1. Poor prophet's wives - God's mercy -vs 1-7-- a. Decrepit estates- b. God's dynamism-2. Elisha's motel turns into a family miracle -vs 8-37-- a. A simple Shunamite's piety - love- b. The love of God, doubly conceived- c. Elisha prefigures Christ - his love for us

A. Exuberant Worship -Psa. 96-1-3-B. Exclusive Worship -Psa. 96-4-6--C. Expressive Worship -Psa. 96-7-10--D. Ecstatic Worship -Psa. 96-11-13-

1. A story of a confusing alliance-2. A story of a confusing blessing-3. A story of Jehoshaphat's good testimony in the confusion-4. A story of Elisha's pure witness to Jehoram amidst confusion-5. How this illustrates being in the world but not of it

1. To get humanity's attention-2. To point to Christ Jesus, our heavenly transport-3. To display his bald sovereign power in the sinful world-4. To show He had everything in control-5. To encourage us, His people, to hope in Him

1. Elect prayer and not losing heart. Vs. 1-2. Secular judges and pathetic widows. Vs. 2-3-3. A secular judge compared to the holy God. Vs. 6-7-4. Election, faith and the Son of God. Vs. 8b-5. Do we believe this, or not--

1. 1 - 2 Kings details God's contest between good - evil-2. Ahaziah's dubious fall-3. Angels - prophets - God-4. The power contest begins-5. God's power brings Ahaziah's captain to his knees-6. God's Word reaches Ahaziah - he's slain

1. 1 Kings 16-34 historical reference to Jericho-2. Joshua 6-26's unexplained prophecy regarding Jericho-3. Joshua 1-6 and the symbolic role of Jericho-4. Ahab's corrupt madness in ruining Israel-5. Hiel of Bethel - his sons collision with Jehovah-6. Application- the KOG, people today - Jesus-Jericho…

1. Ahab's ancestors - antecedents-2. His degrees of evil-3. Jeroboam's line hardened - apostatized through Ahab

1. Crisis-coincidence of text - time -22-39-51--2. Crisis-coincidence of two kids and two theological systems-3. Crisis-coincidence of two consequences- clarity or obscurity

1. Confronted in the midst of his evil -21-17ff--2. Confronted by God's clear condemnation -21-19--3. Confronted by a most authoritative emissary -21-20--4. Confronted by unqualified condemnation -21-21, 25--5. Yet wins respite by his sincere repentance -21-29-

1. God detains a story where none of the parties are elect-2. Yet God uses both Ben Hadad and Ahab for His purposes-3. God gives Ben Hadad over to creed, then 'blesses' Ahab temporarily - despite their common wickedness-4. In the midst of this confusion, God speaks His Word 'clearly' to witness to Ahab - who He will not save-5. God commands us to w…

1. Rebuilding the ruined altar -18-30--2. Counter-intuitive measures-effective sacrifice -18-32--3. Prayer for divine display of clarity-identity -18-36--4. The altar consumed -18-38--5. Prophetic application- Baal prophets slaughtered -18-40--6. Window into the wrath poured out on Calvary

1. An old prophet abiding in a wicked culture-2. The old prophet's infidelity-3. Confusing an old prophet with the Word of God-4. The old prophet's repentance - Jeroboam's ruin-5. Comparison to Rome's errors - Jesus' temptation

1. God's Word is always sovereign and powerful-2. Such power is always available, but not usually displayed-3. The wicked are effectively ignorant of this power-4.God sometimes delights in tying His power to His Word so that mankind will be better forewarned about it

1. Chaos has ambition -11-26--2. Chaos has worldly gifts -11-28--3. Chaos lacks discernment-discretion -11-38--4. So it is with all humanistic-autonomous men-5. Solo -11-9ff-

1. Foreign-alien women -11-1--2. Intermarriage, infidelity, interdependency-3. Love after a fashion -11-2--4. Solomon apostatized -11-4, 5, 6, 7, 8--5. Solomon confronted -11-9ff-

A. Call to Rejoice -Psa. 95-1-5--B. Call to Reverence -Psa. 95-6-7a--C. Call to Respond -Psa. 95-7b-11-

A. The Temple - Means of Grace. Not Grace itself- -8-21-23--B. Solomon's Eg. -Prayer- - Eg. 4us of another MOG -8-31, 33, 35, 37, 38--C. The Triune God is the POWER, not the temple of the church- -8-27-30, 32, 34, 36, 39, 40--D. The Purpose of the Temple was to -1- Raise up the Name of the LORD, and -2- Redeem the CREATION-ELECT -8-41, 43-…

A. The glory of the first temple was the Spirit of God -8-10--B. The ark's entrance keyed the Spirit's entrance -8-1, 6--C. Applications for life-theology- 1. God's Spirit basic for the Christian life- 2. Awareness of the Spirit follows grasping the Son- 3. Holiness not primarily visible but spiritual- 4. All things spiritual are purely at God's di…

A. The LORD is exalted in the magnificent revelation of Himself -Psa. 92-1-3, 15--B. The LORD is exalted in the sustained flourishing of the righteous -Psa. 92-4-6, 10-14--C. The LORD is exalted in the just destruction of the wicked -Psa. 92-7, 9--D. The LORD is exalted in the eternal elevation of Himself -Psa. 92-8-…

1. Shimei's recompense - justice-2. Rome's recompense - justice- a. Rome's doctrinal declension- b. Rome's persecution of the elect-3. Temporal justice not always fulfilled completely

1. The Bible relates these two 'better'-2. The humiliation of David's old age -1-1-4--3. Politics abhors vacuums - readily fills up with dirt -1-5-10--4. 'Theologians' -Nathan- with political acumen -1-11-12-

A. The Greatness of God -Psa. 90-1-2--B. The Gravity of God -Psa. 90-3-11--C. The Grace of God -Psa. 90-12-17-

1. Why we ought to fear the Lord -9-1ff-- a. Memories of Samson-Philistines-temple- b. No safe places in all the world-2. Why we ought to flee to the Lord in faith -9-11-- a. He makes such a great promise- b. He makes such a great proclamation

1. God swears by Himself -8-7ff--2. When God judges all reality accommodates Him -8-9ff--3. God's destructive prophesy -8-11ff--4. God's judgment works inexorably -8-12ff-

1. Vision of the fruit basket -8-1, 2--2. Temple songs have turned into wailing -8-3--3. Social ethics - theology -8-4--4. Israel's calendar - its leaders' heart sentiments -8-5--5. Processing the poor in their stupidity -8-6-

1. Reason for Amos' apology -7-12-13--2. Amos' apology 1 - God spoke to me -7-15--3. Amos' apology 2 - Your wife, children, death -7-17--4. Parallels to Jesus' apology -Rom. 1-4- 1 Cor. 15-

1. Amos' vision of the locusts -7-1ff--2. Amos' vision of the fire -7-4ff--3. Amos' vision of the plumbline -7-7ff--4. Amaziah fights dirty -7-10ff-

1. Easy groupthink hard to dispel -6-1--2. Woe to those who's faith rests in distractions -6-3ff--3. God oath - this time for judgment -6-8ff--4. God's instrument of wrath- Assyria -6-14-

1. The Day of the LORD, rightly understood -5-18, 20--2. God's special contempt for false faith -5-21ff--3. Worship as noise -5-23ff--4. A comparison to wilderness Israel -5-25ff-

1. Lamentation -5-1-3--2. Repentance and change -5-4-7--3. God's omnipotence -5-8--4. Interim strategy for individual Israelites -5-13-

1. Exegesis of passage -4-1-13--2. Sin - Ethics -4-1--3. Faith- the end of all godliness -4-11d, 12d--4. Application to our day

1. Proclaimed, not merely discussed -3-9, 11, 12, 13--2. Understood, not just secretly dreaded -3-10--3. Expected, as a real specter of God's wrath -3-11c-

1. Faith is personal -3-1--2. Personal is responsible -3-2--3. Personal is real -3-3-8-

A. The Severity of the Situation -9-14-19--B. The Supremacy of the Savior -9-20-27--C. The Solution for the Saints -9-28-29-

A. The Greatest Authority -vs. 18--B. The Greatest Assignment -vs. 19-20a--C. The Greatest Assurance -v. 20b-

1. No escape on account of God's character -2-13--2. No escape on account of God's methods -2-14--3. No escape on account of God's inscrutability -2-15--4. Every attempt at escaping God will be nakedly embarrassing -2-16-