I want to share a couple of things I gleaned from my time with God. He showed how sweetly sovereign He is in His faithfulness, and how if I would trust His faithfulness, I would be greatly satisfied; as a believer and a parent.
Old Testament
2 Chronicles 34:1-36:23
“Josiah was eight years old when he became King….and he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, and walked in the ways of his father David; he did not turn aside to the right or the left…..for in the eighth year of his reign , he began to seek the God of his father David. “
2 Chronicles 34:1-3
- God began a work in Josiah at an early age; 8 years old. For the next eight years God was working out Josiah’s salvation. So that by the time he was 16 years old, he was seeking the one and true God. The fruit of his seeking showed itself in a passion for God ‘s supremacy in his heart and every part of his kingdom. He eradicated all the idols, altars, and molded images. He sought to purify the land and restore the cities. His heart longed for God to be exalted in His temple and more importantly, in His people.
- This Gives me hope:
- My children can live radically for Christ. I do not have to set the bar below sea-level at them “hopefully” being saved and spiritually productive by the time they are adults. By
God’s grace, they can live with a passion for His supremacy in their own little life; at
pre-school or elementary school, on the play ground or at a sleep over. There are a lot
of areas right now that they can put Christ on display. - When my children become teenagers, I do not have to expect them to rebel against our household and God's authority. I believe this is more of a Western problem than a typical problem. Josiah became passionate for God at 16 years of age. He chose to rebel against his sin (2 Chronicles 34:3-7) and to restore His people. He tore his clothes and humbled himself at the reading of God’s word. He set out to display God’s glory for His name sake. Oh how I pray that my children would be as passionate for Christ and His supremacy as
Josiah was for God the Father.
2. This gives me purpose:
- As a parent I must strive to diligently teach my children the supremacy and worth of
King Jesus. As a parent I must be innocent of the blood of my children by giving them
the full counsel of God. (See Deuteronomy 6 for instructions.)
3. This makes me tremble:
- Josiah’s son Jehoiachin, at eight years old was evil in the sight of the Lord ( 36:9). Just
because my children are in a Christian home, does not mean they are not totally
depraved of any righteousness and in need of God’s sovereign grace. Through prayer,
pleading, and saturating my children with Godly character and His word, I hope to see
them saved and joyfully obedient to the Lord our God.
God was faithful to keep His promise:
- Because Josiah humbled himself before God and did what was right, God promised
Josiah that he would be gathered to his grave in peace; and his eyes would not see the
calamity which God was going to bring on Judah and Jerusalem ( 2 Chronicles 34: 27-
28). In Chapter 35, Josiah is shot and killed by some archers in a war with Necho, king
of Egypt. On the surface, as I read this, I thought this seemed to contradict the promise
given in chapter 34; ( he would be gathered to his grave in peace.) Being shot by an
archer in war is not exactly peaceful. After further consideration and examination of
the promise, I see God was faithful to Josiah and kept his word. Because God’s people
forsook Him and burned incensed to other gods and provoked Him to anger; God was
going to bring all the calamity He had promised to bring that was written down in the
book of the law. But because Josiah humbled himself at the reading of Gods word and
had a contrite heart, God promised to spare him from the curses and the plagues that
were coming. Therefore, Josiah did die in peace considering that he did not suffer the
wrath of God. This was the peace God had promised and was faithful to deliver.
Josiah was a great king for Israel and was missed dearly. The people mourned the loss
of Josiah for some 200 years later.
New Testament
Acts 21:1-17
The apostle Paul’s passion for the supremacy of Christ gives me passion for Christ supremacy.
- After being told by Agabus that he would be bound and delivered into the hands of the Gentiles, Paul passionately responds by saying, “What do you mean by weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready to not only be bound , but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the LordJesus.” (Acts 21: 13) By this time Paul had suffered many things for the name of the Lord Jesus including being beaten and imprisonment (Acts 16). Through these sufferings Paul better understood Isaiah’s revelation of God’s promise to all of His elect; “Do not feat for I am with you, do not be afraid for I am your God; I will strengthen you and help you and uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (Isaiah 41:10) Paul knew that death was not to be feared but to be embraced (Philippians 1:21-22). This trust in God’s sovereign faithfulness lead Paul to live radically satisfied in Christ alone. So much so that he held nothing back and went to the place that gave him the most opportunity to be closest to Christ, even if it cost him his earthly life. This trust is best exemplified in verse 14, when Paul would not be denied his hearts desire; “The Lords will be done.”
May we live with a passion for the supremacy of Christ by trusting in the sovereign faithfulness of our God.
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