Read to prACTice

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* A traveling evangelist... I. Click here to READ   2 Chr 19   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches:  (Coming home defeated by the Syrian army, King Jehoshaphat was confronted by the Prophet Jehu, saying...) 2 ...  “Should you help the wicked and love   those who hate the  Lord ? Because of this, the wrath of the  Lord  is on you.   3  There is, however, some good in you, for you have rid the land of the Asherah poles and have set your heart on seeking God.”  4  Jehoshaphat lived in Jerusalem, and he went out again among the people from Beersheba to the hill country of Ephraim and turned them back to the  Lord , the God of their ancestors.   III. Reflection *  Questions :  What is the significance of the word "however" in the above Scriptural passage? IV. Application Dear Lord God: I thank You for showing...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Commendable restraint... I. Click here to READ   2 Chr 18   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches:  (400 prophets lied about a message that they said came from the Lord. The Prophet Micaiah exposed them, whose chief was Zedekiah...) 23  Then Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah came near and struck Micaiah on the cheek and said, “Which way did the Spirit of the  Lord  go from me to speak to you?”   24  And Micaiah said, “Behold, you shall see on that day when you go into an inner chamber to hide yourself.” III. Reflection *  Questions :  What did the Prophet Micaiah do when Zedekiah slapped him in the face? IV. Application Dear Lord God: I thank You for showing me that Prophet Micaiah did nothing when he was slapped in the face by a lying prophet after Micaiah exposed the truth about the 400 lying tongues. Not only did he not react to the humiliating slapping,...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Follow Him delightfully... I. Click here to READ   2 Chr 17   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches:  (As King Jehoshaphat sought the God of his father and walked in His commandments...) 6 ...  H is heart took delight in the ways of the  Lord... III. Reflection *  Questions :  How does it feel when a heart takes delight? IV. Application Dear Lord God: I thank You for showing me that when a person's heart takes delight, it feels like an eagle soaring high up in the sky ( Job 39:27 ). King Jehoshaphat did not follow You reluctantly, heavyheartedly, or unhappily. He took delight in the ways of Yours! I thank You, Lord Jesus, for taking me to this point to remind me of Your teaching about doing the will of the Father. It ought to be done with joy like the joy of having and eating food while feeling hungry ( John 4:34 ). O Lord! Today, please help me remember this delightf...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* If He didn't count, we shouldn't...  I. Click here to READ   2 Chr 16   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches:  (king Asa was told by the man of God that what he did was foolish in relying on the Syrian army instead of the Lord in his conflict with Northern Israel...) 9  For  the eyes of the  Lord  move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those  whose heart is completely His... III. Reflection *  Questions :  What else did King Asa do in addition to his foolish reliance on a foreign army for help? Could three more be counted in verses 10 and 12? IV. Application Dear Lord God: I thank You for showing me, with my counts, that king Asa did at least four things not pleasing to You in the latter years of his life. I thank You for showing me that I am wrong, even though my count was correct regarding things not complete about this man...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Teach, yes! But compliment, don't forget!...   I. Click here to READ   2 Chr 15   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches:  (the Lord sent the Prophet Azariah to King A-sa with a message...) 1  The Spirit of God came   upon Azariah the son of Oded,   2  and he went out to meet Asa and said to him, “Hear me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin... 8  As soon as Asa heard these words, the prophecy of Azariah the son of Oded, he took courage... III. Reflection *  Questions :  What was the message delivered by the Prophet Azariah in verses 3-7? IV. Application Dear Lord God: I thank You for letting me know that Your messenger does not have to deliver bad news all the time. I thank You for showing me that constructive and kind words were given to king Asa, and that, after hearing them, he was encouraged and continued doing God-pleasing tasks. I thank You,...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Pray as king Asa...   I. Click here to READ   2 Chr 14   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches:  (facing a huge army of 1 million Ethiopian fighters...) 11  And Asa  cried to the  Lord  his God, “O  Lord , there is none like you to help, between the mighty and the weak. Help us, O  Lord  our God,  for we rely on you,  and in your name we have come against this multitude. O  Lord , you are our God; let not man prevail against you.” III. Reflection *  Questions :  Have we ever prayed as King Asa did? IV. Application Dear Lord God: I thank You for showing me that the key to winning an impossible battle is the Asa prayer. I thank You for showing me that Asa came to You first, that he confessed that there was none like You to help him, that he admitted that he was the weak party, that he declared his reliance on You, that You were hi...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* No way out? No way!... I. Click here to READ   2 Chr 13   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches:  (In the war between the North commanded by Jeroboam and the South commanded by Abijah...) 13  Jeroboam had sent an ambush around to come upon them from behind. Thus his troops  were in front of Judah, and the ambush was behind them.   14  And when Judah looked, behold, the battle was in front of and behind them. And they cried to the  Lord , and the priests blew the trumpets.   15  Then the men of Judah raised the battle shout. And when the men of Judah shouted, God defeated Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah. III. Reflection *  Questions :  What is a dilemma? IV. Application Dear Lord God, I thank You for showing me a dilemma that the army of Judah faced. They found themselves in an ambush — going either way, backward ...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* New one in, Old one out...  I. Click here to READ   2 Chr 12   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches:  1 When the rule of Rehoboam was established  and he was strong,  he abandoned the law of the  Lord , and all Israel with him. III. Reflection *  Questions :  Why do people abandon the Lord when they are at their peak? IV. Application Dear Lord God: I thank You for reminding me of the usual conditions when Your people abandoned You — when they were well fed, prosperous, free, established, strong, full of possessions, and empty on the memory of Your Word and Your work ( Judges 2:10 ). I thank You, Lord Jesus, for taking me to this point to remind me of Your teaching on the destructive end of the proud ( Luke 1:51 ). O Lord! When I am at my peak, please remind me even more frequently that it has been Your grace that has brought me this far. Please, Lord, fill my me...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Quick to listen, Fast to act... I. Click here to READ   2 Chr 11   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches:  (King Rehoboam prepared his army and fighting machine for a civil war to recapture the territory, then...) 4  ‘Thus says the  Lord , You shall not go up or fight against your relatives. Return every man to his home, for this thing is from me.’” So they listened to the word of the  Lord  and returned and did not go against Jeroboam. III. Reflection *  Questions :  Again, one should give credit where credit is due. What credit should King Rohoboam be given now? IV. Application Dear Lord God: I thank You for letting me know that although King Rohoboam did not listen to the right group of people previously, this time he did listen to the right God — Jehovah. Although his fighting army was all set to start a civil war, when the Lord told him to stop, stop he...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Good at asking but Terrible at listening... I. Click here to READ   2 Chr 10   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches:  (Newly-made King Rehoboam's first few words to his Israelite people...) 6  Then King Rehoboam took counsel with the old men,  who had stood before Solomon his father while he was yet alive, saying, “How do you advise me to answer this people?”     7  And they said to him... 8  [... King Rehoboam ]  took counsel with the young men who had grown up with him and stood before him.   9  And he said to them, “What do you advise that we answer this people  who have said to me, ‘Lighten the yoke that your father put on us’?”  10  And the young men who had grown up with him said to him... 13  And the king answered them harshly; and forsaking the counsel of the old men,  14  King Rehoboam spoke to them according to t...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* The need for confirmation...   I. Click here to READ   2 Chr 9   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches:  (The Queen of Sheba said about her going and meeting King Solomon...) 6  but I did not believe the  reports until I came and my own eyes had seen it. And behold, half the greatness of your wisdom was not told me; you surpass the report that I heard.   III. Reflection *  Questions :  Why is a personal eyewitness so important? IV. Application Dear Lord God: I thank You for showing me, through the Queen of Sheba, that third-party reporting is not complete, and people want to experience things with their own eyes. I thank You for letting me know that, except for matters of faith, people should be encouraged to see things before closing the deal. I thank You, Lord Jesus, for taking me to this point to remind me of Your teaching on why people need to see the work of...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Re-act to correct...   I. Click here to READ   2 Chr 8   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches:  11  Solomon brought Pharaoh's daughter up from the city of David to the house that he had built for her, for he said, “My wife shall not live in the house of David king of Israel, for the places to which the ark of the  Lord  has come are holy.” III. Reflection *  Questions :  Where did Pharaoh's daughter—who was Solomon's wife—live before being moved to a new place? Wasn't the old place holy then? IV. Application Dear Lord God, I thank You for showing me the utmost respect King Solomon had for Your holiness. Your holiness cannot be mixed with anything else, even with the loveliness of Solomon's Queen. Once he realized the mixing was inappropriate, he took action to correct it. I thank You, Lord Jesus, for taking me to this point to remind me of Your teaching that it ...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Now that I know... I. Click here to READ   2 Chr 7   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches:  (the Lord said to Solomon...) 13  When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command the locust to devour the land, or send pestilence among my people,   14  if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.   III. Reflection *  Questions :  What does God want His people to do? IV. Application Dear Lord God: I thank You for laying out clearly for me to see what You want Your people to do — humble ourselves, pray to You, seek Your face, and turn from the wicked ways. I thank You for showing me models of these God-pleasing qualities in Moses for humility, in Daniel for prayer, in Joseph for seeking You, and in Davi...