He is still faithful

⁷ At that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah and said to him: "Because you relied on the king of Aram and not on the LORD your God, the army of the king of Aram has escaped from your hand. ⁸ Were not the Cushites and Libyans a mighty army with great numbers of chariots and horsemen? Yet when you relied on the LORD, he delivered them into your hand. ⁹ For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. You have done a foolish thing, and from now on you will be at war."

2 Chronicles 16:7-9 (NIV)

In 2 Chronicles 14, Asa, king of Judah, and his army face an enemy three times larger than themselves. They depend on God and the enemy is defeated. Here in 2 Chronicles 16, Asa finds himself at war with Israel. Instead of turning to the Lord for help, he turns Ben-Hadad king of Aram. Victory follows. However, God is not happy. Asa is busted for not turning to God for help. Ouch.

I have many times seen great victory in my life when trusting in God. Yet, like Asa, I find myself apt to place my trust elsewhere. How easily I forget what God has done for me. I need to remind myself of God's faithfulness. I need to rehearse the testimonies of what God has done for me in my life. I need to preach the Gospel to myself each and every day. When the next battle comes, I need to turn first to God and not to my own understanding or to other men.

Do You Believe This?

²⁵Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, ²⁶and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?"

John 11:25-26 (ESV)

Lazarus had died. Martha came to Jesus and confessed that she knew that if Jesus were there, Lazarus would not have died. She wasn't nagging. If You'd only been here, this NEVER would have happened. Where the heck were You? No, she recognized His power. She knew what He could do. Jesus began to draw her out. "Your brother will rise again." Yes, Jesus, I know that. He'll rise on the last day. I know that. She recognized Jesus power to heal the sick - the living. She knew that Jesus had power over life. But what about death? Jesus knew He was going to die on the cross. His disciples were beginning to realize that Jesus was going to be killed. Thomas suggested to his fellow disciples that they go and die with Jesus. "Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live." Jesus has power over life AND death. "Do you believe this?" Do you have faith in this? Do you trust this? Are you willing to commit to this? Martha, He's saying, You know Who I really am. You've seen what I can do. I am telling you that I can do more than you know. How are do you respond right here, right now?

I know the end of the story. Lazarus is raised from the dead. Jesus goes on to die on the cross. He dies for my sin. The curtain in the temple is torn in two. Through Jesus, we have access to God's holiness. Jesus is raised from the dead. Death cannot stop Jesus. Oh death, where is your sting? But the question that I am confronted with is the same question Jesus posed here to Martha. "Do I believe this?"