NO ROOM FOR COMPROMISE

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In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

When Jehoshaphat king of Judah returned safely to his palace in Jerusalem, Jehu the seer, the son of Hanani, went out to meet him and said to the king, “Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the Lord? Because of this, the wrath of the Lord is on you. There is, however, some good in you, for you have rid the land of the Asherah poles and have set your heart on seeking God.”

2 Chronicles 19:1-3

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

As we look and consider God’s commitment to us, we will always find one thing.

God never compromises.

This because He and He alone is perfect in every way including how He perfectly keeps His promises, pledges, and assurances. No one is so absolutely resolute in their dedication to us. No one.

You would think that people would want to return the favor to God, to strive to perfectly commit to Him just as He has perfectly committed to us. But the sad reality is that too often we are unfaithful to the One who is ever faithful to us.

We see an example of this in the person of King Jehoshaphat.

You’ll recall that the king was highly favored by God because he followed in the ways of David, not consulting the Baals but rather seeking God and following His commands. In return, God established the kingdom under his control; and all Judah brought gifts to Jehoshaphat, so that he had great wealth and honor. Scripture tells us that Jehoshaphat’s heart was devoted to the ways of the Lord and he removed the high places and the Asherah poles from Judah (2 Chronicles 17:3-6).

Such was the renown of God’s favor that the fear of the Lord was with the surrounding nations. Instead of fighting Judah, they sent tribute to the king.

All was going well for Jehoshaphat and Judah as God’s promise was played out in full display. As long as Jehoshaphat and Judah were with God, He was with them.

So where did things go wrong?

We know things went wrong as we read the opening verses from 2 Chronicles, Chapter 19. Jehoshaphat, fresh in returning safely from joining forces with King Ahab of Israel to fight the Arameans at Ramoth Gilead, is paid a visit by the seer Jehu who had the following words for the king:

“Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the Lord? Because of this, the wrath of the Lord is on you. There is, however, some good in you, for you have rid the land of the Asherah poles and have set your heart on seeking God.”

The message was clear. Jehoshaphat had fallen out of favor with God. But how? How could a king who was so highly favored now face God’s wrath?

The answer was easy. Jehoshaphat compromised his relationship with the Lord.

Go back to the beginning of Chapter 18. There we find Ahab the king of Israel soliciting Jehoshaphat to help him fight the Arameans at Ramoth Gilead. This was the same Ahab that the scriptures said this about:

Ahab son of Omri did more evil in the eyes of the Lord than any of those before him. He not only considered it trivial to commit the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, but he also married Jezebel daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and began to serve Baal and worship him. He set up an altar for Baal in the temple of Baal that he built in Samaria. Ahab also made an Asherah pole and did more to arouse the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel, than did all the kings of Israel before him. 1 Kings 16:30-33

On the scale of righteousness, you couldn’t have two more polar opposites than Jehoshaphat and Ahab. Jehoshaphat should have stood firm for the Lord and refuse to have anything to do with the sinful king of Israel. But he didn’t. Instead, he said this when asked to join forces with Ahab:

“I am as you are, and my people as your people; we will join you in the war.” 2 Chronicles 18:3b

Really? Jehoshaphat was as Ahab was? Judah’s people were like the people of Israel?

Then again, maybe it is totally believable given that Jehoshaphat and Judah chose to side with Ahab and Israel. In doing so, they did what Israel had already done. They relinquished their faith in God and compromised their relationship with Him. It was more important for Jehoshaphat to partner with a sinner like Ahab then stay loyal to the God who had been so loyal to him. This is what got Jehoshaphat in trouble and in the bulls-eye of God’s wrath.

Friends, we need to pay close attention to this. For the compromising error of Jehoshaphat continues to be repeated over and over and over again, and oftentimes, it is at the highest levels of spiritual leadership as pastors, deacons, and elders in the church choose to turn away from their commitment to God in exchange for sinful liaisons with others. And just as Jehoshaphat learned, these leaders find out that the wrath of God will be turned against them as well.

The key thing to keep in mind is that this is all so very preventable. We just need to give God the respect and reverence He deserves. For if we truly seek to honor Him in all that we do, we will never find ourselves in a place where we will forfeit our relationship with Him for anything. Nothing in the world would be worth that. Nothing.

My prayer for all of us is that we will take this word of the Lord to heart and work even harder every day to love and care for Him as much as He loves and cares for us, without compromise. We can’t afford to live any other way.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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