Do you want to be used? Do you want to be in God’s service? Since mankind has not changed and God has not changed, we can take a look back in history and see what it takes to be someone whom God can use. Let’s take a look at King Asa and draw some principles from him that will help us abound in the work of the Lord (1 Cor. 15:58) as New Testament Christians.
DO WHAT IS RIGHT – 2 Chron. 14:2-8:
In the beginning, Asa did what was right. He knew what the Old Testament said about idol worship and so he expunged idolatry from his nation. The ashram were symbols of the Canaanite goddess Asherah and apparently her worship was conducted in forested areas. Thus, cutting down trees was a practice of removing such worship.
King Asa also commanded the nation to “seek the Lord God of their fathers and to observe the law and the commandment” (vs 4).
We need to do what is right if we want to be of service to God (James 4:17). We need to give glory to God by making our actions and our behavior consistent with what is right in His word (1 Cor. 10:31).
SEEK GOD’S WILL – 2 Chron. 14:9-15:
Asa had a fairly large army, at least for his small nation, nearly 600,000. That’s about half the size of our military for a country considerably smaller. The Ethiopians had a 1 million man army, including chariots.
But verse 11 tells us that Asa had a weapon the Ethiopians did not have – prayer. He called on God, recognizing his dependence on God and God heard and answered his prayer. Verse 13 says that the Ethiopians were “shattered before the Lord and before His army.”
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If we want to abound in the work of the Lord, we need to study God’s will and learn how to practice it in our lives (Matt. 7:7-8). God’s will can be known so that we can fulfill it (Eph. 5:17).
DO NOT FOLLOW THE (WICKED) EXAMPLE OF YOUR PARENTS – 2 Chron. 15:16-19:
King Asa’s mom was in a false religion and she was trying to bring that religion into the nation of Israel. So, Asa had to put a stop to it. He removed his mother from being queen and destroyed the unique idol that his own mom had set up. “Asa’s heart was blameless all his days,” we read in verse 17. Asa did not allow his mom’s evil influence to lead him away from God. Because of his heart and attitude, out of a 41-year reign, the first 35 years were peaceful and prosperous.
If you want to be a man/woman of God, you should not follow your parents’ example if they are not following God in their own lives (Luke 14:26; Eph. 6:1).
That’s not all that can be said about King Asa. In chapter 16, we learn how he allowed his heart to be led away from God. He formed alliances with non-believers and failed to trust God as he had earlier. Do not make alliances with the wrong people (Eph. 5:11).
Yes, you want to be of use to God. You want to be of service to Him. You want to abound in His work. Asa was used by God to implement a religious and spiritual reform in Israel. He was not perfect but God used him. He can use us too, if we’ll let Him.
–Paul Holland
