“TWO INSTRUMENTS OF BLESSINGS” PART 2, JULY 2018
 

        We are careful to refer to men and women of old: some of whom are standing in the “hall of faith”. By citing the exploits of ordinary people, it brings them down to our level; and it elevates us to their level of accomplishments. We are reminded by James, of one who stands aloft in both testaments of the bible. He notes that “Elias (Elijah) was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on earth by the space of three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.” James 5: 17, 18. Let us visit with Elijah as he confronted king Ahab.

“And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the Lord God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain three years, BUT ACCORDING TO MY WORD. 1^st Kings 17: 1. I like to add my own version of events! Elijah locked the heavens, took the keys and wandered off in the desert: and there was no rain until the prophet returned and opened the heavens. It is easy for us to embrace this story as one that occurred by the faith and acts of a great prophet who had a special relationship with God. But let us read again, what we noted above. “Elias was a man of like passions as we are.” He was the man who slew the prophets of Baal and brought God’s fire on the scene to consume the sacrifice in blazing glory. But in a short period of time, this mighty prophet ran from a woman, found a tree under which he laid and prayed to die. This is typical of anyone of us.

This is the reason we why we refer to great acts of old; done by ordinary people like us. Walking along the “gallery of faith” we end up saying: “And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets.” Hebrews 11:32. As if to sprinkle a little icing on the cake, we must reiterate the fact that these were people just like us, and we cover the cake with a thick layer of truth: “that Jesus Christ is the same, yesterday, today and forever. In almost every Divine act wrought by God in olden times, involved someone who stepped up to the front line; as if to say, “Here I am Lord, send me.”

God works through human beings, so that he does not leave himself without a witness. I will have to condense the next story to conserve space and time. The king of Syria had a noble captain named Naaman, and because of him the Lord brought deliverance to Syria—but he was a leper. A little captive maid who served Naaman suggested that if he master were to contact the prophet in Israel he would be healed. The king wrote a letter to be hand-delivered to the king of Israel. The letter said: “Now when this letter is come unto thee, behold, I have therewith sent Naaman my servant to thee, that thou mayest recover him of leprosy. The king of Israel rent his clothes in great anger, on the premise that the king of Syria was intent of starting a war with him. He said: am I God to kill and to make alive? When Elisha the man of God heard that the king had rent his clothes, he sent to the king saying, wherefore hast thou rent thy clothes? (I like this next part of the story) let him come now to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel.” 2^nd Kings 5: 1-8.

Let us understand that Elisha needed not to interfere. He could have looked the other way and as we usually say: “I have troubles of my own: I don’t want to get involved in other people’s problems.” The following words word tug at my heart! Let him come now to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel.” God is not asleep; neither is he out of town. He is currently in business—his door is always open. We are searching to see if God, indeed, has put a separation between the Church and the State. In this lesson two kings were involved—the king of Syria and the king of Israel—so both matters were matters of State. The prophet Elisha represented God (the Church) and the Almighty imposed himself in the matters of both States.

We now shift our attention to another set of circumstances that involved both Church and State. “The people of the land have used oppression, and exercise robbery, and have vexed the poor and needy: yea, they have oppressed the stranger wrongfully. And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none. Therefore have I poured out mine indignation upon them; I have consumed them with the fire of my wrath: their own way have I recompensed upon their heads, saith the Lord God.” Ezekiel 22: 29-31.This shows quite clearly, the importance of us humans, being made willing instruments for healing, love, compassion, and the reconciliation to God of the whole creation. Let us repeat that in ancient times, kings ruled over the State, and the prophets who advised kings and other rulers, spoke as oracles of God.

Let us revisit Israel as a nation before God that was meant to be a pattern—a model after which other nations should conform. “Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine. And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests (of which natural Israel never were) and an holy nation.” Exodus 19: 5, 6. Very quickly we shall see that in olden times God inserted himself actively in the setting up of kingdoms and outlined in specific terms the values and principles that would guarantee the longevity of said kingdom. From the very beginning, God did not intend his kingdom to be fashioned after the dictates and heathen worship of other kingdoms. While many kingdoms came under human rulers, God intended to be the sole ruler and king over Israel.

The first sign of backsliding on the part of Israel came when they asked the prophet Samuel to make them a king. “Then all the elders of Israel gathered themselves together, and came to Samuel unto Ramah, and said unto him, Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways: now make us a king to judge us like the other nations. But the thing displeased Samuel. And the Lord said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee; for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected m, that I should not reign over them.” 1^st Samuel 8: 4-7. What triggered God’s anger most of all? It was the fact that Israel wanted to “be like the other nations.”

They forgot what God had said away back, soon after they departed Egypt and camped in the region of Sinai. God had said back then: “Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine. And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation.” Exodus 19: 5, 6. This covenant with God was meant to be Israel’s trade mark. It is the sole factor of that which was meant to make them different from all other people on earth. Now, they pleaded with Samuel for him to make them a king to rule over them just like all the other nations.

Let us remind ourselves that in the matter of the State and the Church (represented by God himself) the Almighty never yielded his sovereignty over the work of his hands to any other person or power. Let us see how he set about to demonstrate his omnipotence as world powers got ready to display their wares on the world stage. In the days King Nebuchadnezzar, he had a dream in which he saw a tree with varied descriptions, the command was given to cut the tree down, and destroy it, yet leave the stumps intact. As part of Daniel’s interpretation of the king’s dream, he said:

“They shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and they shall wet thee with the dew of heaven, and seven times (seven years) shall pass over thee, till thou know that the most High, ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will. And whereas they commanded to leave the stump of the tree roots; thy kingdom shall be sure unto thee, after that thou shalt have known that the heaven DO RULE. Daniel 4: 21-26. Let us re-emphasize the facts that we just noted! The kingdom is the Lord’s, and he gives it to whomsoever he wills secondly, THE HEAVENS DO RULE! Let us be cognizant of the fact that these two principles were put in place by God before time began, and they will stand predominant until time is no more.

The kingdoms of this world are governed (in most cases) by people who know not God. When we look at the current state of affairs in this current White House, some of us are angry and totally bewildered with what this administration is doing to our democracy. But if we believe the two outstanding truths above, we have to conclude that the most High God puts into the White House whom he chooses, for whatever purpose he has decreed. Let us not forget that God raised up a heathen king, Nebuchadnezzar, called him “my servant” and put all Israel under the yoke of this king. But by the same token, God raised up another heathen king, Cyrus, and put it in his heart to free the Israelites from Egyptian bondage. He causes some to fall, and he uses other to lift up the fallen. As some preachers say: “God is God all by himself.”

The people who came to Samuel for him to make them a king to rule over them, had forgotten the signs, the wonders, and all the miracles that God performed on their behalf. Just like it is today, statutes and laws are rendered less important over the passing of time. God gave the people Saul, who did not serve Israel well. Having rejected him as king, God sent the prophet Samuel to the house of Jessie to anoint one of his sons to be king over Israel. Notice that God showed interest and dominance over all aspects of life among the Israelites. He ordered and directed all aspects of the Church and the State.

The prophets did not necessarily function in the political arm of the state. But they acted as a link between God and the State. Notice how powerful the high priests in Jerusalem were; in serving matters of the church and the law of Moses under which the Jews lived. Kings listened and even requested the word of God, being ministered by the prophets. Solomon became king after the death of his father David, and the Lord began to reassure Solomon concerning the longevity of the kingdom.

God spoke to Solomon saying: “And as for thee, if thou wilt walk before me , as David thy father walked, and do according to all that I have commanded thee, and shalt observe my statutes and my judgments; then will I establish the throne of thy kingdom, according as I have covenanted with David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man to be ruler in Isreal.”2^nd Chronicles 7:17, 18. Setting up kings, and seeing to the interest of the kingdom, is dealing with matters of the State. And in all cases, we see God as representing the church. So far, we have seen that God did not sit in the shadows and turn a blind eye to matters of the State. To the contrary, he took the lead, set up parameters around the kingdom, and ordered what life within the kingdom should be.

David was thirty years old when he began to reign (later, we see that those called to the priesthood had to be at least 30 years old) and he reigned forty years. In Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months: and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty and three years over all Israel and Judah. 2^nd Samuel 5: 4, 5. Let us see how David sought direction from the Lord, and how God responded. “The Philistines also came and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim. And David enquired of the Lord, saying, Shall I go up to the Philistines? Wilt thou deliver them into mine hand? And the Lord said unto David (the king and the Lord working in unison i.e. Church and State.) go up: for I will doubtless deliver the Philistines into thine hand. In this highly charged “matters of State” God stood shoulder to shoulder with the king, directing the course of events. And the Philistines came up yet again, and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim. And when David enquired of the Lord, he said, Thou shalt not go up; but fetch a compass behind them, and come upon them over against the mulberry trees.” 2^nd Samuel 5: 18-23. Neither God nor David thought of the ramifications behind the concept of the separation between Church and State. God functioned adequately and personally in both scenarios.

God made it clear to Solomon that his kingdom would be blessed and last a mighty long time, only if he followed in the footsteps of his father David. Like in so many cases with which we are familiar, Solomon lost his way and the kingdom over which God had placed him. “But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites. And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart. For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the Lord his God, as was the heart of David his father.

And Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and went not fully after the Lord, as did David his father.

Royce O. Kennedy