Making a Differencewith Pastor Phil Erickson

May 4th Choose Your Battles Wisely

Today’s Passage – 2 Kings 23 – 25 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)

Second Milers also read – Luke 23 – 24; Psalms 16 – 20; Proverbs 4

Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Joshua 1:8

Read the “0504 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon

“In his days Pharaohnechoh king of Egypt went up against the king of Assyria to the river Euphrates: and king Josiah went against him; and he slew him at Megiddo, when he had seen him.” – (2 Kings 23:29)

In order to make sense of the story referenced in 2 Kings 23:29 (above), the parallel passage in 2 Chronicles 35:20 – 25 should be read also. In a nutshell, the two big dogs on the block during the time of Josiah are Egypt and Assyria. The Kingdom of Judah, which includes Jerusalem and its surrounding areas was nestled right in between these two world powers. Assyria had already conquered the northern kingdom of Israel. Anyway, Egypt was travelling north to fight with Assyria at a place called Carchemesh on the Euphrates River. King Josiah from Judah, for some unknown reason, got in the middle of this battle, choosing to fight for the Assyrians against Egypt. 2 Chronicles tells us that the Pharaoh of Egypt warned Josiah not to interfere. Nowhere in Scripture does it say that God told Josiah to get involved. From all appearances it looks as if Josiah was killed because he involved himself in something that God never told him to be involved in. Josiah was a great king, but he got his priorities messed up here. The end result is that Josiah’s son takes control of Judah, and the Bible tells us that he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord.

I think that there is a great lesson for us to learn here. Sometimes we get ourselves in trouble when we interfere in things that God never told us to interfere with. We need to learn to do two things. First, we need to choose our battles carefully. Second, we need to learn to mind our own business at times. Now don’t misunderstand, sometimes God wants us to get involved in things that are not directly involving us, but when these times arise we need to make sure that it is truly God’s will for us to involve ourselves. When I look back through the  years of my ministry here at Jersey Shore Baptist Church, I can now see in hindsight that there were many times that I got involved in things that God never told me to do. As a result, the church would lose focus, and harm would come. I am trying now to stay within the area that God has called me to. He has called me to pastor the people of Jersey Shore Baptist Church, and He has called me to get the message of the gospel to my community. Besides my responsibilities as a husband and father, those are my main duties. It is a big enough job by itself, so I don’t need to get mixed up in something that distracts me from those purposes. There are a lot of “good” causes out there to get involved in, but even a “good” cause can become sin, if it is not God’s will.

How about you? Do you ever find yourself getting sidetracked into an area that distracts you from what you know God wants you to do? Choose your battles wisely, mind your own business, and stay focused on the will of God for your life.

By the way, I want to also be careful to acknowledge that even though Josiah got mixed up in something he shouldn’t have, he was still a great king, and in my opinion the greatest king Judah ever had. Chapter 23 of our passage records all of the great things Josiah did in Judah and even in the northern kingdom, Israel. He worked tirelessly removing the evil that his predecessors had allowed to enter into the land.

May 2nd Spread It Before the Lord

Today’s Reading – 2 Kings 18 – 19 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)

(Second Milers Read – Luke 19 – 20; Psalms 6 – 10; Proverbs 2)

Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Deuteronomy 32:4

Read the “0502 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon

Read a previous post from this passage – “Now You’ve Crossed the Line”

“And it came to pass, when king Hezekiah heard it, that he rent his clothes, and covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the LORD.” – (2 Kings 19:1)

“And Hezekiah received the letter of the hand of the messengers, and read it: and Hezekiah went up into the house of the LORD, and spread it before the LORD.” – (2 Kings 19:14)

In our passage this morning in 2 Kings we learn that the city of Jerusalem was surrounded by the army of Assyria. This very powerful nation had already conquered much of the known world at that time, including the northern kingdom of Israel. Jerusalem, in southern kingdom of Judah certainly did not have the military strength to repel such a powerful force. But King Hezekiah knew Someone who could help even in this very impossible situation. The king of Judah did what we all should do when we are faced with problems far bigger than our own human ability to solve: he went to the Lord. Notice in verse 1 above that Hezekiah went into the house of the Lord. That’s a good place to go to find answers. He then sent for the man of God, Isaiah. In this passage we can see a recipe that will help us in times of trouble. Go to God; go to God’s house; seek counsel from the man of God.

Notice in verse 14 above, the Assyrian’s are threatening again, and Hezekiah does the same thing that he did the first time. Why wouldn’t he? By the way, both times God delivers Jerusalem from the mighty Assyrian army. The first time, God just lures them away from Jerusalem, but the second time He actually kills 185,000 of them. They should have quit when they were ahead.

So, what can we learn from this passage? When you are faced with questions and problems that are bigger than yourself, go to God. Look into the Bible for answers to your questions. Seek counsel from the men and women that God has placed in your life to help you. And whatever you do, do not forsake the house of God when you are faced with problems and going through difficult and discouraging situations. It very well may be that God will solve your problem there. The older I get, the more I realize that my life is bigger than my ability to live it right, and I often find myself not knowing what to do. I need God’s help. I need God’s wisdom. Our church is always facing decisions that drive us to our knees.  My family is facing decisions regarding the future. We need God’s wisdom; God’s help. We need to spread these things before the Lord.

At another point in Judah’s history, King Jehoshaphat found himself and the southern kingdom in a similar dilemma, and he also went to God for help:

“1 It came to pass after this also, that the children of Moab, and the children of Ammon, and with them other beside the Ammonites, came against Jehoshaphat to battle. … 5 And Jehoshaphat stood in the congregation of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the LORD, before the new court, 6 And said, O LORD God of our fathers, art not thou God in heaven? and rulest not thou over all the kingdoms of the heathen? and in thine hand is there not power and might, so that none is able to withstand thee? 7 Art not thou our God, who didst drive out the inhabitants of this land before thy people Israel, and gavest it to the seed of Abraham thy friend for ever? 8 And they dwelt therein, and have built thee a sanctuary therein for thy name, saying, 9 If, when evil cometh upon us, as the sword, judgment, or pestilence, or famine, we stand before this house, and in thy presence, (for thy name is in this house,) and cry unto thee in our affliction, then thou wilt hear and help. 10 And now, behold, the children of Ammon and Moab and mount Seir, whom thou wouldest not let Israel invade, when they came out of the land of Egypt, but they turned from them, and destroyed them not; 11 Behold, I say, how they reward us, to come to cast us out of thy possession, which thou hast given us to inherit. 12 O our God, wilt thou not judge them? for we have no might against this great company that cometh against us; neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon thee.“ (2 Chronicles 20:1, 5-12)

In the New. Testament, James also gave this same advice – Go to God. He will liberally give you the wisdom that you need to navigate through any problem.

“If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” – (James 1:5 )

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May 1st Have It Your Way

Today’s Passage – 2 Kings 16 – 17 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)

(Second Milers Read – Luke 17 – 18; Psalms 1 – 5; Proverbs 1)

Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – 1 John 4:7 & 8

Read the 0501 Evening and Morning devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon

Read a previous post from this passage – “I Warned You”

“They feared the LORD, and served their own gods, after the manner of the nations whom they carried away from thence.” – (2 Kings 17:33)

“So these nations feared the LORD, and served their graven images, both their children, and their children’s children: as did their fathers, so do they unto this day.” (2 Kings 17:41)

Do you remember the old Burger King jingle and ad campaign, “Have It Your Way?” Years ago this company promoted the concept of having your burger custom designed any way you desire. They inferred that the other fast-food burger places would only let you purchase their food the way they made it, and you could not “special order” a sandwich the way you wanted it. The ad campaign, I think, was very successful for Burger King. It has been a few decades decades since they ran those ads and I still remember them. The Burger King concept is a reflection of the American culture. We don’t want to be confined to a pre-determined menu. We want it our way. The Burger King concept may be a very good idea when it comes to selling fast food, but it will be a disaster for the church.

In our text, we see people living in the land of Israel who were originally from many nations. They had been placed there by the king of Assyria after he had removed many of the Israelites from the land. These foreigners faced opposition from God Himself when they first came in to inhabit the land, so they figured they had better do something to appease the God of Israel:

“24 And the king of Assyria brought men from Babylon, and from Cuthah, and from Ava, and from Hamath, and from Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel: and they possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities thereof. 25 And so it was at the beginning of their dwelling there, that they feared not the LORD: therefore the LORD sent lions among them, which slew some of them. 26 Wherefore they spake to the king of Assyria, saying, The nations which thou hast removed, and placed in the cities of Samaria, know not the manner of the God of the land: therefore he hath sent lions among them, and, behold, they slay them, because they know not the manner of the God of the land. 27 Then the king of Assyria commanded, saying, Carry thither one of the priests whom ye brought from thence; and let them go and dwell there, and let him teach them the manner of the God of the land. 28 Then one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and dwelt in Bethel, and taught them how they should fear the LORD.” (2 Kings 17:24-28)

The king of Assyria released one of the Israelite priests from captivity and charged him to return to Israel and instruct the people in the proper worship of the God of Israel. The result was that these people incorporated God into their worship partially, but they still continued to worship their own gods, their way.

The New Testament tells us that in the end times there will be many that will do the same thing:

“This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.” – (2 Timothy 3:1-5)

We are certainly living in the time that the Bible describes in 2 Timothy, and we have applied the Burger King philosophy to our worship of God. We pick and choose which doctrines on the menu that appeal to our tastes and we create our own custom designed forms of worship and service. We have it wrong. This “seeker sensitive” generation of Christians needs to go back to the Bible and discover what is pleasing to the Lord and then submit themselves to the menu that He has designed for them in His wisdom. God knows how to make our burgers better than we can. We had better let Him have it His way.

Apr 30th God Sent Them a Saviour

Today’s Passage – 2 Kings 13 – 15 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)

(Second Milers Read – Luke 15 – 16; Proverbs 30 – 31; Psalms 146 – 150)

Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – 1 John 3:1

Read the “0430 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon

“And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and he delivered them into the hand of Hazael king of Syria, and into the hand of Benhadad the son of Hazael, all their days. And Jehoahaz besought the LORD, and the LORD hearkened unto him: for he saw the oppression of Israel, because the king of Syria oppressed them. (And the LORD gave Israel a saviour, so that they went out from under the hand of the Syrians: and the children of Israel dwelt in their tents, as beforetime.” – (2 Kings 13:3-5)

In our passage today we have the northern kingdom of Israel, which is a nation that had long ago abandoned the God that had brought them from bondage in Egypt and had given them a land of their own. They are led by a king, Jehoahaz, who the Bible describes as an evil man. Because of this nation’s wickedness, God sends judgment via the hand of the Syrians. However, in verse four something very interesting happens: this bad king, Jehoahaz, humbles himself before the Lord, and asks for the Lord’s help and the Lord delivers Israel from the hand of their enemy.

What a marvelous picture we have here of the grace of the Lord. This nation and this king certainly did not deserve any help from the Lord, yet the Lord in His mercy delivered them anyway. This story reminds me of another story. I know a guy who is also a bad guy, a sinner, and he lives in a bad place, America: a nation that also has long ago abandoned the God that blessed them with their freedom and prosperity. Many years ago this evil guy I know recognized his sinful condition and the judgment that lay ahead for him in Hell, and he also humbled himself before the Lord and called upon Him for forgiveness. You know what? The Lord had mercy upon him too and saved him. That guy’s name is Phil Erickson. He didn’t deserve it then and still doesn’t now deserve any consideration or mercy at all from a holy God, yet God saved him. What a God?

“For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” – (Romans 10:13)

Apr 29th The Lord’s People

Today’s Passage – 2 Kings 10 – 12 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)

(Second Milers also read – Luke 13 – 14;  Proverbs 29; Psalms 141 – 145

Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – 1 Timothy 1:17

Read the “0429 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon

Read a previous post from this passage – “Housecleaning“

“And Jehoiada made a covenant between the LORD and the king and the people, that they should be the LORD’S people; between the king also and the people.” (2 Kings 11:17)

The northern kingdom of Israel never had the benefit of good leadership, and there is no doubt that the worst leadership team that served them was King Ahab and Queen Jezebel. Time would not permit me to list here all of the ways that these two had led their nation away from the will of God, but suffice it to say that they were some evil people. However, their wicked influence did not just impact their own nation, as the southern kingdom of Judah was also affected by the evil that was spewing out of their neighbors from the north. It all started with a good Judaean king named Jehoshaphat who loved the Lord but unfortunately, also had an “affinity” to Ahab. Jehoshaphat and Ahab were friends, so much so that Jehoshaphat’s son, Joram, married Ahab’s daughter, Attaliah. Joram was not a godly man, choosing rather to follow the influence of his wife and father-in-law rather than follow the God of his father. King Joram and Attaliah had a son, Ahaziah, who became the king of Judah and he was also an evil man. He met an untimely death at the hands of Jehu because of his association with Ahab’s family. When he died, his mother, Attaliah (Ahab’s daughter), seized control of Judah by slaughtering everyone else that would have a claim to the throne, and she actually reigned as queen for 7 years. However, one of the “seed royal” of Judah was rescued from Attaliah’s attempted assassination, and was secretly protected and raised by Jehoiada the priest; and when Jehoash (called Joash in 2 Kings 11:2) was old enough, he was revealed to the nation and was anointed as king. Finally, a good king was back on the throne and some of the influence from the family of Ahab could be reversed.

The people of Judah had gotten out of the will of God because they allowed an ungodly influence into their land, but now, under the leadership of King Jehoash and Jehoiada the priest, some great things could happen. In 2 Kings 11:17 a covenant was made between the king, the people, and the Lord; and this covenant declared that the people of Judah would once again be “the Lord’s people,” meaning that they were going to remove the influences that had previously pulled them out of the will of God and they also were going to follow the principles contained in the Word of God.

Notice the results of this decision:

“And all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was in quiet:” (2 Kings 11:20a)

God gave the people rejoicing and “quiet,” which means they were at peace. Praise the Lord. There was a time when our land enjoyed the peace (quiet) of God. I wish America would follow the example and admonition of Jehoiadah and Jehoash by ridding our land of the ungodly influences, and wholly following the Lord. Maybe then we could be “the Lord’s people” again as a nation, and could also have that wonderful peace that comes with it.

Apr 28th Windows in Heaven

Today’s Passage – 2 Kings 7 – 9 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)

(Second Milers also read – Luke 11 – 12; Proverbs 28; Psalm 136 – 140

Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Ephesians 4:32

Read the “0428 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon

“Then a lord on whose hand the king leaned answered the man of God, and said, Behold, if the LORD would make windows in heaven, might this thing be? And he said, Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof.” (2 Kings 7:2)

In today’s passage we see the the city of Samaria surrounded by an overwhelming army of the Syrians. This massive host from Syria had the city surrounded for some time, which caused the Israelites to run completely out of food on the inside of the city with no way to get out to get more food. Things got so bad the people were actually buying and selling dove’s dung to eat. Some had even killed and ate children. Pretty hopeless situation.

Along comes the man of God and tells them that at the same time the next day the situation would be reversed, so much so that food that was very expensive the previous day would be sold for next to nothing on the next day. But one of the lords (princes) of Israel doubted the Word of God through the mouth of the prophet and stated basically that this is impossible, even if God were to open the windows of heaven.

You can read the story for yourself but God did exactly what he said he would do. The Syrians heard the sound of chariots and assumed that their enemies from Egypt or maybe the Hittites were coming to help Israel by attacking them. They flee, leaving all of their food and goods behind. Israel discovers that the Syrians have left and they come out of the city and spoil the camp of the Syrians.

It looks like God truly opened up the windows of heaven. Israel had a promise from the word of God regarding those same windows in heaven:

“Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.” (Malachi 3:10)

God has promised us that if we will keep him first in our lives that he will keep those windows open. He doesn’t promise that we will all live in mansions on this earth and eat caviar, but praise the Lord, we won’t have to eat dove’s dung either.

“But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” (Matthew 6:33)

Apr 27th God Will Take Care of You

Today’s Passage – 2 Kings 4 – 6 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)

(Second Milers also read – Luke 9 – 10; Proverbs 27; Psalms 131 – 135

Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Matthew 6:33

Read the “0427 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon

“Now there cried a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets unto Elisha, saying, Thy servant my husband is dead; and thou knowest that thy servant did fear the LORD: and the creditor is come to take unto him my two sons to be bondmen. … Then she came and told the man of God. And he said, Go, sell the oil, and pay thy debt, and live thou and thy children of the rest.” – (2 Kings 4:1, 7)

There are some mornings when I have a difficult time finding something interesting to write about from the Scripture reading for the day. However, the three chapters that we have read this morning from 2 Kings 4 – 6 are full of exciting stories from the life of Elisha. I have chosen this morning to consider the story of the widow woman who was miraculous provided for by God. The story is found in 2 Kings 4: 1 – 7, and speaks of a woman was the wife of one of the prophets, and was now left alone to care for her two sons. She has nothing left but a pot of oil in her house. The creditors are bearing down on her, and want to take her two sons as bondmen in order to repay a debt that is owed them. She comes to the man of God for help, and he instructs her to borrow vessels from her neighbors that will hold oil. Elisha takes the little bit of oil that she has and pours it into the other containers that the woman borrowed from her neighbors. The oil did not run out until all of the vessels were filled, which she was then able to go and sell so that she would be able to pay the debt that she owed.

There are two thoughts that I would like to pull from this passage. The first involves debt. The Scripture says, “The rich ruleth over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.” – (Proverbs 22:7). The passage does not give us any of the details regarding the reason why this woman was in debt. It may have been a debt that she inherited from her dead husband. Anyway, she has a debt that is causing her a lot of trouble. I got to thinking about what kind of financial situation my wife would be in if I passed away suddenly today. I would leave her with the burden of some debt. We are in the process of making some changes in our financial decisions so that all of our debt would be eliminated. I would not want to leave my wife with the kind of pressure this woman had to face.

My second thought from this passage is that God took care of this lady who had given her life to serve Him. She was the wife of one of the prophets, and prophets lived by faith. They had no doubt made many financial sacrifices in the process of serving the Lord. I understand a little about what she is going through. When we sold our house, and packed up our stuff and headed for Bible college, we knew that we were entering a journey of faith and sacrifice. We have had to live without a lot of things throughout the years; but one of the things that we have had to do away with was insurance. Since we have been in the ministry, we have been unable to afford health insurance or life insurance. I know that this is not good stewardship, but when you are forced to choose between food on the table or an insurance policy to protect you from something that may or may not happen, you can see why we might go uninsured. This is a great source of worry for my wife particularly. However, this passage reminds us that even though we may not be the best financial planners, God takes care of those that have given their life in service for Him. He will take care of my family. Don’t misunderstand, someday I want to be able to provide some of these comforting benefits like insurance for my family; but for now, I know that God has got my family’s back.

“But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” – (Matthew 6:33)