DECISIONS, DECISIONS
Posted by: bhfbc <bhfbc@...>
July 28, 2002
Text: 1 Kings 15:9-15
One of the common elements of humanity is our requirement to make
decisions. Most of us approach such times in our life with a certain
amount of dread because making a decisions means having to live with the
results and responsibilities it brings. We typically wonder if we made
the best decision or if another choice would have been better. In fact,
one of Americas best-known poets, Robert Frost, dedicated a poem, The
Road Not Taken, to this very theme of humanity:
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on back to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-
I took the one less travelled by,
And that has made all the difference.
In many, many ways, Israels history and experience is no different than
our own. Throughout her tumultuous history, key figures faced decisions.
I am not certain they reflected upon their decisions like Robert Frost,
but inevitably they had to face the consequences of their decisions just
like everyone else. And, since they were Gods chosen people, their
decisions were supposed to be consistent with Gods commands, directives,
and principles. All too frequently, though, they were not.
Saul, Israels first king, started out well, but eventually failed to
live according to Gods will. He was eventually replaced by David. Now
David, the Bible says, was a man after Gods own heart. Yet we know that
even David engaged in a horrendous sin with dire consequences. Still, he
humbled himself before God.
By the time of Asas reign, Israel as a nation was a divided kingdom. The
north was Israel and the south was Judah. Both had kings who had done
evil in the sight of the Lord. That was a common theme of both kingdoms.
However, there came a king to Judah who did what was right in the eyes
of the Lord. When faced with the decisions that a King of Judah faced,
Asa chose to go against the desires of his people, his advisors, and even
his relatives. He began ridding his kingdom of the places of idol worship
that were detestable to the Lord. Even though there is not a lot of
detail concerning his reign, it is reasonable to guess that his actions
met with opposition. There could have even been plots to remove him from
the throne. Nevertheless, Asas decision was to what was right in the
eyes of the Lord.
The only one who could change Asas decisions was him. Unfortunately, he
did. 2 Chronicles 16 tells us that toward the end of his life, Asa relied
upon a treaty instead of the Lord. He imprisoned the prophet who brought
him this news from God, and he began treating some of his people
brutally. He ended up dying in apparent alienation to God.
When Asa began as king of Judah, though, he realized the basic decision
facing him was whether to follow God or to follow the idol-worshipping
crowd. Asa chose to follow God. When he did, his leadership bore fruit.
Through reliance upon God, overwhelming enemy forces were defeated. There
were periods of peace during his reign which would otherwise not have
occurred. The temple was put back in order, and the proper worship of God
was reinstated. In times both good and bad, God blessed Asas kingship.
The world has not changed that much since Asas reign. We still face
decisions. We still make choices. The question becomes, then: do we make
choices that honor God and please Him, or do we choose to follow the
crowds and reject the love of the Lord? Do we dare take the road less
travelled by? After, all, small is the gate and narrow the road that
leads to life, and only a few find it.
As Christians, I think that we already know the answer to such questions.
Our decisions should be such that God is honored, His instructions kept,
and His love lifted up. Bishop Walpole, the father of Hugh Walpole, the
novelist, once said to a friend who was weighing a [life] call: "If you
are uncertain of which of the two paths to take, choose the one on which
the shadow of the cross falls." (Rupert Hart-Davis in Hugh Walpole, A
Biography. Christianity Today, Vol. 31, no. 18).
Just as Jesus discovered throughout his ministry, doing the will of the
Father results in opposition. When Jesus invited himself to dine with
Zacchaeus - my, oh my! - didnt the neighbors talk? How could he mingle
with such sinful scum? When he brought healing to the lame, deaf, blind,
or others on the Sabbath - my, oh my! - didnt the Pharisees accuse? How
dare he do such good works on the Sabbath? When he confronted the
religious leaders and called them whitewashed tombs - my, oh my! -
didnt they plot to kill him? How dare he slander such upstanding
citizens of the community? Still, Jesus decided to obey his Father.
In our weekday Bible study, one group is currently in a chapter on the
second coming of Christ. Of course, the many prophecies surrounding those
events are unsettling. They speak of false prophets and catastrophes and
persecutions. They speak of how believers will be falsely accused and
punished on the grounds of those false accusations. They speak of how
difficult it will be for believers when the antichrist assumes power. So
how are Christians supposed to be then? In what way do we remain obedient
to God? The Bible has answers to that, too. In effect, the shape and form
of our decision to obey God does not change. Instead, Gods Word in this
area remains the same as it always has been. Turn to 1 Thessalonians 5:9.
After writing in several places in this letter about the return of
Christ, Paul concludes, For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but
to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. He died for us so
that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him.
Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact
you are doing
Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but
always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else. Be joyful
always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is
Gods will for you in Christ Jesus. Apparently, God has no other plan
for us to decide to live in accordance with His will than that we have
already been taught. Joni Eareckson Tada writes, Always, love is a
choice. You come up against scores of opportunities every day to love or
not to love. You encounter hundreds of small chances to please your
friends, delight your Lord and encourage your family. That's why love and
obedience are intimately linked - you can't have one without the other.
(Joni Eareckson Tada, from Diamonds in the Dust, as quoted by Marriage
Partnership, Vol. 11, no. 3).
Its not always easy living like God calls us to live. And its not going
to get easier as His return nears, whenever that may be. But such are the
decisions we need to make. God makes it clear plenty of times throughout
the Bible that our obedient attitude to love Him, serve Him, love others,
and serve others is not dependent upon circumstances. It is dependent
only upon our decision to serve God.
Dr. Victor Frankl, the bold, courageous Jew who became a prisoner during
the Holocaust, endured years of indignity and humiliation by the Nazis
before he was finally liberated. At the beginning of his ordeal, he was
marched into a gestapo courtroom. His captors had taken away his home and
family, his cherished freedom, his possessions, even his watch and
wedding ring. They had shaved his head and stripped his clothing off his
body. There he stood before the German high command, under the glaring
lights being interrogated and falsely accused. He was destitute, a
helpless pawn in the hands of brutal, prejudiced, sadistic men. He had
nothing.
No, that isn't true. He suddenly realized there was one thing no one
could ever take from him -- just one. Do you know what it was? Dr. Frankl
realized he still had the power to choose his own attitude. No matter
what anyone would ever do to him, regardless of what the future held for
him, the attitude choice was his to make. Bitterness or forgiveness. To
give up or to go on. Hatred or hope. Determination to endure or the
paralysis of self-pity. (Parsons Technology, Bible Illustrator software)
Not all of lifes decisions are pleasant. Not all of lifes decisions are
even pleasant to make. Yet, we are called to make them; we are required
to make them. How will you choose? May it be said of you, Christian, as
it was of King Asa, that you did what was right in the eyes of the
Lord.
Rev. Charles A. Layne, pastor, First Baptist Church, Bunker Hill, IN
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