MINISTER, Rev. Thomas
Scarborough.
2 Chronicles 21. King
Jehoram.
Sermon Outline.
King Jehoram. 2
Chronicles 21.
A. Evil King Jehoram
ascends the throne
B. He establishes
himself over the kingdom
1. His father was established by the Lord2. The unbeliever establishes himself/herself3. The believer trusts in God to establish him/her
C. King Jehoram puts
his brothers to the sword
1. The motivation --
he is driven by fear
2. Cut-throat
businesses today are driven by the same
3. The Christian has
peace and trust in God
D. Jehoshaphat reached
out, while Jehoram was inward-looking
1. Fear takes away your interest in others2. The Holy Spirit sets believers free from fear and self
E. King Jehoram was who
he was because of evil influence
1. Come away from any bad influence in your life
F. King Jehoram is
motivated by pleasing people
1. He builds "high places" and encourages immorality2. He makes a great effort to please people3. Pleasing others -- peer pressure or their expectations
G. Conclusion: God's
judgement falls on King Jehoram
We are studying the book
of 2 Chronicles at the moment, which is the story of the spiritual
history of the kingdom of Judah.
After the reign of King
Solomon, Israel was divided into two kingdoms.
In the south was the kingdom of Judah,
and in the north was the kingdom of Israel.
* * * * * * * * * *
Now this morning we have
come to the first bad
king of the south. The reign of the good
kings is over.
In fact there is now a series
of bad kings in the south -- and the first of them, this morning, is
King Jehoram.
In fact King Jehoram is
not only a bad
king -- he is a very
bad king. In 2 Chronicles 21 verse 6 -- at the end of the verse --
his reign is summed up as follows: "He did evil
in the eyes of the Lord."
* * * * * * * * *
One important reason
that he did evil -- it is stated plainly in Scripture -- is in verse
6 -- it is an important verse.
"Jehoram walked in
the ways of the kings of Israel
-- he walked in evil
ways -- for he married a daughter of Ahab."
And basically, what that means is, he married a wicked woman.
All of the trouble
we are going to hear about this morning is put down, here in the
text, to the influence of this king's wife.
That word for
-- or because,
in verse 6 -- says it all. He was evil for -- or because -- he
married a daughter of Ahab.
Now we all like to think
that we are independent beings, who have a head of our own, and we
are not influenced by others. Heaven forbid that anyone should tell
us that we are not really thinking our own thoughts, or we are just
following the lead of someone else.
But the Bible puts a
very strong emphasis on influence. It shows us that a bad influence
can be a very powerful
influence.
The next
king we are going to look at -- the one who comes after
Jehoram -- made exactly the same mistake except in a different way.
We read that he did evil in the eyes of the Lord, for
-- or because
-- he hired evil advisers.
So the plain and simple
message here is: be careful who you get close
to. This doesn’t mean, don’t have any
contact with evil people -- but it does
mean, don’t marry
them, don’t hire them as consultants,
don’t rent a flat
with them, don’t hang out with them at college, and so on.
The Bible tells us,
“Come out
from them, and be separate,
says the Lord.” (2 Corinthians 6:17).
So 2 Chronicles verse 6
is not there for nothing
-- it is God’s Word
-- it stands there for a reason.
King Jehoram and the whole of his kingdom
did evil
in God’s sight -- because
King Jehoram was not careful about who he allowed to get close
to him.
The Bible shows us that
it is probably more dangerous than we think
to maintain close company with people who are not spiritually sound.
* * * * * * * * *
The next
question, of course, is -- why
was King Jehoram evil? What did he actually do?
But I’m not going to
look so much at his deeds
as the attitudes
that led him astray. As we look at the story of evil King Jehoram,
it would seem that there were just two or three basic attitudes
that caused
him to be an evil king.
The first
of these attitudes we find in verse 4
-- verse 4 very simply yet powerfully describes a core problem.
We read there: “Jehoram established himself
firmly over his father’s kingdom.”
And let us notice
immediately an important contrast with his father
-- his father who was a God-fearing
king.
We read concerning his
father,
"The Lord
established the kingdom under [his] control."
And notice the words in
verse 4 this morning: "Jehoram established himself
over his father's kingdom."
This is the difference
between a God-fearing
man, and an evil
man. It is the very first thing we read
about King Jehoram. He established himself.
And this is in fact a
fundamental
difference that we often find between believing Christians, and
unbelievers. By unbelievers I mean people who have not received
Jesus as their personal Lord and Saviour.
The unbeliever
establishes himself
-- or herself.
By his own power, and
control, and scheming, and planning, he establishes himself
in life. Some people work awfully hard to establish themselves
-- it is a life purpose
for them. Little by little, their purpose in life is to promote
themselves
-- through degrees and promotions and investments and successes and
you name
it.
But the Christian, on
the other hand, should be free
from such an attitude to life.
As the Lord sanctifies
you -- as He moves upon your heart and mind -- you should be set free
from the attitude of King Jehoram, who established himself.
The Christian should be
able to say: "Lord, I depend on You
to prosper me and to make me succeed -- so that Your Name may be
glorified."
The Christian also
understands that it depends completely upon God
to establish him or her -- to lead them, and build them up, and give
them a plan and a purpose for life.
King Jehoram’s first
great mistake -- which contrasts so clearly with his father who went
before him -- is that he wanted to establish himself.
He was going to do what he
thought would secure his kingship -- while his father
had sought to honour God
-- and believed that it was that honour of God
that would make all the rest fall into place.
This is exactly the same
as what the New Testament tells us: “Seek first His Kingdom and His
righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”
(Matthew 6:33).
*
* * * * * * * * *
Now the first great act
of King Jehoram's reign is also in verse 4. What was his first major
decision
as king?
In verse 4: "He put
all his brothers to the sword
-- along with some of the princes of Israel."
That is six brothers in
his own kingdom -- their names are listed in verse 2 -- and also some
of the princes of the evil kingdom of the north.
He had them all put to death.
Let’s think for a
moment why he did
that. It is clearly connected with this evil king establishing
his kingdom.
He wanted his kingdom to be safe
-- to be firm
-- to be established.
If he had six brothers
around, they might be a threat
to his kingship.
They might take the kingship from
him.
In other words, this was
a king who was driven by fear.
He didn't trust God
to establish him. He trusted in himself.
And since he didn’t believe
that it was God's
task to protect him and bless him and establish him, he was afraid,
and he resorted to the tactics of fear
to establish himself.
Notice how a spiritual
attitude has a lot to do with actions.
If you act out of a motive of fear,
rather than trust in God,
that leads to wrong actions.
And there are plenty of
Jehorams around today.
There are plenty of people who are afraid of the competition, or
afraid of the future, or afraid of their enemies, or afraid of being
unpopular. And so they act
out of fear, and that leads to all kinds of evil.
It leads to ruthless practices, it leads to power plays, and
threats, and conniving, and dishonesty, and many other things.
It is a natural
consequence of an absence of faith in God.
But the Christian
says -- in whatever position they are in -- in whatever situation
they are facing: "I trust God
to establish me and prosper me."
You might think there is
reason
for fear -- but even then -- and especially
then -- that is the moment to trust God.
The apostle Peter
said that even if you are in dire straits,
“Do not
fear what they
fear; do not
be frightened.
But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord.”
(1 Peter 3:14-15).
The Bible says: "Blessed
is the man who fears the Lord
... Surely he will never be shaken ... He will have no fear of bad
news.
His heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord.
His heart is secure. He will have
no fear."
Psalm 112.
You might be dealing
with a difficult superior at work
-- you might be facing a legal
case -- it could be a meeting
that you fear -- it could be a difficult relationship.
Pray to the Lord to take
away your spirit of fear
-- because He is with
you -- He promises
to be with you -- and ask Him to give you a spirit of freedom.
Incidentally, Jehoram's
radical efforts to establish himself
did not work in the end.
He was king for only eight years
-- and during those eight years, most
of his children were abducted, and so were his wives -- and his
kingdom was ransacked
-- and for a quarter of those years he suffered a terminal illness,
according to a prophecy of Elijah the prophet.
And the Bible
specifically tells us -- in verse 10 -- this was because
King Jehoram had forsaken the Lord the God of his fathers.
He tried to establish
himself
-- but God Himself put an end
to it. His father before
him trusted God
even when it looked like madness,
and God established his kingdom for a whole generation.
* * * * * * * * *
Let us notice another
thing about the character of King Jehoram -- his desire to establish
himself,
and his fear
of any threats
to his kingdom and his success, also made him a self-focused
man.
Fear and ambition takes
away your interest in the good of others,
and it makes you interested only in you.
It makes you defensive.
It makes you inward-looking.
It also takes away your care
for others.
Jehoram’s father,
who reigned before
him, travelled from town to town in his kingdom to bless the people
with God’s Word -- he preached
in every town and city -- and he saw to it that there was good,
God-fearing governance
in every place.
And his reign was such a blessing
to the nation
that he was greatly honoured at his funeral.
When we read about him,
we realise that he had a genuine concern for the people
-- he looked outward,
towards the people
-- and especially he had a concern to do what was right in the eyes
of the Lord.
But King Jehoram blessed
nobody
-- and when he died -- in verse 20 -- they wouldn’t honour him, and
they wouldn’t even bury him in the tombs of the kings.
They were disgusted
with him. Verse 20: “He passed away, to no
one’s regret.”
The Bible tells us:
"There is no
fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear ... The one who
fears
is not made perfect in love."
(1 John 4:18).
Notice the connection
between fear,
and not being made perfect in love.
The two are closely connected.
If you are like King Jehoram, who was full of fears,
and acting
out of fear to maintain his kingdom,
love
will disappear.
* * * * * * * * * *
There is a simple lesson
here for us in every situation of life.
God's will for us as
Christian believers is to be loving,
outgoing
people. He wants us to consider how we can minister
to Him -- and minister to others
-- in every situation of life.
As soon as fear fills
your heart, you can no longer reach out.
Jesus went so far as to
say: " Love your enemies,
and do good
to those who hate you. Bless those who curse you, and pray for those
who mistreat you." (Luke 6:27).
Those you should be most
afraid
of -- love them, too.
The Holy Spirit sets us
free
-- He sets us free in such a way that we can forget
about self, and reach out to others. That is what love is all about
-- it is a looking outward -- a looking to the good and blessing of
others.
* * * * * * * * * * *
Then there is one more
thing that really characterises the reign of King Jehoram, that we
shall look at this morning.
Not only did King
Jehoram fear
-- but he did something also that very often goes together
with fear -- and that is that he wanted to please people.
It didn't matter to him if he displeased God
-- he wanted to please people.
Now the law of God
stated that the people of Israel should sacrifice only at the temple.
At least once a year, they should make a pilgrimage to the temple --
usually at the Passover -- to bring sacrifices to the Lord.
For many people, that
was a long way to travel
-- and it meant a good deal of preparation for the journey. You had
to make arrangements for the farm or for the house at home -- you had
to take time out from your business -- and you had to make provision
for the road.
* * * * * * * * * * *
So King Jehoram decided
to please the people
-- and in verse 11 we read: "He built high
places on the
hills of Judah." These were special places of worship on the
hills.
And this means that the
people didn't need to go all the way to Jerusalem any more. They
could simply go to the nearest hilltop
to offer worship and sacrifice.
But worse than this --
also in verse 11 -- we read that Jehoram led the people to prostitute
themselves. Some say this means that he led them to prostitute
themselves spiritually
-- some say it means that prostitution became a part of the worship
-- as we know was the case with the religion of Baal.
Although the name Baal
is not mentioned
in this chapter -- it does say -- in verse 13 -- that Jehoram did as
the house of Ahab
did -- and we know that the house of Ahab worshiped Baal.
So it seems that King
Jehoram introduced detestable practices that served the lusts
of the people.
But the point is -- it
would seem that it all started because King Jehoram wanted to please
the people.
He wanted to make it as easy as possible
for them to offer their sacrifices. And he wanted to give them the
pleasure of following their own lusts.
* * * * * * * * *
In fact he went to
tremendous effort
to make this possible.
If you want to please people, you will also expend a great deal of
energy
on pleasing them.
He built high places on
the hills of Judah
-- that was a major, national project.
* * * * * * * * * *
Let us apply this also
to us today.
There are basically two
ways today that people try to please people.
In the first place, you
find peer
pressure --
that is the pressure you feel to do as everybody else
does -- or as everybody else expects
you to do.
So you want to please
them. You don't want to lose their friendship
-- or you don’t want to be ridiculed
by them -- or you don’t want to be the odd one out.
But in order to follow
the Lord,
sometimes it is necessary to carry on regardless
of what people think -- and only with an eye for what the Lord
thinks. We need to be prepared as Christians that we might need to
lose the approval of men for being Christian believers.
* * * * * * * * * *
A second way in which
people try to please people today is to go to the ends of the earth
to meet the targets of their bosses, or to do all the tasks that
others would like them to do.
The curious thing is
that they will do this even at the expense of their family, and even
at the expense of their health -- and not least at the expense of
their own happiness.
That also is a way in
which we can please people, but displease the Lord when we do it.
It is not the Lord's
will that your family should suffer, or that your health should
suffer -- or even that your peace of heart should suffer -- because
you are trying to meet the expectations of others.
But if you please the
Lord first of all, you will find that the Lord will bless the rest.
The apostle Paul says,
in Galatians 1 verse 10: "Am I trying to win the approval of men
-- or the approval of God? ... If I were still trying to please men,
I would not be a servant of Christ."
* * * * * * * * * *
Now this whole way of
life -- the kind of way that King Jehoram lived -- fear of others on
the one hand -- and the desire to please them on the other -- without
the fear of God -- finally comes under the heavy judgement of God in
this chapter.
It’s a sad story of
what happens when people, in the basic attitudes of their heart,
drift away from faith in God.
* * * * * * * * * *
So the question this
morning is -- have you been living for people?
Have you been living in
the fear of men? Have you tried too hard
to please men -- that is
just another kind of fear. Would you like
to live for the Lord
instead? Would you like to come into a
personal relationship
with Him, and start a new way of living?
Then please ask me for a
copy of this booklet ...................
as you leave today. It
is with our compliments.
AMEN.
