Today in God's Word—February 2023
East Tallassee Church of Christ
February 25, 2 Chronicles 15
”The LORD is with you while you are with him. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will forsake you." - 2 Chronicles 15:2
It could have come in the form of a friend who loved you enough to confront you, and you trusted enough to listen. Maybe a dangerous situation or a close call got your attention. Perhaps you found it in a promise in the Bible. Encouragement comes through many channels. Azariah the son of Oded came out by the Spirit of God to deliver a message to King Asa and all of Judah. He assured the king and his people of God's presence with them and reminded them of God's promises of blessing and threats of punishment. He illustrated the truth he spoke from their own history. So much of the suffering and calamity they had suffered as a nation was the direct result of turning away from God. The prophet called them to be courageous, not weak, and promised them a great reward for wholehearted obedience. Azariah's words were a masterful example of multiple forms of encouragement.
The prophet’s words were effective. Asa heard the prophet and immediately took courage. He began a new campaign to eradicate the idols, along with the altars and pillars erected to them all across the country. His leadership encouraged many in Judah and Benjamin to join his reform effort. Even Israelites from other tribes came from the north to Judah to seek the Lord and escape the rampant idolatry in the north. Asa destroyed the idol altars and repaired the altar of the LORD in front of the temple. He led the people in renewing the covenant, the third of four recorded times the nation repented and renewed their covenant with God during their history. The threat of capital punishment was not something new added in the days of Asa, but a reinstatement of the commandment God gave the nation in Deuteronomy about idolaters, long before they entered Canaan.
Asa could not be accused of favoritism. He destroyed his own mother's detestable image she had made to the goddess Asherah. The king deposed her from serving as the queen mother because of her idolatry. The sin of idolatry was deeply entrenched in Israel and also in Judah. Asa”s campaign did not rid the nation of all the high places where the idol worshipers offered sacrifices to their gods. But the good king’s good heart was completely devoted to God and removing the idols and their worshipers from the land.
God blessed the people and their king for their commitment to be faithful to him and get rid of the idols. After the war with Ethiopia, God granted them another twenty year stretch of peace, until Asa's 35th year.
This chapter reminds us that everyone needs encouragement, from king to common folks. That encouragement may take the form of a promised reward or a threatened punishment. Encouragement comes from personal acceptance and application of God’s word, and from the good example of others.
Chapter 15 also reminds us that there is no substitute for wholehearted obedience. It tells us that even the most wholehearted seekers of God will not perfectly obey God’s will or accomplish all they set out to do for the Lord. Let's ponder each of these lessons for a while, and see which of them we need to encourage us, and renew our commitment to serve the Lord.
Copyright © 2023 by Michael B. McElroy. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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