2 CHRONICLES MOMENT – (17MAY19) God had given King Amaziah
victory over his enemies when he went to fight against the Edomites.
Unfortunately, he did not remain faithful to the Lord. He took the idols of the
people he had killed and set them up for his own private worship. This angered
the Lord, so He sent a prophet to rebuke Amaziah for what he had done. Amaziah,
however, refused to listen to the prophet. Therefore, the Lord allowed for his
pride to be his downfall and he was taken captive by Jehoash the king of Israel
and later killed by his enemies who were in Jerusalem.
There is a time when correction is needed even for those who
are in leadership. The prophet had been told by the Lord to warn the king
regarding his idolatrous ways, but the king did not want to listen. Sometimes,
those in authority will refuse to hear what the Lord has to say, and it is due
to their own selfish pride and arrogance. Then there are times when those who
are doing the rebuking are doing so out of pride and arrogance themselves. As a
result, they rebuke in error. There are many people on social media who claim
to hear from the Lord, but their rebukes are not coinciding with the Word of
God, and they are not rightly dividing Scripture; therefore, their rebukes are
only an attempt to appear as the theologians that they are not.
When the Lord gives us a Word of correction for someone, we
are to do so in humility. The Apostle Paul wrote that He must deny himself by
putting his own body into submission so that after he had preached to others,
he would not be found disqualified for the prize himself (1 Corinthians 9:27).
The Bible, however, also let us that we are not to despise correction, but
welcome it because it helps us to walk righteously. “Whoever ignores instruction despises himself,
but he who listens to reproof gains intelligence” (Proverbs 15:32). We should always
walk in humility rather we are the one being corrected or the one doing the
correcting, so that we please the Lord with our whole being. Something to
ponder…
QUESTION OF
THE DAY – (17MAY19) We have been studying about various kings who allowed pride
to become their downfall. We should ask ourselves the question, “Are there
times when we allow pride to dictate our living for the Lord?” Do we allow what
He has blessed us with to become the very thing that puffs us up? Are we
verbally combative towards those who may offer constructive criticism when they
see us going down the wrong path? Are you willing to change any areas when you
find out that you may have been in error? Something to ponder…
2 CHRONICLES
MOMENT – (17MAY19) The Lord made King Uzziah famous across the land. Some of
his enemies even paid tribute to him because he had become very powerful. His
fame, however, went to his head and he thought that he had earned the right to
present incense to the Lord despite knowing that only the priest, the descendants
of Aaron, were the ones who were to do so. Therefore, when the priests rebuked
the king for attempting to defy the order of the Lord, he became angry and
argued with them. As this was taking place, God cursed Uzziah with leprosy on
his forehead. The priests, with no resistance from the king, immediately ushered
him out of the temple where he was not allowed to return. Uzziah was never cured
from leprosy and had it until he died. His son had to take over his duties
because Uzziah had to stay in a separate house away from others.
God does not
like when we disobey His commands, and it angers Him even more should we come
up against those who are correctly carrying them out. This was not the first
time that God cursed someone with leprosy for speaking against His obedient servant.
God did the same thing with Moses’ sister, Miriam. She and Aaron were speaking against
Moses and God cursed her with leprosy for seven days. God requires obedience
and just because He blesses us does not mean that we should be arrogant and
think that we can cause others to sin because of our own prideful hearts. The
Prophet Samuel told King Saul that obedience was better than sacrifice. Let’s
be mindful to obey God above all else and keep a spirit of humility. The Lord
does not elevate us so that we can be conceited and puffed up, but He loves to
bless those who are meek and submissive to His will. Something to ponder…
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