The third king of Judah during the era of the divided kingdom is Asa. He’s a mixed bag in many ways. His father Abijam was a bad king. His Grandfather, Rehoboam, was a bad king, but according to most writers Asa is one of the good kings. The author of 1 Kings says in this verse: “And Asa did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, as David his father had done.” Yet, he’s indicted for many failings as well. He trusted in foreign alliances rather than God. He did not look to God in other areas of life but sought help from man. He escalated slave labor practices which abused his people. But in comparison to many of the other kings, he’s called a good king. He reigned for 41 years and brought some stability to the kingdom of Judah.
The truth of the matter is that’s the story for each of us, except the Lord himself. We are all a mixed picture of good and bad. None of us has attained perfection. Some of us, however, expect it in others. We make unrealistic demands of our children, our spouses, or employers or employees, our churches, our community and our leaders and we often judge them unfairly. I preached a sermon once entitled, “PBPGINFWMY.” It’s the abbreviation for “Please be patient, God is not finished with me yet.” God is working on us all. Just as David, Solomon and all the kings had their flaws, so too do we.
Each of the Kings of Israel and Judah prepare the world for the coming of the only perfect one ever; The Lord Jesus. He was the only one without flaws. But the flawless one gave himself for you and I on the cross; the flawless for the “flaw-full.” He did that so that one day we will be like him. Paul tells us when we see him, “we will be like him.” Lucado describes it like this: “No jealousy. No competition. No division. No hurry. We will be perfect . . . sinless. No more stumbles. No more tripping. Lusting will cease. Gossip will be silenced. Grudges forever removed.”
The Bible ends with the Apostle John saying, “Please Come, Lord Jesus.”
Chuck
“Make allowances for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.” Colossians 3:13