Of Greater and Lesser

 

Wednesday, May 25, 2022

Then he [Josiah] gave these orders to Hilkiah, Ahikam son of Shaphan, Acbor son of Micaiah, Shaphan the court secretary, and Asaiah the king’s personal adviser:  “Go to the Temple and speak to the Lord for me and for all the remnant of Israel and Judah.  Inquire about the words written in the scroll that has been found.  For the Lord’s great anger has been poured out on us because our ancestors have not obeyed the word of the Lord.  We have not been doing everything this scroll says we must do.”  So Hilkiah and the other men went to the New Quarter of Jerusalem to consult with the prophet Huldah. She was the wife of Shallum son of Tikvah, son of Harhas, the keeper of the Temple wardrobe.  She said to them, “The Lord, the God of Israel, has spoken!  Go back and tell the man who sent you,  ‘This is what the Lord says:  I am going to bring disaster on this city and its people.  All the curses written in the scroll that was read to the king of Judah will come true.  For my people have abandoned me and offered sacrifices to pagan gods, and I am very angry with them for everything they have done.  My anger will be poured out on this place, and it will not be quenched.’  “But go to the king of Judah who sent you to seek the Lord and tell him:  ‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says concerning the message you have just heard:  You were sorry and humbled yourself before God when you heard his words against this city and its people.  You humbled yourself and tore your clothing in despair and wept before me in repentance. And I have indeed heard you, says the Lord.  So I will not send the promised disaster until after you have died and been buried in peace.  You yourself will not see the disaster I am going to bring on this city and its people.’”  So they took her message back to the king.  Then the king summoned all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem.  And the king went up to the Temple of the Lord with all the people of Judah and Jerusalem, along with the priests and the Levites—all the people from the greatest to the least.  There the king read to them the entire Book of the Covenant that had been found in the Lord’s Temple.  The king took his place of authority beside the pillar and renewed the covenant in the Lord’s presence. He pledged to obey the Lord by keeping all his commands, laws, and decrees with all his heart and soul.  He promised to obey all the terms of the covenant that were written in the scroll.  And he required everyone in Jerusalem and the people of Benjamin to make a similar pledge. The people of Jerusalem did so, renewing their covenant with God, the God of their ancestors.  So Josiah removed all detestable idols from the entire land of Israel and required everyone to worship the Lord their God.  And throughout the rest of his lifetime, they did not turn away from the Lord, the God of their ancestors.  

2 Chronicles 34:20-33

In the 21st century culture of the United States, this act of King Josiah would be considered treason.  He took the Scriptures, held it up to God and vowed he would live by it (a good model for any world leader), and then (the treason to a modern-day American) King Josiah required everyone else in his service, and all the citizens of the land to pledge likewise. 

I feel a storm brewing here, between the modern-day culturally-hallowed icon of individual freedom and a Josiah model of surrendering-all to the will of God.  The former, being popular, ingrained from the first time we say the pledge of allegiance, or sing the Star Spangled Banner, is no longer an outcome of the later, but the very target at which every allegiance is aimed these days.  Yet, Biblically, our personal freedom is still the lesser, compared to the greater claim on our lives by the Creator, the God of Josiah’s Scriptures.

For You Today

I get it…as those who honor a God who gave us free will, we cannot abandon the quest for liberty, but I get it even more that, when it comes to obeying God, that personal liberty is the first idol that must go.  Anything other than God in first place is an idol; such is the essence of His first commandment: 

Then God gave the people all these instructions:  “I am the Lord your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery.  “You must not have any other god but me.  Exodus 20:1-3

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road with Jesus; have a blessed day!  

[1] Images:  WikimediaCommons Calvin Wesley Luther Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©   

When Church and State Collide

Tuesday, February 10, 2015

I really don’t go looking for controversial things to say, or ways to make people feel uncomfortable; it just sorta shows-up sometimes.

This may hurt a little.

Etiquette for the placing of the US flag requires that no flag be placed in a more prominent (higher) or respectful position.  There are some exceptions for religious reasons, such as religious services at sea.  

I snapped the picture of three flags on the front lawn of a church near where I live.  Clearly the US flag is highest, the North Carolina flag second, and the Christian flag bows to both of them. 

At the risk of offending those who are the most patriotic of saints among us – what does this say about allegiance?  I believe that no disrespect towards Christ was meant by those who placed these particular flags.  However, the question is begged:

To what or to whom is our greatest allegiance?

For a Christian believer/follower of Jesus Christ can there be any doubt that we have become doulos or “slave” to Jesus Christ?  How can you claim two masters?

That being said, let me be quick to affirm that I do not believe it is wrong to pay due respect and honor, even pledge firm support to the flag of my country.  I was born-in, bred and blessed by being a citizen of this great nation.

But, let there be no equivocation; my citizenship of Heaven far outstrips any earthly ties.  I am an alien in this world and in this nation. 

As much as I love this country, have served in its military in Vietnam, have prayed constantly for God to bless this land, and shed tears when this nation has been attacked or vilified – if ever forced to make a choice between Christ or this continent, let this statement seal my future:

·        I chose Christ long ago when He chose me

·        I choose Him now

·        I would choose Him if tied to the stake. 

·        I choose Christ first and always.

What’s the big deal, Russell; it’s only a flag, isn’t it?

No…it’s much more than a piece of cloth waving in the wind; it’s an idea, a symbol; it speaks what is in the heart.  And what takes up the entire building of my heart is Jesus. 

I will serve my country, but I will worship only my King.  I want no other allegiance.

For You Today

There comes a time when all of us are called upon to declare allegiance.

To what do you pledge?