Relying On God’s Strength

  King Asa was said to be a good king (I Kings 15:11), one of the few that Judah had.  He did many remarkable things for the Lord.  He removed the foreign altars (II Chron.14:3) and many of the high places (15:17).  He built fortified cities in Judah (14:6).  During the early years of his reign he was not engaged in war because the Lord was with him.  Later on he defeated Zerah the Ethiopian who had an army of a million  (14:9-15).  Unfortunately, he turned away from his faith.

   In King Asa’s thirty-sixth year as king, Israel came up against Judah (II Chron. 16:1).  King Baasha of Israel “fortified Ramah in order to prevent anyone from going out or coming in to Asa king of Judah.” Ramah was near the border, separating Israel from Judah.  King Asa gave Ben-Hadad king of Aram “gold and silver from the treasuries of the house of the Lord,” so that he would break his treaty with Israel.  Ben-Hadad accepted king Asa’s offer and king Baasha was forced to cease fortifying Ramah.  The problem with all of this was that king Asa did not involve God in his plans.  Hanani the prophet told king Asa, “Because you have relied on the king of Aram and have not relied on the Lord your God, therefore the army of the king of Aram has escaped out of your hand.” (II Chron. 16:7).  Hanani went on to tell him that he had acted foolishly and that from now on he would be at war (vs. 9b).  Asa got angry at the words of Hanani and put him in prison.

   If king Asa had treated God as he had in times past, God would have provided the solution.  Instead, he took it upon himself to find a resolution to his dilemma.  Many times we don’t give God a chance to work things out.  We jump to our own conclusions without ever taking God into consideration.  The outcome is always the same, we make a mess of our situation by using our own know-how.

   We’re like the accountant who was told by his boss to falsify company records.  Afraid of being fired, he chose to comply, even though as a Christian he knew he was lying and breaking the law.  Worse than being out of a job, he ended up in jail.  He missed the opportunity to trust God and give him a chance to show his strength.

   Although we may never be put in a position to falsify company records, we are often guilty of leaving God out of the picture.  David prayed in I Chron. 29:12, “Both riches and honor come from Thee, and Thou dost rule over all, and in Thy hand is power and might; and it lies in Thy hand to make great, and to strengthen everyone.” David made it very clear where the true power lies and who it is that has the ability to give us strength.  David wrote in Psalm 68:35, “O God, Thou art awesome from Thy sanctuary. The God of Israel Himself gives strength and power to the people. Blessed be God!” See also Isaiah 41:10.

  Today God is just as powerful.  We need to have the same kind of faith to put our cares in His mighty hands as David did.  Paul wrote in Ephesians 6:11, “Finally, be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of His might.” We do this by putting on the full armor of God (vv. 13-17).  Through the power of God we have no need to fear because God is on our side.  Let us rely on His strength and put our troubles in His care.

                                                                --Shane Williams