There was a day in Israel’s history when a second-grader was made their king. No, seriously…a second-grade boy wore a crown and inherited a throne. I have two children, both of whom have successfully triumphed over the second grade. Brilliant as they both are, neither of them needs to be on a throne ruling a nation. Yet in God’s providence, this is exactly what happened to a seven year old named Joash a little less than 3,000 years ago. Interestingly, God also provided the means by which this young boy would reign successfully for quite some time as Israel’s king. What did God do in order this success of Joash to be possible? He placed a godly person in the young man’s life that exerted real spiritual influence over him. Notice what the Scripture says of this time in the life of Joash:
“And Joash did what was right in the sight of the Lord all his days wherein Jehoiada the priest instructed him.” – 2 Kings 12:2
Joash acted wisely and lived rightly because of someone in his life, Jehoiada the priest, being actively involved in his spiritual formation. How blessed we are of the Lord to have these types of godly influences to shape us. Their very presence helps us discern right and wrong, truth and falsehood, light and darkness. When we are near them we slow down and think of the words they have shared, the example they have lived out before us and the expectation they have for us. Though we certainly desire to honor God with our lives sometimes, when our flesh is tempted to waver, having a righteous person nearby helps us to think twice before we make foolish decisions. God uses the presence of spiritual people to temper us because we see them, know them and can feel their presence when we are choosing life’s paths and making our decisions. For some of us this person is a parent. Others of you are married to spouses who hunger for the Lord and inspire you to do the same. Spiritual leaders can often serve as those who help us recognize boundaries and open doors of opportunity. It would be marvelous if we always were motivated by a deep commitment to Christ but, frankly, sometimes we are helped along the way by having a visible person walking next to us and offering wise counsel. The influence of a committed Christian in our lives cannot be taken for granted. While they are with us, we are often made to feel nearer to our God and prevented from going astray
Then one day they are gone. Parents go home to heaven. Spiritual leaders are reassigned by God to different locales. Spouses leave earth ahead of us to meet the Lord. When this occurs, a dangerous moment for us arises. It is the moment when we get to learn if our own faith is real or if we may have been unknowingly riding upon the coat-tails of somebody else’s faith. Unfortunately, Joash found quickly that Jehoiada served him more as a buffer from doing wrong. Joash was obedient when human eyes were upon him but when those eyes closed in death, the idea of honoring his God was unreal to him. He did not live for the Lord; Joash lived for Jehoiada so his true nature was seen when godly Jehoiada was moved off the scene. Read below.
“Now after the death of Jehoiada the princes of Judah came and paid homage to the king. Then the king listened to them. And they abandoned the house of the Lord, the God of their fathers, and served the Asherim and the idols…” – 2 Chronicles 24:17-18 {ESV}
Here are two things for us to learn today:
1) We desperately need people who influence us for Christ. We need their examples. God sometimes blesses us for their sake, even when we may not be properly positioned for a blessing of our own (1 Cor. 7:13-14). It is not far-fetched to say that many are being blessed in life because they are connected closely to another whom God has graciously favored. How good of the Lord to surround us with people like this and to give us the powerful potential from observing their faith, hungering for its genuineness in our own hearts and being found by the gracious God who is so real to them.
2) You will know if your faith is genuine when those upon whom you leaned for spiritual strength are removed from you. Frightening as it may be, you may not be able to know this unless those precious people are taken away. If you continue after God in their absence through your faithful love, devotion and worship then that person was a powerful and effective utensil of the Almighty in your life. If, when they are gone, you lose your commitments, reverse course and leave off from active faith and spiritual obedience – or if you simply stand still in your carrying of the cross…then it is likely that you were riding piggy-back on their faith all along and should be concerned about what you have called your own. Real faith endures because its origin is in Christ who has not left you even when that precious person has. This is a suffocating potential but one you should come to terms with. Is your faith your own or was it simply that a godly person that was once in your life served as a regulator of your behavior? You need to go there and find the answer because it is a matter of eternity and there are no second chances for you to get this issue settled.
Gratefully love on those who are helping you. Honor them by asking God to make your faith as real as their own. Beware of living vicariously through them because they cannot save you, no matter how godly their character or powerful their influence or how closely associated you are (or were) with them. There is only one Savior and Lord. There is only one God and He has many children.
But He has no grandchildren and never will.
I am very fortunate to have been raised up by folks who urged me to depend on God rather than clinging to them. Had they done otherwise, I would helpless in their absence.
I absolutely hear the warning in Joash’s story….both as one who is lead and one who gets to lead.
I made the arrogant mistake of inviting a person to constantly depend on me – not in actual words, but in my interactions and constant presence in her daily life.
When I shifted off her scene, she had to fight to find her feet in God alone. Guilt tempted me to recreate the dependence. I would have only delayed the inevitable feet finding process. Watching her very angry struggle is a weekly warning to me to urge others to God, not me, from minute one.
My dependence has to be on God. Humans are flawed and, as you have stated, withdraw, die, or move away.
God alone is never changing and always present.