Today’s Reading II Kings 15-16; Matthew 21
Throughout history, there has always been a struggle of power . This struggle can be between good and evil. The struggle can be between the light and the darkness. The struggle could be between power and submission. There’s always a balance.
In school, there was a quote in science : Nature does not like a vacuum, it will always have a balance. Throughout the scriptures, we hear about the balance between good and evil. We know that in the midst of a storm we will find refuge and stability. God uses these scriptures to remind us of how good he is in the midst of the good and the bad.
In these chapters of the II Kings, there is a chronological illustration of the kings of Judah and the kings of Israel. The nation of Israel was split after the reign of King Solomon. When Samuel appointed the first king of the combined nations of Israel, Saul was the king over the 12 nations of Israel. Then in succession the crown and kingdom went to David and then to Solomon . After Solomon’s reign, the kingdom was split into two nations: Judah ( tribes of Benjamin and Judah) and other 10 nations under Israel. The lineage of Judah is descendants from David.
As we read in these chapters, we see that the kings of Judah were not perfect, but they tried their best to continue the lifestyle of their father David. They had some hiccups and some bruises, but they continue to strive to be in accordance with God. The kings of Israel did not attempt to stay with the laws of God. The kings of Israel continued to not have any regard to God.
In Matthew, Chapter 21, Christ makes an illustration of the two sons and the vineyard. The two sons are asked by the father to perform a task. The first son says he’s not going to do it, but actually does the task. The second son says he will do the task and does not do it. Both of the nations in II Kings came from the same lineage. One nation tries to follow the commandments of God, that’s the nation of Judah. The other nation of Israel knows what the commandments are as well, but they decide not to follow in the path.
Many times we are presented with good and bad in our lives. Sometimes the bad can become overwhelming as for the kings of Israel. Sometimes we have glimpses of light and hope as with the kings of Judah. But at the end of all of our crying and in our joy, we have to understand that God is in the midst of it all. God‘s hand is in the midst of everything that we go through. God is protecting us and giving us glimpses of hope to hold onto so that we do not become disengaged with life.
May God give us glimpses of light throughout this week and throughout our life so that we can show others in their darkness light and hope.