Fear No Fear

(All scripture from the World English Bible, ebible.org, all rights reserved)

“So the king of Israel went with the king of Judah and the king of Edom, and they marched for seven days along a circuitous route. There was no water for the army or for the animals that followed them. The king of Israel said, “Alas! For Yahweh has called these three kings together to deliver them into the hand of Moab.” But Jehoshaphat said, “Isn’t there a prophet of Yahweh here, that we may inquire of Yahweh by him?” One of the king of Israel’s servants answered, “Elisha the son of Shaphat, who poured water on the hands of Elijah, is here.” Jehoshaphat said, “Yahweh’s word is with him.” So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to him. Elisha said to the king of Israel, “What have I to do with you? Go to the prophets of your father, and to the prophets of your mother.” The king of Israel said to him, “No, for Yahweh has called these three kings together to deliver them into the hand of Moab.” Elisha said, “As Yahweh of Armies lives, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I respect the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward you, nor see you.”
(2 Kings 3:9-14)

“When he was alone, those who were around him with the twelve asked him about the parables. He said to them, “To you is given the mystery of God’s Kingdom, but to those who are outside, all things are done in parables, that ‘seeing they may see and not perceive, and hearing they may hear and not understand, lest perhaps they should turn again, and their sins should be forgiven them.’””
(Mark 4:10-12)

The kids had decided action on their own and gotten into some trouble. They were looking for guidance and answers. Only one of them wanted to inquire of God’s prophet. Only one of them was looking to the Lord for information and guidance. Elisha wouldn’t have had anything to do with the other two kings if they hadn’t been with Jehoshaphat. God is a god of answers and of knowledge. But He doesn’t give it out to those who don’t seek Him. If you want the benefits of the Lord, you need to be in covenant with the Lord.

Jesus taught in parables. He taught truth. But there is only one way to ACCESS that truth: through Jesus. God doesn’t want people going to other sources trying to access that truth because they won’t get the whole and complete truth (John 10:10). If you come to Jesus, accept Him, and look to Him for answers will have access to His mind (2 Corinthians 5:17; 1 Corinthians 2:16). If you reject Jesus as Lord and Saviour, you reject the key to the kingdom and all the understanding of the truth that comes with it. Things are hidden ONLY so that we will seek them in Jesus. They are not being ‘kept’ from us. The offer is open to all. It is up to us whether to accept it and align with Him, or reject it and deal with the consequences.

Summary

We can know and understand the things of the Lord. We get that understanding through our understanding of the love of Jesus. The love He has toward us and the love He has toward others. The more of the love of Jesus that operates in our lives, the more we are able to understand of the kingdom and what is going on around us (Ephesians 3:14-19). It is through Holy Spirit, given to us upon our salvation, that we have revelation of God and His Way. It is only by seeking knowledge of God from God that we gain insights into our lives and our world. God is the Source of all things – including knowledge. That’s why reverencing God is the first step to wisdom (Proverbs 9:10). We can’t have it outside of Jesus (John 15:5).