Enquire at the Word of the Lord (2 Chronicles 18:4)
Last week, we were reminded from the passage in 2 Chronicles 18 to speak boldly about God’s truth. This week, another important life verse is found in verse 4, reminding us to seek the Lord in our everyday decisions.
We live in a confusing world
Not everything in this world is as straightforward as a simple “yes” or “no”. There are times when all the options appear alright with comparable benefits and costs. Other times, we can over analyse a situation till we are too paralysed to continue.
How would we know what God wants us to do in these situations?
By God’s design, it is right to ask Him for guidance
The answer would be to return to the source of all our providence - God. God wants us to seek direction from Him, as part of an intrinsic relationship between a Father and Son.
In the New Testament, when the Word (or the Bible) had not yet been completed, God used prophets and visions to guide people to do His will. For instance, Paul got directions from God to go to Macedonia for his missionary work through a vision. There have been instances in the Bible when people (Joshua and king Saul) were punished for not seeking the Lord. Now, at a time and age when the Word is complete, God speaks through His Word and the Holy Spirit. Through Christ’s death and resurrection, God has also opened the door for us to constantly seek Him (i.e. direct access to Him with the tearing of the veil at Christ’s death).
But we often do not do so for several reasons
While God stretches out His arms for us to seek Him, we often have no desire to do so on our part.
Some possible reasons include:
1) We do not really know the Lord and His Word (there is a difference between knowing God and knowing about God);
2) We fear that what the Lord wants us to do is totally against what we would want to do (there is a difference between God’s will and man’s choice);
3) We just want God to “rubber-stamp” and approve our petitions;
4) We depend too much on human strength (e.g. church pastors, experts) to provide us with solutions
Let's strive to always turn to the Lord!
Our natural tendency is to run away from God. How can we always turn to the Lord?
There are three areas to consider before we approach God and enquire of Him:
1) Address sin issues. Isaiah 59:1-2 reminds us that sins have broken the fellowship man had previously enjoyed with God, and we need to repent of these sins before enquiring of the Lord.
2) Be ready to listen. In 2 Chronicles 18, king Jehoshaphat went to great lengths to find the prophet (Micaiah) for guidance. However, at the end of the day, Israel and Judah still went against the will of God. Are we ready to listen?
3) Be instinctively prepared to go back to God and ask of Him. How wonderful it will be if Christians turn to God first in all situations, genuinely wanting to engage with their Lord and King! This also means subordinating our will to His, and understanding that His directions might not be the most smooth sailing, from a human persepctive (remember Paul and his stint at the Philippine jail?).
Psalm 37:23-24 also highlights that the steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord. Only when we enquire of Him always and learn to listen, will we be able to stay calm in this confusing world. Furthermore, the verses also give us comfort, that though we might fail and falter, God will pick us up and be there for us.
Psalm 37:23-24 - The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and he delighteth in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand.
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