December 17, 2010

2 Chronicles 19-20

Sometime after my grandma Chaffin turned 90, she sent me a little note. Jokingly she wrote, “The pastor came by the other day. He said that at my age I should be thinking about the hereafter. I told him, “I think about the hereafter all the time. I walk into a room and ask myself, ‘Now what am I hereafter?’” I am only 55 and already I am doing that. But on a grander scale do not we all do that with life? Don’t we all seem to have times when we are really clicking with God, and then all of a sudden it is like, “What am I doing here?”

WE are not alone. Jehoshaphat is a great example of both of those extremes. Coming off of the humiliating defeat in battle (I wonder how many of his 1.16 million man army did he lose?) when he allied with Ahab, the seer corrected him. To his credit, Jehoshaphat takes it to heart. He personally forms a party and travels from the far south of the kingdom to the far north. As he goes from city to city, he exhorts the people to seek the Lord and appoints judges to judge according to the character of the Lord. A tremendous revival breaks out.

After every victory there always comes an attack of the enemy. Probably his loss with Ahab against Syria not only weakened his army but also weakened how the surrounding nations viewed his military strength. The years that he spent focusing upon the Lord rather than his military strength gave the nations to the east time to gather their armies together. They were able to ford the Dead Sea and establish a beachhead on the western shore near En Gedi. By the time Jehoshaphat heard about it, the beachhead was already established and the armies were poised to advance toward Jerusalem.

I wonder if Jehoshaphat thought, “If only I had spent more time focusing on the military.” The text does say that he feared. So, he called a fast and commanded everyone to seek the Lord. The Lord spoke clearly to them. They bowed in worship. Jehoshaphat greatly exhorted the people to believe in the Lord. The result was one of the most amazing battles recorded in the Hebrew Scriptures. They appointed singers to sing praise to the Lord. As they sang the high praise of the Lord, the Lord confused their enemies, and they began to attack themselves. By the time the army of Judah arrived at the battlefield, it was all over. The enemies of Judah had destroyed themselves and lay dead upon the ground. Wow! What an illustration to the people about the need to trust the Lord!

But after every victory there always comes an attack of the enemy. This time he did not use a foreign army. He used commerce. Jehoshaphat now had clear control of the lands of Edom and Moab all the way to Ezion Geber on the northern most point of the Reed Sea, near the city of Aqaba of modern Jordan. Solomon had built a navy there that brought riches to him from around the world. They would set sail on a three year cycle. If Tarshish is to be identified with the assumed location near Gibraltar, it would take their ships on a mighty trading voyage around the Cape of Good Hope and then up the coast to Spain. It certainly could take three years to make the voyage as they stopped and traded at different ports along the way trading with the African kings (Yes, Africa did have kingdoms. We just don’t hear about them in our European-centric history courses.) Tarshish was also a term that referred to mighty ships used for commerce. In either case, it would be an expensive task to build and man a fleet of ships that could make the three year journey together and return unharmed by pirates or weather. Falling back on family to share the expense, Jehoshaphat formed an alliance with Israel.
What was he thinking? Did he go to Ezion Geber and say, “What am I here after?” Well, this wasn’t a battle. He was forming an alliance for trade. Trade is a significant thing. It is necessary for a healthy world economy. It is necessary for a healthy national economy. But to do it, he allied with his brother-in-law Ahaziah, a very wicked man, a follower of Baal, the son of Jezebel. But the Lord is merciful. He sank their fleet, and He sent a prophet to rebuke Jehoshaphat. Walking with the Lord is more important than a successful national economy. His glory is greater than armies. His glory is greater than riches. Whenever I stop to think, “What am I here after?” May I always answer, “For the glory of the the Lord!” Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

Revelation 8

There are times in life when silence is the only appropriate response. Not far from Portland, Oregon is a viewing point called Larch Mountain. Laura and I went there many times when I was in seminary. Your could drive very close to the top, park in a lot and the walk to the summit. On the summit was a viewing platform that afforded a 360 degree view. On a clear day from the top, one can see far to the south Three Sisters (mountains), to the east-southeast Mt Hood, to the east-northeast Mt. Adams (I think that was its name-it might have been Jefferson), to the north what’s left of Mt. St. Helens and further north on an exceptionally clear day Mt. Rainier up by Seattle. It was a sight that inspired awe. I truly enjoyed standing there in silence and slowly turning and looking at all the sights around me.

The Lamb opens the seventh seal and silence prevails in heaven for about half and hour. The Lamb has brought the history of the Earth to an end. In awe of what He has done and what He is about to do all of heaven remains quiet. Seven angels are given seven trumpets of judgment. An eighth angel is given a censer to offer up the prayers of all the saints before God. Here are two aspects of the Lamb which demand occasional silence before Him. He is the just judge. He is also the One through whom our prayer arises before God and becomes effective. Through Him both justice and mercy are dispensed. To the believer mercy is poured out. To the resistant justice is ladled. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John