Bible Passage: 2 Kings 12

We ended off the previous chapter with Jehoash being king at the age of seven. It is pretty hard to believe that a seven year old child could become king and govern over the people. When I was seven, I was still learning my nouns, verbs and math timetables. Yet Jehoash had to be mature way beyond his years and deal with matters that many adults are not able to do.

Jehoash started off right – he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord:

Jehoash did what was right in the sight of the Lord all the days in which Jehoiada the priest instructed him.

2 Kings 12:2

Indeed, as long as we put God first, everything else will fall into place nicely. When we do not know what to do or what decision to make, simply do what’s right and pleasing to God.

Sadly, what seemed like a promising reign ended terribly and tragically.

After the death of Jehoida the priest, Jehoash no longer did what was right in the eyes of God. 2 Chronicles 24:15-23 tells us that he turned to idolatry when Jehoiada died. He listened to the leaders of Judah, and strayed so far off the path of truth and righteousness. Instead of worshipping the true God, Jehoash worshipped other gods, and incurred the wrath of God against the people of Judah and Jerusalem. He even killed Zechariah, the son of Jehoida, for rebuking him.

How did someone who started off right turn out so wrong?

This is a very serious reminder for us today. First, do we truly believe in God and worship Him wholeheartedly? Or do we worship God just because of someone else? Jehoash’s faith disintegrated after the death of Jehoida. This shows that one’s faith has to be his own, and not built upon someone else. No one can build up our faith, we have to do it ourselves. We have to do our own spiritual nature, and learn the doctrines ourselves. No one else can do it for us, because no one else can give us eternal life, except our Lord Jesus.

Second, our faith has to be deep-rooted, not shallow. This reminds me of the parable of the sower. I think that the word of God is sown on stony ground in Jehoash’s heart and does not take root. This parable is one that is very familiar to us, but we ought to ask ourselves everytime, constantly evaluate our hearts, whether our hearts are good grounds for the word of God to take root in.

Lastly, we ought not to be complacent when it comes to our faiths. We may grow up in church, in a family of deacons or preachers, or have gone through many years of bible studies and theological courses. The spiritual journey is a very long one, and we need to constantly look out for obstacles that threaten to stumble our feet, or other roads that deviate us away from the right path. The devil is like a prowling lion, looking to devour unsuspecting christians who are not watchful. We have to be vigilant at all times, evaluate our faiths and not rest on our laurels.

May God guide us in our walk of faith.

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