Can You Handle The Truth?
There is a phrase we sometimes use when we deliver distasteful news and it is met with backlash from the person who received the message..."don't shoot the messenger". No one wants to deliver news that will cause a negative reaction from those who have to hear it, particularly when the one that the message is directed to is powerful. Yet God calls us to speak truth to people, even to the powerful, because lies don't benefit anyone and can instead lead to destruction. He also calls us to hear and act on the truth when it is presented to us. In this lesson (1 Kings 22 15-23; 26-28), Micaiah was unafraid to speak what the Lord told him to say to king Ahab, even in the face of repercussions for delivering that message. Unfortunately, Ahab refused to accept the truth. May God help you this week to know and act upon the truth of His word.
When he arrived, the king asked him, “Micaiah, shall we go to war against Ramoth Gilead, or not?” “Attack and be victorious,” he answered, “for the LORD will give it into the king’s hand.” The king said to him, “How many times must I make you swear to tell me nothing but the truth in the name of the LORD?” Then Micaiah answered, “I saw all Israel scattered on the hills like sheep without a shepherd, and the LORD said, ‘These people have no master. Let each one go home in peace.’” The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “Didn’t I tell you that he never prophesies anything good about me, but only bad?” (1 Kings 22:15-18) Micaiah delivered the prophetic judgement of God's message to Ahab. Micaiah was in the presence of not one, but two kings, yet he still delivered the word from the Lord that he knew would be unfavorably received. Initially, Macaiah sarcastically told Ahab the same thing that the 400 false prophets had told him. Like Jack Nicholson in A Few Good Men, he knew Ahab, "couldn't handle the truth!". But Macaiah stayed committed to what God told him to do. God's truth won't change, whether we accept it or not.
Micaiah continued, “Therefore hear the word of the LORD: I saw the LORD sitting on his throne with all the multitudes of heaven standing around him on his right and on his left. And the LORD said, ‘Who will entice Ahab into attacking Ramoth Gilead and going to his death there?’ “One suggested this, and another that. (1 Kings 22:19-20) Micaiah distinguished that this word came from the Lord, as opposed to Ahab's 400 prophets who merely said whatever they thought Ahab wanted to hear. Micaiah shared the vision that God had given him about Ahab's impending demise. Satan is the great deceiver. God will allow us to be turned over to Satan's lies when we refuse to trust in the truths of His word.
Finally, a spirit came forward, stood before the LORD and said, ‘I will entice him.’ “‘By what means?’ the LORD asked. “‘I will go out and be a deceiving spirit in the mouths of all his prophets,’ he said. “‘You will succeed in enticing him,’ said the LORD. ‘Go and do it.’ “So now the LORD has put a deceiving spirit in the mouths of all these prophets of yours. The LORD has decreed disaster for you.” (1 Kings 22:21-23) The spirit that came forth to entice Ahab towards his own destruction was a lying/deceiving spirit. Notice that God allowed Satan and other fallen angel's into His presence and to lead the 400 false prophets to lie to Ahab, resulting his death. Guzik's commentary says "It represents the power of a lie in the mouth of someone opposed to the truth and speaking for his own ends.” Will you believe the truth of God's word which brings life, or will you believe the lies that lead to destruction?
The king of Israel then ordered, “Take Micaiah and send him back to Amon the ruler of the city and to Joash the king’s son and say, ‘This is what the king says: Put this fellow in prison and give him nothing but bread and water until I return safely.’” Micaiah declared, “If you ever return safely, the LORD has not spoken through me.” Then he added, “Mark my words, all you people!” (1Kings 22:26-28) For his faithfulnes to God (as opposed to allegiance to Ahab), Micaiah was ordered to be put in prison. But Micaiah was unfazed by Ahab's power, because he had confidence that God's word was true and His power was ultimate. We should have confidence that God can not lie, the word of God is true and it has the power to accomplish God's purpose for it.
When we trust in God's word and act upon it, we can be confident that we are walking in the path of life and not following the path of destruction. Ahab ignored God's prophetic word and chose to believe a lie. He was more interested in following his own desires than in following God. God has given us His prophetic word of truth in the Bible as a guide for us. He also sends persons to speak His word of truth to correct us. We can trust that His word is still true and it still points us to life and not death. We must choose to accept and follow what God tells us or ignore it and go our own way. So the only real question is...Can you handle the truth!?
Blessings,
Rev. Glenn
