Unfollow vanity. (Kings 17-25)

17:2

Sin morphs over time. There are sins we can commit now that weren’t imagined fifty years ago. The line of what is considered okay is usually moving towards sin - not away from it. As a result, the degree of sins that are committed is also increasing.

Some of us just want to be bad. As some bad becomes good, we have to invent new things to be bad.

It sounds like this was the case with King Ahaz. “And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, but not as the kings of Israel that were before him.”

17:8

Israel “walked in the statutes of the heathen.” So, Israel followed the standards set by the heathen. Can we see this happening now?

If something is lawful according to the federal or state government, is it okay? I believe that there is a divergence there that will only grow. What is okay with the government is not okay with the Lord.

For example, there has been a lot of discussion about laws governing abortion. In some states, it is illegal. In others, it is legal. Does that mean that it’s wrong in Utah but okay in California? I do know for sure that God’s law doesn’t end at state lines. This will continue to grow into a major issue for church members.

It’s not just about laws. It is about what is considered acceptable by the people. Sex before marriage is considered okay and even encouraged. To remain a virgin until marriage sounds ridiculous to most Americans. We can’t allow our standards to fall with the progressive sinfulness of the general public.

For us to be tools in Heavenly Father’s hand, we must be a peculiar people. If we fit in, what good are we? In Matthew 5:13, we read, “Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.” Exactly.

17:14-15

”Notwithstanding they would not hear, but hardened their necks, like to the neck of their fathers, that did not believe in the Lord their God. And they rejected his statutes, and his covenant that he made with their fathers, and his testimonies which he testified against them; and they followed vanity, and became vain, and went after the heathen that were round about them, concerning whom the Lord had charged them, that they should not do like them.”

I’ve always liked the phrase ‘hardened their necks.’ It is a great visual of stubborn people. People with hard necks can’t turn and go in a new direction. They can’t observe something that isn’t directly on their current path. The meaning of the word repent is ‘to turn.‘ It’s very hard to turn with an iron neck. It’s much easier to continue in the direction you’re pointed.

I think the phrase “they followed vanity, and became vain, and went after the heathen that were round about them” is interesting. What does it mean? Of course, it’s connected to pride. Vanity is wrapped into what others think of you. If we care mostly about what people think, we’re more likely to follow after them. You don’t want to go against the grain if you follow vanity. Vanity is controlled by others’ opinions. When we care only about how impressive we are to other mortals, we will not be a peculiar people following God.

17:17

There’s an interesting phrase in this verse. The people “sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the Lord.” There are often temporary rewards for our bad behavior:

• We get money if we rob a bank.

• We feel pleasure from doing drugs.

• We get to sleep in if we miss church.

• We have fun if we go out partying.

These rewards are temporary but the cost is not. The cost of these temporary rewards is often our eternal reward.

The question is, what’s worth the cost of your soul? If we look at it rationally, nothing of this world is worth giving up eternal life. Every material thing we gain in this life is left behind when we die. I recently heard someone ask, ‘how much did Steve Jobs leave behind when he died?‘ The answer was, ‘all of it.’

17:33, 41

”They feared the Lord, and served their own gods, after the manner of the nations whom they carried away from thence.” How many of us say this? We, of course, fear God but that doesn’t translate to our actions. We are afraid of Him but aren’t devoted. We are nervous but not loyal. We are concerned about facing Him at judgment but not enough to affect our selfish and shortsighted behavior.

“So these nations feared the Lord, and served their graven images.” What are our graven images? Often is career, money, possessions or power. Often the gods we are serving are our own desires. We are fully committed to doing what we want. We are devoted to ourselves. Our own interests are placed on a pedestal.

We’ve got to get to know God well enough that we truly love Him. We feel devotion to him. We are grateful. We see the love that he has for us in the creation around us and the sacrifice of his son. We can get to a level of love where it drives our behavior.

19:30

”And the remnant that is escaped of the house of Judah shall yet again take root downward, and bear fruit upward.” I think this is how righteousness works. The bulk of our spiritual strength is grown underground, where it can’t be seen. The scripture study and prayer and fasting is all done in private. You usually don’t see the spiritual preparation of others.

All we can see is the fruit of their work. We can see the light in them. We can see their service and kindness and forgiveness. We see their expressions of love. We witness their resistance to temptation. We appreciate their selflessness. We honor their wisdom. What is done in private produces public fruit. Truly, “by their fruits ye shall know them.”

21:9

Manasseh was not a good king. “But they hearkened not: and Manasseh seduced them to do more evil than did the nations whom the Lord destroyed before the children of Israel.” An evil leader can influence the people to be evil. He has a position of influence.

For us, it is past time for us to take our moral cues from our political leaders. Our political leaders‘ principles do not match God’s standards. Because the president or senator says something is true, it often isn’t. Rather, we must listen to our prophet and learn from the scriptures.

22:19-20

Josiah was a righteous king. The Lord praised him for this when he said, “Because thine heart was tender, and thou hast humbled thyself before the Lord, when thou heardest what I spake against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, that they should become a desolation and a curse, and hast rent thy clothes, and wept before me; I also have heard thee, saith the Lord. Behold therefore, I will gather thee unto thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered into thy grave in peace; and thine eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring upon this place. And they brought the king word again.”

It’s essential that our hearts are soft and tender. For us to receive the impressions from the Holy Ghost, we must be impressionable. As we age and become ‘wiser’ in our own minds, we sometimes get set in our ways. We think we have a lot of experience. It’s important to remind ourselves that 80 years of life isn’t that long. We don’t know much. We still have a lot to learn. Our narrow perspective doesn’t give us the smallest fraction of God’s wisdom. We must always have an open, soft heart.

Part of this is being humble. Again, we can’t view ourselves as being ‘finished’ in our development and learning. The wisest among us still have a lot to learn. The Lord can always take us to another level. If we are humble, we put ourselves in a position to be led to something greater. The moment we allow pride to slip in, our growth slows.

One last thought on this verse. God talks about death as being gathered “unto thy fathers.” Death isn’t the end of anything. To God, death is merely moving from one area to another. There is no sorrow in death in the spirit world. It is a joyous reunion. It is another playing field. It is another place to continue to grow and help others. It’s just a change of venue.

23:3, 25

If we believe, good works follow. “And the king stood by a pillar, and made a covenant before the Lord, to walk after the Lord, and to keep his commandments and his testimonies and his statutes with all their heart and all their soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book.” If we are fully committed, heart and soul, we will ‘perform the words.’

If we truly believe, obedience will follow. If we are struggling with being obedient, we should do those things that build our faith.

However, it is possible to fully believe and still be imperfect. We can have a perfect heart but still fall short. It’s okay. But, if we think we believe but little righteous action is happening, we need to consider what we believe. If our faith exists only inside of us, invisible to the world, we have a lot of spiritual foundation to build.

Josiah was a good king. “And like unto him was there no king before him, that turned to the Lord with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; neither after him arose there any like him.” What a compliment! I think it’s very hard to be king and be humble. The temptations of the world are very high. Can you imagine how hard it is to be humble and teachable while everyone praises and worships you? It sounds almost impossible. It shows how truly humble Josiah was. He is a good example of how we all should be.