Ironworks

                 Who was Naaman? There is quite a backstory to this healing, starting in 2 Kings 5:1. Naaman was captain of the host of the King of Syria , enemy of Israel , and he was also a leper. The disease of leprosy was highly painful, contagious, and noticeable. No matter how many battles he won or how much treasure or slaves that he took as spoils , he was still a leper. He suffered the pain and the shame that went with it. In his desperation, he went to the prophet Elisha who instructed him to dip in the Jordan River seven times. Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God; and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean. And he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and came, and stood before him; and he said, Behold now, I know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel: now therefore, I pray thee, take a p...

Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants' fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence. John 18:36      Worldliness: we are warned of it in the Word of God frequently. Even though you hear it spoken against in Bible studies and sermons, it still creeps into congregations every year. Yet it does not usually start on a Sunday or Wednesday meeting. It usually starts with compromise from the people. This is evident in the days of old as men failed to obey the commands of God. In one generation after the death of Joshua, the people of Israel knew not Jehovah, nor yet the work which He had wrought for Israel (Judges 2:10). A nation that was called to be the people of God descended into a nation in which every man did that which was right in his own eyes. (Judges 21:25). Brethren, this is why we must always be on guard for the temptation to fall into the snare of worldline...

Have you ever seen someone give up before they have even tried? I have seen it happen over and over again. There is a temptation to give up when things get really tough. What we say during those times can cause even greater damage to not just the one saying it but those who hear it.  Wicked Witnesses The children of Israel murmured/whispered against Moses often in the period of wilderness wandering. Their lack of trust in the Lord predated even their going out of the land of bondage. They said,  “Is not this the word that we spake unto thee in Egypt, saying, Let us alone, that we may serve the Egyptians? For it were better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the wilderness (Ex 14:12).  How will we respond when the elders say we have great work to do or when the sermon always involves a call to action? The children of Israel were witnesses of all the signs and wonders that God worked as He liberated them. Even after all that, they still went back ...

And he did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, as did Manasseh his father; and Amon sacrificed unto all the graven images which Manasseh his father had made, and served them. And he humbled not himself before Jehovah, as Manasseh his father had humbled himself; but this same Amon trespassed more and more. 2 Chronicles 33:22-23 King Amon followed his father Manasseh of Judah. Manasseh undid most of his father Hezekiah's reforms. Towards the end of his life, he humbled himself and sought to make right. One would hope that his son Amon would have seen the attempted correction carried out by his father. Amon could do right or wrong. However, only he would make that choice.  Our Choices Yield the Appropriate Result  Amon, was a free moral agent just like every man that ever lived. The prophet Ezekiel had to correct a common proverb that was said in Israel. The fathers have eaten sour grapes and the children’s teeth are set on edge (cf. Ezekiel 18:2)? This proverb was...

          In the days of Pekah king of Israel came Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, and took Ijon, and Abel-beth-maacah, and Janoah, and Kedesh, and Hazor, and Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali; and he carried them captive to Assyria. 30 And Hoshea the son of Elah made a conspiracy against Pekah the son of Remaliah, and smote him, and slew him, and reigned in his stead, in the twentieth year of Jotham the son of Uzziah.   2 Kings 15:29-30                   I like movies where the villain’s plans are frustrated by the only good guy around. There is something invigorating about the triumph of good over evil. Pekah the king of Israel was evil.   In addition to the account here in 2 Kings 15, we also have some information about him in the prophet Isaiah. Isaiah 7:1-9; 8:1-8 tell us of Pekah’s intention to replace Ahaz the king of Judah with another ...

           Twenty years old was Ahaz when he began to reign; and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem: and he did not that which was right in the eyes of Jehovah his God, like David his father. But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, yea, and made his son to pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the nations, whom Jehovah cast out from before the children of Israel.   And he sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places, and on the hills, and under every green tree . 2 Kings 16:2-4                   When was the first time you drove a car? What about the first time you jumped off a diving board or gave a speech? After that first time, it certainly became easier. What about the first lie you told? Did it become easier? King Ahaz of Judah was evil and far from the example of David. Ahaz was the first to offer child sacrifices to t...

          There came against the land Pul the king of Assyria; and Menahem gave Pul a thousand talents of silver, that his hand might be with him to confirm the kingdom in his hand. And Menahem exacted the money of Israel, even of all the mighty men of wealth, of each man fifty shekels of silver, to give to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria turned back, and stayed not there in the land. 2 Kings 15:19-20                   Are people truly free if they are under the cruel hand of a foreign oppressor? Most would agree that that is not true freedom. Menahem reigned for ten years in Samaria after he murdered Shallum. However, it was Pul, the king of Assyria, who was truly ruling the northern kingdom of Israel. Menahem decided it was safer to pay off his greatest foe than to try and fight him.   Verse 20 tells us that he exacted the money of Israe...

                Shallum the son of Jabesh began to reign in the nine and thirtieth year of Uzziah king of Judah; and he reigned the space of a month in Samaria.    And Menahem the son of Gadi went up from Tirzah, and came to Samaria, and smote Shallum the son of Jabesh in Samaria, and slew him, and reigned in his stead . 2 Kings 15:13-14                         What would you do if you were king for a month? Would you be able to right some wrong. Would you try to enact policies and decrees to fix some of the issues ailing mankind? King Shallum of Israel reigned for the space of a month; that was it. His reign was so inconsequential that all that is said of him is that he reigned for a month and then Menahem executed him and took over the throne. It is certainly not the happiest of outcomes, bu...

        In the thirty and eighth year of Azariah king of Judah did Zechariah the son of Jeroboam reign over Israel in Samaria six months. And he did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, as his fathers had done: he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, wherewith he made Israel to sin. And Shallum the son of Jabesh conspired against him, and smote him before the people, and slew him, and reigned in his stead.  2 Kings 15:8-10                   King Zechariah is yet another blip on the radar of the evil kings of Israel. He did evil in the sight of Jehovah. His short description tells us that he continued in the sins of Jeroboam and influenced Israel to sin. Shallum saw an opportunity and disposed of Zechariah.                   While most of this seems...

        He restored the border of Israel from the entrance of Hamath unto the sea of the Arabah, according to the word of Jehovah, the God of Israel, which he spake by his servant Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet, who was of Gath-hepher.  For Jehovah saw the affliction of Israel, that it was very bitter; for there was none shut up nor left at large, neither was there any helper for Israel. 2 Kings 14:25-26                    Jeroboam II was much like his namesake because he did evil in the sight of the Lord (cf. 2 Kings 14:24) . However, we learn something from his short story: sometimes God will bless his people in spite of their ruler. The Lord saw the affliction of the people. The citizens of the northern kingdom were subject to poor rulers, and because of their evil acts, the people suffered at the hands of foreign invaders. The Lord still saw fit not t...

    And he said, Take the arrows. And he took them. And he said unto the king of Israel, Smite upon the ground. And he smote thrice, and stayed. And the man of God was wroth with him, and said, Thou shouldest have smitten five or six times; then hadst thou smitten Syria till thou hadst consumed it: whereas now thou shalt smite Syria but thrice. 2 Kings 13:18-19             Joash the king of Israel did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord. The sins of Jeroboam were ever-present in his life (cf. 2 Kings 13:11). He did have a particular care for the prophet Elisha and the king visited Elisha on his deathbed. Joash came to him and made his worries known about the threat of the Syrians. Elisha instructed him to first shoot an arrow out the window eastward. This was the message. The arrow of the Lord's deliverance, and the arrow of deliverance from Syria: for thou shalt smite the Syrians in Aphek, till thou have con...

  In the three and twentieth year of Joash the son of Ahaziah king of Judah Jehoahaz the son of Jehu began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned seventeen years. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the  Lord , and followed the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which made Israel to sin; he departed not there from. 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. 2 Kings 13:1-3             When do you thank God for all the blessings you have? When you are really successful, on the way up, or at the lowest point? Jehoahaz king of Israel was yet another in the line of evil kings. God, subsequently, did not bless Israel and allowed them to face the consequences of their sin. A great deal of the hurt is simply from the fact that a majority of the world does not honor ...

          And when she looked, behold, the king stood by a pillar, as the manner was, and the princes and the trumpeters by the king, and all the people of the land rejoiced, and blew with trumpets: and Athaliah rent her clothes, and cried, Treason, Treason.  2 Kings 11:14      Athaliah obviously was not a king of Israel, however, she wielded the power and certainly the bloodthirst of some of those who came before. The Scripture tells us that Athaliah was mother of Ahaziah of Judah. After seeing that he was dead, she worked to kill all of his children (cf. 2 Kings 11:1). This type of evil was not new for a people whose hearts were often in opposition to God, but this is truly audacious that a grandmother would seek to kill all of her grandsons.      Fortunately, Jehosheba, the sister of Ahaziah, took Joash and protected him (cf. 2 Kings 11:2). The boy’s aunt protected him from her mother, the child’s grandmo...

    And the destruction of Ahaziah was of God by coming to Joram: for when he was come, he went out with Jehoram against Jehu the son of Nimshi, whom the  Lord  had anointed to cut off the house of Ahab. And it came to pass, that, when Jehu was executing judgment upon the house of Ahab, and found the princes of Judah, and the sons of the brethren of Ahaziah, that ministered to Ahaziah, he slew them. 2 Chronicles 22:7-8             Where you find yourself has a lot to do with the things through which you go. Our lives are full of choices we make, and they are subject to risk assessment. We do this with such frequency it becomes almost second nature. For instance, when we go shopping, we take into consideration where we go and when we go. We are aware that some locations are not as safe as others; we know that some times are not as safe as others. When we look at Ahaziah of Judah, we certainly see how Ahaziah...

        And Elisha said unto the king of Israel, What have I to do with thee? get thee to the prophets of thy father, and to the prophets of thy mother. And the king of Israel said unto him, Nay: for the LORD hath called these three kings together, to deliver them into the hand of Moab. And Elisha said, As the LORD of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward thee, nor see thee.         2 Kings 3:13-14                   King Jehoram (Joram) of Israel lived in a very interesting time in Israel. At the outset of his reign, the king of Moab rebelled against Israel (cf. 2 Kings 3:4). He was a wicked king like the kings of the line of Ahab and even further back (cf. 2 Kings 3:3). However, Jehoram was not foolish; he knew he needed help, so he appeal...

        And Ahaziah fell down through a lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria, and was sick: and he sent messengers, and said unto them, Go, enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron whether I shall recover of this disease. But the angel of the LORD said to Elijah the Tishbite, Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say unto them, Is it not because there is not a God in Israel, that ye go to enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron?  2 Kings 1:2-3                    Imagine you know you have a good old drill at home, say a DeWalt or a Makita, and it works just as it is supposed to and the batteries are charged. Yet because you do not have it in your hand, you go out and buy an inferior brand with less power. Sure it is new, but it is truly not even capable of getting the job that your superior drill can do.     ...

          Jehoram was thirty and two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem. And he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, like as did the house of Ahab: for he had the daughter of Ahab to wife: and he wrought that which was evil in the eyes of the LORD.       2 Ch 21:5-6       Regional accents are quite interesting when you consider all their quirks and differences from each other. However, as one who has lived in varying locations and cultures in the United States, my accent is sort of all over the place. When I was visiting some family in Eastern Arkansas, my cousin correctly introduced me as my cousin Ryan from Texas. However, the young lady to whom he introduced me said, "You're from Texas?" I affirmed yes. To which she replied, “You don't sound like you're from Texas.” Maybe it was the fact that I grew up right on the Rio Grande or maybe this girl just e...