Ezra 1:3 

“Who is among you of all His people? May his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem which is in Judah, and build the house of the Lord God of Israel (He is God), which is in Jerusalem.”

There are times when the promises of God seem unlikely, and other times when they seem impossible. The scene in which Ezra is set is one of those, “it looks impossible”, kind of times. Judah had been defeated, the city of Jerusalem destroyed, and the people scattered throughout Babylonia. To complicate matters, the Babylonians were defeated by the combined forces of the Medes and Persians, led by King Cyrus. Set against these conditions, was a remote and seemingly impossible promise. Years earlier, Jeremiah the prophet, predicted a king named Cyrus would rise to power, and give a decree, allowing the Jews to return to their…

Much of what the Bible says is revolutionary. There are statements, not just shocking to us, but to every generation that ever lived. Jesus spoke to his disciples saying, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.” Matthew 16:24

Perhaps the strongest drive within the human body is the drive for survival. Yet we hear Jesus say, if we try to save our lives we will lose them. Life, according to Jesus, is found in death. On another occasion He said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain.” ( John 12:24) The death Jesus is…

2 Chronicles 36:15

“And the Lord God of their fathers sent warnings to them by His messengers, rising up early and sending them, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place.”

Compassion is a necessary ingredient in order to bring about change. It is more than an emotion, it is a sense of pity that stirs one to action. The compassion of God flows from His love for humanity. He looks at our condition because of sin, and His heart breaks. Rather than simply feeling bad for us, His compassion stirs Him to action. In the days of Jeremiah, we read, God’s action was to send men to declare the truths of His Word.

Even the best of believers, tend to drift from the Lord. Rather than leaving us to this course, God moves to bring us back to Himself. He will no doubt use circumstances…

2 Chronicles 35:21

“But he sent messengers to him, saying, ‘What have I to do with you, king of Judah? I have not come against you this day, but against the house with which I have war; for God commanded me to make haste. Refrain from meddling with God, who is with me, lest He destroy you.,”’

Josiah had a tremendous ministry with wide spreading impact. His personal commitment to the Lord resulted in a national revival that even drew people from other nations to commit themselves to YHWH. While we could discuss in detail the long lasting affects of his ministry, I was struck by what cut it short. We read that he began to meddle in things that were not the Lord’s call on his life. He started fighting the wrong battle, and it cost him his life. A few verses come to mind when I think of…

Romans 6:1

“What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?”

Paul boldly declares, because of the manifold grace of God, it is unreasonable for a Christian to continue living in sin. He explains why we should put our old lives behind us, and also gives practical steps on how that is to be accomplished. Notice, he explains what happened to us when we received Jesus Christ. Declaring, we were buried with Him through baptism into death.

We have seen, over and over, as we journey through the Bible, the result of receiving Christ is life. We become the partakers of eternal life as we follow Christ; we begin to experience abundant life. Here, Paul speaks of another truth. In addition to being made alive, he explains that coming to Christ also involves dying. The life lived for self, in pursuit of sin, and driven…

2 Chronicles 34:31

“Then the king stood in his place and made a covenant before the Lord, to follow the Lord, and to keep His commandments and His testimonies and His statutes with all his heart and all his soul, to perform the words of the covenant that were written in this book.”

Josiah’s story is a common one. While few have ever been king of a country, everyone who has responded to the Lord has walked a similar path as he did. First, Josiah made a decision to follow the Lord. This decision soon led him to a discovery of the Word of God, which in turn led him to make dramatic changes in his personal life, and his sphere of influence. We read that after he made a stand for the Lord, he called others to stand with him and,

“Josiah removed all the abominations from all…

2 Chronicles 33:12 

“Now when he was in affliction, he implored the LORD his God, and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers,”

Hands down, Manasseh was the worse king to ever reign in Judah. In a few short years, he undid all the reforms his father had effected, and seduced the people into sins they had never dreamed of committing. The spiritual climate in the nation was at an all time low, and the morality of the people followed suit. It is not surprising to read the Assyrians defeated Judah, and carried the king off captive to Babylon. What is surprising to read is, during his affliction, he not only cried out to God for help, but he truly committed his life to the Lord. This turn around forever changed life and eternity for Manasseh. Through his downfall, he came to realize the Lord was God…

Romans 5:1

“Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ”

A few years back, a good friend of mine was applying for a new job. When he returned from his interview he was very excited. Naturally, I asked him how it went. He replied, “It is such a good job! Because of the company’s connections, I will get deals on hotels, flights, cruises, and be able to travel for a fraction of normal rates.” After describing, in much greater detail, many of the peripheral benefits of his new job, I did not have the heart to ask him what he would be doing everyday; or to remind him he would only have one week of vacation to enjoy all these benefits. Sometimes, a reminder of the benefits is all we need to keep us pressing on through the difficult times.

The Roman…

2 Chronicles 32:1​

“After these deeds of faithfulness, Sennacherib king of Assyria came and entered Judah; he encamped against the fortified cities, thinking to win them over to himself.”

I find it interesting, and somewhat disturbing, that after reading of the faithfulness of Hezekiah, we find him facing what will prove to be the fight of his life. The Assyrian army, with its seemingly innumerable forces, marched against Jerusalem, surrounded the city, and began to threaten the people. These were not idle threats. The Assyrian army had not only defeated all of Judah’s neighbors, but had also conquered other cities within Judah itself. No force had been strong enough to withstand Assyria, and it would seem ludicrous to think the tiny city of Jerusalem and its inhabitants would have even the remotest of chances. Nonetheless, we read of Assyria’s defeat and Hezekiah’s exaltation. Two things grab my attention.

First…

2 Chronicles 31:3

“The king also appointed a portion of his possessions for the burnt offerings: for the morning and evening burnt offerings, the burnt offerings for the Sabbaths and the New Moons and the set feasts, as it is written in the Law of the Lord.”

God established a worship schedule for Israel that included annual feasts, weekly Sabbaths, and daily sacrifices. It was important for the people to gather on Passover to celebrate, but it was not enough. It was necessary to meet on the Sabbath, but it was not enough. For them to carry on a healthy relationship with God, they needed to start the morning with offering and end the day with sacrifice.

I recently heard a man declare he did not need to go to church because it wasn’t Christmas. I think most Christians would agree, going to church once a year is not enough…