I Don't Want To

I don’t want to!! Someone gives me a command (or even just a suggestion) and I instantly fall into thinking, “Don’t tell me what to do!” Today as my Bible study partner and I reviewed our notes and the commentator’s notes for 2 Kings 1, I saw that I am not the only one who thinks like that. Maybe you also fall into that line of thinking when someone “tells” you what to do.

As part of the introduction to the book of 2 Kings, the commentator reviewed the history of Israel, starting with Moses on Mount Sinai getting the Ten Commandments. He actually cited two other commentators:

In a new book produced by Walter C. Kaiser, Jr. called Recovering the Unity of the Bible, he calls upon [David Noel] Freedman’s astute observation that essentially all the Biblical books occurring after Mt. Sinai and leading up to 2
 Kings record Israel’s breaking all of the 10 Commandments that are essentially the founding principles that forms the basis for Israel’s existence as a Kingdom of God.

He goes on to assert that as a nation, Israel, sequentially, and in the order on the tablets Moses received, broke every one of the commandments by the time they got to the point in history of 2 Kings. The first two commandments were actually broken at the very moment the commands were given. Exodus 20 gives a list of the Ten Commandments starting in verse 3. Verses 3-4 say,

You shall have no other gods before Me. You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth.

The whole story of how they broke the first two commands is in Exodus 32:1-10. The people became impatient waiting for Moses to end his private conference with God, so they took things into their own hands. They formed the molten calf (Exodus 32:4), thus placing another god before Jehovah God and having an image/likeness of something on the earth as their god.

My thoughts: this is human nature then and now. Remember my opening paragraph? For the most part, we don’t like to be told what to do. Even though I profess to be a follower of Christ and diligently try to apply the commands I get from the Holy Spirit, I often fail. In order to truly be a follower of Christ I need to make specific applications that, little by little, lead me to be changed into the character of Jesus. Yet, I often rebel and disobey God of the exact commands He’s giving me.

For instance, for over a year now, I’ve frequently come across in my Bible reading, studying, and highlighting the command to pray – specific and consistent prayer. Yet, each day as I set about my activities for the day, I do not put on my schedule specific and devoted time to pray. I am praying short and pointed prayers throughout each day, but there are some long-term, ongoing requests I tend to forget about. (They are written down in a notebook, which I should also be regularly adding to.)

It’s just too easy to rebel and say to myself either, “Don’t tell me what to do!” or “I don’t want to do that!” Fortunately, even though God’s desire is for us to obey every command in the Bible (Old and New Testaments), He forgives those who fail when they confess to Him and try again. Unfortunately, the nation of Israel was led by men who did not make following the Ten Commandments (or any of God’s commandments except when convenient) a priority for them or their nations. So, one by one (and repeatedly) they broke all Ten Commandments, which we will see in 2 Kings led to God’s judgment. We will begin to look at some of that judgment next week.

Seek the Lord Jehovah

Picking back up in 1 Kings, some time has passed. The Scriptures do not explain the hows or whys but at the beginning of chapter 22, King Ach’av (Ahab) of Israel and King Y’hoshafat (Jehoshaphat) of Judah had become allies. They met to form plans for battle against the occupiers of Ramot-Gil’ad that was in the ancestral lands God had given Israel.

The two kings agreed to fight together, but Y’hoshafat had a request before they finalized the plans. Verse 5 (CJB) explains: “But Y’hoshafat said to the king of Isra’el, ‘First, we should seek the word of Adonai.’” Ach’av assembled the prophets (who were not Jehovah followers) and they all did their song and dance rituals. They determined God would provide a great victory for the joint armies of Israel and Judah. But Y’hoshafat was not satisfied.

But Y’hoshafat said, “Besides these, isn’t there a prophet of Adonai here that we can consult?” ⁸ The king of Isra’el said to Y’hoshafat, “Yes, there is still one man through whom we can consult Adonai, Mikhay’hu the son of Yimlah; but I hate him, because he doesn’t prophesy good things for me, but bad!” Y’hoshafat replied, “The king shouldn’t say such a thing.” (Verses 7-8)

So Mikhay’hu (Micaiah not to be confused with Micah) was summoned, probably from a dungeon where Ach’av had him for safekeeping and out of his way. Micaiah gave the kings God’s message, which was unfavorable for Ach’av, predicting he would go up to battle and be killed. Y’hoshafat was actually spared being harmed, while a random arrow struck Ach’av “between his lower armor and his breastplate” (verse 34). There is much more to these events, but I’m going to focus on one aspect, an aspect we can and should all do.

What did Y’hoshafat do that was different than Ach’av? Why was he spared while Ach’av was not? I’m not sure of all of the possible answers, but one thing stood out to me. Y’hoshafat sought the true God’s (Jehovah’s) words. He did not settle for words from the wise men of his era. He did not read every note from the people. He did not rely on anything but God. I’m also trying to not rely on Facebook or TV news or rumors for my information. All I really need to know is what would God have me do next.

So we also need to seek the one true God’s will and commands when we are getting ready to go to battle. Our battles these days have to do with the uncertainty of the future, both immediate future and long-term future. Who would have thought that the state of the United States (even the world as a whole) would be what it is today. Very little is “normal.” There is fear, social distancing, economic worries, and so, so much uncertainty. Even the “experts” in the fields of medicine cannot agree on the facts about the coronavirus sweeping the world.

I can easily let a sense of unrest and fear overwhelm me, however, I daily (and moment to moment) pray to God. I especially acknowledge His greatness, power, and plans for victory. It’s the most and the least we can do. We can approach major decisions as Y’hoshafat did. Seek out God and His Word for direction. Turning to God will be our salvation from the worries of these times. I don’t assume to understand His answers, and I don’t even know what tomorrow holds for us, but I rely on the One who does.

Dumpster Diving

This week for my blog, I’m going to talk about something God showed me in a Quiet Time about my mental health recovery. Please join me on this path before I get back to finishing up 1 Kings.

I read Philippians 3:4-9 and something stood out to me about Paul’s description of himself (vs. 4-7) and his conclusions in vs. 8-9. In the NLT verses 4-9 say

⁴ though I could have confidence in my own effort if anyone could. Indeed, if others have reason for confidence in their own efforts, I have even more!⁵ I was circumcised when I was eight days old. I am a pure-blooded citizen of Israel and a member of the tribe of Benjamin—a real Hebrew if there ever was one! I was a member of the Pharisees, who demand the strictest obedience to the Jewish law. ⁶ I was so zealous that I harshly persecuted the church. And as for righteousness, I obeyed the law without fault.⁷ I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. ⁸ Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ ⁹ and become one with him. I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ. For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith.

So in looking at verses 4-7, I evaluated my skills, concepts, tools, credentials, pride, and education that I relied on to handle my life. As I looked back, I saw that much of what I relied on, maybe all I relied on – coping mechanisms, education, certificates, diplomas – were either unhealthy or unhelpful as I try to live a productive life as Christ’s servant, or even as an healthy adult person. In many ways I’ve been able to develop new approaches to living that are helpful. But what have I done with the dysfunctional aspects of my life?

Verses 8-9 tell us what Paul did with all his credentials and thoughts that did not coincide with his new faith in Christ. Paul considered all his credentials, degrees, birthrights, and qualifications as garbage in light of the new revelation of Christ. Most garbage was useful for a time, but became useless over time. The usefulness of what Paul now considers junk, was in knowing the Scriptures and seeing how they lead to Christ. Obeying the Old Testament was the only measure they had for righteousness.

But Paul says in this passage that all of that is garbage to him because he now sees the fulfillment through Jesus Christ, and his righteousness is not based on the law but on faith. This reminded me of all those things (coping mechanisms) I held onto so tightly as a child and into my adulthood. They were useful, but as I grew and was no longer in the same situations or danger, they only confused what my adult behaviors should and could be. To me, they are worthless and useless (most of the time) as I’ve learned new coping strategies and matured in dealing with my emotions in adult ways. I never really thought of them as garbage before. However, in learning new ways, new ideas, and identifying feelings I’d long stuffed, they have become useless (and they were never all that helpful). As a result, I am closer to Christ and recognize that my “goodness,” “righteousness” is solely dependent on my faith in Christ. 

So as I was thinking about that more during the next few days, I felt ashamed because in a recent session with my therapist, I tried to cover myself in garbage when things got tough. Useless, worthless and obsolete coping behaviors don’t really match up with God’s plan or with my being an adult. I regret all the times when I hop into the trash bin and try to pull out the things that I have, for the most part, done away with. I picture myself, digging in the filth and rotten food, smearing myself in it, trying to regain what I thought I had lost. However, the rotten banana peel I’m rubbing myself in is no longer functional. I think that looking at the old coping skills as trash (obsolete, worn out, useless thoughts and behaviors) is a new perspective and may help me in the future to not fall into using them.

This imagery of dumpster diving is so vivid in my mind, that when I’m tempted to use the old, outdated, and worthless tools for coping with life, I think twice. I find that there are many things I rely on to navigate through life that need to be put in the trash so I can be more effective in this world for the sake of Christ.

·      What are you doing with the old creation (2 Corinthians 5:17) and its ways of doing things?

·      Are you also dumpster diving?

·      How can you change that to be more effective for Christ, and to live a productive life?

·      Is it time to let your faith be the primary coping mechanism in your life?

God Keeps Calling

We come to 1 Kings 20, which takes a break from the Elijah and Elisha story lines. The situation is that Israel (referring to the northern 10 tribes) is in a relative time of peace from surrounding nations. However, the king, still Ahab, and government leaders have let down their guard and have not paid attention to the political and military climates of those surrounding nations.

There are several reasons that the king of Aram (modern day Syria) takes this opportunity to challenge and threaten Israel. Most of them had to do with Aram’s position in the region, and having a chance to take over Israel as they have wanted to do for many years, they gave it a try. Ahab’s alliances were soft. He essentially had no trained military. So Ben-hadad of Aram sent messengers to Ahab telling him that Ahab would have to turn over everything of value – land, gold, silver, crops, wives, children, servants – to him to avoid a deadly battle. Ahab was willing to give up a lot, but when Ben-hadad’s demands cut so deep it was humiliating, he refused and Aram moved into position to attack.

Then God stepped in. God sent a prophet to Ahab and told him that, in spite of the vast army assembled outside the gates, He would give Ahab the victory. Of course, Ahab was skeptical since God told him to gather only a few young men (232), none of who were soldiers or military men in any way. The newly formed army moved out to meet Ben-hadad’s armies and caught Ben-hadad thoroughly drunk and unprepared. Even as Ben-hadad was hosting 32 kings who were his allies, God’s small army moved in. Of course, as we would expect from remembering how God always provided the victory when He said He would, the 232 in Israel’s “army” soundly defeated the vast army of Aram.

The point of this story is two-fold for me. First, it showed that in spite of Ahab and Israel’s continued disobedience and grave sinfulness, God would again act out of His great mercy. I would say His never-ending mercy. In the last chapter, God was rebuking Elijah for his desires to bring wrath down on Israel because of their disobedience. But that is not God’s way with His people (then or now). Here, God again calls to Israel for repentance with an act of mercy by protecting them from Ben-hadad and his army. A gentle calling, an announcement that the God of Israel is a loving and longsuffering God, continually waiting on His people to become obedient. God never stops calling out to sinners attempting to draw them to Himself.

The second point for me, based on the first, is that God is still calling. He is calling for His people in the church to repent and return to worshiping Him. We as a people have continued to go astray from His commands and His wishes. Individually, we continue to sin and rebel against God’s laws and try to do things our own way. God’s calling also extends to everyone. He hasn’t stopped calling people to Himself and no matter how grave the sin or disobedience, He does not write people off as unable to be saved. He asks us to mirror His character by also mercifully, gently, and persistently calling to others to repent, turn to Him, and honor Him.

Are there people or groups of people you have given up on? 

What would God say about that? 

Are we acting as He would have us act – loving, merciful, gentle, and persistent? 

I intend to keep loving people however they behave and however they think, as that is what God is doing.

Besides, only God knows what’s going on in the hearts and minds of people. Since I don’t know and you can’t always tell by their behavior how desperate, lonely, frustrated, angry, despairing, or confused they might be, I will keep calling to them. My job is not to judge. My job is to be God’s voice to the world, mirroring His gentle, loving, and forgiving call to everyone.