GOD LOVES to Come Through - 2 Chronicles 10-13
Insight Into Scripture
After the death of Solomon in chapter 9 we start to read about some very good kings and some very bad kings.When Rehoboam referred to his father using whips and he was going to use scorpions for punishment. (10:11) Scorpions is a type of whip that had metal or glass attached to the tips. If you saw The Passion, the whip that was used to whip Jesus would have been like this. :(
Bringing the Bible Alive
In this picture el-Maqatir is left center; Wadi Sheban is right. This is near Bethel, the town that Abijah took from Jeroboam in battle, along with 2 towns and villages.If you love to read a good story about GOD coming through for HIS people when the odds are against them, read on. There is a really good story. These photos are taken from Bibleplaces.com.
Scripture Reading
Now there was war between Abijah and Jeroboam. 3 Abijah went out to battle, having an army of valiant men of war, 400,000 chosen men. And Jeroboam drew up his line of battle against him with 800,000 chosen mighty warriors. 4 Then Abijah stood up on Mount Zemaraim that is in the hill country of Ephraim and said, "Hear me, O Jeroboam and all Israel! 5 Ought you not to know that the LORD God of Israel gave the kingship over Israel forever to David and his sons by a covenant of salt?
10 But as for us, the LORD is our God, and we have not forsaken him. We have priests ministering to the LORD who are sons of Aaron, and Levites for their service. 11 They offer to the LORD every morning and every evening burnt offerings and incense of sweet spices, set out the showbread on the table of pure gold, and care for the golden lampstand that its lamps may burn every evening. For we keep the charge of the LORD our God, but you have forsaken him. 12 Behold, God is with us at our head, and his priests with their battle trumpets to sound the call to battle against you. O sons of Israel, do not fight against the LORD, the God of your fathers, for you cannot succeed."
13 Jeroboam had sent an ambush around to come upon them from behind. Thus his troops were in front of Judah, and the ambush was behind them. 14 And when Judah looked, behold, the battle was in front of and behind them. And they cried to the LORD, and the priests blew the trumpets. 15 Then the men of Judah raised the battle shout. And when the men of Judah shouted, God defeated Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah. 16 The men of Israel fled before Judah, and God gave them into their hand. - 2 Chronicles 13:2-5, 10-16.
Thought for the Day
I LOVE these kind of stories. I did not paste the entire story, it was too long, so if you wanted to read the entire story it is all of chapter 13. To recap the story for you, Abijah was King of Judah. There was war between he and Jeroboam, Abijah was out numbered two to one. But Abijah had something Jeroboam did not have...... GOD! Even when Jeroboam tried to trick Abijah by ambushing him, Jeroboam could NOT trick GOD. GOD intervened and delivered Jeroboam over to Abijah.
I really believe that GOD LOVES to come through. HE LOVES to be the earthly underdog, and come shining through. This same GOD that fought for Abijah is YOUR GOD. I think that sometimes we forget this, or maybe we think that this does not happen anymore because the Bible was written so LONG ago. WRONG!
GOD does not change. HE loves to see you happy and HE loves to see you win; there is only one pre- requisite, and Abijah presented it clearly, GOD was his GOD, Abijah did not worship anything else. Abijah thought of GOD in the morning and night, God is his leader, and when Abijah realized that he was in trouble he did not fight back or rely on earthly wisdom, he cried out to the LORD. In other words GOD was the center of Abijah's universe.
Is GOD the center of your universe? Do you have a relationship like Abijah did? When in trouble do you give GOD the chance to rescue you or do you try and work it out on your own? GOD wants to see you happy and wants to rescue you, are you giving HIM the chance?
Closing Prayer
Dear Jesus
Thank You Father for this great day that we were able to spend with You with great thanksgiving in our hearts. Father thank You, that even on the day that we are giving You thanksgiving, You still continue to give. You are so Awesome Father and we are so not worthy. I pray Father that I will continue to seek a better relationship with You and continue to grow in my Christianity.
I love You and I pray, Amen.
7 comments:
Bible Trivia:
From what location did Moses send the twelve spies into the Promised Land?
ANSWER: wilderness of Paran
Numbers 13:1-17
3. And Moses by the commandment of the LORD sent them from the wilderness of Paran: all those men were heads of the children of Israel.
This is one of those neat things, well at least to me, that happens when I know the word that I am to look up, and IT CAN NOT BE FOUND WITH EASE. Once you dig and start to uncover the origin and it comes totally from another word. That word will completely be descriptive of what is going on in the wilderness of PERAN and the Israelites. The origin and meaning of the wilderness name Peran is that word:
PARAN / PERAN
1 prac·ti·cal 'prak-ti-k&l adj.
Etymology: Middle English, from Late Latin practicus, from Greek praktikos, from prassein to pass over, fare, do; akin to Greek peran to pass through -- more at the word FARE
FARE: akin to Old High German faran to go - Greek peran to pass through, poros passage, journey
APEIRON greek word that means: unlimited space that contains everything. This word is most probably derived from PERAN, which means BEYOND / ON the other side - indefinite boundless.
When you study the wanderings of the children of Israel it is interesting to see that the wilderness that they wandered in was an area that they should have been able to PASS THROUGH in a few days not 40 years. So God made a small area have INDEFINITE BOUNDRIES.
IN CHRIST
Ecc. 3
Donna
I have read that they kept on wnadering around in cicrles. It is like GOD would not move them onto the Promised Land until their hearts where ready.
That is so true and if you don't learn the first time He will keep bringing you back till you well me gets it through my thick skull, whatever it is..
I was trying to put my hands on some facts that I had about the wilderness, like area size and the time it would have taken if they passed straight through, I was unable but your are right they did have to wander in circles. If I find in notes of one of my bibles I will post.
Hope you got all your work done. As you know mine is getting started.
It is funny.... GOD has/is always teaching me. I am somewhat of a work a holic. No matter how hard I work, I can't match what GOD does. I can enter hundred of items.... and nothing. But if I honor GOD and make boundaries.... I can enter nothing, and have a GREAT day in sales...
Did you read your e-mail? :)
No I did not read God's e-mail I was just typing as fast as He carried my fingers... I do know the jest of the e-mail. I will go and read now...
The main thing I remember is relating the quote: If the devil can't freeze you he'll fry you ....
Ok Jim and Kim I just read the e-mail and post. I like you get just tickeled silly when God show us how He uses ALL things to get to us. Like momonthrun said even through e-bay/blogs. What I saw in going back and reading both the post and the e-mail in one I used the word balance and the other boundries and God was using both to say the same.....I set here just blessed out of my socks.
Did the info on the Feast of Pentecost / Shavuot help? In you asking about this made me realize that this Sunday is Pentecost of the Upper Room.
While typing this I was taken away by a phone call from a Missionary in Mexico. There is a Pastor whose daughter has needed a lung transplant, the lung came through today an they have taken her to surgery as I type this now. So please join with me in prayer for God's hand to continue to rest on this. Also this same Pastor was suppose to be with the missionary at 6 central time praying with a family who thinks their son is demon posessed, Pastor has to be with daughter so my friend and a couple of others are going to carry on. We prayed and I had definite words for this and shared with my friend as they go forth. My friend has much decernment and she will be led of the spirit as I told her that this boy was not posessed just that Satan was causing this to be a distraction from a bigger problem. So be praying at 6 central for this family and missionary and other intercessors.
Ok I just stopped by MAIL.... Boy what a gift coffee beans (starbucks at that) and large mug for it to go in... The sender I know does not know how much I love coffee and that I asked last year for a coffee maker that has timer with grinder for beans. Got it and the only time I get to use grinder is when someone gives me beans for a gift. I won't spend the money... It has been a couple of months since beans have been in pot. Tonight when I go to bed I will program maker to go off at to grind and brew at 6:30 in the morning and sit back reading a great devotion with a large mug of fresh ground coffee mmmuummm good, and do you know how good that aroma smells at that time of the morning....sniff sniff sniff oh so good.
Boy the last 30 minutes have been busy at my home front but it is all about God and His Love for us from B'ham - Mexico - Texas -Washington - Kansas all corners of the world.
Oh let me say sorry for some of the misspelled words and choppy sentences and even run on sentences. When I try to type as fast as God gives it to me sometimes I think it is going down ok, but when I go back and read I wonder sometimes if it is understandable. It seems to always come across...I maybe need to slow down a little but my excitement will take over ..
IN CHRIST
Ecc. 3
Donna
Hey Donna,
Yes, thanks for the info on the feast.... it makes sense. GOD's timing is amazing huh?
That coffee sounds good. We did not know that you love coffee. :)
I have our men's group tonight, it is good mix of some that are strong and some that are broken. I am excited to see where GOD is moving me. I want more and more.... to serve!
I like your B'ham.... that it neat!
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