Theological Commentary: Click Here
Discipleship Focus: Protection
- Protection: In the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus teaches us to pray that God might deliver us from evil – even the Evil One. Sometimes we need God’s protection from the sin around us. Sometimes we need protection from the sinful people around us. Other times we need protection from the sin that lies within ourselves. In any case, Jesus’ point is clear. We need protection from the Father to make it through each and every day.
Asa comes to
reign in Judah. The Bible is clear on
two points. First of all, Asa had peace
in His reign. Note, though, that Asa was
not without conflict with the world.
Kings rose up against Asa, but because God was at peace with Asa they
had His protection. The peace that they
endured was an internal peace between the nation and God. Second, Asa did what was right in the eyes of
the Lord.
What I
really want to focus upon is why these two things occur. Asa is able to have peace for the same reason
that Asa is able to do what is right in the Lord’s eyes. Asa himself gives us the reason why is 2
Chronicles 14:7. These things can happen
because they have sought out the Lord.
Because they have sought out the Lord, they have God’s protection. They have peace with God.
Peace comes
when we seek the Lord.
Just
remember, though. When we say that peace
comes when we seek the Lord, that doesn’t necessarily mean peace with the world. This chapter itself contains an example where
Asa was not at peace with the world around him.
Many of God’s prophets were not at peace. Jesus Himself was crucified by the
world. Jesus’ disciples were persecuted
heavily. Peace, an internal peace and a
spiritual peace, comes when we seek the Lord.
But when we don’t have peace with the world, we know that we will have
God’s eternal protection.
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