Readings: 2 Kings
22:1-20, 2 Kings 25:1-12, Lamentations 1:1-12, Ezekiel 37:1-14
Preached
at Mount Hebron Presbyterian Church, MD, June 19th, 2016
Today I want to talk about “Survival
Strategies in the midst of Calamities” This year as a church we
have been exploring a book called “The Story”, a chronological
Readers Digest version of the 66 books of the Bible. Over the next 5
weeks we hope to complete the Old Testament section.
We have reached chapter 17, titled “The
Kingdom's Fall.” In terms of Hebrew history this is a moment of
great catastrophe. The Northern tribes of Israel have already been
conquered and assimilated into Assyria. The Southern tribe, Judah,
are about to experience defeat and be sent into exile in Babylon.
Around them are mighty empires. The scattered Hebrew tribes cannot
match their stealth.
They have lost their spiritual center.
They have fallen into the kind of unfaithfulness and idolatry they
once despised. At the start of chapter 17 we are introduced to one of
Judah's worst ever kings, Manasseh. Among things Manasseh is
remembered for is desecrating the temple, sacrificing his sons to
pagan gods in the fire and shedding so much innocent blood that it
ran through the streets of Jerusalem. Scriptures testimony is that
“Manasseh led the people astray. He did more evil than the
nations the Lord had destroyed before the Israelites.” (2 Kings
21:9)
It's time for a reboot. It's time for
the nation to be taught a lesson they would never forget. God hadn't
given up on them. But it was going to take drastic means to set them
back on the right path. The chilling word that comes to them during
Manasseh's reign is found in 2 Kings 21:13-14
“I will wipe out Jerusalem as one wipes a dish,
wiping it and turning it upside down. I will forsake the remnant of
my inheritance and give them into the hands of enemies.”
So that's the setting. Collapse.
Everything that could go wrong is going wrong. Terrible times and
disastrous days. Maybe today we know people who are experiencing
difficult days or we are personally facing unexpected trials. Maybe
we feel the church has lost it's way, or the nation, or even the
whole world.
So... I return to the theme for today,
and it doesn't matter if you have read the chapter or not, it's a
topic we can all relate to; “Survival Strategies in the midst of
Calamities.” In the story of the Kingdoms fall, three characters
stand tall. There are three individuals who have the capacity to stay
on track when everybody else is derailed. And they each have a lesson
to teach us.
- A young faithful King, called Josiah, points us to the importance of Scripture.
- A prophet called Jeremiah recalls us to the discipline of totally transparent prayer.
- The prophet Ezekiel teaches us never to underestimate the power of God's revival Spirit.
Josiah was only 8 years
old when the mantle of King fell upon him. The verdict over his reign
is found in 2 Kings 22:2 “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.”
The particular thing that happened
during the reign of Josiah is that the “Book of the Law” is
rediscovered. When he is eighteen years old Josiah sets about
restoring the temple which had fallen into disrepair. As the workmen
get busy they discover some discarded scrolls which they take to the
priest. The priest knows what they are. God's Word. So the priest
takes them to the Kings secretary, who takes them to Josiah.
“So” asks Josiah “What's it all
about?” As the scrolls are read folk become involved. The prophecy
is given that the nation will fall. Josiah is devastated. He calls
the people together to fast and pray and seek God's mercy. His
faithfulness is rewarded.
He receives the message “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--and because you tore your robes and wept in my presence, I
also have heard you, declares the LORD. Therefore I will gather you
to your ancestors, and you will be buried in peace. Your eyes will
not see all the disaster I am going to bring on this place.'"
(2 Kings 22:19-20)
Josiah discovered that when you take
the words of Scripture with the seriousness that they deserve,
everything changes. For many people today the 66 books that make up
the Bible are a closed book. Unread. Unstudied. Unacted upon. The
Bible has been described as “The least read best seller in all of
history.” That's why we are doing this “Story” program.
Biblical illiteracy is at epidemic proportions. Even among church
going folk.
In the face of biblical neglect we can
do two things. We can be like everybody else and just say, “Oh, its
just a sign of the times.” Or we can be a Josiah. We can get hold
of that book, dust off the covers, and start trying to live into the
ways of the Kingdom that Jesus pictures for us.
To do that we have to have the faith
that the Bible is indeed God's word for today. I get it. Many people
question that. Many people don't accept that. Many people say, “Oh,
it's so hard to understand.” But if you allow the words of
Scripture to become God's Word to your heart, you will be blessed.
I'm not talking about study for studies
sake. I'm not talking about bible reading as an intellectual
discipline. I'm talking about reading scripture prayerfully, in
conversation with and in the presence of God, seeking the
illumination of God's Holy Spirit.
If you feel like you are the only
person in your household, in your family, in your street, in your
community, or even in your church who's doing that, then take courage
from Josiah. He was the only one who treated God's word right and
through him, his faith community, his geographic community, his
family and his household were blessed.
After Josiah died another unfaithful
King took his place. So for sure, Josiah's dedication only lasted a
season. But it was a good season. A time of peace and growth and
blessing. Even in the midst of unfaithfulness, those who seek God can
find blessing. Which brings us to our next character. Jeremiah.
Jeremiah was a bullfrog.
At last he was in a song by Three Dog Night, but that's not he
Jeremiah of Scripture. If Josiah speaks to us about the discipline of
Scripture reading, then Jeremiah's life points us to the value of
transparent prayer.
What do I mean by transparent prayer?
Jeremiah told it as he saw it. He didn't flinch from asking God the
hard questions, nor from proclaiming to the people uncomfortable
truths that they did not want to hear.
Jeremiah's call begins with a godly
conversation. God tells him, "Before I formed you in the womb
I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as
a prophet to the nations." (Jeremiah 1:5) Jeremiah's first
reaction is to say, “I'm way too young to serve you and anyway... I
never got the memo.”
The he tells us, “But the Lord said
to me, “Do not say, “I am too young'. You must go to everyone
I send you and say whatever I command you.” We read,
Jeremiah 1: 9, “Then the Lord reached out His hand and touched
my mouth and said to me, "I have put My words in your mouth.”
Despite his youthfulness, despite his
concern that he really didn't have anything to say, Jeremiah finds
comfort in these statements. First of all, his age was irrelevant,
God was sending him, so he had to go. Secondly, he didn't have to
conjure up some inspirational message out of nowhere, the Word he had
to proclaim was God's Word!
It's no different for us. Firstly, it
does not matter how old or young we are, we are somebody called to
share God's love with others. Secondly, the message we share is not
one we have to manufacture for ourselves but the message of God's
love we find in the Scripture.
Jeremiah has to say some difficult
things, but behind every proclamation is the idea that God will have
mercy on God's people if only they will come to their senses, stop
trying to get along without God's help, stop filling their lives with
empty junk and idols and worthless pursuits and get with the program
God wants for their lives. The only thing they have to lose, is God's
blessing. Because if they kept living in ways that pushed God out of
their lives, that was not the place blessing was found! He tells it
like it is.
But did people listen? Of course not!
They went their own way. They ended up being defeated and carted off
to exile in Babylon. So that was it, right? Game over. Never say
never when it comes to God! Because our third figure is the weird and
wonderful, Ezekiel.
Ezekiel's call is like something out of
a Sci-Fi movie. Ezekiel 1:4-6 “I looked, and I saw a windstorm
coming out of the north--an immense cloud with flashing lightning and
surrounded by brilliant light. The center of the fire looked like
glowing metal, and in the fire was what looked like four living
creatures. In appearance their form was human, but each of them had four faces and
four wings.” And it just gets weirder! And I'm not going to
spend time right now exploring all of that, you can read it for
yourself.
What I am going to offer you is this.
Never, ever underestimate the power of God's revival Spirit. Despite
the example of Josiah, who called people to get back to God's word,
despite Jeremiahs call for people to get on their knees and pray,
they still went their own way and it looked like the nation would
never recover.
Then along comes Ezekiel with his
vision of skeletons, his vision of dry bones, that, by the mighty
Spirit of God, come back to life. Ezekiel 37:4-5 "Prophesy to
these bones and say to them, 'Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD!
This is what the Sovereign LORD says to these bones: I will make
breath enter you, and you will come to life.”
The church in our day is going through
a time of transformation. You may see dry bones. But I hear God's
call. I believe that it's not about what we can do, it's about what
God can do. Sometimes things get worse, before they can get better.
In God's time, dry bones take flesh and live. That is the work of
God's revival Spirit. Never underestimate what God can do.
So today I offer you three faithful
characters who offer to us “Survival Strategies in the midst of
Calamities.”
- A young faithful King, called Josiah, points us to the importance of Scripture.
- A prophet called Jeremiah recalls us to the discipline of totally transparent prayer.
- The prophet Ezekiel teaches us never to underestimate the power of God's revival Spirit.
To God be the glory for
all God's faithful servants. Amen and Amen!
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