Class Lesson August 18, 2019

THE BIBLE MEETS LIFE

For years I had the privilege of taking students on a week-long backpacking trip into the high mountains of the Sierra Nevada range in California. The terrain was incredibly rugged, but the views were incredible. Each year we highlighted the importance of watching your surroundings and being aware of where you were at all times. We stressed this because, in case someone got lost, he could find his way back to the starting place.

Without fail every year, a few students failed to listen to their guide and got lost. After a search, someone would personally guide them back to camp. When asked what happened, they told the same story: they couldn’t remember the right way to go.

Too often we do the same thing. We rely on God to do something in our lives only to forget the next time what it was He did for us. King Asa was no exception to this. Asa had been an exceptional ruler through most of his reign, but he hit a period in his life when he “forgot to remember.”

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?

2 Chronicles 16:1-6

1 In the thirty-sixth year of Asa’s reign Baasha king of Israel went up against Judah and fortified Ramah to prevent anyone from leaving or entering the territory of Asa king of Judah. 2 Asa then took the silver and gold out of the treasuries of the LORD’s temple and of his own palace and sent it to Ben-Hadad king of Aram, who was ruling in Damascus. 3 “Let there be a treaty between me and you,” he said, “as there was between my father and your father. See, I am sending you silver and gold. Now break your treaty with Baasha king of Israel so he will withdraw from me.” 4 Ben-Hadad agreed with King Asa and sent the commanders of his forces against the towns of Israel. They conquered Ijon, Dan, Abel Maim and all the store cities of Naphtali. 5 When Baasha heard this, he stopped building Ramah and abandoned his work. 6 Then King Asa brought all the men of Judah, and they carried away from Ramah the stones and timber Baasha had been using. With them he built up Geba and Mizpah.

King Asa’s peaceful reign finally came to an end. For thirty-six years, the once united nation of Israel had been divided into the Northern Kingdom of Israel and the Southern Kingdom of Judah. Since the Lord had blessed King Asa and the Southern Kingdom, many Jews from the Northern Kingdom were migrating south (2 Chron. 15:9).

King Baasha, who ruled the Northern Kingdom, didn’t like that so many of his people were migrating to Judah. So Baasha built a fortress in Ramah five to six miles north of Jerusalem to stop his people from going south to King Asa in Judah. Ramah was on the border between the two kingdoms, but because it was actually in Judah, it wasn’t Baasha’s land to build on. However, Baasha was ambitious and built a military compound anyway.

King Asa must have felt intimidated when he saw the threat of his neighboring king and the encroachment upon his land. We might wonder if Asa panicked, since he devised his own plan: a bribe for outside help. Instead of depending on God, Asa looked to “Ben-Hadad king of Aram, who was ruling in Damascus” (v. 2) to the north of Israel. Both Israel and Judah had treaties with Ben-Hadad, but Asa bribed him to break the treaty with Israel with the gold and silver from the temple’s treasury. From a human standpoint, Asa’s strategy was successful. It may have worked, but it came at a cost.

• The temple treasuries were dedicated to God, yet Asa gave away those things as a payment to another king.
• Asa failed to trust God.
• Asa’s lack of trust set a bad example for those who lived under his rule. The king had discredited trust in God, and his subjects would follow his lead.

Asa was about to learn the hard way that he would never be in any situation where it would not be necessary to depend on God—and the same is true for us.

2 Chronicles 16:7-9

7 At that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah and said to him: “Because you relied on the king of Aram and not on the LORD your God, the army of the king of Aram has escaped from your hand. 8 Were not the Cushites and Libyans a mighty army with great numbers of chariots and horsemen? Yet when you relied on the LORD, he delivered them into your hand. 9 For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. You have done a foolish thing, and from now on you will be at war.”

A price tag is attached to every decision we make, and King Asa was about to learn that hard lesson. Asa had thought it was a good decision to enlist Ben-Hadad, but it carried a heavy price tag. Judah’s king appeared to be victorious, but from God’s viewpoint, he was utterly defeated.

The king became aware of that defeat through a reminder by the seer Hanani, who was God’s prophet to speak God’s truth to the people. A seer was a prophet who was used as the mouthpiece of God to deliver truth to the people—and Asa was about to get an earful of truth!

Hanani reminded the king what God had done for him in the past. While the king had some great and valiant warriors, Hanani reminded Asa that it had not been those warriors who were victorious over the vast army of and Libyans; it was because he had “relied on the LORD” (v. 8). What a reality check that must have been for the king!

The outcome for King Asa wasn’t what he thought he would get. Hanani informed Asa if he had simply relied on God to deliver them from Israel, he would not only have gained the victory over Israel, he would’ve been victorious over Aram as well. Trust in God would have given Asa the victory he sought—and then some.

Remember the price tag? For Asa, the price was peace. Judah had experienced peace for much of King Asa’s reign, but that would no longer be the case. Hanani told Asa that God looks continually for those who remain faithful to Him. To those “fully committed to him,” (v. 9) God shows Himself to be strong and throws His full support behind them! Because Asa had failed in his commitment to God, he would “from now . . . be at war” (v. 9).

We can avoid Asa’s tragic mistake as we keep God’s faithfulness on our radar. He has taken care of us in the past, and He will do so now. Let’s be people “fully committed to him.” When we are, it doesn’t matter how big the army is that stands in front of us, we can trust Him to deliver us far beyond what we might accomplish on our own. God “is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine” (Eph. 3:20).

2 Chronicles 16:10-13

10 Asa was angry with the seer because of this; he was so enraged that he put him in prison. At the same time Asa brutally oppressed some of the people. 11 The events of Asa’s reign, from beginning to end, are written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel. 12 In the thirty-ninth year of his reign Asa was afflicted with a disease in his feet. Though his disease was severe, even in his illness he did not seek help from the LORD, but only from the physicians. 13 Then in the forty-first year of his reign Asa died and rested with his ancestors.

The truth hurts. It’s hard for most of us to hear the truth about ourselves. We know, of course, that the right course of action is to accept the truth and respond accordingly. Unfortunately, our pride often gets in the way, and we react with anger and outrage. Or we look for someone else to blame. Everyone around us suffers because we don’t want to deal with the truth, especially when it has consequences we don’t want to hear.

That’s where we find Asa. It didn’t matter that Hanani was a prophet used by God to bring truth to him; Asa didn’t want to hear it, so he put God’s prophet in prison. Furthermore, in his rage, Asa even “oppressed some of the people” (v. 10). Everyone was going to suffer—including God’s prophet.

So how should we receive truth and act on it in a proper and fitting way?

• 

  Accept the truth and be thankful that someone was willing and courageous enough to tell it to you; trust that they delivered it out of love.
• Claim ownership of the truth that the person pointed out to you. Take time to evaluate it, digest it, and then develop a plan to act on it.
• Learn from your mistakes and move forward from them. Don’t waste time wallowing in guilt over them once you have sought forgiveness for them.
• Trust God to guide you as you move forward.

Asa’s sin was not in seeking medical help, but in not seeking the Lord. Asa should have looked to the Lord even as he looked to the physicians. The God who intervened to lead Asa’s army to victory is the same God who could bring healing. Instead, Asa let his pride and ego get in the way of turning to God.

In place of pride or self-centeredness, let’s walk in humility as we focus on Christ and experience the benefits of our obedience.

LIVE IT OUT

God will certainly guide those who look to Him. Choose one of the following applications:

• 

  Write. Make a list of truths from God’s Word you have learned recently. Evaluate how you responded to each one and, if necessary, what you could have done differently.
• Memorize. As a reminder of why you can always trust God, memorize 2 Chronicles 16:9a: “For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.”
• Speak. If you know someone who needs a course correction, ask God for direction in how to speak the truth in love to him or her. Consider carefully your words and pray for the person’s openness to hear the truth from God’s Word.

Just as one can get lost in the wilderness, we can get lost in life if we “forget to remember.” The God who guided us in the past, will lead us into the future.

Hope to see everyone this Sunday!!


In His Love,


David & Susan

Teacher Notes:

1. We Pursue Godliness when we make God the focus of our life. 
2. We Depend on God by calling on Him first in all circumstances and trusting Him with the outcome.
3. Each day we should act with courage in following Christ. Step in with a word of challenge or encouragement. As they face their problems, walk alongside them and remind them of the presence of Christ, that you know to be in your life is also in their lives. The meaning of the name is “Yahweh has helped.”
4. We should live our very lives as an act of worship.

Remember God's Faithfulness

George Santayana said: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” That statement reminds us to learn from the past. 

However, it implies what we did in the past was wrong. We also did some things correctly; we did right things that we need to remember and repeat.

Earlier in his reign, King Asa depended on God during a time of trial. God blessed him with victory. However, later in life, when facing another threat, he sought help from other sources rather than calling on the Lord. Sadly, his failure to rely on the Lord led to a season of despair. 

Asa had been an exceptional ruler through most of his reign, but he hit a period in his life when he “forgot to remember.”

Chapter 16 describes the latter days of King Asa. Alas, he had begun well as a man of faith, but in the end, he acted like anything but. Three major truths emerge for us. First, don’t depend on others for what you should be depending on God to do. That strategy will fail every time.

Second, don’t forget what God has done. What He has done in times past he can do again for those who are whole-heartedly committed to Him. And third, don’t let pride and self-centeredness dictate your behavior. Pride is the path to ruin.

2 Chronicles 16:1-6

In the thirty-sixth year of Asa’s reign Baasha king of Israel went up against Judah and fortified Ramah to prevent anyone from leaving or entering the territory of Asa king of Judah. Asa then took the silver and gold out of the treasuries of the LORD’s temple and of his own palace and sent it to Ben-Hadad king of Aram, who was ruling in Damascus. “Let there be a treaty between me and you,” he said, “as there was between my father and your father. See, I am sending you silver and gold. Now break your treaty with Baasha king of Israel so he will withdraw from me.” Ben-Hadad agreed with King Asa and sent the commanders of his forces against the towns of Israel. They conquered Ijon, Dan, Abel Maim and all the store cities of Naphtali. When Baasha heard this, he stopped building Ramah and abandoned his work. Then King Asa brought all the men of Judah, and they carried away from Ramah the stones and timber Baasha had been using. With them he built up Geba and Mizpah. 

King Asa devised his own plan: a bribe for outside help. Instead of depending on God.

From a human standpoint, Asa’s strategy was successful. It may have worked, but it came at a cost.

• The temple treasuries were dedicated to God, yet Asa gave away those things as a payment to another king.
• Asa failed to trust God.
• Asa’s lack of trust set a bad example for those who lived under his rule. The king had discredited trust in God, and his subjects would follow his lead.

Asa was about to learn the hard way that he would never be in any situation where it would not be necessary to depend on God—and the same is true for us.

1. Don’t depend on others for what you should be depending on God for.

What are some lasting truths from 2 Chronicles 16:1-6?

• Peace doesn’t last forever; someone is always out there to challenge our efforts to live faithfully as God’s people.
• When threats come, we are compelled to figure out how we will respond.
• We need to exercise caution that we do not grow dependent on ways or means that are counter to faithful living or that exclude the way of the Lord.
• Don’t be deceived that every win is a true victory; rather, consider what you may have given up to get it.

2 Chronicles 16:7-9

At that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah and said to him: “Because you relied on the king of Aram and not on the LORD your God, the army of the king of Aram has escaped from your hand. Were not the Cushites and Libyans a mighty army with great numbers of chariots and horsemen? Yet when you relied on the LORD, he delivered them into your hand. For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. You have done a foolish thing, and from now on you will be at war.”

The outcome for King Asa wasn’t what he thought he would get. Hanani informed Asa if he had simply relied on God to deliver them from Israel, he would not only have gained the victory over Israel, he would’ve been victorious over Aram as well. Trust in God would have given Asa the victory he sought—and then some.

Remember the price tag? For Asa, the price was peace. Judah had experienced peace for much of King Asa’s reign, but that would no longer be the case.

God “is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine” (Eph. 3:20).

2. Don’t forget what God has done and can do.

What are some lasting truths that come from 2 Chronicles 16:7-9?

• As difficult as it may be to hear, we need persons who care enough to offer correctives to us when we fail.
• We can deceive ourselves into thinking that we can devise our own plans for dealing with life issues that challenge us.
• We are to avoid leaning on others and other things and failing to rely on the Lord during times of difficulty.
• When we leave God out of our lives, even when we win, we lose; for He has more in store for us than we can imagine.
• The Lord is ever-present, all-knowing, and all-powerful and desires to strengthen the faithful in our times of weakness.

2 Chronicles 16:10-13

Asa was angry with the seer because of this; he was so enraged that he put him in prison. At the same time Asa brutally oppressed some of the people. The events of Asa’s reign, from beginning to end, are written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel. In the thirty-ninth year of his reign Asa was afflicted with a disease in his feet. Though his disease was severe, even in his illness he did not seek help from the LORD, but only from the physicians. Then in the forty-first year of his reign Asa died and rested with his ancestors.

The truth hurts. It’s hard for most of us to hear the truth about ourselves.

Asa’s sin was not in seeking medical help, but in not seeking the Lord. Asa should have looked to the Lord even as he looked to the physicians.

3. Don’t let pride or self-centeredness dictate your behavior.

What are some lasting truths that come from 2 Chronicles 16:10-13?

• Uncontrolled anger can lead us to irrational and unreasonable behavior.
• Pride, self-centeredness, and anger can become barriers to a right relationship with the Lord if we refuse to confront them and repent.
• Faithful followers of the Lord will seek Him in all situations because we know He is good, able, and does all things well. 
• Death is the way of all people; we need to prepare ourselves for it.

Closing: What a sad ending to Asa’s story. And it could all have been avoided had he maintained his focus on the Lord who had been so faithful to him. Asa’s story has been the story of many others. It could become our story if we choose to walk the same path of drifting from the Lord.

Just as one can get lost in the wilderness, we can get lost in life if we “forget to remember.” The God who guided us in the past, will lead us into the future.