Keep It Simple and Seek to Please God Alone

/in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 2 Kings 17:24-33. Let’s go!

2 Kings 17:25 (NIV) 
25  When they first lived there, they did not worship the LORD; so he sent lions among them and they killed some of the people. 

On verses 24-26:  Shalmaneser king of Assyria has deported the Israelites from Samaria (Israel’s capital city) and replaces them with people from foreign lands.  These foreigners do not worship the Lord in Samaria and are attacked, and in some cases killed, by lions.  This is the third case in 1 Kings and 2 Kings where someone is killed by a lion.  

What can we learn in this case?  When we do not worship the Lord but instead focus on other things, we become vulnerable to the attacks of the enemy, who is described as a lion looking for someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8).  

2 Kings 17:33 (NIV) 
33  They worshiped the LORD, but they also served their own gods in accordance with the customs of the nations from which they had been brought. 

Read more

The Cost of Persistently Sinning Against God

/in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 2 Kings 17:14-23.  Let’s go!

2 Kings 17:22-23 (NIV) 
22  The Israelites persisted in all the sins of Jeroboam and did not turn away from them
23  until the LORD removed them from his presence, as he had warned through all his servants the prophets. So the people of Israel were taken from their homeland into exile in Assyria, and they are still there. 

On verses 14-23:  These verses summarize the overall story of 2 Kings: Despite the Lord warning His people about sinning against Him and about the consequences that would result from their persistent sin, the Israelites both in Israel and in Judah persisted in all forms of sinning against the Lord (v14 to 19).  So the Lord does as He had warned: just as Abijah had prophesied approximately 200 years before in 1 Kings 14:15-16, God thrusts the Israelites from His presence and out of the land that He had given to them (v20-23).

Read more

God Is Far More Merciful Than People

/in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 2 Kings 17:1-13.  Let’s go!

On verses 1-13:  One thing that strikes me as I read this passage is how much more merciful and gracious the Lord is compared to Shalmaneser king of Assyria.  King Hoshea of Israel had been Shalmaneser’s vassal; in other words, King Hoshea had a relationship with Shalmaneser such that King Hoshea would pay tribute to Shalmaneser each year in exchange for Shalmaneser’s agreement to protect and not hurt Hoshea’s kingdom of Israel.  But secretly King Hoshea began to side with Egypt and stopped paying tribute to Shalmaneser.  In response to Hoshea’s rebellion and disloyalty, Shalmaneser seizes Hoshea, puts him in prison, lays siege to Israel for 3 years and deports the Israelites to Assyria.  

Just as King Hoshea was unfaithful to King Shalmaneser of Assyria, the Israelites were unfaithful to the Lord.  Verses 7-12 describe how the Israelites worshiped other gods, imitated the religious practices of foreign nations, and secretly did things against the Lord that were not right.  Rather than putting them in prison or taking away their land immediately the way Shalmaneser did, the Lord was patient with the Israelites from generation to generation, warning them not to worship idols.  It was only after persistent rebellion that the Lord finally disciplines the Israelites by allowing Assyria to invade Israel and deport the Israelites to Assyria.

Read more

Before You Make That Change, Ask Why

/in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 2 King 16:1-20.  Let’s go!

2 Kings 16:3 (NIV) 
3  He walked in the ways of the kings of Israel and even sacrificed his son in the fire, following the detestable ways of the nations the LORD had driven out before the Israelites. 

On verses 1-4:  Ahaz replaces his father Jotham as king of Judah. Unlike his father, Ahaz is a staunch idol worshipper.  As part of worshiping an idol, Ahaz sacrifices his child in the fire (v3), hoping it will bring him prosperity. As horrific as such an act is and sounds, it is also a warning for parents today. Sometimes parents can be tempted to sacrifice their children for the sake of their careers or their financial gain.  So we neglect our children and deprive them of our presence all in the name of “making money for the family”.  While working and being providers for the family is important, let’s remember that in all our working and striving that our real treasure is our children and that what they need even more than money or material things is us, our time and our presence.

Read more

There’s No One Like Jesus, Our Perfect King

/in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 2 Kings 15:27-38.  Let’s go!

On verses 27-38:  In these verses we read of two kings with two very different reigns. First there is Pekah king of Israel who worshiped idols and as a result much of his territory was conquered and his people taken away by a foreign enemy, the Assyrians (v27-31).  Then we have Jotham king of Judah who “did what was right in the eyes of the Lord” (v34).  When you read about Jotham in 2 Chronicles 27, we learn that because Jotham “walked steadfastly before the Lord his God” (2 Chronicles 27:6), he grew powerful and conquered foreign enemies like the Ammonites (2 Chronicles 27:5). 

What can we learn from this?  

1.  Worship idols like Pekah and you will end up being conquered and oppressed by a foreign enemy.  Worship the Lord and walk steadfastly before Him like Jotham and He will expand your territory.

2. Jotham, compared to most kings of Judah, was a good king, and yet he too compromised in his faith (v35).  Only in Jesus Christ do we find a king who is absolutely perfect, faithful and blameless to the end.

Read more

Sometimes God Blesses Us In Spite Of Us, Not Because Of Us

/in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 2 Kings 15:13-26.  Let’s go!

On verses 13-26:  In Israel, Shallum had killed Zechariah to become king. Then a month later Menahem kills Shalum to become king.  After Menahem reigns for 10 years, his son Pekahiah takes over only to be killed and succeeded 2 years later by Pekah.

What can we learn from this?  Sedition — that is, rebelling against God-given authority — may seem like an easy shortcut to power.  But a kingdom built on sedition will not last very long.  If you try to build a kingdom on sedition, chances are good that your kingdom will also be supplanted and brought down by the seditious acts of others.

Praise God that whereas Satan’s kingdom was built on sedition, the kingdom of heaven is built not on sedition but on servanthood.  The kingdom of God is not a top down organization, but a bottom up organization where the greatest leaders are also the humblest servants.

Read more

Don’t Let Pride Cloud Your Judgment

/in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 2 Kings 14:1-16.  Let’s go!

On verses 1 to 16:  Here we read of the 29 year reign of Amaziah, king of Judah, son of Joash.  The author of 2 Kings describes Amaziah as:

– a good king who followed the Lord, although Amaziah failed to remove the high places in Judah where idolatry continued (v2-4). 

– the one who put to death the officials who murdered his father Joash (v5-6)

– the one who defeated 10,000 Edomites (v7).

However, after his victory over the Edomites, Amaziah becomes arrogant.  He challenges Jehoash King of Israel to a fight.  Despite Jehoash King of Israel clearly warning Amaziah to stand down (v9-10), Amaziah insists on fighting (v11).  Amaziah loses to Jehoash, is himself captured along with other hostages, and the nation of Judah is attacked and looted (v12-14). 
 

Read more

Faith is Evidenced by Action

/in /by

2 Kings 13:19 (NIV) 
19  The man of God was angry with him and said, “You should have struck the ground five or six times; then you would have defeated Aram and completely destroyed it. But now you will defeat it only three times.” 

On verses 14-19, 22-25:  In the final chapter to Elisha’s ministry on earth, Elisha meets Jehoash king of Israel, who weeps knowing that Elisha is sick and approaching death.  Testifying to Elisha’s greatness, Jehoash calls Elisha “the chariots and horsemen of Israel” (v14), just as Elisha had so called his mentor Elijah (2 Kings 2:12).  Pursuant to Elisha’s instructions, Jehoash grabs a bow, opens the east window, and shoots with Elisha’s hands on Jehoash’s hands.  After that Elisha declares that Jehoash will be victorious over Arameans (v17).  Elisha then tells Jehoash to take the arrows in his quiver and strike the ground.  So Jehoash takes the arrows and strikes the ground three times.  But Elisha becomes angry, saying that Jehoash should have struck the ground fix or six times, because the fact that Jehoash only struck the ground three times meant that he would only defeat Aram three times.  

What is going on here?  Elisha is not teaching Jehoash to be superstitious.  Rather, at this crucial time when Elisha is nearing death and Israel is under Aramean threat, Elisha is testing Jehoash’s faith in God.  In the first exercise, Elisha puts his hands on top of Jehoash’s hands, and together they use a bow to shoot out the east window. 

Read more

3 Problems That Arise When We Turn Away From God

/in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 2 Kings 13:1-13.  Let’s go!

On verses 1-9:  These verses describe the 17 year reign of Jehoahaz King of Israel, the son of Jehu.  Notice that because Jehoahaz did evil in the Lord’s eyes by following the sins of Jeroboam, worshiping the golden calves Jeroboam had set up (v2), the entire nation under Jehoahaz’s care suffered greatly and oppressed by their foreign enemy, the Arameans (v3).  With hardly an army to defend the nation (v7), Jehoahaz finally looks to the Lord for help and the Lord provides a deliverer to rescue Jehoahaz and the nation of Israel (4-5).  Even so Jehoahaz does not turn completely away from the idols in Israel (v6).

What can we learn from Jehoahaz’ life?

1. When we turn away from God, three things happen: (1) those in our care end up suffering, (2) we become vulnerable to the attack of the enemy, and (3) like a nation without an army our ability to defend and fight back is severely limited.

Read more

Exercising Financial Self-Discipline

/in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 2 Kings 12:13-21.  Let’s go!

Exercising Financial Self-Discipline (Also, How You Finish > How You Start)

2 Kings 12:13-16 (NIV) 
13  The money brought into the temple was not spent for making silver basins, wick trimmers, sprinkling bowls, trumpets or any other articles of gold or silver for the temple of the LORD; 
14  it was paid to the workmen, who used it to repair the temple. 
15  They did not require an accounting from those to whom they gave the money to pay the workers, because they acted with complete honesty. 
16  The money from the guilt offerings and sin offerings was not brought into the temple of the LORD; it belonged to the priests.

Read more