Expectations of a King
Hi. I'm back. How's it going?I'm reading "Mere Discipleship" by Lee Camp. I'm also in study for a series on Sunday mornings about kings in the Old Testament. Worlds collided this weekend when I was reading a section in the book about what we expect from a king.
The Bible says that King Asa was "fully committed to God all the days of his life." The first 34 years of his reign were largely spent in peace and prosperity. The one war mentioned was won by God after Asa and all the people fasted and prayed to Him for strength, guidance, and victory. Asa tore down idols and even deposed his grandma because she supported their worship. Yet after decades of peace and devotion, Asa failed one of his final tests. When the king of Israel threatened Asa's land of Judah, Asa turned to the king of Aram to bail him out. He gave him gold and silver from the temple. He never once asked God for help.
Years later, King Hezekiah fell into the same trap, calling on Egypt for help against Assyria. To him, Isaiah said:
Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help and who depend on horses! They trust in the number of chariots and in the great strength of charioteers. They do not look to the Holy One of Israel and they do not seek the Lord's help. (Isa. 31:1)
This is what we want from our kings. We want power. We want strength. We expect our leaders to wipe out those who stand against us. Indeed, this is why the Jews could not accept that Jesus was Messiah. Messiah, after all, was to be their king. And no king would allow himself or his people to suffer. If a king is challenged, he fights. If he's not strong enough, he makes treaties. He gets help. But he wins at any cost. It is for this reason that Paul calls the cross "offensive." The cross, at face value, means defeat. Why should we accept, root for, follow, pattern our very lives after a king who allows himself to die?
Lee Camp writes: "We might summarize Revelation this way: in the ring of human history, there's a bleeding Lamb in one corner and a dragon in the other. "Common sense" would tell us we should place our bet on the dragon -- but there's a new common sense, a new reality, in which the Lamb turns out victorious. It's the people of God, the church, who are supposed to know that secret, because the mystery has been revealed in Christ."
There's nothing wrong with expecting strength and victory in Christ. But don't be surprised if they don't come in the way you expect. And don't expect them at all if you don't look to the Holy One of Israel and seek His help.
posted by Thurman8er @ 8:04 PM
2 Comments:
I've always wondered about ASA and the 11th hour slip up. Then you consider quite a few of the kings and other people who knew better also slipped in what seemed like the 11th hour. That is a lesson all in itself.
Is there anyway he could have been thinking (because I can see myself making the same insane rationalizations) I bothered God before and he helped me. He might get angry if I bother him again. Of course we can't know what he was thinking but it seems to mesh with the pattern of our own life experience.
I'm just thinking about our tendencies to spread out requests for help. Can't ask too much of the same person or they will grow tired and weary of seeing us, much less helping us.
Interesting perspective, Randy. Makes human sense.
Steve, your class is wonderful.
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