Yes, Lord, Yes, to Your Will & To Your Way

READ 1 Chronicles 18-19

Joab was David’s Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, except that he was more like an Eisenhower on D-Day or a Schwarzkopf in Desert Storm. As head of the Israeli army he was actually engaged in the field with the battle. David sent him and the army to take care of the Ammonite problem. But the Ammonites had hired the Syrians to come and help them fight against David’s army. They had separated into two camps so that Joab’s men were confronted front and back. So Joab split the army in two and gave his brother Abishai commanded of one of the forces.

Listen to Joab’s instruction to Abishai, “If the Syrians are too strong for me, then you shall help me, but if the Ammonites are too strong for you, then I will help you. Be strong, and let us use our strength for our people and for the cities of our God, and may the Lord do what seems good to him.” What amazing faith and submission to the will of God is demonstrated in that statement.

Joab knew he had to fight and he knew that the situation could go either way. What he did not know was what the outcome would be. But he did have faith that God was in charge of the outcome and he also was willing to surrender himself to what God purposed to happen.

You and I can learn from Joab. We are to fight the good fight of faith in our lives before the Lord and we must stand strong and do all that we can in the power of the Lord. But we must also surrender the outcome to the Lord. He doesn’t have to do things the way we want them done. Remember Jesus’ prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane: “Father, not my will but thine be done.”

Prayer: Father, you are holy and sovereign in all things. I praise you that this is true. I’m so thankful, Lord, that we are not left to our own ends but that you as the holy, righteous, loving, merciful, gracious God of all are overseeing the course of history to your purposes and your ends. Help me to surrender my will to yours and to be content with your ways.

What Small Thing Has God Done for You?

READ 1 Chronicles 16-17

What small thing has God done for you in your life? David rehearsed before the Lord a glorious song of praise, extolling “his deeds among the peoples” (16:8ff). He exalts the Lord for his wondrous works, his miracles and judgments, his covenant with Abraham, giving Israel the land of Canaan, choosing Israel to be his people, making the heavens, establishing the world, his goodness and his steadfast love that endures forever! What a glorious song of praise this was.

Then David wants to build the Lord a house but God will not allow him to do it. Rather, he promises to raise up one of his sons after him who will build the house for the Lord.  David, again in deep gratitude goes in and sits before the Lord (17:16f) to thank him for choosing him to be his servant and his family to rule over Israel, “Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house, that you have brought me thus far? And this was a small thing in your eyes, O God.”

A small thing!? Was he serious? God had chosen him to be king of his people and David calls it a small thing. But note carefully, he wasn’t saying it was a small thing to him but a small thing “in God’s eyes.” What he meant was that for God this was no great undertaking. He did this with ease. To put it in anthropomorphic terms it didn’t wear God out. For David it was monumental. For God it was the continuation of his eternal plans and purpose.

I thought to myself. What “small” thing has God done for me. And the first and most obvious answer was my salvation. God, being rich in his mercy, made me alive together with Jesus Christ. It was difficult for him. For me it was, and continues to be, cataclysmic. Wow!

Prayer: Father, as David said, “What more can I say to you for honoring your servant?” Yet, Lord, I pray that you would fill me with continual wonder and praise to you for your gift of salvation — perhaps a small thing in your eyes, but for me an everlasting transforming blessing. Thank you seems so weak. But my heart is full of wonder.

What...When...Happy

READ 1 Chronicles 14-15

“Obedience is doing what God says, when God says, with a happy heart.” Those words from Life Action, designed for little ears, ring true in our adult minds. We know that real obedience is doing things God’s way and not our own. When we choose to do things our way, rather than obeying God, we have broken the 1^st  Commandment: “You shall have no other gods before me.”

David and the people of Israel learned a hard lesson when transporting the ark back to Jerusalem (13). They placed the ark on a brand new cart. Wow! Imagine how wonderful that cart was. Think Rolls Royce turning out a one-of-a-kind vehicle just to carry something for one time only…spare no expense. But something went terribly wrong. The oxen stumbled, Uzzah reached out to steady the ark and God struck him dead. David was so afraid he put the ark in the house of Obed-edom and left it there for three months.

Then in Ch. 15 David prepares once again to bring the ark to Jerusalem. But this time he does it God’s way (15:15). God had given clear instructions how the ark was to be carried and they had violated that with the new cart. This time the ark would travel on the shoulders of the priests.

What’s the big deal? The big deal is “doing what God says, when God says, with a happy heart.” God demands complete obedience in word and action from an obedient heart. First, we learn his will from his Word. Then we do it. Simple, huh? (James 1:22)

Prayer: Father, my prayer today is first confession that I so often do not do what you say. Or often I do what you want but too late. But, perhaps most often, I am guilty of trying to obey you in half-heartedness. Help me, Lord. God be merciful to me a sinner. Help me to walk in your way constantly with a joyful heart that seeks your glory above all else.

Guidance from God

READ 1 Chronicles 10-11

Why was Saul rejected as king over Israel? The writer of Chronicles gives us a clear explanation. “So Saul died for his breach of faith. He broke faith with the Lord in that he did not keep the command of the Lord, and also consulted a medium, seeking guidance. He did not seek guidance from the Lord. Therefore the Lord put him to death and turned the kingdom over to David the son of Jesse.” (10:13-14) Saul’s failure to trust in the Lord and seek him for guidance was his downfall.

That’s a great reminder for you and me today. We must seek the Lord’s guidance in all that we do also. But how do we do that? We do it through his Word and through prayer. As we pray to the Lord for guidance we search his Word for instruction. His method of speaking to us is through his written Word that he has given us for “for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.” (2 Timothy 3:16)

That’s why things like Scripture reading plans are so important. They help us to stay in the Word on a consistent basis. But even these plans are not enough when seeking the Lord’s guidance, obviously. We must search out the mind of the Lord through what He has revealed to us in his Word. Don’t be content with a little guidance. Be an eager seeker of God through his Word.

Prayer:  Father, thank you that you have given us the treasure of your written Word. How grateful we are that you wrote it down for us through the pens of your inspired writers to teach us and guide us and correct us when we go wrong. Help us to love your Word and treasure it. Help us to demonstrate our love for you by how we hunger for your Word.

Chronicle of Destruction

READ 2 Kings 17-18

In Chapter 17 there is a chronicle of destruction. God itemizes the steps in the fall of Israel in 722 b.c. First, the people of Israel “had sinned against the Lord their God” (7) How had they sinned against the Lord? By mixing with the nations whom God had told them to drive out and by committing idolatry with their gods (7-12). Remember, idolatry is the act of worshipping something other than the one true God.

The second step was that God warned them by the prophets and seers telling them to repent and obey his Word, i.e., believe (13). Verse 14 makes clear that their disobedience of the Word constituted unbelief. Interestingly enough, that is exactly the same call that goes out to people who do not worship the Lord today. The message really hasn’t changed except for the full realization that Jesus, the Word made flesh, is the one to whom we turn in our repentance and faith.

How did they respond? That’s the third step. They were stubborn and continued in their idolatry (14-17). Which led to the fourth and final step of God removing them from his sight (18). What a tragic scenario was played out over these two hundred years.

Brothers and sisters, there is such real danger in idolatry. Of course, our idolatry is much more subtle. We don’t build images on high places and go up and bow down to them. Rather, we tend to make idols of material things or even people in our lives. A friend once defined an idol for me: Anything that one is not willing to give up for God is an idol. I would expand that a bit to saying: Anything that one puts before God in his heart is an idol. Could it be that as we say we long for spiritual awakening it doesn't come because we are caught up in idolatry? 

Let us search our hearts. Is there anyone or anything that has captured God’s rightful place in our lives? If so, we must repent and believe by obeying the Word of the Lord and loving him with all our heart, soul, mind and strength.

Prayer:  Father, you alone are worthy of our worship. You alone are worthy of our praise. O, God, search our hearts and see if there be any wicked way in us and lead us back to your everlasting way. Show us, Father, if anything or anyone has captured our devotion above you. Help us to repent and trust in you alone.