Tag: servants forever

3.j. ‘Give thanks to the LORD of hosts, for the LORD is good, for his steadfast love endures forever!’

Ezra 1:1  In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also put it in writing:

“Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah.

Jeremiah 29:10   “For thus says the LORD: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place.

Jeremiah 33:7-13    I will restore the fortunes of Judah and the fortunes of Israel, and rebuild them as they were at first.  I will cleanse them from all the guilt of their sin against me, and I will forgive all the guilt of their sin and rebellion against me.  And this city shall be to me a name of joy, a praise and a glory before all the nations of the earth who shall hear of all the good that I do for them. They shall fear and tremble because of all the good and all the prosperity I provide for it.  “Thus says the LORD: In this place of which you say, ‘It is a waste without man or beast,’ in the cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem that are desolate, without man or inhabitant or beast, there shall be heard again  the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voices of those who sing, as they bring thank offerings to the house of the LORD: “‘Give thanks to the LORD of hosts, for the LORD is good, for his steadfast love endures forever!’ For I will restore the fortunes of the land as at first, says the LORD.  “Thus says the LORD of hosts: In this place that is waste, without man or beast, and in all of its cities, there shall again be habitations of shepherds resting their flocks.  In the cities of the hill country, in the cities of the Shephelah, and in the cities of the Negeb, in the land of Benjamin, the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, flocks shall again pass under the hands of the one who counts them, says the LORD.

The prophecy of Jeremiah spoke the word of God and I doubt there were many remaining in Babylon from Jerusalem who remembered or were alive at the time of capture.  Those who did listen and knew the outcome of God’s wrath upon them, and believed what Jeremiah said had to have their heartbroken.  They were able to witness this first hand and more than likely die before seeing the restoration of Jerusalem.  Some of these parents certainly spoke of Jeremiah’s prophecy to their children to give them hope, strength, and courage.  And to those who believed in what God had said, and were alive at the time of this proclamation from Cyrus, this had to be a very glorious blessing to hear and see the hand of God at work.  Can you imagine hearing this and knowing it was foretold to you.  All you had to do was believe it your eyes would be open to seeing God at work.  Obviously, there were those who did not believe and because of this did not see this as God’s doing but rather because of chance and good fortune.

When we read God’s word there are many both blessings and warnings given to us.  Promises of His hand of protection, leading, and peace.  Likewise, there are words of wrath, anger, and judgment.  Just because we might choose to not believe them does not make them less truthful.  How would our lives change if we spent time in His word and believed what we read?  Would our thoughts and actions be different?  Would we see God’s hand at work more clearly?  Would we have a more thankful heart and mind?  Would things in this world have less influence?  Would our eyes remain focused on honoring Him?  Would we consider living in light of Him?  Would we be more grateful?  Would we seek and desire to hear and see Him?

If we spend more time in His word we will certainly be starting at the right place every day.  If we seek to be led by His word we will be starting at the right place every day. It is a personal, intentional, daily choice.  We should not take this commitment lightly or the benefits from it without a grateful and thankful heart.

Oh God, open our eyes to Your word and lead us on paths that glorify and honor You.

1.v. But he abandoned the counsel that the old men gave him.

Image may contain: outdoor, text that says 'You are free to choose, but you are not free from the consequence of your choice.'

2 Chronicles 10:1 Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had come to Shechem to make him king. And as soon as Jeroboam the son of Nebat heard of it (for he was in Egypt, where he had fled from King Solomon), then Jeroboam returned from Egypt. And they sent and called him. And Jeroboam and all Israel came and said to Rehoboam, “Your father made our yoke heavy. Now therefore lighten the hard service of your father and his heavy yoke on us, and we will serve you.” He said to them, “Come to me again in three days.” So the people went away.

Then King Rehoboam took counsel with the old men, who had stood before Solomon his father while he was yet alive, saying, “How do you advise me to answer this people?” And they said to him, “If you will be good to this people and please them and speak good words to them, then they will be your servants forever.” But he abandoned the counsel that the old men gave him, and took counsel with the young men who had grown up with him and stood before him. And he said to them, “What do you advise that we answer this people who have said to me, ‘Lighten the yoke that your father put on us’?” And the young men who had grown up with him said to him, “Thus shall you speak to the people who said to you, ‘Your father made our yoke heavy, but you lighten it for us’; thus shall you say to them, ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s thighs. And now, whereas my father laid on you a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke. My father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions.’”

So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king said, “Come to me again the third day.” And the king answered them harshly; and forsaking the counsel of the old men, King Rehoboam spoke to them according to the counsel of the young men, saying, “My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to it. My father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions.” So the king did not listen to the people, for it was a turn of affairs brought about by God that the Lord might fulfill his word, which he spoke by Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat.

And when all Israel saw that the king did not listen to them, the people answered the king, “What portion have we in David? We have no inheritance in the son of Jesse. Each of you to your tents, O Israel! Look now to your own house, David.” So all Israel went to their tents. But Rehoboam reigned over the people of Israel who lived in the cities of Judah. Then King Rehoboam sent Hadoram, who was taskmaster over the forced labor, and the people of Israel stoned him to death with stones. And King Rehoboam quickly mounted his chariot to flee to Jerusalem. So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day.

Rehoboam had to make a choice on who to listen to for advice.  He did not choose wisely. He chose to listen to those around him who had no apparent walk with God.  He chose to elevate himself to greatness by force and harshness.  He chose to stroke his ego and pride.  The people did not follow after him nor was he blessed by God.

Every day we get to make choices.  We choose to whom we will listen to.  We choose what thoughts we are going to take action on.  We choose if we are going to honor God in our thoughts, words, and actions.  We get to choose to whether or not we seek and desire God’s word.  We get to choose to believe in Jesus Christ.  We get to choose to deny self and live for humbly serving, honoring, glorifying, worshiping, following, trusting, and obeying Jesus Christ.  We get to choose to listen to the Holy Spirit leading us.  We get to choose to love, forgive, and repent and turn away from sin.  We get to choose to stay in God’s word.

Our choices will paint a picture of what we think about, who we care about, and cannot be hidden.