Category Archives: Morning Thoughts

Morning Thoughts (II Chronicles 16:12)

Morning Thoughts,

Morning ThoughtsII Chronicles 16:12, "And Asa in the thirty and ninth year of his reign was diseased in his feet, until his disease was exceeding great: yet in his disease he sought not to the LORD, but to the physicians." 

This morning, our short-sighted culture lacks something that old-timers called "follow-through."  We refer to this concept in a number of ways – persistence, perseverance, endurance, etc. – but people today are so programmed for the moment that they fail to follow through something to the end.  Two of the paramount principles of Godly service according to the tenets of Scripture are remaining steadfastly faithful and seeking to constantly grow in that grounded state. (II Timothy 2:3, II Peter 3:18) Sadly, there are many who begin to run well, but like a runner getting winded during a race, they fade down the stretch.  Too oftentimes, we may grow lackadaisical in our service because somewhere in our mind we have "done enough."  There is no room for retirement in God's service.  One of the funniest quips I ever heard about that was when one of our ministers was asked, "Do the Primitive Baptists have a retirement program?"  He responded, "Yes, it's called the cemetery." 

Our study verse offers a lot of sorrowful connotation, but when seen in the light of the recent context, it is even moreso.  Asa was a good king of Judah, but like many of God's saints, he faded down the stretch.  Let us briefly consider what led to his painful end, see what great wonders God had wrought, and then look to today and see how we can better serve God without having to experience the misery that Asa had.  The immediate and larger context is one of the most remarkable to consider as a whole.  Let us back up to chapter 13 and quickly move back to our study verse. 

In chapter 13, Abijah (Asa's father) reigns over Judah and has a war with Jeroboam the king of Israel.  Israel and Judah had recently split just years before during the reign of Abijah's father Rehoboam.  10 of the 12 tribes constituting Israel that Jeroboam reigned over and 2 of the 12 tribes constituting Judah that Abijah reigned over warred against each other.  Due to Jeroboam and the nation of Israel's idolatry, God delivered them into Judah's hand.  Though Israel's army numbered 800,000 and Judah's only 400,000 (Verse 3), we find where the Lord delivered Israel into Judah's hand with a slaughter of 500,000! (Verse 17) This is the largest, explicitly stated casualty rate in all of Scripture.  While it does not say how long this slaughter took, the passage reads like it happened quickly.  Since Abijah only reigned 3 years, it was far shorter in duration than modern wars have taken.  Consider.  Israel lost more in this slaughter than all of the American casualties in World War II! 

Chapter 14 opens with the beginning of Asa's reign.  He reigns well.  God blesses him in many ways, but perhaps the greatest came during Asa's own war.  He meets a host of the Ethiopians that are told to number 1,000,000 with 300 chariots as well. (Verse 6) In Verse 11, Asa prays mightily to God showing his utter dependence on the Almighty.  Asa knows that it does not take a large host to effect the Lord's deliverance.  God answers the prayer with a mighty slaughter that drives the large Ethiopian host away and allows Judah to enjoy a great spoil. 

When Chapter 15 opens, the Lord sends the prophet Azariah to give Asa both encouragement and a warning. (Verses 1-7) Azariah encourages Asa to continue in the path he has currently taken (wholly dependent on the Lord) and warns against sliding away (turning to the thoughts of man).  Asa receives the word of God willingly and makes an even more diligent effort through the rest of Chapter 15 to put idolatry away in Judah even more than it already had been.  Not only had he prepared to seek his heart personally in going forth to lead the people, but he further prepared the land to seek the Lord wholly and completely. 

Through much of the books of Kings and Chronicles as we read the lives of the men who ruled over Israel and Judah of old, there are large areas that are very sad to read.  Large portions of time with wickedness prevailing in the land and one ungodly ruler after another.  Sometimes the sections are so rough that when we read of a Godly ruler it seems as if a breeze has blown across the page.  What we have just passed through from Chapters 13-15 is a rather lengthy breeze that shows a very sweet time of fellowship with God and the land of Judah.  However, Chapter 16 opens with something rather peculiar. 

Baasha the next king of Israel comes out to fortify himself against Judah.  He builds cities to halt the traffic in and out of Judah (a siege of sorts).  Asa then sends word to Benhadad the ruler over Syria to come and help him and break his league with Baasha. (Verses 1-6) The following verses contain the rebuke of Hanani the seer to Asa for forgetting the Lord. (Verses 7-9) Consider what has just happened.  Asa's father Abijah slaughtered a great and powerful force of Israel.  Asa himself slaughtered a mightier force than Israel when they overthrew the Ethiopian army.  With such powerful miracles from on high, why would he ask help from the Syrians to get past a lesser foe now?  Hanani tells Asa as much.  Asa's response is woeful beyond degree. 

Instead of repenting and begging for forgiveness, Asa throws the seer into prison and oppressed the people of the land as well.  When his shortcomings were pointed out, he dealt with the problem very destructively in allowing rage to control him.  By the time we get to our study verse, he has forgotten the Lord to the point of not even begging for help during times of physical affliction.  Whereas before, he immediately besought the Lord to help during a time of battle, he forgets to even think of the Lord during times of affliction.  His trust was in the ways of man not in the arm of the Lord.  What a terrible slide and drift to have! 

Let us fast forward to the present and learn from Asa's problems without experiencing the misery of it personally.  God has taken great foes away from us.  The greatest armies we could ever face with the greatest strength would be death, hell, and the grave.  God has delivered us mightily from them.  The next strongest armies we could face are the armies of Satan and all his minions.  God has mercifully stood by us when engaged in Godly warfare against the spiritual wickedness in high places.  Beyond that, the foes that we face are very light in comparison.  We have foes now in our bodies (sickness and affliction), enemies for the gospel's sake, and natural enemies that would like to annihilate us.  Do sicknesses in our body, natural foes, or even God's people that oppose what we think the Bible to teach compare to the other 2 great forces?  No.  There is no comparison whatsoever.  

How often can we fade going down the stretch whenever sickness or maladies come upon us?  How often do we get disgruntled at others for the issues that we have with one another?  How often do we worry about what may happen to us naturally due to all the people in the world that hate us?  Regrettably, I must confess that my outlook during infirmity is not always the brightest; I have worried about the state of things naturally and have not handled my labors and endurance with others like I should.  Too often in all these things, I forget the Lord and look to my own thoughts to carry me through.  Much like Asa, I have forgotten all the past blessings that were marvellous to behold.  When forgetting the Lord like this, I can become quickly angry and oppress the very things that I should be honoring.  Asa should have honored the man of God Hanani for faithfully delivering the word of the Lord to him.  Rather, he afflicted him like a common criminal.  He should have lovingly cared for the land over which he ruled.  Instead, he oppressed it. 

Friends, spend a few moments in contemplation considering how the Lord has delivered you from large and mighty armies.  Things you could not have handled yourself, He has mercifully taken away.  Even the enemies that plague us today, He will still not leave us to endure the hardness alone.  He is still here with us!  Where else would we go for help?  The Syrians of this world's helps as allies?  The expert doctors who can fix anything?  Friends, doctors can be a great blessing and allies in this world can serve to encourage us, but true help and strength comes from whole reliance upon the Omnipotent Ruler of His Universe.  Let us not forget Him friends.  Let us also not fade in our race down the stretch.  We may have run well, let us not stop.  We may not be running well, let us start.  Whatever the case, let us look to Him, and when in need of rebuke, let us take that patiently – knowing that it is of the Lord – and constantly strive to do better in the future than we have in the past.

In Hope,

Bro Philip

Morning Thoughts (II Corinthians 12:9)

Morning Thoughts,

Morning ThoughtsII Corinthians 12:9, "And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.  Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me."

This morning, we live in a world that goes to extreme lengths to remove discomfort.  Most of the innovations in recent memory have been to aid and benefit people's comfort or remove extra work from having to be done.  The devices that have come out in my lifetime seem to exponentially change the way life looks.  However, one of the very adverse side effects of this sweeping technology is that people have been less and less willing to deal with discomfort and suffering in an honorable way.  I remember talking to some of the aged in the church when I was a boy, while they relayed their experience of living through the Great Depression.  They detailed their daily activities as they searched for ways and means to simply get the necessities of life like food and clothing.  When I asked them about how hard it was, they simply shrugged and said, "We were all in the same boat.  We all made it through it.  The Lord was merciful to spare us."  Their suffering was nothing to moan about – everyone else was in bad shape too – but they were more willing to endure and seek the Lord's face for providential care.

In our study verse, we learn many wonderful things from Paul's experience.  He has just relayed his account of being taken up into Paradise or the third heaven.  While there, he saw and heard things that he was not able to talk about (unspeakable words), and he was not even authorized to do so (not lawful for a man to utter).  However, though he could not talk about it, he remembered it fondly and drew great strength from the experience.  Yet, with the firsthand knowledge of what heaven was like, he was not exempt from suffering.  He still had like passions as we do, and he still stumbled and fell after that rich experience.  Paul then relays his circumstance of enduring a thorn in the flesh – a messenger of Satan – that buffeted him and kept him from glorying to over-exaltation about his experience in heaven.  Paul beseeches the Lord three times to remove the thorn, and the answer is given in our verse.

Quite often, we hear people quote this verse, but they only quote the part about God's grace being sufficient.  However, Paul illustrates how that is realized to its fullest degree.  Grace is realized to its fullest degree through the weakness and feebleness of man.  While that application fits on the eternal scale (Christ's grace and strength was made perfect through the depraved and wholly fallen condition of man), Paul's point here pertains more to this time world.  God's grace is sufficient for today's trials.  However, the realization of that grace (our ability to perceive it and use it) depends greatly on how we see ourselves.  The weaker we see ourselves, the stronger we see Him and more fittingly appreciate and use the grace bestowed upon us.  His grace takes many forms, but quite often (as it was with Paul), the grace is the strength and comfort to get through things.  God never (that Scripture records) took the thorn of Paul's flesh away.  However, He gave Paul sufficient strength and comfort to get through life with that thorn.  Paul's use of that grace was more and more perfect the weaker and weaker he saw his condition.

However, though most people only quote the first half of this verse, some will actually quote the second part (my strength is made perfect in weakness), but only rarely will someone quote the last portion.  It is that portion which grabs us now.  Paul was willing to glory in his infirmities that the power of Christ would rest upon him.  Now, it should be stated clearly that Paul was not some sort of masochist or sadist that enjoyed suffering and misery.  Paul did not delight in the fact that he suffered.  Compare his language here with Romans 5:3.  In both places, he is glorying in suffering and tribulation, but it would be incorrect to say that Paul was delighting in the miserable situation.

Rather, Paul in Romans 5:3 and our verse is teaching that we have ample reason and opportunity to rejoice and glory in the Lord even in the midst of our suffering, infirmity, and tribulation.  We do not glory in problems.  We glory in the Lord, even in the midst of problems.  However, Paul did say something profound in this statement.  Paul said that he would "rather" have infirmities.  Wow!  Why would anyone say that they would rather have it tough than easy?  Paul had learned, knew, and understood that his view of the Gloryworld and affection upon Christ was stronger during tough times.  Tough times remind us how weak we are.  Our weakness reminds us how strong He is.  His strength is more fully realized when our weakness is more fully realized.

Therefore, Paul said that he would rather have it tough so that the power of Christ would rest upon him.  If he could feel the rich warmth of God's grace enfolding him during days of infirmity (thorn in the flesh) better than he would by getting relief from personal problems, Paul said he would rather deal with the personal problems.  No matter how you slice it, that is a profound thought.  Let us put it in today's terms.  If you knew that it would bring you closer to God (power of Christ would rest upon you), if you did not have a financial nest egg, comfortable home, good vehicles to drive, and good health, would you desire to give up those things?  Paul said he would.

Friends, I do not want anyone to think I am advocating "non-materialism" in this world.  However, I do believe that we have many things that stand in our way of the power of Christ resting upon us.  A wise old minister from my youth was known to say, "It's hard to preach comfort to people who are already comfortable."  The gospel should bring us comfort, and God's abiding presence should bring us comfort as well.  Yet, if we are so comfortable from all the things of life, we do not feel to need it.  Yet, a little loss, a little suffering, and we get shaken back to the realization that we need Him.  May we rather – as Paul did – glory in things that may not be as ideal naturally speaking so that we can get closer to the ideal spiritually speaking.  When trouble comes, there are two general reactions we can employ: 1.  Complain – Why me? or 2.  Pray – Lord help.  May we glory in the Lord during times when we feel quite weak and are made to feel and know that His strength and sufficient grace is very near unto us. 

In Hope,

Bro Philip