
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