A Child Shall Lead Them

Introduction

A. What do most eight year olds know about running a country? Most eight year olds have their minds on play not politics. In our day and time most eight year olds think of God as some nice big grandfather who is there to help them. Not a bad image, but not one that we are willing to be the final image of who God is and what he does. There are some mature eight year olds — mature for their age but not mature enough to run a country. But this is what happened to Judah, the Southern kingdom. Israel has already been taken into captivity. They will never return and exist as a people. Josiah becomes king of Judah at the age of eight. His father, Amon, had been assassinated.

B. We know very little about Josiah’s early reign. The Bible tells us that he reigned 31 years which means he was about 39 when he died. But it is not until his 18th year as king that things begin to happen. There has been some major remodeling going on at the temple. After 300 years of use, timbers need to be replaced, stones need to be refitted, and a general cleaning has to be done. It is in this remodeling process that something exciting happens. And this is what chapters 22 and 23 of 2 Kings is about. Hilkiah the high priest has found the Book of the Law. Hilkiah gave the book to Josiah’s secretary who then informed Josiah about its existence and read the words of the book to Josiah.

C. Josiah is overwhelmed by the words. He hears for the first time the actual testimony of God. He hears the Law which God wanted his people to live by. So overwhelmed is Josiah that he sends a group of men to a prophetess to hear what God’s words are for him as king. This inquiring of the woman of God would have been a real change for Josiah. Up until this time it is safe to assume that he had not sought God’s word. He had done right in taking care of the temple, but administration and seeking God’s direction are two different things.

D. The prophetess gives Josiah encouraging and discouraging words. First, God intends to destroy Jerusalem. Josiah’s grandfather, Manasseh, was a very evil king. In 21:10ff, God promises to destroy Jerusalem because of Manasseh’s evil ways. It has been awhile since anyone inquired of God. Josiah does, but God’s intent has not changed. Judah will be destroyed. Second, because Josiah is seeking God, God will not allow the destruction to take place during Josiah’s lifetime. Josiah’s response to the Law and his desire to honor God has resulted in peace for the land and a time of peace during Josiah’s reign. Josiah will die before Jerusalem will be destroyed. Josiah will not have to watch or be a part of Jerusalem’s destruction. Then in chapter 23 there is a huge undertaking to rid Judah and Israel to the north of any and all idols and idol practices. Josiah is a man on a mission and he will not stop until Judah returns to God.

Lessons

A. First, if we are not continually in the word, then we will forget the word. Josiah’s great-grandfather was Hezekiah. He was a good king. He loved God. But between these two were 57 years of leadership which was not in the word of God. As a result, the kings and the people did what they wanted to do without thinking about God’s purposes. They forgot the word and accordingly they lived against God’s will. I met with a Catholic nun several weeks ago. Out of the blue she called and asked to bring a group of Catholics to talk with us about what we believed as the church of Christ. Before the group met with us, she and I met to go over some preliminary stuff. Here’s the question she asked me, “is it true that most members of the church of Christ have the Bible memorized?” Not only did I understand the question, I understood the intent of the question. You believe the Bible? Do you know your Bible? Several years ago in a teen class, I asked who betrayed Jesus. The silence made me afraid.

1. Have we quit studying? Have we given t.v. more room in our lives than the scriptures? We have worked hard to make sure that we understand that the measurement of our spirituality is not how much Bible we read, but if we read none are we spiritual?

2. If our Bibles were taken away, would it matter to us? If we could no longer have access to the printed word of God, would there be enough in our hearts already to sustain us? If we are not in the word, we forget the word. We read the word not just to discover the will of God but the heart of God. In our religious world, doctrine seems to matter very little. What has been promoted is the heart of God, but by leaving out the doctrine of God, our religious world has become sentimental. No one is wrong. We are all right about God and what he wants. All that really matters is that we love God.

3. Ask Josiah if that was enough. Was it enough for him to love the word and not do it? Absolutely not. If we are not in the word, we will forget the word.

B. Second, external reform does not mean the internals have changed. Josiah becomes the head of the committee to reform Judah. He is quite successful. The high places for idol worship are torn down and desecrated. The temple is cleaned up. False prophets are killed. Religious fervor appears to be at an all time high. The Passover is celebrated. It has been a long time since the Passover was celebrated. Then at the tender age of 39, Josiah dies. What does Judah do? The people immediately revert back to their old ways. They return to idol worship and they quickly forget about God. Why? Because they were only changing the outside there was not an inner change.

1. If your car's engine is not functioning, washing and waxing it will not make it run better. Why? Because the heart of the automobile is the engine. It may look great on the outside and still not run properly.

2. Josiah was a changed man. He did the outward things and the his heart was changed. God recognized that change and blessed that change. But the people did not change. They did the right things because Josiah led them to, but they didn't do them because they were convinced that God was all that mattered. As parents we face the same dilemma. We teach our children the importance of Bible study, prayer, attendance at assemblies, but unless these things are part of their heart, we only teach the outward forms. Even in our own lives, we may feel enough guilt to do the right things, but our heart is not in it. There must be a balance between the externals and the internals. Both are important.

3. The word guides both our hearts and what we do. If we are not in the word we will forget the word and changing the externals doesn't mean the internals have changed. There must be a balance of right actions and right hearts or thinking. Let's end our time together with prayer.

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