Leaders Do Not Have to Lead Us
Good Morning,
2 Chronicles 31:21 “And in every work that he began in the service of the house of God, and in the law, and in the commandments, to seek his God, he did it with all his heart, and prospered.”
The king labored to clean up the nation, to bring spiritual revival, and to seek out the blessing of God. Certainly, he had enemies and battles. In spite of those who sought his demise, God guided and prospered him.
2 Chronicles 32:22 “Thus the LORD saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib the king of Assyria, and from the hand of all other, and guided them on every side.”
vs. 23 "And many brought gifts unto the LORD to Jerusalem, and presents to Hezekiah king of Judah: so that he was magnified in the sight of all nations from thenceforth."
The people were blessed, prosperous, and protected by God, and if you read the story, you will see that the people across the land prospered, from the ordinary farmer to the religious leader. Then, as happens to all flesh, Hezekiah died. His son, Manasseh, took the throne and proceeded to ruin everything his father had done.
2 Chronicles 33:1 “Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty and five years in Jerusalem:”
vs. 2 “But did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, like unto the abominations of the heathen, whom the LORD had cast out before the children of Israel.”
This sad situation occurred several times in the Old Testament. A simple truth is brought out by this corrupt man – Manasseh. When the next generation throws out the successful, blessed philosophies of the prior generation, matters can only go downhill. 2 Kings 21 gives more details of the story, but one fact is clear - Manasseh was an evil man, and his son, Amon, carried on in his father's evil ways.
Neither logic nor careful, studious planning leads a useful generation to throw out the ideals of the prior generation. There is no “common sense” that would direct someone to throw out successful practices – only evil can lead to this kind of decision. Certainly, we are witnessing this in America today.
The good news is that Josiah, though his father and grandfather were corrupt and godless, brought revival to the kingdom.
Despite the evil in the prior two generations, Josiah stood for right, truth, and a love for the Word of God. I am glad that we are not destined to follow in the footsteps of our leaders. Sadly, those who follow great leaders can become corrupt, but the good news is that those who follow corrupt leaders can choose to do right.
May we seek out those who hungered for righteousness and who labored for God and good, and mimic their habits and philosophies. When a generation of corrupt people trash the godly heritage that went before them, let us rise as Josiah and turn to the good and godly values of those in our history. The leaders in our nation, many of our pulpiteers, and the business leaders of our nation who have abandoned our great heritage, do not have to control our destiny. We do not need to follow the path of evil, no matter how desperate circumstances may appear. May we stand for truth.
Pastor