Conflict Resolution - Part Two

During the Feast of Trumpets, one of the phrases from the prophetic outlook was that this will be a year of spiritual conflict and God wants to equip us with the wisdom needed to combat those conflicts. In part 2 of this series, we look at the story of a king in scripture who was considered righteous, yet made a decision to do things his own way.

King Asa

King Asa was the great grandson of King Solomon and "Asa did what was good and right in the eyes of the LORD his God" (2 Chronicles 14:2), so he was not a wicked ruler, but seen as righteous. However, he made some mistakes that we can learn from.

Physical Preparations In Times Of Peace

In 2 Chronicles 14:3-8, we see King Asa made some reforms that removed the altars of foreign gods, broke down the sacred pillars, and commanded Judah to seek the LORD God of their fathers by observing the law/commandments. During this time, he had no war for the LORD had given him rest and during those times of peace, King Asa used that time to physically prepare Judah for potential conflict. He took advantage of times of peace by building and fortifying cities and also prepared an army of of 300,000 from Judah and 280,000 from Benjamin. But then, conflict finally came.

Conflict Arrives

Zerah the Ethiopian comes against them with an army of a million men and three hundred chariots in Judah's territory of Mareshah (2 Chronicles 14:9). That is 580,000 men from Judah and Benjamin vs 1,000,000 men from Ethiopian. The "odds" did not seem to be in Judah's favor here and conflict was right on their doorstep. Either way, King Asa needed to make a decision, so he sent his troops in battle array in the Valley of Zephathah at Mareshah. But instead of just "hoping" that they would win, he cried out to the LORD for help and the LORD struck the Ethiopians which caused them to flee. Judah overthrown the Ethiopians so that they could not recover and Judah carried away very much spoil then they returned to Jerusalem.

Conflict Resolved

After the conflict had been resolved, the Spirit of God came upon Azariah the son of Oded. And he went out to meet Asa, and said to him: “Hear me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin. The LORD is with you while you are with Him. If you seek Him, He will be found by you; but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you" (2 Chronicles 15:1-2). So, after the victory, Azariah emphasizes the importance of continuing to seek God. There are a lot of people who have received victory in a conflict then they stop seeking God because they got what they wanted. They internally say, "I got what I needed from God, now back to my normal life." Azariah is reminding the king that just because he depended on God in one conflict, that does not mean that he doesn’t have to continue to do that. We need to live a lifestyle of seeking God and relying on Him.

This advice encourages King Asa which causes him to take action by continuing to remove idols and restoring the altar of the LORD that was before the vestibule of the LORD. Then King Asa gathered all Judah, Benjamin, and even those from the northern kingdom of Israel. Those from Israel came over in great numbers when they saw that the LORD was with King Asa. So they offered bulls and sheep to the LORD from the spoil of their victory as thanksgiving and they entered into covenant to seek the LORD God of their father with all their heart and soul. During this time, they entered into another time of peace until the 35th year of the reign of King Asa, then conflict finally came, again. How will King Asa respond?

Another Conflict Arrives

In the thirty-sixth year of the reign of Asa, Baasha king of Israel came up against Judah and built Ramah, that he might let none go out or come in to Asa king of Judah (2 Chronicles 16:1). Baasha king of Israel was attempting to restrict people from going in or coming out of Judah because he saw that the people of Israel were being drawn to King Asa (since the LORD was with him). So, after years of peace, another test comes. The question is, will King Asa rely on God again? He had a first-hand account of God resolving conflict before his eyes, so he knows what it is like to rely on God.

Well, 2 Chronicles 16:2-3 tell us his response, "Then Asa brought silver and gold from the treasuries of the house of the LORD and of the king’s house, and sent to Ben-Hadad king of Syria, who dwelt in Damascus, saying, 'Let there be a treaty between you and me, as there was between my father and your father. See, I have sent you silver and gold; come, break your treaty with Baasha king of Israel, so that he will withdraw from me.'” Not only did King Asa go to the world for a solution, but he used what belonged to God’s house to purchase an alliance with a worldly king. So, what happened after that?

Conflict Resolved? 🤔

Ben-Hadad heeded King Asa, and sent the captains of his armies against the cities of Israel and attack them which caused Israel to retreat from Ramah (2 Chronicles 16:4-6). Wait, the solution worked?? The conflict was resolved, right? Well, it was "resolved" according to King Asa because he wanted Israel to back off of the city of Ramah and they did. But, the question is not, "is the conflict over with?", but it is "was that God’s solution?"

Correction Comes

Hanani the seer comes to King Asa with a corrective word. He says that because he relied on the king of Syria and not God, the army of the king of Syria has escaped from his hand. He also reminds him of the time when he relied on the LORD and He defeated the great army of Ethiopian. But because of King Asa's reliance on Syria, Hanani said that from now on he shall have wars. So, how does the king respond to this? Does he repent? Well, it says that King Asa was angry with the seer and put him in prison then he also oppressed some of the people at that time. When King Asa heard this, he had an emotional reaction of being enraged and it caused him to have an outburst. This revealed the condition of King Asa's heart.

The End Of King Asa

In the 39th year of King Asa's reign, he became diseased in his feet yet he did not seek the LORD, but the physicians. A man who once relied on the LORD and sought him with all his heart, now was relying on the world. Even at his end, King Asa sought the world’s solutions instead of God’s solution, but the world did not have an ultimate solution for him and he died in the 41st year of his reign (2 Chronicles 16:12-13).

Matthew 24:13 says, "But he who endures to the end shall be saved." So even if we had great success serving God for multiple years in our life, we still need to rely on the LORD until the very end.

God's Solutions to Addressing Conflict Your Own Way

At the end of the message, the following scriptures were shared as God's answer to prevent us from addressing conflict in our own prideful way

• James 4:1-7 - [1] Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? [2] You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask. [3] You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures. [4] Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. [5] Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, “The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously”? [6] But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.” [7] Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.

• Proverbs 12:15 - The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, But he who heeds counsel is wise.

• Proverbs 14:12 - There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death.

• Isaiah 55:8-9 - [8] “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the LORD. [9] “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.

• Psalm 119:59-60 - [59] I thought about my ways, And turned my feet to Your testimonies. [60] I made haste, and did not delay To keep Your commandments.

  
  

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Discussion Questions For Self-Evaluation:

1. Do you remember a time when you tried to resolve conflict in your own way? What was the result?

2. What have you been doing to properly prepare during "times of peace" or downtime?

3. What are your key takeaways from the life of King Asa?

4. What part of the word came alive to you from this message?