BEGINNING WITH LIONS

"And so it was at the beginning of their dwelling there, that they feared not the LORD: therefore the LORD sent lions among them, which slew some of them." (2 Kings 17:25)

OUR TEXT SPOKE OF A TRAGIC TIME when the Lord "removed Israel out of His sight, as He had said by all His servants the prophets. So was Israel carried away out of their own land to Assyria." It was a most lamentable time! The sins of Israel had found them out (Num 32:23). Because of their iniquity, the land, belonging to God, had spued them out, just as the Lord said it would (Lev 18:28).

NOT WANTING THE LAND TO BE IDLE, the king of Assyria brought in some colonists to occupy the land. It is written, "And the king of Assyria brought men from Babylon, and from Cuthah, and from Ava, and from Hamath, and from Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel: and they possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities thereof" (2 Kgs 17:24). It seemed like a good enough strategy – at least to the flesh.

REMEMBER, THIS WAS GOD'S LAND. For that reason, nothing defiling could dwell within it. Before Israel came, the land was defiled by the Canaanites and other tribes, and God had driven them out (Lev 18:27). Now, He has expelled the Israelites for the same reason. All of this, of course, was not perceived by the new colonists. After all, they had no covenant with God, and surely godly conduct would not be expected from them. At least, that is how the flesh would think about the situation.

WHEN THE NEW SETTLERS came into the land belonging to God, they did not conduct their lives within a consciousness of God. It is written that "at the beginning of their dwelling there, that they did not fear the LORD." Some versions read, "When they first lived there, they did not worship the LORD" (NIV, NRSV). Some might reason, "Well, what do you expect? After all, they were not Israelites. How were they to know they should fear or worship the Lord?" How foolish and unspiritual the flesh is! God certainly did not reason in this manner, and neither should we.

THE RESPONSE OF GOD to the failure of these non-Israelite settlers is duly noted in this text, and passed along to assist us in culturing a sound way of thinking. The result–"He sent lions among them and they killed some of the people" (NIV). The people did not know God, yet because they did not fear and worship Him, He sent lions among them – lions that killed some of them. But for the grace of God, the lions would have killed ALL of them.

THE KING OF ASSYRIA was quickly apprized of the situation. "The people you deported and resettled in the towns of Samaria do not know what the God of that country requires. He has sent lions among them, which are killing them off, because the people do not know what He requires" (2 Kgs 17:26, NIV). The king quickly responded. He did not send some Assyrian philosophers who had read about the Israelites to the people, nor some local expert in heathen gods. Rather, he gave this mandate: "Carry thither one of the priests whom ye brought from thence; and let them go and dwell there, and let him teach them the manner of the God of the land" (2 Kgs 17:27). It took someone who KNEW the manner of the Lord to acquaint the heathen people with His ways. That way, they could avoid being killed off by the lions.

IT SEEMS TO ME there is a vital principle to be learned here. We are living in a time when the church, the real house and field of God, is occupied by people who do not know the manner of the God of the church. Many of these people are being consumed by various circumstances, and do not know why. Their homes are falling apart, their marriages failing, and general chaos has come upon them. Unfortunately, such people are being sent to psychiatrists, counselors, and other people trained in the wisdom of this world.

IT IS TIME FOR SOMEONE with discernment to rise up and identify the problem. The people are ignorant of God, and are paying the price for being so. They are in a place that has been identified with God, and He will not allow defilement to continue while they remain in quiet apathy. What they need is a spiritual priest who knows the Divine manner, and can "expound" unto them "the way of God more perfectly" (Acts 18:26). Thus, the people will avoid Divine judgments, and also be provided a way to come into favor with the Living God.

AS LONG AS UNIFORMED UNSPIRITUAL MEN are allowed to lead the inhabitants of the land, the people will be devoured, so to speak, by "lions." Also, from the very beginning, those who assume identity with the Lord are to be expected to fear Him and walk before Him.

– Given O. Blakely