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Losing the Correct Perspective - Allowing Ourselves to Get in the Way
Of – Cover-Up What Is Essential
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My Lessons, Applications, Contemplations From Today's Readings
The King Who Turned
to the LORD – 2 Kings 22, 23, 24) – Josiah, the grandson of Hezekiah, “turns to the LORD with all his heart, with all
his soul, and with all his might,
according to all the law of Moses,
and there was no king after to rise like him.” Yet…and this is eye-opening and revelatory of
God’s character…in spite of bringing down, destroying, crushing, carrying out
of the territory ALL altars to false gods, executing the false priests, reading
the newly discovered book of the Law to all the people, covenanting with God to
obey it personally and collectively as a nation, teaching all the people and
leaders, obeying it himself and honoring God to his dying day at the hands of
enemies…still, God refused to relent in his destruction of Judah for all the
idolatry, child sacrifice and desecration of the temple done under Manasseh’s
rule, for all the innocent blood that was shed.
(Note well these sins of Manasseh and Judah and our own personal sins
and our nation’s sins now.) Isaiah’s prophecy of punishment to Hezekiah for
grandstanding his wealth before the Babylonians (see ourselves?), who would
later come and carry it and the people off as their own bounty, is fulfilled –
in just 100 years. Note the severity of the
people’s sin: the chosen people and
nation of God had so deeply disavowed God that the book of the Law had been
buried and unread through the reigns of many successive kings.
My Lessons and
Applications – I submit this is where we are today – a remnant of believers
who still believe in, read, and obey the Word of God, but…I am amazed how many
ministers take the pulpit to preach pablum and erroneous doctrine to a dying, spiritually-starved people – who want only to speak of the love of God, not the anger and
judgment of a holy God, to even go so far as to say God does not get angry with
us, will not punish us. I can only
conclude that these ministers do not read the entirety of God’s Word but only
selected passages that fit with their preferred way of thinking. It follows, of course, that most “professing”
Christians hold sway to this same thought of God. These ministers want to deny the power of a
holy God to still work miracles or bring destruction, independent of man’s help. Those who stand against this “easy-believism”
will often stand alone, as most fear dishonoring a man more than they fear
dishonoring God. It is interesting that the good and faithful
Josiah would die at the hands of enemy kings.
Jesus was crucified, the apostles martyred - except for John who was
exiled, and most of the prophets were killed as well. It is also noteworthy that Josiah knew that
he would not be thwarting God’s planned destruction of the people, yet he still
committed to complete obedience, to honoring God.
Peter Pronounces God’s Judgment on the People (Acts 2:22-47) Though
God foreordained, purposed, determined the mission of Christ on the cross, the
people are still judged “for crucifying Jesus, whom He made both Lord and
Christ. When the people heard this, they
were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Men and
brethren, what shall we do.”’ Peter’s
reply: “Repent…be baptized in the name
of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins…and you shall receive the gift of the
Holy Spirit…Be saved from this perverse generation.” And those who received his word: “were baptized…continued steadfastly in the
apostles’ doctrine…in fellowship…in the breaking of bread…in prayers. They were
with…one accord… had all things in common…and the Lord added to the church
daily those who were being saved.”
My Lessons and Applications – Again, God is a God of
love, of mercy, of grace, of goodness. But
He is also a holy God who cannot and will not tolerate sin. He is also, therefore, a God of
judgment. He sent His only beloved son,
Jesus, to pay the price for our sins on the cross and to open the way for us to
eternal life with God through His resurrection.
His love did this, but also His holiness; His judgment made this
necessary. Our part is to believe…to
turn to our Father with repentant hearts and grateful souls for this indescribable
gift of sacrificial love, that saves as many as believe from eternal separation
from God. We greatly diminish,
dishonor, and blaspheme the character of God and the work of Jesus Christ when
we speak only of God’s attribute of love.
“The center
of salvation is the Cross of Jesus, and the reason it is so easy to obtain
salvation is because it cost God so much. The Cross is the point where God and
sinful man merge with a crash and the way to life is opened – but the crash is
on the heart of God.”
Oswald
Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest
"Liberal
thinking about God's love also permeates much of evangelicalism today. We have
lost the reality of God's wrath. We have disregarded His hatred for sin. The
God most evangelicals now describe is all-loving and not at all angry. We have
forgotten that "It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the
living God" (Hebrews 10:31).
We do not believe in that kind of God anymore."
John
MacAruthur, Does
God So Love the World?
“Remember this, that the enemy
has reproached, O LORD, and that a foolish people has blasphemed Your name, Oh,
do not deliver the life of Your turtledove to the wild beast!…Arise, O God, plead
Your own cause. Remember how the foolish
man reproaches You daily. Do not forget the voice of Your enemies; the tumult
of those who rise against You increases daily.”
“Many Bible prayers are based on genuine
concern for God’s reputation and glory.
When we plead for God to act in order to defend His name, we pray on
very high ground.”
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