2014: A Fair Weather Christian? Thursday 16, January 2014 TEXT: 1 KINGS 15:16-24 Key verse: “The rest of all the acts of Asa, and all his might, and all that he did, and the cities which he built, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? Nevertheless in the time of his old age he was diseased in his feet” (1 Kings 15:23). Some people will serve God so long as there is no challenge to contend with. Such was the case with Asa, the king of Judah. He was greatly helped by the Lord until his kingdom was established. And for a considerable period, his reign was characterized by peace. Then there arose war between him and Baasha, the king of Israel. Large parts of Judah’s territory was captured by Baasha who began to construct new cities, in an attempt to cut off Judah from gaining access to neighbouring kingdoms, and thereby squeezed it into surrender. In his distress, Asa forgot the mighty power of God that accomplished much for him. Rather than turn to the Lord, Asa gathered all the treasures in the Lord’s house and his own personal wealth and delivered them to Benhadad, king of Syria, whom he hired to fight against Baasha. Benhadad’s strategy was to open up a new front against Baasha, forcing him to flee and abandon the construction work he had embarked upon in Judah. Asa in return, used the materials abandoned by Baasha to build new cities of his own. Challenged by the prophet of the Lord that he had acted foolishly in reposing his trust in man rather than God, Asa threw the prophet into jail. In the process, he incurred the wrath of God; and in the latter days of his reign, he developed an incurable disease in his foot. Even in his sickness, he refused to turn to God for healing, but rather sought help from physicians. Most times, problems arise in life not to destroy us but to prove the extent we are willing to trust God for help. At such a time, we must shun all panic measures and turn to the Lord in prayers, believing that as He promised, He will neither leave nor forsake us. We must avoid the quick-fix tendency that comes from man as they do not last. Above all, we must learn to wait on the Lord to act in His own time and make all things beautiful for us. THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Leaning on the arms of the flesh leads to shattered dreams.
Posted on: Thu, 16 Jan 2014 06:42:20 +0000
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