Today I’m preparing this edition of “Walking with Jesus” in a remote place, far up on the northern edge of one of the US States which borders Canada. I’m here having the privilege of opening God’s Word with a group of adults who are on a spiritual retreat and they’ve chosen this remote place because of its quietness, its serenity and the power of the word RESTORE!
Across the bay from where I’m sitting I can see a restored lodge. More than a century ago this was a logging camp and logs from these forests were milled here and then carried by steamer ships to Chicago and other great cities which border the American Great Lakes. Near the turn of the last century a fire broke out here and the logging mill burned to the ground. For several years it was not restored and the logging camp sat dormant for a long time, until the land was purchased, some of the buildings restored, and now people find spiritual restoration and renewal here!
The passing of time has a natural effect of deterioration on everything, doesn’t it? I wonder if there’s anything in your life or mine which is in need of restoration today? Come with me again to Jerusalem in about the year 820bc. The young king we met yesterday, Joash, wants to deal with this problem of deterioration, in Jerusalem, of one of the most remarkable and prized buildings ever constructed…the great Temple built by King Solomon. More than 130 years had passed since its construction and the Temple was a busy place everyday all year round.
2 Chronicles 24:4 says: “…King Joash decided to RESTORE the temple of the LORD..” But it was more than normal wear and tear on this historic, magnificent Temple. 2 Chronicles 24:7 tells us “Now the sons of that wicked woman Athaliah had broken into the temple of God and had used even its sacred objects for worship of the Baals.” In the years between the reigns of King Jehoshaphat and his great-grandson King Joash, this magnificent and sacred Temple of God had been vandalized and defiled.
While still a young man, King Joash understood the significance of this Temple for the people of Israel and a restoration project was not only the right and God honoring thing to do, it would inspire and unite the Israelites again to be a people with the worship of Almighty, Holy God as their central, unifying endeavor, and their identity.
So Joash called in the leading Levites and priests and told them to go throughout the land casting a vision with the people for this restoration project and gather a special offering from the people for the restoration of the Temple in Jerusalem. Sadly sometimes visions cast are not embraced and little to nothing happens. 2 Chronicles 24:5 says “But the Levites did not act at once.”
Sadly sometimes leaders, even spiritual leaders, are slow to move vision forward. Joash was not about to let leadership inactivity undermine his vision for Temple restoration so the young King called his mentor, the chief priest Jehoiada and things began to happen, quickly! May I ask, are you involved in some way, right now, wherever you live in the world, with helping some vision of restoration taking place in your city, your extended family or maybe in yourself?
My wife and I are part of a church plant in our city and Isaiah 61:3,4 are two verses casting great vision for bringing restoration to our old city: Speaking of God’s people, Isaiah wrote the exciting words: “They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of His splendor. They will REBUILD the ancient ruins and RESTORE the places long devastated; they will RENEW the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations.” (Is. 61:3,4) It’s certainly not easy to do, but it’s exciting to be part of restoration and renewal isn’t it my friends? We’re doing in 2024 in our city, what Joash envisioned for Jerusalem 2800 years ago!
2 Chronicles 24:8 says: “At the king’s command a chest was made and placed at the gate of the temple of the LORD. A proclamation was issued in Judah and Jerusalem… all the officials and people brought their contributions GLADLY, dropping them into the chest until it was full!”
The restoration vision was catching on and with enthusiasm the people followed in the pattern of their ancestors when Moses had put out the appeal for contributions to be made for the construction of the original Tabernacle at Mount Sinai! (Ex. 36:2-7) Both for Moses and Joash the people came enthusiastically bringing more than what was needed to accomplish the worship vision! In both cases the God gifted craftsmen worked DILIGENTLY for their work was an act of worship!
2 Chronicles 24:13,14 reports that “They rebuilt the temple of God according to its original design and reinforced it. … as long as Jehoiada lived, burnt offerings were presented continually in the temple of the LORD!”
Oh what a wonderful time this must have been to be an Israelite, regularly coming to Jerusalem for festivals and worship in a restored Temple in all its magnificence! Can you imagine how the people felt knowing their contributions had been wisely and diligently used to restore the great Temple of God? The record says: “Jehoiada was old and full of years and he died at the age of 130! He was buried with the kings in the City of David, because of the good he had done in Israel for God and His temple.” (2 Chron. 24:15,16)
Oh my what a wonderful epitaph of a very courageous man of God who risked his life raising the child prince Joash, and teaching him, mentoring him right up until the time of his elderly death. And what a great honor was bestowed upon Jehoiada posthumously with the burial of his body, by King Joash and the people, in the tombs of the kings of Israel in Jerusalem!!
Under Jehoiada’s strong influence the God honoring kingship of Judah was restored; the great Temple was restored through supervised ingathering and construction; the Temple worship was restored and Jerusalem was once again a great city to live in!
We have no details of the celebration of Jehoiada’s life or his funeral, but I wonder if this song is a reflection of what King Joash and the people were thinking and praying as they reflected on the impact of Jehoiada’s life on them and their city?
Lives well lived like this call us to reflection don’t they my friends? So, let’s worship with this song . . .
Today’s Scripture: 2 Chronicles 24:4-16.
Choose below to read or listen.
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Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
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Pastor Doug Anderson
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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