1 00:00:00,320 --> 00:00:03,160 I invite you to turn with me to the Book of Second Kings, 2 00:00:05,080 --> 00:00:12,360 chapter 1, and as we turn there, allow me to please pray for us 3 00:00:12,520 --> 00:00:14,640 and ask the Lord to guide us through this text. 4 00:00:17,480 --> 00:00:20,000 Though we do thank you from the bottom of our hearts that you 5 00:00:20,000 --> 00:00:24,360 have led us all these years in the Hebrew Scriptures, in the 6 00:00:24,360 --> 00:00:28,520 Old Testament up to this point. And we ask, Lord, for your 7 00:00:28,760 --> 00:00:33,160 continual guidance through the sacred text that you've 8 00:00:33,160 --> 00:00:37,280 preserved for us. We will not ignore this word, 9 00:00:37,280 --> 00:00:39,400 Lord, and help us never neglect it. 10 00:00:39,400 --> 00:00:43,120 So we pray that as we come together as a body of students, 11 00:00:43,120 --> 00:00:46,640 as your disciples, that you would help us by opening our 12 00:00:46,640 --> 00:00:50,160 minds and by burning these truths in our hearts. 13 00:00:50,800 --> 00:00:55,480 Lord, we long to be transformed, not just informed but renewed by 14 00:00:55,480 --> 00:00:57,080 the things that we will learn today. 15 00:00:57,640 --> 00:01:00,680 And so please help the delivery and the reception of everything 16 00:01:00,680 --> 00:01:04,400 that will take place tonight. In the mighty matchless name of 17 00:01:04,400 --> 00:01:10,560 Jesus Christ, we pray, Amen. If you remember at the beginning 18 00:01:10,560 --> 00:01:15,440 of our study in First Kings, it was mentioned that First and 2nd 19 00:01:15,440 --> 00:01:19,400 Kings originally comprised a single book. 20 00:01:20,640 --> 00:01:24,200 And that is why as we come to 2nd Kings, you'll realize that 21 00:01:24,200 --> 00:01:28,640 there's this seamless continuation of where First King 22 00:01:28,680 --> 00:01:34,760 ends uninterruptedly documenting the racing decline, both the 23 00:01:34,760 --> 00:01:38,520 northern Kingdom of Israel and the southern Kingdom of Judah. 24 00:01:40,000 --> 00:01:44,400 However, there is a unique emphasis in Second Kings in 25 00:01:44,400 --> 00:01:48,760 comparison to 1st Kings. If there is one main take away 26 00:01:49,240 --> 00:01:52,840 from First Kings concerning the history of the people of Israel 27 00:01:53,360 --> 00:01:58,280 is that First Kings records for us the division of the people of 28 00:01:58,280 --> 00:02:02,200 Israel. But as we come to 2nd Kings, we 29 00:02:02,200 --> 00:02:07,240 will learn the emphasis. We will study the events leading 30 00:02:07,240 --> 00:02:12,080 up to the domination of the people of Israel. 31 00:02:13,640 --> 00:02:19,400 That is what we are going to realize together, that this is 32 00:02:19,400 --> 00:02:25,600 all leading to two very crucial captivities for the northern 33 00:02:25,600 --> 00:02:29,880 Kingdom of Israel. The people of Assyria will bring 34 00:02:29,880 --> 00:02:33,760 them into exile. And later the southern Kingdom, 35 00:02:33,840 --> 00:02:37,200 the Kingdom of Judah, will be taken captive by who? 36 00:02:38,360 --> 00:02:42,920 Babylon. And so the essence of this book 37 00:02:42,960 --> 00:02:47,480 is to explain the events of a people who were once delivered 38 00:02:47,800 --> 00:02:51,920 from captivity who are now returning to it. 39 00:02:54,280 --> 00:02:57,480 And interestingly, if you consider these two books as a 40 00:02:57,480 --> 00:03:01,040 single unit, you're going to recognize something else. 41 00:03:01,480 --> 00:03:04,080 You're going to recognize how this significant part of 42 00:03:04,160 --> 00:03:11,440 Israel's story begins and ends with a focus on the Temple. 43 00:03:13,080 --> 00:03:18,800 If you remember in First Kings, the earlier chapters, the Holy 44 00:03:18,800 --> 00:03:22,640 Spirit sought to give us in great detail the construction of 45 00:03:22,640 --> 00:03:25,920 the House of God known as the Temple of Solomon. 46 00:03:27,000 --> 00:03:30,280 But as we approach the end of the Book of Second Kings, we're 47 00:03:30,280 --> 00:03:32,320 not going to see the construction of anything. 48 00:03:32,440 --> 00:03:36,320 We're actually going to see the destruction of the very temple 49 00:03:36,680 --> 00:03:42,400 that was consecrated unto God, as well as the defamation of the 50 00:03:42,400 --> 00:03:45,000 beautiful holy city of Jerusalem. 51 00:03:47,080 --> 00:03:51,560 Besides these two exiles, Second Kings will also highlight the 52 00:03:51,560 --> 00:03:56,760 powerful prophetic ministry of a man named Elisha. 53 00:03:57,400 --> 00:04:01,600 Because early in this book, we are going to see Elijah 54 00:04:02,120 --> 00:04:06,560 transition from this world miraculously into the next and 55 00:04:06,560 --> 00:04:10,080 will pass the baton down to his successor, Elisha. 56 00:04:11,000 --> 00:04:13,480 And what's even more fascinating, perhaps you did not 57 00:04:13,480 --> 00:04:18,720 know this, but the same time period of Second Kings also 58 00:04:18,720 --> 00:04:22,200 showcases that other prophets were at work. 59 00:04:23,360 --> 00:04:26,560 It's not explicitly told to us in Second Kings, but 60 00:04:26,560 --> 00:04:33,560 historically speaking, Amos and Hosea also prophesied to the 61 00:04:33,560 --> 00:04:37,600 northern Kingdom of Israel, while you had a much larger 62 00:04:37,640 --> 00:04:41,600 roster focused their preaching to the southern kingdoms, names 63 00:04:41,600 --> 00:04:46,800 such as Isaiah and Jeremiah and Obadiah and Joel and Nahem and 64 00:04:46,800 --> 00:04:51,640 Habakkuk and Zephaniah. These prophets again are not 65 00:04:51,640 --> 00:04:55,240 mentioned in Second Kings, but understanding when they 66 00:04:55,240 --> 00:04:59,280 ministered helps us realize the length of time, the duration of 67 00:04:59,280 --> 00:05:04,880 the events in this book, but also the long-suffering and the 68 00:05:04,880 --> 00:05:11,280 grace and the patience of God of sending so many warnings before 69 00:05:11,280 --> 00:05:15,880 He finally judged his people. And so that is the brief 70 00:05:15,880 --> 00:05:21,760 introduction to this book. And let us read now the first 8 71 00:05:21,760 --> 00:05:26,040 verses of this chapter before we dissect it together. 72 00:05:28,400 --> 00:05:33,560 After the death of Ahab, Mohab rebelled against Israel. 73 00:05:34,720 --> 00:05:38,880 Now Ahaziah fell through the lattice in his upper chamber in 74 00:05:38,880 --> 00:05:43,280 Samaria and lay sick. So he sent messengers, telling 75 00:05:43,280 --> 00:05:48,240 them, Go inquire of bowels above the God of Ekron, whether I 76 00:05:48,240 --> 00:05:50,640 shall recover from this sickness. 77 00:05:51,400 --> 00:05:56,960 But the Angel of the Lord said to Elijah, the Tishbite, arise, 78 00:05:57,400 --> 00:06:00,760 go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say to 79 00:06:00,760 --> 00:06:04,400 them, Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going 80 00:06:04,400 --> 00:06:06,880 to acquire about Zebab, the God of Ekron? 81 00:06:07,720 --> 00:06:10,360 Now therefore, thus says the Lord, you shall not come down 82 00:06:10,360 --> 00:06:13,600 from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely 83 00:06:13,600 --> 00:06:17,760 die. So Elijah went, the messengers 84 00:06:17,760 --> 00:06:21,040 returned to the king, and he said to them, Why have you 85 00:06:21,040 --> 00:06:24,480 returned? And they said to him, There came 86 00:06:24,480 --> 00:06:27,840 a man to meet us, and said to us, Go back to the king who sent 87 00:06:27,840 --> 00:06:31,560 you, and say to him, Thus says the Lord, Is it because there is 88 00:06:31,560 --> 00:06:34,840 no God in Israel that you are sending to inquire about Zibab, 89 00:06:35,040 --> 00:06:37,960 the God of Ekron? Therefore you shall not come 90 00:06:37,960 --> 00:06:40,160 down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall 91 00:06:40,160 --> 00:06:45,280 surely die. He said to them, What kind of 92 00:06:45,280 --> 00:06:48,840 man was he who came to meet you and told you these things? 93 00:06:49,760 --> 00:06:54,200 They answered him, He wore a garment of hair with a belt of 94 00:06:54,200 --> 00:06:59,040 leather about his waist. And he said It is Elijah the 95 00:06:59,040 --> 00:07:02,400 Tishbite. We're going to see if we can 96 00:07:02,400 --> 00:07:06,040 complete this chapter together. But let us begin in verse one. 97 00:07:06,960 --> 00:07:08,920 Verse 1 is not a passing comment. 98 00:07:09,680 --> 00:07:14,320 Verse 1 is a very important way of introducing this book to us 99 00:07:14,880 --> 00:07:17,760 because at the outset of it, what we learn here is after the 100 00:07:17,760 --> 00:07:22,600 death of Ahab, the Moabites sought to take advantage of this 101 00:07:22,600 --> 00:07:27,160 transition in leadership. And all we're told here is that 102 00:07:27,160 --> 00:07:30,640 they rebelled against Israel. Now, this won't make much sense 103 00:07:30,640 --> 00:07:35,120 to you until you remember what we studied back in Second Samuel 104 00:07:35,320 --> 00:07:38,720 when David became king. And so right away I'm going to 105 00:07:38,720 --> 00:07:41,280 ask you to go to chapter 8 of Second Samuel and look at this 106 00:07:41,280 --> 00:07:43,600 reference. That will help explain what's 107 00:07:43,600 --> 00:07:47,600 going on here. Second Samuel chapter 8 verse 2 108 00:07:48,120 --> 00:07:52,400 tells us about the relationship between Israel and Mohab during 109 00:07:52,480 --> 00:07:56,520 the monarchies. And it says here in Second 110 00:07:56,520 --> 00:08:01,720 Samuel 8 two And he being David defeated Moab and he measured 111 00:08:01,720 --> 00:08:06,200 them with a line making them lie down on the ground. 2 lines he 112 00:08:06,200 --> 00:08:09,800 measured to be put to death and one full line to be spared. 113 00:08:10,440 --> 00:08:14,320 And the Moabites became servants to David and brought tribute. 114 00:08:15,040 --> 00:08:18,640 So while David was king he subjugated the Moabites. 115 00:08:18,640 --> 00:08:22,600 The Moabites were sharing the same border, the eastern border 116 00:08:22,600 --> 00:08:28,480 of the promised land, and so David conquered them and he 117 00:08:28,480 --> 00:08:34,960 brought them under a taxation. And the taxation in detail is 118 00:08:34,960 --> 00:08:36,360 actually given to us in the Bible. 119 00:08:36,360 --> 00:08:39,840 We are told exactly what it was that the Moabites were to give 120 00:08:39,840 --> 00:08:41,919 to the people of Israel, the government of Israel. 121 00:08:42,280 --> 00:08:46,240 And it's not in Second Kings one actually in Second Kings 3. 122 00:08:46,960 --> 00:08:50,800 So in Second Kings 3 where this Moabite rebellion is going to 123 00:08:50,800 --> 00:08:56,280 develop, we read here in verse 4 of what it is that Moabite, the 124 00:08:56,280 --> 00:08:58,920 Moabites had to deliver to the king of Israel. 125 00:08:59,280 --> 00:09:04,240 Now Misha king of Moab was a sheep breeder and he had to 126 00:09:04,240 --> 00:09:09,800 deliver to the king of Israel 100,000 lambs and the wool of 127 00:09:09,800 --> 00:09:14,120 100,000 Rams. But when Ahab died, the king of 128 00:09:14,120 --> 00:09:17,520 Moab rebelled against the king of Israel. 129 00:09:18,880 --> 00:09:22,080 So what we have to understand here is that in verse 1 of 130 00:09:22,080 --> 00:09:26,800 chapter 1, when Moab decided to free themselves from Israel's 131 00:09:26,800 --> 00:09:32,240 control, this would have been a severe blow to Israel's economy 132 00:09:32,240 --> 00:09:37,320 and their national security. And why is it told to us right 133 00:09:37,320 --> 00:09:41,560 here is because we are learning right away of Israel's 134 00:09:41,560 --> 00:09:45,120 accelerated decline into God's displeasure. 135 00:09:46,560 --> 00:09:50,880 Again, connect Second Kings with First Kings and it will make 136 00:09:50,880 --> 00:09:55,480 much more sense. Do you remember how First Kings 137 00:09:55,480 --> 00:09:58,280 ended? Do we remember the last verse of 138 00:09:58,280 --> 00:10:01,840 the book of First Kings? It speaks about how Ahab died 139 00:10:01,840 --> 00:10:05,640 and Eziah, his son, took over. But we also realized what kind 140 00:10:05,640 --> 00:10:11,320 of man Eziah was and how God felt about his character and his 141 00:10:11,320 --> 00:10:14,000 idolatry. So look at the last verse of 142 00:10:14,000 --> 00:10:17,040 First Kings in chapter 22, verse 53. 143 00:10:17,040 --> 00:10:19,240 I know we're doing a lot of cross referencing, but this is 144 00:10:19,240 --> 00:10:20,960 what you got to do if you're going to get some gold from the 145 00:10:20,960 --> 00:10:27,440 Bible. Verse 53 of First Kings 22, he 146 00:10:27,440 --> 00:10:29,680 served Baal. This is a Hisaiah. 147 00:10:29,680 --> 00:10:34,840 He served Baal and worshipped him and provoked the Lord the 148 00:10:34,840 --> 00:10:40,160 God of Israel to anger in every way that his father had done. 149 00:10:42,040 --> 00:10:45,880 Is it any coincidence that following the mention of God's 150 00:10:45,880 --> 00:10:51,440 anger towards Isaiah, we learned that Moab rebelled during his 151 00:10:51,440 --> 00:10:54,280 administration? It is no coincidence. 152 00:10:55,280 --> 00:10:59,040 This is a consequence. This is divine Providence in 153 00:10:59,040 --> 00:11:02,800 operation. This is the Lord now stripping 154 00:11:02,800 --> 00:11:08,720 things away from Isaiah to try to awaken something in him, a 155 00:11:08,720 --> 00:11:13,680 concern of some sort. Self examination, but 156 00:11:13,680 --> 00:11:15,720 unfortunately he doesn't awaken anything of the sort. 157 00:11:16,720 --> 00:11:20,520 There is actually no concern. The only concern concerning 158 00:11:20,640 --> 00:11:23,360 concerning Moab's rebellion is going to show up in chapter 3 159 00:11:23,360 --> 00:11:26,000 when Jairam is going to take his place. 160 00:11:26,600 --> 00:11:29,960 But until then, all we find Ahaziah doing is what we read in 161 00:11:29,960 --> 00:11:32,560 verse two. Look at his attitude now. 162 00:11:32,640 --> 00:11:35,640 Ahaziah fell through the lattice in his upper chamber in Samaria, 163 00:11:35,920 --> 00:11:37,760 so he's hanging out in his palace. 164 00:11:38,880 --> 00:11:41,280 There's no urgency here. There's no seeking of the Lord. 165 00:11:41,280 --> 00:11:43,720 There's no seeking of a true prophet, Moab. 166 00:11:43,880 --> 00:11:46,640 This is himself. Moab disconnects from Israel, 167 00:11:46,880 --> 00:11:50,000 and he's just relaxing on his patio. 168 00:11:51,960 --> 00:11:54,640 And right away, our study reveals something about human 169 00:11:54,640 --> 00:11:57,680 nature. It is not uncommon for a 170 00:11:57,680 --> 00:12:03,480 country's rulers and its people to overlook a nation's distress 171 00:12:03,840 --> 00:12:09,520 as mere disturbances rather than shakings orchestrated by a holy 172 00:12:09,520 --> 00:12:14,760 God. There are 1,000,000 today who 173 00:12:14,760 --> 00:12:17,720 are looking out and seeing the global troubles that we are 174 00:12:17,720 --> 00:12:22,240 trying to endure, and they're dismissing God and all of it. 175 00:12:23,920 --> 00:12:26,400 They're not taking into consideration that perhaps God 176 00:12:26,400 --> 00:12:30,760 is allowing things to happen for us to realize that there is 177 00:12:30,760 --> 00:12:33,600 something wrong and that we must seek Him. 178 00:12:34,760 --> 00:12:40,160 And so many will continue since the days of kings and even 179 00:12:40,160 --> 00:12:42,600 earlier. Many will continue to try to 180 00:12:42,600 --> 00:12:50,400 plow through distress and chaos, and it will culminate an 181 00:12:50,400 --> 00:12:53,840 unprecedented disaster and calamities known as the Great 182 00:12:53,840 --> 00:12:56,840 Tribulation period that Jesus prophesied in the Book of 183 00:12:56,840 --> 00:13:00,080 Revelation tells us about. Even then, even at the final 184 00:13:00,080 --> 00:13:03,600 seconds leading up to midnight for human history, there will be 185 00:13:03,600 --> 00:13:08,480 people who will still not regard God, and if they do, many of 186 00:13:08,480 --> 00:13:12,040 them will bite their tongues, resist, surrender, and with 187 00:13:12,040 --> 00:13:14,640 whatever breath they have left, curse God. 188 00:13:16,080 --> 00:13:20,560 Let me just remind you today of the radical depravity of man. 189 00:13:22,240 --> 00:13:25,280 Isaiah is a sobering picture of it. 190 00:13:26,120 --> 00:13:29,520 However, with all of this, even in verse one, not only do we see 191 00:13:30,440 --> 00:13:35,480 how man is capable of resisting, but we also see how God is so 192 00:13:35,480 --> 00:13:39,080 incredibly patient and kind even to men like Ahaziah. 193 00:13:39,720 --> 00:13:44,200 Because even though it has I here ignores, he disregards the 194 00:13:44,200 --> 00:13:46,440 issues in the broader context of his life. 195 00:13:46,840 --> 00:13:51,040 God is now going to do something to him personally to try to 196 00:13:51,040 --> 00:13:55,640 arouse him, to look to him. And how does he do it? 197 00:13:55,640 --> 00:13:59,440 Look at verse 2 again, as I have fell through the lattice in his 198 00:13:59,440 --> 00:14:02,600 upper chamber in Samaria and lay sick. 199 00:14:04,800 --> 00:14:07,880 So when he didn't see God's invisible hand in the political 200 00:14:07,880 --> 00:14:11,800 arena, surely now he would see God's hand pressing on him 201 00:14:11,800 --> 00:14:14,680 personally. At least you would hope. 202 00:14:15,880 --> 00:14:18,440 And we have to understand here that this fall could have easily 203 00:14:18,440 --> 00:14:22,560 killed Isaiah, could have killed anyone, but it didn't. 204 00:14:22,560 --> 00:14:28,680 It wounded him enough to be conscious and to lay down, to 205 00:14:28,680 --> 00:14:33,720 reflect, to examine, to give him a chance to actually cry out to 206 00:14:33,720 --> 00:14:36,800 God. And you see, the Scriptures 207 00:14:36,800 --> 00:14:41,120 testify on many occasions that physical pain is one of God's 208 00:14:41,120 --> 00:14:48,040 loudest instruments, pointed, sharp, powerful, persuasive 209 00:14:48,040 --> 00:14:50,920 means of getting us to look to him. 210 00:14:52,960 --> 00:14:55,560 It doesn't guarantee that response, but it is one of the 211 00:14:55,560 --> 00:15:01,320 designs of suffering to actually get you to reflect and to 212 00:15:01,320 --> 00:15:04,960 actually come to a point where you seek God because at one 213 00:15:04,960 --> 00:15:08,160 point you did, but that became dormant or you hadn't at all, 214 00:15:08,160 --> 00:15:10,440 and now these are going to be the beginnings of your seeking. 215 00:15:12,720 --> 00:15:14,880 If you need proof of that, there's so many verses, but let 216 00:15:14,880 --> 00:15:17,720 me just read the simplest one that I can think of to back that 217 00:15:17,720 --> 00:15:19,680 up. You don't have to turn that, but 218 00:15:19,680 --> 00:15:22,120 listen to these words from the prophet Isaiah in Chapter 9, 219 00:15:22,120 --> 00:15:26,000 verse 13. The people did not turn to him 220 00:15:27,080 --> 00:15:31,960 who struck them. God struck them, and the people 221 00:15:31,960 --> 00:15:35,680 did not turn, implying that He struck them so that they would 222 00:15:35,680 --> 00:15:38,800 turn to him. The people did not turn to him 223 00:15:39,000 --> 00:15:43,640 who struck them, nor inquire of the Lord of hosts. 224 00:15:46,640 --> 00:15:52,040 It's amazing how when people get sick, they suddenly become 225 00:15:52,040 --> 00:15:55,000 spiritual. Have you ever realized that? 226 00:15:55,960 --> 00:15:59,920 I've seen it countless times. All of a sudden now prayer 227 00:15:59,920 --> 00:16:02,480 becomes attractive. God is part of their 228 00:16:02,480 --> 00:16:05,280 conversation. Pastors get phone calls, 229 00:16:07,040 --> 00:16:11,760 sickness, suffering has a way of pulling on certain strings in 230 00:16:11,760 --> 00:16:15,600 our soul. And so if you want a phrase to 231 00:16:15,600 --> 00:16:23,640 remember, here's one. Often times God smites so that 232 00:16:23,640 --> 00:16:28,720 man will seek. God smite so that man will seek. 233 00:16:29,560 --> 00:16:32,240 So does Aiziah do any seeking? Let's continue in verse 2. 234 00:16:32,240 --> 00:16:34,440 Now Aiziah fell through the lattice in his upper chamber in 235 00:16:34,440 --> 00:16:39,000 Samaria and lay sick. So he sent messengers telling 236 00:16:39,000 --> 00:16:46,560 them go OK this looks good. Inquire yes of Belzebub. 237 00:16:49,120 --> 00:16:51,320 It looked very promising in the 1st 2 breaths. 238 00:16:51,720 --> 00:16:56,840 Belzebub, the God of Ekron, what I shall recover from the 239 00:16:56,840 --> 00:17:00,360 sickness. So he is seeking but the wrong 240 00:17:00,360 --> 00:17:02,840 remedy. Do people do that today? 241 00:17:04,200 --> 00:17:08,240 Countless people do Millions of people today, millions of people 242 00:17:09,079 --> 00:17:13,720 run to empty remedies instead of the true Savior and Redeemer, 243 00:17:13,720 --> 00:17:16,319 millions. And as I is no different here, 244 00:17:16,440 --> 00:17:20,200 He asked to actually call for the prophets, the priests. 245 00:17:20,599 --> 00:17:24,400 He sends his men to go to the location where this deity named 246 00:17:24,400 --> 00:17:28,280 Belzebub was honored. Where was he from? 247 00:17:28,280 --> 00:17:31,160 He was the God of Ekron. That's a part of the Philistine 248 00:17:31,160 --> 00:17:33,920 region. So this is a Pagan deity. 249 00:17:34,200 --> 00:17:40,480 This is a false God. And Belzebub means this the Lord 250 00:17:40,560 --> 00:17:45,520 of the fly or the Lord of the flies. 251 00:17:47,040 --> 00:17:53,000 And it's very possible that this Belzebub claimed, promised some 252 00:17:53,000 --> 00:17:57,080 kind of healing power or some kind of protective, preserving 253 00:17:57,080 --> 00:18:01,520 graces from illnesses and disease, even ailments that are 254 00:18:01,520 --> 00:18:07,120 carried by flies. And if that sounds familiar to 255 00:18:07,120 --> 00:18:10,960 you, it should, because this was the idol that was referenced by 256 00:18:10,960 --> 00:18:14,720 the enemies of Christ. You remember that when they 257 00:18:14,720 --> 00:18:18,880 sought to slander his source of his healing power after 258 00:18:18,880 --> 00:18:22,200 delivering a man from a demon who kept him deaf and mute. 259 00:18:22,520 --> 00:18:26,640 The Pharisee says it is by the power of bells above the Prince 260 00:18:26,640 --> 00:18:29,600 of demons that he is doing these things. 261 00:18:32,800 --> 00:18:36,440 So he's searching for a demon God. 262 00:18:38,920 --> 00:18:42,080 And if there's any doubt that the events leading up to this 263 00:18:42,080 --> 00:18:47,520 point were arranged by God to try to draw his eye to himself, 264 00:18:47,880 --> 00:18:51,160 read again in verse three and four and try to explain this. 265 00:18:52,000 --> 00:18:55,960 But the Angel of the Lord said to Elijah, the Tishbite arise, 266 00:18:55,960 --> 00:18:58,480 go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria. 267 00:19:00,120 --> 00:19:04,520 So the moment the Lord realized and saw that as I did some 268 00:19:04,520 --> 00:19:08,640 seeking but to the wrong source, He speaks to his servant Elijah 269 00:19:08,800 --> 00:19:13,200 and he says intercept this, meet these messengers, stand in the 270 00:19:13,200 --> 00:19:16,400 way and let him know what the true God has to say. 271 00:19:16,400 --> 00:19:21,240 So what verse 3 proves to you and I is this that God played a 272 00:19:21,240 --> 00:19:32,920 part in wounding Isaiah, Watching Isaiah, waiting for 273 00:19:33,000 --> 00:19:38,000 Isaiah to see how he would respond to everything, and 274 00:19:38,000 --> 00:19:42,680 Elijah's confrontation with these messengers is a preview of 275 00:19:42,680 --> 00:19:47,480 a divine confrontation that waits all men that we all have 276 00:19:47,480 --> 00:19:51,560 an appointment with. In the same way that God took 277 00:19:51,560 --> 00:19:56,520 into account what is I did in His trouble, who He sought for 278 00:19:56,520 --> 00:20:01,400 ultimate help, what his source of hope was, the Lord does with 279 00:20:01,400 --> 00:20:06,160 every man today. God will hold every person to 280 00:20:06,160 --> 00:20:09,120 account of where they turn to for salvation. 281 00:20:11,320 --> 00:20:14,640 God will hold into account where every person turns to for the 282 00:20:14,640 --> 00:20:18,680 forgiveness of their sins. God will hold into account and 283 00:20:18,680 --> 00:20:21,680 take into account what every person does in terms of being 284 00:20:21,680 --> 00:20:25,560 free from the power of sin. God will record. 285 00:20:25,560 --> 00:20:31,520 God will take into account whether we ignore Him, replace 286 00:20:31,520 --> 00:20:39,520 Him, or accept him. And in this case He was watching 287 00:20:39,520 --> 00:20:42,840 and waiting for what is I would do, and the verdict was made. 288 00:20:43,360 --> 00:20:46,640 So he speaks to Elijah. Elijah comes to this message, 289 00:20:46,640 --> 00:20:51,080 these messengers, and notice what he says again, arise, go up 290 00:20:51,080 --> 00:20:53,400 to meet the messenger of the king of Sumeria and say to them, 291 00:20:53,400 --> 00:20:56,120 Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to 292 00:20:56,120 --> 00:20:58,160 inquire bells above the God of Ecron? 293 00:20:58,880 --> 00:21:01,520 Now therefore, thus says the Lord, you shall not come down 294 00:21:01,520 --> 00:21:04,440 from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely 295 00:21:04,440 --> 00:21:06,680 die. So Elijah went, we've seen that 296 00:21:06,680 --> 00:21:10,240 pattern in First Kings, right? God tells Elijah what to do, No 297 00:21:10,240 --> 00:21:12,120 argument, no debate, no hesitation. 298 00:21:12,120 --> 00:21:14,360 He goes, he goes, he goes, and it's no different here. 299 00:21:14,360 --> 00:21:18,280 He went, Elijah went. Now when he delivers this 300 00:21:18,280 --> 00:21:22,200 message to these messengers, as much as this is a proclamation 301 00:21:22,200 --> 00:21:25,440 of judgement, do you not see how it is packaged in mercy? 302 00:21:27,000 --> 00:21:29,760 Is it not packaged in mercy? Where do you see the mercy in 303 00:21:29,760 --> 00:21:33,120 this, in this declaration? Any idea? 304 00:21:33,200 --> 00:21:34,440 You can actually answer if you see it. 305 00:21:35,800 --> 00:21:41,640 How is God being merciful in allowing his eye to receive this 306 00:21:41,640 --> 00:21:44,600 prophetic declaration of judgement? 307 00:21:44,840 --> 00:21:52,880 Yes, very good. It's it's a merciful thing to 308 00:21:52,880 --> 00:21:55,200 let her know, to let a person know who is suffering thinking 309 00:21:55,200 --> 00:21:56,720 they're going to die. You're actually going to die. 310 00:21:56,720 --> 00:22:00,360 Death is around the corner. He could have not said anything. 311 00:22:00,360 --> 00:22:04,920 It just struck him dead. But by sending this message to 312 00:22:04,920 --> 00:22:10,200 this man, he's also giving this man who even rejected the true 313 00:22:10,200 --> 00:22:14,920 God a final chance to get right with God before he meets his 314 00:22:14,920 --> 00:22:19,080 God. So let me also say this, if you 315 00:22:19,080 --> 00:22:22,800 know anybody, if you had any conversation with a peer, a 316 00:22:22,800 --> 00:22:28,200 parent, or a pastor who boldly reminds you of your mortality, 317 00:22:30,000 --> 00:22:35,400 who informs you about eternity, that is an expression of God's 318 00:22:35,400 --> 00:22:37,800 mercy in your life. That's a gift. 319 00:22:37,800 --> 00:22:41,440 That person is a gift. Because in telling you the 320 00:22:41,440 --> 00:22:45,600 truth, not only are you being informed of an inescapable 321 00:22:45,600 --> 00:22:48,720 reality, but you're also being given a chance to make right 322 00:22:49,440 --> 00:22:52,560 with God through the gospel so that you can know the best 323 00:22:52,600 --> 00:22:58,200 outcome of that reality. So this is God's mercy even in 324 00:22:58,200 --> 00:23:03,320 this, by letting this man know you are going to expire, you're 325 00:23:03,320 --> 00:23:06,760 not going to recover. And surely he makes this note so 326 00:23:06,760 --> 00:23:09,840 that this man can even take advantage of this news to try to 327 00:23:09,840 --> 00:23:13,520 get right with his God. Look at verse 5. 328 00:23:13,520 --> 00:23:17,320 What happens? The messengers returned to the 329 00:23:17,320 --> 00:23:20,480 king and he said to them, why have you returned? 330 00:23:20,480 --> 00:23:23,000 So the timing that it makes sense here for these men to have 331 00:23:23,000 --> 00:23:25,280 come back so early means they aborted their mission. 332 00:23:25,280 --> 00:23:29,560 And so they asked, they're asked rather by his eye, why is it 333 00:23:29,560 --> 00:23:34,240 that you've come so soon? Now, what I find so amazing 334 00:23:34,240 --> 00:23:36,840 about this is that these messengers, they actually listen 335 00:23:36,840 --> 00:23:41,240 to Elijah. They didn't fight him. 336 00:23:41,240 --> 00:23:44,000 They didn't resist them. They didn't push him aside. 337 00:23:44,240 --> 00:23:46,480 And what makes this even more remarkable is that they didn't 338 00:23:46,480 --> 00:23:50,200 even know this was Elijah. Go back again to verse 8, when 339 00:23:50,200 --> 00:23:53,320 as I asked the man who sent them back, look how they answered. 340 00:23:53,640 --> 00:23:56,280 He wore a garment of hair with a belt of leather around his 341 00:23:56,280 --> 00:23:57,640 waist. They could have just said 342 00:23:57,640 --> 00:23:59,040 Elijah. They didn't know it was Elijah. 343 00:23:59,800 --> 00:24:01,800 Perhaps they didn't recognize, and perhaps again, Elijah had a 344 00:24:01,800 --> 00:24:03,640 tendency of disappearing for a long time. 345 00:24:03,840 --> 00:24:06,840 So maybe these men who were just newly hired didn't understand 346 00:24:06,840 --> 00:24:08,920 that. That could be very well the 347 00:24:08,920 --> 00:24:12,800 case. And though these messengers play 348 00:24:12,800 --> 00:24:16,120 a very brief part in the story of Second Kings chapter one, 349 00:24:16,440 --> 00:24:20,600 they are a wonderful example for servants of God today. 350 00:24:21,200 --> 00:24:22,440 You're saying What do you mean by that? 351 00:24:22,840 --> 00:24:26,760 Notice that once they learned the word of the Lord, the will 352 00:24:26,760 --> 00:24:31,640 of the Lord, they were urgent and they obeyed. 353 00:24:33,880 --> 00:24:38,440 They did not hesitate. They went with what God said, 354 00:24:38,440 --> 00:24:41,160 even if it went against what the king said. 355 00:24:43,080 --> 00:24:47,600 So here you have a picture of unreserved obedience and 356 00:24:47,600 --> 00:24:50,840 allegiance to the truth. But more than that, even when 357 00:24:50,840 --> 00:24:54,000 they came to the king, look how they spoke to him. 358 00:24:54,000 --> 00:24:56,320 And they said to him, There came a man to meet us, and said to 359 00:24:56,320 --> 00:24:58,240 us, Go back to the king who sent you, and say to him, Thus says 360 00:24:58,240 --> 00:25:00,320 the Lord, It is because there is no God in Israel that you were 361 00:25:00,320 --> 00:25:02,160 sending to inquire bells above the God of Ekron. 362 00:25:02,320 --> 00:25:04,160 Therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you 363 00:25:04,160 --> 00:25:06,720 have gone out, but you shall surely die almost word for word 364 00:25:06,800 --> 00:25:11,800 what Elijah said. So not only are they examples in 365 00:25:11,800 --> 00:25:15,080 that they were urgent and obedient once they learn what 366 00:25:15,080 --> 00:25:19,880 the Lord desired, but they're also faithful to what His word 367 00:25:19,880 --> 00:25:22,200 had to say. You have to understand that in 368 00:25:22,200 --> 00:25:25,080 this time for a ruler, especially in a moral ruler, 369 00:25:25,080 --> 00:25:30,160 they expected blind obedience, and they did not take too kindly 370 00:25:30,160 --> 00:25:33,040 to those who would resist, contradict, or challenge their 371 00:25:33,160 --> 00:25:35,040 wishes. They could have got rid of your 372 00:25:35,040 --> 00:25:38,880 head right there and then. And so for these messengers to 373 00:25:38,880 --> 00:25:44,680 come back to a wicked king like Isaiah and tell him what Elijah 374 00:25:44,680 --> 00:25:48,680 said is very brave, very bold, very courageous. 375 00:25:49,800 --> 00:25:54,400 So even in this you get a little sample of what faithfulness 376 00:25:54,400 --> 00:25:57,800 looks like and how we should respond to the Word, and when 377 00:25:57,800 --> 00:26:01,320 we're entrusted with the Word, how to deliver the Word. 378 00:26:01,320 --> 00:26:06,680 And it is I had any sense of the fear of God, any sense of 379 00:26:06,680 --> 00:26:11,160 integrity, then he would have been very glad that these men 380 00:26:11,160 --> 00:26:14,440 even disobeying him in order to disobey a greater king for his 381 00:26:14,440 --> 00:26:18,040 good. It reminds me of another 382 00:26:18,040 --> 00:26:19,760 messenger that we studied this past weekend. 383 00:26:19,760 --> 00:26:22,480 Tell me who we studied about last weekend, Paul. 384 00:26:22,760 --> 00:26:27,640 What a messenger he was. What a consistent messenger this 385 00:26:27,640 --> 00:26:29,520 man was. No matter where he found 386 00:26:29,520 --> 00:26:33,280 himself, no matter who his audience was, he was the same. 387 00:26:34,080 --> 00:26:37,720 And, and looking at this, I'm reminded of when Paul himself 388 00:26:37,720 --> 00:26:42,080 stood before a governor and what he said to this governor when 389 00:26:42,080 --> 00:26:45,120 the opportunity came for him to preach the gospel while he 390 00:26:45,120 --> 00:26:47,880 himself was in chains. It's an easy reference. 391 00:26:48,320 --> 00:26:51,160 It's one of the most riveting texts in terms of preaching for 392 00:26:51,160 --> 00:26:52,520 me, at least in the New Testament. 393 00:26:52,720 --> 00:26:56,400 It's in Acts 2424. Do you remember here when Paul 394 00:26:56,400 --> 00:27:02,320 was in under trial and Felix was curious about this man's 395 00:27:02,320 --> 00:27:06,840 devotion to the Christ Jesus Christ of Nazareth? 396 00:27:07,880 --> 00:27:11,280 And notice what Paul does when he gets a visitation from Felix 397 00:27:11,600 --> 00:27:15,560 while in custody. May I remind you Felix comes 398 00:27:15,560 --> 00:27:20,120 with his wife Drusilla and read this with me in Acts 2424. 399 00:27:20,640 --> 00:27:24,560 After some days, Felix came with his wife Drusilla, who is who is 400 00:27:24,560 --> 00:27:29,040 Jewish and he sent for Paul and heard him speak about faith in 401 00:27:29,040 --> 00:27:31,920 Christ Jesus. Not just that. 402 00:27:32,480 --> 00:27:39,200 Imagine a governor, a mayor, the president, any political figure. 403 00:27:40,040 --> 00:27:44,720 Imagine them calling you to come over to sit down for half an 404 00:27:44,720 --> 00:27:48,480 hour to hear about your faith in Jesus Christ. 405 00:27:48,960 --> 00:27:52,600 How would you tailor that message for a prominent figure? 406 00:27:53,720 --> 00:27:56,160 How would you deliver it? What kind of tone would you use? 407 00:27:56,400 --> 00:27:58,400 What doctrines would you emphasize on? 408 00:27:58,560 --> 00:28:04,200 What would you leave out? We're told exactly what Paul 409 00:28:04,400 --> 00:28:06,960 preached on when he sat before this man and his wife. 410 00:28:06,960 --> 00:28:10,640 Look at verse 25. And as he reasoned about 411 00:28:10,800 --> 00:28:14,720 righteousness, right, right there, right there. 412 00:28:14,720 --> 00:28:19,040 OK, He's he's already doing what most preachers wouldn't do 413 00:28:19,040 --> 00:28:22,040 today. He reasoned about righteousness 414 00:28:22,320 --> 00:28:26,520 and self-control and the coming judgement. 415 00:28:28,160 --> 00:28:33,280 This is the first sermon, and what are you going to preach on 416 00:28:33,280 --> 00:28:37,800 on night one of conference, righteousness, self-control, and 417 00:28:37,800 --> 00:28:44,120 the coming judgment. Felix was alarmed, no kidding, 418 00:28:45,880 --> 00:28:48,280 and said Go away for the present. 419 00:28:48,440 --> 00:28:51,000 When I get an opportunity, I will summon you. 420 00:28:51,000 --> 00:28:53,600 There is no recorded opportunity after this. 421 00:28:54,920 --> 00:28:56,680 Procrastination is a very dangerous thing. 422 00:28:56,680 --> 00:28:58,440 It has sent many people to an eternal hell. 423 00:29:00,480 --> 00:29:02,560 Now go away and when I'm ready, I'll have you come back. 424 00:29:02,840 --> 00:29:04,000 We don't see that ever happening. 425 00:29:05,680 --> 00:29:07,160 But notice the things that he touches on. 426 00:29:07,400 --> 00:29:09,480 Righteousness, self-control in the coming joy. 427 00:29:09,680 --> 00:29:12,800 I would have loved to know how he intertwined those truths with 428 00:29:12,800 --> 00:29:17,200 the gospel, but they were there. And what makes Paul's boldness 429 00:29:17,200 --> 00:29:21,840 even more inspirational is that he is speaking this way before a 430 00:29:21,840 --> 00:29:24,880 man who had the authority to set him free. 431 00:29:26,560 --> 00:29:28,680 He's a prisoner at this point. Or is he? 432 00:29:28,840 --> 00:29:32,760 No, I see Paul as a free man, and I say Felix as a bound man. 433 00:29:33,600 --> 00:29:36,680 I see Paul, yes, with chains, but liberated by the gospel. 434 00:29:36,880 --> 00:29:40,440 I see a governor with great power, though a slave to sin. 435 00:29:42,080 --> 00:29:44,800 But I love Paul no matter what situation, no matter who's 436 00:29:44,800 --> 00:29:46,840 before him. Yes, we're called to be wise as 437 00:29:46,840 --> 00:29:49,880 serpents, innocent as as doves. But Paul saw something here. 438 00:29:50,120 --> 00:29:52,600 You know, when Paul preached the gospel, at least in this case 439 00:29:52,600 --> 00:29:55,520 and in many of the cases he preached, he didn't seek to just 440 00:29:55,520 --> 00:30:00,200 explain systematics and the mechanics of things. 441 00:30:01,160 --> 00:30:05,240 This man touched the conscience. He appealed to the conscience. 442 00:30:07,360 --> 00:30:11,600 That's what true preaching evangelism will do, not just 443 00:30:11,600 --> 00:30:15,120 explain things from a theological standpoint as 444 00:30:15,120 --> 00:30:18,400 they're hovering here. No, he took those truths and he 445 00:30:18,400 --> 00:30:21,480 allowed them with persuasion, the power of the Holy Spirit to 446 00:30:21,480 --> 00:30:26,280 cut hearts. And Felix here was alarmed and 447 00:30:26,280 --> 00:30:30,280 so these messengers here as they came before the king in 448 00:30:30,280 --> 00:30:32,480 principle provide us some wonderful examples as we are 449 00:30:32,480 --> 00:30:34,400 messengers of Christ. So let's come back to our main 450 00:30:34,400 --> 00:30:41,440 text. Almost word for word they 451 00:30:42,400 --> 00:30:46,280 relayed Elijah's message and what was his eyes initial 452 00:30:46,280 --> 00:30:49,760 response? He said to them, what kind of 453 00:30:49,760 --> 00:30:52,520 man was he who came to you and told you these things? 454 00:30:52,520 --> 00:31:00,240 He had a sneaky suspicion. Surely he witnessed Elijah's 455 00:31:01,040 --> 00:31:04,800 troubling ministry in his father's life, maybe even 456 00:31:05,480 --> 00:31:08,320 witnessed some of it. And so once he heard these 457 00:31:08,320 --> 00:31:12,240 words, he thought, that sounds a lot like someone I know, but let 458 00:31:12,240 --> 00:31:16,080 me confirm. So he asks and they give a 459 00:31:16,080 --> 00:31:18,400 description, and the moment that he heard the description, he's 460 00:31:18,400 --> 00:31:24,640 like, that's Elijah. But before we continue, it's 461 00:31:24,640 --> 00:31:29,880 worth noting that Ahaziah does something here that many people 462 00:31:29,880 --> 00:31:32,920 do, and they have the right to do it. 463 00:31:34,480 --> 00:31:39,920 Ahaziah wanted to know the man behind the message. 464 00:31:42,320 --> 00:31:46,480 Whether we acknowledge it or not, the impact of what we say 465 00:31:47,080 --> 00:31:55,480 is inseparable from who we are. Rarely do people separate the 466 00:31:55,480 --> 00:32:01,480 servant from his service or her service, and that is why 467 00:32:01,480 --> 00:32:06,280 hypocrites are easily dismissed and are ineffective in their 468 00:32:06,280 --> 00:32:10,160 witness, while men like Elijah, though imperfect, are blameless 469 00:32:11,200 --> 00:32:15,640 and carry greater authority in what they have to say because 470 00:32:15,640 --> 00:32:18,040 their conduct doesn't muddy their message. 471 00:32:19,920 --> 00:32:24,400 If anyone will criticize us for anything, let it be for the 472 00:32:24,400 --> 00:32:29,080 content of our message and not for our poor conduct. 473 00:32:31,000 --> 00:32:34,560 That would undermine it. And that is why you see this 474 00:32:34,560 --> 00:32:37,960 pattern in the New Testament where Paul writes to ministers. 475 00:32:38,160 --> 00:32:41,720 He always makes this order. He always asked the minister to 476 00:32:41,720 --> 00:32:45,320 watch himself take care of himself before even his doctrine 477 00:32:45,320 --> 00:32:47,440 and before the people that he is entrusted to. 478 00:32:48,360 --> 00:32:51,720 Watch yourself, keep a close eye on yourself, take care of 479 00:32:51,720 --> 00:32:54,120 yourself, because everything flows from this. 480 00:32:56,000 --> 00:33:00,440 And so we see here that he wanted to know the man, and that 481 00:33:00,440 --> 00:33:02,720 would play a role in how he would interpret the message. 482 00:33:03,080 --> 00:33:04,640 And there are many people today who do the same. 483 00:33:06,720 --> 00:33:09,840 As much as your message might be pure, even if it's truth, if 484 00:33:09,840 --> 00:33:14,600 it's coming from a vessel that does not practically and 485 00:33:14,600 --> 00:33:17,040 honorably adhere to the very truth that he's trying to 486 00:33:17,040 --> 00:33:24,160 persuade others to believe, you will be rendered powerless and 487 00:33:24,160 --> 00:33:27,800 you will cut off so much authority that could be granted 488 00:33:27,800 --> 00:33:30,560 to you. Verse 9. 489 00:33:32,560 --> 00:33:36,520 Then the king sent to him a captain of 50 men with his 490 00:33:36,520 --> 00:33:39,160 fifty. He went up to Elijah, who was 491 00:33:39,160 --> 00:33:43,240 sitting on the top of a hill, and said to him, Oh man of God, 492 00:33:43,320 --> 00:33:49,920 the king says, Come down. But Elijah answered, the captain 493 00:33:49,920 --> 00:33:52,560 of 50. If I am a man of God, let fire 494 00:33:52,560 --> 00:33:55,240 come down from heaven and consume you and your 50. 495 00:33:56,480 --> 00:33:59,920 Then fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his 50. 496 00:34:01,120 --> 00:34:09,000 What a way to start a book, huh? Unfortunately, the reputation of 497 00:34:09,400 --> 00:34:12,760 Elijah, his credibility, his consistency didn't make a 498 00:34:12,760 --> 00:34:16,360 difference for Aiziah. Instead of repenting and crying 499 00:34:16,360 --> 00:34:19,800 out to God, he rallied up some of his men and created a search 500 00:34:19,800 --> 00:34:23,000 warrant for the prophet. And he found Elijah. 501 00:34:23,600 --> 00:34:26,040 And before we continue to try to understand what takes place 502 00:34:26,040 --> 00:34:30,719 here, let it be noted that Aiziah's intent of seizing 503 00:34:30,719 --> 00:34:33,760 Elijah was not so that they can have a calm and cordial 504 00:34:33,760 --> 00:34:38,400 conversation. There was harm in mind here. 505 00:34:39,880 --> 00:34:44,080 It could be that is, I actually wanted to kill Elijah as one of 506 00:34:44,080 --> 00:34:46,159 his final wishes before he knew he was going to die. 507 00:34:46,159 --> 00:34:48,440 We don't know exactly what was going through his mind, but we 508 00:34:48,440 --> 00:34:51,440 know for certain that this is not for Elijah's good. 509 00:34:52,280 --> 00:34:56,080 And how we can confirm that it's not just by the tone and by the 510 00:34:56,080 --> 00:34:58,480 comrades here that are approaching Elijah, But look 511 00:34:58,480 --> 00:35:01,760 here again at verse 15. And I want you to see eventually 512 00:35:01,800 --> 00:35:05,040 what the Angel of the Lord tells Elijah, which indicates to us 513 00:35:05,200 --> 00:35:07,400 that he was in danger to some degree. 514 00:35:08,000 --> 00:35:10,960 Then the Angel of the Lord said to Elijah, go down with him. 515 00:35:10,960 --> 00:35:16,200 Do not be afraid of him. So this is hostile. 516 00:35:16,200 --> 00:35:19,240 This is aggressive. This is placing Elijah in a 517 00:35:19,240 --> 00:35:23,760 dangerous position. Keep that in mind for many 518 00:35:23,760 --> 00:35:28,640 reasons, including this one. Elijah is a different man, isn't 519 00:35:28,640 --> 00:35:32,880 he? Do you remember how we studied 520 00:35:32,880 --> 00:35:38,640 Elijah in First Kings 19 when he when he went to meet with Ahab 521 00:35:38,840 --> 00:35:41,400 and his wife? At least he was in the same 522 00:35:41,920 --> 00:35:46,760 area. And Jezebel sent a messenger to 523 00:35:46,760 --> 00:35:50,600 Elijah saying you're a dead man. What did Elijah do? 524 00:35:51,280 --> 00:35:55,840 He fled. He took off, and that was just 525 00:35:55,840 --> 00:35:58,000 when a messenger came with a threat. 526 00:35:58,680 --> 00:36:00,280 But I see a different Elijah here. 527 00:36:00,720 --> 00:36:03,720 Here you have Elijah on the top of a hill, not approached by one 528 00:36:03,720 --> 00:36:08,000 messenger with a message, but by a commander of 50 soldiers. 529 00:36:08,080 --> 00:36:12,120 With his fifty soldiers. That's a lot more dangerous and 530 00:36:12,120 --> 00:36:14,680 perilous. But what do you see with Elijah? 531 00:36:14,680 --> 00:36:19,080 He stays put. He stays put and he puts his 532 00:36:19,080 --> 00:36:22,960 faith in God. This is the beauty of studying 533 00:36:23,000 --> 00:36:25,400 books of the Bible. This is the beauty of going 534 00:36:25,400 --> 00:36:27,600 through the order, the chronological order of texts. 535 00:36:27,640 --> 00:36:31,640 We get to see things, including the change that takes place in 536 00:36:31,640 --> 00:36:34,400 people, the progress that they make. 537 00:36:34,560 --> 00:36:36,520 And this is refreshing because all we're going to really see 538 00:36:36,520 --> 00:36:39,240 more than anything else is the decline of a nation. 539 00:36:39,400 --> 00:36:41,160 But all what do we see with Elijah? 540 00:36:41,160 --> 00:36:45,480 He's been the subject of our study for weeks, how God can 541 00:36:45,480 --> 00:36:49,400 change a man. That's what we can see, that 542 00:36:49,400 --> 00:36:54,200 this man had a weakness and that weakness was erased. 543 00:36:55,080 --> 00:36:58,640 And now what this man was once overcome by, he now is able to 544 00:36:58,640 --> 00:37:02,280 overcome. That is what God does with each 545 00:37:02,320 --> 00:37:08,200 of us, that as time goes on, he is committed to changing US, 546 00:37:08,600 --> 00:37:13,840 strengthening us. And Elijah here presents 547 00:37:13,840 --> 00:37:16,120 something encouraging for you and me. 548 00:37:16,520 --> 00:37:21,400 If you trust him, listen, if you even rely on his grace in your 549 00:37:21,400 --> 00:37:26,960 failures, you can be certain that he stands there willing to 550 00:37:26,960 --> 00:37:33,000 guide you and guide you and guide you until you change. 551 00:37:34,520 --> 00:37:38,080 Elijah's different. But I see another contrast here 552 00:37:39,120 --> 00:37:43,560 in the verses that we just read with Elijah and with what we 553 00:37:43,560 --> 00:37:45,440 read and studied in First Kings 19. 554 00:37:45,760 --> 00:37:48,800 Is this the first time in Elijah's ministry where fire 555 00:37:48,800 --> 00:37:53,040 falls down from heaven? Where did we see file from that 556 00:37:53,040 --> 00:37:57,040 fire fall down from heaven before on Mount Carmel, right? 557 00:37:58,720 --> 00:38:01,880 And here we see Elijah now, and we read very specifically, where 558 00:38:01,880 --> 00:38:05,440 was he located? On top of a hill. 559 00:38:06,680 --> 00:38:11,720 So he's on top of a hill, and we have the enemies of God and 560 00:38:11,720 --> 00:38:15,000 Elijah who meet him on this hill, just like Mount Carmel. 561 00:38:15,360 --> 00:38:20,320 And we also see, like Mount Carmel, fire falling down from 562 00:38:20,640 --> 00:38:23,440 heaven. But there is a very important 563 00:38:23,440 --> 00:38:27,000 difference. When the fire fell down from 564 00:38:27,000 --> 00:38:29,880 heaven on Mount Carmel, it landed somewhere else. 565 00:38:29,880 --> 00:38:32,960 Where did it land? On a sacrifice? 566 00:38:34,600 --> 00:38:39,000 And we concluded that that was a picture of God's incredible 567 00:38:39,000 --> 00:38:43,360 mercy and a foreshadowing of the ministry in the work of the Lord 568 00:38:43,360 --> 00:38:46,920 Jesus Christ. Because you had Elijah, you had 569 00:38:46,920 --> 00:38:49,480 false prophets, but you also had the people of Israel. 570 00:38:49,760 --> 00:38:52,720 And if the fire should have fell anywhere on Mount Carmel, it was 571 00:38:52,720 --> 00:38:57,440 on the rebellious people. But instead it landed on a 572 00:38:57,440 --> 00:39:03,640 sacrifice pointing us to Christ. Christ absorbs the wrath of God, 573 00:39:03,800 --> 00:39:08,440 though we deserve to drink it. But now we come to 2nd Kings. 574 00:39:08,440 --> 00:39:14,440 One Elijah's on a hill. Enemies of God are there, fire 575 00:39:14,440 --> 00:39:18,720 falls, but it doesn't fall on a sacrifice, it falls on the 576 00:39:18,720 --> 00:39:22,680 enemies of God. So if what we saw in Mount 577 00:39:22,680 --> 00:39:27,440 Carmel picture the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ, what we see 578 00:39:27,440 --> 00:39:31,320 here in Second Kings One pictures what will take place 579 00:39:31,320 --> 00:39:38,960 for those who ignore and refuse to respond to the cross of Jesus 580 00:39:38,960 --> 00:39:43,680 Christ. If you do not accept Jesus 581 00:39:43,680 --> 00:39:47,720 Christ taking the wrath of God on your behalf, then there's 582 00:39:47,720 --> 00:39:52,080 only one other option. You will one day receive the 583 00:39:52,080 --> 00:39:56,920 wrath of God. And so it's either you 584 00:39:56,920 --> 00:39:59,440 acknowledging what happened on Calvary and rejoicing and 585 00:39:59,440 --> 00:40:04,200 repenting because of it, or you becoming a recipient of the fire 586 00:40:04,200 --> 00:40:07,600 of God in Second Thessalonians. Chapter 1 tells us exactly. 587 00:40:08,160 --> 00:40:10,480 How fire will come with vengeance on those who did not 588 00:40:10,480 --> 00:40:17,720 obey the gospel. So we see here that 51 men died. 589 00:40:20,000 --> 00:40:22,360 They face the scrutiny of God's justice. 590 00:40:23,400 --> 00:40:27,320 What takes place next? Look at verse 11 again. 591 00:40:27,320 --> 00:40:30,440 The king sent to him another captain of 50 men with his 592 00:40:30,440 --> 00:40:32,560 fifty. And he answered and said to him, 593 00:40:32,560 --> 00:40:34,280 Oh man of God, this is the King's order. 594 00:40:34,280 --> 00:40:41,120 Come down quickly. Wow, you would think a Heziah 595 00:40:41,880 --> 00:40:44,600 would have been sobered. And realizing I sent my men to 596 00:40:44,600 --> 00:40:47,000 try to seize this man. I'm not fighting against Noam, 597 00:40:47,000 --> 00:40:48,640 your man. I'm fighting against God. 598 00:40:50,480 --> 00:40:55,800 Right? But instead of humbling himself, 599 00:40:55,920 --> 00:40:58,920 instead of registering how this is a supernatural intervention, 600 00:40:59,800 --> 00:41:03,600 he hardened his heart even more. Compare the language of verse 11 601 00:41:03,600 --> 00:41:07,040 with the second wave of men with the first wave earlier they 602 00:41:07,040 --> 00:41:09,520 said, oh man of God, the king says come down, right? 603 00:41:09,520 --> 00:41:12,920 Is that what we read in verse 10 or verse 9? 604 00:41:12,920 --> 00:41:16,920 But look here, what we see in verse 11, all men of God, this 605 00:41:16,920 --> 00:41:21,400 is the King's order. Come down. 606 00:41:21,400 --> 00:41:22,880 Not just come down, come down what? 607 00:41:23,560 --> 00:41:26,640 Quickly? So they even get more 608 00:41:26,640 --> 00:41:33,080 aggressive. So what do we see here? 609 00:41:33,120 --> 00:41:35,800 This is yet another honest illustration of man's dangerous 610 00:41:35,800 --> 00:41:37,560 persistence in their sin and unbelief. 611 00:41:38,240 --> 00:41:43,240 That's what you have here. You have here a very helpful 612 00:41:43,960 --> 00:41:46,960 example because you have many good hearted Christians who 613 00:41:46,960 --> 00:41:50,280 think and believe. If only so and so would see a 614 00:41:50,280 --> 00:41:55,000 single miracle, if God would just manifest himself in an 615 00:41:55,000 --> 00:41:59,160 undeniable way, then surely this unbeliever or these unbelievers 616 00:41:59,160 --> 00:42:03,960 will surrender once and for all. But as I and many others tell us 617 00:42:03,960 --> 00:42:07,440 and prove to us that man's allegiance to sin is much more 618 00:42:07,440 --> 00:42:14,400 stubborn than you can imagine. Fire falls down from heaven. 619 00:42:14,400 --> 00:42:17,840 Again, look at verse 12. But Elijah answered them, If I 620 00:42:17,840 --> 00:42:21,880 am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you 621 00:42:22,480 --> 00:42:29,040 and you're 50. Is God protecting his servant? 622 00:42:29,040 --> 00:42:30,640 Yeah, absolutely. But God is also indicating 623 00:42:30,640 --> 00:42:34,920 something of his displeasure towards something specific. 624 00:42:35,360 --> 00:42:38,720 How did these soldiers address Elijah? 625 00:42:43,480 --> 00:42:54,600 Man of God, Man of God, not enemy of Baal, not rebel against 626 00:42:54,600 --> 00:43:02,840 the king, not like Ahab, you troubler of Israel, Man of God. 627 00:43:03,960 --> 00:43:05,840 Well, they couldn't deny that he was a man of God. 628 00:43:06,760 --> 00:43:10,160 But if he was a man of God, why are you fighting against him in 629 00:43:10,160 --> 00:43:16,920 his message and his God? You understand God doesn't take 630 00:43:16,920 --> 00:43:22,280 lightly when people say things, but they don't believe them. 631 00:43:24,080 --> 00:43:27,240 He doesn't. He doesn't feel very good about 632 00:43:27,240 --> 00:43:31,520 that. So oh man of God, do you 633 00:43:31,520 --> 00:43:33,360 understand the implications of your comment? 634 00:43:35,040 --> 00:43:38,560 I wonder how many even people today make affirmations, 635 00:43:38,560 --> 00:43:44,720 professions, conclusions, but they don't really believe it. 636 00:43:46,000 --> 00:43:50,400 And if we learn anything about God in Second Kings 1 is that he 637 00:43:50,400 --> 00:43:55,200 does not take too lightly those who say things but their hearts 638 00:43:55,200 --> 00:43:58,160 disagree, but their lives disagree. 639 00:43:58,440 --> 00:44:06,960 Oh man of God, OK, if I'm a man of God and judgment came, when 640 00:44:06,960 --> 00:44:11,280 is Isaiah going to learn? He doesn't learn. 641 00:44:12,480 --> 00:44:18,000 Look at verse 13 again. The king sent the captain of a 642 00:44:18,000 --> 00:44:20,160 third fifty with his fifty. I mean, I think this guy is 643 00:44:20,160 --> 00:44:28,120 willing to run down through all his men, depopulate Israel, but 644 00:44:28,120 --> 00:44:29,600 this man does something different. 645 00:44:30,360 --> 00:44:35,480 And the third captain of 50 went up and came and fell on his 646 00:44:35,480 --> 00:44:40,720 knees before Elijah and entreated him. 647 00:44:42,360 --> 00:44:45,960 Oh man of God, not come down quickly not this is the King's 648 00:44:45,960 --> 00:44:50,800 order. O man of God, please let my life 649 00:44:51,200 --> 00:44:56,760 and the life of these 50 servant of yours be precious in your 650 00:44:56,760 --> 00:44:59,640 sight. You can sense the sincerity 651 00:44:59,640 --> 00:45:02,760 here, right? He continues in verse 14. 652 00:45:02,760 --> 00:45:06,480 Behold, fire came down from heaven and consumed the two 653 00:45:06,480 --> 00:45:08,800 former captains of 50 men with their 50s. 654 00:45:09,000 --> 00:45:13,680 But now let my life be precious in your sight. 655 00:45:14,680 --> 00:45:16,920 So I told you we learned something about God because one 656 00:45:16,920 --> 00:45:19,880 of my go to questions, and I encourage you to ask the same 657 00:45:19,880 --> 00:45:21,360 question in any text of the Bible. 658 00:45:21,360 --> 00:45:24,760 I'd love to ask is what does this passage reveal about the 659 00:45:24,760 --> 00:45:29,880 character of God? And it is extremely relevant 660 00:45:29,880 --> 00:45:32,960 even in this. You have this third captain 661 00:45:33,320 --> 00:45:36,080 coming to Elijah, but a different approach 1 of 662 00:45:36,080 --> 00:45:39,400 humility, contrition, brokenness. 663 00:45:40,520 --> 00:45:44,000 And here's the response verse 15 And the Angel of the Lord said 664 00:45:44,000 --> 00:45:47,160 to Elijah, go down with him, do not be afraid of him. 665 00:45:47,600 --> 00:45:49,920 So he arose and went down with him to the king. 666 00:45:51,720 --> 00:45:53,880 So again, as you read your Bible and you come to a text like 667 00:45:53,880 --> 00:45:57,600 this, ask the question, what did I just learn about God here? 668 00:45:57,800 --> 00:46:00,080 Can you learn something about God when he sent fire on the 669 00:46:00,080 --> 00:46:03,240 previous 2? But what do you see and learn 670 00:46:03,240 --> 00:46:05,040 about God here? Here's what I see. 671 00:46:05,320 --> 00:46:11,600 That God desires humility. And God is so quick to pour out 672 00:46:11,600 --> 00:46:16,120 not fire. Favor upon those who humble 673 00:46:16,120 --> 00:46:20,840 themselves and ask for mercy. That's the character of God. 674 00:46:21,920 --> 00:46:24,440 And if the first one would have came with that same attitude, 675 00:46:25,400 --> 00:46:27,360 there would have been nobody who was consumed. 676 00:46:28,080 --> 00:46:31,160 But the third one learned it, and he came before the Lord. 677 00:46:31,640 --> 00:46:33,720 And I want to let you know that as long as you come before the 678 00:46:33,720 --> 00:46:38,960 Lord and acknowledge who He is and acknowledge who you are, you 679 00:46:38,960 --> 00:46:44,680 will secure sweetness, you will secure wonderful graces. 680 00:46:46,360 --> 00:46:50,440 He will grant it without hesitation, even if you are 681 00:46:50,440 --> 00:46:53,360 numbered among His enemies like this captain was. 682 00:46:53,400 --> 00:46:58,080 Do you understand that? Now, some are not satisfied with 683 00:46:58,360 --> 00:47:00,760 these explanations or this narrative. 684 00:47:02,040 --> 00:47:04,720 There are people who would condemn Elijah's actions here, 685 00:47:04,720 --> 00:47:08,560 but you got to remember that Elijah had no ability to call 686 00:47:08,560 --> 00:47:11,160 fire down from heaven. God approved that fire to come 687 00:47:11,160 --> 00:47:14,680 down from heaven. But there is a text that people 688 00:47:14,680 --> 00:47:19,040 often go to to try to shed a negative light on Elijah at this 689 00:47:19,040 --> 00:47:21,600 particular moment. Can you think of that text? 690 00:47:22,880 --> 00:47:26,040 Can you think of that text? I'll give you a hint. 691 00:47:26,040 --> 00:47:33,400 It's not in the Old Testament. Let me give you another hint. 692 00:47:34,120 --> 00:47:38,200 There is a place in the Gospels where this exact incident was 693 00:47:38,240 --> 00:47:43,520 referenced. Well, This is why Bible study is 694 00:47:43,520 --> 00:47:47,040 good. Did somebody discover it? 695 00:47:49,280 --> 00:47:51,600 Maybe not. Let's go to it. 696 00:47:51,760 --> 00:47:55,440 Luke Chapter 9. Go to 51 of Luke Chapter 9. 697 00:48:10,960 --> 00:48:14,960 Luke 95151 reads. When the days drew near for him 698 00:48:15,360 --> 00:48:19,960 to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem, and he sent 699 00:48:19,960 --> 00:48:24,920 messengers ahead of him who went and entered a village of the 700 00:48:24,920 --> 00:48:26,440 Samaritans. Pause. 701 00:48:27,160 --> 00:48:29,960 What was the capital of the Kingdom of Israel during the 702 00:48:29,960 --> 00:48:32,840 days of Elijah? Samaria. 703 00:48:33,640 --> 00:48:36,960 So now we have Jesus sending some of his disciples ahead. 704 00:48:37,200 --> 00:48:41,240 They entered a village of the Samaritans to make preparations 705 00:48:41,240 --> 00:48:44,200 for him. Verse 53 But the people did not 706 00:48:44,200 --> 00:48:47,800 receive him because his face was set toward Jerusalem. 707 00:48:48,320 --> 00:48:52,120 And when his disciples James and John saw it, they said, Lord, do 708 00:48:52,120 --> 00:48:55,240 you want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and consume 709 00:48:55,240 --> 00:48:58,440 them? Now if you have the King James 710 00:48:58,440 --> 00:49:02,400 and the new King James, they follow manuscripts that add fire 711 00:49:02,400 --> 00:49:04,920 to come down from heaven as Elijah did. 712 00:49:06,680 --> 00:49:10,200 And in those menus ships is added Christ's elaborated 713 00:49:10,200 --> 00:49:13,800 response where Jesus responds here in verse 55 in the ESV. 714 00:49:14,280 --> 00:49:17,760 But he turned and rebuked them. But in those translations I 715 00:49:17,760 --> 00:49:20,840 mentioned it would be added, you do not know what manner of 716 00:49:20,840 --> 00:49:23,400 spirit you are of. For the Son of man did not come 717 00:49:23,400 --> 00:49:26,080 to destroy men's lives, but to save them. 718 00:49:28,320 --> 00:49:33,040 You still get that lesson and that impression here even with, 719 00:49:33,920 --> 00:49:38,120 without Elijah's inclusion, his name being mentioned because 720 00:49:38,440 --> 00:49:42,280 there's only a few places where fire comes down from heaven by 721 00:49:42,280 --> 00:49:45,600 way of command. Look, one thing I could admire 722 00:49:45,600 --> 00:49:47,440 about these disciples, though they were rebuked as they had 723 00:49:47,440 --> 00:49:52,240 some faith, didn't they? Look at this, said Lord, do you 724 00:49:52,240 --> 00:49:56,280 want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and consume 725 00:49:56,280 --> 00:49:59,680 them? I applaud their faith. 726 00:50:03,120 --> 00:50:05,880 And people would often use this New Testament text to 727 00:50:05,880 --> 00:50:10,480 mischaracterize Elijah, but we can't do that. 728 00:50:10,480 --> 00:50:13,480 Do you know why? Because when they asked for fire 729 00:50:13,480 --> 00:50:17,600 to be granted from heaven, we're asking the Lord if they're 730 00:50:17,600 --> 00:50:21,000 allowed to do that. Jesus didn't rebuke Elijah, did 731 00:50:21,000 --> 00:50:23,640 he? He rebuked his disciples. 732 00:50:24,840 --> 00:50:27,960 There's a difference. And the reason why there's a 733 00:50:27,960 --> 00:50:30,120 difference is because he reminded his disciples and he's 734 00:50:30,120 --> 00:50:34,440 reminding us that He is become the first advent to do a new 735 00:50:34,440 --> 00:50:37,680 work, a work that is greater than what he had done on behalf 736 00:50:37,680 --> 00:50:44,000 of his servant, Elijah. Christ in coming into this world 737 00:50:44,280 --> 00:50:52,320 desired to send something else, not fire to consume, but 738 00:50:52,320 --> 00:50:55,880 forgiveness. Abundant forgiveness. 739 00:50:56,800 --> 00:51:00,680 In fact, what's so amazing here again proving to us the beauty 740 00:51:00,680 --> 00:51:03,040 of reading through the entirety of the Word of God. 741 00:51:03,520 --> 00:51:08,080 You see exactly what God sends from heaven to the same 742 00:51:08,080 --> 00:51:11,920 Samaritans who in the days of Jesus Christ did not receive 743 00:51:11,920 --> 00:51:15,680 him. Go to Acts chapter 8. 744 00:51:16,120 --> 00:51:19,720 Look at verse 14 with me. This is after Philip went to 745 00:51:19,720 --> 00:51:22,600 Samaria to preach the gospel and revival broke out. 746 00:51:23,000 --> 00:51:27,360 But notice what takes place after in Acts 814 to 15. 747 00:51:33,420 --> 00:51:36,740 Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria, 748 00:51:39,540 --> 00:51:43,780 Samaria had received the word of God, they sent to them Peter and 749 00:51:43,780 --> 00:51:47,900 John who came down and prayed for them that they might receive 750 00:51:47,900 --> 00:51:52,700 the Holy Spirit. Peter and who? 751 00:51:53,860 --> 00:51:57,700 Yeah, the same John who, with his brother, asked Jesus if they 752 00:51:57,700 --> 00:52:04,520 could ask heaven to send fire. Aren't you glad Jesus didn't 753 00:52:04,520 --> 00:52:07,280 give them permission? Do you know why? 754 00:52:07,280 --> 00:52:12,600 Because Jesus wanted to send the Holy Spirit into the hearts of 755 00:52:12,600 --> 00:52:16,320 these Samaritans. Listen, the best way to apply 756 00:52:16,320 --> 00:52:23,000 what we learned from Second Kings, One is beyond God willing 757 00:52:23,000 --> 00:52:28,160 to protect his servants. It reveals that in Christ he 758 00:52:28,160 --> 00:52:34,520 suspends judgment on reluctant sinners and instead is eager and 759 00:52:34,520 --> 00:52:39,880 willing to pour out his spirit. That's how you tie a Old 760 00:52:39,880 --> 00:52:43,920 Testament passage like this with gospel truth. 761 00:52:47,520 --> 00:52:52,040 Christ came with a new covenant, a better covenant, one that is 762 00:52:52,040 --> 00:52:55,880 under grace. And so, yeah, these two brothers 763 00:52:56,440 --> 00:52:59,840 going through a Samaritan village, felt the resistance, 764 00:52:59,840 --> 00:53:02,000 saw the resistance, were repelled by the resistance and 765 00:53:02,000 --> 00:53:04,440 they thought Samaria. Yeah, I remember Prophet Elijah, 766 00:53:04,440 --> 00:53:09,160 what he did to to some of those rebellious people of Israel in 767 00:53:09,160 --> 00:53:11,520 Samaria, around Samaria. Let's ask Jesus, we can call 768 00:53:11,520 --> 00:53:13,160 fire down from heaven. The Lord says, no, I want to 769 00:53:13,160 --> 00:53:15,920 send something else. And John would see it himself. 770 00:53:18,480 --> 00:53:29,800 Let's finish this chapter back in second Kings verse 16. 771 00:53:31,360 --> 00:53:36,280 This is when Elijah comes down to meet the king and said to 772 00:53:36,280 --> 00:53:37,840 him. Thus says the Lord, because 773 00:53:37,840 --> 00:53:41,120 you've sent messages to inquire of bells above the God of Ekron. 774 00:53:41,680 --> 00:53:45,000 Is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of his word? 775 00:53:45,000 --> 00:53:48,280 Therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you 776 00:53:48,280 --> 00:53:51,200 have gone up, but you shall surely die. 777 00:53:51,200 --> 00:53:52,840 You know what's so staggering about this? 778 00:53:54,360 --> 00:54:01,400 In this short chapter, you have Ahazzaiah's judgment recorded 779 00:54:02,760 --> 00:54:09,560 word for word, 3 * 3 times. Copy, Paste, copy, paste, copy, 780 00:54:09,560 --> 00:54:12,560 paste. Whenever the Holy Spirit does 781 00:54:12,560 --> 00:54:15,840 anything like that, it's meant to emphasize something. 782 00:54:16,560 --> 00:54:18,960 He wants to actually emphasize something. 783 00:54:20,080 --> 00:54:24,760 And one of the emphasis here is for us to realize how severe 784 00:54:24,760 --> 00:54:29,680 Ahazzaiah's sin was, how gross it was to look to an idol 785 00:54:29,680 --> 00:54:33,520 instead of the true God. But there is an emphasis here 786 00:54:33,520 --> 00:54:36,120 that is not limited to a Zeus case. 787 00:54:36,120 --> 00:54:40,200 It is universal. There's something about his 788 00:54:40,320 --> 00:54:44,240 offense that was so flagrant that we have to examine 789 00:54:44,240 --> 00:54:46,920 ourselves and ask if we are tempted to commit the very same 790 00:54:46,920 --> 00:54:50,760 crime he did. Notice what he says. 791 00:54:50,760 --> 00:54:53,640 Not just once, twice, three times is given to us. 792 00:54:54,360 --> 00:54:59,120 Is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of His Word? 793 00:55:03,520 --> 00:55:10,920 To fail or to refuse to seek God, to seek Him in His Word, 794 00:55:11,560 --> 00:55:16,800 especially in our times of trouble, breaks the heart of 795 00:55:16,800 --> 00:55:24,120 God. To fail to come to Him who is in 796 00:55:24,120 --> 00:55:30,360 his nature a savior, a provider, a leader, a protector, and to 797 00:55:30,360 --> 00:55:35,680 run to other things that are empty and vain, breaks his heart 798 00:55:37,120 --> 00:55:43,160 and ruins us. That is the lesson of Second 799 00:55:43,160 --> 00:55:47,400 Kings chapter one. That is not what I think the 800 00:55:47,400 --> 00:55:49,360 main lesson is. That is what I believe is the 801 00:55:49,360 --> 00:55:54,120 main lesson, because this is repeated not once, not twice, 802 00:55:54,520 --> 00:56:00,360 three times. Where we go to when we're in 803 00:56:00,360 --> 00:56:03,840 trouble says a lot about, says a lot about us. 804 00:56:06,360 --> 00:56:10,880 Not that we can't go to other things, but where our ultimate 805 00:56:10,880 --> 00:56:21,480 hope and trust is, we'll be exposed in crises, tribulations, 806 00:56:22,000 --> 00:56:26,600 and surprise attacks, surprise accidents. 807 00:56:27,520 --> 00:56:29,800 And so if there's any response, if there's any application to 808 00:56:29,800 --> 00:56:34,280 this Bible studies we close this time together, is to ask the 809 00:56:34,280 --> 00:56:38,200 Lord to create in us such an awareness of His glory, power, 810 00:56:38,200 --> 00:56:43,960 and love that it would be our reflex to run to Him, to inquire 811 00:56:43,960 --> 00:56:49,000 of Him, to seek Him for ourselves 1st, and then to call 812 00:56:49,000 --> 00:56:51,480 others to do the same. Shall we do that? 813 00:56:51,920 --> 00:57:15,980 Let's pray, Lord, we actually feel in our 814 00:57:15,980 --> 00:57:17,900 heart of hearts that we've been fed. 815 00:57:18,900 --> 00:57:20,980 Thank you for your glorious word. 816 00:57:21,780 --> 00:57:27,940 Now we ask and pray as we prayed earlier, that this information 817 00:57:27,940 --> 00:57:31,100 would translate into genuine transformation. 818 00:57:34,120 --> 00:57:40,880 We pray, Lord, that you would be our hope, and if we lost hope, 819 00:57:40,880 --> 00:57:45,160 that you wouldn't reinforce it, that you would be the very 820 00:57:45,920 --> 00:57:51,000 object of and the source of and the fountain of everything that 821 00:57:51,000 --> 00:57:55,440 we need in this life. Help us include you in 822 00:57:55,440 --> 00:57:58,360 everything. Help us to seek You in the big 823 00:57:58,360 --> 00:58:02,240 things and the small things. Help us believe You. 824 00:58:02,360 --> 00:58:06,680 Help us really believe that there is a real God and his word 825 00:58:07,840 --> 00:58:12,720 is to be trusted and to live our lives experiencing your 826 00:58:12,720 --> 00:58:16,320 faithfulness come through when we meet it with our faith for 827 00:58:16,320 --> 00:58:18,160 tonight. We want to say thank you for 828 00:58:18,160 --> 00:58:21,600 this chapter. Lord, we we believe you have so 829 00:58:21,600 --> 00:58:23,520 much more to say in the weeks ahead. 830 00:58:24,280 --> 00:58:28,720 And so, Lord, keep our hunger for The Word Alive, maybe not 831 00:58:28,720 --> 00:58:32,280 just found on these evenings, but every day, and help us ask 832 00:58:32,280 --> 00:58:35,120 the right questions when we read certain passages that we are 833 00:58:35,120 --> 00:58:37,840 unfamiliar with. And Lord, grant us the spirit of 834 00:58:37,840 --> 00:58:43,280 wisdom and revelation so that we can hear your voice every time 835 00:58:43,280 --> 00:58:46,680 we open this Bible. Lord, we love you and we trust 836 00:58:46,680 --> 00:58:52,480 you, and we choose to afresh confess not just mere words, but 837 00:58:52,480 --> 00:58:55,520 out of the abundance of our hearts that You are the true God 838 00:58:55,800 --> 00:58:58,120 and we desire to be men and women of God. 839 00:58:58,760 --> 00:59:02,320 May it be so for your glory. In Jesus name we pray, Amen. 840 00:59:02,720 --> 00:59:04,680 Amen. Let's stand and give thanks to 841 00:59:04,680 --> 00:59:06,520 the Lord for His precious word.