As we learn in the story of King Asa, one of the hardest things about following God throughout our lives is maintaining “staying power.” God calls us to persevere, but it can be difficult, especially when facing struggles. When we are leaders called to serve people by guiding them, the consequences of not persevering can be messy.
What can we learn from King Asa today about following God, finishing well, and watching out for warnings that we have gotten off track?
King Asa’s story is found in 1 Kings 15. We learn that he reigned in Jerusalem (the southern kingdom of Judah) for 41 years, longer than any other king of Judah. He was the great-grandson of King Solomon, grandson of King Rehoboam, and son of King Abijah. The Bible even mentions his grandmother’s name (Maacah) as he would have dealings with her when idolatry trumped their family connection.
The family did not have the greatest track record. Asa’s grandfather, Rehoboam, was responsible for the division of Israel in two because of his greed and arrogance. It allowed the people of Judah to commit grievous sins.
1 Kings 14:22-24 tells us, “Judah did evil in the eyes of the Lord. By the sins they committed, they stirred up his jealous anger more than their fathers had done. They also set up high places, sacred stones, and Asherah poles for themselves on every high hill and under every spreading tree. There were even male shrine prostitutes in the land; the people engaged in all the detestable practices of the nations the Lord had driven out before the Israelites.” It was truly like a dog eating its vomit. These were Canaanite practices that God told the Israelites in Moses’ time not to participate in. The pagan gods varied, but they were primarily fertility religions—hence the prostitutes at the high places.
His father Abijah, who was king before Asa, “committed all of the sins his father had done before him; his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord his God as the heart of David his forefather had been” (1 Kings 15:3). Throughout Abijah’s lifetime, Rehoboam and Jeroboam were at war with one another. With all these evil patriarchs in his lineage, what chance did Asa have to be a good king upon his father's death?
According to Easton’s Bible Dictionary, Asa was a physician before he became king of Judah during the twentieth year of Jeroboam’s rule.
After Israel was divided into two kingdoms, the Bible tells us one specific thing about each king: whether he walked with the Lord or did evil in the sight of the Lord. If you look at a chart of the kings of Judah and Israel (39 kings in all before Judah and Israel were conquered by Assyria and Babylon, respectively), 33 kings did evil in the eyes of the Lord. That’s not a great track record, considering the people of Israel begged God for a king (as if God was not enough), starting with King Saul.
However, the few good kings on the list were all from the kingdom of Judah. So, what did Asa do when the time came for him to take the throne?
Asa started strong, far stronger than his father. Rehoboam had allowed many sins into the kingdom. Abijah did nothing about these abominations. Asa did: “He expelled the male shrine prostitutes from the land and got rid of all the idols his fathers had made. He even deposed his grandmother Maacah from her position as queen mother because she had a repulsive Asherah pole” (1 Kings 15:12-13). His heart was fully committed to the Lord his whole life.
The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia said Asa went further to cleanse the people from this sin. “Directed and encouraged by Azariah the prophet, he carried on a great revival. Having restored the great altar of burnt offering in the temple, he assembled the people to renew their covenant with Yahweh. On this occasion, 700 oxen and 7,000 sheep were offered in sacrifice.”
Still, he missed one thing. Asa didn’t remove the “high places,” which were places of pagan worship. As Hope Bollinger explains, things turn darker when King Baasha becomes king of Israel and challenges Judah. Asa decided to ally with Syria instead of seeking God’s help. The prophet Hanani rebukes Asa for not trusting the Lord and tells him the rest of his reign will be experienced with war because he didn’t rely on God. Asa doesn’t like what he hears from Hanani and puts him in prison.
As punishment, God gave Asa a fatal foot disease. Easton’s Bible Dictionary says, “It is recorded of him, however, that in his old age, when afflicted, he ‘sought not to the Lord, but to the physicians.’” Did he believe that other physicians could heal him because of his training and that he didn’t need to seek God’s face about his trouble? Did he think he had “done enough” for God and would be blessed regardless? We won’t know for sure. We do know that Asa experienced the consequences of not trusting God.
We can learn various things about serving God when we look at King Asa’s life.
First, Asa shows us that we can break the chain of sin in our family line. It doesn’t matter if you are the first and only Christ-follower in your family; he takes precedence over the beliefs of those in our family who would seek to influence us. On the contrary, we have an incredible opportunity to influence the ones we love by being authentic in our faith and loving them—hoping they will see what Christ is doing in our lives and give their hearts to Him.
Second, he gives a sad example of what happens when perseverance falters. Once we put our faith in God (through Christ), we have made the crucial step, but there is more to the spiritual life than that. We must cultivate a spiritual life that helps us run the race well, not just begin. That responsibility is not only God’s but ours. If we aren’t consistent in our Bible study, prayer, and fellowship, we will make mistakes we didn’t expect. Asa provides a sad example of what happens when perseverance falters.
Third, Asa shows us that we must not be lukewarm if we believe in God. We must follow God consistently. If we allow sin to flourish around us, it will have consequences we don’t expect. Asa did not remove the high places where people worshipped pagan gods. We don’t know why, but his compromises fell short of what his ancestor David said in Psalm 119:4-5: “You have laid down precepts that are to be fully obeyed. Oh, that my ways were steadfast in obeying your decrees.”
Fourth, we know that following God may involve us giving advice or warnings that aren’t popular like Hanani telling Asa his disobedience would have dreadful consequences. We remember that it is God we live for, not our culture’s standards.
Photo Credit: Public domain photo via Wikimedia Commons.
Mary Oelerich-Meyer is a Chicago-area freelance writer and copy editor who prayed for years for a way to write about and for the Lord. She spent 20 years writing for area healthcare organizations, interviewing doctors and clinical professionals and writing more than 1,500 articles in addition to marketing collateral materials. Important work, but not what she felt called to do. She is grateful for any opportunity to share the Lord in her writing and editing, believing that life is too short to write about anything else. Previously she served as Marketing Communications Director for a large healthcare system. She holds a B.A. in International Business and Marketing from Cornell College (the original Cornell!) When not researching or writing, she loves to spend time with her writer daughter, granddaughter, rescue doggie and husband (not always in that order).
This article is part of our People of Christianity catalog that features the stories, meaning, and significance of well-known people from the Bible and history. Here are some of the most popular articles for knowing important figures in Christianity:
How Did the Apostle Paul Die?
Who are the Nicolaitans in Revelation?
Who Was Deborah in the Bible?
Who Was Moses in the Bible?
King Solomon's Story in the Bible
Who Was Lot's Wife in the Bible?
Who Was Jezebel in the Bible?
Who Was the Prodigal Son?