II CHRONICLES and EZRA

This morning, I'm in Hammond, IN.  Pastor's School just finished up last night and it was certainly exciting.  What a great week.  One of our men was so moved he just wept and wept.  God has a way of grabbing your heart at Pastor's School, and He did mine back in 1980.  It changed my life.  I saw what could be done when a man yielded himself to the LORD completely.  I saw the life I wanted; being yielded to God every day of my life.  I haven't always achieved that, but I'm known that so much of my ministry.  My failures have only come as I've not been as yielded as I should be.  Take my life and let it be, consecrated LORD to thee!  I'm in II Chronicles and finished up in Ezra and here are a few thoughts: 1) PEOPLE FORGET- In II Chron. 24, God uses a priest named Jehoiada to train up a young king of seven years of age named Joash.  Jehoiada raised the boy as a son and God blessed king Joash as a results of it.  God made Joash to prosper all of the years he followed Jehoiada, the priest.  Finally Jehoiada dies at 130 years of age.  Then the king starts drifting away from the Lord's direction.  God then sends Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest to say to the king:  "Why transgress ye the commandments of the LORD, that ye cannot prosper?" (vs. 20)  So, the king "stoned him with stones at the commandment of the king in the court of the house of the LORD."  He kills the son of Jehoiada, the priest who raised him, meaning he killed the brother he grew up with!!  In verse 22 it says: "Thus Joash the king remembered not the kindness which Jehoiada his father had done to him, but slew his son."  Now, here is the sad truth..... People forget.  God uses you to change their lives for the better.... and they forget.  A while later you are hated and despised and yet... you haven't changed one bit.  As a preacher, I see this happen so many times.  I almost whence when someone tells me how much they look forward to our church in the years to come, because.... people change and people forget.  They got saved, but now they don't appreciate it.  Their marriage was salvaged, but now they forgot and are not grateful.  The key to it all is this... Keep your eyes on Jesus.... He doesn't change... people do! 2) PRIDE BRINGS DESTRUCTION- In II Chron. 26:16, it says: "But when he was strong, his heart was lifted up to his destruction."  Uzziah was a great man, but pride brought him down.  It will bring us down too!   Let us ever walk humbly before God each day. 3) SET IN ORDER- In II Chron. 29:35, the Bible says: "So the service of the house of the LORD was set in order."  In the New Testament is says to ordain elders (pastors) to "set in order the things that are lacking."  There are always things to "set in order", and we much constantly work on these things.  4) NO REMEDY- In II Chron. 36:16 it says that God was so mad at Israel, "till there was no remedy."  You cross the line and you pay!!  You die without Christ and there is "no remedy"!  You flaunt your sin in the face of God, and He will bring you down!  Let us ever be careful and realize that God's forbearance and patience with us does not mean there will not come a time when judgment will come upon us.  Never find yourself in these shoes! Well, I could go on and on, but I'd better quit for today.  Hope you have a blessed day.  I sure am looking forward to getting back in Oregon and seeing the people I love so much! Pastor Mike Mutchler