May the mumbling commence!
Breaking a good relationship with the Lord from one
generation to the next is bad news. Read
from Second Chronicles chapter twenty-one:
Then Elijah the prophet wrote Jehoram this letter:
"This is what the Lord,
the God of your ancestor David, says: You have not
followed the good example of your father, Jehoshaphat, or your grandfather King
Asa of Judah. Instead, you have been as evil as the kings of Israel.
You have led the people of Jerusalem and Judah to worship idols, just as King
Ahab did in Israel. And you have even killed your own brothers, men who were
better than you. So now the Lord
is about to strike you, your people, your children, your wives, and all that is
yours with a heavy blow. You yourself will be stricken with a severe
intestinal disease until it causes your bowels to come out."
Then the Lord
stirred up the Philistines and the Arabs, who lived near the Ethiopians, to
attack Jehoram. They marched against
Judah, broke down its defenses, and carried away everything of value in the
royal palace, including his sons and his wives. Only his youngest son, Ahaziah,
was spared.
It was after this
that the Lord struck Jehoram with
the severe intestinal disease. In the
course of time, at the end of two
years, the disease caused his bowels to come out, and he died in agony. His people did not
build a great fire to honor him at his funeral as they had done for his
ancestors. Jehoram was thirty-two years
old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eight years. No one was sorry when he died. He was
buried in the City of David, but not in the royal cemetery. (Verses
12-20)
Breaking faith with the Lord has its consequences! Jehoram had not only the good example of his
father but also of his grandfather. But
it did no good.
The Lord struck his family. And the Lord struck him with a severe intestinal
disease. It was two years of agony until
his bowels came out. TWO YEARS!
Now, I have had my own experience with bowels in
rebellion. My appendix ruptured. I had to be opened up and carefully cleaned
out. That was a horrible
experience. It did not lead to death…
obviously. It did not last two
years. Thank God! Several months were enough, thank you.
I cannot imagine the pain of Jehoram’s pain. I don’t want to. That’s what it is like, spiritually, when we
cut off proper relationships with the Lord.
We may be in denial, but that’s the truth of it.
I look at Jehoram and think that an earthly kingdom is
not something to covet. Read from First
Corinthians chapter four:
You think you already have everything you
need! You are already rich! Without us
you have become kings! I wish you really were on your thrones already,
for then we would be reigning with you! But sometimes I think God has put us apostles on display,
like prisoners of war at the end of a victor's parade, condemned to die. We
have become a spectacle to the entire world – to people and angels alike.
Our dedication to Christ makes us look like fools, but
you are so wise! We are weak, but you are so powerful! You are well thought of, but we are laughed at.
To this very hour we go hungry and thirsty, without enough clothes to
keep us warm. We have endured many beatings, and we have no homes of our
own. We have worked wearily with our own
hands to earn our living. We bless those
who curse us. We are patient with those who abuse us. We respond gently when evil things are said
about us. Yet we are treated like the world's garbage, like everybody's
trash – right up to the present moment. (Verses 8-13)
To deserve a heavenly crown we must act holy – set apart. It means blessing those who curse us (whether
they are more powerful than us or not).
It means exhibiting patience. It
means responding gently to people when they do evil things to us. It means accepting being treated like garbage
so that we might reflect the love and grace and care of our Lord Jesus. It means bowing to the heavenly throne in
humility.
Let it be so.
Amen and amen.
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace Out
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