Lessons from the Acts of Jehu

In this part of the sermon: Martin begins by recalling Elijah's commission to anoint Jehu and Elisha, noting how Elisha's ministry, initially marked by consolation, now enters a 'darker side' of judgment. He…

The 'seven thousand' left in Israel is explained as a symbolic, not precise, number, representing God's full role of elect, preserved through Elisha's ministry.

not a precise numerical amount, but seven being the number of perfection, a thousand being the number that speaks of a vast quantity. God is saying, I have the full role of my elect in Israel, and that role of God's elect must not only be made up in the actual calling of these people to faith in the true God, but in their preservation in times of impending judgment, judgment, and general spiritual declension. And as we have traced out the incidents recorded in the life and ministry of Elisha,

2:02 - 2:40 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Martin begins by recalling Elijah's commission to anoint Jehu and Elisha, noting how Elisha's ministry, initially marked by consolation, now enters a 'darker side' of judgment. He…

Examples of Elisha's ministry to the godly remnant are given: the widow of a prophet's son, and the young preacher boy who lost an axe head, showing his role in sustaining God's claims.

we have seen how again and again his ministry was marked by consolation and provision for the godly remnant in Israel. Whether it's a widow of one of the sons of the prophets, who is destitute of earthly means of support, and Elisha ministers to her need, or a poor young preacher boy who loses his faith, or a poor young preacher boy who loses his faith, or a poor young preacher boy who loses a borrowed axe head and God performs a miracle to give it back to him, again and again the man of God, Elisha, is seen in this role of sustaining the claims of Jehovah in Israel and supporting those who ha...

2:40 - 3:20 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Martin begins by recalling Elijah's commission to anoint Jehu and Elisha, noting how Elisha's ministry, initially marked by consolation, now enters a 'darker side' of judgment. He…

The incident of the she-bears consuming teenagers who mocked Elisha is recalled as an earlier instance of the 'darker side' of judgment in his ministry.

But now in this section that we began to study several months ago when we came to 2 Kings chapter 8, the darker side of Elisha's ministry, begins to come into prominence. This is not the only time we have seen the darker side of judgment, for you remember on the very threshold of his ministry, there was the killing of that mob of young teenagers who smart-mouthed the prophet, and God sent she-bears out of the woods to consume them. But now at this point in the prophet's ministry, that darker side which was announced on the very occasion of his being, and set apart to the prophetic office,

3:21 - 4:04 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Martin begins by recalling Elijah's commission to anoint Jehu and Elisha, noting how Elisha's ministry, initially marked by consolation, now enters a 'darker side' of judgment. He…

Sections of Scripture containing brutality and violence are likened to 'R-rated sections' to emphasize that even these parts are inspired and profitable for teaching.

Now brutality and violence are realities in a world of sin, and therefore they are never ignored or omitted in the Word of God. Yet even those sections in which brutality and violence occur, violence dominate, God's Word says of those sections, all Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. Even of these R-rated sections, R-rated for their brutality and violence,

4:45 - 5:26 Read in full sermon

Driving home: Now I say that is shocking. It is shocking on the ear of many moderns, to whom God, if He existed all, is nothing but a formless glob of unprincipled sentiment called love.

Modern perceptions of God as 'nothing but a formless glob of unprincipled sentiment called love' are contrasted with the biblical revelation of an avenging God.

So we are not reading an account primarily of the dealings of this cruel and vengeful man, Jehu. But in chapters 9 and 10, amidst all of the carnage and bloodshed and brutality, we are viewing the hand of God revealing the unchanging heart of God. Now I say that is shocking. It is shocking on the ear of many moderns, to whom God, if He existed all, is nothing but a formless glob of unprincipled sentiment called love.

15:32 - 16:12 Read in full sermon

Driving home: Now I say that is shocking. It is shocking on the ear of many moderns, to whom God, if He existed all, is nothing but a formless glob of unprincipled sentiment called love.

The bumper sticker 'If you smile, God loves you' is used to illustrate a superficial, unbiblical understanding of God's love that ignores His vengeance.

What the world needs is love, sweet love. And if all of that can be rolled up into someone called God, so you can have a bumper sticker that says, If you smile, God loves you, then all is well. But that's not the message of this passage. The message of this passage is that the God of the Bible is an avenging God.

16:14 - 16:39 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: The second truth is that God's word is unfailingly certain. Martin shows how Elijah's prophecy, though seemingly unfulfilled for 20 years, came to pass with absolute accuracy…

The hypothetical 'smart aleck' who would claim God's word failed because Elijah didn't personally anoint Jehu is used to illustrate how people misinterpret prophecy.

Whoever escapes from the sword of Jehu shall Elisha slay. And I can imagine some smart aleck who, if he had overheard that, would have said, Aha! God's word has failed! Elijah's gone to heaven!

33:34 - 33:47 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: The second truth is that God's word is unfailingly certain. Martin shows how Elijah's prophecy, though seemingly unfulfilled for 20 years, came to pass with absolute accuracy…

History is presented as the 'infallible interpreter' of 1 Kings 19, showing how God's seemingly imprecise prophetic language is revealed as accurate in its fulfillment.

There were smart alecks then as there are now who love to come to the Bible and force it to say something God never intended it should say. In order to prove it has errors in it. You see, history was the infallible interpreter of the words of 1 Kings 19. If we simply look at them as they stand, we would think that Elijah was going to come one day into the presence of a man named Haziel, take a bottle of oil, pour it on his head, and say, Hey, Haziel, king over Syria.

33:53 - 34:22 Read in full sermon

The point: Understand that 'Payday Someday' will come for your sins; the wages of sin is death.

Martin imagines Jezebel going to bed with a sneer, gloating that the prophecy of dogs eating her flesh hadn't come true, to highlight the certainty of God's word.

One wonders how many times Jezebel went to bed at night with a sneer at the corner of her lips for she had no doubt been told of this prophecy the previous history indicates that she was not ignorant of the sayings of the prophets with respect to her. And how many a time perhaps she drifted off to sleep gloating as it were that no dogs had eaten her flesh. What passed through her mind from the time she was killed to the time she was let loose from the top of the parapet until she hit the bottom.

39:09 - 39:42 Read in full sermon

The point: Understand that 'Payday Someday' will come for your sins; the wages of sin is death.

A preacher's sermon titled 'Payday Someday' on Jezebel's judgment is recalled to emphasize the certainty of God's judgment for sin.

I heard a preacher many years ago who preached what is a bad thing to preach a famous sermon. But he had preached this sermon in many, many places and often had been asked to preach it. And though there was something excessively theatrical about the preaching I shall never forget the title preaching on the whole subject of Jezebel's ultimate judgment the title to his sermon was Payday Someday.

39:49 - 40:16 Read in full sermon

The point: Come to grips with the great teaching that God is on His throne, overruling even the wicked designs of men for His glory.

The crucifixion of Christ is presented as the most patent example of God using wicked hands to accomplish His foreordained will without staining His character.

without staining himself with man's sin so to govern and control the man's sin with the natural sinful passions of men's hearts that though they are not actuated by the honor of God and loving submission to the will of God they yet accomplish God's design and of course nowhere is that more patent than in the crucifixion of Christ for the scripture tells us they were gathered together to do whatsoever God's hand foreordained to be done and yet Peter points to those very people and says you by wicked hands took him and crucified and slew him you say I can't figure that out I don't ask you to

45:49 - 46:33 Read in full sermon

The point: Come to grips with the great teaching that God is on His throne, overruling even the wicked designs of men for His glory.

The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and the suffering of children with 'bloated bodies' are used to illustrate the difficulty of reconciling God's sovereignty with evil, yet affirming His ultimate control.

of the USSR to go down and to take over as it were that helpless country of Afghanistan how can God be on his throne in all of that and when we see the pictures of those poor little children with their bloated bodies and hear the reports of the thousands who died upon the high seas and others who died in camps and refugee compounds we say how can it be amidst all of this you'll find no comfort my friend ultimately until you come to grips with this great teaching of this passage God is on his throne and even the wicked designs of men and the brutality and the cruelty in a way that makes

48:02 - 48:47 Read in full sermon

The point: Repent and flee to find refuge in Christ, because God is an avenging God whose wrath was poured out on His Son for sin.

The lyrics of the old hymn 'It Will Be Worth It All When We See Jesus' are quoted to express the hope and triumph believers will experience at Christ's return.

fallen in have cast their lot with the Lamb and with his followers they shall stand with him in triumph and rejoice and say true and righteous are thy ways O Lord God the true and the holy for thou hast avenged thine enemies O to stand with him in the triumph of the last day it's an old song some of us associated with days when perhaps our theology was very thin at the edges but there's an awful lot of good heart theology in it some of you know it it will be worth it all when we see Jesus one

59:11 - 59:56 Read in full sermon