King Eglon Must Die!

One of my favourite Bible passages growing up is found in Judges 3, when Ehud assassinated King Eglon of Moab.  For 18 years the children of Israel had been oppressed by the corpulent Eglon, who rallied the people of Ammon and Amalek against them.  God heard the cries of His people and raised up Ehud as a deliverer, a left-handed man.  He fashioned a two-edged dagger - too short to be considered a sword - and smuggled it under his clothes.  After giving a payment of tribute, Ehud sought an audience with King Eglon, saying he had a secret message for him.  Judges 3:20-23 contains the gruesome details:  "And Ehud came to him (now he was sitting upstairs in his cool private chamber). Then Ehud said, "I have a message from God for you." So he arose from his seat. ²¹ Then Ehud reached with his left hand, took the dagger from his right thigh, and thrust it into his belly. ²² Even the hilt went in after the blade, and the fat closed over the blade, for he did not draw the dagger out of his belly; and his entrails came out. ²³ Then Ehud went out through the porch and shut the doors of the upper room behind him and locked them."  Ehud escaped, gathered the people together, and subdued the Moabites.  God saved His people from their enemies, and they enjoyed peace for 80 years.

As a kid, I confess I wasn't looking for a spiritual application to this passage.  Maybe I led a sheltered life (which I did, no doubt!), but it was exciting reading.  There are many spiritual truths in this passage to glean and profit from.  As the passage came to mind yesterday, it occurred to me Ehud knew who his enemy was and how to defeat him.  This is huge.  He wasn't content with attacks on a Moabite garrison, or to hurl insults from a distance.  He would not be pleased to sabotage equipment or boast a large body count from his assaults:  he had his sight set on the king!  Ehud devised an effective strategy to defeat his enemy, and knew his weak spot.  King Eglon was powerless to attack or resist after the sword was plunged home.

The Word of God (the Bible) is called the sword of the Spirit in Ephesians 6:17.  2 Timothy 3:16-17 also says, "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, ¹⁷ that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work."  Ehud was a man who carefully picked his shots.  He was not going to attack lackeys, village elders, or servants when he could end oppression once and for all by killing the king!  Eglon is a good representation of the flesh and its excesses.  Too often we can wage war on symptoms and neglect to deal with the heart of the matter.  Eglon had many servants, and to attempt a fight against them would have been fruitless and incited greater oppression.  Making our personal battles focused on mere behaviour will lead to eventual and certain defeat.  The enemy is enthroned within the stronghold and well-fortified!  The sword of the Spirit is effective at revealing our motives, and the Holy Spirit is able to wield it masterfully to expose hidden sin in us.  The razor-sharp cutting edge of the Word must be applied to our hearts and only when we repent will Eglon fall.

At this very moment, the Eglon in all of us is plotting his revenge.  Silently and subtlety he rallies his forces so he once again can rule. Thankfully we have the wisdom of God and the sword of the Spirit to finish him off.  The only way to defeat the flesh is to kill it, and Jesus was crucified so we might experience life abundant and everlasting.  Paul wrote in Galatians 2:20, "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."  When the sword of the Spirit is applied faithfully to our hearts, we experience the peace of God and fulness of joy.  How good it is to be free!

The Refinery of God's Word

God's ways are truly higher than man's ways, and His thoughts are beyond our wildest expectation, imagination, or explanation.  The life of Joseph is a good example of this.  As a young man, God revealed the future to Joseph through a couple of dreams.  God showed him the end, but did not reveal the time frame or the process.  His brothers hated Joseph because of the special treatment he received from his father Jacob.  Fueled by bitterness and envy, they sold Joseph to traders heading to Egypt.  If you think Joseph was at peace to be sold because "it was all in God's plan," you are incorrect.  Tormented by guilt years later his brothers said to one another in Genesis 42:21, "We are truly guilty concerning our brother, for we saw the anguish of his soul when he pleaded with us, and we would not hear; therefore this distress has come upon us."

In anguish of soul, Joseph was brought to Egypt and sold as a slave.  After being promoted in Potiphar's house, he was falsely accused of rape and imprisoned.  As the years passed, I am sure at times Joseph questioned the reality of God's word given to him in his youth.  He found favour with the warden in prison, and was placed in charge of the inmates.  But was this role the fulfillment of those dreams?  I am sure he wondered.  Being an imprisoned slave in a foreign country because his brothers hated and sold him was no doubt a grievous trial.  Yet Joseph continued to trust God and sought to be used by Him.  A butler and baker were troubled by dreams they had on the same night, and with God's guidance gave them a true interpretation.  When the butler was restored to serving Pharaoh, he forgot all about Joseph.  Not only was Joseph imprisoned, but also forgotten!

Two years after interpreting the butler's dream, Pharaoh had a series of dreams which troubled him.  There was none in Egypt who was able to interpret them.  The butler was reminded of Joseph and recommended him to come before Pharaoh.  After crediting God for any ability to interpret dreams, Joseph proceeded to give a correct interpretation and offer counsel concerning the future.  That same day Joseph was permanently released from prison and made second in command to Pharaoh.  The life of Joseph was far more than a fortuitous series of events, but a life God ordained from the beginning.  Joseph was instrumental in saving the nation of Egypt from starvation, and also providing food for his family who later came to stay in Egypt during the famine. 

Hundreds of years later, it was written in Psalm 105:17-19 from God's perspective:  "He sent a man before them-- Joseph--who was sold as a slave. ¹⁸ They hurt his feet with fetters, he was laid in irons. ¹⁹ Until the time that his word came to pass, the word of the LORD tested him."  What Joseph's brothers intended for evil, God intended for good and to save many people from death.  Joseph being sold was God's way of sending.  His time in prison was not pleasant, nor should we think it was not a time of suffering and affliction.  His feet hurt from the iron leggings he wore as a prisoner.  But God's Word - spoken to him through a dream and no doubt confirmed through solitary talks with God - tested and tried the faith of Joseph.  In the dungeon a man was prepared for the palace, and God's Word was ultimately fulfilled.

Do you know that it is the same for all who trust in God?  Perhaps God has revealed something of your future to you, yet at the moment it seems impossible!  We can be easily tempted to doubt that we heard God in the first place and it was wishful thinking.  During the trials and difficulties, in spite of unexpected turns and apparent setbacks, God's word is being fulfilled.  Do you believe that?  Are you willing to trust God no matter your situation?  Many faithful followers of God were proved by God's Word long before they were promoted.  God uses the difficult situations of this life to refine us for future use according to His divine plans.  What man intends for evil, God redeems for our good and the good of others.  Give glory to God for His marvelous works!

Regarding the Presence

Tonight our family read the account in 2 Kings 3, a testimony of God's grace in providing victory for His people.  The chapter begins by explaining how Jehoram was a wicked king over Israel, and after the death of Ahab the nation of Moab rebelled against Israel's rule.  Jehoram sent word to Jehoshaphat king of Judah, a righteous man who feared God.  Jehoshaphat agreed to help reign in the rebellious Moabites, and they traveled together for seven days through the land of Edom.  The text says the king of Edom came along in support.  Despite their planning and collaboration, they faced defeat before even meeting Moab in battle because of a severe water shortage.

Jehoram blamed the lack of water as a sinister plan of God to destroy them.  Refusing to accept such a suggestion, the faithful king of Judah said in 2 Kings 3:11, "Is there no prophet of the LORD here, that we may inquire of the LORD by him?" So one of the servants of the king of Israel answered and said, "Elisha the son of Shaphat is here, who poured water on the hands of Elijah."  Jehoram remained unconvinced, but in the end they decided to seek the assistance of Elisha.  2 Kings 3:13-14 says, "Then Elisha said to the king of Israel, "What have I to do with you? Go to the prophets of your father and the prophets of your mother." But the king of Israel said to him, "No, for the LORD has called these three kings together to deliver them into the hand of Moab." ¹⁴ And Elisha said, "As the LORD of hosts lives, before whom I stand, surely were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, I would not look at you, nor see you."  Isn't that amazing?  Jehoram and the king of Edom served idols, but Jehoshaphat feared the true God.  God regarded the presence of Jehoshaphat because he feared Him.  Not only that, but God provided water abundantly and allowed all three kings to be victorious over Moab for the sake of Jehoshaphat.

God does not regard the presence of those who hate him, but to those who trust Him God will look.  He seeks to show Himself strong on behalf of those who fear Him.  Laban realised God had blessed him as a direct result of Jacob working for him.  Pharaoh promoted the incarcerated foreign slave Joseph to second in command because the Spirit of God was with him and gave great wisdom.  Daniel and his companions were tested and found ten times wiser than the other wise men in Babylon because God was with them.  God dwells in unapproachable holiness, yet He sent Jesus Christ His Son to be the Saviour of the world.  Isaiah 66:1-2 says, "Thus says the LORD: "Heaven is My throne, and earth is My footstool. Where is the house that you will build Me? And where is the place of My rest? ² For all those things My hand has made, and all those things exist," says the LORD. "But on this one will I look: on him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, and who trembles at My word."  Those who highly regard the presence of God will be regarded by Him.  Through the Gospel Christians are made the temple of the Holy Spirit, and He dwells within us.  At all times we can commune with the Father through the prompting of the Spirit, and Jesus stands at the Father's right hand interceding on our behalf.

This world for millennia has reaped the rewards of God's answers to the prayerful intercessions of Christians.  A day will come when the church will be taken, and the kings of the world will suffer.  In Jesus we find rest for our souls, and in our hearts His Spirit finds rest too.  Do we meet God's conditions so we might be recognised when we come before Him in prayer?  Are we contrite, broken, and tremble at His Word?  Our God is the God who sees, indwells, empowers, and glorifies.  He is worthy to be sought and praised.

Go Through Open Doors

When your church plans trips, activities, or courses, how do you view them?  For a lot of my life I used to see all church-related activities or service as optional.  Unless I felt specifically prompted to go or be involved, I would usually pass.  But as I have continued to mature in the LORD, my views have changed.  I see opportunities to preach or go on mission trips as open doors that I should aim to go through unless God closes the door.  Do you see the difference?  Many people have a consumer approach to offered church activities rather than seeing it as an opportunity to serve.

How would your perspective change if you saw an upcoming mission trip as an open door, swung wide by Jesus Christ Himself for you to enter?  Jesus said in Revelation 3:7, "And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write, 'These things says He who is holy, He who is true, "He who has the key of David, He who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens..."  It is of great importance to realise what your call is as a Christian, and specifically what Jesus has called you to in the Body of Christ.  We are exhorted to be diligent to make our calling sure (2 Peter 1:10) - not only concerning justification, but sanctification.  Once you are convinced of God's call upon your life, it is an indispensable tool of the Holy Spirit to guide us through open doors we may have never noticed before.

In my own life, it was revealed to me in prayer, the Bible, and confirmed without solicitation by a praying friend that God had called me to be a pastor.  It was not my plan, but God convinced me that I would preach, and I would be sent.  Believing this indeed to be a call upon my life, whenever an opportunity to preach or teach was offered, I viewed it as an open door.  I figured if God had opened a door which lined up with my calling, it was not for me to decide if I liked the look of the door or what potentials laid behind it.  My role was to go through every door He opened, and not to concern myself with doors He shut.  Do you realise that God does not open doors before you unless He intended you to enter them?  Should it be evident to you He has closed a door, there is no need to strain at the handle or wonder if God knows what He is doing.  It is wise to see every opportunity as an open door for you to walk through.  When we seek Christ and examine our motives, we will know the way because Jesus IS the Way.

I encourage you to open your heart and consider the many open doors God has opened to you.  Instead of asking, "Why should I go?" or "Do I feel like going?" or "Can I afford it?" ask, "Has God specifically told me not to walk through this open door?"  Money is never an issue for God, and neither is time.  It very well may be there have been thousands of open doors God has set before us which were veiled because our vision was clouded by self.  We often already have plans, and the open door Jesus bids us enter was not part of that plan.  Are you willing to walk through doors Jesus opens?  Be open to open doors, and boldly walk through them in obedience!