DCLM Daily Manna 19 May 2022
KEY VERSE: 2 Chronicles 16:12,13 – “And Asa in the thirty and ninth year of his reign was diseased in his feet, until his disease was exceeding great: yet in his disease he sought not to the LORD, but to the physicians. And Asa slept with his fathers, and died in the one and fortieth year of his reign.”
TEXT: 2 Chronicles 16:1-14 (KJV)
In the thirty-sixth year of the reign of Asa, 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. 2 Then Asa brought silver and gold from the treasuries of the house of the Lord and of the king’s house, and sent to Ben-Hadad king of Syria, who dwelt in Damascus, saying, 3 “Let there be a treaty between you and me, as there was between my father and your father. See, I have sent you silver and gold; come, break your treaty with Baasha king of Israel, so that he will withdraw from me.”
4 So Ben-Hadad heeded King Asa, and sent the captains of his armies against the cities of Israel. They attacked Ijon, Dan, Abel Maim, and all the storage cities of Naphtali. 5 Now it happened, when Baasha heard it, that he stopped building Ramah and ceased his work. 6 Then King Asa took all Judah, and they carried away the stones and timber of Ramah, which Baasha had used for building; and with them he built Geba and Mizpah.
7 And at that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah, and said to him: “Because you have relied on the king of Syria, and have not relied on the Lord your God, therefore the army of the king of Syria has escaped from your hand. 8 Were the Ethiopians and the Lubim not a huge army with very many chariots and horsemen? Yet, because you relied on the Lord, He delivered them into your hand. 9 For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him. In this you have done foolishly; therefore from now on you shall have wars.” 10 Then Asa was angry with the seer, and put him in prison, for he was enraged at him because of this. And Asa oppressed some of the people at that time.
Illness and Death of Asa11 Note that the acts of Asa, first and last, are indeed written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel. 12 And in the thirty-ninth year of his reign, Asa became diseased in his feet, and his malady was severe; yet in his disease he did not seek the Lord, but the physicians.13 So Asa rested with his fathers; he died in the forty-first year of his reign. 14 They buried him in his own tomb, which he had made for himself in the City of David; and they laid him in the bed which was filled with spices and various ingredients prepared in a mixture of ointments. They made a very great burning for him
Read yesterday’s Daily Manna here
It is expected that the nearer a person is to the end of his life, the more effort he should put to obeying God and preparing for eternity. Instead, we find many people becoming more reckless in their living and at the end, dying in such an ignoble manner. Though they may have had a good start, they end up messing up everything.
Such was the case of King Asa. He started off as a God-fearing king. His good deeds and trust in the Lord earned him a peaceful reign and victories over formidable enemy nations. But at the end of his reign and life, he veered off from God. Instead of trusting God when he faced a threat from a less enemy nation, he looked up to another nation for help. When he was rebuked for his foolish act, he became furious against the prophet and imprisoned him. Asa became very oppressive and aggressive on the people. Even when he became diseased in his feet, he ignored God and sought help from ungodly physicians.
We must be careful not to end our lives as Asa did. It is not enough to start well; we must ensure we end well because that is what matters most. Believers must constantly gauge their lives to see that they do not decrease in the grace of God.
To end well, we must constantly have our eyes on the prize that is set before us. We must not allow anything to derail us. Lastly, we should seek more grace to run the race successfully.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: It is not enough to start well; it is far more important to end well!
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 2 Samuel 20-22
Thank you for studying today’s Daily Manna – The End Matters Most – by Pastor W.F Kumuyi
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Daily Manna 19 May 2022
