On Tuesday American elected our first black President; a historic event, an event I never thought I would see in my lifetime. At the same time we live in perilous times. We are involved in two wars, the Stock Market crashed, we are in a recession, and we just bailed out Wall Street for billions of dollars. It’s amazing that anyone would want the job of President.
King Asa of Judah (his story is told in II Chronicles 15 and 16) is blessed by God. He eagerly seeks God and God delivers and intervenes for the Nation of Judah. Then they have a period of peace (possibly 20 years) and the story is picked up in Chapter 16 when King Baashi of Israel begins to make a problem. King Asa then does something remarkably sad; he bribes a foreign king (King Aram of Syria) to break an allegiance with Asa’s enemy, King Baashi of Israel. King Asa goes on to live a defeated, sad life. He does not finish well.
King Asa pays the bribe with money for the Lord’s treasury plus money from his own palace (II Chronicles 16). Here we have a rich, or should I say wealthy king, leading a passionless life, possibly distracted by all of his stuff who sins against the Lord by bribing the King of Aram. I wondered why the change of character. King Asa definitely lost his passion for the Lord. I wondered why did he bribe the King of Aram? Because he could! Yes, the passionless, fat and happy king who has been living in peace pays a bribe because he can.
King Asa would fit right in with us today. In a time of peace, we lose our edge. I have no problem with wealth; praise God for it. But when we have wealth in the hands of a king who is passionless and distracted, we get into major-league trouble.
We bribe people also; we just don’t call it that. No, we form Political Action Committees, hire a lobbyist and make our own $200 donation to the political party of our choice expecting to be heard. We think God doesn’t see our bribery tainted dirty hands but God does see them just like He saw King Asa’s hands.
During this election cycle, billions of dollars were spent to influence us; a very sophisticated bribe. We slap each other on the back during this madness and say, “This is just the way it is.” How sad. We, as Christians, are to be agents of change but being the fat and happy passionless, distracted people we are, we slumber with a smile on our face while our country and culture hurtle towards Hell.
Christians wake up!! We live in perilous and historic times.
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