TODAY’S PROPHETIC WORD
We lose sight of God’s great plan for us when we say, “I got this Jesus I don’t need your help.” But that is the total opposite of what His word tells us to do. You are at your greatest and strongest when you totally depend on Jesus to work through you. The wisest man ever said it like this, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.” (Proverbs 3:5).
SERVING A TYRANT
In 2 Chronicles 12, we learn about a king named Rehoboam and an Egyptian tyrant by the name of Shishak.
The Bible says Rehoboam “strengthened himself.” In other words, he prospered and got his act together. When he did, he walked out on God. A lot of people do this. I’ve seen it over and over again.
Some people can only walk with God when all hell is breaking loose. People get “jailhouse religion” even outside the jail! They get a cancer report, a severance package or a hit from the IRS and they operate in all nine gifts of the Holy Spirit. But as soon as they get a little strength, back to their personal agenda they go.
Rehoboam did that and it finally caught up to him.
Shishak showed up at the gates of Jerusalem. Rehoboam decided it was time to get right with God again. Because he repented, God showed him mercy, but read very carefully what the Lord had to say:
And when the LORD saw that they humbled themselves, the word of the LORD came to the prophet Shemaiah saying, “They have humbled themselves; therefore I will not destroy them, but I will grant them some deliverance; and My wrath shall not be poured out upon Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak. Nevertheless, they shall be his servants; that they shall know My service, and the service of the kingdoms of the countries.
– 2 Chronicles 12:7-12
The New Living Translation says, “so that they can learn how much better it is to serve Me than to serve earthly rulers.”
The Pastor Troy Translation says, “I’m going to let them serve an evil dictator for a while so that they can tell the difference between serving Me and serving a tyrant.”
Be careful what you wish for! If you gripe and complain that God is too difficult to serve, He might just let you serve something other than Him for a while – a prison sentence, a cancer report, an addiction, a rebellious child or a financial disaster.
God is not a tyrant, so don’t act like He is!
TODAY IS A GOOD DAY TO SERVE THE LORD WITH A WHOLE HEART. HE IS A GOOD GOD AND KIND MASTER WHO BLESSES US THROUGH SERVICE.
From my book: SOUL INVASION
