After a great victory, there is always a great danger of falling away from the Lord, either by being over joyful about the success or assuming the success was brought in by our own hands—either way, it is dangerous.

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God sends His servant at the right time to exhort the king and people of Judah and Benjamin. They were returning after a spectacular victory over the Ethiopians and the surrounding nations (2 Chron. 14:9-15). The fear of the Lord was upon all the nations and hence Judah and Benjamin won victories over them. But God sent Azariah to meet Asa and said: "Hear me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin. The LORD is with you while you are with Him. If you seek Him, He will be found by you; but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you."  God lovingly admonishes and reminds the real principle that underlines their victory. So that they will not be puffed up or put trust in their own strength. The real danger is that if they celebrate too much they might forget their duties to God and fall into various temptations. Also if they forget to see how God is leading their way then there is a great chance that they attribute the victory to their own strength and hence face defeat next time. So God is lovingly admonishing them.

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It also outlines a principle of God to His people. This principle is applicable even today. There is no change in God's principles. As we read in the book of James: Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. (James 4:8) Drawing near to God needs holiness. Unless we separate ourselves from all that defiles us we will not be able to draw near to God. Unless we draw near to God, there is no victory in our life. Really victorious people are the people who are led by the Lord. All other so called victories are for a day and then its glory vanishes. 

What does it mean by drawing near to God? It is nothing but having constant fellowship with Him. He desires fellowship, because that only will bring us into a deep love relationship with God. All others are but religion!

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We see how this fellowship can be achieved in First John.(1John 1:7  But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin). 

In today's Christian world many are walking on their own and just satisfied with some kind of religious activities. They have not touched the Lord and His Spirit. We need to touch the Lord, and then only we can be sure that we have fellowship with Him. This is a reality and need to be practiced in each of our lives.

Prayer:

Abba Father, I want to draw near to You and need to touch You to receive life in abundance; help me in this endeavor as You promised that as I for search You, You will let me find You. In Jesus name, Amen.