A good beginning and a good ending
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Text: 2 Kings 14:1-7, 17-22)
Now that the new year and the Lunar New Year have passed, we start the year with a new heart and wish you a good start and a good ending.
According to today's text, at the age of 25, he ascended to the throne as the ninth king of the southern kingdom of Judah, reigned for 29 years, and was killed by rebels at the age of 54 and buried in the City of David in Jerusalem. It was wages. There was a reason why it happened.
1. It started well, but the end was bad.
In verse 3, King Amaziah had a good start.
“He did what was right in the sight of the Lord” These words show that, in the eyes of God that sees even the secret things, ① he went straight, ② he was not guilty of sin, and ③ he lived uprightly. Verse 5 says that as a result, “the kingdom was established in his hand.” From this, we can see that he put a lot of effort to serve God well and to rule the country well. Nevertheless, he was not like King David, and he did not remove the high places of idols, so he could not turn the people's hearts to God. Although his personality and faith were inferior to that of David, King Amaziah could not do it if he had kept his heart in the first place.
Let's confess to the Lord at this time with the determination "I will live my life according to the Lord's will" and "I am a person who does it once."
2. Even when I saw what was wrong, I couldn't discern it.
King Amaziah once saw his father, King Joash, worshiping idols and disobeying and disobeying the words of God's servant, the Prophet, as well as being murdered by rebels because he sinned against God. As he fell into the tricks of his servants and forsakes God and serves Asherah poles and idols, he ends up facing the same fate as his father, King Joash, who was shattered by rebels.
The Bible is a mirror. The mirror of God's Word is to see what you did well and resemble them, and to watch and beware of what you did wrong. People sometimes seem wise, but on the other hand they see things that are infinitely stupid and foolish. Had King Amaziah been wary of his father's wrongdoing, he would not have died so miserably. In the Bible, the believers and unbelievers, those who prayed and those who did not pray, those who trusted in God and those who trusted in themselves, those who succeeded and those who failed, those who are blessed and those who are cursed, are written in the Bible. This means, ‘You must make up your mind’ when you see this. Deuteronomy 11:26-28 says, “I set before you today a blessing and a curse, and it will be a blessing if you hear and obey the commands of God that I command you. ” he said. Buy as you say. Then you will be transformed into a prosperous and blessed life. As a German proverb says, “An apple falls not far from its branch.” My words and actions revolve around my life, stay and follow me like a shadow.
Dear brothers and sisters, do not begin with the Spirit and end with the flesh. If you did well when you were young, let's do better when you grow up. If we believed well before marriage, let us believe more well after marriage. If we have kept our faith during hardships, let's have stronger faith after hardships. Let's live our lives by reaping the beauty of enduring species consistently (始終一貫). Can the saints who call God Abba Father live like dogs and pigs because they are the lord of all things, the image of God, and were purchased with the blood of Jesus Christ?
Proverbs 25:25 says, “God destroys the house of the proud.” King Amaziah began to become arrogant after his country became strong, his national strength became stronger, and he won the war against Edom. We hope that the saints of our shepherd will remain humble before God with no change from beginning to end.
Dear members of Shepherd Church,
Let's not forget our initial enthusiasm and determination. Let's not forget the grace and emotion we received for the first time. I pray in the name of Jesus that the happiness of those pure and beautiful days when I first realized the love of the Lord will be restored and continued until the day the Lord comes. Hallelujah!!!!