The Hard Lesson

OT: 2 Chronicles 10-12
NT: Hebrews 12:3-11

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2 Chronicles 12:5-8 — Then the prophet Shemaiah came to Rehoboam and to the leaders of Judah who had assembled in Jerusalem for fear of Shishak, and he said to them, “This is what the LORD says, ‘You have abandoned me; therefore, I now abandon you to Shishak.’” The leaders of Israel and the king humbled themselves and said, “The LORD is just.” When the LORD saw that they humbled themselves, this word of the LORD came to Shemaiah: “Since they have humbled themselves, I will not destroy them but will soon give them deliverance. My wrath will not be poured out on Jerusalem through Shishak. They will, however, become subject to him, so that they may learn the difference between serving me and serving the kings of other lands.”

I really don't like hard lessons. You know, those lessons you learn through trial and failure. Or those lessons that come as a result of a bad decision you've made. The "you reap what you sow" lessons. Rehoboam was the son of Solomon, a good king who went bad in his later years. Rehoboam was foolish from the start and the Lord ripped the northern 10 tribes out of his kingdom. He had tried to make the yoke of work heavier on his workers. They didn't like it, decided to unionize, and bolted in a landslide vote.or something like that. Now, in today's reading, the Lord decided to show Rehoboam what a heavier workload was really like, courtesy of Shishak, Pharaoh of Egypt. It is better to serve the Lord and act in wisdom than serve a foreign king, was what the Lord wanted to communicate.

Our God is very loving towards us, His adopted children. There is no condemnation for those who believe in Jesus (Rom. 8:1) and our hope of redemption in Him is secure. However, every now and then the Lord allows us to reap the result of our actions. Sometimes He blesses us for making wise choices. Other times He allows us to suffer the consequences of bad choices. It is through that suffering that we learn how to grow and develop. Every wise person has made bad choices. Rehoboam made some rotten ones. And he suffered as a result. But God remembered His promise to David (see 2 Samuel 7) and the kingdom of Judah passed on to Rehoboam's son, Abijah. For the Lord loves those who are His and will always be with us through every trial, even if that trial is a result of our own choices.

Be God's.