Did You Ever Think of Asking God?

9 So the king of Israel went with the king of Judah and the king of Edom. And when they had made a circuitous march of seven days, there was no water for the army or for the animals that followed them. 10 Then the king of Israel said, “Alas! The Lord has called these three kings to give them into the hand of Moab.” 11 And Jehoshaphat said, “Is there no prophet of the Lord here, through whom we may inquire of the Lord?” Then one of the king of Israel's servants answered, “Elisha the son of Shaphat is here, who poured water on the hands of Elijah.” 12 And Jehoshaphat said, “The word of the Lord is with him.” So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to him. (II Kings 3)
The two kings of  Israel and Judah often made for a comparison/contrast.  Sometimes they were warring with, sometimes warring against, one another.  Here the two lived life very differently. The king of Israel did not even think of calling out to God for wisdom and direction.  Jehoshaphat did. The obvious difference became clear when this crisis arose.  Don't wait for the crisis to come up in your life to call out to God.  Do it regularly, daily, humbly.  Let Him give input into every decision so when the crucial ones come, you're already on talking terms.  Take time now to pray. 

What a Way to Go!

9 When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, “Ask what I shall do for you, before I am taken from you.” And Elisha said, “Please let there be a double portion of your spirit on me.” 10 And he said, “You have asked a hard thing; yet, if you see me as I am being taken from you, it shall be so for you, but if you do not see me, it shall not be so.” 11 And as they still went on and talked, behold, chariots of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them. And Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. 12 And Elisha saw it and he cried, “My father, my father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” And he saw him no more.(II Kings 2)
Elijah had had a long, faithful ministry for the Lord. Like any man, he had his times of doubt and wrestling with God, but he remained faithful and true to God's calling.  Things never seemed to die down.  But the LORD had made known to him it was time to transition out.  As he passes the baton to Elisha, we find the impact he had made on the younger prophet's life.  Elisha wanted to be more of Elijah.  What a compliment. Yet, at the same time, both men realized it was not Elijah in his own strength, but that of the Lord. Whereas most of us will never simply be whisked away into heaven, we can go on from this life in like form. We can live in such a way that we see the importance of always pointing to the Lord, remaining faithful, and investing in those around us.  What a goal to set for our lives - one that focuses not just on today, but all the years to come, yet focuses enough on today to realize how important what we do every day matters in the big picture.  Do not doubt the importance of your life or this day. 

Lesson 1: Come Humbly

9 Then the king sent to him a captain of fifty men with his fifty. He went up to Elijah, who was sitting on the top of a hill, and said to him, “O man of God, the king says, ‘Come down.’” 10 But Elijah answered the captain of fifty, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.” Then fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.

11 Again the king sent to him another captain of fifty men with his fifty. And he answered and said to him, “O man of God, this is the king's order, ‘Come down quickly!’” 12 But Elijah answered them, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.” Then the fire of God came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.

13 Again the king sent the captain of a third fifty with his fifty. And the third captain of fifty went up and came and fell on his knees before Elijah and entreated him, “O man of God, please let my life, and the life of these fifty servants of yours, be precious in your sight. 14 Behold, fire came down from heaven and consumed the two former captains of fifty men with their fifties, but now let my life be precious in your sight.”15 Then the angel of the Lord said to Elijah, “Go down with him; do not be afraid of him.” So he arose and went down with him to the king 16 and said to him, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Because you have sent messengers to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron—is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of his word?—therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.’” (II Kings 1)

The book of Second Kings is full of historical lessons, learned often by those who should have known better.  Ahaziah has just watched wicked King Ahab die for his refusal to accept God as King. When he himself falls on hard times (and a lattice), he foolishly sends messengers to entreat a pagan idol instead of God. When he finally does, he does do so in an arrogant fashion, as if to bully Elijah into giving him good news.  Elijah, and God, are not impressed.  Finally, the king's men get the message and come humbly.  But Ahaziah still is not humble.  Before all else, we need to come humbly before Holy God.  We will never get anywhere else if we do not.  He is Holy. He is worthy of our worship. And, He is waiting to hear from us when we are finally done turning everywhere else. 

If we were to see Jesus...

36 As they were talking about these things, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to them, “Peace to you!” 37 But they were startled and frightened and thought they saw a spirit. 38 And he said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? 39 See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” 40 And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. 41 And while they still disbelieved for joy and were marveling, he said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” (Luke 24)
Often, when we talk about seeing someone we have wanted to see - for good reasons or bad - we brag about what we would do, but when that time actually comes, we do quite otherwise.  To be sure, there must have been a lot of ideas expressed about what they would do if they actually saw the Risen Christ. They had been through a numbing trauma, during which they had abandoned Him. Now, when they actually do see Him they were startled, frightened, marveling, and could not believe their eyes.  Eventually, of course, they did fall down and worship Him, and go on to hang on His every word, then serve Him till their death.  But that was not their immediate response. They saw Jesus and were stunned. Maybe that is a good place for us to begin as well: see Jesus and be overwhelmed by His sacrifice, His love, His forgiveness, as well as His power, authority, and sovereignty.  Then we can settle in and "have something to eat" with Him, fellowship with Him, and learn from Him more. 

Seeing Jesus Right in front of Us

30 When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them. 31 And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And he vanished from their sight. 32 They said to each other, “Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures?”33 And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem. And they found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together,34 saying, “The Lord has risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!”35 Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he was known to them in the breaking of the bread. (Luke 24)
Seeing is believing. Or is believing seeing?  As these disciples walked and talked and even sat at table with Jesus, they did not "see" Him; they looked right past Him.  But then they did.  And they saw Him as the Risen Christ.  Maybe that is where we need to begin - seeing Jesus as the Victorious Risen Savior. When we do, that will affect how we approach and talk with Him.  Rather than moaning and complaining, we would ask Him for understanding.  Rather than seeing only how terrible our situation is, we would ask what kind of opportunity He wants to make it to be.  Rather than being focused on ourselves, we would focus on Him, and the exciting news we can share with others.  Lord, help us to see You right in front of us today. 

See Jesus, Dying on the Cross

46 Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” And having said this he breathed his last. 47 Now when the centurion saw what had taken place, he praised God, saying, “Certainly this man was innocent!” 48 And all the crowds that had assembled for this spectacle, when they saw what had taken place, returned home beating their breasts. 49 And all his acquaintances and the women who had followed him from Galilee stood at a distance watching these things." (Luke 23)
They all saw the same thing: Jesus dying on the cross for the sins of the world. Reactions were very varied.   Leading Luke's headlines were this centurion who had seen a lot of guilty men die: this was no guilty Man.  His pronouncement was true.  The crowds had a response that something terrible had happened, but exactly what it meant to them was unclear: was it terrible He had died, or was it terrible what He had done?   And His followers were left watching and wondering what all this meant.  That is fine for a time.  God often leaves us that way.  But Sunday is coming.  The "not guilty" Man will be acquitted.  The "not sure who this Guy is" will rise.  The Lord and Savior will be seen again.  What a day that will be!

Watching, but not Seeing

35 And the people stood by, watching, but the rulers scoffed at him, saying, “He saved others; let him save himself, if he is the Christ of God, his Chosen One!”36 The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and offering him sour wine37 and saying, “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!” (Luke 23)
The title above summarizes a lot of the responses of those who saw Jesus when he came.  They saw, they looked, they even stopped and watched, but they just stood by and did nothing.  The rulers did worse in a sense - outwardly rejecting, ridiculing, and radically opposing Him, but most were satisfied to just stand back and watch, with no decision or commitment on their part.  Let us not be simply bystanders or spectators. Seeing Jesus for Who He really is and what He had done as our Redeemer, let us step forward and speak up: "He is my King!"