I was just listening to Paul talk about all the godly kings in Judah’s history who received a good testimony for loving God and following His ways but who almost always fell just one step short of total revival.
As he was sharing, the penny dropped as to what has been really been going on in my life and stirring my heart of late!
The Lord wants us to be close to Him.. to worship Him alone and only Him.. He wants us to make Him the centre of everything! Why? Because we have created to have Him and only Him as our one and only focus of worship.. Everything else must come second..
Jeronimo!!
It’s interesting how most of the godly kings received the following sort of testimony from God “And Jehoshophat walked in all the ways of his father Asa. He did not turn aside from them, doing that which was right in the eyes of the LORD. Nevertheless the high places were not taken away, for the people offered sacrifices and burnt incense on the high places”. 1Kings 22:43
I am no bible scholar but to me, the high places where people sacrificed to idols in the old testament represents the places in our heart where we have affection and devotion for things (even good things such as family, careers, churches etc) close to, or even exceeding, our devotion to God.
As far as I know, there was only one king who went all the way and had the courage and conviction to tear down the high places. I want a testimony like king Hezekiah:- “And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that David his father did. He removed the high places, and broke the images, and cut down the sacred pillars, and broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made; for until those days the children of Israel burned incense to it and called it Nehushtan. He trusted in the LORD God of Israel, so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor who were before him. For he held fast to the LORD, and did not depart from following Him, but kept His commandments, which the LORD had commanded Moses. And the LORD was with him; and he prospered wherever he went”. 2 Kings 18:3-6
This is very challenging. No, this is impossible. We can’t pull down the high places or strongholds in our life in our own strength or determination. It is only by the Spirit that we die to self.
<3 J msf
“...present your bodies as living sacrifices . . . to God” (Rom 12:1).
