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May 31 , Sunday——————–ACCOUNTABILITY FINAL DAY
Reading B151 — 2 Kings 1 — Ahaziah’s Fall Audio: 2 Kings 1 (ESV)
An audio recording of the following comments is available below:
Looking for Help — Ahaziah reigned only two years in Israel because of a fall from his house window. Where his spiritual loyalty was placed is obvious because he first sought information about his recovery from the pagan god, Baal-zebub (meaning “lord of the flies”), rather than from the Lord of the fires from heaven (vv. 10, 12). God’s infinite knowledge and wisdom is amply displayed in this story as the angel told Elijah to meet the messengers before they barely got out of Samaria. God’s question for Ahaziah was about his loyalty, seeking Baal-zebub rather than Yahweh. God knew the end but Baal-zebub didn’t. There are no legitimate rivals to Yahweh because He is the only true God. Sadly, we don’t always recognize that God is our primary source of all that we need in life. The day before writing this, I had a strange medical problem, when I felt lightheaded and my blood pressure fell to a reading of 79/44. I laid down to rest, but it didn’t even enter my mind to ask God for help. Sadly, I wasn’t considering my source. This should be a lesson for all of us: “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble” (Ps. 46:1).
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June 1, Monday
Reading B152 — 2 Kings 2 — Elijah’s Departure Audio: 2 Kings 2 (ESV)
An audio recording of the following comments is available below:
Powerful Guidance — There is a lot of behind-the-scenes working of God in this story. Elijah, Elisha, and two groups of prophets had been independently informed by God that Elijah was going to be miraculously taken away. Both prophet groups asked Elisha if he knew about it, and he responded that he already knew (vv. 3, 5). Elijah not only knew in advance, but that it would also be visible, because he told Elisha that he would receive “a double portion of [God’s spirit] … if you see me as I am being taken from you” (v. 10). God also seemed to be testing Elisha’s tenacity because when Elijah asked him to stay in Gilgal, Bethel, and Jericho, he refused by saying, “I will not leave you” (vv. 2, 4-6). There was also God-confirming evidence of this transfer of power as Elijah used his rolled-up cloak to part the waters of the Jordan River and the miracle was repeated when Elisha did the same thing on his way back (vv. 8, 14). That Elisha received that double-portion promise was demonstrated by the biblical record showing that God performed twice the number of miracles through Elisha than through Elijah. It might not be as obvious, but God is also working behind the scenes in our lives to test and guide our Christian walk and ministry. Look for the evidence!
June 2, Tuesday
Reading B153 — 2 Kings 3 — The Moabite Rebellion Audio: 2 Kings 3 (ESV)
An audio recording of the following comments is available below:
Seeking God’s Way — Judah’s sometimes-wise King Jehoshaphat seemed to have had a spiritual lapse in this story. Fifteen years earlier, he had agreed to join forces with King Ahab, but he first asked, “Is there not here another prophet of the LORD of whom we may inquire?” (1 Kings 22:7). Now, with a request from Ahab’s son, King Jehoram, he simply answered, “I will go … By which way” (2 Kings 3:7-8). Not seeking God’s direction from the beginning often leads us into trouble as well. When these three armies ran out of water, Jehoshaphat remembered God and again asked for help: “Is there no prophet of the LORD here, through whom we may inquire of the LORD?” (v. 11). God’s prophet, Elisha, then came to the rescue with God’s message of hope. The water would be supplied without rain, which would be “a light thing in the sight of the LORD” (v. 18). God would also trick the Moabites into seeing the water as the blood of their opposing enemies, and they would walk into their ruin (vv. 22-24). The “great wrath against Israel” (v. 28) and their withdrawal appears to be, not the wrath of God, but the human wrath of the Moabites in seeing their next king offered as a sacrifice on the city wall. The ancient Moabite Stone, now in the Paris Louvre Museum, credits to Moab the victory in this battle. We are not told all that we would like to know about what happened at the end of that war.
June 3, Wednesday
Reading B154 — 2 Kings 4 — God-providing Miracles Audio: 2 Kings 4 (ESV)
An audio recording of the following comments is available below:
Miracle Faith — Five miracles were performed through Elisha in this chapter. It is interesting to note that whereas Elijah was called “man of God” eight times in Scripture, that term was used for Elisha 29 times, 11 times in this chapter. The emphasis of the term “man of God” focuses more on God than on the prophet. When the troubled Shunamite woman came to Elisha, he did not know her problem, saying, “the LORD has hidden it from me and has not told me” (v. 27). God’s prophets were not omniscient (knowing everything); they knew only what God told them, and Elisha humbly admitted it. In the miracle of multiplying oil, Elisha told the poor woman to “borrow vessels from all your neighbors … and not too few” (v. 3). There was an element of faith involved there because she was not told in advance what was going to happen. She probably said later, “I should have borrowed more.” We might have done the same because faith reaches out into what is unknown. The miracle of the promised son also involved faith because this wealthy woman was barren and her husband was old (v. 14). The miracle of her raised son required faith for Elisha to continue to hope after Gehazi’s prophet-directed efforts failed (v. 31). The poison-stew miracle required Elisha’s faith as he added flour (v. 41) like Elijah had thrown salt into the poisoned water (2:21). The miracle of multiplying the bread also took faith. Gehazi didn’t believe, saying, “How can I set this before a hundred men?” (v. 43a), but God said through Elisha, “They shall eat and have some left” (v. 43b). Miracles stretch our faith.
June 4, Thursday
Reading B155 — 2 Kings 5 — Naaman the Leper Audio: 2 Kings 5 (ESV)
An audio recording of the following comments is available below:
Great Expectations — There were several false human expectations contained in this story. Naaman told the king of Syria the words of the little girl, that “…the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy” (v. 3). When the king wrote his letter, however, he asked Israel’s king to perform the miracle: “…that you may cure him of his leprosy” (v. 6). That was a false expectation of human ability. Later, when Naaman went to Elisha’s house, he wasn’t even greeted by the prophet but only received a message through a servant that he should wash seven times in the Jordan River. What did he expect? Just this: “I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call upon the name of the LORD his God, and wave his hand over the place and cure the leper” (v. 11). He expected a performance, but what he needed was humble obedience. After his initial resistance, he obeyed and became a follower of Yahweh: “I know that there is no God in all the earth but in Israel … from now on your servant will not offer burnt offering or sacrifice to any god but the LORD” (vv. 15, 17). How about you? Is God meeting your expectations? Maybe He is waiting for your humble obedience. There was one more false expectation, that of the servant, Gehazi. Through lying, he expected wealth, but he ended up buying Naaman’s leprosy.
June 5, Friday
Reading B156 — 2 Kings 6 — Samaria’s Famine Audio: 2 Kings 6 (ESV)
An audio recording of the following comments is available below:
Dead-end Dilemmas — Twice in this chapter individuals cried out to Elisha, “Alas, my master!” (vv. 5, 15). Both were cries of desperation. The first one was the cry of one of the sons of the prophets whose borrowed axe head fell into the Jordan River (v. 5). There was financial loss involved here as well as the embarrassment of having to report the loss to his friend. Repayment was probably out of the question, since the men in those training communes probably had income enough only to feed themselves. Have you ever faced such a financial dilemma? Like that temporary logger, we should turn toward the supernatural. For him, Elisha was that connection. He didn’t know what to do, but he seemed to know that Elisha had the solution. It doesn’t record here any message from God, but in faith, Elisha threw a stick into the water to make the iron float supernaturally. God did it. The second cry came from Gehazi, Elisha’s servant. When he saw the city surrounded by “a great army” (v. 14), he cried, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” (v. 15). This time, the dilemma was not a problem of finances but of safety. Gehazi was probably with Elisha when he made the iron float, so he turned to his master, who had a special connection with the supernatural. That was a good move because Elisha saw what was not visible to most people, like Gehazi: God’s great army of angels surrounding Syria’s army. Most of us can relate more to Gehazi than to Elisha, but we know and serve the same God. We have access to Him through prayer, and with faith, we will see Him work to meet our financial and safety needs.
June 6, Saturday
Reading B157 — 2 Kings 7 — Samaria’s Feast Audio: 2 Kings 7 (ESV)
An audio recording of the following comments is available below:
Sharing Good News — The whole city of Samaria was dying, being trapped within its walls because of the surrounding Syrian army. Four lepers were also dying, but they were not even allowed into the city because of their disease. In desperation, they hoped for better treatment in the Syrian camp. Beyond their dreams, they found an abundance of food and indulged themselves. What had happened? God had worked, making the camp hear the sound of a great attacking army (v. 6). The best part of the story to me was that after satisfying themselves, the lepers said, “We are not doing right. This is a day of good news … let us go and tell the king’s household” (v. 9). This made me think of the treasure we Christians have found in Christ. We have discovered the good news and “we are not doing right” if we don’t share it with others. Will we be satisfied with selfishly enjoying the benefits we have realized? The Sri Lankan pastor and theologian, D.T. Niles, said that “Evangelism is one beggar telling another beggar where to find bread,” which is what the four lepers did. We are not doing right if we are keeping the blessings of Christ to ourselves. Like the king of Israel, many people we tell may not believe it, but some will, and it will change their lives, too.
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