Scripture: 2 Chronicles 34.  

OBSERVATION
(What is God saying here?)

2 Chronicles 34:1-5 (NLT)

1 Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem thirty-one years. 2 He did what was pleasing in the Lord’s sight and followed the example of his ancestor David. He did not turn away from doing what was right.

3 During the eighth year of his reign, while he was still young, Josiah began to seek the God of his ancestor David. Then in the twelfth year he began to purify Judah and Jerusalem, destroying all the pagan shrines, the Asherah poles, and the carved idols and cast images. 4 He ordered that the altars of Baal be demolished and that the incense altars which stood above them be broken down. He also made sure that the Asherah poles, the carved idols, and the cast images were smashed and scattered over the graves of those who had sacrificed to them. 5 He burned the bones of the pagan priests on their own altars, and so he purified Judah and Jerusalem.

APPLICATION
(How Can I apply what God is saying here to my circumstances today?)

I have read so much about how various kings came to power, one not following the will of God, but the next one being pleasing in God’s sight. I found it very interesting in these verses how young King Josiah was destined in his heart to do what was pleasing in God’s sight, and he found it necessary to ‘purify the cities‘. It seems like our world has become so evil anymore that something would have to happen to see some surrender their hearts to God. I believe that Josiah got it right, for I believe that if we expect to impact this world for Christ, we must purify ourselves, then purify our churches, our city, our state and our country. My interpretation of this is that we need to rid ourselves of anything that gets in the way or distracts our worship of God and/or service to God. In each of our lives this will be different as to the idols, images, shrines, or Asherah poles that stand in the way of us being pure before our holy and just God. I believe that as we pray to Him and ask for Him to direct us, He will show us those things that have gotten in the way. I believe that deep down inside we know those things that have wrongly taken priority over our efforts to serve God with all that we have and all that we are and with all that we should be for Him. Sometimes our hearts become so hardened, and our eyes so fixed on the wrongs that others are doing that we find it difficult to concentrate on our own weaknesses. We know what to do to draw close to God, I believe that it is time for us to tear down the obstacles, seek God’s face, totally surrender ourselves to Him and allow Him to purify us so that we may be of service to Him and have a bigger impact on those that we come into contact with.

PRAYER
(With God’s help, what am I going to do differently today because He said it?)

Father, I’m sure that You must look at us and shake Your head in despair at how stubborn we are, how selfish we are, how self-righteous we are and how easy it is for us to see the fault in others, in spite of the ‘board’ in our own eyes and lives. Please forgive me for not seeking Your face more to purify my own life so that I could be closer aligned to Your will, Your character and Your desire for my life. I am reminded of a song, “I want to be just like you”, and even though the song refers to a son wanting to be more like his dad, I want to be more like You each and every day, and to do this there is much cleansing that must go on in my life. Please give me a daily desire to be “Just like You” in all that I do and say and in the way that I act in the presence of others.

 

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