Today’s Tasting: 2 Chronicles 19-23
In today’s reading from 2 Chronicles, a seer asked Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, why he has helped evil people after all the good things he has done. After this, Jehoshaphat chooses judges for all the cities of Judah. He tells the judges that they are judging for God, not themselves, and that they must be fair and not let their decisions be influenced by money.
Some time after this, the Moabites, Ammonites, and Meunites decide to go to war with Jehoshaphat. He and the other people of Judah pray and ask God what to do. Because they did this, they are saved from their enemies.
After Jehoshaphat dies, his son Jehoram becomes king. He does not follow the Lord, eventually resulting in Judah being attacked by his enemies, and his family and wealth being taken. His son continues to not follow what the Lord has told him is right.
Eventually, Jehoshaphat’s great-grandson, Joash becomes king and resumes the traditions of worship that David had begun, and gets rid of the altars and temples of Baal.
Today’s Nourishment
“Watch what you do, because you are not judging for people, but for the Lord. He will be with you when you make a decision. Now let each of you fear the Lord. Watch what you do, because the Lord our God wants people to be fair. He wants all people to be treated the same, and he doesn’t want our decisions to be influenced by money” (2 Chronicles 19:6-7).
These verses from today’s scripture really show what God values. He doesn’t want us to base our opinions of other’s situations on what is best for us. He wants us to be fair in our treatment of others. We may not be placed into an official position to judge over others, like the people being given this warning, but we still judge others around us all the time.
Do you treat everyone fairly, or do you have your own mental categories that place some people above others? Are people with more money or influence more important? Do you try to stay away from people who are not like you, people who have not showered recently? people wearing dirty clothes? people who may have a mental illness?
Try to remember when you are around other people and deciding how to treat them, that the Lord is with you. Ask Him how he would like you to treat them, think about how He would treat them. Although this passage was written well before the time of Jesus, it brings to my mind all the parts of the New Testament where people are horrified at Jesus touching people with leprosy, helping people that were not Jewish, and many others who were considered the “other” and less than.
Do you judge others as God would wish you to, do you judge people by the world’s standards, where the rich and powerful come first?
What can you do to allow God to guide your thoughts and actions when you are tempted to judge others?
Tomorrow’s Delight: Obadiah, Psalms 82-83
Kaitlyn Sexton
FB: https://www.facebook.com/farmwifefitness
One way to to allow God to guide our thoughts when we are tempted to judge others Is to remember that the same thing in which we judge others will return to us. Some of those same ways we act or things we do that our parents or caregivers did and we said we would never do, is judging.
Yes I agree Carolyn. A lot of times we are judging and don’t even realize. We truly need to ask God every morning to guide us and show us how to treat others without judging. We need to see others as God sees them through the eyes of love!