THE SPIRIT OF ATHALIAH

II Kings 11:1-12

BEMA Banquet

December 11, 1998

As a foundation for our message this morning, we need to know that God had promised David in II Samuel 7 that the Messiah would come through the lineage of David.

In fact, PSALM 132:11 "The LORD hath sworn in truth unto David; he will not turn from it; of the fruit of thy body will I set upon thy throne.”

From before the foundation of the world, God had promised the Messiah would come through the lineage of David.

Revelation 13 tells us of Jesus, the lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

Genesis 3:15 is the first promise of the Messiah and from this foundation, we can begin our message.

Satan had done all he could to stop the lineage of David.  Satan knows the Word of God and he knew that the Messiah would come through the seed of David.

And that brings us to II KINGS 11:1-12.

Athaliah was in mourning because her son, the king had died.  And now, one of the grandchildren should by all rights ascend to the throne.

Athaliah's husband had been a king, her son had been the king, and now one of her grandchildren, through the divine plan of God, should take the throne.

But Satan coiled up in the mind of Athaliah and struck her brain and convinced Athaliah to take the throne.

But the only way that Athaliah could take the throne was to eliminate her grandchildren. 

All the heirs to the throne had to be killed.  So Athaliah set out to commit this horrible and heinous crime of killing her own grandchildren.

You say, who is this Athaliah?  Have you ever heard of Jezebel?

Athaliah was Jezebel's daughter and some of you here this morning don't believe in you will reap what you sow.

And as we look at this story and as it unfolds, I see something more hideous and reprehensible than the awful act of a grandmother murdering her grandchildren.

We must remember that if she had succeeded, if she had been able to kill all her grandchildren, that the lineage of David would have stopped right there.

If she had succeeded in murdering all her grandchildren, then all the prophecies of the Bible would have ceased right at that point.

We must remember that Satan was working behind the scenes.  He always has the big picture in mind.  Satan was thinking of the future when he had Athaliah plot to kill her grandchildren.

He always has the big picture in mind.

He doesn't seek to destroy one person - he wants to destroy an entire family.

He doesn't want to ruin one family - he wants to ruin an entire church.

He doesn't just want to destroy one church - he wants to destroy the cause of Christ.

Satan deceived this grandmother into killing all her grandchildren - a horrible, heinous, reprehensible, abominable, atrocious, monstrous, evil, and vicious act.

And yet we think today that we can play with sin, that we can flirt with the dangers of sin, live on the edge of sin, and yet we still think that Satan can't deceive us.

LISTEN, THE JOKE'S ON YOU!

In V. 1, Athaliah set out to do her venomous deed.  And she thought she had succeeded.  In fact, the whole country thought she had succeeded.

"....she arose and destroyed all the seed royal."

But what really happened was that slipping through all that murder, all that vile and despicable activity, was a little maiden named Jehosheba.

And Jehosheba was running toward the temple with the only surviving grandchild, the only surviving heir to the throne of David.

Cradled in the arms of Jehosheba was a little boy named Joash. Queen Athaliah didn't know it, she thought she had succeeded, and yet, in the arms of Jehosheba, lay the cause of Almighty God.

VERSE 3 tells us that Jehosheba took the young boy to the house of the Lord and there she hid him some six years.

During that six years of Athaliah's reign was chaos throughout the land, the people of God were in mourning, because of the wickedness.

PROVERBS 29:2 says,

“When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn.”

For six years the people of God did not rejoice.

For six years the people of God could not sing any praise to God in the temple.

For six years, everyone was miserable.

NOTICE VERSE 4 - "AND THE SEVENTH YEAR....."

Seven is a special number.  Seven is the number of completion.  In this seventh year, something is about to be completed.

In that 7th year, Jehoida sent for the leaders of the land and calls them together in the house of God.  He gets the leaders together and makes them swear an oath of secrecy.

He said something like this,

"Fellows, I've got something to show you that you aren't going to believe"

VERSE 4 says "He...shewed them the king's son."

Wouldn't you like to have been there that day?

Wouldn't you like to have been there to witness the reaction of those leaders?

Wouldn't you like to have been there to see the faces of those leaders when they saw the king's son?

WOULDN'T IT HAVE BEEN GREAT TO BE THERE TO SEE THE KING'S SON?

I want to tell you this morning that I have never seen the King's son except through the eyes of faith. 

And I want you to know that Oral Roberts has never seen the King's son and I will not venture into the prospect that he has seen the King's son through the eyes of faith.

I remember the day when I accepted Christ as my personal Saviour. I remember walking down that aisle and seeing my Sunday School teacher taking the Word of God and showing me how to be saved.

I remember looking up and seeing my mother with tears in her eyes and hugging my neck as I had accepted Christ as my personal Saviour.

We should never lose the joy of our salvation.

I don't have much patience with that crowd of jokers that does around saying that there is a greater experience that the first time I saw the King's son.

I don't have much patience with that crowd of clowns that says if you've only seen Him, that's not enough.

LISTEN, if you ever get over the thrill of Calvary, if you ever get over the joy of Jesus saving your soul, my friend, you've gone too far.

So if I go back and place myself in this setting of II KINGS 11 ­I can only imagine how those men felt when they saw the King's son.

I can hear them now:

Ole Athaliah isn't going to be in power much longer!

Wickedness isn't going to be the rule of the land much longer!

The real King is coming before long!

Athaliah, you better enjoy your reign now because it won't be much longer.

Athaliah, Joash is coming!

NOTICE VERSE 12....

They crowned him King and said, God save the King.

And then we notice in VERSE 13-16 that Athaliah's kingdom came to an end.

But the real beauty of this story is that Athaliah did not succeed - the plan of Satan did not succeed in stopping the lineage of David.  The prophecies continue......

Turn with me to ISAIAH 9:6-7, and we have the glorious prophecies of the Word of God.

When I read these prophecies, when I think of Isaiah as he was writing what God told him to write, I believe that the spirit of Athaliah was there.

I can imagine back in Isaiah 7:14, when God told Isaiah to write, "Behold, a virgin shall conceive" that the spirit of Athaliah was there.

I can see old Isaiah there, sitting down writing, and he stops, takes off his glasses, rubs his eyes, and says,

"LORD, it's been a long day, I've been busy all day at the hospital visiting sick folks, and LORD, I've been busy all day getting ready for our big services, and LORD, I'm tired and for just a minute there I thought you said 'virgin.'"

And right before he changed it to read a young girl shall conceive, the Spirit of God STOPPED his hand.

And the Spirit of God said, "Isaiah, I said a virgin shall conceive," and you write what I said.

And the spirit of Athaliah was once again defeated.

LISTEN, I don't any patience with people who want to change this great King James Version. 

There are many supposed "Baptist" who don't like the word "virgin" and want it changed to a young girl, and I don't have any patience with those folks.

I believe that the spirit of Athaliah is in many of our so-called translations.  Satan doesn't want people to believe that Jesus was born of a virgin.

But 740 years after Isaiah wrote those verses, a young virgin maiden, much like Jehosheba, brought a man child into the temple of God.

Mary brought that little baby to the temple of God to the prophet Simeon in LUKE 2.

Now Simeon had uncovered the face of many a baby boy looking for the Messiah because God had told Simeon that he would not die until you have seen the Lord's Christ.

I'm sure that old Simeon had uncovered the face of many a man child wondering if the next child would be the Lord's Christ.

Now on this day, when Mary laid that little bundle of glory in the lap of Simeon, and he pulled back the cover, the Word of God says that Simeon shouted and said, "Mine eyes have seen the Lord's Christ."

And old Simeon cut loose and shouted!

And the spirit of Athaliah was cut down again!

Now let's look back to ISAIAH 9:6

"....unto us a son is given"

And the spirit of Athaliah once again tried to stop our Lord Jesus Christ.

Every turn in the life of Jesus, Satan tried to kill Jesus.

Satan tried to kill Jesus in the Garden of Gethesame on the 13th day of the Passover.

Had Jesus died on the 13th day, as the spirit of Athaliah wanted, this Bible would have fallen into a million pieces.

Every prophecy that we hold near and dear would have been done away with.

Jesus was to die on the 14th day, the day of Passover.  Had He died one day sooner, it would have been too early, Had He died one day later, it would have been too late.

But Jesus died on the 14th day and the Bible says, "He died according to the scriptures."

And as I read my Bible, it becomes ever more clear that the spirit of Athaliah seeks to destroy the remainder of these prophecies.

Remember, only two of those prophecies of ISAIAH 9 have been fulfilled.

ISAIAH 9:6 says, "and the government shall be on His shoulders," and that's a prophecy that hasn't been fulfilled.

In fact when Jesus was on the earth, He never commanded an army, He never wore a crown nor did He carry a scepter.  He never rode in a King's chariot.

But this is a prophecy that one day will be fulfilled - and I think I know how:

ONE DAY THE RAPTURE IS GOING TO TAKE PLACE!

I'm a preacher today who believes in the rapture of the church, I'm a premillenialist who believes in the rapture of the church. One of these days the rapture is going to take place and we are going to be caught up with the Lord in the air.

And a lost world will be left behind and for 7 years they are going to go through what the Word of God calls the Great Tribulation.

And for those 7 years the world will know tribulation like it's never known before.

And at the end of that 7 years, some 200 million soldiers are going to gather in a small valley named Megiddo just outside

Jerusalem.

And they are there for one reason, they are there to stop the Son of God, the seed of David, from getting to the throne.

They are there with the spirit of Athaliah for one final assault on Jerusalem.

But let me tell you something today, before the commander gives the final order to charge, something strange is going to happen in the eastern sky.

Jesus Christ Himself is going to ride out of Heaven on a white horse.

He must have a little Texan in Him - riding a white horse.

The Bible says that Jesus is going to come on a white horse and the only thing He's going to have is a two-edged sword, the Word of God.

And before one shot is fired, blood will run to the bridle of the horses' bits and for the first time in all recorded history, "....the government shall be upon His shoulders."

And the world is going to be angry according to REV. 11:18,

"And the nations were angry......"

But Jesus had defeated the armies of Satan and the spirit of Athaliah.

And Jesus will ride through the Eastern Gate of Jerusalem as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

I can see it now:

John says, "LORD, the news media from all over the world is here to talk to you. CNN has their big satellite and Ted Koppel wants you on Nightline.  Everyone wants to know what is going on."

The news media has seen the valley of Megiddo, they've seen the blood, they've seen the death, and they want to know what is going on.

Jesus says, "Okay, John, you set up the press conference and I'll meet them in a little while."

Can't you see there in that palace on those polished marble floors, more news people gathered than ever gathered before. Lights and cameras everywhere.

And suddenly, right on time, the doors of the palace open, and Jesus Christ walks through the doors.

Those reporters have seen kings and queens, princes and princesses, and every form of royalty before, but they've never seen God.

I believe with all my heart and soul that they'll sit before Him completely speechless.

And God the Son walks across that floor as only God can walk.  He takes His place at the podium and says, "Okay, ladies and

gentlemen, I'll take the first question."

And they will set there speechless:

Sam Donnelson - speechless

Walter Cronkite - out of retirement - speechless

Tom Brokaw - speechless

Ted Koppell - speechless

Where is the creature that can question the creator?

They'll sit before Jesus with nothing to say.

And Jesus will begin, "Well, ladies and gentlemen, since they aren't any questions, let me outline my program for the next 1000 years."

1.      There will be peace in every valley

2.      All armies, air forces, and navies will be sent home

3.      No more wars

4.      No murder

5.      No funeral homes or funeral directors

6.      No hospitals or doctors

7.      No storms, thunder, lightning, tornadoes

8.      No cold days

9.      No hot days

10.  No dictators

11.  No crippled children - NO MORE JERRY LEWIS TELETHONS

12.  The earth will yield a harvest without being tilled

13.  There will be peace throughout all the land

And Jesus will finish and says, "Thank you ladies and gentlemen. There's work to be done.  We'll talk again."

And they will still be there speechless.

And Jesus will walk out just as majestically as He walked in and when the doors close behind him, the news people will come to life.

They will rush to the phones and cameras and now all over the world, on TV and in the newspapers - THE HEADLINES READ

HIS NAME IS WONDERFUL!

And the prophecy of God's Word will be fulfilled.

One day all the world will know that Jesus in Wonderful!

And all the Athaliah's cannot keep the prophecies of this book from coming to pass.

Though men have tried to change the Word of God through the over 200 perversions.....

Though men have denied the prophecies in this great Word of God...

Though they may not believe that Jesus is coming again....

They cannot stop the Word of God!

They cannot stop Jesus from coming again!

Jesus is coming regardless of all the Athaliah's of this world.

JESUS IS COMING!

You may be discouraged this evening,

be a little downhearted,

feel like quitting,

be depressed,

Take heart - JESUS IS COMING!

A day of no more heartaches.

A day when we can gather those we love and just sit down and talk without misunderstandings.

JESUS IS COMING!

I want us to look forward to the day that Jesus comes! 

Athaliah has been defeated! 

Satan has been defeated!

JESUS IS COMING!

Are you ready?

Are you going to be with Jesus?      

LET'S PRAY....

Billy Ramsey/Trinity BC, Arlington, IBF, 9-87

FABC, 10/87, 12/91

Dayton BT, 8/88

Honey Creek BC, 8/91

Bossier BT, 11-91_