- araratchurch
- 14 hours ago
- 2 min read
“And David inquired of God, “Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will you give them into my hand?” And the Lord said to him, “Go up, and I will give them into your hand.” And he went up to Baal-perazim, and David struck them down there. And David said, “God has broken through my enemies by my hand, like a bursting flood.” Therefore the name of that place is called Baal-perazim.”
1 Chronicles 14:10-11a ESV
In the book of Jeremiah, primarily chapters 37 and 38, we find the story of King Zedekiah of Judah, who secretly and repeatedly asked Jeremiah to tell him what the word of the Lord was for him. However, each time Jeremiah gave him the word of the Lord, he rejected it and failed to follow through in obedience. The final time that Zedekiah secretly called for Jeremiah, Jeremiah told him that the only way to escape destruction, was to surrender to Babylon and be taken into captivity. Yet, Zedekiah again rejected Jeremiah‘s word, explaining that he was fearful of what would happen to him if he was taken into captivity:
“King Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, “I am afraid of the Judeans who have deserted to the Chaldeans, lest I be handed over to them and they deal cruelly with me.” Jeremiah said, “You shall not be given to them. Obey now the voice of the Lord in what I say to you, and it shall be well with you, and your life shall be spared.”
Jeremiah 38:19-20 ESV
Although Jeremiah assured Zedekiah that evil would not befall him if he followed the word of the Lord, Zedekiah still refused to surrender. Tragically, the result was just as Jeremiah had warned: Jerusalem fell to Babylon and Zedekiah witnessed the death of his sons, just before his eyes were poked out and he was taken into captivity.
This story rather dramatically illustrates the crucial nature of being obedient to what God has said. Last time, we discussed the fact that all of our decisions should be submitted to the Lord. However, it does absolutely no good to ask the Lord about what we should do, if we don’t obey what we hear. Jesus told a parable about just such an occurrence:
““Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.””
Matthew 7:24-27 ESV
Child of God, let’s not only submit our lives to the word of God, let’s also be open to what He says. Indeed, obedience to what God has said, brings what He has promised. Failing to be obedient, leads us to places we never wanted to go.
Peace to you.
Jesus is coming! Get ready for Him!
- araratchurch
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
“When the Philistines heard that David had been anointed king over all Israel, all the Philistines went up to search for David. But David heard of it and went out against them. Now the Philistines had come and made a raid in the Valley of Rephaim. And David inquired of God, “Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will you give them into my hand?” And the Lord said to him, “Go up, and I will give them into your hand.””
1 Chronicles 14:8-10 ESV
Have you ever noticed that many people—even many Christians—will quickly blame God for how things are going in their life, when the fact is, they have rarely—if ever—included Him in any of their decisions? Now, have you ever been one of those people?
The truth is, unless we have fully submitted our lives to the Lord, fully made Him central to our decision-making, as well as actively seeking to do His will, He has no responsibility, nor is there any promise, that He is directing our path, guarding our way, or even removing obstacles standing between us and our victory.
The writer of Proverbs clearly expresses the interaction between actively submitting our lives to the Lord, and finding clarity, direction, and obstacle removal:
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil.”
Proverbs 3:5-7 ESV
Sadly, many people foolishly forfeit the priceless direction, provision, and protection, afforded through submission to the Lord’s will.
Indeed, we find often repeated throughout the Bible, God’s displeasure of His people who were determined to do things their own way. Here is but one of those references:
“Therefore thus says the Holy One of Israel, “Because you despise this word and trust in oppression and perverseness and rely on them, therefore this iniquity shall be to you like a breach in a high wall, bulging out and about to collapse, whose breaking comes suddenly, in an instant; and its breaking is like that of a potter’s vessel that is smashed so ruthlessly that among its fragments not a shard is found with which to take fire from the hearth, or to dip up water out of the cistern.” For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, “In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.” But you were unwilling, and you said, “No! We will flee upon horses”; therefore you shall flee away; and, “We will ride upon swift steeds”; therefore your pursuers shall be swift.”
Isaiah 30:12-16 ESV
Our opening scripture brings us to the point in the Baal-Perazim story where David, hearing about the plans of the Philistines, submits his plan to the Lord, asking what he should do. And we see, having inquired of the Lord, the Lord gave his approval for David’s plan, and promised He would give him the victory.
Child of God, let us not be found engaging in the unforced error of rejecting the counsel of God and clinging tenaciously, even self-destructively, to our own ideas. God knows best. Let’s ask Him!
Peace to you.
Jesus is coming! Get ready for Him!
- araratchurch
- 3 days ago
- 2 min read
Updated: 2 days ago
“2026: Year of the Explosion”
Day 3: Be bold as a Lion.
“When the Philistines heard that David had been anointed king over all Israel, all the Philistines went up to search for David. But David heard of it and went out against them.
It feels terrible to be intimidated such that what you know you should do, you can’t/won’t do. Indeed, the power behind intimidation is fear.
Of course, some fear is necessary in order to be safe. That is to say: Healthy fear keeps us from doing things that can be harmful to us. As well, fear of the Lord, is to be desired. However, when fear keeps us from obeying the Lord, it not only can keep us from living the abundant life, it becomes sin.
Paul boldly proclaimed that being in right-standing with God, puts us in a position of superiority over all that would come against us.
“What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?”
Romans 8:31 ESV
The writer of Proverbs declares that a clean conscious before God, makes us exempt from the paranoia found in the hearts of those who do wickedly.
“The wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are bold as a lion.”
Proverbs 28:1 ESV
Last time, as we were discussing David’s confidence in the face of adversity, we looked at his statement made to Saul, concerning why he was not afraid to face Goliath. Just before that exchange, David made this bold statement to Saul:
“And David said to Saul, “Let no man’s heart fail because of him. Your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.””
1 Samuel 17:32 ESV
In our opening scripture, found in the story of David at Baal-Perazim, we see that David, having been made king over all Israel, was to be confronted with the Philistines who saw his promotion as being a threat to their own security.
However, rather than trying to hide from those who would seek to do him harm, David sought them out first. You see, he knew that the same God who helped him kill the lion and the bear, the same God who had given him victory over Goliath, was well able to give him the victory over these Philistines. David was ready and willing to act on the word of the Lord, and in so doing, obtain the victory over his enemies.
Next time, we will go further into this story. For now, meditate on this question: What things have you failed to do that you knew you should do, or things you needed to do, but couldn’t, because fear had gotten the better of you?
Remember, the Lord does not want us to live our lives, shrinking from challenges and adversity. Indeed, we can be one of those who are “bold as a lion.”
Peace to you.
Jesus is coming! Get ready for Him!