Burunche’s Blog

Amos 1: 1 The words of Amos, who was among the sheep breeders of Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake.

It’s the period between 760-755 B.C. Uzziah is king of Judah and Jeroboam II is king of Israel. Both nations are reveling in prosperity. Amos is quietly caring for sheep and sycamore trees in Tekoa, south of Jerusalem, when God suddenly calls him to prophesy. But God is calling Amos to prophesy to the Northern Kingdom, not to his own people. Why doesn’t God let Amos stay home? Centuries later, Jesus will give this insight: A prophet is not without honor, save in his own country. (Matthew 13:57, Mark 6:4) And God wants to use this sheep herder/sycamore tree farmer to shame and scandalize the religious professionals of the Northern Kingdom. Forget professional advertisers! God is the original Publicist, grabbing people’s attention by any means necessary. Making matters even worse, God has Amos prophesying against Bethel. Why?

When the ten tribes split off from Rehoboam, leaving only Judah and Benjamin, Jeroboam, the first ruler of the Northern Kingdom was terrified to have his people returning to Jerusalem regularly for worship as God had ordered. So Jeroboam erected two enormous altars with golden calves, one at Bethel and the other at Dan in the far northeast. Then Jeroboam convinced his people that there was no need for them to suffer that LOOOOOONG journey to Jerusalem when they could SIMPLY travel to Bethel or Dan and practice his pseudo religion. Now Jeroboam II is ruling the Northern Kingdom, and idolatry is rife. Most priests claiming to serve Yahweh are faking it, and Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, is one of the biggest fakers.

Amos 7:10-17 Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, “Amos has conspired against you in the midst of the house of Israel. The land is not able to bear all his words. For thus Amos has said: ‘Jeroboam shall die by the sword, and Israel shall surely be led away captive from their own land.’”

Then Amaziah said to Amos: “Go, you seer! Flee to the land of Judah. There eat bread, and there prophesy. But never again prophesy at Bethel, for it is the king’s sanctuary, and it is the royal residence.”

Then Amos answered, and said to Amaziah: “I was no prophet, nor was I a son of a prophet,
but I was a sheepbreeder and a tender of sycamore fruit. Then the Lord took me as I followed the flock, and the Lord said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to My people Israel.’

Now therefore, hear the word of the Lord: You say, ‘Do not prophesy against Israel, and do not spout against the house of Isaac.’

“Therefore, thus says the Lord: ‘Your wife shall be a harlot in the city; your sons and daughters shall fall by the sword; your land shall be divided by survey line; you shall die in a defiled land;
and Israel shall surely be led away captive from his own land.’”

OUCH! Amaziah, are you listening at all? Amaziah recognizes that Amos is a seer; however, he hopes that if he sends Amos packing, Amos will take all his gloomy prophecies with him. Sorry, Amaziah! It doesn’t work that way. Once more, we have the example of someone who was quietly working when God suddenly picked him, pulling him out of his comfortable rut and dropping him into a hostile environment.

Amos pronounces God’s judgement on numerous nations, including Judah. But why has God sent Amos to Israel? How bad have things gotten? Amos 2:6-16 gives us the answer:
Thus says the Lord: “For three transgressions of Israel, and for four, I will not turn away its punishment, because they sell the righteous for silver, and the poor for a pair of sandals.
They pant after the dust of the earth which is on the head of the poor, and pervert the way of the humble. A man and his father go in to the same girl, to defile My holy name.
They lie down by every altar on clothes taken in pledge and drink the wine of the condemned in the house of their god.

According to the Law of Moses, Israelites were not to sell other Israelites as slaves, nor were they to oppress the poor. In addition, clothes taken in pledge were to be returned to the owner each night so that he would not suffer from the cold by sleeping naked. Idol worship was expressly and repeatedly forbidden.

“Yet it was I who destroyed the Amorite before them, whose height was like the height of the cedars, and he was as strong as the oaks; yet I destroyed his fruit above and his roots beneath. Also, it was I who brought you up from the land of Egypt, and led you forty years through the wilderness, to possess the land of the Amorite.

I raised up some of your sons as prophets, and some of your young men as Nazirites. Is it not so, O you children of Israel?” Says the Lord.
“But you gave the Nazirites wine to drink, and commanded the prophets saying, ‘Do not prophesy!’

“Behold, I am weighed down by you, as a cart full of sheaves is weighed down. Therefore, flight shall perish from the swift, the strong shall not strengthen his power, nor shall the mighty deliver himself; he shall not stand who handles the bow, the swift of foot shall not escape, nor shall he who rides a horse deliver himself. The most courageous men of might shall flee naked in that day,” says the Lord.

Amaziah doesn’t know it, but eventually, the citizens of the Northern Kingdom will curse his name because he has interfered with God’s warnings to them. Galatians 6:7 tells us, “Don’t be misled—you cannot mock the justice of God. You will always harvest what you plant.”

What can we learn from Amos’ call? First, God is not impressed with our social standing or our education, or lack thereof. Further investigation indicates that Amos is likely a businessman owning a large number of sheep, some of which might have been bred for temple sacrifices in Jerusalem. Amos obviously is a true believer and a worshiper of the One True Living God and has a sound grasp of the fundamentals of the Mosaic Law.

Compare Amos’ story with that of Prophet William Wade Harris of Liberia in 1910 and Babalola of Nigeria in the 1930’s. A Methodist missionary taught William Wade Harris to read and write English and his Grebo language. After working on ships cruising along the West Coast of Africa, Harris returned home, becoming a brick mason and raising a family. But Harris later became an evangelist, preaching against fetish huts and other abuses, converting more than 100,000 people, and urging his converts to burn all their fetishes.

And then there’s Joseph Ayodele Bablola, the African Christian who sparked a massive, Pentecostal-style revival in West Africa—specifically Nigeria—in the 1930’s.

Known as a Prophet and Apostle, Babalola was a key figure in the Aladura Movement (meaning “praying people”), and his 1930 revival at Oke-Oye in Ilesa, Nigeria, is considered a landmark event in African Christianity. 

Key Details of the 1930s Revival:

• The Catalyst (1928-1930): Babalola, formerly a steam roller driver for the Public Works Department, claimed a direct call from God in 1928 to abandon his job and preach.
• Miracles and Healing: In September 1930, the revival began in earnest after Babalola was credited with raising a dead child. He became known for healing sicknesses, destroying idols, and using “life-giving water”.
• Impact: The revival caused thousands to convert, drawing people from across Nigeria and neighboring countries, and resulted in the founding of the Christ Apostolic Church (CAC).
• Spread: The revival movement spread from Ilesa to Ibadan, Lagos, and other regions, with some gatherings reportedly reaching 40,000 people.
• Influence in Ghana: In 1936, Babalola carried this revival to the Gold Coast (now Ghana), following earlier, related movements. (This information comes from an internet search.)

God isn’t worried about our ability; He is more interested in our availability. Amos said “Yes” to God and wound up prophesying in the Northern Kingdom. Prophet Harris and Prophet Babalola said “Yes” to God and sparked revivals that changed the face of much of West Africa. What might God do with you if you say “Yes?”

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to say “Yes” to your call, no matter how difficult that might be. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Actions have consequences! Repeatedly, God has warned the Israelites of the consequences if they renounce Him and worship idols. Deuteronomy 28:15-24 embodies one of those warnings.

Curses for Disobedience

15-24 “But if you refuse to listen to the Lord your God and do not obey all the commands and decrees I am giving you today, all these curses will come and overwhelm you: Your towns and your fields will be cursed. Your fruit baskets and breadboards will be cursed. Your children and your crops will be cursed. The offspring of your herds and flocks will be cursed. Wherever you go and whatever you do, you will be cursed.

“The Lord himself will send on you curses, confusion, and frustration in everything you do, until at last you are completely destroyed for doing evil and abandoning me. The Lord will afflict you with diseases until none of you are left in the land you are about to enter and occupy. The Lord will strike you with wasting diseases, fever, and inflammation, with scorching heat and drought, and with blight and mildew. These disasters will pursue you until you die. The skies above will be as unyielding as bronze, and the earth beneath will be as hard as iron. The Lord will change the rain that falls on your land into powder, and dust will pour down from the sky until you are destroyed.

Now it’s 835 B.C. Joel, “Yahweh is God,” son of Pethuel, from a priestly family in Jerusalem, finds himself in a dilemma. The Israelites have lusted after every pagan deity they can find, giving only lip service to the One True Living God who has delivered their ancestors out of slavery and has blessed their land abundantly. Actions do have consequences, and now the Israelites find that God means it when He warns about the curses in Deuteronomy 28. The land is under attack by several different kinds and sizes of locusts. In addition, a harsh drought further complicated by bush fires is also afflicting the land. As a worshiper of the true God, Joel is appalled at the lack of faith and excesses of his countrymen. Now Joel feels impelled to speak out against the evil he has witnessed, calling his people to account for their sins.

Joel 1:1-20 The Lord gave this message to Joel son of Pethuel.

Mourning over the Locust Plague

Hear this, you leaders of the people. Listen, all who live in the land. In all your history, has anything like this happened before? Tell your children about it in the years to come, and let your children tell their children. Pass the story down from generation to generation.
After the cutting locusts finished eating the crops, the swarming locusts took what was left!
After them came the hopping locusts, and then the stripping locusts, too!

Wake up, you drunkards, and weep! Wail, all you wine-drinkers! All the grapes are ruined, and all your sweet wine is gone. A vast army of locusts has invaded my land, a terrible army too numerous to count. Its teeth are like lions’ teeth, its fangs like those of a lioness.
It has destroyed my grapevines and ruined my fig trees, stripping their bark and destroying it,
leaving the branches white and bare.

Weep like a bride dressed in black, mourning the death of her husband. For there is no grain or wine to offer at the Temple of the Lord. So the priests are in mourning. The ministers of the Lord are weeping.

The fields are ruined, the land is stripped bare. The grain is destroyed, the grapes have shriveled, and the olive oil is gone. Despair, all you farmers! Wail, all you vine growers! Weep, because the wheat and barley—all the crops of the field—are ruined.
The grapevines have dried up, and the fig trees have withered. The pomegranate trees, palm trees, and apple trees—all the fruit trees—have dried up. And the people’s joy has dried up with them.

Dress yourselves in burlap and weep, you priests! Wail, you who serve before the altar! Come, spend the night in burlap, you ministers of my God. For there is no grain or wine to offer at the Temple of your God.
Announce a time of fasting; call the people together for a solemn meeting. Bring the leaders
and all the people of the land into the Temple of the Lord your God, and cry out to him there.
The day of the Lord is near, the day when destruction comes from the Almighty. How terrible that day will be!

Our food disappears before our very eyes. No joyful celebrations are held in the house of our God.
The seeds die in the parched ground, and the grain crops fail. The barns stand empty, and granaries are abandoned. How the animals moan with hunger! The herds of cattle wander about confused, because they have no pasture. The flocks of sheep and goats bleat in misery.

Lord, help us! The fire has consumed the wilderness pastures, and flames have burned up all the trees. Even the wild animals cry out to you because the streams have dried up, and fire has consumed the wilderness pastures.

Sometimes God’s calls are dramatic, as in the case of Ezekiel and Isaiah. But sometimes the message embodies the call, as in the case of Joel. It’s likely that as Joel prays several times daily, he begins receiving God’s warnings about the tragic events overtaking the land and God’s call to national repentance. Perhaps Joel first shares these insights with a few priestly friends, only to find himself proclaiming these messages in the outer courts of the temple. From there, Joel finds himself walking the streets of Jerusalem, crying out this message of the need for national repentance.

If you want to be popular, don’t become a prophet! Once God has hold of you, He won’t let go, and you will never be the same again. It’s likely that Joel has never sought the role of prophet, that he has been content to quietly worship God, remaining true while others slip away to fertility cult celebrations and demonic shrines. But the problem with worshiping God is that if you truly worship Him, you are giving Him permission to change your heart and your mind. We frequently fail to realize how the object of our worship will change and mold our hearts. Those worshiping demons will continue to progressively degenerate while those worshiping God will be transformed by His Holiness. God can never meet with sinful people and leave them unchanged.

Just look at Joel: Joel comes quietly into the temple one morning and leaves with a message that he feels impelled to proclaim. Jeremiah described the call of God as a fire burning in his bones, and now Joel feels that same fire.

How does Joel feel about being a prophet? Joel leaves no record about himself or his personal feelings; he only passes on the messages God has given him. An old poem speaks of those God has used as simply being suits of clothing that God puts on to accomplish His purposes. Blessedly, Joel will later give encouraging words. Joel 2:25 tells us, “The Lord says, “I will give you back what you lost to the swarming locusts, the hopping locusts, the stripping locusts, and the cutting locusts.^” Other older versions say, “I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten.”  Countless believers have claimed this promise of redemption and have seen God work mightily in their lives as they have seen marriages healed, relationships renewed, and lives completely transformed by the power of the One True Living God.

Joel 2:28-29 tells us, “And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions. And also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days.” This prophesy was fulfilled at the Day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit descended on 120 people praying in the Upper Room in Jerusalem.

What can we learn from Joel? When we worship, God can shape us, making us into instruments for His purposes. The highly successful Korean pastor David Yonggi Cho once told an American pastor, “I pray and I obey.” Joel prays, and Joel obeys, and his life is never the same.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to pray and then to obey, even if it means we must deliver unpopular messages from You. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Hosea 1 Hosea’s Wife and Children

1-11 This is the word of the LORD that came to Hosea, son of Beeri in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and of Jeroboam son of Jehoash, a king of Israel.

When the LORD first spoke through Hosea, He told him, “Go, take a prostitute as your wife and have children of adultery, because this land is flagrantly prostituting itself by departing from the LORD.”

So Hosea went and married Gomer daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son.

Then the LORD said to Hosea, “Name him Jezreel, (God sows) for soon I will bring the bloodshed of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu, and I will put an end to the kingdom of Israel. And on that day I will break the bow of Israel in the Valley of Jezreel.”

Gomer again conceived and gave birth to a daughter, and the LORD said to Hosea, “Name her Lo-ruhamah, (She has not received mercy) for I will no longer have compassion on the house of Israel, that I should ever forgive them. Yet I will have compassion on the house of Judah, and I will save them—not by bow or sword or war, not by horses and cavalry, but by the LORD their God.” (Not My People) for you are not My people, and I am not your God. (Hebrew-I am not yours)

Yet the number of the Israelites will be like the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or counted. And it will happen that in the very place where it was said to them, ‘You are not My people,’ they will be called ‘sons of the living God.’ (cited in Romans 9:26) Then the people of Judah and of Israel will be gathered together, and they will appoint for themselves one leader, and will go up out of the land. For great will be the day of Jezreel.

Hosea ministered from 750-722 B.C., about 200 years after the Northern Kingdom broke off from the Southern Kingdom of Judah. When King Solomon died, his son Rehoboam succeeded him; however, Rehoboam foolishly attempted to lord it over the Israelites. Led by Jeroboam, ten of the twelve tribes split off to form the Northern Kingdom, generally referred to as Israel or Ephraim, after the name of the largest tribe. God had made promises to Jeroboam; however, rather than trust God, Jeroboam established fake religious shrines at Bethel and Dan with golden calves and then told his people, “Jerusalem is too far. Why suffer the long trip to Jerusalem when you can worship at Bethel or Dan?” Jeroboam left a horrible spiritual legacy, for he actively led his new nation into idolatry from its conception. It didn’t take long for the Israelites in the Northern Kingdom to add Baal worship and fertility cults, plus a pantheon of other pagan demons to their worship choices. When Jeroboam rejected God, God rejected Jeroboam.

Who was Jehu and what was his sin? Jehu’s story is told in 2 Kings 9-10. The prophet Elisha anointed Jehu as king over Israel, and Jehu immediately eliminated the current king, Queen Jezebel, and all wicked King Ahab’s descendants. Jehu also slaughtered the prophets of Baal and the Baal worshipers. But Jehu failed miserably despite all these triumphs, for he left the golden calves in Bethel and Dan, leaving the Israelites worshiping the idols established by Jeroboam. Jehu PARTIALLY obeyed God, and partial obedience is essentially no obedience at all. The valley of Jezreel was a very fertile valley; however, it was also a prime spot for battles, hence the reference to defeating Israel in the valley of Jezreel.

Although there were many idolaters in the Southern Kingdom of Judah, there were still many worshipers of the One True God. That is why God tells Hosea that He will rebuild Israel using people from Judah. But what about Hosea’s marriage?

Traditionally, Hosea’s father would have tried to find the best, most industrious, most reverent, and most virtuous young woman possible for Hosea to marry. No right-thinking parent would ever welcome a prostitute as a daughter-in-law! Were Hosea’s parents still alive when he married Gomer, and if so, what must they have thought? Poor Hosea! How do you convince your parents that God wants you to marry the town slut when sexual misconduct is grounds for divorce without any arguments? And what about Hosea himself? As a young man, Hosea has undoubtedly cherished dreams of a peaceful stable household with a loving, caring wife and obedient children. Now all those dreams are shattered by the call of God. And what must Hosea’s friends have commented? “Man, you have GOT to be a special kind of stupid to marry that woman! You know what she is; she won’t stay with one man any longer than the length of a pregnancy. And what do you mean, “God told me to marry her?” Are you really sure this was God’s will for you? Why would God force a reverent worshiper into a loveless, perverted marriage?

When we think of the sacrifices made by various prophets, we are drawn to the dramatic scenes such as Jeremiah sinking into the muck at the bottom of a well. But daily Hosea would have sunk into spiritual and emotional muck, for there’s never any indication that Gomer cared for him at all. Gomer may have been one of those women who chase the thrill of a new relationship, abandoning her current partner as soon as someone else more appealing showed up. And Gomer was likely enticed by presents of jewelry or beautiful clothes.

God wanted to use Gomer’s fickle nature to illustrate how fickle the inhabitants of Israel and Judah had become toward Him. God wanted Hosea to name his children prophetic names so that each time anyone saw them, they would remember God’s statements and His promises. What must Hosea’s kids have thought? The name Jezreel is all right, but what about “Lo-ruhamah?” Can you imagine having your mother call you, “Here, Lo-ruhamah? Here, “Not my people?” Hosea wasn’t the only member of this family to suffer.

The story of Hosea’s call reminds us that the call of God is neither comfortable nor safe, not for us, nor for our family members. But consider the alternative: failure to answer that call will mean discouragement, disappointment, and a nagging knowledge that we have refused God’s perfect will for our lives. The only safe choice is to say “Yes.”

There’s an old hymn that graphically expresses the dilemma of a difficult call and its consequences:

1 They cast their nets in Galilee
just off the hills of brown;
such happy, simple fisher-folk,
before the Lord came down.

2 Contented, peaceful fishermen,
before they ever knew
the peace of God that filled their hearts
brimful, and broke them too.

3 Young John who trimmed the flapping sail,
homeless, in Patmos died.
Peter, who hauled the teeming net,
head-down was crucified.

4 The peace of God, it is no peace,
but strife closed in the sod.
Yet let us pray for but one thing-
the marvelous peace of God.

William Alexander Percy

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to follow Your call wherever it leads, ignoring the dangers or distresses. Help us to remain true to You, no matter what. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Daniel 1 Daniel in Nebuchadnezzar’s Court

1-5 During the third year of King Jehoiakim’s reign in Judah, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. The Lord gave him victory over King Jehoiakim of Judah and permitted him to take some of the sacred objects from the Temple of God. So Nebuchadnezzar took them back to the land of Babylonia and placed them in the treasure-house of his god.

Then the king ordered Ashpenaz, his chief of staff, to bring to the palace some of the young men of Judah’s royal family and other noble families, who had been brought to Babylon as captives. “Select only strong, healthy, and good-looking young men,” he said. “Make sure they are well versed in every branch of learning, are gifted with knowledge and good judgment, and are suited to serve in the royal palace. Train these young men in the language and literature of Babylon.” The king assigned them a daily ration of food and wine from his own kitchens. They were to be trained for three years, and then they would enter the royal service.

6-16 Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah were four of the young men chosen, all from the tribe of Judah. The chief of staff renamed them with these Babylonian names:

Daniel was called Belteshazzar.
Hananiah was called Shadrach.
Mishael was called Meshach.
Azariah was called Abednego.

But Daniel was determined not to defile himself by eating the food and wine given to them by the king. He asked the chief of staff for permission not to eat these unacceptable foods. Now God had given the chief of staff both respect and affection for Daniel. But he responded, “I am afraid of my lord the king, who has ordered that you eat this food and wine. If you become pale and thin compared to the other youths your age, I am afraid the king will have me beheaded.”

11-16 Daniel spoke with the attendant who had been appointed by the chief of staff to look after Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. “Please test us for ten days on a diet of vegetables and water,” Daniel said. “At the end of the ten days, see how we look compared to the other young men who are eating the king’s food. Then make your decision in light of what you see.” The attendant agreed to Daniel’s suggestion and tested them for ten days.

At the end of the ten days, Daniel and his three friends looked healthier and better nourished than the young men who had been eating the food assigned by the king. So after that, the attendant fed them only vegetables instead of the food and wine provided for the others.

God gave these four young men an unusual aptitude for understanding every aspect of literature and wisdom. And God gave Daniel the special ability to interpret the meanings of visions and dreams.

18-21 When the training period ordered by the king was completed, the chief of staff brought all the young men to King Nebuchadnezzar. The king talked with them, and no one impressed him as much as Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. So they entered the royal service. Whenever the king consulted them in any matter requiring wisdom and balanced judgment, he found them ten times more capable than any of the magicians and enchanters in his entire kingdom. Daniel remained in the royal service until the first year of the reign of King Cyrus. (Daniel operated as an official and a prophet between 605 B.C. and 539 B.C. The name “Daniel” means “God is my judge.”)  

Sometimes we seek a calling but sometimes the calling finds us. Daniel is a teen-ager from a noble family in Jerusalem when he is carried off to Babylon with some of his friends. There is nothing recorded to indicate that God specifically calls Daniel; however, Daniel has obviously dedicated his life to God and God responds by using him effectively as an administrator as well as a prophet. Daniel’s three friends also remain true to God, eventually enduring one of the most harrowing trials of faith recorded in the Bible.

In contrast to Ezekiel’s dramatic call, Daniel’s call is never recorded at all. Sometimes God uses our circumstances to call us, and this is what has happened with Daniel. Why is Daniel’s story so important? Most of us will never witness the kinds of visions Ezekiel experienced, but many of us might find ourselves in the same situation as Daniel-our situation becomes our calling, and God begins to bring people and events to us, expecting us to fulfill His Will.

When Abraham sent out his chief servant to find a wife for Isaac, the servant began the description of his journey by saying, “I, being on the way, the Lord led me.” God led that man to find Rebekah and then led Rebekah to agree to launch off into the unknown. But the servant had to get going before God could lead him. In the same way, we must get going, for if we are going in a wrong direction, God can steer us. But God can’t steer a stationary object. If you are waiting for a call, look around you and ask God what He wants you to do with what He has built into your situation. You might find that your calling is sitting immediately in front of you. Do the first thing, and God will guide you to the next thing.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to look at the possibilities You have already given us and begin to work, trusting that You will guide us. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Ezekiel 1:1-3 On July 31^st of my thirtieth year, (July 592 B.C.) while I was with the Judean exiles beside the Kebar River in Babylon, the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God. This happened during the fifth year of King Jehoiachin’s captivity. (The Lord gave this message to Ezekiel son of Buzi, a priest, beside the Kebar River in the land of the Babylonians, and he felt the hand of the Lord take hold of him.)

Imagine you are a relatively young man from a priestly family, now in exile. Your friends and relatives have gradually abandoned worship of the One True Living God; in fact, these people weren’t exactly observant in the first place. As you worship God, you wonder if He has forgotten your relatives and you. You are gathered with others on the bank of the Kebar River. God sends visions and nothing ever will be the same.

4-9 As I looked, I saw a great storm coming from the north, driving before it a huge cloud that flashed with lightning and shone with brilliant light. There was fire inside the cloud, and in the middle of the fire glowed something like gleaming amber. From the center of the cloud came four living beings that looked human, except that each had four faces and four wings. Their legs were straight, and their feet had hooves like those of a calf and shone like burnished bronze. Under each of their four wings I could see human hands. So each of the four beings had four faces and four wings. The wings of each living being touched the wings of the beings beside it. Each one moved straight forward in any direction without turning around.

10-14 Each had a human face in the front, the face of a lion on the right side, the face of an ox on the left side, and the face of an eagle at the back. Each had two pairs of outstretched wings—one pair stretched out to touch the wings of the living beings on either side of it, and the other pair covered its body. They went in whatever direction the spirit chose, and they moved straight forward in any direction without turning around.

The living beings looked like bright coals of fire or brilliant torches, and lightning seemed to flash back and forth among them. And the living beings darted to and fro like flashes of lightning.

15-18 As I looked at these beings, I saw four wheels touching the ground beside them, one wheel belonging to each. The wheels sparkled as if made of beryl. All four wheels looked alike and were made the same; each wheel had a second wheel turning crosswise within it. The beings could move in any of the four directions they faced, without turning as they moved. The rims of the four wheels were tall and frightening, and they were covered with eyes all around.

19-25 When the living beings moved, the wheels moved with them. When they flew upward, the wheels went up, too. The spirit of the living beings was in the wheels. So wherever the spirit went, the wheels and the living beings also went. When the beings moved, the wheels moved. When the beings stopped, the wheels stopped. When the beings flew upward, the wheels rose up, for the spirit of the living beings was in the wheels.

Spread out above them was a surface like the sky, glittering like crystal. Beneath this surface the wings of each living being stretched out to touch the others’ wings, and each had two wings covering its body. As they flew, their wings sounded to me like waves crashing against the shore or like the voice of the Almighty or like the shouting of a mighty army. When they stopped, they let down their wings. As they stood with wings lowered, a voice spoke from beyond the crystal surface above them.

God sends Ezekiel a vivid vision of His glory and majesty, revealing the appearance of mysterious beings who surround the throne and who perpetually worship Him. But Ezekiel is about to see God.

26-28 Above this surface was something that looked like a throne made of blue lapis lazuli. And on this throne high above was a figure whose appearance resembled a man. From what appeared to be his waist up, he looked like gleaming amber, flickering like a fire. And from his waist down, he looked like a burning flame, shining with splendor. All around him was a glowing halo, like a rainbow shining in the clouds on a rainy day. This is what the glory of the Lord looked like to me. When I saw it, I fell face down on the ground, and I heard someone’s voice speaking to me.

Ezekiel 2 Ezekiel’s Call and Commission

2:1-10 “Stand up, son of man,” said the voice. “I want to speak with you.” The Spirit came into me as he spoke, and he set me on my feet. I listened carefully to his words. “Son of man,” he said, “I am sending you to the nation of Israel, a rebellious nation that has rebelled against me. They and their ancestors have been rebelling against me to this very day. They are a stubborn and hard-hearted people. But I am sending you to say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says!’ And whether they listen or refuse to listen—for remember, they are rebels—at least they will know they have had a prophet among them.

“Son of man, do not fear them or their words. Don’t be afraid even though their threats surround you like nettles and briers and stinging scorpions. Do not be dismayed by their dark scowls, even though they are rebels. You must give them my messages whether they listen or not. But they won’t listen, for they are completely rebellious! Son of man, listen to what I say to you. Do not join them in their rebellion. Open your mouth and eat what I give you.”

Then I looked and saw a hand reaching out to me. It held a scroll, which he unrolled. And I saw that both sides were covered with funeral songs, words of sorrow, and pronouncements of doom.

Ezekiel 3:1-9 The voice said to me, “Son of man, eat what I am giving you—eat this scroll! Then go and give its message to the people of Israel.” So I opened my mouth, and he fed me the scroll. “Fill your stomach with this,” he said. And when I ate it, it tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth.

Then he said, “Son of man, go to the people of Israel and give them my messages. I am not sending you to a foreign people whose language you cannot understand. No, I am not sending you to people with strange and difficult speech. If I did, they would listen! But the people of Israel won’t listen to you any more than they listen to me! For the whole lot of them are hard-hearted and stubborn. But look, I have made you as obstinate and hard-hearted as they are. I have made your forehead as hard as the hardest rock! So don’t be afraid of them or fear their angry looks, even though they are rebels.”

10-14 Then he added, “Son of man, let all my words sink deep into your own heart first. Listen to them carefully for yourself. Then go to your people in exile and say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says!’ Do this whether they listen to you or not.”

Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard a loud rumbling sound behind me. (May the glory of the Lord be praised in his place!) It was the sound of the wings of the living beings as they brushed against each other and the rumbling of their wheels beneath them.

The Spirit lifted me up and took me away. I went in bitterness and turmoil, but the Lord’s hold on me was strong. Then I came to the colony of Judean exiles in Tel-abib, beside the Kebar River. I was overwhelmed and sat among them for seven days.

Prior to the Babylonian conquest of Jerusalem in 597 B.C., Ezekiel was a priest serving in Jerusalem. Ezekiel was carried off to Babylon with others from Judah. Ezekiel then prophesied from 592 B.C. to 570 B.C.

Poor Ezekiel! God calls Ezekiel, and Ezekiel can only obey. God sends Ezekiel visions that are more vivid and more extensive than any of the other prophets, but why? It’s likely that God knows that even though Ezekiel himself is obedient, it’s going to take unmistakable visions for Ezekiel to carry out his ministry. Look at how God describes those in exile: “Son of man, go to the people of Israel and give them my messages. I am not sending you to a foreign people whose language you cannot understand. No, I am not sending you to people with strange and difficult speech. If I did, they would listen! But the people of Israel won’t listen to you any more than they listen to me! For the whole lot of them are hard-hearted and stubborn. But look, I have made you as obstinate and hard-hearted as they are. I have made your forehead as hard as the hardest rock! So don’t be afraid of them or fear their angry looks, even though they are rebels.”

Then he added, “Son of man, let all my words sink deep into your own heart first. Listen to them carefully for yourself. Then go to your people in exile and say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says!’ Do this whether they listen to you or not.”

There’s never any indication that Ezekiel falters or refuses this call. Ezekiel obeys God, but God warns him at the beginning that the Israelites will refuse to listen. But Ezekiel must prophesy anyway. Why? God gives Ezekiel prophecies that transcend centuries. Eventually, Ezekiel’s prophecies will help inspire the Zionist Movement that will eventually result in the establishment of the State of Israel. We must remember that God is always doing a variety of new things, many of which span centuries and even millenia. This is why God is referred to as the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End. Only God knows how many people have been awe-struck, encouraged, inspired, and strengthened by the difficult prophecies of Ezekiel.

What can we learn from Ezekiel’s call? Sometimes the call of God is so compelling that argument is unthinkable. But the call of God is neither safe nor comfortable. In the end though, Ezekiel’s name shines as one of those blessed to deliver God’s messages. And we can be sure that when Ezekiel dies, he will hear God saying, “Well done, good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of your Heavenly Father.”

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to follow hard after You, even when it means we lose friends and family to serve You. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Jeremiah 1:1-3 These are the words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, one of the priests from the town of Anathoth in the land of Benjamin. The Lord first gave messages to Jeremiah during the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah son of Amon, king of Judah.[627 B.C.] The Lord’s messages continued throughout the reign of King Jehoiakim, Josiah’s son, until the eleventh year of the reign of King Zedekiah, another of Josiah’s sons. In August of that eleventh year the people of Jerusalem were taken away as captives.

Jeremiah’s Call and First Visions

4-10 The Lord gave me this message:

“I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb. Before you were born, I set you apart
and appointed you as my prophet to the nations.”

“O Sovereign Lord,” I said, “I can’t speak for you! I’m too young!”

The Lord replied, “Don’t say, ‘I’m too young,’ for you must go wherever I send you and say whatever I tell you. And don’t be afraid of the people, for I will be with you and will protect you. I, the Lord, have spoken!” Then the Lord reached out and touched my mouth and said,

“Look, I have put my words in your mouth!

Imagine that you are seventeen. You love God, but you really don’t have a clue what you want to do with your life. You assume that you will soon marry and have a nice quiet life in your hometown of Anathoth. WRONG!!!WRONG!!!WRONG!!! While you, Jeremiah, are hoping for something calm and ordinary, God is planning something far different. Jeremiah has no idea what God is about to do with his life. God is calling Jeremiah to be one of the last prophets to the Southern Kingdom before the Babylonians overrun it, carrying some people off to Babylon while others remain in Jerusalem. The clock is ticking for the Israelites, for despite all God’s warnings, they have persisted in worshiping every pagan deity they can find, including demons demanding they burn their children as live offerings. God has selected Jeremiah to sound one of the desperate final warnings.

Why does God choose Jeremiah? Evidently, Jeremiah whole-heartedly follows God and is one of the few true believers left in Judah. God knows that Jeremiah will have a career spanning more than forty years, during which time he will be beaten, thrown in prison, dumped in a well full of muck where he nearly drowns until one of the court eunuchs saves him. Eventually, Jeremiah will even reluctantly accompany those from Judah when they insist on fleeing to Egypt, despite Jeremiah’s predictions that Nebuchadnezzar will conquer Egypt as well. And God knows that He has put more into Jeremiah than Jeremiah believes, for Jeremiah will endure through all this suffering, continuing to faithfully proclaim God’s word.

11-16 Today I appoint you to stand up against nations and kingdoms. Some you must uproot and tear down, destroy and overthrow. Others you must build up and plant.”

Then the Lord said to me, “Look, Jeremiah! What do you see?”

And I replied, “I see a branch from an almond tree.”

And the Lord said, “That’s right, and it means that I am watching,[the term in Hebrew for almond and watching sound similar] and I will certainly carry out all my plans.”

Then the Lord spoke to me again and asked, “What do you see now?”

And I replied, “I see a pot of boiling water, spilling from the north.”

“Yes,” the Lord said, “for terror from the north will boil out on the people of this land. Listen! I am calling the armies of the kingdoms of the north to come to Jerusalem. I, the Lord, have spoken!

“They will set their thrones at the gates of the city. They will attack its walls and all the other towns of Judah. I will pronounce judgment on my people for all their evil—for deserting me and burning incense to other gods. Yes, they worship idols made with their own hands!

17-19 “Get up and prepare for action. Go out and tell them everything I tell you to say.
Do not be afraid of them, or I will make you look foolish in front of them.
For see, today I have made you strong like a fortified city that cannot be captured, like an iron pillar or a bronze wall. You will stand against the whole land—the kings, officials, priests, and people of Judah. They will fight you, but they will fail. For I am with you, and I will take care of you. I, the Lord, have spoken!”

And if you think the professional religious people will accept Jeremiah gladly, think again! Jeremiah 20 tells the story of Pashhur, the high priest’s son, and a self-styled prophet who’s been busily telling people what they want to hear. As the Northern Kingdom falls to Assyria and the Babylonians approach, the citizens of Jerusalem are desperate for someone, anyone, to reassure them that despite all their disobedience, despite their gross blasphemies, despite their egregious neglect of God, God will give them a free pass and withhold His anger. Never mind all the warnings in the Book of Deuteronomy.

20:1-6 Now Pashhur son of Immer, the priest in charge of the Temple of the Lord, heard what Jeremiah was prophesying. So he arrested Jeremiah the prophet and had him whipped and put in stocks at the Benjamin Gate of the Lord’s Temple.

The next day, when Pashhur finally released him, Jeremiah said, “Pashhur, the Lord has changed your name. From now on you are to be called ‘The Man Who Lives in Terror.’ For this is what the Lord says: ‘I will send terror upon you and all your friends, and you will watch as they are slaughtered by the swords of the enemy. I will hand the people of Judah over to the king of Babylon. He will take them captive to Babylon or run them through with the sword. And I will let your enemies plunder Jerusalem. All the famed treasures of the city—the precious jewels and gold and silver of your kings—will be carried off to Babylon. As for you, Pashhur, you and all your household will go as captives to Babylon. There you will die and be buried, you and all your friends to whom you prophesied that everything would be all right.’”

OOF! Well! Guess that indicates what God thinks of Passhur and all other false prophets. Then Jeremiah goes on to complain about the force of his call. Jeremah 20:9 But if I say I’ll never mention the Lord or speak in his name, his word burns in my heart like a fire. It’s like a fire in my bones! I am worn out trying to hold it in! I can’t do it!

Finally, Jeremiah is so terrified, exhausted, and fed up that he concludes, “Why was I ever born? My entire life has been filled with trouble, sorrow, and shame.” (Jeremiah 20:18)

Reading the story of Jeremiah, we might wonder why anybody would answer that call and follow the Lord faithfully for more than forty years. The answer is simple: Jeremiah committed his life to the Lord and never turned back, even while he was lamenting bitterly. Abused, misunderstood, denigrated, stripped of everything, Jeremiah persisted in obeying God. When Gedaliah, the governor appointed by the Babylonians, was murdered, the remaining Israelites insisted on going to Egypt, despite Jeremiah’s admonitions to the contrary. Did Jeremiah die in Egypt? Did Jeremiah quietly find his way back to Anathoth? We don’t know. We only know that Jeremiah lived to see all his predictions come true, those predictions so loathed by the Israelites.

What can we gain from Jeremiah’s story? God designs our callings before we are ever born. God does not change His mind when we complain. As long as we will be faithful to God, He will continue to guide us. God does not change; we are the ones whose opinions shift with the wind. May God help us so that we will remain as faithful as Jeremiah did, even in the face of extreme opposition.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to trust that if You call us, You will keep us, even in the face of adversity. Help us to remain true to Your calling, no matter what. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Isaiah 6:1-8 It was in the year King Uzziah died that I saw the Lord. He was sitting on a lofty throne, and the train of his robe filled the Temple. Attending him were mighty seraphim, each having six wings. With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew. They were calling out to each other,

“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies!
    The whole earth is filled with his glory!”

Their voices shook the Temple to its foundations, and the entire building was filled with smoke.

Then I said, “It’s all over! I am doomed, for I am a sinful man. I have filthy lips, and I live among a people with filthy lips. Yet I have seen the King, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.”

Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a burning coal he had taken from the altar with a pair of tongs. He touched my lips with it and said, “See, this coal has touched your lips. Now your guilt is removed, and your sins are forgiven.”

Then I heard the Lord asking, “Whom should I send as a messenger to this people? Who will go for us?”

I said, “Here I am. Send me.”

Solomon’s temple was quiet that morning. Even though the place was thronged with worshipers, there seemed to be a holy hush. Isaiah, the son of Amoz, had come to the temple that morning, drawn by a compulsion to be there. It was almost as if an unseen hand had pulled him out of bed early, impelling him to dress as quickly as possible, as if he was almost late for an unknown appointment. All Isaiah knew was that he had to get to the temple as swiftly as possible. Now Isaiah was standing as close as it was possible for someone of his class to get to the altar. Around him, the noise of the crowd seemed to disappear, and then…then Isaiah saw the Lord, and nothing would ever be the same again.

Few people have ever had as dramatic a call as Isaiah. The Lord appeared to Isaiah, with His train filling the temple. Mighty seraphim were praising the Lord, the temple was filled with smoke, and the temple seemed to be shaking to its foundations. There was the sound of a mighty rushing wind as the seraphim proclaimed God’s glory. Did any of the other people in the temple hear or see the same things Isaiah did? Likely, no. Isaiah was in a “thin place,” a place where the veil between earthly things and heavenly things had parted, allowing Isaiah a glimpse of eternal truths. For the others attending temple that morning, they might have felt particularly moved but they might have attributed those feelings to themselves and not to God.

As soon as Isaiah was in God’s presence, he realized his sinfulness. “Then I said, “It’s all over! I am doomed, for I am a sinful man. I have filthy lips, and I live among a people with filthy lips. Yet I have seen the King, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.”  Isaiah fully recognized his unworthiness to be in the presence of God; however, seraphim brought coals from the altar, touching his lips with the coals, and sanctifying him. Why the coals? Fire purifies, destroying impurities and anything ephemeral. But these coals came from the altar of sacrifice, symbolizing Isaiah’s future sufferings and the death he would eventually incur at the hands of wicked King Manasseh.

God made Isaiah’s calling clear:

9-13 And he said, “Yes, go, and say to this people, listen carefully, but do not understand. Watch closely but learn nothing.’ Harden the hearts of these people. Plug their ears and shut their eyes. That way, they will not see with their eyes, nor hear with their ears, nor understand with their hearts and turn to me for healing.”

Then I said, “Lord, how long will this go on?”

And he replied, “Until their towns are empty, their houses are deserted, and the whole country is a wasteland; until the Lord has sent everyone away, and the entire land of Israel lies deserted. If even a tenth—a remnant—survive, it will be invaded again and burned. But as a terebinth or oak tree leaves a stump when it is cut down, so Israel’s stump will be a holy seed.”

When we think of a holy calling, we envision bright futures filled with people welcoming our ministries. But look what God is promising Isaiah. God is warning Isaiah that He is sending Isaiah to warn the Israelites of impending doom. The Israelites have certain expectations from their prophets, and gloomy messages are not included in those expectations. The Israelites have embraced the form of religion but are not practicing the substance. God is warning the Israelites to repent, or Jerusalem and the temple will be destroyed, many people slaughtered, and the remainder carried off. Although the Assyrians are threatening Jerusalem, eventually, it’s the Babylonians who will carry people off from the Southern Kingdom. Countless generations have taken encouragement from those prophecies, and Jesus himself will quote Isaiah.

Why is Isaiah’s calling so much more dramatic than that of many others? Isaiah is being called to a tremendous ministry, but one that will eventually lead to his death. God anoints Isaiah with fire because Isaiah’s ministry will be one of fire, refining, purifying, and graphically demonstrating the sins of Israel.

Be careful what you wish for! Isaiah’s calling is very dramatic because his ministry will be equally dramatic, ultimately resulting in Isaiah being beaten and then sawed in two. But why did God select Isaiah in the first place?

When Isaiah went to the temple that morning, it was his normal habit; Isaiah habitually worshiped the Lord. We don’t know the details of Isaiah’s family background; however, his command of prophetic language indicates that he enjoyed an excellent education and that he was a serious student of the Scriptures. We also know that Isaiah was sensitive to the Presence of the Lord while others were not. Even so, Isaiah was conscious of his sinfulness and his failings, practically begging God to purify him.

Throughout history, very few people have had as dramatic a calling as Isaiah; yet God tailors our calls to fit our circumstances and our natures. Faced with the Lord and His seraphim, Isaiah worships but does not collapse in fear or heart failure. But notice that once God calls Isaiah, He also changes him, purifying him and establishing him to become God’s mouthpiece. When God calls, God also will purify if we let Him. And when God calls, He will set us apart, if we will let Him.

What can we learn from Isaiah’s call? God demands purity. God will call us as we are but then God will begin changing us into His image. None of us is good enough without the transforming power of God working in our lives. Most of us will never experience the ecstasies and agonies that Isaiah did; however, God will speak to each one of us, if we will only tune our ears to listen for His still small voice. But notice something: God will never force Himself on you. You must choose to accept a call, for God always respects our free will.

Are you frustrated, feeling that God has not called you to do anything? Perhaps your calling is right in front of you, but because it isn’t grand or dramatic, you have ignored it. There’s a lot to be said for doing small things with great love, as Mother Teresa was fond of saying. If you will begin to do things you know would please God, He will guide you. Remember, God cannot guide you if you’re sitting still, but only when you are in motion. Get up! Get going! But listen for God as you are doing so. And always remember that there will be unlimited need for continual repentance, for you are serving a Holy God.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, please help all those reading these words to understand that You have a special calling just for them and that You love them just as much as You did Isaiah. Cause them to say “Yes” to Your call and to allow You to cleanse them. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

1 Kings 3:3-14 Solomon loved the Lord and followed all the decrees of his father, David, except that Solomon, too, offered sacrifices and burned incense at the local places of worship. The most important of these places of worship was at Gibeon, so the king went there and sacrificed 1,000 burnt offerings. That night the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream, and God said, “What do you want? Ask, and I will give it to you!”

Solomon replied, “You showed great and faithful love to your servant my father, David, because he was honest and true and faithful to you. And you have continued to show this great and faithful love to him today by giving him a son to sit on his throne.

Now, O Lord my God, you have made me king instead of my father, David, but I am like a little child who doesn’t know his way around. And here I am in the midst of your own chosen people, a nation so great and numerous they cannot be counted! Give me an understanding heart so that I can govern your people well and know the difference between right and wrong. For who by himself is able to govern this great people of yours?”

The Lord was pleased that Solomon had asked for wisdom. So God replied, “Because you have asked for wisdom in governing my people with justice and have not asked for a long life or wealth or the death of your enemies— I will give you what you asked for! I will give you a wise and understanding heart such as no one else has had or ever will have! And I will also give you what you did not ask for—riches and fame! No other king in all the world will be compared to you for the rest of your life! And if you follow me and obey my decrees and my commands as your father, David, did, I will give you a long life.”

Solomon makes a magnificent beginning as king, humbling himself and begging for God’s guidance. God is pleased and promises wisdom, wealth, and fame. All Solomon has to do is to follow God and obey His decrees and commands. But problems soon arise. God has given commandments regarding the behavior of kings; yet, Solomon fails to follow them.

Deuteronomy 17:16-20 “The king must not build up a large stable of horses for himself or send his people to Egypt to buy horses, for the Lord has told you, ‘You must never return to Egypt.’ The king must not take many wives for himself, because they will turn his heart away from the Lord. And he must not accumulate large amounts of wealth in silver and gold for himself.

“When he sits on the throne as king, he must copy for himself this body of instruction on a scroll in the presence of the Levitical priests. He must always keep that copy with him and read it daily as long as he lives. That way he will learn to fear the Lord his God by obeying all the terms of these instructions and decrees. This regular reading will prevent him from becoming proud and acting as if he is above his fellow citizens. It will also prevent him from turning away from these commands in the smallest way. And it will ensure that he and his descendants will reign for many generations in Israel.

Solomon does not make a copy of the Torah in the presence of the Levitical priests, nor does he keep the copy with him or study it daily. Throughout the entire history of Israel, there is never a single king who follows this command. The king is not to become a big horse trader or establish a large harem. And the king must not seek wealth. Solomon fails all these tests miserably 2 Chronicles 1:16 Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and from Cilicia; the king’s traders acquired them from Cilicia at the standard price.

As if horse trading weren’t bad enough, Solomon amasses the largest harem ever assembled. These pagan women become Solomon’s downfall.

1 Kings 11:1-13 Now King Solomon loved many foreign women. Besides Pharaoh’s daughter, he married women from Moab, Ammon, Edom, Sidon, and from among the Hittites. 2 The Lord had clearly instructed the people of Israel, “You must not marry them, because they will turn your hearts to their gods.” Yet Solomon insisted on loving them anyway. He had 700 wives of royal birth and 300 concubines. And in fact, they did turn his heart away from the Lord.

In Solomon’s old age, they turned his heart to worship other gods instead of being completely faithful to the Lord his God, as his father, David, had been. Solomon worshiped Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molech, the detestable god of the Ammonites. 6 In this way, Solomon did what was evil in the Lord’s sight; he refused to follow the Lord completely, as his father, David, had done.

On the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, he even built a pagan shrine for Chemosh, the detestable god of Moab, and another for Molech, the detestable god of the Ammonites. Solomon built such shrines for all his foreign wives to use for burning incense and sacrificing to their gods.

The Lord was very angry with Solomon, for his heart had turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice. He had warned Solomon specifically about worshiping other gods, but Solomon did not listen to the Lord’s command. So now the Lord said to him, “Since you have not kept my covenant and have disobeyed my decrees, I will surely tear the kingdom away from you and give it to one of your servants. But for the sake of your father, David, I will not do this while you are still alive. I will take the kingdom away from your son. And even so, I will not take away the entire kingdom; I will let him be king of one tribe, for the sake of my servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, my chosen city.”

Solomon has it all and he blows it! How can this happen? For all Solomon’s wisdom, he trusts in himself rather than continuing to seek God’s face and His guidance. And while Solomon may have prospered, many of his subjects have not. After Solomon’s death, the Israelites come to Solomon’s son Rehoboam, begging for relief from the onerous taxes Solomon has imposed. All those buildings have come at a high cost. Rehoboam gives an arrogant answer, and ten tribes split away, leaving only Judah and Benjamin.

The story of Solomon is a tragic one, for he is gifted beyond belief and yet fails because he becomes dazzled by his own wisdom and his own wealth. Rather than behaving in a godly fashion, Solomon apes the pagan kings around him, gathering 700 wives and 300 concubines. Solomon fails to realize that when he has sex with demon worshipers, the demons will transfer to him. The call that was so brilliant in the beginning turns into a snare because Solomon fails to obey God.

At a time when newspapers were still printed on paper, it was common for athletes or politicians who had achieved something to cut out articles about themselves. Unfortunately, if the articles were very flattering, the person involved would become unduly proud, causing others to observe that “they were reading their own press clippings.” We might say the same thing about Solomon. The richer Solomon got and the more adulation he received from other rulers, the prouder he became. Then there are all those ladies in the harem, contesting for Solomon’s favor. God would keep Solomon humble if Solomon would let him; however, Solomon is on an ego trip and nothing and nobody can stop him.

If the wisest man in the world can mess up, all the rest of us can mess up as well. Success is seductive and few people can handle wealth and remain dedicated to God. Proverbs 30:7-9 tells us, “O God, I beg two favors from you; let me have them before I die. First, help me never to tell a lie. Second, give me neither poverty nor riches! Give me just enough to satisfy my needs. For if I grow rich, I may deny you and say, “Who is the Lord?” And if I am too poor, I may steal and thus insult God’s holy name.”

No matter how strong your call is, remember that God is the One who calls you and He can change that call or redirect you at any moment. A wise Christian has advised that we should hold our callings lightly, ready to go in a different direction when God orders us to do so. May God help us so that we will always follow Him and not treasure our calling above His Holy Will!

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to focus on You rather than our calling, realizing that we are Your tools and that You can change our direction whenever You wish. Help us to remain humble, obedient, and sensitive to Your Holy Spirit. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

1 Samuel 16:1-13Now the Lord said to Samuel, “You have mourned long enough for Saul. I have rejected him as king of Israel, so fill your flask with olive oil and go to Bethlehem. Find a man named Jesse who lives there, for I have selected one of his sons to be my king.”

But Samuel asked, “How can I do that? If Saul hears about it, he will kill me.”

“Take a heifer with you,” the Lord replied, “and say that you have come to make a sacrifice to the Lord. Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you which of his sons to anoint for me.”

So Samuel did as the Lord instructed. When he arrived at Bethlehem, the elders of the town came trembling to meet him. “What’s wrong?” they asked. “Do you come in peace?”

“Yes,” Samuel replied. “I have come to sacrifice to the Lord. Purify yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice.” Then Samuel performed the purification rite for Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice, too.

When they arrived, Samuel took one look at Eliab and thought, “Surely this is the Lord’s anointed!”

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

Then Jesse told his son Abinadab to step forward and walk in front of Samuel. But Samuel said, “This is not the one the Lord has chosen.” Next Jesse summoned Shimea, but Samuel said, “Neither is this the one the Lord has chosen.” In the same way all seven of Jesse’s sons were presented to Samuel. But Samuel said to Jesse, “The Lord has not chosen any of these.” Then Samuel asked, “Are these all the sons you have?”

“There is still the youngest,” Jesse replied. “But he’s out in the fields watching the sheep and goats.”

“Send for him at once,” Samuel said. “We will not sit down to eat until he arrives.”

So Jesse sent for him. He was dark and handsome, with beautiful eyes.

And the Lord said, “This is the one; anoint him.”

So as David stood there among his brothers, Samuel took the flask of olive oil he had brought and anointed David with the oil. And the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David from that day on. Then Samuel returned to Ramah.

The elders of Bethlehem are terrified! Samuel the prophet has suddenly appeared, leading a heifer and announcing that he will sacrifice to the Lord in their town. While acts of worship are always welcome, you never know what a prophet might do, and Samuel is a very powerful prophet. God has already instructed Samuel to invite Jesse and all his sons to the sacrifices. Jesse is proud of his seven tall handsome older sons, but somebody has to watch the sheep, and David is the youngest. Besides, Dvid doesn’t really matter, for he’s only a teen-ager.

But God knows something Samuel doesn’t. Through David’s work with the sheep, he has been communing with God and trusting God to help him kill the wild animals attacking the sheep. David’s seven older brothers have remained back at the house, going through the motions of being religious, but never developing an active relationship with God. Frankly, none of these young men know God at all, and each of them has the potential to become just as big a disappointment as Saul if he were to become king.

God also knows another secret about David: David is a dead shot with a sling as well as being a gifted musician. After all, David has plenty of time to practice while he’s out there in the wilderness with the sheep, and there are lots of small stones of the right size. David probably prays and practices his harp playing and his marksmanship several hours a day. Anybody watching David would assume that he’s just killing time; however, God knows the skills David has developed while his brothers have been sitting in the house. Not only is David skilled but he’s also brave, diligent, and resourceful. The very trials that David has endured are the things that are preparing him to become a warrior and later a king.

When J. Hudson Taylor first went to China as a missionary, he felt he was a failure. There were major restrictions on where British subjects could travel, the group sponsoring Taylor sent inadequate funds and expected him to find housing for another missionary family that was coming later. But Taylor had developed his faith during days as a poverty-stricken medical student, and God put him in touch with a more experienced missionary who had adapted Chinese dress and who had become fluent in one of the major Chinese dialects. This new friendship was to shape the course of Taylor’s future ministry as he first began on his own and then founded the China Inland Mission.

What can we learn from David’s call? God is the One who chooses, and He is the One who must empower us. Our job is to remain in contact with God while His job is to equip us, to guide us, and to create opportunities for His work. David’s own father saw him as a nothing, a nobody, someone only fit to herd sheep. But God saw David as a king in apprenticeship. Don’t look at your shortcomings. Don’t look at your failures. Remember that God is the One who calls and He is responsible for equipping you and sustaining you. And God can redeem every difficult experience you have endured. Little did David realize that when he was killing lions and bears, he was preparing for the day he would face a giant.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to follow hard after You all the days of our lives. Help us to remember that our hopes are in You, our strength comes from You, and that You are the Source of our provision. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

1 Samuel 9:1-21There was a wealthy, influential man named Kish from the tribe of Benjamin. He was the son of Abiel, son of Zeror, son of Becorath, son of Aphiah, of the tribe of Benjamin. His son Saul was the most handsome man in Israel—head and shoulders taller than anyone else in the land.

One day Kish’s donkeys strayed away, and he told Saul, “Take a servant with you, and go look for the donkeys.” So Saul took one of the servants and traveled through the hill country of Ephraim, the land of Shalishah, the Shaalim area, and the entire land of Benjamin, but they couldn’t find the donkeys anywhere.

Finally, they entered the region of Zuph, and Saul said to his servant, “Let’s go home. By now my father will be more worried about us than about the donkeys!”

But the servant said, “I’ve just thought of something! There is a man of God who lives here in this town. He is held in high honor by all the people because everything he says comes true. Let’s go find him. Perhaps he can tell us which way to go.”

“But we don’t have anything to offer him,” Saul replied. “Even our food is gone, and we don’t have a thing to give him.”

“Well,” the servant said, “I have one small silver piece. We can at least offer it to the man of God and see what happens!” (In those days if people wanted a message from God, they would say, “Let’s go and ask the seer,” for prophets used to be called seers.)

“All right,” Saul agreed, “let’s try it!” So they started into the town where the man of God lived.

As they were climbing the hill to the town, they met some young women coming out to draw water. So Saul and his servant asked, “Is the seer here today?”

“Yes,” they replied. “Stay right on this road. He is at the town gates. He has just arrived to take part in a public sacrifice up at the place of worship. 13 Hurry and catch him before he goes up there to eat. The guests won’t begin eating until he arrives to bless the food.”

So they entered the town, and as they passed through the gates, Samuel was coming out toward them to go up to the place of worship.

Now the Lord had told Samuel the previous day, “About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin. Anoint him to be the leader of my people, Israel. He will rescue them from the Philistines, for I have looked down on my people in mercy and have heard their cry.”

When Samuel saw Saul, the Lord said, “That’s the man I told you about! He will rule my people.”

Just then Saul approached Samuel at the gateway and asked, “Can you please tell me where the seer’s house is?”

“I am the seer!” Samuel replied. “Go up to the place of worship ahead of me. We will eat there together, and in the morning, I’ll tell you what you want to know and send you on your way. And don’t worry about those donkeys that were lost three days ago, for they have been found. And I am here to tell you that you and your family are the focus of all Israel’s hopes.”

Saul replied, “But I’m only from the tribe of Benjamin, the smallest tribe in Israel, and my family is the least important of all the families of that tribe! Why are you talking like this to me?”

Despite all Samuel’s warnings and admonitions that God is their king, the Israelites are clamoring for a human king. God tells Samuel that He has chosen someone and then brings Saul to Samuel. Saul looks like a king; however, he is realistic, for his tribe is the smallest and his family the least important within the tribe. But God has chosen Saul because He knows Saul has the potential for military leadership. Samuel assures Saul and predicts a number of incidents that will happen to convince Saul that God has chosen him.

Why does Saul reject the very idea of a call at the beginning? Saul is looking at his social situation and his own resources while God has different plans altogether. Many times, we look at how weak/unimportant/unprepared we are as if God isn’t in the equation at all; meanwhile, God is the One who must empower us in the first place. And when we are only looking at ourselves, we can easily become discouraged. Look what Saul does next.

1 Samuel 10:20-24 So Samuel brought all the tribes of Israel before the Lord, and the tribe of Benjamin was chosen by lot. Then he brought each family of the tribe of Benjamin before the Lord, and the family of the Matrites was chosen. And finally Saul son of Kish was chosen from among them. But when they looked for him, he had disappeared! So they asked the Lord, “Where is he?”

And the Lord replied, “He is hiding among the baggage.” So they found him and brought him out, and he stood head and shoulders above anyone else.

Then Samuel said to all the people, “This is the man the Lord has chosen as your king. No one in all Israel is like him!”

And all the people shouted, “Long live the king!”

Saul already knows God has chosen him to be king, and Samuel has even anointed him privately. But Saul is terrified; what if he makes mistakes? What if he fails? Perhaps if Saul hides, they will choose someone else and he can continue to enjoy a nice private life. Sorry, Saul! God sees everything and you can’t hide from God. There’s a wonderful book title I saw years ago: Here Am I Lord, Send Aaron.  We are thrilled at the calling of God…as long as it’s for someone else. And we really hope that if we just continue in our staid little paths that God will find someone else who is braver/smarter/more highly qualified.

Saul knows that the Israelites are clamoring for a king because they are fed up with the Philistines attacking them and carrying off everything they’ve got. Saul knows that when he becomes king, he must wage war against the Philistines, and the Philistines have taken all the weapons from Israel so very few people have any weapons at all, apart from agricultural implements. It’s no mistake that some swords at this time resemble sickles; they ARE sickles. And Saul also knows that he must organize an army for no Israelite army exists. What Saul is not considering is the fact that God has chosen him and therefore God is bound to help him.

Perhaps you feel like Saul. You know God is calling you to do something grand, but you are looking only at yourself and your own resources. Under such circumstances, any of us might be tempted to hide somewhere. But we must remember that when God guides, God provides. Saul’s biggest problem throughout his career is a lack of faith. Saul depends on Samuel as long as he can and also depends on David playing his harp and singing to drive away demons. But Saul has little or no faith of his own, and in the end, that will prove to be his downfall.

When Amy Wilson Carmichael first went to India, the missionaries were complaining that they were not making converts. Amy began praying and eventually God brought people to her who accepted Jesus and became her helpers. This brave band would eventually rescue hundreds of children out of temple prostitution and slavery. But the whole thing began because Amy was a woman of great faith and she had people praying for her. Sadly, Saul was not a man of faith and depended on others. Second-hand faith is useless.

If God is calling you to do something, first settle things with God. Ask God to give you faith and then to increase it. But remember that is a dangerous prayer, for as soon as you ask, God will begin placing you in situations that will test what little faith you already have. There is only one way to gain more faith; you must exercise the faith you have, and as you do so, it will grow.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, many of us have heard Your call, but we are terrified. Help us to remember that where You guide, You provide, and You will never leave us or forsake us. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.