May 8–Ezra 5-8

“When. . .Haggai the prophet and Zechariah. . .prophesied to the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem. . .then Zerubbabel. . .arose and began to rebuild the house of God. . .and the prophets of God were with them supporting them”(5:1-2).

“And the elders of the Jews were successful in building through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo” (6:14).

The temple project was going nowhere. After a promising start, political interference and powerful enemies discouraged and delayed construction. No forward momentum. No enthusiasm.

One day, the prophet Haggai stood to speak. “You say you don’t have time or money to build the temple,” he shouted with laser-like moral clarity, “but you have had plenty of both to build your own houses! No wonder the Lord is withholding His blessings.” See today’s reading and Haggai 1.

What a sermon it was! Words with penetrating power. As Haggai spoke, the people felt the conviction of God.

They began again that day. They repented and believed. Picked up their tools. Adjusted their schedules. Experienced what the New Testament would later call, “the washing of the water of the Word.”

Beginning again is, sometimes, the most important decision of all. Easy for us to drift from God. In the power of the Spirit, prophets/preachers call us back. The greatest failure is not stumbling. Quitting is.

As I sat in church recently, my pastor spoke words from God that reignited a place in my heart that has gradually grown cold. God used him to help me make progress.

Friend, if you are a teacher or preacher, is it God’s word your people hear when you speak? Do you seek Him so that He can speak through you? If you are a member of a body, do you pray the filling of the Spirit for your pastor? Do you realize how much you NEED your pastor(s)? He plays an essential role in God’s plan for your welfare! When God’s word is preached, progress is possible!

“Prophesy over these bones and say to them, ‘O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord’ “(Ezekiel 37:4).

“Were not our hearts burning within us while He was speaking to us on the road, while He was explaining the Scriptures to us?” (Luke 24:32).

May 7–Ezra 1-4

“Whoever there is among you of all His people, may his God be with him! Let him go up to Jerusalem which is in Judah and rebuild the house of the Lord, the God of Israel” (King Cyrus, Ezra 1:3).

“But the vessel that he was making of clay was spoiled in the hand of the potter; so he remade it into another vessel, as it pleased the potter to make” (Jeremiah 18:4).

It is a question often asked by a child. “May I start over?” Marks already on paper. Mistakes made. A desire to begin again.

God’s answer (to children and adults, alike) is “yes”. You may. You must. It is the very plan of God that you do!

When life is ruined, He comes and calls us to Himself. In grace, He remakes us. Gives us a second chance at His original purpose. See John 3.

In 458 B. C., the nation of Israel experienced this powerful kindness of God. After 70 years in exile in Babylon, a new king (a Persian) rose to power and gave them an opportunity to return home and rebuild. The surprise announcement was exactly what God promised through the prophet Jeremiah before the exile began. ” ‘ When seventy years have been completed for Babylon, I will visit you and fulfill my good word to you, to bring you back to this place. For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not calamity to give you a future and a hope’ ” (Jeremiah 29:10-11).

Scripture is the story of a gracious and patient God who, despite human failings, is never defeated in His gracious purpose. Dry bones live again. Destroyed lives are remade.

As you read this story, will you hear and consider God’s gracious offer to you? “Let Him return to the Lord, and He will have compassion on him, and to our God for He will abundantly pardon” (Isaiah 55:7).

Will you also consider the role of repentance and faith? When permission to return came, every man had a decision to make. Will I trust God? Will I volunteer to go and do His work? God stirred their hearts. They turned from old patterns to God with courageous faith. See 1:5.

Friend, is the Spirit of God stirring you? Is He reminding you of His infinite power to remake you and call you back into service in His eternal plan?

“Behold, I will do something new, now it will spring forth; will you not be aware of it? I will even make a roadway in the wilderness, rivers in the desert” (Isaiah 43:19).

May 6–2 Chronicles 35-36

“There had not been celebrated a Passover like it in Israel since the days of Samuel the prophet”(35:18).

In the last years of the Kingdom of Judah, the discovery of “a book” was reported to the king. The book of the Law! Likely the first five books of our Bible, this long-forgotten text had been gathering dust somewhere in a temple archive. What a foolish mistake!

We live in a similar moment. Influenced by culture, in the name of being progressive, even some “believers” openly deny large sections of God’s word. The Bible has been set aside and, like Israel, we have drifted into darkness. “Professing to be wise, they became fools,” says Romans 1:22. Without God’s word, it will always be so.

Reading God’s book, King Josiah was stunned with conviction of sin. Compellingly, the written words declared God’s righteous demands on all people. With eyes opened and conscience tenderized, the king realized how guilty he and his nation were before a holy God.

He acted with great courage! Reinstated the Passover celebration. Instructed and energized the priests and Levites. With genuine enthusiasm, he turned the people back to Scriptural patterns of obedience.

Sadly, the renewal was short-lived and insufficient. After Josiah’s death, the nation quickly returned to former patterns. “The Lord, the God of their fathers, sent word to them again and again by His messengers. . .but they continually mocked the messengers of God, despised His words and scoffed at His prophets, until the wrath of the Lord arose against His people, until there was no remedy”(36:15-16).

As followers of Christ, our confidence for Scripture rises from the example of our Lord. Again and again, Jesus taught us to trust the reliable written word of the Father.

In this dark age, we need this wisdom. The wisdom of Josiah and Jesus. Believer, are you spending time in God’s book? Do you do what it says? Do you teach others?

“Why is it that some Christians, although they hear many sermons, make slow advances in the divine life? Because they neglect their closets, and do not meditate on God’s word” (Charles Spurgeon).

“How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord, is laid for your faith in His excellent word!”(John Rippon).

May 5–2 Chronicles 32-34

“When he was in distress, he (Manasseh) entreated the Lord his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers. When he prayed to Him, He (God) was moved by his entreaty. . .and brought him again to Jerusalem and his kingdom”(33:12-13).

Manasseh is a moral mystery. As king of Judah, he led the nation into a dark and downward slide. He rebuilt high places (idolatry). He listened to secular counselors. He made his own sons pass through the fire (child sacrifice). He practiced witchcraft and dealt with mediums. His father (Hezekiah) made mistakes, but Manasseh’s reign was a dumpster fire.

For all his flaws, Manasseh is, however, an example to us of God’s amazing grace. At the end of his life, when the inevitable collapse came, he turned back to God in humble prayer. He had seen his father do the same. When Manasseh prayed, God heard and received him! Like the thief on the cross, at the very end of life, he received mercy. See 33:13.

Years later, Jesus gave us the story of the prodigal son. Undeserved grace, this! When life disintegrates and pride is gone, when mistakes and self-will catch up with us, when we “come to ourselves” and can finally see how arrogant and ungrateful we have been, we are invited to come home. The Father, Himself, comes out to welcome us.

Amazing grace! Unimaginable love! Here is the story shared by every saved soul. A holy God is rich in mercy! If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us. Manasseh is one example. I am another. Friend, do you rightly perceive the great mercy of God? Will you turn to him, today?

“Come, let us return to the Lord. He has torn us, but He will heal us; He has wounded us, but He will bandage us”(Hosea 6:1).

“Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord”(Acts 3:19).

May 4–2 Chronicles 29-31

“In the first year of his reign, in the first month, he (Hezekiah) opened the doors of the house of the Lord. . .and said to them, ‘Listen to me, O Levites, consecrate yourselves now, and consecrate the house of the Lord. . .and carry the uncleanness out from the holy place”(29:3,5).

Who knows when God gave Hezekiah eyes to see the true need? His father had certainly not been been an example of godly wisdom. Suddenly (see 29:36 for the mood of this entire story), the king realized the invisible, spiritual realities impacting his nation. Their struggles and defeats had Spiritual causes and cures! It all finally made sense!

In chapter 29, we listen with great interest as he verbalizes his convictions to the gathered priests. What clarity! What leadership! “Our fathers have been unfaithful. The wrath of the Lord is on us. Do not be negligent. The Lord chose you to stand before Him. We must act together,” said the young and courageous king. O that leaders in this present hour would stand to speak with equivalent moral authority!

The days that followed were bright with energy and hope. Temple worship was restored. The Passover was reinstated. Altars to false gods were removed and destroyed. A great healing began!

It must always be. Revival comes when one (or many) see history through the lens of spiritual reality. Boldly they declare the judgments of God, and His available mercy. National conditions are understood as spiritual consequences. Believers are summoned to service and holy lives. Lost men are called to belief and obedience.

Friend, are you convinced that revival is possible and necessary? Do you affirm the huge potential of a single soul with eyes and courage like Hezekiah’s?

“We’ve a story to tell to the nations (our own nation) that will turn their hearts to the right, a story of truth and mercy, a story of peace and light. For the darkness will turn to the dawning, and the dawning to noon day bright, and God’s great kingdom will come on earth, the kingdom of love and light” (H. Ernest Nichol).

“Will you not revive us again, that Your people may rejoice in You?. . .I will hear what God the Lord will say; for He will speak peace to His people, to His godly ones; but let them turn back from folly. Surely His salvation is near to those who fear Him” (Psalm 85:6,8).

May 3–2 Chronicles 25-28

“Amaziah was twenty-five years old when he became king. . .He did right in the sight of the Lord, yet not with a whole heart”(25:1-2).

If I call Jesus Lord, I must do so with my WHOLE heart. “Part of me” is a formula for failure. Christ gave ALL for me. He requires and deserves the same in return. “Jesus paid it ALL. ALL to Him I owe,” sings the old hymn.

Not an easy decision. At the moment of salvation a new man was created. A new me. Forgiven. Recipient of the Spirit. Even so, the “old man” continued in me. Twisted and deformed, dishonest and proud, this “wretched man” is still present, struggling for recognition and control.

I must never be naive about this ongoing inner conflict. I must not be tolerant or undecided. The old man is to be denied! Daily! I am to walk away from his counsel and wisdom.

The story of Amaziah makes me sad. At times, he leaned on God’s law and made wise choices. At others, he leaned on himself and the wisdom of his age. See 25:14-16. A proud man. Superficially surrendered. In the end, he paid dearly for it.

Friend, today, will you give God your WHOLE heart? In daily denial of all other loves, will you choose Christ over self and this world? With honest courage will you confess the places still unsurrendered in your heart?

“Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship” (Romans 12:1).

“For the flesh sets itself against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please”(Galatians 5:17).

May 2–2 Chronicles 22-24

“After the death of Jehoida the officials of Judah came and bowed down to the king, and the king listened to them. They abandoned the house of the Lord. . .and served the Asherim and the idols” (24:17-18).

Do you have a godly friend? Someone whose counsel and influence consistently points you toward Christ? If so, you are wealthy. Do you have other friends who do not seek the Lord? Whose lives and choices rise from self and the values of the world? If so, you are in danger.

As Judah walked in dangerous winds (political and spiritual), a succession of kings came to power. Over time, it became clear that the value of each (sometimes good, sometimes not good) was determined by their inner circle. Their friends. Their counselors. “He who walks with wise men will be wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm” (Proverbs 13:20).

Amaziah was particularly a disaster! Ezra explained the problem. “He did evil in the sight of the Lord like the house of Ahab, for they were his counselors after the death of his father, to his destruction“(22:4, italics mine).

In today’s reading, so long as the Joash had Jehoiada as his mentor/friend, the young king served with distinction. However, in the unforgettable words of our Lord in the Parable of the Soils, “he had no root in himself.” After Jehoiada’s death, Joash welcomed secular “thinkers” into his cabinet and counsel (24:7). So feckless was he, that when Jehoiada’s son challenged him, this ungrateful king ordered his execution. How Judas-like! What a betrayal of this godly family and their faithful friendship over the years!

Scripture teaches that we have both opportunity and responsibility to choose our friends. To pursue those who pursue God. To avoid those who reject Him. Dear friend, do you recognize this great and God-given power? Are you exercising it for good?

“Associate yourself with people of good quality, for it better to be alone than in bad company” (Booker T. Washington).

“I do not sit with deceitful men, nor will I go with pretenders. I hate the assembly of evildoers, and I will not sit with the wicked”(David, Psalm 26:4).

May 1–2 Chronicles 18-21

“Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the Lord and so bring wrath on yourself from the Lord?”(19:2).

Jehoshaphat was a man of genuine Spiritual insight. His prayer of faith in the battle of Moab (chapter 20) stands as a high point in the history of Judah. “Our eyes are on you, Lord.” Inspirational moment!

Jehoshaphat, however, was also a weak man. (Good to remember that this dual reality is present in every life. My own included.) In chapter 18, he foolishly entered into an alliance with Ahab (the idolatrous house of Omni). Even the warnings of Micaiah were not enough to dissuade him from going into battle with this unbeliever.

Disastrous decision. The infection of immorality soon spread. After Jehoshaphat’s death, his son Jehoram, under the corrupting influence of Ahab’s family, murdered his brothers and built high places for idolatrous worship in Judah. It was the beginning of a downward turn from which Judah would never fully recover.

In 2 Corinthians 6, the scripture commands us to not be “unequally yoked”. Not to join ourselves in mutual enterprise with people of different spiritual identities and purposes. We are not to admire them, nor be in relationship with them. No marriage. No affection. No alliance. “He walks NOT in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers,” says Psalm 1. God’s people do not “love those who hate the Lord.” See 19:2 above.

God requires us to stay away from those who are His enemies. This separation is an act of moral courage and an expression of exclusive love. In Genesis 14, Abraham refused the gifts from the corrupt king of Sodom. Wanted no association with him. Such wisdom would have served Jehoshaphat well. Would serve us well, too.

“Do not be deceived: ‘Bad company corrupts good morals’ “(1 Corinthians 15:33).

” ‘Therefore, come out from their midst and be separate.’ says the Lord. And do not touch what is unclean; and I will welcome you, and I will be a father to you and you shall be sons and daughters to Me’ ” (2 Corinthians 6:17-18).

April 30–2 Chronicles 13-17

“His disease was severe, yet even in his disease, he did not seek the Lord, but the physicians”(16:12).

A great start is no guarantee. Only those who continue to seek the Lord finish well.

King Asa is a warning to us.

He had a brilliant beginning! Early evidence of a heart for God. GREAT victories as a result. See 13:18. See 14:11-12. Godliness IS a means of great gain. How blessed is the man. . .

Gradually, however, Asa lost his first love. Having begun in the Spirit, he eventually turned to the flesh in search of security. Worldly solutions were applied. An alliance with Aram. An explosion of anger when confronted by the prophet. Oppression of his critics. Pride. Even when disease came, he refused to humble himself and seek the Lord. Did you read his story, dear one? Do you see the danger of drifting from God?

His funeral was especially melancholy. He built the mausoleum himself. Accumulated a store of spices. Ordered a big bonfire when he was gone. It was an unprecedented extravagance, even for royals. A sad, almost comic, attempt of a insecure man to regain former glory without the true repentance required to do so. See 16:14.

Better had he listened to the prophet. (Better if we do the same.) “The eyes of the Lord search through out the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His“(16:9). Here, again, we encounter a jealous God. He will not be among our priorities. He must be first. He wants all of us. All of our days.

“I have found that it is not how you start, but how you finish that counts” (Brittany Engels).

“But I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its place–unless you repent”(Revelation 2:4-5).

April 29–2 Chronicles 9-12

“When the queen of Sheba had seen the wisdom of Solomon, the house which he had built, the food at his table, the seating of his servants, the attendance of his ministers and their attire. . .and his stairway by which he went up to the house of the Lord, she was breathless” (9:3-4).

In Romans 11, Paul says that one of God’s purposes for the church is to make Israel jealous. As the Jews observed the life, confidence and joy of New Testament life (see Acts 4:13), Paul hoped/prayed for a deep feeling of inadequacy in their hearts. Envy. Hunger for the same power and joy. He prayed FOMO for them. Fear of missing out.

2 Chronicles 9 tells a similar story. When the queen of Sheba visited Solomon, the wisdom of God (in its most practical expressions) was on display. The order, the dignity, the intentionality and wisdom of the daily operation of Solomon’s house was “breathtaking” to her. Literally. With great insight, she traced it back to God, gave the credit to Him.

As salt-and-light believers in a dark world, our assignment is the same. As we shine our light, people are to SEE our good works, the wisdom that informs the way we do marriage, home, work and community. With holy assertiveness, the Spirit declares that God’s plan for life is BETTER than the world’s plan. Our lives are to be the evidence of this claim.

In 1 Thessalonians 1, Paul reports the reception of the gospel among the people of Thessalonica. The gospel came with, “power and Holy Spirit and full conviction; just as you know what kind of men we proved to be among you” (v. 5, italics mine). Who we are ought to help others hear who God is.

We must not be awkward or unprepared for this task. “No one lights a lamp and then hides it,” says Jesus in Luke 8. His light in us must be declared, even with the predictable discomfort that it creates in the hearts of others.

As He did with the Queen of Sheba, God is attracting people to Himself by making them jealous. How careful and confident we must be as we walk with the Spirit before a world of lost observers!

“I will make them jealous by that which is not a nation”(Romans 10:19).

“But sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always be ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence”( 1 Peter 5: 15).