5/10/2013

NOTHING BAD TO SAY...

2 Kings 23:25, 29

Neither before nor after Josiah was there a king like him who turned to the Lord as he did—with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his strength, in accordance with all the Law of Moses. While Josiah was king, Pharaoh Necho king of Egypt went up to the Euphrates River to help the king of Assyria. King Josiah marched out to meet him in battle, but Necho faced him and killed him at Megiddo.

Josiah was a king that had no compromise. Most of the other kings allowed high places in their kingdom ( places of idolatry ). But not Josiah. He destroyed every shrine and desecrated every high place. He cleansed the LORD'S temple of everything that didn't belong.

But he didn't live very long. 38 years old when he died.

Its not a tragedy when a person who pleases God dies young.

It is a tragedy when a person who lives only for themself dies of old age.

The Holy Spirit says of Josiah that he was an amazing king, unrivaled because of how he turned his life over to God.

What do you say of me, Jesus?
I do want to hear, "Well done, good and faithful servant"  when I die.

And they only way I'll hear that is if I turn to you just like Josiah did.

5/02/2013

I WANT TO BE SUPER RELIGIOUS

2 Kings 4:6
When all the jars were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another one.” But he replied, “There is not a jar left.” Then the oil stopped flowing.

A widow and an orphan. This time its Elisha, not Elijah. But the compassion and the miracle are very close to what Elijah experienced.

Elisha meets a lady who is in debt. And the collector is coming for her kids.

Her husband is dead, and she isnt going to make it.

Elisha tells her to gather what she does have ( a little oil ), and pour it in a whole bunch of empties.

She then gets SO MUCH, she can pay off her debts, and live on the rest.

Beautiful story.

God DOES care about us. He cares so much, he does perform miracles.

And he uses people as agents oftentimes.

I want to be that guy. Not for the credit of performing miracles, but because Jesus is looking around to see who wants to help Him:

2 Chronicles 16:9
For the eyes of the LORD look to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him.

Make me an Elisha. I want to help widows and orphans in their distress.

James 1:27
Pure religion and undefiled before our God and Father is this: to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

I want that religion.