Lighthouse scribes

1 Kings 15:1-8

2 Chronicles 13

Have you ever heard of the phrase; ‘to use God as your personal ATM’? This next king of Judah fits that notion, perfectly. 

So, what does it really mean to use God as one would use an ATM? An ATM is where you go for cash withdrawals. There’s an expectation that you already have money and so the machine has no choice but to dispense what is requested. So, when people use God in this sense, it’s because they feel entitled to his blessing without wanting a relationship with him. Everywhere in the Bible God wants us to look to and come to him as our source. He wants to be our provider and sustainer. So, the problem is not that we come to God when we need help, the problem is that we want to ‘manipulate’ God’s goodness when we are in need without living in submission to him. This is what this next king did. 

King Abijah (Abijam) reigned in Judah at a time when Jeroboam was still king in Israel. His mother was Maacah, a granddaughter of Absalom. He was an evil king like his father who promoted pagan shrines and the worship practices of pagan nations, and he only reigned for 3 years.

The book of 2 Chronicles records a significant event in his reign. There was a war between Israel and Judah, and Israel fielded more warriors than Judah. They had more tribes so this was understandable. V3-4. There were some interesting conversations and events that took place during the battle.

• “We are the real kings and you are an imposter”: Abijah drew on the history of both nations and their kingship, reminding Israel that God made an everlasting covenant with David concerning the throne of Israel, and claiming that Jeroboam was in defiance when he rebelled. One part was true and the other a lie. Yes, God made the covenant with David, yet because of Solomon’s sin, God raised up Jeroboam and orchestrated the divide in the kingdom. Jeroboam was a chosen king that had turned against God, but he was first king because God chose him to be. 
• “I am holier than you because I have the priests and Levites, and practice the rituals of worship”: Abijah pointed out Jeroboam’s newly instituted idolatry and adulterated worship that exempted God’s priests and the chosen place of worship, and he boasted that Judah still followed the routines of worship as given by Moses. However, we know from the reign of his father that Judah had turned against God to the detestable practices of the pagan nations that God drove from the land, and 1 Kings 15, told us that Abijah followed in his steps. The rituals of worship do not make us Christian. Spiritual gifts do not make us spiritual or godly. Gifts are given for service, and a routine of worship without a heart of repentance and regeneration submitted to sanctification is just a smoke screen.  
• “The Lord is near to all who call upon him in truth”: As soon as Judah realized that Israel would destroy them, they called out to God for help, and because it was genuine, God heard them and delivered them. It’s giving “Nineveh vibes” but that’s who God is. This event did not make the people turn wholly to God, and God knew it, but he always displays himself to us as a God full of grace. God knew their trust in him was momentary, yet he showed up in his mercy and grace. 

When push came to shove, Judah and her king did not call on any of their idols to save them. Abijah put aside his desire for autonomy to serve what he wants, and instead called on the one true God. 

When I read these chapters they made me think about how we treat God. Do we treat him as one who’s sovereign over our lives at all times, or do we decide when we want to be our own Lord and Saviour and when to submit to him?

Think about these things.

Love,

Osi