2 Chronicles 15: 1 – 15
I do not boast that God is on my side,” wrote Abraham Lincoln. “I humbly pray that I am on God’s side.”
Lincoln’s words paraphrase the thoughts Azariah expressed to King Asa of Judah. After the Spirit of God came upon Azariah, he said, “The Lord is with you while you are with Him. If you seek Him, He will be found by you; but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you”.
There was a time in my early walk when I selfishly thought that because I was saved that God was on my side, and I could continue to go to gentlemen’s clubs and serial date. Hey God will forgive me right? I’m saved; he’s on my side isn’t he? I go to church every Sunday that makes it alright. I get my cake and get to eat it too. This being saved thing is the greatest thing since indoor plumbing!
Every Sunday as I sat in the sanctuary, feeling guilty of everything I had done during the week, I could sense the grace of God come over me and I would begin to feel forgiven, and that God had my back. By the time I left the church, I was ready to start up again. Then one Sunday, as I sat in the sanctuary, that sense of God’s grace didn’t come. I shrugged it off, and the next week the same thing happened, no feeling of forgiveness.
I was scared. I didn’t know what to do. I felt that God had spoken to me saying that if I wanted His presence in my life, that I better prove that I was willing to walk with Him.
2 He went out to meet Asa and said to him, "Listen to me, Asa and all Judah and Benjamin. The LORD is with you when you are with him. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will forsake you.
There are times of conviction like this popping up from time to time in my life. They always produce life changing effects that bring me closer to God and more willing to seek Him out in everything that I do. If I listed all these times, I could fill a book and become rich like Max Lucado with all the lessons learned. I stopped all the things that I thought were standing between me and God, and I began to feel his presence once again.
4 But in their distress they turned to the LORD, the God of Israel, and sought him, and he was found by them.
7 But as for you, be strong and do not
12 They entered into a covenant to seek the LORD, the God of their fathers, with all their heart and soul. Give up, for your work will be rewarded."
15 All Judah rejoiced about the oath because they had sworn it wholeheartedly. They sought God eagerly, and he was found by them. So the LORD gave them rest on every side
I do not boast that God is on my side,” wrote Abraham Lincoln. “I humbly pray that I am on God’s side.”
Lincoln’s words paraphrase the thoughts Azariah expressed to King Asa of Judah. After the Spirit of God came upon Azariah, he said, “The Lord is with you while you are with Him. If you seek Him, He will be found by you; but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you”.
There was a time in my early walk when I selfishly thought that because I was saved that God was on my side, and I could continue to go to gentlemen’s clubs and serial date. Hey God will forgive me right? I’m saved; he’s on my side isn’t he? I go to church every Sunday that makes it alright. I get my cake and get to eat it too. This being saved thing is the greatest thing since indoor plumbing!
Every Sunday as I sat in the sanctuary, feeling guilty of everything I had done during the week, I could sense the grace of God come over me and I would begin to feel forgiven, and that God had my back. By the time I left the church, I was ready to start up again. Then one Sunday, as I sat in the sanctuary, that sense of God’s grace didn’t come. I shrugged it off, and the next week the same thing happened, no feeling of forgiveness.
I was scared. I didn’t know what to do. I felt that God had spoken to me saying that if I wanted His presence in my life, that I better prove that I was willing to walk with Him.
2 He went out to meet Asa and said to him, "Listen to me, Asa and all Judah and Benjamin. The LORD is with you when you are with him. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will forsake you.
There are times of conviction like this popping up from time to time in my life. They always produce life changing effects that bring me closer to God and more willing to seek Him out in everything that I do. If I listed all these times, I could fill a book and become rich like Max Lucado with all the lessons learned. I stopped all the things that I thought were standing between me and God, and I began to feel his presence once again.
4 But in their distress they turned to the LORD, the God of Israel, and sought him, and he was found by them.
7 But as for you, be strong and do not
12 They entered into a covenant to seek the LORD, the God of their fathers, with all their heart and soul. Give up, for your work will be rewarded."
15 All Judah rejoiced about the oath because they had sworn it wholeheartedly. They sought God eagerly, and he was found by them. So the LORD gave them rest on every side
Being a Christian doesn’t guarantee that God is “on our side” any more than being an ancient Israelite guaranteed that God was on theirs. God is on the side of those who are on His side, who know His heart and mind and do His will, not those who insist on convincing God and others that their way is right.
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