Daily Manna 16 January
KEY VERSE: “Then Asa took all the silver and the gold that were left in the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king’s house, and delivered them into the hand of his servants: and king Asa sent them to Ben-hadad, the son of Tabrimon, the son of Hezion, king of Syria, that dwelt at Damascus…” (1 KINGS 15:18).
TEXT: 1 KINGS 15:16-24 (KJV)
16 Now there was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel all their days. 17 And Baasha king of Israel came up against Judah, and built Ramah, that he might let none go out or come in to Asa king of Judah. 18 Then Asa took all the silver and gold that was left in the treasuries of the house of the Lord and the treasuries of the king’s house, and delivered them into the hand of his servants. And King Asa sent them to Ben-Hadad the son of Tabrimmon, the son of Hezion, king of Syria, who dwelt in Damascus, saying, 19 “Let there be a treaty between you and me, as there was between my father and your father. See, I have sent you a present of silver and gold. Come and break your treaty with Baasha king of Israel, so that he will withdraw from me.”
20 So Ben-Hadad heeded King Asa, and sent the captains of his armies against the cities of Israel. He attacked Ijon, Dan, Abel Beth Maachah, and all Chinneroth, with all the land of Naphtali. 21 Now it happened, when Baasha heard it, that he stopped building Ramah, and remained in Tirzah.
22 Then King Asa made a proclamation throughout all Judah; none was exempted. And they took away the stones and timber of Ramah, which Baasha had used for building; and with them King Asa built Geba of Benjamin, and Mizpah.
23 The rest of all the acts of Asa, all his might, all that he did, and the cities which he built, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? But in the time of his old age he was diseased in his feet. 24 So Asa [a]rested with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the City of David his father. Then Jehoshaphat his son reigned in his place.
Read yesterday’s Daily Manna here
Many people are quick to take the easy way out. They seek shortcuts to finding a solution to an enduring problem. For a while, it may seem to be working. Soon enough, they realise that greater problems have been created. Asa, king of Judah, sought futile shortcuts. Although he started well, for “he did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD, as did David his father”, success for him came at a great price. Baasha, the king of Israel, waged war against him, and seized part of his territory. When Asa realised he could not dislodge Baasha, he turned to the wrong source for help.
He gathered all the treasures in the house of the Lord and delivered them to Benhadad, king of Syria, with the plea that he should break his alliance with Baasha. It worked, because the king of Syria attacked Israeli cities, forcing the king of Israel to withdraw from Judah. From then on, however, Asa’s life took a downward plunge. His rebellion soon brought a strange disease upon him. Yet, in his sickness, he refused to turn to God. Instead, he kept hopping from one physician to the other, all to no avail.
Soon, he died from that sickness; a pitiable end of a king that began his reign by doing right in the sight of God. We must avoid taking the easy way out. It may appear simple and straightforward but it does not last. Worse still, it has the tendency to turn the heart from God, to make us self-conceited, and to think that we can solve our own problems. Resist the pressure to seek shortcuts in dealing with life challenges. Instead, let your dependence rest on the Almighty.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Shortcuts often lead to damning problems.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: ACTS 5-6
Thank you for studying today’s Daily Manna – Futile Shortcuts – by Pastor Enoch A.
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Daily Manna 16 January 2022
