THE RICHES OF REPENTANCE
I believe the Lord has been saying of late that IT IS TIME FOR REPENTANCE, and at the same time that HE IS GRACIOUS, COMPASSIONATE, AND FULL OF MERCY. The time is now for sorrowing in a godly way with the Holy Spirit over the areas of our lives, as individuals and together as the Body of Christ, that are in need of His Holy alignment.
I learned something from the story of king Josiah recently. We know Josiah as the boy king who in early manhood began to dismantle the idolatries of the land of Israel. In his heart and in his actions, this young king really wanted to follow after the ways of the Lord. It might have seemed to young Josiah that all he was doing was right. We know that there are times when certain ways may seem right to our hearts and our understanding, but the scriptures teach us that those same ways often end in (spiritual) death. Proverbs 14:12. But here, Josiah, in following a godly desire to abolish idolatry from the land that God had marked as His own, was following the will of God for that moment, even though his understanding was imperfect. The heart of God the Father longs to see our idols cast aside - an idol is anything that takes precedence over His pre-eminence in our lives. As Christian believers, we are moved to cast down idols in our own lives, and if we are responsible for the spiritual welfare of others, we are charged with helping them seek God about issues in their own lives. In doing this, sometimes we do what we know, or what we understood to be the will of God at an earlier time, but there is always more that God has to reveal to us. We will never stop knowing or learning from Him in this life. And God, who can do anything, doesn't promise to always teach us His lessons in the same way.
After Josiah began dismantling the obvious signs of idolatry, one of the next tasks he
undertook was to begin providing for the restoration of the Temple of the Lord. 2 Kings 22: 3-
7. When the king started providing money for the rebuilding of the temple, it was a first step
toward restoring pure and proper worship of God by the people under his authority. As we
know, worship is not just about praise and thanksgiving - those are just manifestations of a
worshipful attitude. Worship itself is a laying bare of the heart, soul, body, mind and
possessions to commune with the Heart of God Himself. This step toward restoring the
temple opened the door for the next phase of his understanding of God's heart. I wonder
what would have happened if Josiah had not begun to do the things that he did? When the
money arrived at the temple carried by the king's servants, the priest gave them a scroll to
The scroll contained the book of the Law, which had been forgotten in the land, and which had been far from the minds of the people under the previous leadership. But Josiah's heart longed to know of the things that he knew he did not know in perfection, and so he commanded that the scroll be read to him. The law and the Levitical commandments of God revealed then were new to him. But he did not disregard God's word. The priest himself did not come and read the word, it came indirectly and was brought to the king by his secretary. How will the word of God come to us? Will we look to perceive the Holy Spirit as the messenger, and not the donkey (Balaam), child (Eli) or servant standing before us? If we think ourselves to be deeply spiritual and highly anointed, will we disdain the way in which the Father makes His appeal to us?
When King Josiah heard the full commandment of the Lord, he tore his clothes in despair. A revered, respected king publicly grieved over the violation of the sacred covenants. We recognize the tearing of his clothes as a sign of brokenness and repentance. The king recognized that in spite of his best efforts, his nation was in sin, and all wrongs had not been made right. As king, he could have decided that what he had done was enough, and was noteworthy, and was better than any other ruler had done in the generations before him. Or, he could have decided, in pride, that public contrition was beneath his stature as the king. But a man after God's heart will always realize that there are human limits to our understanding and ability, and be quick to perceive the door that God opens on new truths. So this righteous king immediately acted on what he heard. He repented openly, not just for his own innocent failure to understand what God really wanted, but also on behalf of his people.
The sins of a ruler bring judgement upon those under his/her rule, and the one in authority
must account to God for the sins of those for whom he or she is responsible. Elevation to
an office of authority carries great responsibility. I'm learning that it's not about pomp and
circumstance at all, really. It's about service, and sacrificing ourselves, and being
responsible for the failures of those in our care, just as much as we are blessed by and for
their successes. Jesus said a good shepherd would lay down his very life for his sheep.
John 10:11.
The king next sought God’s direction. He sent a messenger to Huldah, a woman prophet.
The Lord gave her a word of personal deliverance for the king. Because he, Josiah, had
repented, God would spare Him from witnessing the future destruction that would come
upon the generations because others had not repented. 2 Kings 22: 18-20.
God, in an act of mercy, promised that He would honor Josiah’s heart to obey, and granted him a reign free from destruction. It is riches indeed to see the fruits of our labor come to maturity. It is wealth beyond measure to leave a spiritual inheritance to future generations. Josiah planted the seed of righteousness by tearing down the idols and restoring the House of God, and he watered those seeds with true repentance. For that, God brought fruitfulness to his seed and rewarded him with a legacy.
Repentance is simply saying to God that we are sorry for the wrongs and failures that we did, or allowed, or condoned. His promise is that He is faithful and just to forgive us. We are in a season of promised fulfillment, of restoration of His Kingdom, of apostolic grace, and tangible blessings. But, God's promise is conditioned upon our willingness to come into holy alignment with His word, His will and His way so that we will love what He loves, and hate what He hates. Repentance opens the way for riches.
Deanna
