April 9, 2011 (2 Kings 12-14, 2 Chronicles 24-25)

I looked up this passage for the part of "the things that were written before were written to teach us", and that is true, but when I looked for this verse in context, the last verse jumped out at me:

Romans 15:3-5

³ For even Christ didn’t live to please himself. As the Scriptures say, “The insults of those who insult you, O God, have fallen on me.” ⁴ Such things were written in the Scriptures long ago to teach us. And the Scriptures give us hope and encouragement as we wait patiently for God’s promises to be fulfilled.
 ⁵ May God, who gives this patience and encouragement, help you live in complete harmony with each other, as is fitting for followers of Christ Jesus.

I know that lately I have not lived 'in complete harmony with each other'. So yes, God's word was written to teach us, and yes, we must live in harmony with each other. Holy Spirit, help me to yield my life to you to make that a reality. Sing Your song in the empty places of my heart.


Today's reading is another reminder that apart from obedience to God, we cannot prosper:


^{2 Chronicles 24:20} Then the Spirit of God came upon Zechariah son of Jehoiada the priest. He stood before the people and said, “This is what God says: Why do you disobey the Lord’s commands and keep yourselves from prospering? You have abandoned the Lord, and now he has abandoned you!”


^25:7 But a man of God came to him and said, “Your Majesty, do not hire troops from Israel, for the Lord is not with Israel. He will not help those people of Ephraim! ⁸ If you let them go with your troops into battle, you will be defeated by the enemy no matter how well you fight. God will overthrow you, for he has the power to help you or to trip you up.”


Sometimes God sends messengers to tell His people when they are going astray and doing wrong. And we have seen in scripture that when they hear this message and repent, God is gracious and forgives. Here is what happens when they do not repent:

^25:14 When King Amaziah returned from slaughtering the Edomites, he brought with him idols taken from the people of Seir. He set them up as his own gods, bowed down in front of them, and offered sacrifices to them! ¹⁵ This made the Lord very angry, and he sent a prophet to ask, “Why do you turn to gods who could not even save their own people from you?”

 ¹⁶ But the king interrupted him and said, “Since when have I made you the king’s counselor? Be quiet now before I have you killed!”

   So the prophet stopped with this warning: “I know that God has determined to destroy you because you have done this and have refused to accept my counsel.”

Not only did the King not repent, he stopped the messenger in his tracks and had no desire to even hear what he had to say. And that course of action was met with a very dire prediction, that was fulfilled in this manner:


^25: 27 After Amaziah turned away from the Lord, there was a conspiracy against his life in Jerusalem, and he fled to Lachish. But his enemies sent assassins after him, and they killed him there.