Sermon Video - "The battle is not yours, but God's" 2 Chronicles 20

                After barely escaping his disastrous alliance with Ahab, King Jehoshaphat returns to Jerusalem where he faces rebuke from God’s prophet.  Jehoshaphat proves his character by taking the criticism, and returning to the work he should have been doing, the administration of justice and support of God’s Law for his people.  In the midst of this renewed effort to be the type of king the people of God need, calamity strikes without warning: Jehoshaphat is informed of a league of three kingdoms to the east that have joined to invade Judah, and they’re already on this side of the Jordan River.

                In the midst of a crisis that could end his kingdom and destroy his people if not thwarted, Jehoshaphat turns not to his palace to meet with his generals, but to the temple to lead the assembled people of God in prayer.  With the invading army only a day away, Jehoshaphat prays before the people, recalling God’s seat upon the throne of heaven, his promise to Abraham, and ending by recalling that his ancestors had shown mercy to the Edomites who are now amongst those invading Judah, which leads to a call for God to show justice.

                The response to Jehoshaphat’s powerful prayer is impressive: God speaks through a Levite in attendance at this assembly in the temple courtyard to assure his people that they need not be afraid even of an approaching army, for “the battle is not yours, but God’s”.  This is the key truth for Jehoshaphat and for us today.  The true battle between Good and Evil was never ours to win or lose, it was always the responsibility of God, and the outcome of victory was never in doubt.  The champion of the cause of right is the Lamb of God, who is indeed worthy.

                The battle is God’s, but his people still need to put on their armor and take the field.  Jehoshaphat leads the army out of Jerusalem with a choir of men in front praising God, “Give thanks to the LORD, for his love endures forever.”  As the people praise, God throws the enemy army into confusion and they turn upon each other and destroy themselves.  What was the key to victory?  The power of God fulfilling his Word.  And how was that power accessed?  By the fervent prayer of his people, gathered together, and their subsequent steps of obedience in faithful trust. 

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Sermon Video: Jehoshaphat seeks the Word of the LORD, 2 Chronicles 18

Jehoshaphat, son of Asa, was a man who, “walked in the ways his father David had followed.”  As king of Judah he continued his father’s fight against idolatry and went a step further by sending his officials along with priests and Levites to all the towns of Judah to teach the people the Word of God so that they would understand their obligations under the Covenant. 

                The fault that can be found in Jehoshaphat lies not with himself but with those whom he chose to associate.  Jehoshaphat made a politically savvy, but spiritually foolish decision to ally himself with Ahab, king of Israel, by having his son marry Ahab and Jezebel’s daughter.  This familial alliance led Ahab to ask Jehoshaphat to help him reclaim a city that had been lost in the previous wars with Aram when Jehoshaphat’s father Asa had bribed them to invade Israel.  Perhaps Jehoshaphat was naïve, perhaps he was an idealist hoping to reunite the kingdom, but he agreed to help Ahab in the proposed war.

                Jehoshaphat was not without caution, however, and he required Ahab to consult a prophet of the LORD before proceeding.  Ahab’s court contained 400 prophets, but not one of whom served the LORD.  When Micaiah spoke to Ahab the Word of the LORD, he did not concur with the 400 false prophets that victory was assured, instead he told Ahab that this venture would be a calamity that would cost him his life.  How did Ahab respond to the truth, he locked Micaiah in prison intending to gloat over him when he returned victorious.

                Jehoshaphat should have stopped right there, he was the one who asked Ahab to seek God’s counsel, and now he had heard it, but he didn’t listen to it.  In the ensuing battle, Ahab disguised himself to try to avoid God’s judgment, while Jehoshaphat remained in his royal robes and was nearly killed by enemy soldiers seeking to kill the king of Israel.  At the last possible moment, Jehoshaphat realized his error and called out to the LORD who rescued him.  Ahab did not thwart God’s Word through his subterfuge, a “random” arrow hit him in an “unlucky” spot between the pieces of his armor and killed him.  The Word of the LORD had been given to Ahab and Jehoshaphat, both of them failed to heed it, and Jehoshaphat was very nearly caught up in the destruction that fell upon Ahab.  The Word of God is not to be trifled with, it is our warning against error and our comfort in despair, to seek it is certainly the correct first step, but we must still listen to it and obey.

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What of those who stumble and fall?

I have known too many Christians in who, as Paul called it, “shipwrecked” their faith.  Mostly men, but a few women, who destroyed their witness and tarnished their good deeds through a huge error later on in life, usually the sin of lust.  Coming to terms with this isn’t easy.  These are people that took a wonderful gift, God’s amazing grace through Jesus, and seemingly squandered it by making everything they did or said in the past seem like a waste.  Those of you who know me are probably thinking of some of the same individuals, if you don’t know me, you are likely to know some people yourself that fit this description.  Instead of asking questions about theology, and getting into a Calvinist vs. Arminian debate, let me instead share the words of the Biblical commentator from the 18^th century, Matthew Henry.

                The occasion for Matthew Henry’s quote is his commentary on 2 Chronicles 16, the end of King Asa’s life.  Asa had been a tremendous man of God, full of piety, zeal, and faith, but he stumbled badly at the end, committing sin when his trust in God faltered, and refusing to repent when God sent a prophet to correct him.  The text doesn’t tell us that Asa reconciled with God before he died, when last it speaks of him he is still refusing to seek God’s face.  What do we say of such a man, do we applaud his earlier victories won through faith, or do we focus upon the disappointing ending of an otherwise exemplary life?  As someone who conducts funerals, this question is certainly practical for me, but it also speaks to the pain that my heart feels for brothers and sisters in Christ who have drifted away, or sometimes sprinted away, from their faith.

                Henry’s charitable, and also I think in keeping with God’s abundant grace, view of such lives was this, “The eminent piety and usefulness of good men ought to be remembered to their praise, though they have had their blemishes.  Let their faults be buried in their graves, while their services are remembered over their graves.”  We won’t have an answer to our wondering about people who end poorly, but focusing upon that which was good in their life and letting God deal with that which was bad, seems like the right way to go to me.

Sermon Video: Those whom the LORD strengthens, 2 Chronicles 16

To start well is great, to finish strong is good too, but can we remain solid throughout our lives?  King Asa of Judah, great-grandson of David, started out as king with an amazing amount of piety, zeal, and faith.  He not only rid his people of the plague of idolatry, but he also led them to victory over an invading army by relying upon the LORD, and followed that up by leading his people in a rededication ceremony to the Covenant of Moses.  Fifteen years later, Asa, a man who chose peace over war when his foe was weak, is once again confronted by the prospect of war.  Baasha, the new king of the kindred of Judah to the north, Israel, has occupied a hill along the road leading up to Jerusalem, and fortified it.

                How will Asa respond?  Up until this point he has chosen to live by faith, but when this particular trial comes Asa responds out of fear.  Instead of relying upon the LORD, as he has successfully done previously with spectacular success, Asa attempts a desperate and underhanded ploy.  King Asa convinces the ally of Baasha of Israel, Ben-Hadad of Aram, to betray him and instead of helping Baasha attack Judah, Ben-Hadad invades Israel.  The betrayal of Israel was purchased with the gold and silver of not only Asa’s palace treasury, but the treasury of the temple of the LORD as well.  In the end, Asa succeeds in defending his kingdom, Baasha if forced to withdraw from building his fort when his northern villages are captured by Ben-Hadad, but at a steep cost.  Asa sacrificed his own integrity by outsourcing the sin of another and bears some of the responsibility for the deaths of his kindred attack by the army he paid to invade them.

                God, in order to explain to Asa his displeasure, sends him a prophet.  The prophet tells Asa that his lack of faith has not only cost him a chance at lasting peace, but also robbed God of the opportunity to destroy Ben-Hadad’s army along with the invading army of Baasha.  If Asa had continued to trust in God, a far greater and lasting victory would have been achieved, and without the moral stain of Asa’s chosen path.  Instead, the kingdom of Aram to the north will continue to plague not only Israel, but eventually Judah as well.

                Asa could have stood firm, he could have become one of the greatest kings of God’s people, if only he had continued to trust God.  God is ready to help those who seek him, he told Asa, “For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.”  It isn’t enough to trust in God, we need to continue in that trust from beginning to end, through thick and thin.  When Asa died, he was honored by his people as a man who had served God with all his heart, he deserved that honor, but he could have been much more, if only he had continued to trust in the LORD.

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How do you know if a ministry is right for you?

How do you know if a potential ministry opportunity is the right one for you?  As a church pastor, this is a question we need to ask ourselves on a regular basis.  There are plenty of opportunities out there, far more than we have the resources of time, energy, or money to be a part of, so how do we know if the latest idea is one that will really make a difference for the kingdom of God?  The usual answers about talent and passion can be useful guides, after all, few pastors are likely to be much good at trying to be someone they aren’t by tackling a problem where talent is lacking, and most pastors will find it hard to stick with a ministry that doesn’t speak to the passion that drove them to choose to serve the Lord in the first place.  Instead of looking at this from a philosophical or practical viewpoint, let me relate to you the story of how I came to be involved in the para-church ministry that now occupies a great deal of my ministry effort.

            In 2012 I was new to Franklin, Pennsylvania.  I had just moved her in January with my wife, Nicole, from Michigan where I had been a part-time pastor of a small rural church and a part-time alternative education teacher.  The First Baptist Church of Franklin is an established church with a rich history and a beautiful building.  The numbers at First Baptist had dwindled in recent years, but the passion of the people for serving God was still evident to me when I came here to candidate.  When I accepted the job I knew it would be a long-term process of turning things around, but I also knew I would have the support of the congregation to do it.

            In the spring of 2012 I was invited to attend a meeting of the Children’s Roundtable of Venango County, a group consisting of local government officials, civic leaders, and local pastors, by another pastor who was unable to attend this particular meeting.  Not knowing what the focus of this particular group was, other than guessing that it had something to do with Children’s issues, I attended the meeting.  The first meeting was informational for me, learning about some of the local poverty related issues that affect children, but didn’t point toward any particular involvement on my part.  When I attended a second meeting everything changed.

            At the second meeting of the Children’s Roundtable, it was clear that these local government officials and civic leaders were looking to the local churches as a potential source of manpower to help alleviate some of the previously identified problems.  At this meeting, the local CYS solicitor, a good man who I now count as a friend, asked me to speak on behalf of the churches of our county and represent them.  Now keep in mind, I was the junior member of anybody’s ministerium list, still trying to figure out my role in this community, and certainly not anyone with any particular authority to speak for others.  But I was there, and I went with it.

            During the next several months, I became more and more involved in the process of talking about what needs the local churches might be able to help address, and how they would go about doing it.  What started out as a wholly unexpected request to speak on behalf of my fellow pastors, soon saw me become the default leader of the church response and the host of the eventual meeting to share this proposed local government and church cooperative effort.

            When that meeting of about sixty interested people happened, we were covering ground that I had never imagined would be a part of my ministry here at First Baptist.  I do have a history of ecumenical efforts, and this church has its own history of participating in the local food pantry and benevolent fund, but where this was going was far beyond anything that either I or they had attempted before.  The basic premise of the idea that was then forming was to build a partnership between the Human Services Department of Venango County {It had begun as a CYS effort, but quickly grew to include Aging, Mental Health, and all the rest} who would provide the information of their clients who needed help beyond what they could give, and local churches of all denominations throughout our whole county.

            In November of 2012 I led a second meeting to formulate our initial action plan, hoping to find a core group of people from several churches willing to be on a committee to get this lofty idea off the ground.  Once again, I ended up with more than I bargained for.  We did find our core leadership group that night, many of whom are still vital to our organization’s efforts, but we also found something fairly daunting: our first referral.  One of the caseworkers in attendance brought the file of her client who was in need of help, and after getting her permission to share that information, she told us about the significant repairs that this home needed before winter set in.  Before we had a name, before we had an official leadership, we had work to do, and that is what we did.  We helped someone when we were just trying to figure out who we were.  From that day onward, the referrals started to flow in, first slowly, then a trickle, eventually a flood we can barely keep our heads above.

            We eventually settled on the name of, Mustard Seed Missions of Venango County.  It wasn’t a ministry that I went in search of.  The way that it functions today has a lot of my input on it, but the primary idea of government/church cooperation belonged to somebody else.  I had never been much of an administrator, and my teaching days certainly didn’t develop a love of paperwork in me, but when it came time to choose our first president, all eyes were looking at my end of the table.

  Why did I do it, why take on this significant daily burden when I already had a church that needed me?  One reason is that I felt liberated as a full-time pastor from my years of juggling two jobs and I really wanted to make a difference in this community.  A second reason is that I had this strong feeling as the idea began to be formed early in 2012 that it wouldn’t get off the ground if one of the local pastors didn’t adopt it as his own.  Lastly, I just couldn’t say no when I was asked if the churches of our county would be willing to help the poor, if we can’t say yes to that question, what can we say yes to?

How do you know if a ministry is the right one for you?  I’m not sure I have any profound answer to that question from my own experience, but I sure knew that I had found my answer when I agreed to be a part of our para-church, non-denominational, government/church cooperative effort to help the poor in the name of Christ.