It is somewhat disconcerting that a group of prophets all gave Ahab poor advice. When Micaiah is brought before the kings and given the opportunity to prophesy he comments that God, in His ultimate sovereignty, sent a deceitful spirit to send Ahab down the wrong path. To me, this is one of those "what in the world?" passages that doesn't seem to ... [Continue Reading]
Inner calm (2 Chronicles 19-20)
When Jehoshaphat finds himself facing the imminent attack of a large number of armies, he assesses the situation and realizes that his army does not stand a chance. Then Jehoshaphat does what many of us would do in such a situation: he sets his face to seek the Lord. It makes sense that he would do that. A likely overthrow was coming, and Jehoshaphat ... [Continue Reading]
Forgiveness (1 Kings 20-21)
You would have to be a pretty horrible person to get labeled as the most evil person ever known. That is exactly how King Ahab was labeled (and no doubt the reason why Herman Melville saw it fit to name the tyrannical captain of the Pequod in Moby Dick). Realizing that there was none as bad as Ahab, it's intriguing to see that God relinquished His wrath ... [Continue Reading]
Elijah is THE man (1 Kings 17-19)
There are few figures throughout biblical history who intrigue me as much as Elijah. Can you imagine what it was like when he challenged the priests of Baal to a duel? "You call on your god, and I'll call on mine; we'll see which god is real." And the priests of Baal go crazy trying to get their false god to respond. Then ... [Continue Reading]
A disturbing reality (1 Kings 15:25-16:34; 2 Chronicles 17)
Leadership is scary for a number of reasons, but the most prominent reason is the accountability a leader has to the Lord. A leader answers to the Lord for how he or she leads people, and judgment is handed out by the Lord as a result of the outcome of a person's leadership. This principle is displayed by the way the Lord wipes out Jeroboam's entire ... [Continue Reading]
The Seven Checkpoints: Choosing Friends for Life
The latest sermon from LifePoint Student Ministry. Inspired by Andy Stanley and Stuart Hall's book by the same title, The Seven Checkpoints is a way for students to evaluate their relationship with God. In this fourth message we are taught that friends ultimately determine the direction and quality of our lives. Download choosing_friends_for_life.mp3 ... [Continue Reading]
Short term revival (1 King 15:1-24; 2 Chronicles 13-16)
Whenever a leader in Israel's history chose to follow the Lord, the country prospered. Likewise, when the leader chose not to follow the Lord, the country faced a lack of blessing. It seems that there were a number of leaders who started the race off strong but ended in a rather disappointing way. Asa is an example of that. Asa followed the ... [Continue Reading]
A lesson for followers (2 Chronicles 10-12)
I've written a lot about leaders in the past (maybe because leadership is something that interests me), but I haven't written much about followers. The reality is that not everyone will be a leader, but all people will be followers. The question I'm thinking about right now is: What do you do when your leaders choose not to follow God? This is a ... [Continue Reading]
Solomon ‘ s defining moment (1 Kings 10-11; 2 Chronicles 9)
I believe that life is made up of various defining moments. These are choices that are so important that they influence the direction of a person's life in an undeniable way, and they reveal the character of the individual. Solomon's defining moment came when he had to choose what to do with foreign women who were, perhaps, enamored with his ... [Continue Reading]
Leadership lessons (1 Kings 12-14)
There are so many leadership principles evident in these chapters of Scripture that I would be remiss not to point them out. Leaders are Servants - Rehoboam lost the loyalty of his people because he tried to lord power over them rather than to come as a servant. The moment a leader forgets this truth is the moment he or she transitions from being a leader to being a ... [Continue Reading]
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