And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat,There is yet one man, by whom we may enquire of the LORD: but I hate him; for he never prophesied good unto me, but always evil: the same is Micaiah the son of Imla. And Jehoshaphat said, Let not the king say so. How can you hate someone who is trying to be your friend? Ahab hated Micaiah because, in the king’s eyes, only evil was prophesied and never anything good. At least that was Ahab’s perception. But 2Peter 3:9 tells us that the Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. God sent Micaiah to be a friend to Ahab by telling him the truth. The truth is what was written in 1Kings 16:30-33: “And Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the LORD above all that were before him. And it came to pass, as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, that he took to wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Zidonians, and went and served Baal, and worshipped him. And he reared up an altar for Baal in the house of Baal, which he had built in Samaria. And Ahab made a grove; and Ahab did more to provoke the LORD God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel that were before him.”
Proverbs 18:24 tells us that a man that hath friends must show himself friendly. And Ahab hated Micaiah. This would be the last chance that Ahab would have to give heed to what God was telling him through his friend Micaiah. Did he listen? Of course not. Ahab hated Micaiah because Ahab could not have things his own way.
So Ahab went to war anyway: against the counsel of Micaiah: against the counsel of God. And you know the rest…
“And a certain man drew a bow at a venture, and smote the king of Israel between the joints of the harness: therefore he said to his chariot man, Turn thine hand, that thou mayest carry me out of the host; for I am wounded. And the battle increased that day: howbeit the king of Israel stayed himself up in his chariot against the Syrians until the even: and about the time of the sun going down he died.” (2Chronicals 18:33-34)
If you have a friend, one who is walking with God, maybe you should listen to his or her counsel. It could be a warning. What a friend we have in Jesus. Who’s your friend?
Pastor Phil Erickson has been the pastor of Jersey Shore Baptist Church since 2002. Having grown up in Ocean County, Pastor Phil has always had a burden for the south Jersey area. After graduating from Bible College in Longview, Texas, he and his family moved to Galloway Township with the vision of digging in and serving the Lord and the people of Atlantic County. Pastor Phil and Cindy Erickson have been married for 34 years, and have four children and eight grandchildren. His oldest son, Phil Jr., and wife, Katelyn, are serving the Lord at a church in Paradise, TX. His oldest daughter, Melissa, is married to Wesley Clayton who is in the Air Force and is currently stationed in South Carolina. Samantha, his third child is married to Justin Mears and they are both serving the Lord here at the church in Galloway. Hannah is the youngest and is a sophomore at Vision Baptist College while also serving the Lord at Jersey Shore Baptist Church.
