Psalms 31:1-3a, 123:1-3, 145:1-3, and 20:1-5
My Shepherd met me in my prayer closet this morning, as I contemplated the unique and complex relationship He had with King Ahab. The Mind of the Spirit stirred up the spirit of my mind on this topic with 1 Kings 21:25:
1 Kings 21:25 But there was none like unto Ahab, which did sell himself to work wickedness in the sight of the LORD, whom Jezebel his wife stirred up.
I thought of the exchange between God’s prophet Elijah and King Ahab that preceded the above remark about Ahab. You can read it in 1 Kings 21:17-26. Here is a summary:
Ahab coveted a vineyard near his palace that belonged to Naboth. He offered to purchase it, but Naboth would not part with his family inheritance. Ahab went home pouting and complained about this to his wicked wife, Jezebel. She conspired to raise false accusations against Naboth to have him “legally” murdered, and his land confiscated by “the king.” Wicked Ahab went into the vineyard to possess it, and God assigned His prophet, Elijah, to confront Ahab with a message that began like this: “Thus saith the LORD, Hast thou killed, and also taken possession? … Thus saith the LORD, In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick thy blood, even thine” (1 Kings 21:19).
Ahab responded: “Hast thou found me, O mine enemy?” To which Elijah responded, “I have found thee: because thou hast sold thyself to work evil in the sight of the LORD” (1 Kings 19:20). God spoke through the prophet to the king: God will cut off the posterity of Ahab, He would feed Ahab and his posterity to the dogs in the city, and to the fowl in the field, for, “There was none like unto Ahab, which did sell himself to work wickedness in the sight of the LORD” (1 Kings 21:25).
Along the still waters, I reflected on Ahab’s relationship with God. He sold himself to do wickedly. That phrase struck me: Ahab was transactional. He served the god that gave him what he wanted. The LORD (Jehovah, or YWHW) would never give him Naboth’s vineyard. But Jezebel’s gods would gladly give the vineyard to Ahab. He followed the god that gave him what he wanted. Ahab was transactional—he wanted a property, and he served the god who would approve what methods were needed to achieve his ambition and satisfy his covetousness.
Sometimes, entire nations become transactional in their faith. They see their faith as a means to some end, a way to get what they want. A man becomes Catholic in order to marry the woman he loves. It’s transactional. It’s not about conversion of the heart to the teachings of “the Church.” If it had not been that the Protestant man fell in love with a Catholic woman, he would never have embraced the bizarre doctrines of the Catholic faith, such as transubstantiation (the communion bread becomes the literal flesh of the body of Christ), a celibate priesthood, or the absolution, or hyperdulia (supreme veneration) given to Mary, iconography (use of images in worship), and the Papacy, as a few examples. Such persons are transactional “Christians.” Many in contemporary churches are there for what God can give them, not for Who God is. A transactional “Christian” should know that the terms of surrender to Christ as Lord require confessing with the mouth the LORD Jesus, believing He arose from the dead, and by faith calling on His name to be saved.
It’s not a good thing to serve the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, for what things in this world they can get. It is even more tragic to give worship to other gods for what those gods will give: the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life (1 John 2:15). Ahab could not get Naboth’s vineyard from the God of Israel, so he sold himself to serve the gods of Jezebel.
Nations sell themselves to do evil: “And they caused their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire, and used divination and enchantments, and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger” (2 Kings 17:17). When this happens, the wicked and that nation is turned into hell (Psalm 9:17).
When Ahab heard the rebuke of the Prophet, he humbled himself, repented, and publicly went softly before the LORD (1 Kings 21:27-29). God sent Elijah with an amendment to His prophecy against him: “Ahab humbleth himself before me? because he humbleth himself before me, I will not bring the evil in his days: but in his son’s days will I bring the evil upon his house” (1 Kings 21:29). This held for three years (1 Kings 22:1). Ahab returned to his vile behavior, and God withdrew the stay and performed the penalty He had earlier prescribed.
Did God not know Ahab would return to his folly? Of course He did. Here is where the Holy Spirit opened my eyes to something important to remember when reading Old Testament era stories. These things happened to them to provide examples to the saints, and they were written down to provide admonitions for us upon whom the ends of the world are come (1 Corinthians 10:11). God was providing a living example for the saints who lived during these events. These examples provided insight into God and His ways for all who lived through the events and for those who followed. God had them written down to provide admonitions (to call our attention to these examples, providing warnings through them), for the New Testament saint. (Hebrews 4:11 and 12:5-13 are two of many samples.)
There are many transactional relationships in the Bible between men and GOD. Jacob said if God would provide at least food and raiment, he would be content that the LORD would be his God (Genesis 28:20-22). Interestingly, God had promised so much more: he saw Christ represented as a ladder, upon Whom the angels ascended and descended from heaven to earth and back, he saw the LORD at the top of the ladder and heard Him say, “I am the LORD God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; and thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of” (Genesis 28:10-15). Jacob demonstrated great faith when he testified he would be content with food and raiment, and be allowed to return to his father’s house in peace (See 1 Timothy 6:8. “And having food and raiment let us be therewith content”).
Virtually all of God’s covenants with man are transactional in nature, beginning in Eden.
Nevertheless, God will be worshipped not for what He gives, but for Who He is. Jeremiah spoke more to this than any other prophet: He complained that His people refused to know Him (Jeremiah 9:6), and in verse 24 of that same chapter He says what He wants them to know about Him: “I am the LORD which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the LORD.” (See also Jeremiah 22:16; 24:7; 31:34.)
God will enter into a transactional relationship with us, but Ahab never got past that level in his experience of God. I appreciate the God Who enters into a covenant with His people, but I want more! I want to know Him. Ahab is an example of someone who experienced God but never really knew Him.
In the valley, I knelt in the shadow of His Cross and saw the LORD for Who He is in what He has done. We are known by our deeds (Proverbs 20:11). I see there the exercise of His glorious lovingkindness, His judgment, and His righteousness (Jeremiah 9:6, 24). He spoke and said to my heart that He also sees who I am in the Cross He has called me to take up: “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me” (Luke 9:23). See Who He is and show who you are at the Cross.
At the table, He anointed my head with His oil and filled my cup with His grace. Goodness and mercy followed as we entered the harvest.
Praying for revival! 🙏
Going live asap:
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