Using the World in Christian Endeavors- 2 Chronicles 1-5

2 Chronicles 2:17-18 (ESV)

Then Solomon counted all the resident aliens who were in the land of Israel, after the census of them that David his father had taken, and there were found 153,600. Seventy thousand of them he assigned to bear burdens, 80,000 to quarry in the hill country, and 3,600 as overseers to make the people work.

To build the Temple for God, Solomon not only called on the King of Tyre (a non-believer) to provide experts in the art of craftsmanship (a man named Huramabi).   But he also used 153,600 resident aliens.   These were non-Hebrews who lived within the boarders of Israel.   They lived there but did not have the Jewish ancestry.    This was the Temple.  It was the most Holy of Holies.   Yet, Solomon used their skills and labor to construct this place God would dwell.    This might be a great example of the relationship between believers and the world today; between the Church and the world today.   Using non-believers to build churches is not an unholy thing.   Mixing non-believing truth with church truth is an unholy thing.  Since my main job is to speak about leadership principles to the unsaved world, this becomes an important balance.   I know what I write about and teach is great for the unsaved world, but I am not sure the Christian world would be so accepting.   This is certainly not because I speak false doctrine to either.  But because my writings are not providing a chapter and verse, the Christian world is, understandably, leery of me.   Solomon was allowing them to be the labor, but not those who would work in the Temple.   They could work on it to build it but not in it to use it.   We need to understand that God can supply our help through the unsaved world (think of Moses’ father-in-law, Jethro).  But that does not mean we are to cross over into their doctrine.  This is the line we have to walk each day as we employ others to help us from automobile repairs to heart surgery.   The truth is, God can use anyone.   But we must always be aware of false teaching that might be woven into that combination.   

God Keeps His Promises - Even for Worldly Things -

2 Chronicles 9:18-20 (ESV)

The throne had six steps and a footstool of gold, which were attached to the throne, and on each side of the seat were armrests and two lions standing beside the armrests, while twelve lions stood there, one on each end of a step on the six steps. Nothing like it was ever made for any kingdom. All King Solomon’s drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the House of the Forest of Lebanon were of pure gold. Silver was not considered as anything in the days of Solomon.

This section starts with Solomon finishing the glory of the Temple where God would be worshiped and ends with the glory of his own palace where he would be worshipped.  In fact that is what began to happen.  With God’s blessing, notice how Solomon was treated among men.  This statement is from the Queen of Sheba who came to meet Solomon:

2 Chronicles 9:7-9 (ESV)

Happy are your wives! Happy are these your servants, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom! Blessed be the LORD your God, who has delighted in you and set you on his throne as king for the LORD your God! Because your God loved Israel and would establish them forever, he has made you king over them, that you may execute justice and righteousness.” Then she gave the king 120 talents of gold, and a very great quantity of spices, and precious stones. There were no spices such as those that the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.

When we go back and now read about the palace steps and the lions on each side of the steps, we can see the splendor God bestowed upon Solomon.   People sang his praises. God has so blessed him with wisdom and material blessings, he has something created that no kingdom had ever seen.  Since then every kingdom would create this scene.   But God established it with Solomon first.  God is not wanting us to live in squalor, but we might if He so deems.  In this case, the promise from God to Solomon was that since he chose wisdom over riches, he would have both.  The twelve lions on six steps is just God keeping His word.  

Beware of False Teachers - Numbers 21-24

Numbers 22:4-7 (ESV)

And Moab said to the elders of Midian, “This horde will now lick up all that is around us, as the ox licks up the grass of the field.” So Balak the son of Zippor, who was king of Moab at that time, sent messengers to Balaam the son of Beor at Pethor, which is near the River in the land of the people of Amaw, to call him, saying, “Behold, a people has come out of Egypt. They cover the face of the earth, and they are dwelling opposite me. Come now, curse this people for me, since they are too mighty for me. Perhaps I shall be able to defeat them and drive them from the land, for I know that he whom you bless is blessed, and he whom you curse is cursed.”

So the elders of Moab and the elders of Midian departed with the fees for divination in their hand. And they came to Balaam and gave him Balak’s message.

Balaam was a non-Israelite sooth-sayer who was called upon the king of Moab, Balak, to curse Israel.    Apparently he was a pagan prophet that actually did have some powers to curse and bless people.  The pagan world was very much filled with this type of prophet for pay individual.  Balak thought to use this pagan ritual to destroy Israel.  

Balaam is the example of the word’s approach to their struggle to live along God’s people.   Balaam is forbidden from actaully cursing Israel.  Instead, he will bless the three times.  Put like most prophets for pay, he would not be undone.   He eventually earns his money and creates a compromise trap for Israel.   His thought was, “If God won’t let me curse them, I can at least use their debased nature to compromise them.”   That is what he does.   Peter calls Balaam the perfect example of a false teacher (as does Jude and John in The Revelation).  Note:

2 Peter 2:14-16 (ESV)

They have eyes full of adultery, insatiable for sin. They entice unsteady souls. They have hearts trained in greed. Accursed children! Forsaking the right way, they have gone astray. They have followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved gain from wrongdoing, but was rebuked for his own transgression; a speechless donkey spoke with human voice and restrained the prophet’s madness.

False teachers have many tools.  They don’t have to curse you and make your life miserable.   They can simply entice you and make your life a compromise.   Beware of the Balaams in life.  

Teach God’s Word With Authority - Titus

Titus 2:15 (ESV)

Declare these things; exhort and rebuke with all authority. Let no one disregard you.

Titus is being charged with a responsibility as the elder of the church on the island of Crete.  He is to make sure that all that Paul wrote to him is taught to the church.  In this exercise he is to declare, exhort and rebuke.   

1. Declare - the word is used almost 300 times in the N.T.   It is translated in 244 times simply as talk.   Titus is to talk to others about this scripture that Paul sent him in these first two chapters. 

2. Exhort - this word is used over 100 times in the N.T.   It is translated exhort only 21 times.  Mostly it is translated to beseech (43x).   The world means to invoke or call near or invite.  Titus is not to just to talk of these scriptures, he is to encourage others to draw near in obedience to them. We would call this preaching. 

3. Rebuke - this world is used 17 times in the N.T.  It is translated six times as rebuke.   This word carries the thought of convincing, or admonishing.   This might mean that after declaring and exhorting, if there is not obedience, Titus is to turn to rebuking.   We don’t see much of this in churches today.   

Titus is to do all this with two things on his mind:

1. He is to do this will all authority. This word is only used 7 times in the N.T. This is the only verse in the N.T. where the word is translated authority.  All the other times it is translated as commandment.   Timothy is to declare, exhort and rebuke as though he were under a commandment to do so.   That is his authority.  Paul is commanding him to do so.   

2. He is to do this while not allowing anyone to disregard him.   Timothy was told something similar in 1 Timothy 4:12.  Timothy was told not to allow anyone to despise his youth.  Paul says the same thing to Titus, but doesn’t mention his age.   He might have been older than Timothy.   The point for Titus and Timothy is that some will disregard and despise the teaching ministry they are commanded to do.   We are not to live as though that won’t happen.  

Paul wanted Titus to fulfill the ministry he was given by Christ.  That included some very specific instructions and would be meet with some very specific resistance.   He was to persevere.  

Substitutionary Atonement - John 16-18

John 18:37-40 (ESV)

Then Pilate said to him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.” Pilate said to him, “What is truth?”

After he had said this, he went back outside to the Jews and told them, “I find no guilt in him. But you have a custom that I should release one man for you at the Passover. So do you want me to release to you the King of the Jews?” They cried out again, “Not this man, but Barabbas!” Now Barabbas was a robber.

We know very little of this Barabbas.  All we know is that he was a criminal, condemned to death.   Pilate, to keep peace with the Jews, had a tradition during Passover to grant clemency to anyone they chose.   In this case he simply gives them a choice.   He was NOT really giving Barabbas clemency, however.   In the past the criminal went free.   That is clemency.  In this case the criminal was going free, but Jesus was taking his place, to pay his debt.   This was lost on all those people that day, but this is the picture of sacrifical atonement.   God designed this from the beginning.  The Temple sacrifices in the Old Testament were to show us about substitutionary atonement.  The lambs and goats and bulls were a picture of something being offered to God for our sins.   They could not permanently remove  sin, however. 

Hebrews 10:4 (ESV)

For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

Jesus, however, would be that permanent sacrifice.   Jesus would take Barabbas place and pay for his crime, since Jesus was quilt free.   It was declared innocent in Pilate’s court proceedings.  It was also declared by the plan of God.  Barabbas would be free.  His sins were atoned for by a sacrificial lamb, named Jesus.  That is the story of redemption.   We were Barabbas!   We are Barabbas!  Our sins are atoned for by the blood of Jesus.  

Romans 3:25 (ESV)

whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.

Don’t Miss God’s Discipline - Amos 1-4

Amos 4:7-8 (ESV)

“I also withheld the rain from you

when there were yet three months to the harvest;

I would send rain on one city,

and send no rain on another city;

one field would have rain,

and the field on which it did not rain would wither;

so two or three cities would wander to another city

to drink water, and would not be satisfied;

yet you did not return to me,”

declares the LORD.

God’s discipline is pretty accurate.  God does not miss with lighting and knows where to drop mana in the desert.     The nation of Israel were living in rebellion and God used His sovereign discipline to correct them.  But note what it says at the end:

“Yet you did not return to me,” declares the LORD. 

It is amazing that they would miss God’s hand working in their lives.   He actively removed rain from them precisely where He wanted to and they missed it.   Or, at least, rejected it.  This entire section of the book of Amos is a focus on God intervening in the lives and still the same conclusion over and over: “Yet you did not return to me.”    This is the plight of those live in disobedience.  Those who live in disobedience to God do not want to repent.  Note what is written about those in the book of Revelation, who also will be disciplined:

Revelation 9:20-21 (ESV)

The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands nor give up worshiping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk, nor did they repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts.

God sends discipline to correct our walk and the path we are walking.    Some will always just reject God’s correction.   

I Just Need Another Nap - Proverbs 23-24

Proverbs 24:33-34 (ESV)

A little sleep, a little slumber,

a little folding of the hands to rest,

and poverty will come upon you like a robber,

and want like an armed man.

"If I could just have a nap!"   "If I could just sleep in for a few more minutes!!"   "Just let me take a rest for a minute!!"   These are the excuses, comments and/or thoughts of the sluggard, who will, eventually, be robbed or suffer loss, shortly.   In the entire book of Proverbs, Solomon was quite concerned with the behavior of the sluggard.   Why?  Sloth is a character quality of the foolish; those bound by folly.   Solomon wrote the proverbs to give prudence and discernment and understanding to naive.   He knew how easy it was for anyone to become a person of sloth.   In these two proverbs he simply rehearses what folly sounds like when it takes control of a person through the characteristic of sloth.   It only takes a little lack of industry to find yourself robbed of opportunity, potential and blessing.   When we regularly take time off for just a little more of a break; a little longer vacation; a little longer weekend and we will find ourselves soon robbed of a chance to advance the cause of God's kingdom, just like a man is robbed by an armed man.  He doesn't expect it but still experiences the loss.  Rejecting God results in folly, while folly produces sloth and sloth makes opportunity for only robbery, which leave the person in poverty.    Just a nap can eventually end up being just a bum.