2 Chronicles 21:1-20

The choices we make lead to circumstances that we would never be able to foresee when we make those choices.  That is the reason that we need to constantly trust and obey the Lord because He knows exactly where our choices will lead so He has instructed us as to how to avoid making choices that will lead to heartache and pain.  When Jehoshaphat decided to take one of Ahab’s daughters as a wife for his son, I am sure that it seemed like a logical choice for it represented a political alliance.  However, that choice resulted in His son being influenced by a very wicked king who had no fear of the Lord.  The pain, hardship, death, war, idolatry and rebellion that this choice caused were invisible to those who made the choices; but they were clearly seen by our Lord.  We can trust that obedience to the Word of God will save us from the pitfalls of sinful choices.

JEHORAM SLAUGHTERED HIS BROTHERS: Jehoshaphat had many sons and gave all of them great wealth and position in the nation.  However, when he died his oldest son became king.  Jehoram had lived under the influence of his wife, the daughter of Ahab and Jezebel.  As a result of that marriage, he craved his power and feared that his brothers might challenge him so he promptly killed them all.  This insecurity and craving for power at any cost demonstrates a complete departure from trusting the Lord.  The depths to which the human heart can sink is a scary thing.  The consequences of the choices we make early in life are often far more drastic than we could ever imagine.  Power is a dangerous thing, but when we crave power it can provoke us to a sinfulness that surpasses anything that we could imagine ourselves capable of.

JEHORAM SACRIFICED TO IDOLS:  No only was Jehoram a violent man; he was also an idolatrous man.  His father had removed many of the high places and the idols from the land.  Jehoram built them and more back up again.  We are all worshipers.  All men everywhere worship someone or something.  There are really only two choices when it comes to worship.  Either we worship the one, true God or we worship idols.  Since Jehoram had rejected God and decided to put himself above the Law of the Lord, the only possible result of that choice was for him to worship idols.  That which his fathers had destroyed he rebuilt and led the people under his care astray.  We must make sure that we are not allowing idols to dominate our hearts and minds.

JEHORAM SUFFERED GREAT PAIN: The violence and idolatry of Jehoram led to consequences that Jehoram would have never chosen, but that is how sin works.  Sin always focuses on the immediate pleasure, security or whatever temporary comfort the sin promises.  Sin never looks towards the long-term consequences it leaves.  The scars of sin run deep in the life of Jehoram.  The Lord brought the nations around Judah against them and since the Lord would not defend this rebellious king, they lost every battle and the nations invaded the cities of Judah hauling off all of the riches of the nation.  Besides the loss of the security that the Lord was providing for Judah, Jehoram also lost his health.  God inflicted him with a painful disease that eventually killed him when his intestines came falling out of his body.  When Jehoram craved power and idols he would have never guessed that his choices would lead to war and a tortuous death, but God knew that all along and even warned him through Elijah but he refused to listen to or be led by the Lord.  His reign ended in shame and the nation was glad when he died.  Sin leaves a legacy of loss, pain and shame.