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In Christ, Mark
In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
“Did not your father have food and
drink? He did what was right and just, so all went well with him. He defended
the cause of the poor and needy, and so all went well. Is that not what it
means to know me?” declares the Lord.
Jeremiah 22:15b-16
This ends today’s reading from God's holy
word. Thanks be to God.
In
yesterday’s devotion, God’s word showed us that there is a deep cost for unrighteousness,
highlighting the evil committed by Jehoahaz, a king of Judah also known as
Shallum. At the heart of the indictment against Shallum was his inclination
toward wickedness and evil, sowing unrighteousness and injustice during his
reign by making his people work without paying them a wage. These sinful
actions, done in plain sight of God Himself, resulted in the death penalty for
the king as he was hauled away into captivity in Egypt where he perished, never
again returning to Judah as God had promised.
So we
know what God doesn’t favor in a king. Let’s look at someone who won His favor
and what he did to get himself there. Look again at today’s passage as we
continue our study of Jeremiah 22:
“Did not your father have food and drink? He did what was right and
just, so all went well with him. He defended the cause of the poor and needy, and
so all went well. Is that not what it means to know me?” declares the Lord. Jeremiah
22:15b-16
Note here
that the Lord is talking about Josiah, the father of Shallum/Jehoahaz and Jehoiakim
who is also mentioned in this chapter. Obviously, Josiah preceded his sons and
had done what was needed to show them the right way to rule. The scriptures
have this to say about him:
Josiah was eight years old when he became
king, and he reigned in Jerusalem thirty-one years. His mother’s name was
Jedidah, daughter of Adaiah; she was from Bozkath. He did what was right in the
eyes of the Lord and followed completely the ways of his father David, not
turning aside to the right or to the left. 2 Kings 22:1-2
Could you
ever picture yourself reigning as a king at age eight?
Maybe in
your imagination but this wasn’t fantasy. Josiah was really crowned King of
Judah and he ruled for thirty-one years, a long time by the standards established
for kingdom leading in those days. As we saw yesterday to contrast this,
Jehoahaz/Shallum only reigned as king for three months before God was fed up
and sent His judgment on him.
So what
set Josiah apart and placed him in such good standing with God?
Go back
to our passage for today and you will find that he lived, led, and served in a
way that showed he knew God and that led to all going well with him. In other
words, God blesses those who show that they know him by the way they carry
themselves within the time He grants them.
Josiah
did what was right and just because he knew and trusted in a God who was
perfect in His righteousness and administering of justice. He respected and
understood the importance of obedience to God and the adherence to His word.
Perhaps this
was no more evident than when the word of God was found while laborers were
doing work in the temple of the Lord. News of the discovery came to the king through
his secretary, Shaphan, who read the word aloud for the king to here. As he
heard the reading, the scriptures tell us that Josiah tore his robe because he
realized that he and his people had sinned in not fulfilling God’s will and
thus would be subject to His judgment, something confirmed by the prophetess
Huldah.
But
Josiah wasn’t about to just sit around and wallow in his self pity. There was
work to be done and so he summoned all his people and had the word of God read
to them before having everyone renew their commitment and covenant with God.
Through
his actions, Josiah showed us that reconciliation with God first comes through
repentance and then recommitment. He knew God hated sin and would punish those
who committed it but he also knew God was a God of grace and mercy and
forgiveness, all things that God showed Josiah when He promised to save Josiah
the hardship of destruction and exile coming to Judah by ensuring his death
would come first.
Friends,
the word of God is speaking powerfully to us today and telling us that we only
show others that we know God when we are living in righteousness and exercise
justice in the way we deal with others. It served Josiah well in God’s sight
and rest assured it will serve you well too.
Amen.
In
Christ,
Mark
PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
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