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Chronicles 23 reminds me how God can create order from chaos. Many
people believe in random coincidence and luck. There is an entire
world view built on the idea that even the amazing design of man is
the result of arbitrary changes over millions of years. Simply put,
this denies the authority of God. Genesis
1:27 says,
“God
created man in His own
image…He created him; male and female“.
God pronounced His creation to be “very
good“.
After sin entered the world, it brought death and disease. But God
did not abandon man. He established His plan for renewal from the
beginning. The chapter follows the priest Jehoiada as he
reestablished structure in the nation of Judah in the midst of Queen
Athaliah’s rein of evil.
“In
the seventh year Jehoiada the priest… made a covenant with the
commanders of units of a hundred…
They
went throughout Judah and gathered the Levites and the heads of
Israelite families from all the towns. When they came to Jerusalem,
the whole assembly made a covenant with the king at the temple of
God“.
And notice their conviction rested on the promise of God, “The
king’s son shall reign, as the Lord promised concerning the
descendants of David“.
If you are living in chaos, read on.
The
priest once again made the Temple a place of worship and he did this
by following God’s law. “No
one is to enter the temple of the Lord except the priests and Levites
on duty; they may enter because they are consecrated“.
Remember, the only living descendent of King David was being hidden
in the Temple to protect him from his evil grandmother, Athaliah.
“The
Levites are to station themselves around the king, each man with his
weapons in his hand“.
Standing up to evil is dangerous business, unless we remember to
“Stay close to the king wherever he goes“.
The people recognized the wisdom found in God’s Word, “The
Levites and all the men of Judah did just as Jehoiada the priest
ordered“.
After they acknowledged the boy as king, notice the first thing they
did, “Jehoiada
and his sons brought out the king’s son and put the crown on him;
they presented him with a copy of the covenant“.
This too was a requirement of the law (Deuteronomy
17:18).
After that,
“they
proclaimed him king“.
The first step in getting out of turmoil is to recognize the King of
King. The next step is to read and
follow
God’s Word.
The
boy was anointed, and the crowd could no longer contain their joy.
They shouted, “Long
live the king!“.
The queen heard the commotions and came to see, “there
was the king, standing by his pillar at the entrance… and all the
people of the land were rejoicing and blowing trumpets, and singers
with musical instruments were leading the praises“.
The proud grandmother “tore
her robes”
and shouted, “Treason!
Treason!“.
As soon as we begin to hold to a standard of righteousness, our old
“buddies” will protest. Often we have to make radical changes to
avoid falling back into the old lifestyle. She and “all
who followed her were put to death“.
“Jehoiada
then made a covenant that he and the people and the king would be the
Lord’s people“.
It is important to note that first God made the internal changes,
and then their actions naturally followed. “All
the people went to the temple of Baal and tore it down“.
When God’s Spirit fills our life, we experience the joy and peace
God intended. “The
priests… presented burnt offerings… with rejoicing and singing…
And the city was quiet“.
May you experience His peace today.