Latest / Bible in a Year with Jack Graham / Justice, Honor, and Music

Transcript

Justice, Honor, and Music · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: So the realm of Jehoshaphat was quiet, for his God
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: gave him rest round about. 2 Chronicles 20.30 Dear God,
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: as I evaluate my life and meditate on your plans
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: for me, thank you for sharing this truth in today's reading.
• 0:20
  Speaker 1: I acknowledge that my strength and wisdom doesn't come from
• 0:24
  Speaker 1: reinventing the wheel, but in standing steadfast in your strategies.
• 0:29
  Speaker 1: and perfect plan. Therefore, as I make decisions in my life,
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: I will stay mindful and not partake in battles that
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: I'm not called to fight. I will not create ties
• 0:42
  Speaker 1: with others who aren't on the same frequency of my destiny.
• 0:47
  Speaker 1: Thank you for forgiving me, even when wrong partnerships arise.
• 0:52
  Speaker 1: Thank you for dissolving harmful relationships in my life. Because
• 0:56
  Speaker 1: I am called to be different and do different, I
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: will stand confident when my life and decisions are unorthodox
• 1:05
  Speaker 1: compared to others like Jehoshaphat. With your cosign on my life,
• 1:11
  Speaker 1: I will declare that victory will come in unorthodox ways
• 1:16
  Speaker 1: and that my only fight will be to stand strong
• 1:19
  Speaker 1: in your power and might. In Jesus' name, Amen. Thank
• 1:27
  Speaker 1: you for praying with us today. Continue your time with
• 1:30
  Speaker 1: God by listening to today's Bible story, brought to you
• 1:34
  Speaker 1: by BibleInAYear.com.
• 1:43
  Speaker 2: Justice, honor, and music. In our last story, Jehoshaphat became
• 1:50
  Speaker 2: king over Judah and ruled righteously. He sent out teachers
• 1:54
  Speaker 2: and priests to care for the people and teach them
• 1:57
  Speaker 2: God's ways. He built cities and fortified towns that had
• 2:01
  Speaker 2: no defenses. He amassed wealth, respect, and protection for Judah.
• 2:06
  Speaker 2: He even built alliances with other nations and brokered an
• 2:09
  Speaker 2: era of peace in the land. However, his alliance with
• 2:13
  Speaker 2: Ahab the king of Israel proved to be unwise, as
• 2:17
  Speaker 2: Ahab led them into an unwinnable battle. Ahab died, as
• 2:22
  Speaker 2: was God's will. Now we learn more about the rule
• 2:25
  Speaker 2: and reign of King Jehoshaphat. His desire for justice and
• 2:29
  Speaker 2: honor spreads throughout the whole land. And in Israel's greatest
• 2:33
  Speaker 2: moment of threat, he leans upon God even when it
• 2:36
  Speaker 2: may seem unorthodox. Inspired by the book of 2 Chronicles.
• 2:44
  Speaker 3: I'm so glad you joined us on the Bible in
• 2:46
  Speaker 3: a Year podcast today. But before we get to today's episode,
• 2:51
  Speaker 3: I want you to know that I would absolutely love
• 2:53
  Speaker 3: to send you my daily devotional that will give you
• 2:57
  Speaker 3: fresh encouragement every single morning and day. From the moment
• 3:01
  Speaker 3: we wake up to the moment our head finally hits
• 3:04
  Speaker 3: the pillow, there are thousands of things demanding our attention.
• 3:09
  Speaker 3: But it's in the midst of all this crush and
• 3:11
  Speaker 3: hustle and bustle that you and I need peace and
• 3:14
  Speaker 3: truth in God's word. That's why I want to help
• 3:17
  Speaker 3: you spend time each day growing in God's life-giving, life-changing
• 3:22
  Speaker 3: Word by sending you my free daily email devotional, PowerPoint Today.
• 3:29
  Speaker 3: So visit JackGraham.org to sign up for your PowerPoint Today devotional.
• 3:34
  Speaker 3: That's JackGraham.org. JackGraham.org. In our previous episode, we learned about
• 3:42
  Speaker 3: King Jehoshaphat in Judah. Unlike Ahab in Israel, Jehoshaphat followed
• 3:47
  Speaker 3: God's heart and worked hard to rid the nation of
• 3:50
  Speaker 3: sin and idolatry. Because of this, he and all of
• 3:54
  Speaker 3: Judah with him prospered. Seeking peace for Judah, Jehoshaphat forged
• 3:59
  Speaker 3: an alliance with Ahab, and we heard the last time
• 4:02
  Speaker 3: how Ahab sought to go to battle with Syria despite
• 4:05
  Speaker 3: the Lord's warning that the war would mean his demise.
• 4:09
  Speaker 3: And so as we closed out the passage, Abraham died
• 4:13
  Speaker 3: on the battlefield, and though the war was lost, the
• 4:17
  Speaker 3: Lord protected Jehoshaphat in battle. So today, we're going to
• 4:22
  Speaker 3: hear more about this righteous king and how he sought
• 4:25
  Speaker 3: to do God's will and to bring honor and glory
• 4:28
  Speaker 3: to the nation. We'll see how in all things this
• 4:31
  Speaker 3: noble king sought to obey God and lived in dependence
• 4:35
  Speaker 3: upon Him to gain victory after victory. So let's listen
• 4:39
  Speaker 3: today to God's Word.
• 4:42
  Speaker 2: The battle against Syria had taken its toll on Judah.
• 4:46
  Speaker 2: Hundreds of men were lost in a battle meant for
• 4:48
  Speaker 2: another kingdom. King Ahab had taken advantage of their alliance
• 4:52
  Speaker 2: to win back a city he had lost. As a result,
• 4:56
  Speaker 2: King Jehoshaphat was forced into a battle God did not
• 4:59
  Speaker 2: intend for him to fight. Ahab was slain, the battle
• 5:03
  Speaker 2: was lost, and now the king of Judah returned home
• 5:06
  Speaker 2: dejected and ashamed. Jehoshaphat walked into the palace and removed
• 5:10
  Speaker 2: his armor. He was sore from battle and travel. His
• 5:14
  Speaker 2: bones ached and his heart was heavy because of the
• 5:17
  Speaker 2: loss of his men. All seemed dark in the once
• 5:21
  Speaker 2: bright and shining kingdom of Judah. Jehoshaphat sat down on
• 5:25
  Speaker 2: his throne, closed his eyes, and released a deep sigh.
• 5:29
  Speaker 2: Then he heard the doors open abruptly in front of him.
• 5:33
  Speaker 2: Walking in was a prophet by the name of Jehu.
• 5:36
  Speaker 2: A look of disappointment was clear on his face. He
• 5:39
  Speaker 2: approached the run-down king and spoke forcibly. Why would you
• 5:43
  Speaker 2: align yourself with people who clearly hate the Lord? He
• 5:47
  Speaker 2: asked the king. God's anger is kindled against you. Tears
• 5:51
  Speaker 2: began to stream down Jehoshaphat's face as he listened to
• 5:54
  Speaker 2: Jehu scold him. He knew he had compromised the integrity
• 5:58
  Speaker 2: of his kingdom. He had worked so hard to remove
• 6:02
  Speaker 2: the idols and false gods from the land, and now
• 6:05
  Speaker 2: he had partnered with the corrupt kingdom of Israel. He
• 6:09
  Speaker 2: lowered his head in sadness. Jehu saw the remorse on
• 6:12
  Speaker 2: the king's face. He breathed deeply for a moment and
• 6:17
  Speaker 2: changed his tone. He walked up and put a gentle
• 6:20
  Speaker 2: hand on Jehoshaphat's shoulder. Even so, there is much good
• 6:24
  Speaker 2: in you, my king. You have removed all the false
• 6:27
  Speaker 2: gods from this land. You have committed yourself and the
• 6:31
  Speaker 2: kingdom to God. With those words, Jehu left his king
• 6:35
  Speaker 2: to be with the Lord. Jehoshaphat arose the next morning
• 6:39
  Speaker 2: with purpose and vision for the future of Judah. He
• 6:43
  Speaker 2: left his home in Jerusalem to travel the land. He
• 6:46
  Speaker 2: visited every city, farm, village, and family in the land.
• 6:50
  Speaker 2: He would pray for them, speak with them, and listen
• 6:52
  Speaker 2: to the needs of his people. He would encourage them
• 6:55
  Speaker 2: to return to the Lord if they had strayed. He
• 6:58
  Speaker 2: would remind them of their rich heritage in God. Then,
• 7:02
  Speaker 2: in each part of the country he went, he would
• 7:05
  Speaker 2: appoint a judge over them. These judges would help fortify
• 7:08
  Speaker 2: the towns and lead the people in any disputes. He
• 7:12
  Speaker 2: gave them specific order to act justly and think carefully
• 7:15
  Speaker 2: about each and every trial that came their way. Remember,
• 7:19
  Speaker 2: he would order them, you do not live to please
• 7:22
  Speaker 2: the people, but the Lord. May he be with you
• 7:25
  Speaker 2: in every case. Fear the Lord, judge with integrity, and
• 7:29
  Speaker 2: do not tolerate corruption. When Jehoshaphat returned from his travels,
• 7:34
  Speaker 2: He appointed some Levites and priests to be clan leaders
• 7:38
  Speaker 2: over the city. They would oversee cases involving the law
• 7:41
  Speaker 2: of God and justice over civil disputes. He encouraged the
• 7:45
  Speaker 2: men to stay away from a corrupt heart and pursue
• 7:48
  Speaker 2: righteousness at all costs. They were to have the final
• 7:52
  Speaker 2: say as judges over the land and matters too large
• 7:54
  Speaker 2: for the smaller judges. So slowly, Jehoshaphat began to bring
• 7:59
  Speaker 2: a culture of love and justice to the people of Judah. However,
• 8:03
  Speaker 2: darkness lurked in the wilderness awaiting a perfect time to
• 8:06
  Speaker 2: strike the peaceful people of Judah. The Moabites and Ammonites
• 8:10
  Speaker 2: aligned together to overtake the people of Judah. They amassed
• 8:14
  Speaker 2: a great and mighty army to come against Jehoshaphat and
• 8:17
  Speaker 2: the men of God. Their military might was so vast
• 8:21
  Speaker 2: that Jehoshaphat could not dream of defeating them on his own.
• 8:25
  Speaker 2: So Jehoshaphat assembled the entire nation of Judah to pray
• 8:29
  Speaker 2: and fast to the Lord for help. Together, They sought
• 8:33
  Speaker 2: wisdom and protection from the threatening horde approaching. And Judah
• 8:38
  Speaker 2: assembled to seek help from the Lord. From all the
• 8:42
  Speaker 2: cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord. Men, women,
• 8:46
  Speaker 2: and children joined Jehoshaphat in prayer, seeking him and leaning
• 8:50
  Speaker 2: on his wisdom. Finally the Lord spoke to Jehoshaphat, saying,
• 8:54
  Speaker 2: Do not be afraid, do not be dismayed, for the
• 8:58
  Speaker 2: battle is not yours but mine. Tomorrow you shall go
• 9:02
  Speaker 2: down against them. When they ascend, you will find them
• 9:05
  Speaker 2: in a valley towards the east. I promise you that
• 9:09
  Speaker 2: you will not need to fight this battle. Hold your
• 9:11
  Speaker 2: position and watch the salvation of God unfold before you.
• 9:16
  Speaker 2: Jehoshaphat bowed his head and fell flat on the ground.
• 9:20
  Speaker 2: He worshipped God, arose, and prepared his men for battle.
• 9:24
  Speaker 2: They went into the wilderness towards the east as God
• 9:27
  Speaker 2: had commanded. Jehoshaphat stood before his people. They were antsy
• 9:31
  Speaker 2: for a fight. Many of them did not quite trust
• 9:34
  Speaker 2: that God would provide victory for them without fighting. Jehoshaphat
• 9:39
  Speaker 2: raised his voice for all to hear. Hear me! Believe
• 9:43
  Speaker 2: in the Lord your God!
• 9:45
  Speaker 3: He shouted.
• 9:46
  Speaker 2: As he was speaking, they could see the Ammonite and
• 9:48
  Speaker 2: Moabite army partnered with the people of Mount Seir, forming
• 9:52
  Speaker 2: in the distance. The earth shook at their numbers. The
• 9:56
  Speaker 2: three people groups rumbled and prepared for battle against Judah. Slowly,
• 10:01
  Speaker 2: they began to make their march towards the armies of Judah.
• 10:05
  Speaker 2: Jehoshaphat stood his ground. It was tempting to not call
• 10:08
  Speaker 2: his archers to the front, but instead he did something
• 10:12
  Speaker 2: so wildly unorthodox that there has never been a commander
• 10:15
  Speaker 2: to so since. Jehoshaphat called forth the musicians of Judah
• 10:20
  Speaker 2: to the front of the battle lines. The king stood
• 10:23
  Speaker 2: among them and raised his hands towards the battlefield. Give
• 10:27
  Speaker 2: thanks to God, he shouted, for his love endures forever.
• 10:32
  Speaker 2: And like a mighty roar, the voices of Judah sang
• 10:35
  Speaker 2: praises to God along with the music. As they sang
• 10:39
  Speaker 2: praises to God, the people of Mount Seir rerouted, and
• 10:42
  Speaker 2: the Moabites and the Ammonites pursued them. The men of
• 10:46
  Speaker 2: Judah watched as the confused and divided alliance began destroying
• 10:50
  Speaker 2: one another. They listened to the clanging of metal and
• 10:53
  Speaker 2: bones clashed in the distance. A civil war broke out
• 10:57
  Speaker 2: in real time before them, and the Moabite and Ammonite
• 11:01
  Speaker 2: armies were completely consumed.
• 11:02
  Speaker 3: By one another.
• 11:04
  Speaker 2: Silence fell upon the valley, and the people of Judah
• 11:07
  Speaker 2: approached the scorched earth where the battle had taken place.
• 11:11
  Speaker 2: Blood and dust covered the atmosphere. and riches lay on
• 11:14
  Speaker 2: the floor for the taking. The Lord had provided victory
• 11:18
  Speaker 2: without any need for them to lift up a spear.
• 11:22
  Speaker 2: Thus Jehoshaphat reigned over Judah for twenty-five years. His heart
• 11:26
  Speaker 2: for the Lord mirrored that of his forefather David. He
• 11:30
  Speaker 2: dedicated the rest of his rule towards the flourishing of
• 11:33
  Speaker 2: his people as they honored God and one another. His kindness, wisdom,
• 11:37
  Speaker 2: and justice was well known among the land. Tales of
• 11:41
  Speaker 2: God's victory against the Moabite and Ammonite armies protected them
• 11:45
  Speaker 2: from trouble for years to come.
• 11:51
  Speaker 3: As we begin today's reading, Jehoshaphat has been defeated in battle.
• 11:56
  Speaker 3: His alliance with Ahab and Israel had proven costly for
• 11:59
  Speaker 3: his nation, though not as costly as for Ahab who
• 12:03
  Speaker 3: lost his life to the Syrian army. Still, Jehoshaphat knew
• 12:08
  Speaker 3: his decision to align himself with a man like Ahab
• 12:11
  Speaker 3: had come at a great cost. So it wasn't a
• 12:14
  Speaker 3: surprise when Jehoshaphat faced a prophet by the name of Jehu.
• 12:19
  Speaker 3: Jehu came with a message from God. Jehu told the
• 12:24
  Speaker 3: king that God's anger had been stirred by Jehoshaphat. When
• 12:27
  Speaker 3: he went into battle, he knew that God did not
• 12:29
  Speaker 3: desire him to fight. Jehoshaphat did not make excuses. nor
• 12:35
  Speaker 3: did he lash out at the messenger. He listened to
• 12:39
  Speaker 3: the prophet. And the next words he heard surely gave
• 12:42
  Speaker 3: him great comfort and consolation. For Jehu then said that
• 12:46
  Speaker 3: God saw the good in the king, his cleansing the
• 12:49
  Speaker 3: country of idolatry and sin and seeking after the law
• 12:53
  Speaker 3: of the Lord. This had not gone unnoticed by God.
• 12:58
  Speaker 3: In life, God will choose to discipline us when we
• 13:01
  Speaker 3: need it, but that is for the purpose of correcting us.
• 13:05
  Speaker 3: And God is now correcting Jehoshaphat like a good father
• 13:09
  Speaker 3: would correct his son. And all the while, he is
• 13:12
  Speaker 3: extending grace and mercy to the king because God knew
• 13:16
  Speaker 3: his heart. And the heart of Jehoshaphat was one that
• 13:20
  Speaker 3: sought justice, honor, and to turn the people back to God.
• 13:25
  Speaker 3: He traveled throughout the nation to advise people to go
• 13:29
  Speaker 3: back to the Lord. The nation needed revival. He knew
• 13:33
  Speaker 3: that his task was too big for one man, even
• 13:36
  Speaker 3: though he was a king. So Jehoshaphat appointed judges to
• 13:40
  Speaker 3: each region to protect the towns, settle disputes, and maintain order.
• 13:46
  Speaker 3: God is, after all, a God of order and justice,
• 13:50
  Speaker 3: not chaos and confusion. He gave careful instructions to the
• 13:56
  Speaker 3: judges as to how to follow God's will and not
• 13:58
  Speaker 3: man's desires. He then appointed priests and Levites to rule
• 14:03
  Speaker 3: on matters of justice and God's law. Slowly, steadily, surely,
• 14:09
  Speaker 3: Judah was returning to a place of dependence upon God.
• 14:13
  Speaker 3: And as so often happens in life, when things begin
• 14:16
  Speaker 3: to take shape and fall into place, another threat arose.
• 14:21
  Speaker 3: The Moabites, the Ammonites, and the Muneites began to assemble
• 14:25
  Speaker 3: to attack. This was no small army, and Jehoshaphat knew
• 14:30
  Speaker 3: They were too great a foe to overcome, even with
• 14:33
  Speaker 3: a powerful army. So in 2 Chronicles 20 verses 3
• 14:37
  Speaker 3: and 4, here's what we read. Then Jehoshaphat was afraid
• 14:41
  Speaker 3: and set his face to seek the Lord and proclaimed
• 14:44
  Speaker 3: a fast throughout all Judah. And Judah assembled to seek
• 14:48
  Speaker 3: help from the Lord from all the cities of Judah
• 14:50
  Speaker 3: that came to seek the Lord. Do you see what
• 14:53
  Speaker 3: is happening here? The king doesn't know what to do.
• 14:57
  Speaker 3: There's a battle that is coming and He feels so unqualified.
• 15:02
  Speaker 3: So what did he do? He called the nation to
• 15:04
  Speaker 3: fast and pray. He gets on his knees and he
• 15:08
  Speaker 3: seeks the Lord. He even says, Lord, we do not
• 15:11
  Speaker 3: know what to do, but our eyes are on you.
• 15:16
  Speaker 3: Prayer is a powerful spiritual weapon. In fact, prayer is
• 15:19
  Speaker 3: a kind of battlefield in which we fight our spiritual battles.
• 15:24
  Speaker 3: And because Jehoshaphat begins to pray and obey, The nation
• 15:29
  Speaker 3: of Judah joins him in the fasting and praying. And
• 15:33
  Speaker 3: God answered with reassurance and told the king not to
• 15:36
  Speaker 3: fear that the battle was won. The victory was already his.
• 15:42
  Speaker 3: So when it was time for the battle, the army assembled.
• 15:46
  Speaker 3: But rather than lead with archers and swordsmen, soldiers, Jehoshaphat
• 15:51
  Speaker 3: called the musicians to the front line. And with great
• 15:55
  Speaker 3: shouts of praise, they proclaimed the enduring love of God
• 15:58
  Speaker 3: and his goodness to his people. The battle begins with praise. Miraculously,
• 16:06
  Speaker 3: the enemy turned on itself, waging a battle that Judah's
• 16:09
  Speaker 3: fighters never even had to fight until the enemy was
• 16:12
  Speaker 3: completely destroyed. So just as God had promised victory was
• 16:17
  Speaker 3: given to Judah that day, praise is the victory. because
• 16:22
  Speaker 3: praise enters in the presence of God, and God responds
• 16:26
  Speaker 3: when His people pray and praise Him. That day would
• 16:30
  Speaker 3: live on in memory as a sign of God's enduring
• 16:33
  Speaker 3: faithfulness and goodness. And to this very day, we sing
• 16:37
  Speaker 3: and we worship God, knowing that there is victory in
• 16:41
  Speaker 3: our Savior. Dear God, we thank You for Jehoshaphat's example
• 16:46
  Speaker 3: in today's message. Lord, there are times that we don't
• 16:50
  Speaker 3: know what to do. that our problems are so perplexing
• 16:54
  Speaker 3: and so difficult that we have no idea as to
• 16:57
  Speaker 3: what we are to say, what we are to pray.
• 17:00
  Speaker 3: But when we don't know what to do, we keep
• 17:02
  Speaker 3: our eyes on you. We trust in you and seek
• 17:05
  Speaker 3: your face because we know that you will fight our
• 17:09
  Speaker 3: battles and that the battle is the Lord's. In Christ's name, amen.
• 17:15
  Speaker 3: Thank you for listening to today's Bible in a Year podcast.
• 17:18
  Speaker 3: I'm Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas. And before we go,
• 17:22
  Speaker 3: I want you to know that I would love to
• 17:23
  Speaker 3: send you my daily devotional to give you fresh encouragement
• 17:27
  Speaker 3: every single day. So visit jackgraham.org to sign up for
• 17:32
  Speaker 3: your PowerPoint Today devotional. That's jackgraham.org.