Cwc Easter 6 - OT Lesson - Kieth Bernard Kuschel
I Kings 6:14-17
14 Then he sent horses and chariots and a strong force there. They went by night and surrounded the city. 15 When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. “Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?” the servant asked. 6 “Don’t be afraid,” the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” 17 And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, Lord, so that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
IA1 Can somebody tell me something about Elijah? Taken to heaven in a fiery chariot. Elisha took over the prophet’s job after Elijah. I think God chose two people with such similar names just to confuse us. Elisha lived about 850 years before Jesus was born.
2 The King of Syria, called Aram back then, sent raiding parties into Israel on a pretty regular basis. They attacked a town, stole everything they could use, and then burned it down. Suddenly the King of Syria ran into a problem. Every time he would go to attack a town, it was already fortified by some of Israel’s soldiers. He thought one of his officers was tipping Israel off ahead of time. Not true.
3 King Jehoram of Israel knew which town the King of Syria was about to attack because Elisha had been told by the LORD ahead of time. Elisha informed King Jehoram. The King of Syria found out what Elisha was doing and decided to go to capture him. That brings us to verse 14 Then he sent horses and chariots and a strong force there. They went by night and surrounded the city.
4 15 When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. “Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?” the servant asked. That is probably how we all would have reacted. They were in danger. There was a need. He saw no solution to the need. “What are we doing to do!!!!!”
B1 What needs do we have in our lives? Some are regular daily needs. Food. Clothing. Shelter from the elements. Health so we can work. Jobs so we can earn money to take care of our needs. Some are special needs. More resources to handle a natural disaster. Emotional help and encouragement to handle a difficult problem. Sometimes the daily regular needs or the special needs seem like such a big mountain that we say with Elisha’s servant, “What are we going to do!!!!”
2 Sometimes we need protection. We need protection from natural occurrences like lightning, hurricanes, tornadoes, and floods. We need protection from traffic accidents, industrial accidents, and accidents which occur in our own homes. We need protection from criminals who would be trying to take advantage of us in some way that would bring some damage into our lives. We need protection from the armies of enemy countries, just as Elisha and his servant did. When we realize all the things we need to be protected from, we say with Elisha’s servant, “What are we going to do!!!!”
3 We always need protection from spiritual enemies and spiritual attacks. “You don’t need Jesus. Jesus is for losers who can’t handle life on their own,” the devil says. “I know what God’s Word says is the right thing to do in this situation. But I don’t think that is the best thing for me right now,” the sinful self in all of us says on a regular basis. “If you want to survive in the world we live in, you have to operate the way the everybody else operates. Trying to be morally correct just won’t make it,” the worldly-wise people around us say. And on our own we mimic Elisha’s servant, “What are we going to do!!!!”
IIA1 “What are we going to do!!!!” Elisha knew the LORD was protecting him. He knew the LORD promised to be with him, no matter what happened. He also knew that God uses His holy angels to protect his people. So, Elisha said, “6 “Don’t be afraid,” the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”
2 Then Elisha prayed that the servant’s eyes would be opened so that he could see things which are usually not apparent to human’s eyes. 17 And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, Lord, so that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. The heavenly host of angels surrounding Elisha and his servant were taking the form of fiery chariots and horses as they had done when they took Elijah to heaven.
B1 We know what Elisha knew. God protects us. He is with us no matter what. He uses His holy angels to protect us. How do we know that? God has told us that. You all know these words of God. Many of you have them memorized. Ps 34:6 This poor man called, and the Lord heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them. 8 Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.9 Fear the Lord, you his holy people, for those who fear him lack nothing. Psalm 91: 9 If you say, ““The Lord is my refuge,””and you make the Most High your dwelling, 10 no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent. 11 For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; 12 they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. Hebrews 1:14 Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?
2 “What are we going to do!!!!” Elisha’s answer to us is: The angel of the Lord encamps around you. The LORD delivers you. The LORD sees to it that you lack nothing. The LORD will not let harm or disaster overwhelm you. The Lord will send His angels to guard you in all your ways. The angels serve God’s people. Elisha’s answer is: “What are we going to do!!!!" isn’t the right question. “What is God going to do?” is the right question.
C1 Those promises of God are pretty inclusive, aren’t they? Guard you in all your ways. God Himself and through His angels is protecting us from starvation, nakedness, and homelessness. God Himself and through His angels is protecting our health, and our wealth, and our emotional well-being. God Himself and through His angels is protecting us from criminal activity, accidents, dangerous situations, and national enemies. Only when it is in the best interest of our relationship with Him does he withdraw any of those protections.
2 Serve those who will inherit salvation. That’s us. People who believe that Jesus died to wash away our sins, lived to cover us with His holiness, and rose to give us eternal life. We will inherit rescue from the punishment we deserve because of our sins. The angels serve us in our position as believers. They protect us against the devil who insists that we are too bad to be children of God or so good that we don’t need Jesus. They protect us from our own selfish, spiritually destructive thinking. They protect us from the people who insist that God’s ways are foolish. And we know from Jesus that at the end of our lives they will “carry us to Abraham’s side” where we won’t need protection anymore.
IIIA1 Since Elisha knew that the angels were present protecting him, he could say to his servant, “Don’t be afraid.” He knew God could get them out of this situation. He was not overwhelmed with fear and worry. He could be at peace in the midst of a very stressful situation.
2 Elisha’s trust was not misplaced. From the verses that follow we learn that the LORD struck the Syrian raiding party with blindness and then Elisha led them away to Samaria where the King of Israel was with his army. Thus the threat ended.
B1 We know what Elisha knew. We can be at peace as Elisha was. Even in stressful situations. We don’t have to worry saying, “What shall we eat” or “What shall we drink” or “What shall we wear?” We can seek Jesus’ kingdom and His righteousness. We can be at peace. We can be confident that we won’t strike our foot against a stone. We can be at peace. We know we are never alone. We can be at peace.
2 God’s promises don’t give us the right to do anything foolish. Like quit our jobs. Or go lie down in the middle of US 31. Or put ourselves into crime scenes. But His promises do give us the right to be confident that He is going to do all things for the benefit of our relationship with Him. So, we can be at peace.
C1 We know what Elisha knew. We can be at peace as Elisha was. Our sins have been washed away in the blood of Christ. We are covered with the holiness of Jesus. We are going to live forever because of the resurrection of Jesus. We can be confident that the angels are going to serve us in our position as believers by protecting our relationship with Jesus. So, we don’t have to seclude ourselves from the world, terrified that our relationship with Jesus is at risk. We can be at peace. We can carry out our role as witnesses for Jesus by intermingling with the unbelievers in our world as salt and light for the world.
2 God’s promises don’t give us the right to do anything foolish. Like not using the Bible in our homes. Like not worshiping Jesus weekly. Like not going to Bible class. Like sinning because we know Jesus has forgiven us. But His promises do give us the right be confident that He is going to protect our relationship with Him for as long as He allows us to live in this world.
We can be at peace.
D We also know what Jesus knew. The angels will carry us to Abraham’s side. And so we can look forward to a peaceful sleep and a peaceful awakening and sing, “Lord, let at last Thine angels come, to Abram’s bosom bear me home, That I may die unfearing; And in its narrow chamber keep My body safe in peaceful sleep Until Thy reappearing. And then from death awaken me That these mine eyes with joy may see, O Son of God, Thy glorious face, My Savior and my Fount of grace. Lord Jesus Christ, My prayer attend, my prayer attend, And I will praise Thee without end.”