They were surrounded by a pall of angst. Worry and anxiety were their constant companions. Every man was constantly on guard. The enemy was always lurking. For nearly three years, there had been war between Israel and Judah. Their kings hated one another with a fiery passion. Fear was a way of life for the people. Fear that their husbands and sons would die in another skirmish. Fear that their daughters would be harmed in the aftermath. Fear that Jeroboam and his men would be triumphant over them. Slaughter them. Enslave them. Every battle felt like a march to their demise. This battle was no different.
Standing on Mount Zemaraim, the soldiers of Judah gazed out over the mass of warriors Israel presented and wondered how they would ever prevail. They were outnumbered two to one. And those weren’t just able-bodied men who could do a little swordplay. Those were select troops. Trained men. Soldiers laser-focused on fighting, killing, winning. This would be a fight to the finish. Likely Judah’s finish. Their minds flashed back to the homes and families they had left behind. Their hearts pinched at the probability they would never return. Then they snapped their minds back to attention. Their king was speaking. Giving an actual speech. Not to his own men. To the opposing king and army. His words were astounding.
From the top of the hill, Abijah called out to counterpart. He had things to say. Things no one ever thought they would hear him say. He didn’t have the best track record when it came to following God. He wasn’t bothered much with following the laws and commands passed down through Moses. He didn’t care who the people worshipped, where they worshipped, or what they worshipped. He had always led with a loose hand. Everyone was allowed to follow the god of their choosing. Many. Few. False. True. It didn’t matter to him. Yet the words that spilled from his mouth in that moment sounded as if he had spent a lifetime in devotion to God alone.
With words that left their mouths agape, Abijah called out Jeroboam. He ticked off Israel’s transgressions like a laundry list. They had completely abandoned God. They had created golden calves to replace Him. Their priests were not from holy lineage. Anyone with the ability to pay could become a priest. They were busily and blatantly embracing pagan practices. Not all of it sounded unfamiliar to the men of Judah. They weren’t exactly devoted to God, either. Abijah hadn’t turned the kingdom from the evil of his father. He hadn’t walked with God himself. But. Their king was on a roll, and he did have a few good points. They might not be as devoted as they once had been, but they hadn’t completely done away with God, either. They were still following His instructions. Burnt offerings. Incense. Proper priests in the temple. They still claimed God as their leader. His priests still blew the trumpets as they went into battle. They still trusted Him to help them. As for them, they chose the Lord to be their God and bring them victory. And he did. Followed by peace on every side. (II Chronicles 12-13)
It was into this peace that Abijah’s son came to power. Standing firmly on the words his father had bellowed out over the battlefield that day, Asa hit the ground running. He was determined to live out those words. They were going to do exactly what his father said they did. Choose the Lord. Only. They weren’t going to be split between religious beliefs anymore. They weren’t going to worship God some days and idols another. The foreign altars, pagan shrines and sacred poles had to go. All of them. They had to be demolished. Smashed. Cut down. If they wanted to live in the peace of God, the people had to seek God. They had to obey His commands. They had to be God’s people, chasing God’s heart, following God’s laws, all day, every day. It was the only way they would ever keep themselves surrounded by peace on every side.
This was not to say trouble would never come near them. It would. It did. After 10 years of peace during which Asa built up and secured his towns, trained and armed his warriors, an attack came. It was massive. With an army nearly twice the size of Asa’s, it reverberated with memories of another battle, another time, in another place, under another king. Tensions were high. Nerves were taut. Fear ran along the edges of every soldier’s mind. They knew they didn’t stand a chance on earth against this army. But the God of Heaven did. Their God. The God they faithfully served. The God for whom they had cleaned up their towns and cleaned out their lives. The only God they now served. This was His battle. His war. His outcome. They were in His hands.
Asa put them there. Falling to his knees, he cried out to God for a rescue. A routing. Their trust was in God. Alone. The battle was His. Alone. The victory was up to Him. Alone. There was nowhere else for them to place their faith. They had diligently destroyed and eradicated the idols that stood between them and God. They weren’t leaning on anything else. God was it. He was all. Their souls were completely His. He was the only One on whom they were depending for victory. For peace. And He gave them those things. Victory and peace. Why? Because when God’s people clean out their hearts, straighten up their lives, and repurpose the space for God to dwell, He does. Individually. Communally. Globally. That is what Lent is all about. (II Chronicles 14-15)
Contrary to what you may have heard. Lent is not a diet program. It is not a time to drop a few pounds by limiting your caloric intake or practicing intermittent fasting under the guise of self-denial. Lent isn’t about food at all. It’s about your relationship with God. It is about going deeper with Him than ever before. It is about introspection and self-evaluation. It is about repentance and change. It is about complete renovation of a heart, repurposing of life, and regeneration of the soul. It is about being completely His. Only. It is about learning to remain faithful when it isn’t easy, when the outlook is dark, when the news is scary. Lent is about renovating a heart space for your soul to be so hidden in God that you are surrounded by peace. Peace that keeps you focused on Jesus. Peace that gives you rest. Peace that the world cannot give, understand, or take away. The imperturbable peace of God. Reserved for the people of God. Thanks be to God. For the peace that comes from Lent. (II Corinthains 13:5; 6:16; Lamentations 3:40; Ezekiel 14:6; Jeremiah 4:1; I Samuel 7:3; Philippians 4:7; Psalm 29:11; 139:23-24)