The Fire of God's Judgment
Pastor Marty Tuesday, March 13, 2018 at 10:59AM 2 Kings 1:1-18. This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on March 11, 2018.
Speculation and predictions are everywhere in our society today. Everyone has an opinion about politics, business, religion, or society. It is easy to become cynical like Pilate was before Jesus when he said, “What is truth?” However, no matter how confusing the times of speculation are, there always comes a time when God makes clear the wisdom or folly of those speculations. A case in point would be the many who predict that religion is on the way out and that Christianity is in its death throes. Of course, if we are talking about dead religion that only masks itself with outward show and yet has no life, then we should be the first to say, “Even so, come, Lord Jesus!” However, I challenge us all to hear the word of the Lord and recognize that, when the dust settles, those who have put their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ will survive the fire of His judgments. But those who thought they had the best understanding of the future and how to control it, will find themselves trapped in their own folly. If we learn anything over these next two sermons, let us understand that the consuming fire of God brings down the wicked who rebel against Him, but it raises up the righteous who walk in faith with Him.
God’s judgment on the house of Ahab continues.
The clash between the wicked, political power of Ahab’s family line and those faithful to Yahweh continues in this passage. But this clash is ultimately orchestrated by God Himself, and not the prophet Elijah. The first stage of God’s judgment on Ahab took place with Ahab’s death in the last chapter. The next stage will involve the death of Jezebel and the death of all male heirs to the throne. You would think that this would happen quickly after Ahab’s death. However, it is going to be 12 years after Ahab’s death that this is all fulfilled. So it is important to recognize that, even as God’s judgment is falling, He leaves room for those involved to repent or show their true colors. The judgment is stretched out in order to give room for either one. So when God’s judgment is held off longer then we think, it is easy to slip into thinking that it won’t come at all. There are many today who have convinced themselves that this idea of Jesus coming back and the judgment of the world is all a fairy tale. They believe that because another year has gone by, and another presidential election has taken place, that things will continue moving forward as they always have. They believe that they have time to pursue their own designs for the future. We must take warning. Today is a day for repentance and not for doubling down on abandoning God. Our culture ignores this at its own peril.
We are told in verse one that the kingdom of Moab had rebelled against Israel upon the death of Ahab. This kingdom was on the eastern side of the Dead Sea. Though Ahab had some strength as a leader, he had none morally. We can blame the deterioration on his son, but the truth is that the roots of this downfall are in Ahab’s life. He has brought judgment on his own dynasty. Northern Israel does not need a strong “leader” as the world thinks. What they need is a moral leader that would lead them to repentance and turning back to God.
We are told that Ahab’s son Ahaziah has a serious “accident.” He falls through a protective lattice and down at least one floor if not more. He is injured so badly that he is concerned that he may not live. Being Ahab’s son, it is no shocker that Ahaziah would turn to Baal for help. Specifically he sends messengers to inquire of Baal-Zebub, a local deity in the Philistine city of Ekron (it was about 50 miles away). Here is a brief primer on the Canaanite religion. Baal was considered to be the primary deity that humans interacted with. The term Baal simply means master and so is used in a superlative sense, The Master. The Canaanites also believed in local deities that were lesser than The Baal, however they were usually referenced as the master of “insert place name or descriptive term here.” Thus Baal-Peor referenced the local deity of Peor who of course answered to The Baal. In this passage the Philistine city of Ekron had a local deity they referred to as Baal-Zebub. Over time this local deity had become known for having healing powers. This is why Ahaziah asks his servants to inquire for him of this deity. By the way, the phrase literally means Lord of the fly, where we get the term Lord of the flies. Over the next 800 years this name became synonymous with Satan, the prince of demons (aka flies). Thus, in the gospels Jesus is accused of casting out demons because he was in league with Beelzebub (alternate spelling of the time).
As the men travel towards Ekron, God sends Elijah to tell the men that God is not pleased with Ahaziah’s inquiring of a foreign, false god. Thus a message is sent back to Ahaziah from Yahweh, the God of Israel, that he will not recover, but die. It is presented in a way that shows his action of inquiring of Baal-Zebub seals his fate. We will come back later and deal with this question about why Ahaziah seeks Baal-Zebub and not Yahweh. When Ahaziah hears the story of the prophet from his servants he asks about what the prophet looked like and from the description he knows that it is Elijah. Thus God confronts Ahaziah with his foolish decision through Elijah. I guess we could say, like father like son.
Next we see that king Ahaziah sends a squadron of 50 men to capture Elijah and bring him in. Notice that Elijah is not running this time. He takes the position of sitting on top of a hill, waiting for them. The captain addresses Elijah, “Man of God, the king has said, ‘Come down!’” The command and threatening posture of Ahaziah’s troops does not show any humility or repentance. Thus Elijah speaks out the request. Let God decide which of us should be taken in judgment. If I am a prophet of the Lord, and therefore quilty of nothing requiring the king to arrest me, then let fire come down from heaven and destroy you. Of course God gives a clear decision as the 50 soldiers are killed by fire. Ahaziah then sends a second detachment of 50 soldiers with the same mission. That captain calls out to Elijah, “Man of God, thus has the king said, ‘Come down quickly!’” Again there is no humility or repentance in the actions, and Elijah puts forth the same public challenge. Let God decide which of us should “Come down quickly!” Of course, fire falls from the sky again and kills the soldiers. In a classic action of folly, Ahaziah sends a third detachment of soldiers to apprehend Elijah. Clearly Ahaziah has no care for the troops that he sends to their doom. Yet, this third captain is different. He begs mercy of Elijah, and really of God Himself. This captain humbles himself and shows that he understands whose judgment is to be feared. Now these judgments with fire falling from the sky literally happened. However, they also have a symbolic nature. The Bible tells us that God is a consuming fire. Judgment and decisions about His creation are part of His nature. The decisions of God or the fire of His decisions can be a benefit to us or harm. Just as fire can warm a person and prepare their food, so it can destroy them and take their life. It is a healthy respect for fire that allows us to approach it and benefit from it. Now God is more than the analogy of fire allows for. God is a sentient being that can analyze our intent and hold us accountable for it. Thus the same consuming fire of God that can destroy us in judgment, can also give us life. It all has to do with how we approach him. The humility of this captain saves himself and the life of the men under his command. It is too bad that Ahaziah could not find the same humility within himself.
Elijah concedes to go with this third captain. He is brought before king Ahaziah and repeats what we have heard now for the third time: “Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to inquire of Baal-Zebub?” Clearly there is a God in Israel who has proven Himself time and time again. In fact the fire falling from the sky should be a clear reminder of the Mt. Carmel incident over 5 years ago. For whatever reason, Ahaziah has followed the footsteps of his father in disregarding the power and proofs that God had given to them and rebelliously persisted in approaching the Baals of the Canaanite religion for help. When we are not living for the Lord, we live in a state of fear and doubt. We search and find the things of this world that can help us, whether through protection, or information for the future. What are the things that I look to in order to determine how things will go? Ahaziah knew he dare not approach Yahweh because he hadn’t been serving Yahweh. So he tries to skirt around God by going to some other power. Do I turn to my favorite business journal, or TV talk show host? Do I turn to my favorite blog or internet website? Do I search out prophetic voices that give me a sense of where things are headed? Ultimately what we need is to turn to the Lord and seek Him. Only then can we have the confidence that does not come from knowing the details of the future. But what if I haven’t been living for Him? Do what this third captain did. Instead of hardening your heart towards God in pride, humble yourself and beg His mercy. It is not the future you need to know. Rather, you just need to know the One in whose hands your future lies.
Today we see that those who make themselves enemies of God eventually will be taken in the fires of judgment. But, next week, we will see that the same fiery judgment that brings down the wicked, lifts up the righteous. Let us live for Jesus, not just on the outward, but within our hearts. Let us put our trust in His ways and mercy, and not the ways of this world.