There are a few exceptions to each of the kings of Israel and Judah getting just a paragraph or two of an assessment of how well they did or didn’t follow God. One is Ahab, the corrupt king of Israel, whose story begins in 1 Kings 16.29. Here’s the introduction/assessment:

In the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah, Ahab the son of Omri began to reign over Israel, and Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria twenty-two years. And Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the LORD, more than all who were before him. And as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, he took for his wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and went and served Baal and worshiped him. He erected an altar for Baal in the house of Baal, which he built in Samaria. And Ahab made an Asherah. Ahab did more to provoke the LORD, the God of Israel, to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him. (1 Kings 16.29 – 33, ESV)

One of the reasons Ahab gets a lot of press (his story goes through 1 Kings 22) is that the prophet Elijah makes his appearance during the reign of Ahab:

Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the LORD, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.” (1 Kings 17.1, ESV)

Let’s spend a few days observing some lessons from the life of Elijah. Here’s the first one:

No matter how bad things are, no matter how corrupt the government is, God has people advancing his cause.

These people are sometimes very public like Elijah, sometimes they serve in private like Ahab’s servant Obadiah (see 1 Kings 18.1 – 16).

I your servant have feared the LORD from my youth. Has it not been told my lord what I did when Jezebel killed the prophets of the LORD, how I hid a hundred men of the LORD’s prophets by fifties in a cave and fed them with bread and water? (1 Kings 18.12, 13, ESV)

Sometimes they serve in anonimity:

[Elijah said, ] “I, even I only, am left, and they seek my life, to take it away.”… [God replied, ] “Yet I will leave seven thousand in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.” (Conversation between God and Elijah, 1 Kings 19.14 – 18, ESV)

In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the wilderness. (Luke 3.1, 2, ESV)

A couple of weeks ago I shared one of the Apostle Paul’s classic prayers, Ephesians 1.15 – 23. Today, let’s look at the other prayer in Ephesians: chapter 3, verses 14 – 21. Better, pray it for someone!

For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you…

• to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being,
• so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—
• that you, being rooted and grounded in love,
• may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge,
• that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

I wrote yesterday about starting to read the chronology of the kings of Israel and Judah. Zimri, one of the early kings of Israel grabbed my attention. See what you see:

In the twenty-sixth year of Asa king of Judah, Elah the son of Baasha began to reign over Israel in Tirzah, and he reigned two years. But his servant Zimri, commander of half his chariots, conspired against him. When he was at Tirzah, drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza, who was over the household in Tirzah, Zimri came in and struck him down and killed him, in the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, and reigned in his place. When he began to reign, as soon as he had seated himself on his throne, he struck down all the house of Baasha… In the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, Zimri reigned seven days in Tirzah. (1 Kings 16.8 – 20, ESV)

Whoa! Zimri reigned seven days in Tirzah. Not seven years. Not seven months. Seven days! He went to all the trouble to assassinate Elah the previous king and kill all of Elah’s family (the house of Baasha) so his (Zimri’s) kingdom would be secure, and he reigned seven days.

Power is temporary, sometimes very temporary! Life is temporary. Best we follow God today.

Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”—yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin. (James 4.13 – 17, ESV)

I wrote last Saturday about the sad end of Solomon, whose wives and riches led him astray. Then beginning in 1 Kings 12, when the kingdom divides into the Northern 10 tribes (“Israel”) and the southern 2 tribes (“Judah”), we have a long slog of one king succeeding another and maybe a little something of what they did. Without getting too bogged down in details, one thing jumped out at me:

Each king is assessed according to how well he did or did not follow God.

That’s all that mattered. Some reigned long, some short. A few kings of Judah did follow God. No kings of Israel did. Here are some examples:

Now in the eighteenth year of King Jeroboam the son of Nebat, Abijam began to reign over Judah. He reigned for three years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Maacah the daughter of Abishalom. And he walked in all the sins that his father did before him, and his heart was not wholly true to the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father. (1 Kings 15.1 – 3, ESV)

In the twentieth year of Jeroboam king of Israel, Asa began to reign over Judah, and he reigned forty-one years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Maacah the daughter of Abishalom. And Asa did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, as David his father had done. (1 Kings 15.9 – 11, ESV)

Nadab the son of Jeroboam began to reign over Israel in the second year of Asa king of Judah, and he reigned over Israel two years. He did what was evil in the sight of the LORD and walked in the way of his father, and in his sin which he made Israel to sin. (1 Kings 15.25, 26, ESV)

The first two were kings of Judah, both sons of the same father and mother: Rheoboam and Maacah. The first, Abijah, did not follow God, but his brother Asa did. We might wonder why, but we shouldn’t. All are free to make their own choices, regardless of their heritage or lack of heritage, and all are judged by those choices: see Ezekiel 18 – here are some snippets:

If a man is righteous and does what is just and right…walks in my statutes, and keeps my rules by acting faithfully—he is righteous; he shall surely live, declares the Lord GOD. If he fathers a son who is violent, a shedder of blood, who does any of these things (though he himself did none of these things)…he shall surely die; his blood shall be upon himself. Now suppose this man fathers a son who sees all the sins that his father has done; he sees, and does not do likewise…[but] obeys my rules, and walks in my statutes; he shall not die for his father’s iniquity; he shall surely live. (Ezekiel 18, 5, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 17, ESV)

When the Gentiles sin, they will be destroyed, even though they never had God’s written law. And the Jews, who do have God’s law, will be judged by that law when they fail to obey it. For merely listening to the law doesn’t make us right with God. It is obeying the law that makes us right in his sight. (Romans 2.12, 13, NLT)

We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are [or what we have done]. (Romans 3.22, NLT, last phrase added.)

June and I have talked with several people recently who had not heard about The Chosen, a series of videos on the life of Jesus. Season one’s eight episodes are finished as well as five episodes of season two (as of this writing!). We’re not quite finished with season one ourselves, but we strongly recommend. Here’s a snippet from John Stonestreet’s review:

After the response to a short film of Jesus’ birth he made for a Christmas Eve service, “The Chosen” producer Dallas Jenkins was inspired to create an entire series about Jesus’ life, one that was neither sanitary, watered-down, nor uber-preachy. Along the way, Jenkins and his team not only created their own TV show, they also created their own delivery system. “The Chosen” app allows viewers to stream all eight episodes of the show onto their TVs, computer screens, or phones, for free. No Netflix or Hulu or Apple TV – or their boardroom politics – required.

This costly strategy is behind another amazing part of this story. “The Chosen” is now the single largest crowdfunding entertainment project ever. More than $10-million dollars was raised from more than 19-thousand individual donors to create the first eight episodes. Through the app, viewers are encouraged and equipped to recruit new viewers and new donors. To date, they’ve raised nearly $4 million toward season two.

Given how thoughtful and moving we found season one, my family is looking forward to new episodes. While I could certainly find a quibble or two with the way some of the dialogue goes, or the way certain story lines proceed, I’m grateful that Jesus isn’t portrayed here as some serene, other-worldly guru-type figure who whispers parables and stares mysteriously into the middle distance. Instead, the series does a good job of portraying Jesus as He was–fully human, an actual man. – John Stonestreet, Breakpoint, May 7, 2020.

June and I have found the stories engaging, and even when we know what’s going to happen (e.g., he will change water into wine at the wedding), we still have an emotional, joyous response. People’s visceral reaction to lepers, for example, breathes life into texts we’ve read for years.

Try it, and, as the filmmakers recommend, read the original stories in the gospels.

Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us, just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to us, it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught. (Luke 1.1 – 4, ESV)

Yesterday we saw how Solomon’s wealth (including wives) turned his heart from the Lord. Here’s the antidote:

Teach me how to make good decisions, and give me revelation-light, for I believe in your commands…The words you speak to me are worth more than all the riches and wealth in the whole world! (Psalm 119.66, 72, TPT)

If Solomon had stuck with God’s word instead of going astray, that would have been worth more than his wealth. Truly, the Word is greater than Wealth. (That’s what the > symbol in the title means: “greater than.”)

And when [the king] sits on the throne of his kingdom, he shall write for himself in a book a copy of this law, approved by the Levitical priests. And it shall be with him, and he shall read in it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the LORD his God by keeping all the words of this law and these statutes, and doing them, that his heart may not be lifted up above his brothers, and that he may not turn aside from the commandment, either to the right hand or to the left, so that he may continue long in his kingdom, he and his children, in Israel. (Deuteronomy 17.18 – 20, ESV)

Following my reading program, I’m in 1 Kings now, and chapter 10 ends with a long section (14 – 29) about Solomon’s wealth. Here’s part of it:

Thus King Solomon excelled all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom. And the whole earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put into his mind. Every one of them brought his present, articles of silver and gold, garments, myrrh, spices, horses, and mules, so much year by year. And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen. He had 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horsemen, whom he stationed in the chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem. And the king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stone, and he made cedar as plentiful as the sycamore of the Shephelah. And Solomon’s import of horses was from Egypt and Kue, and the king’s traders received them from Kue at a price. (1 Kings 10.23 – 28, ESV)

There follows one of the sad verses in the Bible. One sad verse is Judges 2.10: “There arose a generation that knew not the Lord…” That verse speaks of the failure of the older generation to teach the younger generation. This sad verse is the opposite: Solomon chooses not to follow the example of his father:

For when Solomon was old his wives turned away his heart after other gods, and his heart was not wholly true to the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father. (1 Kings 11.4, ESV)

What good is wealth and having everything you want if your heart turns away from the Lord?

When you come to the land that the LORD your God is giving you, and you possess it and dwell in it and then say, “I will set a king over me, like all the nations that are around me,” you may indeed set a king over you whom the LORD your God will choose. One from among your brothers you shall set as king over you. You may not put a foreigner over you, who is not your brother. Only he must not acquire many horses for himself or cause the people to return to Egypt in order to acquire many horses, since the LORD has said to you, “You shall never return that way again.” And he shall not acquire many wives for himself, lest his heart turn away, nor shall he acquire for himself excessive silver and gold. (Deuteronomy 17.14 – 17, ESV)

Take care lest you forget the LORD your God by not keeping his commandments and his rules and his statutes, which I command you today, lest, when you have eaten and are full and have built good houses and live in them, and when your herds and flocks multiply and your silver and gold is multiplied and all that you have is multiplied, then your heart be lifted up, and you forget the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery… (Deuteronomy 8.11 – 14, ESV)

I was reading the narrative of Jesus’ birth in Luke 2.8 – 38. It’s interesting whom Luke records as witnessing the coming of the Messiah:

• Shepherds, ordinary working men
• Simeon, a resident of Jerusalem is all we know. We don’t even know that he is old.
• Anna, a widow

None of these people had any status. All shared publicly what they knew. The message is clear.

Compared with Paul’s message in Ephesians 3, what these people knew was limited. They thought Jesus was the Messiah for the Jewish people. It didn’t occur to them that the whole world would be included.

There has never been a generation that has been given the detailed understanding of this glorious and divine mystery until now. He kept it a secret until this generation. God is revealing it only now to his sacred apostles and prophets by the Holy Spirit. Here’s the secret: The gospel of grace has made you, non-Jewish believers, into coheirs of his promise through your union with him. And you have now become members of his body—one with the Anointed One! I have been made a messenger of this wonderful news by the gift of grace that works through me. Even though I am the least significant of all his holy believers, this grace-gift was imparted when the manifestation of his power came upon me. Grace alone empowers me so that I can boldly preach this wonderful message to non-Jewish people, sharing with them the unfading, inexhaustible riches of Christ, which are beyond comprehension. (Ephesians 3.5 – 8, TPT)

Apollos also shared what he knew, even though his knowledge was incomplete also. But Paul to the rescue again. Paul trained Priscilla and Aquilla, ordinary tentmakers (see Acts 18.1 – 3), and they shared with Apollos what they knew!

Now a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was an eloquent man, competent in the Scriptures. He had been instructed in the way of the Lord. And being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things concerning Jesus, though he knew only the baptism of John. He began to speak boldly in the synagogue, but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately. (Acts 18.24 – 26, ESV)

My son Mark alerted me to this post from Atheists in Kenya Society, which, as nearly as I can tell, is a legit organization promoting atheism and humanism in Kenya. I offer this press release, dated May 30, 2021, with little comment:

This evening, regretfully, the Secretary of the Atheists In Kenya Society Mr. Seth Mahiga informed me that he has made the decision to resign from his position as Secretary of the society.

Seth’s reason for resigning is that he has found Jesus Christ and is no longer interested in promoting atheism in Kenya.

We wish Seth all the best in his new found relationship with Jesus Christ. We thank him for having served the society with dedication over the last one and half years.

The position of Secretary of the Society has been rendered vacant. We are calling upon Kenyan atheists who would wish to join our Executive Committee to send their CVs to info@atheistsinkenya.org.

I’ll be praying for Seth and for whatever influence he has with his former associates in the Atheists in Kenya Society. (FYI, I think Seth’s position has already been filled.)

For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it. And I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers. – Apostle Paul (Galatians 1.13, 14, ESV)

I myself was convinced that I ought to do many things in opposing the name of Jesus of Nazareth. And I did so in Jerusalem. I not only locked up many of the saints in prison after receiving authority from the chief priests, but when they were put to death I cast my vote against them. And I punished them often in all the synagogues and tried to make them blaspheme, and in raging fury against them I persecuted them even to foreign cities. In this connection I journeyed to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests. At midday, O king, I saw on the way a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, that shone around me and those who journeyed with me. And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” And I said, “Who are you, Lord?” And the Lord said, “I am Jesus whom you are persecuting.” – Apostle Paul (Acts 26.9 – 15, ESV)

Every now and then someone captures nicely some of what we’re trying to do in our ministry. Diana Gruver (https://www.dianagruver.com/) wrote a piece called “How Many Hours of Your Week Are Dedicated to God” when she was working with Vere Institute, now closed. You can see her whole article here.

She opens with a memory from her high school days when the leader put everyone on a guilt trip by having them add up the number of hours “dedicated to God” as opposed to sleeping, work/school, etc. For her, less than 5 hours per week in church and personal devotions. Today she understands…

…this exercise, and the guilt it sparked in me, reflected a faulty understanding of life as a disciple of Jesus.

She goes on to say:

But I also find this memory to be sobering because I know there are still faithful Jesus-followers, sitting in church pews each week who are laden with guilt that they aren’t doing more “church things.” They feel guilty for not feeling the call to drop everything and move to a foreign country. They feel less-than for not being able to wake up at 4 a.m. to devote extra hours to prayer. They, to be frank, feel like a second-class Christian for not devoting more time to explicitly “spiritual” endeavors.

These brothers and sisters have no vision for how day-to-day life can be fully dedicated to the Lord. How spending time in conversation with a coworker might be just as God-honoring as time in a Bible study. How doing good work as a health care worker or teacher or parent might be just as valued in the Kingdom of God as attending that extra prayer meeting. They have no imagination to see how God wants to permeate, fill, and transform every part, place, and relationship within their everyday life. – Diana Gruver

I couldn’t agree more. Several years ago I hosted a seminar with Neil Hudson of the London Institute for Contemporary Christianity (LICC). When Diana wrote this piece, Vere Institute was the U.S. affiliate of the LICC. One of Neil’s key concepts matches Diana’s article. Neil asks church leaders: “How are you using the (at most) 10 weekly hours that your members spend in organized church activities to prepare them for the 110 waking hours weekly that they are living their lives in the world?” (Neil’s book, Imagine Church, is available on Amazon. I strongly recommend.)

And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ,… (Ephesians 4.11, 12, NKJV)