Why We Blame God

You may not like the answer to the question "Why we blame God" in this post. I believe one of the reasons is found in 2 Kings 6. Elisha has been acting as a supernatural double-agent for the king of Israel for some time. He has led the army of Syria right into the hand of the King of Israel. When the King sees his enemies delivered to him, there's exchange recorded in the narrative.

2 Kings 6:21–23 (ESV) As soon as the king of Israel saw them, he said to Elisha, “My father, shall I strike them down? Shall I strike them down?” 22 He answered, “You shall not strike them down. Would you strike down those whom you have taken captive with your sword and with your bow? Set bread and water before them, that they may eat and drink and go to their master.” 23 So he prepared for them a great feast, and when they had eaten and drunk, he sent them away, and they went to their master. And the Syrians did not come again on raids into the land of Israel.

Please note the description of Elisha's instructions and the King of Israel's actions because they are very different. Elisha said to practice noble war, giving the enemy bread and water - basic necessities in order to send them home defeated. But that is not what the King of Israel does. Verse 23 says, "he prepared for them a great feast".

The difference is entirely consequential. The King of Israel is following in his predecessor's footsteps, desperately trying to win the approval of the Syrians so that he might strengthen his own territorial borders against Judah. Remember back in 1 Kings 20 Ahab was willing to give Ben-hadad, king of Syria whatever he wanted to keep the peace. It required the instigation of a prophet to fight back and defend the land. Now here in 2 Kings 6, we see the king of Israel once again trying to keep the peace. He should have listened to the prophet and given the Syrian army basic provisions but instead, he throws a lavish feast. Why? Because he wanted to make friends with the enemies of Israel instead of trust in the Word of the Lord entirely. 

What happens to Israel shortly after this? You guessed it, the enemy came at them in large measure:
2 Kings 6:24–25 (ESV) Afterward Ben-hadad king of Syria mustered his entire army and went up and besieged Samaria. 25 And there was a great famine in Samaria, as they besieged it, until a donkey’s head was sold for eighty shekels of silver, and the fourth part of a kab of dove’s dung for five shekels of silver.

There is such a famine the passage goes on to describe two women who ate one of their children and the one with the dead child is mad the other woman won't cook her child! When the King of Israel hears this, guess who he blames? He blames the PROPHET!

2 Kings 6:30–31 (ESV) When the king heard the words of the woman, he tore his clothes—now he was passing by on the wall—and the people looked, and behold, he had sackcloth beneath on his body— 31 and he said, “May God do so to me and more also, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat remains on his shoulders today.”

Astonishingly, the king of Israel turns his rage against the prophet who had been keeping his nation alive up to this point. You see how his heart is in the wrong place? He tried to befriend the world and it backfired and when it didn't work, he blamed the man of God.

This is what I see Christians doing on a regular basis. Instead of trusting the Word of the Lord, they seek to make friends with the enemies of God. So they capitulate the standards of our faith in order to go with the flow of culture and try to get along with the world. Then things go terribly wrong and they suffer because the world often does not know what is right.

Dear Christian, please remember the world may at times appreciate us, they will NEVER truly like us. And trying to appease them is a fool's errand. James writes:
James 4:4 (ESV) You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.

I know we are called to reach the world with the Gospel and do go to all men. But remember there's a line between serving the world and trying to please the world. If everyone in the world loves what you do for Christ, you may not be serving Christ.