The fact that Ramoth-gilead, on the wilderness side of Jordan, had so easily slipped into the hands of the enemy, makes us think of many of the systems of Christendom. They once had a large measure of truth, but stopped short of God’s full revelation, especially Paul’s doctrine which brings us “over the Jordan.” Those who do not see the Church as a heavenly company, not of this world, will sooner or later settle down to the level of the world, just as Ramoth-gilead fell into the hands of the Syrians. Nor is there power with such to recover what has been lost, for any system formed by men will be more or less ruled by men, just as Ahab was ruler of those tribes who had left God’s center at Jerusalem, and set up something of themselves. We can easily see that Jehoshaphat the king in Jerusalem, God’s center, should never have been down with Ahab at all. What part did he have in the court of Ahab, or in helping him in his battles?
But sad to say, Jehoshaphat had given up his separated path, or he would never have been there! Nor did he have the spiritual power to speak of separation when he was in a wrong position. When Ahab asked his help to recover Ramoth-gilead, poor Jehoshphat said, “I am as thou art, my people as thy people, my horses as thy horses.” What a sad remark from the lips of a true child of God. And yet what a word to our own hearts, for perhaps we have all gone to some place we should never have gone to, and when there, found we had no power to stand against the evil that surrounded us. If, like Samson, we put our heads in the lap of the world, we will soon give up our Nazarite separation to please our worldly friends. We will be like Jehoshaphat here, and make remarks that sound as if we were one of the crowd. Oh let this be a warning to us, for we can’t exercise spiritual power when out communion with the Lord, and the devil is ever ready to use the occasion to drag us still further down.
Jehoshaphat’s conscience soon began to trouble him, however, and he said to Ahab, “Inquire, I pray thee, at the word of the Lord today.” Ahab the gathered four hundred prophets together and asked them what he should do. Should he go up to Ramoth-gilead? The whole four hundred prophets were agreed in their reply, saying, “Go now for the Lord shall deliver it into the hand of the king.” And the whole four hundred were absolutely wrong! It was not the word of the Lord at all, but a lie spoken in His name. What a picture this is of some of the smooth things prophesied in Christendom today. How little we hear of hell and judgment come from the pulpits in these times. Even at funerals the preacher often consigns the departed one to heaven whether he has confessed Christ as Saviour or not. What a delusion it and yet it is the popular thing that pleases the crowd. It is what people want, just as the prophets here knew what Ahab wanted to hear.
All this might have saved the conscience of Ahab, but it only made Jehoshaphat more uneasy. He knew there was something wrong when Ahab prophets spoke so nicely, with nothing to touch the conscience — nothing to arouse Ahab about his sins. The crowd is usually wrong in moral and spiritual matters, for the wide gate leads to hell while the narrow path, where few enter, leads to life. Let us watch again the tendency to follow the crowd and to be conformed to the world. (Romans 12:22And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. (Romans 12:2).)
ML 08/12/1956