Kerry Shook - God's Way
We're in this faith-building series we're calling the "Wilderness Survival Guide," because there are many times in life where we find ourselves in the wilderness and we don't know which way to go. And maybe it's a wilderness of unexpected problems that's created a wilderness of worry or a wilderness of confusion. Or maybe it's a wilderness of bad decisions that have taken you way off track in life, and you just don't know what to do next. Or maybe it's a wilderness of pain and loss and grief that you're going through and you wonder if you'll ever find your way through. Well, last week we looked at how God wants to make a way in the wilderness.
Now I always pray for God to make a way out of the wilderness for me. I wanna get out of the wilderness. I want God to do a great miracle and just get me out of the wilderness, but he does that sometimes and I love it when he does, but many times, God wants to make a way in the wilderness. He wants to change me in the wilderness, he wants to change everything around me. He wants to use me to show people the way in the wilderness. But today, we're gonna see that God can make a way where there is no way because we have a God who can make your path straight. We have a God who can stop the storms. We have a God who can make a way in the wilderness. We have a God who can make all things new. We have a God who can make all the difference in your life.
And I want you to open your Bibles to 2 Kings chapter 3 because here we're gonna see a miracle in the wilderness. When there was no way out, God makes a way. Would you stand in honor of God's Word, Woodlands Church? Just follow along with me, and don't get confused by all the strange names of the kings and all these Bible names that are hard to pronounce, because there is a powerful and personal word from God in this passage for you. God's Word changes lives. I can't change a life, but God's Word can change all of us. So follow along with me.
"So King Jehoram left Samaria for battle at that time and mustered all Israel. Then he went and sent word to Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, saying, 'The king of Moab has broken away from me. Will you go with me to fight against Moab?' And he said, 'I will go up. Consider me yours, my people as your people, my horses as your horses.' Then he said, 'Which way shall we go up?' And he answered, 'The way of the wilderness of Edom.'" You can be seated and I want you to focus in on that last phrase, "The way of the wilderness". The way of the wilderness changes us. When you go through the wilderness, you always come out a different person. The way of the wilderness always changes us for good or for bad. You either get better or you get bitter.
The way of the wilderness defines you or it destroys you. These kings, these armies, walked into the wilderness and we're gonna see how God changed everything. They were in a no-way situation, but God had his way and he changed everything, and God can make a way where there's no way in the wilderness. But I wanna give you some background in this passage. Years before this takes place, Israel had split in two. Sort of been a civil war and the kingdom has been split. There was a northern kingdom, Israel, and a southern kingdom, Judah. Now the northern kingdom at this time, years later, was ruled by a wicked king named Jehoram.
Now, Jehoram's parents were Ahab and Jezebel. They were the most wicked king and queen that ever ruled in Israel, and so Jehoram, the Bible says, wasn't as bad as them because that would be really hard to be as bad and evil and wicked as his parents, but he was still an ungodly king. He didn't follow God. With Jehoram, it was "my way or the highway". Jehoram, it was "my way, not God's way". So let's just call him "My Way Jehoram," because he didn't follow God. He just did what he thought was best. And in the southern kingdom of Judah at this time, we have a godly king, Jehoshaphat. Ever since he was a young boy, he followed God. He really wanted to go God's way. He had a deep relationship with God. He really wanted to please God, so let's call him "God's Way Jehoshaphat".
So we have My Way Jehoram and God's Way Jehoshaphat. But the king of Moab has been paying the king of Israel 100,000 sheep, 100,000 rams, for many years as a tribute, sort of as ransom, but when King Ahab dies and then My Way Jehoram takes over, the king of Moab is not scared of Jehoram and he says, "I think we're gonna stop doing this. I never liked doing this. I'm gonna stop doing this, because I'm not afraid of you". And so, My Way Jehoram gets really angry. When his authority is questioned, he gets really upset and so he's gonna teach the Moabites a lesson. These rebellious Moabites are gonna feel his wrath. The problem is he's really not strong enough to do much about it so he needs some help.
And so, My Way Jehoram calls on God's Way Jehoshaphat and, in verse 7, it says: "He also sent this message to Jehoshaphat king of Judah: 'The king of Moab has rebelled against me. Will you go with me to fight against Moab?' 'I will go with you,' he replied. 'I am as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses.'" So, My Way Jehoram asked God's Way Jehoshaphat, "Hey, will you go with me and team up with me and we'll get the king of Edom with us as well. I mean, he's an ally, and all three of us will go against this one king, one country, and we will whip the rebellious Moabites and teach them a lesson. So I need your help".
And godly king, God's Way Jehoshaphat says, "Sounds great". It probably sounded really good because this would be a chance to maybe patch up some differences, bring the southern and northern kingdom more into alignment, you know? They weren't so angry at each other now after all these years, after the kingdom split, they weren't the ones that split the kingdom, you know? They were descendants of those. And so, it seemed like a really good opportunity to kind of patch up some differences, bring them more into alignment, plus it was three kings against one, so there was no risk. I mean, they were gonna win the battle. And so, God's Way Jehoshaphat says, "It sounds great. Let's do it".
Just one problem: he didn't pray about it, he didn't ask God about it. He just said, "Let's do it". Why? God's Way Jehoshaphat, for a moment, forgets God and he doesn't even pray about this, why? Because it was a really good opportunity. It was a really good thing, it was a really good project. It was a really good endeavor. And he had really good motives and really good intentions. It was a really good opportunity, but it wasn't a God opportunity. And folks, if you say yes to every good opportunity that comes into your life, you're gonna end up in a wilderness wasteland of unfulfillment and burnout.
If you say Yes to every good opportunity that comes your way, if you say Yes to every person who asks you to do something good, if you say Yes to every chance you get to step into something good, then you're gonna miss out on God's best. I have a lot of good opportunities that come my way, but there are only a very few God opportunities. And if I say Yes to a good opportunity without praying about it and it's not a God opportunity, then I miss out on God's best because I'm holding onto the good and I can't have my hands free to receive the best that's coming.
And so, wayward Jehoshaphat asks My Way Jehoram which way we should go, and Jehoram says, "I got a brilliant idea. You know I'm so creative and I'm so smart and I'm so brilliant, so here's what we're gonna do. We're going to go through the wilderness, we're gonna go through the desert, and they'll never expect us to be that dumb. And it's gonna surprise them so much because no one in their right mind who has any intellect at all would walk through the desert for 7 days to do a surprise attack and so they'll never suspect that we're that dumb, but we are and we're gonna do that". He thinks he's brilliant, you know? It's like, "This is a great idea," you know? Jehoshaphat starts thinking that King Jehoram is a big deal and he makes God smaller in his mind, and he makes some bad decision. You wanna know how big God is? Let me remind you.
In Isaiah 40:21 it says: "Have you not been paying attention? Have you not been listening? Haven't you heard these stories all your life? Don't you understand the foundation of all things? God sits high above the round ball of earth. The people look like mere ants. He stretches out the skies like a canvas, yes, like a tent canvas to live under. He ignores what all the princes say and do. The rulers of the earth count for nothing. Princes and rulers don't amount to much. Like seeds barely rooted, just sprouted, they shrivel when God blows on them. Like flecks of chaff, they're gone with the wind".
I love that. You get just a little glimpse of who God is, who he really is. You see God as he really is, and you see that he's so great. When he looks down, the most powerful, most influential person on this earth looks like a little ant to him. Here today and gone tomorrow, of no significance. And yet, God is closer than you could ever imagine.
So the three kings agree on this plan. They set off in the wilderness and then, in verse 9, it says: "So the king of Israel set out with the king of Judah and the king of Edom. After a roundabout march of seven days, the army had no more water for themselves or for their animals with them". So they go 7 days into the desert. They come to the last watering hole right before Moab, and it's dry. They instantly know what this means. They're smart enough to know this. It means they're dead. It's a disaster. There's no water. They had planned on that last watering hole and so they know that they can't go back 7 days or they'll die of thirst. They know that just down the road is the enemy army and they can't go forward and fight them and try to get their water because they have no energy, they're dying of thirst.
So there they are, stuck in the desert. Their "My Way" led to a "No Way". And here's the whole point of this message. If you don't get anything else, here's what this is all аbout: What do you do, what do I do, when my way leads to a no way in the wilderness? This passage tells us what we're to do when your no way, or when your way leads to a no way in the wilderness so that God can make a way where there's no way. So what do I do? Well, you don't do what Jehoram did. Look what Jehoram did in 2 Kings 3:10. He said, "'What!' exclaimed the king of Israel. 'Has the Lord called us three kings together only to deliver us into the hands of Moab?'" He blames God. God had nothing to do with it, but he says, "Hey, God called us all together to do this".
And sometimes, when we get into the wilderness, you know, we say, "God, what are you doing? Why did you lead me here in the wilderness"? And God says, "I had nothing to do with it. You haven't prayed about it in, you know, a year. You've been making all these decisions. You've been going your way and it's led to a no way. I didn't have anything to do with it," so don't blame God when it's my own fault. But I love what Jehoshaphat does. In 2 Kings 3:11, this gives me so much encouragement. "But Jehoshaphat asked, 'Is there no prophet of the Lord here, through whom we may inquire of the Lord?'" So he, right away, says, "We need God. We need God's way. I've been going my way and I've been wayward, and I need God's way".
And the way God spoke back then was through an anointed prophet, and so he says, "Is there anyone around, any prophet of God that can share with us God's way"? So wayward Jehoshaphat doesn't blame God; he turns back to God, and he goes from Wayward Jehoshaphat, back to God's Way Jehoshaphat. He was wayward for a moment and he says, "I admit I got myself into the wilderness. Now I need God's way in the wilderness". And he's not afraid of King Jehoram anymore. He's not listening to King Jehoram because they're all about to die of thirst and he sees how human he is. They're all about to die of thirst so it doesn't matter anymore. He's not worried about impressing him, or pleasing him. He's like, "I'm getting back to God's way, 'cause he's the only one I should fear".
And he turns back to God, and God is so gracious. I've seen it so many times in my life when I've got myself in the wilderness of my way and it's turned into a no way, and when I turn back to God, he makes a way where there's no way. Jehoshaphat does the first thing that you have to do to experience a miracle in the wilderness: he remembers God. In Isaiah 44:21, it says: "Remember these things, Israel, or Jacob, for you, Israel, are my servant. I have made you, you are my servant; Israel, I will not forget you. I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist. Return to me, for I have redeemed you".
God says to you today, "You may have forgotten me, but I will never forget you. I have inscribed you on the palm of my hands". You may have forgotten God this last week, and maybe some people in your life have gotten really big and some problems have gotten really big. You may have forgotten God this last week or maybe this last month, or maybe for the last 10 years. You haven't been praying about it, you've been going the wrong way and you're in the wilderness. Maybe you've forgotten God, but he hasn't forgotten you. When you're thinking about everyone else, you forget God. But he remembers God in the wilderness. In that situation that was a no way out, he remembers the only one who can make a way where there's no way and he turns to God.
So the two things you have to do, the first two things when you're in the wilderness, is remember God and return to God. Remember God and return to God. And Jehoshaphat says, "Hey, is there a prophet of God who can tell us what God's way is right now"? And in 2 Kings 3:11 it says: "An officer of the king of Israel answered, 'Elisha son of Shaphat is here. He used to pour water on the hands of Elijah.' Jehoshaphat said, 'The word of the Lord is with him.' So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to him". He says, "Is there a prophet that can tell us God's way"? And an officer stands up and says, "You know what? I saw a prophet, I mean, the prophet, I mean, the one prophet of our age right now. He's the guy that took over for Elijah. I saw Elisha at breakfast this morning. Somehow he happens to be here in the desert. He's right here with us in our camp".
Now, why in the world was old Elisha, the prophet of God, 7 days into the wilderness with these 3 armies? Because God told him to go there. He was directed by God. I'm sure God said, "Elisha, I've got three kings that are doing something really foolish, and they're going 7 days into the desert. They're gonna just about die of thirst, and I want you to go with them, and I want you to go into the desert. You're gonna almost die of thirst, but I need you to go into the desert and I wanna lead you into the desert with them because I'm gonna need someone when they get into that no way situation to show them that I'm the God who can make a way where there is no way".
And so, Elisha follows God into the desert. Now, I love that the kings come down to Elisha. You know, they go and Elisha's there in the camp and so they come to Elisha and, right away, Elisha looks at My Way Jehoram and he says, "I've got nothing to do with you. Why are you coming to me? I've got nothing to do with you. Why don't you go to the prophets of your mommy and daddy? Why don't you worship those idols that you've carved? Why don't you worship those idols? Why don't you go to the prophets of your mommy and daddy"?
And he's just making fun of him. He's mocking him. He's talking smack to him. And this is the king of Israel. Why? Because Elisha knows how big and great God is, and so this guy's a little ant to him. And he's just pointing out the truth that, hey, why are you even coming here because you don't wanna change. It's all about you going your own way. But I have respect for Jehoshaphat because he's a God's Way king but he just got wayward for a moment, but God is so merciful and gracious that God's gonna make a way out for all you guys because Jehoshaphat is here and he's obeying. In verse 15, then Elisha says, "'Now get me a musician.' As the musician played his harp, the power of the Lord came on Elisha".
So this is the third thing you have to do when you're in the wilderness and you have no way out so God can make a way where there's no way. First is you remember God, then you return to God, then you worship in the wilderness. You worship in the wilderness. You focus on God and what he wants to do in your life. You worship in the wilderness. Now, we don't usually worship in the wilderness. We worry in the wilderness. We get anxious in the wilderness. We get fearful in the wilderness, we start trying to fix everything on our own in the wilderness. We try to control the wilderness. But when you worship, that's surrender and you give it over to God and maybe even start singing when you don't feel like singing.
You pray when you don't feel like praying. You trust when you don't feel like trusting. You obey when you don't feel like obeying. And you take that next step in the wilderness, and God begins to work. He begins to build a wonderland in the wilderness. He begins to make streams flow in the desert, and so worship in the wilderness. Well, after he begins to worship, God comes on him in power, and he says this in 2 Kings 3:16: "And he said, 'This is what the Lord says: "Dig ditches all over this dry stream bed. Even though you'll not see any rain or wind, this stream bed will be filled with water, and you, your livestock, and your pack animals will have plenty to drink".'"
So what does God tell them? God says, "Okay, I'll tell you my way. You've been going your way. Now it's time for God's way. Here's God's way: get a shovel and dig ditches. Start digging ditches". Now, this doesn't make much sense to them, I'm sure. Think about it for a moment. They're dying of thirst, they're dehydrated, and God says, "I want you to go out in the hot sun and sweat a little bit more". I mean, God, this doesn't make sense. And God's way doesn't always make sense to us. But God always knows best. And remember, we can't fathom him completely. We wanna understand everything about God. And God's way always requires faith.
This is really important because if God told me to dig a ditch and I was dying of thirst, you see, God told them, "Hey, if you'll dig these ditches, then in the morning when you wake up, they're gonna be filled with water. I'll take care of it". But I would say, "Well, God, you know, that's good. That's a good plan but let me just throw out a suggestion. You don't have to take it, but I think this might be better. Let me dig just a little hole and you fill it up with water, just enough for me. I'll drink it, and then I'll know you're gonna come through and I'll feel better and refreshed, I won't be so grumpy. I'm pretty grumpy right now. And I'll dig a little deeper, you fill it up a little more. And then I'll dig just a little deeper, you fill it up a little more, so that I see you're coming through for me. Because if I dig a lot of ditches and you don't come through, I'm dead".
And God says, "You're dead anyway, so, your choice". You see, God's way is always God's way. It has nothing to do with my way. But God's way is the only way. God's way is the only way in the wilderness. You want God to make a way where there seems to be no way, he's the only God, he's the only one, who can make a way where there is no way. And so when God tells you to dig a ditch, don't shovel excuses back at him. You just pick up the shovel and you start digging. God's way is the only way. But God's way is always greater than my way.
In Isaiah 55, it says: "'For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,' declares the Lord. 'As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.'" So God says that "my way is always the high way, your way is the low way. And so, you're not thinking big enough. You don't realize how big and great I am". And God loves it when his kids believe him for great things and big things.
You see, most people's vision for their life is way too small. Most people's dream for their life is way too small and they want it way too quickly. We dream really small, but we want it instantly. And God says, "I want you to dream big. If it's my dream, it's gonna be a big dream, but it's gonna take time. It's not gonna happen overnight. One step at a time. One step at a time, as I build your faith in the wilderness. I'm gonna make an oasis in the wilderness and do something great and grand that you can never even imagine". That's the God that we serve.
It really leads me to the last thing that you do in the wilderness: just obey. Just obey. You remember God, you return to God, you worship in the wilderness, and then you just obey. Take the next step of faith, the next step of faith, because God's making a way in the wilderness. It's God, not you, and we just obey, and obedience brings blessing. That means you gotta put your foot I the water, get your feet wet before the river parts. You gotta dig the ditch before God fills it up. You gotta get all the empty vessels before you start pouring the oil, and you get to decide how God works in your life.
And I love this last verse: 2 Kings 3:18, it says: "This is an easy thing in the eyes of the Lord; he will also deliver Moab into your hands". He's saying, "You just believe in me for it's really easy for me to provide the water. That's great. So I'm gonna just throw in another thing. I'm gonna give you a victory. I'm not only gonna give you provision, I'm gonna give you my power to win over the enemy". Isn't that amazing? That's God's mercy and grace. These guys got themselves into the wilderness, it was their own fault. But because Jehoshaphat turned back to God, God gave them both mercy and grace, because mercy, it's when we don't get what we deserve.
When we don't get the punishment we deserve. They deserved death for that dumb decision in the wilderness. But mercy is not getting what we deserve. But grace is getting a blessing we could never earn or deserve. And God not only gives them mercy and saves them out of, but he gives them water and he gives them victory. Isn't that amazing? And God in the wilderness wants to give you his mercy and grace if you'll just remember and return and you'll worship in the wilderness and you'll take steps of obedience.
God wants to give you both his mercy and his grace. And it's an easy thing, to God. Whatever your greatest problem is today, I know it feels great and it feels overwhelming and it feels like it's crushing the life out of you, but God says, "Hey, it's an easy one for me. Why are you carrying that burden? I can carry that burden for you. I can carry you and the burden". The real reason we get stuck in the wilderness with no way out is because we forget two things: how big God is and how much he cares about us.