“And Amaziah said to the man of God, But what shall we do for the hundred talents which I have given to the army of Israel? And the man of God answered, The Lord is able to give thee much more than this.â€Â II Chronicles 25:9
Amaziah was a king of Judah. He was a man that did that which was right in the sight of the Lord (25:2). Amaziah gathered his men together for battle. He also hired some extra soldiers, an hundred thousand mighty men of valour out of Israel (25:7). He paid them an hundred talents of silver (25:7). This seemed like a prudent thing to do.
However, a man of God came to King Amaziah to warn him not to take the Israelite soldiers with him into battle. The man of God told Amaziah that God was not with the people of the northern kingdom of Israel. If Amaziah were to take the Israelites into battle, God would cause the army of Judah to fall before the enemy (25:8).
What was King Amaziah to do? He had already paid the money to the Israelite soldiers. He couldn’t just allow that money to be wasted, could he? Amaziah, as most of us would be, was worried about letting roughly $3.5 million dollars just go to waste. Surely God would not want that money wasted, would He?
The answer given was this: The Lord is able to give thee much more than this (25:9). What is $3.5 million, or even $3.5 trillion, to the Lord? It is nothing to Him. He is able to give much more than this. God wanted Amaziah, above all, to be obedient to Him.
How does this apply to our lives? As believers, by the reading of God’s Word and the conviction of His Holy Spirit, we are made aware of areas of disobedience in our lives. The question is not, what does God want us to do, but rather, will we obey Him?
Many times this decision to obey God and do what He wants is a gut-wrenching one. He may want us to change jobs or give more money away. It may be that following God’s will for our lives will cause us to lose friends, business partners, maybe more. In many cases, we are faced with Amaziah’s same decision: follow God, or follow the money?
Rest assured that God hath power to help, and to cast down (25:8). If we are obedient to His will for our lives, He has more than enough power to see us through any difficulties that we may foresee. In fact, the Lord is able to give much more than we see possible. On the other hand, if we are disobedient, God as the power to cast down. As believers, when we rebel against Him, He will chastise us, just as He did to the Israelites on many occasions when they turned from Him.
When you are sure of God’s will for your life and the decision comes down to either: (A) obedience, or (B) money, be sure to follow the example of King Amaziah. Though the decision did not make sense financially, it always makes sense to obey God. God rewarded King Amaziah’s obedience with a victory over the army of Seir.
Pastor Lee Smith
