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Abijah and His Son Asa · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

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  Speaker 1: And he took away the Sodomites out of the land
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  Speaker 1: and removed all the idols that his fathers had made.
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  Speaker 1: 1 Kings 15.12 Dear Lord, more than ever, I desire
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  Speaker 1: to be a change agent in the world today. I
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  Speaker 1: desire to make a difference wherever I go because I
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  Speaker 1: know that I am a world changer. Whenever I enter
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  Speaker 1: a room or a new place I have not yet been,
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  Speaker 1: Give me the ability to be a physician to the
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  Speaker 1: hearts of others. Give me the right words to speak
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  Speaker 1: at just the right time. If there are any ungodly
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  Speaker 1: idols and limiting beliefs, like a skilled surgeon with a scalpel,
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  Speaker 1: allow me to operate in the areas of their lives
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  Speaker 1: that hinder them, so they are free to experience the
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  Speaker 1: full life you desire to bring to and through them.
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  Speaker 1: Give me the boldness of Asa to do what's right
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  Speaker 1: at the perfect time. Thank you that through you and
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  Speaker 1: your power, I can bring restoration and reconciliation to a
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  Speaker 1: broken world filled with limitless potential. In Jesus' name, amen.
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  Speaker 1: Listening to these daily prayers strengthens your relationship with God.
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  Speaker 1: Continue hearing from the Lord. by listening to today's Bible
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  Speaker 1: in a Year. Brought to you by BibleInAYear.com.
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  Speaker 2: Abijah and his son, Aether. In our last story, we
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  Speaker 2: learned about the downward spiral of Judah and Israel, their kings,
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  Speaker 2: Rehoboam and Jeroboam, led their people into an era of
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  Speaker 2: idol worship, war, and cynicism. The past glory of David
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  Speaker 2: and Solomon seemed like a distant memory, and the people
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  Speaker 2: of Israel grew accustomed to sin and shame. In this story,
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  Speaker 2: we witness the next generation of kings rise up. They
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  Speaker 2: too seem to be lost in the unhealthy patterns of
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  Speaker 2: idolatry and sin, just as their fathers. However, small glimpses
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  Speaker 2: of future hope emerge in the midst of sufferings, inspired
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  Speaker 2: by the book of 1 Kings.
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  Speaker 3: Hello, I'm Jack Graham with today's episode of the Bible
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  Speaker 3: in a Year podcast. But before we begin, I want
• 2:37
  Speaker 3: to let you know about a unique e-book that's yours
• 2:40
  Speaker 3: to download absolutely free today. It's called Breaking Free from Stress.
• 2:46
  Speaker 3: And my prayer is that it will help you conquer
• 2:48
  Speaker 3: the daily tasks and pressures and burdens that bring stress
• 2:52
  Speaker 3: in your life. Download your free copy of Breaking Free
• 2:55
  Speaker 3: from Stress today by visiting jackgram.org slash stress. That's jackgram.org
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  Speaker 3: slash stress. In our previous time together, we heard about
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  Speaker 3: the descent of Judah and Israel into idolatry and wickedness
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  Speaker 3: and therefore judgment. Under Kings Jeroboam and Rehoboam, God's people
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  Speaker 3: moved further and further away from the commandments of God.
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  Speaker 3: and the two nations suffered greatly because of it. These
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  Speaker 3: days were a far cry from the former glory of
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  Speaker 3: the unified nation of Israel under David and Solomon. Today
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  Speaker 3: we'll learn of the kings that followed Jeroboam and Rehoboam,
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  Speaker 3: and tragically, it will be more and more of the same,
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  Speaker 3: more evil and more judgment. But even in the midst
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  Speaker 3: of such unfaithfulness, we will see how God remains faithful
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  Speaker 3: to the descendants of David, to his spiritual family, Israel.
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  Speaker 3: And even in the presence of great suffering, there is
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  Speaker 3: a promise of hope for his people. A king will
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  Speaker 3: rise up in Judah who will have a heart for God.
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  Speaker 3: So let's listen now to today's reading.
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  Speaker 2: The sun set on the painful empire of King Rehoboam.
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  Speaker 2: The tyrant son of Solomon ruled the nation of Judah
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  Speaker 2: with harshness, arrogance, and ignorance. There was a hopelessness that
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  Speaker 2: permeated the streets of Jerusalem. Men who did not die
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  Speaker 2: in battle were destined to die in the hot sun
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  Speaker 2: working for the king. When Rehoboam died, his sin did
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  Speaker 2: not die with him. Out of his line came Abijam,
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  Speaker 2: the next king of Judah. He was harsh like his
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  Speaker 2: father and filled with a pompous spirit. His rule was
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  Speaker 2: marked with war and suffering. He fought against Israel constantly,
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  Speaker 2: and only lived to rule three years. Yet even in
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  Speaker 2: the sadness and despair, God continued to allow David's grandchildren
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  Speaker 2: to rule. God had made a promise to David that
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  Speaker 2: his descendants would bring about peace to the world. The
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  Speaker 2: evil of Rehoboam and Abijah was but a small stain
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  Speaker 2: on the vast tapestry of God's story. Redemption would come,
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  Speaker 2: just not yet. When Abijam died, his son Atha became king.
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  Speaker 2: One day, Aether was walking the city streets. As new
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  Speaker 2: king of Judah, he desired to truly know who was ruling.
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  Speaker 2: He watched as shrine prostitutes lured men and women into
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  Speaker 2: their arms. He smelled the incense burning at altars dedicated
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  Speaker 2: to false gods. He heard the screams and cries of
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  Speaker 2: women and children being taken advantage of. Unlike his father
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  Speaker 2: and grandfather before him, Aether looked at these things with
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  Speaker 2: sadness in his soul. Aether was gifted with a righteous
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  Speaker 2: heart and looked to God as a source of strength
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  Speaker 2: and wisdom. The heart of David was still alive and
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  Speaker 2: well in him. Aether knew he had to take a
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  Speaker 2: hard stance against the evil that gripped Judah's heart. While
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  Speaker 2: his father saw the enemy as Israel, Aether saw the
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  Speaker 2: true enemy as idols. Aether waved a righteous hand through
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  Speaker 2: the streets of Jerusalem. He called for his men to
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  Speaker 2: banish the shrine prostitutes and topple the idols of foreign gods.
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  Speaker 2: Atha even banished his own grandmother, who was responsible for
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  Speaker 2: leading hundreds of people astray with the worship of Asherah.
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  Speaker 2: Atha desired for Judah's heart to be cleansed with the
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  Speaker 2: refreshing wave of God's presence. He knew that this would
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  Speaker 2: be no easy task. He restored riches back into the
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  Speaker 2: temple of God. However, conflict still knocked on Atha's door.
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  Speaker 2: The nation of Israel was still in a season of wickedness.
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  Speaker 2: King Basha of Israel launched attack after attack against Judah.
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  Speaker 2: Arrows and steel penetrated the walls of Jerusalem. Mather remained calm.
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  Speaker 2: Before he launched a counterattack, he took some of the
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  Speaker 2: riches from the temple and put it to good use.
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  Speaker 2: He used it to form an alliance with the nation
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  Speaker 2: of Damascus. Together they formed a treaty and fortified Judah
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  Speaker 2: to withstand the onslaught of Israel. Israel had been building
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  Speaker 2: fortification within the borders of Judah. However, when they heard
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  Speaker 2: that Judah had gained an ally, they abandoned their project
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  Speaker 2: and left. Atha was a thoughtful man and wise beyond
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  Speaker 2: his years like Solomon. He knew that the people needed
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  Speaker 2: to take care of their land. He believed strongly that
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  Speaker 2: if the people of Judah band together, they would be
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  Speaker 2: stronger and closer. So Atha sent a royal decree throughout
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  Speaker 2: the land, having every citizen clean the wreckage that had
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  Speaker 2: been caused by Israel's armies. Together the people galvanized under
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  Speaker 2: the leadership of Atha. His reign was marked with growth.
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  Speaker 2: In many ways, Atha worked as a physician over the
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  Speaker 2: sick hearts of Judah. He cleansed them of the disease
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  Speaker 2: of idolatry. He strengthened them with the presence of God.
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  Speaker 2: When Atha died, his son Jehoshaphat became king over Judah.
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  Speaker 3: As today's scripture passage begins, Rehoboam's reign has ended, but
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  Speaker 3: his legacy endures through his son Abijam. Where David was
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  Speaker 3: a humble king and quick to repent when he sinned
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  Speaker 3: and a ruler who truly cared for the souls of
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  Speaker 3: his people, Rehoboam had been prideful and cruel. David, the
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  Speaker 3: great king, was a man who had a vision for
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  Speaker 3: God's glory, but Rehoboam had only his own glory in mind,
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  Speaker 3: and so the people had suffered and perished under his
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  Speaker 3: terrible rule. Abisham followed in his father's footsteps. surely having
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  Speaker 3: observed his father. We tend to think of legacies in
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  Speaker 3: a positive light, but the truth is that we all
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  Speaker 3: leave a legacy for our children and for our families,
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  Speaker 3: whether it is good or whether it is bad. And
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  Speaker 3: Abijam was left with a legacy of idolatry, pride, and cruelty.
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  Speaker 3: And so Judah continued to suffer, and the people gave
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  Speaker 3: their hearts to false gods and their own wicked desires.
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  Speaker 3: We have to wonder why God continued to allow these
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  Speaker 3: evil kings to rule his people. But we also remember
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  Speaker 3: from God's word that our Lord had promised David that
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  Speaker 3: one of his descendants would one day bring peace to
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  Speaker 3: the world. And God always keeps his promises. You can
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  Speaker 3: count on the fact that God is always true to
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  Speaker 3: his word. He is faithful. And though the time had
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  Speaker 3: not yet come for the true and one final prince
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  Speaker 3: of peace to enter the scene, the Messiah, God did
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  Speaker 3: allow David's family to remain on the throne, and sometimes
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  Speaker 3: one of those descendants offered just a bit of hope
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  Speaker 3: in an otherwise dark time of history for the people
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  Speaker 3: of God. When Abijan died, he was succeeded by his
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  Speaker 3: son Asa, and this young man was different. Unlike his
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  Speaker 3: father and his grandfather, Asa loved the Lord. It really
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  Speaker 3: is time for some good news in our reading, isn't it?
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  Speaker 3: This man, Asa, loved the Lord and sought after God.
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  Speaker 3: Asa was likened not to his immediate predecessors, but to
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  Speaker 3: Israel's great king. 1 Kings 15.11 says this, And Asa
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  Speaker 3: did what was right in the eyes of the Lord,
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  Speaker 3: as David his father had done. We should pray that
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  Speaker 3: we would leave a godly legacy with our children and
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  Speaker 3: our children's children. The fact is that all of our titles,
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  Speaker 3: our wealth, our social standing or status, none of those
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  Speaker 3: things matter if we do not do what is right
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  Speaker 3: in the eyes of the Lord. Asa was a godly king.
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  Speaker 3: And he saw the sin in Judah and the suffering
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  Speaker 3: of God's people. He understood that the cause was unfaithfulness
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  Speaker 3: to God, sin against a holy God. So he tore
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  Speaker 3: down the shrines and banished the prostitutes who stood outside
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  Speaker 3: the shrines. But Asa did not just clean up the
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  Speaker 3: streets and remove the idols from the people. He cleaned
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  Speaker 3: his own house. And he banished his own mother because
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  Speaker 3: she was leading people astray and into idol worship. Years later,
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  Speaker 3: our Lord Jesus would say, you must be willing to
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  Speaker 3: leave father and mother, if necessary, to follow me, that
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  Speaker 3: nothing can be above me. Not even the bond of
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  Speaker 3: family can be stronger than our commitment to follow Jesus.
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  Speaker 3: Asa understood this about his relationship with God. He not
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  Speaker 3: only took down the pagan symbols, but he also honored
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  Speaker 3: God by restoring treasures to the temple in Jerusalem. Powerful
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  Speaker 3: changes were being made in Judah. Revival was happening as
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  Speaker 3: people were turning their hearts back to God. But all
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  Speaker 3: was still not well in Judah. From the north, Israel's king, Bahashah,
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  Speaker 3: attacked and began to fortify the city of Ramah within
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  Speaker 3: Judah's borders. Asa remained focused and calm. Rather than rushing
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  Speaker 3: into war and costing many lives in his army, Asa
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  Speaker 3: formed an alliance with Damascus. Together they fortified Judah for
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  Speaker 3: a potential war and this alone sent Israel packing, fearful
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  Speaker 3: of a conflict with Judah and its ally. Because Asa
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  Speaker 3: had turned back to God and turned his nation from idolatry,
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  Speaker 3: he was able to unify the people and God's powerful
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  Speaker 3: presence returned to Judah. Tomorrow, We will meet a man
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  Speaker 3: whose heart was also on fire for God, and he
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  Speaker 3: would become a powerful force in the kingdom, speaking God's
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  Speaker 3: truth to a stubborn and sinful people. Dear God, we
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  Speaker 3: thank you for the story of King Asa. It's such
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  Speaker 3: a positive and hopeful word in the midst of so
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  Speaker 3: much judgment and sin and suffering in Israel. We thank
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  Speaker 3: you that you raised up this godly man to continue
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  Speaker 3: the line of Christ through the Bible. We pray that we,
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  Speaker 3: like Asa, will make good decisions in our lives and
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  Speaker 3: always turn our lives and our families towards you. May
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  Speaker 3: our legacy be a legacy of faith and faithfulness to you.
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  Speaker 3: In Jesus' name, amen. Thank you for listening to today's
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  Speaker 3: Bible in a Year podcast. Before we go, I want
• 13:17
  Speaker 3: to let you know about a unique e-book that's yours
• 13:20
  Speaker 3: to download absolutely free today. It's called Breaking Free from Stress.
• 13:26
  Speaker 3: And my prayer is that it will help you conquer
• 13:28
  Speaker 3: the daily task and pressures and burdens that bring stress
• 13:32
  Speaker 3: into your life. Download your free copy of Breaking Free
• 13:35
  Speaker 3: from Stress today by visiting jackgram.org slash stress. That's jackgram.org
• 13:43
  Speaker 3: slash stress.