Be Careful Who You Listen To

So, I've been back from vacation for 2 weeks now and it's time to get back at this thing.  I know I don't have a ton of followers, but this is a beneficial thing for me too.  It forces me to stop and really consider what I read in God's Word each day in our Daily Bible Reading Plan.  So, here we go . . .

In today's reading from 2 Chronicles 17&18, we read about the rise of Jehoshaphat as the King of Judah.  Jehoshaphat was the son of Asa, who worked to restore honor and righteousness to the people of God.  We learn a few things about Jehosaphat in Chapter 17:

• He worked to fortify and strengthen the Kingdom of Judah against attack from the Kingdom of Israel (v.1)
• God blessed Jehoshaphat because he followed in the footsteps of his father Asa by not worshipping Baal (v.3)
• He sought to honor God and not the evil practices of Israel (v.4)
• Because he was deeply committed to the ways of God, he was highly esteemed by his people (v.v. 5&6)
• He was a proactive King, sending his officials to teach the ways of God to the people of Judah who had been led astray by previous kings (v.v.7-9)
• Other kingdoms were struck with the fear of the Lord and none wanted to make war against Jehoshaphat (v.10)

But in Chapter 18, we see Jehoshaphat make a grave mistake.  In v.1, he sought to make an alliance with King Ahab of Israel.  You may remember from previous readings that Israel split into 2 Kingdoms after the death of Solomon under the Kingship of Jeroboam in about 933 BC - the northern Kingdom of Israel and the Southern Kingdom of Judah.

Ahab was not a godly King and Jehoshaphat was.  Jehoshaphat had his son marry Ahab's daughter, and in due time "Ahab enticed Jehoshaphat to join forces with him to recover Ramoth-gilead." 2 Chronicles 18:2

Wisely, Jehoshaphat told Ahab in v.4 that they should inquire of the Lord first.  Ahab summoned 400 prophets, all of whom said, "Yes, go right ahead!  God will give the king victory." - v.5

400 voices - all prophets of the Lord - were giving an unconditional green light to the kings.  But there was one more voice that they needed to hear - Micaiah the prophet.  Ahab hated Micaiah because he always prophesied trouble for Ahab.  But Jehoshaphat insisted on hearing what Micaiah had to say.

In his first word to the kings, Micaiah replied sarcastically (v.14) and told them they would have victory.  Maybe it was because he knew that Ahab would die, and wanted to send him to a quick death.  Maybe he was tired of Ahab's animosity towards him and just wanted to tell him what he wanted to hear.  In any case, the sarcasm was not lost on Ahab, and he demanded the truth, so Micaiah gave it to him in v.16 - Ahab would die if they went to war.

And so the kings went, with a plan for Ahab to disguise himself.  Just as Micaiah said, Ahab was killed in battle.

That's a lot of unpacking for a very simple truth: we like to listen to the people that agree with us, and ignore the ones that don't.  We don't know for certain why Jehoshaphat continued into battle with Ahab, but we do know for certain that both of them were disobedient to God.  One of them died.  Jehoshaphat almost died, and was only saved by the grace of God. 

When we are faced with big decisions, it's wise to seek the counsel of Godly friends.  Let me emphasize GODLY.  People who know God.  People who seek God.  People who have the wisdom of God and usually speak the truth of God, even when it hurts.  But even they can be wrong. 

So, who are you listening to in your life?  Above all, we should seek the wisdom of God in Scripture.  If we're faced with a big decision, we should stop and ask ourselves some very important questions:

• Is one of my choices clearly disobedient to Scripture?  If I do this thing, am I sinning?
• Will one of my choices clearly provide a way for me to further the Kingdom of God without compromising my integrity or holiness?
• Will one of my choices negatively impact my spouse or my children?  There's a difference between a choice that forces us to dig down deep into God's grace and sovereignty for a season and a decision that brings harm to our families.  Sometimes it's a subtle difference, but there is a difference.
• Will my decision bring glory and honor to God?  Will it ultimately be beneficial for me and the people that God has entrusted to my care?  Not necessarily beneficial in a material way, but in a spiritual/growing way.
• Has the Holy Spirit given me peace about this decision or do I have a serious check deep inside of me saying, "NO!"  

When it comes time to seek advice, ask your friends and family members the same questions and ask them to be brutally honest in their feedback.  Be careful who you listen to, because it can mean the difference between living the life that God has created for you and dying a slow, painful spiritual death as you reap the consequences of disobedience.