Sermon Central
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When You Can't Buy Your Way Out Of The Mess?
Contributed by Wade Martin Hughes, Sr on Nov 7, 2006 (message contributor)
Summary: Asa is a good lesson to study. He faced an enemy and used the gold and silver from church to buy his way out. Then Asa meets Zerah, and was out numbered 2 to 1, Asa had no gold on which to depend, so Asa turns to the Lord God.
WHEN YOU CAN’T BUY YOUR WAY OUT?
WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO WHEN WE FACE BIG PROBLEMS?
By Wade Martin Hughes, Sr. Kyfingers@aol.com
TEXT:
2 Chron. 20:15 And he said, Hearken ye, all Judah, and ye inhabitants of
Jerusalem, and thou king Jehoshaphat, Thus saith the Lord unto you,
Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the
battle is not yours, but God’s.
2 Chron. 20:17 Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye
still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear
not, nor be dismayed; to morrow go out against them: for the Lord will be
with you.
I. THE GREAT NATION OF ISREAL HAS BEEN DIVIDED AFTER SOLOMON’S REIGN.
PEOPLE WERE IN LEADERSHIP THAT WOULD NOT LISTEN.
A. Sin slowly rooted it’s way into the hearts and daily life of Israel.
Israel’s leaders and her people willfully neglected God and worshipped at the
altars of people that had been permitted to build false altars right in the middle
of God’s house.
B. The glory of a united Kingdom faded away when Solomon died.
C. IN GREAT STUPIDITY AND A LACK OF ACCEPTING GOOD, GODLY ADVISE OF
THE OLD MEN --- REHOBOAM REFUSES TO LISTEN...
2 Chron. 10:15 So the king hearkened not unto the people: for the cause was
of God, that the Lord might perform his word, which he spake by the hand of
Ahijah --- (uh - HIGH - jah) the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat.
2 Chron. 10:16 And when all Israel saw that the king would not hearken unto
them, the people answered the king, saying, What portion have we in David?
and we have none inheritance in the son of Jesse: every man to your tents, O
Israel: and now, David, see to thine own house. So all Israel went to their tents.
D. SO A GREAT DIVISION COMES, ---
REHOBOAM REIGNED OVER THE SOUTH --- MAINLY JUDAH...
E. JEROBOAM REIGNED OVER THE NORTH --- ISRAEL.
II. LET’S MEET A BIBLICAL CHARACTER THAT HAD TO LEARN TO DEPEND ON
GOD.
A. ASA --- ( AY --suh )
B. His Father, the King before him was ABIJAH --- ( uh -BIGH- jam )
ABIJAH WAS A MEAN AND WICKED MAN.
1 Kings 15:12 And he took away the sodomites out of the land, and removed all
the idols that his fathers had made.
C. His Father, ABIJAH was married to 14 wives,
ABIJAH had 22 sons, and 16 daughters --- 38 KIDS ---
Can you imagine his Dad’s ORTHODONTIST BILL?
D. His Grandmother’s name was MAACHAH. ( MAY -uh - kah )
E. ABIJAH, his Father and MAACHAH, his grandmother made terrible choices,
and led the people of God to great sin with no repentance.
1 Kings 15:13 And also Maachah his mother, even her he removed from being
queen, because she had made an idol in a grove; and Asa destroyed her idol,
and burnt it by the brook Kidron.
F. ASA WAS KING OVER JUDAH, the southern part of the split Kingdom.
G. ASA’S REIGN LASTED 41 YEARS!
1 Kings 15:14 But the high places were not removed: nevertheless Asa’s heart
was perfect with the Lord all his days.
III. ASA LEARNED HOW TO HANDLE BATTLES IN THE FLESH,
HE TRUSTED THE ABILIITIY OF COMPROMISE AND HOW TO BUY HIS WAY
OUT OF PROBLEMS.
A. Baasha ( bay - ASH - uh ) the King of Israel (The northern tribes)
comes to fight ASA and Judah.
1 Kings 15:16 And there was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel all
their days.
B. Man should reconsider anything that draws human attention away from unity
and love.
C. HOW SAD IS THE DAY WHEN GOD’S PEOPLE ARE FIGHTING GOD’S PEOPLE?
Instead of working out their differences in love and peace ---
IT IS EASIER TO FIGHT AND MAKE WAR.
IV. MAN CAN LEARN TO DEPEND ON THE FLESH AND SELL THE THINGS OF GOD?
A. ASA LEARNS TO TRUST THE FLESH AND BUY HIS WAY OUT OF TROUBLE.
B. ASA IS USING GOLD AND SILVER THAT IS NOT HIS, AND IT IS NOT JUDAH’S.
C. WHEN WE ARE FACING BATTLES WE TEND TO BYPASS THE HOLY AND
PROFANE,
WHAT IS THE VALUE --- THE GOLD IN GOD’S HOUSE OR THE GOD IN GOD’S HOUSE?
1 Kings 15:18 Then Asa took all the silver and the gold that were left in the
treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the king’s house,
and delivered them into the hand of his servants: and king Asa sent them to
Ben-hadad, the son of Tabrimon, the son of Hezion, king of Syria, that
dwelt at Damascus, saying,
D. HOW SAD IS IT WHEN WE CAN GET ALONG WITH THE WORLD AND NOT
