365 Reflections

Prayer gets answered. That much is true when you familiarize yourself with scripture. In fact, God is so committed to answering our prayers sometimes the scripture interrupts us with a short story to inform us just how often prayer gets answered. The story is familiar to many Christians. The name has been in the title of books and sermons. It's the one name that stands out other than David in the first 4 chapters of the genealogical record of 1 Chronicles. 1 Chronicles 4:9–10 (ESV) Jabez was more honorable than his brothers; and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, “Because I bore him in pain.” 10 Jabez called upon the God of Israel, saying, “Oh that you would bless me and enlarge my border, and that your hand might be with me, and that you would keep me from harm so that it might not bring me pain!” And God granted what he asked. This text comes alive when you consider its context. The list of names goes on and on. The order and delivery were hugely important for Israel to f...

For all the spiritual decline that runs throughout the narrative of 2 Kings, the end of the book is particularly shocking. Judah's last king, taken captive into Babylon and imprisoned for decades is graciously released at the hand of Evil-Merodach and set up for a life of peace and security. 2 Kings 25:27–30 (ESV) And in the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, graciously freed Jehoiachin king of Judah from prison. 28 And he spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat above the seats of the kings who were with him in Babylon. 29 So Jehoiachin put off his prison garments. And every day of his life he dined regularly at the king’s table, 30 and for his allowance, a regular allowance was given him by the king, according to his daily needs, as long as he lived. Why would kings end like this? Why would God allow the wicked lineage of king...

Josiah is a king like no other before him or after him in the Old Covenant. His reforms clean house in a nation utterly corrupted. His passion to obey God was unparalleled even by David and Hezekiah. He not only brought Israel to national repentance, but he also restored the sacred meal that signified who they were.  2 Kings 23:21–23 (ESV) And the king commanded all the people, “Keep the Passover to the LORD your God, as it is written in this Book of the Covenant.” 22 For no such Passover had been kept since the days of the judges who judged Israel, or during all the days of the kings of Israel or of the kings of Judah. 23 But in the eighteenth year of King Josiah this Passover was kept to the LORD in Jerusalem. The Passover for Israel was what the Lord's Supper is for us. It is the meal that God's covenant people ate with their deliverer (Jesus for us/Moses for them). Both meals were inaugurated on the night before the death of the firstborn (of God for us/of Pharoah for the...

No matter where you are, seek God and good things will result. Josiah is case in point. What's amazing is that he comes from a line of self-centered kings. Yet he will stand out. What's more amazing is who was involved in making Josiah King. His father Amon was betrayed and killed and the people struck back at his assassins and placed Josiah, his son on the throne.  2 Kings 21:24 (ESV) But the people of the land struck down all those who had conspired against King Amon, and the people of the land made Josiah his son king in his place. What's even more amazing is that Josiah became king at a younger age than even Manasseh. 2 Kings 22:1 (ESV) Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned thirty-one years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jedidah the daughter of Adaiah of Bozkath. The turn about that Josiah will bring to Judah begins in his 26th year of life when a simple decree to care for the temple is sent out. 2 Kings 22:3–5 (ESV) In the eighteenth ...

The legacy Hezekiah leaves behind for his children is one of riches, fame, healing, and deliverance from his enemies. But his heart was proud and he never gave God the honor He deserves toward the end of his life.  The result of Hezekiah's life is extrapolated in the testimony of his son, Manasseh. But first I remind you of Hezekiah's wealth and privilege provided him by the gracious hand of the Lord. His nation was under the threat of Assyria and the Lord sent his angel to destroy 185,000 troops in the night to secure him peace. He was intended to die by illness but his earnest prayer to God yielded a miraculous recovery. On top of these things, he increased in wealth substantially. At the visit of the Babylonian emissary it says this: 2 Kings 20:13 (ESV) Hezekiah welcomed them, and he showed them all his treasure house , the silver , the gold , the spices , the precious oil , his armory , all that was found in his storehouses. You could say Hezekiah lived the good life to the...

Fresh off his healing, Hezekiah makes a huge mistake that will cost the nation of Judah its existence. Envoys from Babylon, the second up and coming nation of the age, are sent to examine the doings of Israel. When they meet Hezekiah he is more than willing to open the entire treasure to them.  2 Kings 20:12–13 (ESV) At that time Merodach-baladan the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent envoys with letters and a present to Hezekiah, for he heard that Hezekiah had been sick. 13 And Hezekiah welcomed them, and he showed them all his treasure house, the silver, the gold, the spices, the precious oil, his armory, all that was found in his storehouses. There was nothing in his house or in all his realm that Hezekiah did not show them. This moment is so exhausting. Hezekiah should know better than to let a foreign nation know what Israel has in their storehouse. He invites disaster. But his mistake illustrates a condition of the human heart to which we are all susceptible. When we exper...

2 Kings 20:1 (ESV) In those days Hezekiah became sick and was at the point of death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came to him and said to him, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Set your house in order, for you shall die; you shall not recover.’ ” The life of Hezekiah is one many Christians can relate to. He had his moments of great faith and trust in the Lord, but he also had moments of pride and selfishness. At this moment, he's on the verge of death. Now in this weakened state the prophet Isaiah comes along with the worst news possible. He's going to die. Consider being in Hezekiah's shoes. You're weak and ill and the only word you get from the prophet is impending death. Yikes.  What would you do if God's servant told you you were going to die? I imagine many of us would resign ourselves to God's diagnosis. After all, it is God's decision, and who can change it? I think we'd suppose He has reasons and that we perhaps deserved it and there's no chan...

The news for Judah seems dismal. The threats of Sennacherib loom over the land. Will Judah fall to Assyria as the Northern tribes of Israel did? The propaganda from Assyria seems certain and pulls no punches letting the people know it. Hezekiah sends messengers to Isaiah and Isaiah responds with words of assurance that the Lord will frustrate the king of Assyria yet Hezekiah sees very little in the way of victory even after the words. Instead, Rabshakeh, the minister of propaganda keeps taunting the defenders on the wall and pronouncing inevitable defeat. After all, there were many nations before Judah who called out to their “gods” and they were vanquished. What made Judah different?  The answer is found in the theme of Hezekiah’s prayer offered in 2 Kings 19.  2 Kings 19:14 (ESV) Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers and read it; and Hezekiah went up to the house of the LORD and spread it before the LORD. Hezekiah takes the taunts of the enemy and “spr...

Pride is popular today. We see our world celebrate it, rejoice in it, and base their entire lives on it.  But pride is deadly.  The 14th chapter of 2 Kings introduces us to one half-hearted king after another. The names are hard to follow because many of them repeat and the narrative keeps moving back and forth from the Northern 10-tribe nation of Israel to the Southern 2-tribe nation of Judah. I will do my best to simplify the story for you. We start in the South with Amaziah.  2 Kings 14:1–2 (ESV) In the second year of Joash the son of Joahaz, king of Israel, Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, began to reign. 2 He was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jehoaddin of Jerusalem. Amaziah will follow the Lord half-heartedly. His moderate commitment is still blessed as he will have great success against the Edomites dwelling in the south, that ancient rival nation descended from Esau.  ...

Exodus 9:13–17 (ESV)   Then the Lord said to Moses, “Rise up early in the morning and present yourself before Pharaoh and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord , the God of the Hebrews, “Let my people go, that they may serve me. 14 For this time I will send all my plagues on you yourself, and on your servants and your people, so that you may know that there is none like me in all the earth. 15 For by now I could have put out my hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, and you would have been cut off from the earth. 16 But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth. 17 You are still exalting yourself against my people and will not let them go. We are all serving God. It's just a matter of how so. This passage makes it abundantly clear there is no one in the story of God's deliverance of Israel that isn't part of the Sovereign plan of the Almighty.  God says to Moses, "Rise up early ...

Exodus 5:20–23 (ESV)   They met Moses and Aaron, who were waiting for them, as they came out from Pharaoh; 21 and they said to them, “The Lord look on you and judge, because you have made us stink in the sight of Pharaoh and his servants, and have put a sword in their hand to kill us.” 22 Then Moses turned to the Lord and said, “O Lord, why have you done evil to this people? Why did you ever send me? 23 For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has done evil to this people, and you have not delivered your people at all.” Moses has gone to Pharaoh and nothing but bad has happened. Note that again: Moses has done what God has said exactly... and all that has been produced is Pharaoh's decree to cause more pain to the people of Israel. They will not be forced to make the same quota of bricks per day AND scavenge for their own straw. Herein lies the unseen fact of following the Lord. It usually gets worse at first. The Lord does not make everything alright. He ...

Typically when God does something special or new in our lives, the enemy is enraged and attacks. Jesus said in the parable of the soils (Matthew 13) the evil one comes in and steals the seed of the Word before it even has a chance to settle into the soil. The enemy of our souls hates the power of God's Word. It's because he (the enemy) knows the power of God's Word even more than us. It is the first thing he sought to question before the woman in the garden. The longest Psalm of the collection is dedicated to the Psalmist's love for God's Word. He commits to it and desires it... praying earnestly:  Psalm 119:18–19 (ESV)   Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law. 19 I am a sojourner on the earth; hide not your commandments from me! He wants God's Word deep in his heart because he knows his time on Earth is strange and at times unwelcome. He needs the guidance of the God of heaven. But notice that as soon as he desires God's W...

Sing a new song to the LORD! Let the whole earth sing to the LORD! Sing to the LORD; praise his name. Each day proclaim the good news that he saves. (Psalms 96:1-2 NLT) Psalm 96 call us to sing a new song to The Lord. But what does that mean? Does that mean we are to always buy the latest worship album, learn the chords and sing the new tunes? That would make this command about the latest Christian worship album and not about God. I'm sure the Christian music artist is happy with that interpretation. But there's much more here. The context of this Psalm is the moment the Ark of God finally entered it's resting place in Jerusalem from the house of Obed Edom. This is the famous incident in which David disrobes in front of a disapproving wife in wild celebration that Gods presence was coming to the city.  David penned these words in response to the NEW THING God was doing. David instructs us to sing a new song when God does something new! This makes our worship what it is supp...