2 Kings 1:3 - But the angel of the Lord said to Elijah the Tishbite, Go and meet the messengers of the king of Samaria and ask them, Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron?
King Ahaziah had gotten injured in an accident and was
afraid he would die. Instead of seeking help from God, he sent a messenger to a
foreign land to inquire of their false god if he would recover from his injury.
Elijah, the prophet of God, met the messenger on the journey and asked “Is it
because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baal-zebub,
the god of Ekron?”
Time and again throughout the history of God’s people God had
proven Himself to them. God had worked miracles on their behalf. It was
inconceivable in light of all that God had done for His people that they would
seek advice from a false god. Yet, that is what King Ahaziah did.
As we think about our own lives, we have also witnessed
God’s power time and again. How many times have we had some close call in our
lives and knew someone must have been watching out for us? How many times have
we prayed in a time of crisis and God came through for us? God has been there
for us in both big and small ways our entire lives. It is inconceivable that we
would seek help from any other source but God. Yet, like King Ahaziah of old,
we often do that very thing. We call physic hotlines. We read fortune cookies.
We watch shows on television in which pop-psychologists give us the latest fad
in human thinking, even if it goes completely against God’s Word. We dabble in
new age philosophies and Eastern religions seeking truth. We ask friends who do
not know the Lord for advice instead of seeking it from the Bible or from trustworthy
pastors.
In the biblical story, King Ahaziah ended up dying because
he sought help from the wrong source. It may sound cruel for God to not help
him in his situation, but remember, King Ahaziah did not ask God for help. He
asked a false god for help and got exactly the kind of help that false god had,
which was nothing. Essentially, God decided to give King Ahaziah what he asked
for, and it did not end well. As we consider our own relationship with God, why
do we think God will help us when we have called upon everyone but Him in our
distress? What if God let all the false hope and bad advice we sought come to
fruition in our lives? It would be a disaster.
Thankfully, our God is a God of grace and often helps us when
we do not deserve it. But I do think from time to time He withholds His help
while we seek all those other dead ends. He wants us to see that those dead
ends lead nowhere, so that when we finally come back to Him, we will be more
faithful than we were before. If we tarry too long in turning back to Him, all
we have left is false hope, false comfort, and false help that this world has
to offer. It only leads to disaster. Let us commit ourselves to turning back to
the true God of the universe today and serve Him with all of our hearts.
Lord, remind us to seek help from You in times of need
instead of looking to the false hope this world offers. Amen.
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This devotional is from the book “Heavenly Mundane” by Dr.
Terry W. Dorsett. Dr. Dorsett has been a pastor, church planter, denominational
leader and author in New England for more than 20 years. He is a
happy husband, a proud father and adoring grandfather. He is a
cancer survivor and believes that God works powerfully
through times of suffering. He writes extensively and you can find all of
his books at:
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