King James Bible Study – [Mark 8:34 And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.]
Date: Friday, July 01, 2022
Chapters: II KINGS 1-3
Study: Settled In Christ
Hello My Friend,
Can you believe that half the year is over? I had a hard time staying focused this morning, even though I slept really good and woke up ready to spend time with God. I have all these ideas going through my head about doing some work on the I’m Following Jesus site as I am so behind on getting some pages done as well as my Sunday school class. I purchased some Bibles that I am going to use to help the kids look up verses and I think this will help keep them more attentive. It is really exciting that God has ignited this fire back inside of me. We do not realize it, but the suffering that we endure as faithful Christians is a part of our walk with Christ. Nevertheless, God is good, and the eternal blessings that come through the suffering far outweigh the temporal suffering that we face right now, [1 Peter 5:10 But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.]
There is something comforting to know that our suffering will not be forever. In reality, what it does do is determine our true faith, if we draw near to Christ through the suffering, then our faith is solid, but if we run from Him, then our faith has some holes in it and may not actually be who we are trusting in. The Book of 2 Kings contains twenty-five chapters, the author is Jeremiah and it was written to Israel. The timeline for these events took place approximately between 896 BC to 588 BC. The purpose of the book was to record how God dealt with Israel before the coming of Christ. What we are to learn from the book is that God is sovereign ruler of all nations, blessing the obedient, punishing the disobedient, and is merciful to those who love Him, [2 Kings 17:36 But the LORD, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt with great power and a stretched out arm, him shall ye fear, and him shall ye worship, and to him shall ye do sacrifice.]
As we begin the reading of 2 Kings, things in Samaria have gotten out of control after Ahab died, Moab, came up against them, and Ahaziah, Ahab’s son, going to God and asking for Him for help, he sought help from, of all things, Baalzebub.
[2 Kings 1:1-4 Then Moab rebelled against Israel after the death of Ahab. 2 And Ahaziah fell down through a lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria, and was sick: and he sent messengers, and said unto them, Go, enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron whether I shall recover of this disease. 3 But the angel of the LORD said to Elijah the Tishbite, Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say unto them, Is it not because there is not a God in Israel, that ye go to enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron? 4 Now therefore thus saith the LORD, Thou shalt not come down from that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die. And Elijah departed.]
[Is it not because there is not a God in Israel,] Are we so blind as a nation that we are praying to gods that do not exist, even worse, to Satan himself? Oh, yes, and if you are trusting in some belief or religion that has nothing to do with the Gospel of Jesus being, then you that is what you are doing, [1 John 4:1-4 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. 2 Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: 3 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world. 4 Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.]
Well, the messengers did go back to Ahaziah and told him what Elijah said, and he demanded them to tell him who this was, they did know his name, but described what he looked like, [2 Kings 1:7-10 And he said unto them, What manner of man was he which came up to meet you, and told you these words? 8 And they answered him, He was an hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins. And he said, It is Elijah the Tishbite. 9 Then the king sent unto him a captain of fifty with his fifty. And he went up to him: and, behold, he sat on the top of an hill. And he spake unto him, Thou man of God, the king hath said, Come down. 10 And Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty, If I be a man of God, then let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And there came down fire from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty.]
[And he said, It is Elijah the Tishbite.] He knew right away who this was, as I am sure his father constantly complained about him as he only saw Elijah as an enemy. No one stands out more than faithful, God fearing, saved and born again Christians. They know us by name, and can describe every detail about us. And for that reason that makes us makes us the most wanted, especially when they discover that we have a direct connection with Christ Himself. Ahaziah, actually sent for Elijah, not to kill him, but to find out if what he said was true, he sent for him with an army three times, the first two times, fire came down from heaven and killed them all. The third time, these men were so scared to come up against Elijah that they got down on their knees.
[2 Kings 1:13,15-16 And he sent again a captain of the third fifty with his fifty. And the third captain of fifty went up, and came and fell on his knees before Elijah, and besought him, and said unto him, O man of God, I pray thee, let my life, and the life of these fifty thy servants, be precious in thy sight. 15 And the angel of the LORD said unto Elijah, Go down with him: be not afraid of him. And he arose, and went down with him unto the king. 16 And he said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Forasmuch as thou hast sent messengers to enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron, is it not because there is no God in Israel to enquire of his word? therefore thou shalt not come down off that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die.]
[And the angel of the LORD said unto Elijah,] I do not know why, but I was in tears as I read this, the thought of the captain begging for their lives, and then Jesus telling Elijah not to be afraid is a reminder that we truly are precious in God’s sight, and we are not to fear anything, but dying without Jesus, otherwise, we will be devoured by the fire, [Matthew 10:27-28 What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light: and what ye hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the housetops. 28 And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.]
Remember, when Elijah went to Obadiah to tell Ahab to meet with him, he said this to Elijah, [1 Kings 18:12 And it shall come to pass, as soon as I am gone from thee, that the Spirit of the LORD shall carry thee whither I know not; and so when I come and tell Ahab, and he cannot find thee, he shall slay me: but I thy servant fear the LORD from my youth.] Elijah, and the prophets knew that God would take him to heaven, and he would not have to die. The was only one other man besides Elijah to ascend up to heaven without dying and that was Enoch. We must understand that these men were not sinless, God, used them as an example to show that without the Holy Spirit we cannot get to heaven. Now, the time that God would take up Elijah was coming to pass, as God leads him to the place where He would take him up, in a tornado of all things. Elisha, followed him and would not stop, even when others told him not to.
[2 Kings 2:1-4 And it came to pass, when the LORD would take up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal. 2 And Elijah said unto Elisha, Tarry here, I pray thee; for the LORD hath sent me to Bethel. And Elisha said unto him, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they went down to Bethel. 3 And the sons of the prophets that were at Bethel came forth to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the LORD will take away thy master from thy head to day? And he said, Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace. 4 And Elijah said unto him, Elisha, tarry here, I pray thee; for the LORD hath sent me to Jericho. And he said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they came to Jericho.]
[when the LORD would take up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind,] We all should be so blessed to have Jesus take us up before we shed this flesh. I do not know about being taken up in a tornado though, and I could only imagine what that would have felt like. Maybe when it is my time to go home to be with the LORD, I will see my soul ascending up like that, but I doubt it. God, even took him over the Jordan, and when he did, he asked Elisha what he wanted from him before God had taken him up.
[2 Kings 2:7-10 And fifty men of the sons of the prophets went, and stood to view afar off: and they two stood by Jordan. 8 And Elijah took his mantle, and wrapped it together, and smote the waters, and they were divided hither and thither, so that they two went over on dry ground. 9 And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me. 10 And he said, Thou hast asked a hard thing: nevertheless, if thou see me when I am taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be so.]
[Thou hast asked a hard thing:] Jesus, said this, when James and John (or their mother) asked if they could sit on each side of Him, [Mark 10:38-40 But Jesus said unto them, Ye know not what ye ask: can ye drink of the cup that I drink of? and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? 39 And they said unto him, We can. And Jesus said unto them, Ye shall indeed drink of the cup that I drink of; and with the baptism that I am baptized withal shall ye be baptized: 40 But to sit on my right hand and on my left hand is not mine to give; but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared.]
What was the cup and baptism that Jesus was talking about? Jesus, was a man of great sorrows, and was about to be humiliated, beaten, and stripped of His clothes, then crucified, until His dying death, that was the cup that He was about to bear. That baptism that He would be baptized with was His sinless blood that would be shed to baptize all who believe in and receive Him as their Saviour. The disciples, definitely did go through a lot of sorrow, all, but John died tragic deaths in their faith. Every saved, born again Christian will drink of the bitter cup of pain and sorrow that does come with our faith in Christ, but we are baptized with something that no one can ever take from us and that is the Holy Spirit, [Romans 6:3-4 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? 4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.]
Well, at least it was a chariot that Elijah got on that took him up, and just like that as Elijah was talking with Elisha, he was gone, [2 Kings 2:11-14 And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. 12 And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. And he saw him no more: and he took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in two pieces. 13 He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of Jordan; 14 And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and smote the waters, and said, Where is the LORD God of Elijah? and when he also had smitten the waters, they parted hither and thither: and Elisha went over.]
[He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him,] Do you see how nothing from this earth will ever come with us to heaven? I can only imagine what a sight that would have been, and no one else being able to see it, but Elisha. This reminds me of Paul, before he got saved, when Jesus met with Him, as he was headed out to arrest Christians who proclaimed their faith in Christ, [Acts 9:3-5 And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: 4 And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? 5 And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.]
Every time Christians are persecuted for their faith, Jesus, is the one they are persecuting, we just happened to be their pin cushions because they hate Him so much. The second we receive Christ as our Saviour, we ought to on fire for serving Him, but we also need to be mindful of those who we might say, are unlearned and not so believing as we are. Elisha picked up Elijah’s mantle and headed back home, those prophets that watched everything met up with him, but they did not see the chariot and had no idea where Elijah had went.
[2 Kings 2:15-17 And when the sons of the prophets which were to view at Jericho saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him. 16 And they said unto him, Behold now, there be with thy servants fifty strong men; let them go, we pray thee, and seek thy master: lest peradventure the Spirit of the LORD hath taken him up, and cast him upon some mountain, or into some valley. And he said, Ye shall not send. 17 And when they urged him till he was ashamed, he said, Send. They sent therefore fifty men; and they sought three days, but found him not. ]
[we pray thee, and seek thy master:] Foolish guys, and these were the sons of prophets, supposedly learning about God. You see, these young men, would not believe that God had taken Elijah up in the tornado. It was actually because of their disbelief they did not see the ascension even though it happened right there. You know, they tried this with Jesus after He resurrected, and even went as far as saying that the disciples took His body when the Roman soldiers fell asleep, [Matthew 28:11-15 Now when they were going, behold, some of the watch came into the city, and shewed unto the chief priests all the things that were done. 12 And when they were assembled with the elders, and had taken counsel, they gave large money unto the soldiers, 13 Saying, Say ye, His disciples came by night, and stole him away while we slept. 14 And if this come to the governor’s ears, we will persuade him, and secure you. 15 So they took the money, and did as they were taught: and this saying is commonly reported among the Jews until this day.]
Elisha asked for a double portion of spirit and he got it, God did not waste any time using him to show the king of Israel and two other kings that He is merciful to His faithful. After Ahaziah died his brother Jehoram reigned because Ahaziah had no sons, once again, Moab comes against them, he enlists the help of Jehoshaphat in Judah and the king of Edom, of all people.
[2 Kings 3:5,7-11 But it came to pass, when Ahab was dead, that the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel. 7 And he went and sent to Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, saying, The king of Moab hath rebelled against me: wilt thou go with me against Moab to battle? And he said, I will go up: I am as thou art, my people as thy people, and my horses as thy horses. 8 And he said, Which way shall we go up? And he answered, The way through the wilderness of Edom. 9 So the king of Israel went, and the king of Judah, and the king of Edom: and they fetched a compass of seven days’ journey: and there was no water for the host, and for the cattle that followed them. 10 And the king of Israel said, Alas! that the LORD hath called these three kings together, to deliver them into the hand of Moab! 11 But Jehoshaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of the LORD, that we may enquire of the LORD by him? And one of the king of Israel’s servants answered and said, Here is Elisha the son of Shaphat, which poured water on the hands of Elijah.]
[to deliver them into the hand of Moab!] Jehoram, immediately thought that all this was an act of God to get them all killed, but then Jehoshaphat, as the Godly man that he was, decided they needed answers from God, he enquirers for a man of God and that is whey someone pointed them to Elisha.
[2 Kings 3:14-18 And Elisha said, As the LORD of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward thee, nor see thee. 15 But now bring me a minstrel. And it came to pass, when the minstrel played, that the hand of the LORD came upon him. 16 And he said, Thus saith the LORD, Make this valley full of ditches. 17 For thus saith the LORD, Ye shall not see wind, neither shall ye see rain; yet that valley shall be filled with water, that ye may drink, both ye, and your cattle, and your beasts. 18 And this is but a light thing in the sight of the LORD: he will deliver the Moabites also into your hand.]
[were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat] Do you understand now why God has not placed complete judgment on all the entire country? While we are getting fewer by the day, there are still many God fearing faithful Christians out there preaching the Gospel. I live in Orlando, you might as well call it sin city, and there must be a church or some kind of other religious building on every street, but not all of them preach the truth. However, I have also seen more Independent Baptist Churches here than I have ever seen in Florida, and they are not afraid to preach the Gospel, which I believe is the only reason why this city is protected, [2 Corinthians 4:13-15 We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak; 14 Knowing that he which raised up the Lord Jesus shall raise up us also by Jesus, and shall present us with you. 15 For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.]
[Make this valley full of ditches.] “Ditches? We are digging our own graves!” I am sure thoughts like these were racing through the minds of these kings as they were digging holes in the ground. Nevertheless, they did, and the next morning they were filled with water to sustain them and their cattle. Interestingly enough, when Moab looked down into the valley that water looked like blood, they thought that the kings killed each other, and when they went down to take the army, Israel defeated them.
[2 Kings 3:20-24 And it came to pass in the morning, when the meat offering was offered, that, behold, there came water by the way of Edom, and the country was filled with water. 21 And when all the Moabites heard that the kings were come up to fight against them, they gathered all that were able to put on armour, and upward, and stood in the border. 22 And they rose up early in the morning, and the sun shone upon the water, and the Moabites saw the water on the other side as red as blood: 23 And they said, This is blood: the kings are surely slain, and they have smitten one another: now therefore, Moab, to the spoil. 24 And when they came to the camp of Israel, the Israelites rose up and smote the Moabites, so that they fled before them: but they went forward smiting the Moabites, even in their country.]
[and the Moabites saw the water on the other side as red as blood:] Do you know what God sees when He looks at His people? He sees the blood of His Son upon their souls. How awesome is it that we have the all powerful, all mighty God to defend and protect us? How incredible is it that we get to speak to Him and talk with Him, and He listens to us? We ought to feel pretty blessed. As I was praying this morning I was not feeling up to it and just kept telling God how tired I was of all the affliction I was facing. Do you know what He said to me? “Things could be worse.” And He is right. One day, we will never have to suffer, we need to count each day as a blessing, being reminded that whatever we are going through someone else has it much worse, and in the end, it will all be worth it when we see Jesus, [1 Peter 4:12-13 Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: 13 But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.]
Today’s Prayer: God, Thank You for loving me so much that You were willing to come here Yourself in the flesh of man to become the sinless sacrifice I needed to be able to reach You. Not by our righteousness do we know You, but by our faith and acceptance in what Your Son did. My name is settled in heaven solely upon my faith in Christ, and for that I know that I have a cup to to drink of as well as a baptism to be baptized of. Lord, lead me and guide me, help me to be a witness and a testimony to those who do not know You, open my ears to hear when You tell me to speak to someone about Jesus, and give me the boldness to speak the truth and not be offended or intimated by those who refuse to listen. Let me live every day of my life seeking Your will so that Your Light shines through me, and fill me with Your Holy Spirit power to endure the suffering. I ask these things in Your name, Jesus. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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