"GOING RIGHT IN A WORLD GONE WRONG!"

2 CHRONICLES 34:1-21

I want to tell you about Josiah, king of Judah. He was a man whose grandfather was a murderer and occultist who sacrificed his own children in satanic worship. His father was an evil man who was ultimately murdered by his own friends. He was born in a milieu of gross immorality, idolatry and occultism. But this man decided to go right in a world gone wrong. Instead of following the crowd, he led the crowd. He bucked the popular current. He charted a new course. And 2600 years later people still speak about him. If we'd go right in a world gone wrong, we need to follow in his steps. What did he do to change the course of history? Look at the earlier part of the text with me: 2 CHRONICLES 34:1-8.

• HE CHOSE THE RIGHT EXAMPLE: V2:
• Josiah "walked in the ways of his father David and did not turn aside to the right or to the left." He went back beyond his biological father Amon and his corrupt grandfather Manasseh to his ancestor David. He lived like David lived.
• Why do you suppose he did that? Here is an 8 year old boy whose immediate mentors were monsters. But in his life was Hilkiah the priest who is likely to be credited for Josiah's godliness. And Josiah chose David as his pattern, his standard, his example.
• Here is what the Bible says about choosing the right example:
• On the "Don't Do It!" side:
• Exodus 23:2 "You shall not follow a multitude in doing evil, nor shall you testify in a dispute so as to turn aside after a multitude in order to pervert justice."
• Deuteronomy 12:29, 30 "When the Lord your God cuts off before you the nations which you are going in to dispossess, and you dispossess them and dwell in their land, beware that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, `How do these nations serve their gods, that I also may do likewise?'"
• Proverbs 1:10, 15, 16 "My son, if sinners entice you, do not consent. My son, do not walk in the way with them. Keep your feet from their path, for their feet run to evil, and they hasten to shed blood."
• Proverbs 20:19 "He who goes about as a slanderer reveals secrets, Therefore do not associate with a gossip."
• Proverbs 22:24, 25 "Do not associate with a man given to anger; Or go with a hot- tempered man, lest you learn his ways, And find a snare for yourself."
• Proverbs 24:21, 22 "Fear the Lord and the king, my son, and do not join with the rebellious, for those two will send sudden destruction upon them, and who knows what calamities they can bring?"
• On the other hand, on the "Do It!" side:
• Proverbs 6:6-8 "Go to the ant, O sluggard, observe her ways and be wise, which, having no chief, officer or ruler, prepares her food in the summer, and gathers her provision in the harvest." The example of industry and foresight.
• John 13:14, 15 "If I then, the Lord and the Teacher, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you." The example of humility and service.
• Philippians 3:17 "Brethren, join in following my example, and observe those who walk according to the pattern you have in us." The example of giving up all else for the sake of Christ.
• 2 Thessalonians 3:7 "For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example, because we did not act in an undisciplined manner among you, nor did we eat anyone's bread without paying for it, but with labor and hardship we kept working night and day so that we might not be a burden to any of you; not because we do not have the right to this, but in order to offer ourselves as a model for you, that you might follow our example." The example of self-discipline.
• James 5:10 "As an example, brethren, of suffering and patience, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord." The example of faithfulness and endurance.
• 1 Peter 2:21-23 "For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously;" The example of pure Christian living.
• A little girl put on her mama's dress, smeared on her make-up, strutted around in her shoes and then lit one of her cigarettes. The dress caught fire and the severely burned little girl sobbed, "I did like mama, and it burned me!" So, who is your example? Who most influences your life?

Josiah decided to be like David because obviously Hilkiah had influenced him. He chose the right example. By the way, how are you influencing others? How are you setting a worthy example for them to follow? Not only did Josiah choose the right example, but he set the right example as well.

• HE SERVED THE RIGHT GOD: V3:

• Josiah served the right God, and he served Him early in life, he served Him sincerely, enthusiastically, exclusively, without swerving to the right or left and he served Him courageously as he dispatched and dispossessed all God's rivals.
• At which altar do you serve?
• The altar of sex and lust?
• The altar of money, gambling and get-rich quick schemes?
• The altar of comfort, ease and self-indulgence?
• The altar of power, control and manipulation of others?
• The altar of athletics, amusement and recreation?
• The altar of popularity, status, and recognition?
• The altar of self-determination and self-direction?
• Consider your service to God. Have you delayed it? Have you moderated it? Have you swerved from it? Or, like Josiah, is your heart bound to God, committed to God, and loyal to God?
• When Mahmud of Ghazni invaded India, his forces entered a temple to destroy it. He was entreated by the priest to spare a certain idol but he refused. Instead, he struck it repeatedly. Then the image burst open, and a pile of precious stones poured from its hollow interior. So, for each idol the Christian destroys in his life, he gains more than he loses! Every one that is demolished brings him new treasures of grace and removes another hindrance to a productive Christian life.

Josiah cleaned house on the idol worshipers. He tore down the altars to Baal, he cut down the Asherah idols. He wouldn't fit in well with the gurus of tolerance in our day -- but He did fit in with God. And as a result of a right heart, he was able to do still more:

• HE MAINTAINED A RIGHT DEVOTION TO THE SCRIPTURES: VV19-21:

• During the Temple reconstruction, a scroll was found that had been lost for years. Josiah sent his leaders to the prophetess Hulda for a word from the Lord. God spoke and said, "Because your heart was tender and you humbled yourself before God, when you heard His words against this place and against its inhabitants, and because you humbled yourself before Me, tore your clothes, and wept before Me, I truly have heard you." 2 Chronicles 34:27.
• Josiah then assembled all the people and made a covenant to walk after the Lord, and to keep His commandments and His testimonies and His statutes with all his heart and with all his soul. 2 Chronicles 34:31.
• May ours be this attitude: Psalms 119:33 "Teach me, O Lord, the way of Thy statutes, And I shall observe it to the end." There is great value in devotion to the Scriptures:
• Psalms 119:9 "How can a young man keep his way pure? By keeping it according to Thy word."
• Psalms 119:38 "Establish Thy word to Thy servant, As that which produces reverence for Thee."
• Psalms 119:105 "Thy word is a lamp to my feet, And a light to my path."
• John 5:39 "You search the Scriptures, because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is these that bear witness of Me;"
• John 8:31, 32 "If you abide in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."
• Romans 10:17 "So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ."
• 2 Timothy 3:16, 17 "All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work."
• 1 Peter 2:2 "like newborn babes, long for the pure milk of the word, that by it you may grow in respect to salvation,"
• A certain lady wanted to read her Bible. She looked where she usually kept it, but it wasn't there! She searched for it everywhere but still couldn't find it. Going downstairs, she said to the newly employed cleaning woman, "Pearl, have you seen my Bible?" The maid exclaimed, "Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!" "What do you mean, Pearl?" Beaming with joy, she said, "The first thing I do when I go to work at a new place is hide the Bible." "But why?" the other asked in astonishment. Pearl replied, "Just to find out how long it takes the people to miss it! I put yours in the linen closet under the sheets!" Let us never overlook or lose our Bibles through neglect!

Josiah had a commitment to the Scriptures. He served the Living God. And because he followed the right example, he went right in a world gone wrong. Well, let's all learn some lessons from Josiah. It is not what happens to us, but how we handle it that matters. It is not our ancestry but our personal attributes that counts. It is not our background but our own belief that charts our course. You came from a bad background? You can't change that; that's the past. But you can do something about the here and now -- and you can invest in the future. Let me quote Max Lucado from his book, "When God Whispers Your Name." "God has not left you adrift on the sea of heredity. Just like Josiah, you cannot control the way your forefathers responded to God. But you can control the way you respond to Him. The past does not have to be your prison. You have a voice in your destiny. You have a say in your life. You have a choice in the path you take." It behooves us to make a careful and calculated choice. Not only our eternity is at stake, but the eternity of our children can be affected by our choice, our example, and our life. Make a commitment to go right in a world gone wrong, no matter what anyone else does. Make a choice to follow Christ, no matter who follows something or someone else. Make a decision to live your life for Jesus Christ no matter who decides to live for something or someone else. The choice is yours as it was the choice of Josiah. Choose whom you will follow. Choose, choose well, and choose today.

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