2 Kings 4:8-37 – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2+Kings+4%3A8-37&version=ESV

Have you ever given the the common question (“how are you doing?”) it’s common answer (“good”), all the while thinking that it was not “good”? And I don’t just mean that “good” is not really a correct response to that question (Superman does good, you are doing well). We let those words fall out of our mouths without really giving them a second thought most of the time. “I’m well,” “All is well.” Do we mean what we say?

The Shunammite woman did. And when she gave that answer to Gehazi, it was just after her son had died. She didn’t tell her husband. She didn’t tell Gehazi. She said “All is well” because it was. She was confident that God would raise him up. After all, as she told Elisha – she hadn’t asked for this. This was his blessing to her, one so great she dared not even desire it lest it not be given to her. For her, all really was well because she trusted that God would be faithful. And he was. Through Elisha, God raised her son.

2 Kings 4:1-7 – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2+Kings+4%3A1-7&version=ESV

In chapters 4-8 of 2 kings there are a number of stories about Elisha and the miracles he performed. Each of them teaches us something about our God and His care for us. This first one teaches us that He provides more than we need.

Here was a woman with two sons, her husband (who had been a prophet) was dead. She was in debt. Her creditors were going to come and take her children to sell them as slaves. So she came to Elisha. She hoped God would provide. And boy did he! Once she had gotten as many vessels as she could, God miraculously filled them all with oil. There was so much that she was able to sell it, pay off her debtor and have plenty left over for her and her sons to live on.

We confess in the explanation to the first article of the creed that our Father in heaven “Daily and richly gives me clothing and shoes, food and drink, house and home, wife and children, land, animals and all I need to support this body and life.”

There are certainly times where we it seems like we have been abandoned. There may be long periods where we have very little, or none at all. Still as the psalmist says “I have been young, and now am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or his children begging for bread.” God provides. So often too He gives us so much more than we need (which is especially true for us in America!). Why does he do all this? The creed can answer that as well:

“He does all this because He is my good and gracious Father in heaven. Not because of anything I have done to earn or deserve it.” Jesus died to make God your Father. Each meal he provides, each day, each dollar is a sweet reminder of His love to you because of the forgiveness of sins. “For all of this it is my duty to thank, praise, serve and obey Him. This is most certainly true.”

Amen.

2 Kings 3 – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Kings%203&version=ESV

So you got into an argument with your mom, or your wife, or your friend. You dug yourself into a hole that you couldn’t get out of and then, in humiliation and anger, you tried to blame it on them. Sound familiar? It certainly was to Jehoram, King of Israel except he did it to God.

It wasn’t that he wanted to go to war against Moab. Obviously God wanted to judge Moab. It was that Jehoram (and apparently not Jehoshaphat either) didn’t bother to ask God what they should do. Then Jehoram foolishly took a “circuitous” route through the desert with a massive number of soldiers and animals. What did he think was going to happen? It was obviously his fault they had run out of water. So he blamed God. He even blamed God right to Elisha’s face.

Here’s where the salt comes in. Elisha said, “As the Lord of hosts lives, before whom I stand, were it not that I have regard for Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would neither look at you nor see you.” Jesus said to believers “You are the salt of the earth.” He didn’t mean that we give the world better flavor. He was talking about salt as a preservative. That’s exactly what is being said of Jehoshaphat. If it weren’t for him, God wouldn’t have helped them. If it weren’t for believers in the world, God would destroy the whole thing. But what makes salt salty? Jesus said that salt without it’s saltiness is good for nothing. Jesus makes you salty. Faith in the forgiveness of sins is what sets you apart. That is the reason that God is preserving this world, to bring people to faith in His work for us. That is the reason that He pours out His blessings on this sinful world, because there are believers in it.

Jehoram deserved the blame and the punishment for the hole that he had dug. But for the sake of Jehoshaphat, for the sake of the faith that he had in the one who took the blame for Him, God blessed.

Don’t blame God for your sins. Trust in Jesus for forgiveness – be salty.

In Christ
Pastor Ude

2 Kings 2:15-25 – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2+Kings+2%3A15-25&version=ESV

A double edged sword cuts both ways. And God’s Word is just such a sword. Elisha shows us that in his first day on the job and boy did he start things off with a bang. He parted the Jordan, miraculously cleansed water supply and brought down a bearible (sorry for the pun :)) judgment on some disrespectful youths. Quite the first day!

It shows us the power of God’s Word both to bless and to judge. They both come from the same place. And both were good and just. It’s the same with the gospel. The gospel itself is a two edged sword. It’s main purpose is to save. That’s God’s desire. He wants everyone to believe it. He wants to bring the forgiveness of sins and eternal life to every heart. But when the gospel is rejected, it serves a secondary, terrible purpose. Jesus said “The one who rejects me and does not receive my words has a judge; the word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day” (John 12:48).

As Elisha’s miracle showed God’s great power to heal and bless, so the bear-judgment shows the results of scorning that word. On the last day, the judgment against those who spurn the gospel will be far worse than a bear-mauling. May we, by God’s grace in Word and Spirit be brought ever to treasure His Word of forgiveness, to honor and observe His Word lest His Word of peace turn for us into a word of condemnation.

In Christ
Pastor Ude

2 Kings 2:1-14 – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2+Kings+2%3A1-14&version=ESV

All my life, or at least as long as I could remember, Brett Favre had been the quarterback of the Green Bay Packers. And he was pretty good. smile emoticon But he was getting old. Every year you wondered if he would call it quits. And then the questions would come – what would life be like for the Packers without Favre? Sure, we thought Rodgers would be good. But who could be sure? Would they enjoy the same kind of success? We all know how that turned out.

Perhaps the same kinds of questions were being asked as Elijah made his final journey. Time and again, the sons of the prophets told Elisha, “Don’t you know Elijah is going to be taken away today?” Elisha knew. Would he be able to fill those giant shoes? Would he be able to stand up to kings and proclaim God’s law? Would he be able to perform great miracles? Would he be able to preach the still, comforting gospel? We all know how that turned out.

Nothing really changed. Elisha continued the same powerful ministry that Elijah had toiled in before him. God still worked the same way. And that shouldn’t be a surprise. While we packer fans might smile at our good fortune to have two superstar quarterbacks one after the other, the ministry of God’s word has always been and will always be the same. That’s because the one truly working is the Spirit of God through the Word. Whether it’s Elijah, Elisha, John, Jesus, Peter or you, God’s word remains powerful. God’s Spirit remains the one pulling the strings. And with that Spirit in the word of law and gospel you can do mighty, heavenly things – you can proclaim judgment to kings or comfort and forgiveness. You can do much greater things than calling fire down from heaven – you can preach Christ and Him crucified.

Was Elijah irreplaceable? Not at all. The power is in our God – Father, Son, and Spirit.

Prayer – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxebaN2Hemc

In Christ
Pastor Ude

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g80DuDQEUT8

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2+Chronicles+21&version=ESV

Have you ever wondered how you will be remembered? What will you leave behind when you leave this earth? What, of all the things that you spend your time on, will last?

Jehoram, son of Jehoshaphat, King of Judah, sure did a lot of stuff during his reign. He was only there 8 years but during that time he killed his brothers to try to secure his rule, he married an idolator and joined her in her idolatry, he lost a territory of David’s empire then he built high places and led all the people away from the Lord. In short, all the good that David and His godly descendants had accomplished, Jehoram tried to undo. He was a terrible, pathetic excuse for a king. God gave him a terrible end to his life. And how was he remembered? The people did not have a fire for him as they had for other kings. They did not bury him in the tombs of his fathers. And, “he departed with no one’s regret.” Jehoram spent all that time doing terrible things which earned him a terrible death, a terrible remembrance and, his works being an indication here of the state of his heart, a terrible eternal judgment. All his life was a waste.

Will yours be? Certainly much that we spend our time on is wasteful. Much that we strive for is not God pleasing. Much of it will not last. But through God’s grace, we have something that will – the kingdom of God. Jesus said that we should “store up treasures in heaven” and to “seek first the kingdom of God.” The time that we spend in God’s Word, reading, praying, sharing, this will not be a waste. The time that we spend caring for others, this will not be useless. The time that we spend with family or at work when it is spent out of love for Christ, this will not be forgotten. Even though Jehoram was so evil, God did not destroy his whole house as he did with the Israelite kings, he preserved the line for David’s sake. He did that because of His grace, His promise to send Jesus. And because He did, and because He died, and because He lives, you need not live the useless life that Jehoram lived; you need not receive the terrible end that he did. Seek first the kingdom of God, seek first His Word, His forgiveness, His love – these are the things that last forever.

In Christ
Pastor Ude

2 Kings 1 – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2+Kings+1&version=ESV

You fall and break your arm, what do you do? Go to the hospital. You’ve got a big test coming up and you need a good grade, what do you do? You study. You’re hoping to get a promotion at work – you work hard. Someone breaks into your house? You call 911, or grab a bat….or both. You feel down and discouraged and you play your favorite song or watch your favorite show. It makes you feel better.

What I’ve just described to you is not, in itself, in any way sinful. When you break your arm, you should go to the hospital, you should study and work hard etc. But the question I’d have you ponder today is – is that the first thing you do? Is that where you place your hopes? Or do you pray first to God.

Ahaziah didn’t. He, Ahab before him, didn’t care what God had to say. No doubt he thought that God was just a big meanie! So he turned to a false god. Then, he tried to command God’s prophet, as if the king was above God! 102 men died for his foolishness. And Ahaziah brought his death on himself. He expected judgment from God so judgment is what he got. He didn’t love God because He didn’t know God’s love. He had refused it and turned away from it. In Christ, all things are for our good, outside of Him, all things are against us.

So where do you turn first – for help, for strength, for focus, for comfort? Let it not be to a false god – isn’t there a God in Israel? Isn’t He the God of grace who has poured out His love on you, forgiving your sins in Jesus? Doesn’t He long to help? Doesn’t He work all things for your good? Next time you need help, call Jesus first, He can help!

In Christ
Pastor Ude

2 Chronicles 17 – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2+Chronicles+17&version=ESV

In chapter 22 of 1 Kings which we spoke of yesterday, we were introduced to one King Jehoshaphat of Judah who, besides for having a funny name, was king of Judah during most of the reign of Ahab. And what a difference between the two! It’s no wonder that God scolded Jehoshaphat for making an alliance with Ahab in battle. The two were polar opposites.

While Ahab was bringing in more idolatry, more false gods, more false prophets, Jehoshaphat was tearing those things down and shipping them out. In Israel, the prophets of the Lord had to be hidden from Ahab’s wrath. In Israel, Micaiah was warned to the tell the king what he wanted to hear, not what God had declared. But in Judah, Jehoshaphat was sending officials out to teach the people the word of the Lord! What a blessing! What a contrast with Israel.

Jehoshaphat, by God’s grace, was focused on the right thing – learning, teaching, spreading the Word of God. The word which brings conviction for sin and peace in forgiveness. The word which gives us all we need for all we face. The Word which is sufficient for everything. May our focus be as Jehoshaphat’s, not piling up false gods like Ahab, not spending our time plotting how we can get more for ourselves and get other people to give us what we want but rather to learn, to teach, to spread the Word of our God.

In Christ
Pastor Ude

1 Kings 22:1-40 – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Kings+22%3A1-40&version=ESV

The title of this devotion might seem rather alarming. It should. You might think that there certainly is no end to God’s grace. You’d be wrong. It’s called death. In confirmation class we learn that the reason why God is so serious about the 5th commandment is that a person’s life is there “time of grace.” It’s the time during which there is still time, they can still repent, they can still believe. Once death comes, that time is over. Whatever the condition of the soul at death, faith or unbelief, so it will always be.

Ahab’s soul doesn’t appear to have been in good condition. We don’t see hearts and we don’t need to but the humility that he showed in the last chapter seems to have completely melted away.He is obstinate, rebellious, ignorant and arrogant. And his time of grace has come to an end.

While man does not have the right to end someone’s life, God certainly does. God does all things in wisdom, justice and mercy. That was true here as well. He had decreed that it was time for Ahab to die. Nothing would thwart that. He used Ahab’s pride against him to cause it to happen. He sent a lying spirit into most of the prophets to cause it to happen. He used luck (yes, luck does exist if by luck you mean “chance” as this chapter describes the arrow being drawn “at random”) to bring him down even though he was disguised. It was time for him to die and die he did. This was justice for all the evil he had done. This was wisdom according to His plan. This was mercy for the people that he had led astray and the believers that he had tormented. Who knows, perhaps Ahab had a spark of faith when he died and it was mercy for him too.

We don’t know and we don’t need to know. Because we know all that we need to know – Our times are in His hands and the decisions that God makes about life and death for each individual are always wise, just and merciful. How can it be otherwise? He is the all-wise God. He is the holy, just God. And He is the God who gave His Son to die on the cross for our sins, for we who are not at all wise, just or merciful. If any of his ways do not seem to be wise, just or merciful, it is only because we are blind. One day, because of His grace we will see and we will praise Him for it.

Prayer – Lord, let us trust that You are wise, just and merciful. When we can’t see anything else, let us see Your Cross. It tells us all we need to know.

In Christ
Pastor Ude