Did you ever put a large puzzle together and after hours of work find that a piece was missing? There is something that gnaws at you — deep dissatisfaction at the task not completed. The crowds pack Bible camps, great revival meetings, youth conferences and tent meetings. They are excited by highly motivational speakers, and they want to come forward and dedicate themselves to serve God… sadly the emotion wears off and the dedication isn’t clear months later. Could the problem be there is a missing piece to the puzzle?
Key Principle: We need to develop more than tender hearts and servant spirits in our disciples. Without a real and enduring knowledge of the Word, God’s perspective cannot be truly known no matter how GOOD the disciples are. Though moral, no true godliness exists apart from the Word.
Josiah took the throne at age 8, on the back of the scandal of his father’s murder and a purging that followed. He was installed the second youngest in the nation’s history. He was to occupy the throne some thirty-one years. His mother was named “Yedidah” (beloved) of the family of Ada-yah (Yahweh’s adornment) of Bozqat (swollen ground). (22:1).
He did right (made his way straight ‘yawshar’) as David, and the short list of good Judean kings (Asa in 1 Kings 15, Jehosophat in 1 Kings 22 and Hezekiah in 2 Kings 18). Interesting choice of words – to do right is to “go straight”. We often feel like the wrong way is the shortest way, and the right way is the LONG way – not true! To vary from the right way was to go off to the right or left, a diversion that would be less efficient and less productive in the end. (22:2).
In 2 Chronicles 34 the opening is identical, but more detail is inserted in 34:4: “For in the eighth year of his reign while he was still a youth, he began to seek the God of his father David; and in the twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem of the high places, the Asherim, the carved images and the molten images.” a few verses later it adds these words in 34:8: “Now in the eighteenth year of his reign, when he had purged the land and the house, he sent Shaphan the son of Azaliah, and Maaseiah an official of the city, and Joah the son of Joahaz the recorder, to repair the house of the LORD his God.” As we read 2 Kings 22:3-7, here is the sequence then:
- Beginning at age 8 he was WALKING a straight road (holek yawshar) before the Lord (2 Kings 22:2). He behaved as a believer.
- At age 16 he began SEEKING his God (darash Elohim – to tread frequently before and 2 Chron. 34:3) based on the stories shared with him of the past kings, and their exploits. He learned to pray and worship.
- At age 20 he began PURGING his people(2 Chron. 34:3 “tawhare Yehudah – cleansed the place) of high places, Asherim and images. He learned to seek purity and block the world’s corrupting influences.
- At age 26 he began RESTORING the Temple (2 Kings 22:3-7) of Jerusalem using the historic formula of Joash (2 Kings 12:1-16). He led those around him back to a priority of worship.
Step away from the passage in 2 Kings 22 and the retelling of the story in 2 Chronicles 34. A few years after Josiah’s son took his throne the prophet Jeremiah added yet another view of this good king in Jeremiah 22:15-16: “..Did not your father eat and drink And do justice and righteousness? Then it was well with him. “He pled the cause (din hadoon – judged on behalf of the causes of action) of the afflicted (awnee – depressed) and needy (ebyone – destitute); Then it was well. Is not that what it means to know Me?” Declares the LORD.
With those words we can add to the resume of this young king. During Josiah’s days he championed the “have nots” of the world. He was idealistic enough to look beyond class and caring enough to exert influence beyond what personally affected him. He was CHAMPIONING the poor (Jer. 22:15-16)! He acted on behalf of those who could not help themselves.
In all these areas Josiah seems motivated by purity and excellence. This is the best kid in the youth group. This is the star pupil in the Christian school. This is the young person that has dedicated his life to the Lord and God’s priorities. If there is a mission trip, he wants to be a part of it. If it is time to sing in the nursing home, he is on board and leading. If there is a need at the soup kitchen – he’s your guy. All in all a great resume. The puzzle is coming together incredibly! Yet, there is a piece missing. What could it be? Obedient? Check. Prayerful? Check. Worshipful? Check. Pure in walk? Check. Good priorities? Check. What a catch. Any dad or mom would want their girl to land this one… but something isn’t there.
Josiah was a six string guitar with one string missing.God in His mercy offered this young man the gift of the sixth string. Without it, nothing would quite sound right, no matter how well he played.
Turn back your attention to 2 Kings 22:8-20 for “the rest of the story”:
8 Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the secretary, “I have found the Book of the Law in the temple of the Lord.” He gave it to Shaphan, who read it. 9 Then Shaphan the secretary went to the king and reported to him: “Your officials have paid out the money that was in the temple of the Lord and have entrusted it to the workers and supervisors at the temple.” 10 Then Shaphan the secretary informed the king, “Hilkiah the priest has given me a book.” And Shaphan read from it in the presence of the king. 11 When the king heard the words of the Book of the Law, he tore his robes. 12He gave these orders to Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam son of Shaphan, Acbor son of Micaiah, Shaphan the secretary and Asaiah the king’s attendant: 13“Go and inquire of the Lord for me and for the people and for all Judah about what is written in this book that has been found. Great is the Lord’s anger that burns against us because our fathers have not obeyed the words of this book; they have not acted in accordance with all that is written there concerning us.”
14 Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam, Acbor, Shaphan and Asaiah went to speak to the prophetess Huldah, who was the wife of Shallum son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe. She lived in Jerusalem, in the Second District. 15 She said to them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Tell the man who sent you to me, 16 ‘This is what the Lord says: I am going to bring disaster on this place and its people, according to everything written in the book the king of Judah has read. 17 Because they have forsaken me and burned incense to other gods and provoked me to anger by all the idols their hands have made,a my anger will burn against this place and will not be quenched.’
18 Tell the king of Judah, who sent you to inquire of the Lord, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says concerning the words you heard: 19 Because your heart was responsive and you humbled yourself before the Lord when you heard what I have spoken against this place and its people, that they would become accursed and laid waste, and because you tore your robes and wept in my presence, I have heard you, declares the Lord. 20 Therefore I will gather you to your fathers, and you will be buried in peace. Your eyes will not see all the disaster I am going to bring on this place.’” So they took her answer back to the king. (NASB)
People without a Biblical world view can accomplish great things in this world and be committed, servant-hearted, helpful and pleasant. Yet sadly, that is the GOAL of many a Christian program. today Frankly, most Christian parents would admit that is all the higher they set the bar as a goal for their child. Years after being involved in church many have yet to even venture into whole parts of the Word of God. Nursing homes are filled with people that were one day going to really study and learn God’s Word.
Yet, I submit it is totally inadequate in think that discipleship can be merely about shaping behavior. It must be as much about WORLD VIEW as servant nature. Without a real encounter with the Word of God, commitment is to the emotional event, the people involved and the tradition of the group. What’s wrong with that? Well, look at the verses and see what Josiah was missing:
- He was missing a sense of the broader view of the history of his people – with the ability to comprehend some of the difficulty that was befalling the people in spite of their right actions. He lacked a Biblical CONTEXT for the judgment of God on His people (22:9-13).
- He was missing the specifics of how to steer those he was responsible away from dangerous currents among them based on the responses of those who had gone before. He lacked the ability to effectively FOREWARN his generation. (22:14-17).
- He was missing the opportunity to FORESTALL the judgment of God on the nation by specific repentance, pointed intercessory prayer and purposed pleading in worship. (22:18-20). God did not delight in harming the people, but by now in the study of the books of Kings we must conclude the people are not going to change for the better if the pressure is removed by God. They will become absolutely indistinguishable from the world, and that is not God’s purpose for His people.
These days in ministry there is a sharp rise in social projects to help us work toward reaching people with the Gospel. I applaud anything that will help us reach into the lives of broken people. At the same time, I am concerned that we may forget that even godless people can hand out food to the poor. Baby Christians can offer the Gospel, but they cannot make disciples that make disciples. If we teach them to serve and train them to share, but do not deliberately work hard to make sure they have a comprehensive view of the Word of God, we may cripple the next generation even while we feed them and clothe them effectively, and offer the Good News to many of them. The end is to make disciples – and that requires a commitment to One that they know intimately.
In 1963, President Kennedy stood in a divided Berlin before a wall and declared in his spirit he was a Berliner. Twenty years later President Reagan pleaded: “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” That wall divided families. That wall appeared to offer security, but it was nothing short of an imprisoning device. The wall kept people from the fullness of their lives. Today, in Christian circles we are building a wall. We are allowing ourselves to be deluded into thinking it is enough to simply love God and desire to follow Him. It is NOT. Without knowing His Word (and most of us would confess that we know our favorite songs and can recite them, but are wholly unfamiliar with much of the Bible!) we imperil our nation, and stunt the generations to come in the faith.
Back in 1980, there was a guy, whom I will call Mountain Jack, who had been living on Mt. St. Helens for almost all his life. Mountain Jack was true mountain man in every since of the word. Then one day a geologist came and explained to him that he was living in danger. They told him that according to their records, Mt. St. Helena was an active volcano and that it could erupt at any moment and destroy everything for miles. Mountain Jack explained to the geologist, “I have been on the mountain for years, and no little rumbling in the ground is about to scare me off. I have heard rumblings long time before and nothing happened. I appreciate your concern, but I will be staying put.” On May 18th, 1980, Mt. St. Helens, exploded with such a force that it blacked out the sun for many cities in the west. Mountain Jack was never seen or heard from again. Have you ever been in a situation in your own life, where you didn’t make a change when you should have, and it has cost you dearly? (sermon central illustrations).
We need to develop more than tender hearts and servant spirits in our disciples. Without a real and enduring knowledge of the Word, God’s perspective cannot be truly known no matter how GOOD the disciples are. Though moral, no true godliness exists apart from the Word!
At the Gold City Gem Mine in Franklin, North Carolina customers pay a small fee for a “bucket of dirt” out of the mine, the dirt contains rocks, usually worthless, the joy of treasure hunting and occasionally a real gemstone out of the mine. In July of 1995, a third-grader name Griffin McCurry, paid for just such a bucket of dirt. As you might expect it didn’t look as if there was any hidden treasure, but there was a rock in it that the boy kept just because he liked the shape. People magazine reported that it was a saleswoman from the Jewelry store at the mine who noticed the rock and gave it a closer inspection. As it turned out the 1104 carat sapphire had a value of approximately $45,000!! (From Pastor Guy Caley, Sermon Central)
