Students In A Classroom
Their purpose of attending school is the same – to learn – however each child will approach their learning differently.
Reference: v.17 So he died, according to the word of the Lord that Elijah had spoken. Because Ahaziah had no son, Joram succeeded him as king in the second year of Jehoram son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah. (TNIV Bible)
Explore: If you were to walk into a primary school classroom you would quickly pick up that this is a place where people are sent to learn. However, if you were to talk to the teacher or to meet the students yourself, you would quickly discover that all the students choose for themselves what they want to learn. One child may focus eagerly during math class while another one is more attentive during English; one child may enjoy the sporting opportunities offered while another one takes advantage of time they can spend with their friends. Their purpose of attending school is the same – to learn – however each child will approach their learning differently.
Application: With the title of ‘2 Kings’ it is no surprise what this book of the Bibles is all about… kings! The nation of God’s chosen people had divided in two and they each had a king ruling over them. The book spans many years and so we hear of many different kings ruling over each nation. Their purpose was the same: to govern the people according to God’s law. However, just like the students in the classroom approach their learning differently, so too did the kings approach the way they went about fulfilling this purpose. Some kings were faithful to God and ruled wisely, some kings were listed as evil and worshipped many other gods and then there were the kings who started off serving God faithfully but then became evil and turned the people away from God. Each king held the same position as the last and their purpose was the same and yet they all chose to lead in the way they desired. As Christians we have many similarities: we are all saved by grace, God loves us all the same and we are all called to follow Christ. And yet, just like the kings, we all have the choice to lead our lives however we would like. We can choose to follow God with all our hearts or we can just say that we are a Christian but do whatever we feel like doing. There will be people like the prophets in 2 Kings who come to help us live according to God’s will but it is still up to us to determine how we will behave.
Prayer: Lord, we are all saved by grace and blessed to be a part of your family. Help us to choose our actions wisely so that we can serve you more and more. Amen.
How do you choose to live today?
This article was written by Linda Bailey
Linda started theological studies in 1999 in Australia. After working for ten years in various church ministries, she now works as the breakfast producer at 89.9 LightFM - the Christian radio station in Melbourne, Australia. She writes blogs every day about passages she is currently reading in the Bible. Follow her on Google Plus +Linda Bailey or Facebook by clicking the like button on the right of this page.