2 CHRONICLES 14 (NOTES OF A READING)
2 CHRONICLES 14 (NOTES OF A READING)
Ques Does this chapter show a continuance in measure of the period of prosperity under Abijah?
CAC Yes, it is so evidently.
Rem There is a good deal said of rest, but not the service of God that marked the previous section.
CAC Yes, it is not quite on the same high level as the economy in the previous chapter. Asa was marked by a great degree of faithfulness; we find him dealing with all those things which were not consistent with the service of God.
Ques Would you speak of what he did as spirituality, or piety?
CAC He was walking faithfully. I think that is what marked him.
Rem His heart was perfect before the Lord. He did what was “good and right”.
CAC Yes, his heart “was perfect all his days”.
Ques Is there not a link between what he does in seeking Jehovah and his commanding Judah to seek the Lord God of their fathers, and to do the law and commandment? Psalm 119 says, “Blessed are the perfect in the way, who walk in the law of Jehovah”.
CAC Yes, and particularly in relation to the service of God. It is religious things he deals with which directly challenge the order of the house set up, which required that everything inconsistent with it should be judged.
Rem There is nothing mentioned as to the priestly service here.
CAC No, it is not quite that side of things; it is faithfulness in a time of departure.
Rem In the next chapter it says they had been without a teaching priest for a long time. I wondered how that applied today.
CAC Yes; as the truth of the house of God and His service has come out, it has led to faithful action on the part of those whose hearts were rightly affected. Repeatedly we find these idolatrous elements dealt with for they were always there. Such things as are contrary to the character of God’s house are to be dealt with. The enemy came up in this chapter because there was faithfulness. The Ethiopian comes up with his darkening forces. Then God takes the matter up. It is not at all a bad thing having that sort of attack; I wish we had more of that.
Rem This section seems to follow the inside portion of the previous chapter. What follows is that the outside position is right.
CAC Yes. Though it is a time of quietness, Asa also builds fortified cities. We might apply it today; when God gives us a time of peace and quietness, we ought to keep in mind that it is to strengthen us in view of future conflict. “The assemblies then ... had peace, being edified”, it says (Acts 9: 31); but when they have no particular conflict on hand, it is a special call to edification.
Ques Is God not giving encouragement in assemblies locally, in that way, building them up?
CAC Yes, that is the teaching of it.
Ques Asa took away the altars and strange gods; is that not the character of it? Hebrews 13: 10 refers to the altar — it is one altar.
CAC Every increase of light calls for a deepened exercise that we should not be inconsistent. We sang hymns fifty years ago that were inconsistent with the true character of the service; all such things should be eliminated. As light comes, the range of things not consistent with it is extended.
Rem I remember a brother saying that with every fresh ray of light from God we are to readjust our position.
CAC Yes; when we are wholly on these lines the attack of the enemy becomes very confirming and strengthening. I suppose God allows things to be attacked so that we may be confirmed in the light of them. I doubt whether any of us are confirmed in the truth until we are opposed for it. A brother who was challenged spent all night considering the point in question and he was very much more established when the sun rose than if he had gone to bed. Every attack is establishing and clarifies the truth. It consolidates and confirms the saints and they have a much firmer hold than they had before. It is remarkable how lightly we hold these things, not very firmly in our minds even. It is an opposition of darkness, the Ethiopian, the natural darkness of the human mind against the light and faithfulness to the Lord. Sometimes it rises up in our own flesh; but then it is all confirmatory in the end.
Ques Is that why you have the contested position in the end of Ephesians? There you have to hold the position.
CAC So that here Asa is given absolute victory, because it is a clear-cut issue. It is man against God but Asa’s reliance is fully on God. There is not an enemy left, only the spoil; and the result of that is seen in the next chapter.
Rem Asa cried to Jehovah and said, “It maketh no difference to thee to help, whether there be much or no power” (verse 11).
CAC It makes no difference whether there are many or few; what power there is with us is a most immaterial thing.
Rem Whether there are weak conditions in a place makes no difference.
CAC Yes, and God can make it clear to the feeblest saint what is the difference between light and darkness. In every conflict the question is between light and darkness; and when the opposition is seen to be darkness, it is utterly destroyed morally. When it is discerned, it is destroyed morally. There was not a man left. There was light with Asa and those with him; they were strengthening and building up what was of God. If the issue is between God and man, there is no question as to how it will turn out. You find saints sometimes attacked by very learned and religious men (poor ignorant saints), and relying on God they can completely baffle these learned men. Consciousness of weakness leads us to more complete reliance upon God, being identified with His truth, and using every opposition to become strengthened in the truth.
Rem In verse 8 there were those who bore targets and spears and some that drew the bow. Some came into very close contact.
CAC Oh, this opposition is always going on, and always having the same effect, for it exposes what is darkness and confirms the saints in the truth, and leads to there being spoil for God.
Ques What is the thought of spoil, is it for God?
CAC It says in chapter 15: 11 that they sacrificed of the spoil seven hundred oxen and seven thousand sheep. There are apprehensions of Christ which enrich the service of God. We all know, I hope, what it is to be attacked because of the truth, if we do not know what it is to be attacked by the natural darkness of the human heart. But when there is reliance on God those attacking can be overthrown and fresh apprehensions of Christ gained, so that there is something for the pleasure of God. Then the prophetic word comes in at the beginning of the next chapter to confirm Asa. When any opposition is met in reliance on God, the prophetic word would always confirm the exercises of the faithful heart. There are certain fixed principles which come in. He says, “Jehovah is with you while ye are with him; and if ye seek him he will be found of you, but if ye forsake him he will forsake you”. These are great fixed principles like 2 Timothy. I used to pray a good deal that the Lord would be with me in this and that and the other: I do not attach so much importance to that now.
Ques What is more important?
CAC That I should be with Him! He says, “Jehovah is with you while ye are with Him” (chapter 15: 2).
Rem It says too, “If ye seek him he will be found of you”.
CAC They had been quite away from Him for a long time, as we see in verses 3 and 4.
Ques Why should that be introduced in verse 3? Is it to bring them on to the true ground of repentance?
CAC It is that we might see that it is a time of recovery. It is always a time of recovery. It is to remind us that He has moved in hearts to bring about recovery to Himself.
Ques Is that the usual service of a priest, in teaching?
CAC Yes, a “teaching priest” is a very choice gift; it is included in the priestly service. A “teaching priest” would teach with the thought of what was due to God; that would govern his ministry.
We see in verse 7 that this prophetic word comes in to encourage Asa. They had moved in such a way that the prophetic word does not find any fault with them; it is all on the line of encouragement. We shall find, if we move in any small measure on the line of faithfulness and seek what is of God, the prophetic word always takes on an encouraging character. When we get away it will take on a rebuking character, so that later on Asa had to be told that he had done foolishly.
Ques Would the encouragement to Philadelphia and the rebuke to Laodicea show that?
CAC Yes, I think that shows it distinctly. He has no word of rebuke to Philadelphia, but strong rebuke to Laodicea.
The effect of a prophetic word like this leads to the making of a covenant with Jehovah. In verse 12, “They entered into a covenant to seek Jehovah the God of their fathers, with all their heart, and with all their soul”. God looks that there should be definite committal to His service and seeking Him; He looks for it with every one of us.
Ques Can we make a covenant in this way now; does the principle of it refer to us?
CAC I think the principle of it stands, that is a definite committal with purpose of heart to the Lord.
Rem That would be very pleasing to Him.
CAC Yes, He looks for a definite kind of movement.
Ques Does Paul’s reference to the house of Stephanas illustrate it? “They ... devoted themselves to the saints for service” (1 Corinthians 16: 15).
Ques Is it the principle of a vow?
CAC Yes, they are not indefinite. We are not just drifting along in a half-hearted way, but definitely committed to the Lord for His service.
Ques Is that not done every Lord’s day morning?
CAC Yes, in a way, if it is. With all those who are pleasurable to the Lord there has been at some time a definite committal. I do not think that anyone is pleasurable to God without it. It is a definite act of self-devotion which God loves.
Ques Why were those not entering into it to be put to death?
CAC It shows the essential character of it that nothing else would do.
Ques Grace would not go to that extent, would it?
Rem “If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ let him be Anathema Maranatha” (1 Corinthians 16: 22).
CAC Yes, that is like it; you cannot assent quietly to any compromise, can you?
Rem It virtually means it is the only thing to live for.
CAC Yes, any christian would admit that the claims of God and the Lord Jesus in love are of such a character that whole-hearted devotion would be the only answer to it. It is an abstract truth to him, even if he did not carry it out practically.
Rem It says they rejoiced at the oath, and that they swore to Jehovah with shouting and with trumpets. It says “with a loud voice” (verse 14), so they were not half hearted about it.
CAC Yes, as we sang on Monday evening,
‘Rise, my soul, thy God directs thee,
Stranger hands no more impede’. (76:1)
What a blessed thing to have shaken off every influence that would hinder your being dedicated to such a God and such a Lord. In the sacrifices you see there are apprehensions of Christ that become available for the service of God. This was a very bright moment.
Rem Asa “renewed the altar of Jehovah, that was before the porch of Jehovah” (verse 8). Is that the brazen altar?
CAC Yes, I suppose so, showing it needed renewing.
It all stresses the point that it is a day of recovery.
Rem How much there is to be done. The more light there is the more there is to be done.
CAC It is beautiful to see that Asa maintained such devotedness and faithfulness for a long period of years — thirty-five years. It is only the more sorrowful to think he went entirely astray at the end. It is put into Scripture as a warning to those who grow old in the faith and have had perhaps a pretty good record; they may finish badly. It is most important to maintain whatever we have been in the past, the measure of faith and devotedness. It is most important to retain our reliance on God. If moved from it, we may end very badly. Asa went astray, I suppose, by self coming in. When Baasha came up and built Ramah, it was that none might go out or come in to Asa. He felt it a restriction and limitation, and it annoyed him. When we get an idea that self is being touched, it undermines everything. Paul could say in prison “My God”, Asa did not. Paul is maintained in his full reliance upon God, but Asa allowed consideration for himself to take him away from reliance upon God, so that after thirty-five years of devotion he ended very sadly. He had lost the practical value of his beautiful secret of reliance upon God.
Rem From Jeremiah 41: 9, Asa seemed to fear the man Baasha.
CAC Something touched self, and he did not look upon it at all as touching God. It touched him, and to the quick. He does not think of Jehovah, but of some human expediency, and lost something that had been his joy for thirty-five years. The devil turns him in on himself and he lost reliance on God.
Ques Was it for his blessing?
CAC I think there was a secret behind it all. I once asked Mr Stoney how he could account for a certain valued brother going astray and he replied, ‘I cannot account for it, but if I knew all about him I could’. With Asa there was a cherishing of self and self-importance, and when exposed it touched a weak point.