Reflections on Josiah's Life and Legacy

By: Adam McClendon

Adam is the Lead Pastor at Springhill Church and the Director of New Line Ministries.

Josiah is one of my favorite kings mentioned in the Bible (2 Kngs 22-23).  Josiah began to rule at the age of 8 and eventually went on to initiate one of the greatest reform movements in Israel’s history.  The catalyst for this reform was none other than the power of the Word of God.  The kings and the nation had strayed from God’s plan and lived in violation of his covenant faithfulness.  They had abandoned God. 

Yet, even in the midst of this dark time, God’s Word was there, and when Hilkiah, the High Priest, brought the lost Law of God to Josiah, his response was remarkable.  He was broken and cried out in repentance (2 Kngs 22:11)!  He then called the nation to repent and return to the Lord.

While this story is so powerful, it also has a sad ending.  Josiah dies in battle and leaves the throne to godless sons (Jer 22:11, 18).  One son is foolish and self-absorbed and ends up imprisoned in Egypt (2 Kngs 22:31-33; Jer 22:11-17).  Another son is nothing more than an evil puppet for Pharaoh (2 Kngs 23:36-24:6).  On top of all of this, the spiritual leaders left in the wake of Josiah’s death were self-serving and evil (Jer 23:1-2).

As I think about the faithfulness of Josiah and the faithlessness of those who followed after him, I am confronted with these thoughts.

* Do I examine my life in light of the truth of God’s Word or by cultural standards?

* Is my heart still sensitive to the Word of God like Josiah’s?  Does my sin, no matter how small I may think it is, still disgust and break me and bring me to repentance?

* How am I helping raise up faithful leaders who will serve as soldiers for the glory of Christ alongside of me and, prayerfully, even one day replace me (2 Tim 2:1-3)?

* Do I acknowledge the shepherding work of God and see it as my privilege to serve as an undershepherd, under his authority, building his people?

* Am I pouring Christ into those over whom God has given me the privilege of serving? 

* Do I use my position for personal gain (even if only to boost my ego), or am I dying to self so that Christ may live through me to build his church?  Do I understand that my life exists solely to be used as a stepping stone for other people to draw closer to Christ?

As I think of Josiah, I am challenged by his humility and sensitivity to God’s Word.  I’m also saddened by the lack of spiritual legacy left behind.

May God bless our efforts to continue to serve as conduits through whom he can work, so that the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ might be proclaimed to all.

2 Corinthians 4:4-6: “4 The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 5 For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. 6 For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.”

Psalm 48:9

By: Adam McClendon
www.newlineministries.com



The following is a poem written out of a meditation on Psalm 48:9.  Enjoy.

Psalm 48:9

"Within your temple, O God,

we meditate on your unfailing love."

Acknowledging Your Presence, I enter in

Despite myself, my life, my sin

Humbly with my face bent down

You place on me Your royal crown

For as Your son, You let me in

To meet with You as son and friend

I sit and think while in this state

To listen in silence to meditate

Upon your love which will not fail

Despite my efforts which seems so frail

Your love lasts, it outlasts time

It covers and floods this soul of mine

Your care, Your touch carry it

To my life which seems unfit

Despite my state You act in love

To set my eyes on You above

It’s for Your glory and my best

You pull me close upon your chest

Discipline and mercy are loving grace

To set my feet firm in their place

So You in me and I in You

Until this world I bid adieu

Gates of Glory

By: Adam McClendon

www.newlineministries.com

Psalm 23:6: Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

David is not rushing to get home, but by the way he ends this Psalm, it also becomes apparent that he realizes the ultimate experience lies beyond this world.  God’s ultimate provision, God’s ultimate satisfaction will not be experienced until David dwells securely in the presence of the almighty in heaven.

In other words, he proclaims that the glories of this earth cannot compare with the gates of glory.  Despite all his confidence in God’s providential care in this life, David’s ultimate desire is to dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

As we work on this perspective, two important thoughts need to be highlighted:

1. The world is insufficient: Something better awaits.  The best this world offers is incomplete.

This world was does not satisfy.  The world is not sufficient.  Something better is needed and something better awaits.

Much of the pain and misery, much of the disappointment and emptiness we experience seems to come from the looking to gain from this world, what can only be gain in the world to come.

We want eternal comfort now, but we are not yet home. 

2.   God has a place for all his sheep.

David is picking up on the idea that there is an eternal home in which David, along with all of God’s sheep, will enjoy peacefully dwelling in the presence of the Most High forever.

Notice here that we will not experience the fullness of God refreshment until heaven.  It is there that God’s path of righteousness ultimately leads.  That’s why the Psalmist ends with a declaration concerning the house of the Lord, which is his dwelling place in heaven.

Just think.  For the believer in Christ, (gospel) for you who have trusted in Christ’s death and resurrection as the payment for your sin penalty, you have an eternal home where you can dwell securely in the presence of God forever.

* No more sneezing, because no allergies there

* No more debt

* No more speeding tickets

* No more indigestion

* No more back pain

* No more dialysis

* No more chemotherapy

* No more anxiety

* No more temptation

* No more cooking burns

* No more orphans

* No more AIDS

* No more hunger

* No more kidnappings or murder

* No more road rage

* No more oil spills

* No more lonely nights

* No more hectic mornings

* No more regret the morning after

* No more guilt

* No more relationship conflict (broken engagements, angry in-laws, upset spouse)

David then ends his beautiful song reminding us that: the glories of this world cannot compare with the gates of glory.  I hope to see you there.

www.newlineministries.com

Gracious Host: Pt 2

By: Adam McClendon

www.newlineministries.com 

Last week, I posted about the graciousness of God and the heart of thanks that should flow from recognizing all that he has done for us based on Psalm 23. 

In thinking on those ideas, some questions naturally arose.  What practically can we do?  What can we do to help focus on him?  What can we do to be more thankful and less “Captain Grumpy-Pants”? 

In light of those questions, here are four tips to help us shift our focus off of the distractions of this world that try and rob us from seeing the blessings of God in our midst.

1. We need to remember that God is good and be thankful in (not necessarily for) all circumstances.

2. We need to remember that God does not exist for our comfort, but his glory and his purpose in bringing the gospel to the nations.

3. We need to remember that we are never forsaken by God regardless of how anything may feel.

4. We need to reflect on the blessings that are all around us and not take them for granted.  Below are a few blessings upon which I’ve recently reflected:

* God has given me great shelter. 

* God has given me a heart for him.

* God has given me his word. 

* God has given me the ability to work and a job.

* God has given me friends.

* God has given me gracious reminders of his presence in creation.

* God has given me Christian music where his truth is wonderfully and creatively put to music. 

* God has given me the ability to speak.

* God has given me the opportunity to learn more about the things of God through books and education.

* God has given me the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit who will never leave me. 

* God has given me food and water. 

* God never lets me fall too far.

* God has given me a godly, gospel-centered church.

* God has given me a life of laughter and fun. 

* God has given me a new identity, whereby, I am a child of God and my past no longer determines who I am.

* God has placed me in a time with great technological advances where I can stay connected with my family even when I am away.

* God has placed me in a country where I am not physically persecuted for my faith.

God has been so good to us.

Let’s stop looking at the difficulties, and focus on the blessing because gazing upon grace should bring gratitude.

Let’s stop looking at things that rob us from seeing God’s glorious graciousness in our life.

www.newlineministries.com 

Gracious Host: Pt. 1

By: Adam McClendon

www.newlineministries.com

Psalm 23:5: You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

Even in the midst of hostile territory when danger lurks all around, God’s people are a blessed people.  We often think of our blessing in heaven, but we are blessed even in this world.  Let’s not miss it.

These blessings are both physical and spiritual and we should acknowledge them.

First, every physical provision we have in our lives is a gift from God and should invoke gratitude.

A pastor from the 1500’s wrote, “All men, it is true, are not treated with the same liberality with which David was treated; but there is not an individual who is not under obligation to God by the benefits which God has conferred upon him so that we are constrained to acknowledge that he is a kind and liberal Father to all his people. … If he is ungrateful who, having only a coarse loaf, does not acknowledge in that the fatherly providence of God, how much less can the stupidity of those be tolerated, who glut themselves with the great abundance of the good things of God which they possess, without having any sense or taste of his goodness towards them” (Calvin Commentary, Psalms, 397)?

What a great quote.  In other words, if we would acknowledge that someone who only has one meal needs to be thankful for that one meal, how much more ought we to be thankful for all that we have.

Secondly, God has provided significant and sufficient spiritual blessing.

God has provided his children with victory and blessing in front of the enemy.

Ephesians 1:3–4, 7-8: ³ Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. ⁴ For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. … ⁷ In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace ⁸ that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.

These blessings are ours now.  We have been blessed now while living in an enemy occupied territory.

These two ways we have been blessed should foster within us a great sense of gratitude; unfortunately, all too often we ignore the blessings in front of us while longing for that which we don’t have.  Three forces which foster a thankless heart.

1. Comparison: A compulsion exists to compare ourselves to others.  We always think everyone else has it better.  It’s a lie!

2. Culture: Commercials are one example.  They are simply designed to entice discontentment.

3. Circumstances: Specifically, when we experience bad or hard circumstances, we tend to miss the blessings we do have.

Since these three forces tend to foster a thankless heart, here are three brief warnings.  We need to:

1. Beware of the “What if?”  The reality is that it could always be worse. 

2. Beware of the “Why me?”  No one is exempt from tragedy.  The reality is that we live in a fallen world.  We sometimes experience the consequences of bad decisions, whether ours or someone else’s.

3. Beware of the “I’m mad at God.”  We don’t know how God may have intervened to keep circumstances from being worse than they were.  The reality is that we are not God and there is a lot about life and how circumstances are interrelated that we simply don’t know.  The reality is we are called to be God’s servant; he is not called to be ours.  My life is to be his and he is good.

So, let’s be thankful.  Let’s fix our eyes on Jesus the author, perfecter, and shepherd of our faith.  We’ll talk more on this topic next week.

www.newlineministries.com

Supreme Shepherd

By: Adam McClendon

www.newlineministries.com

Psalm 23:3b: He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.

What is God’s goal in shepherding his sheep down the right path?  According to the last part of Psalm 23:6, it’s for the glory of his name.

God’s ultimate goal is not the comfort of our lives but the glory of his name proclaimed in our lives and to the nations, so that others might come to worship him rightly and experience the contentment and joy that comes from being in a right relationship with him.

The reason so many of us live life in constant tension is because we live life from a false center.  All too often, our goal is not “for his name’s sake” but for “my name’s sake”.  Disagree?

Then… 

* Why do our churches have to offer plaques and memorials for everything to get donations?  I would love to walk into a church one day and see a plaque that says, “Donated in memory of Jesus.  Because He’s awesome and I’d have nothing without him anyway.”

* Why do we spend considerably more time wondering what other people think about us, rather than, wondering what God thinks about us?  For example, when we are fixing our hair in the morning or choosing our outfits for the day, are we seeking to honor Christ in those moments or wondering what people will think of us when they see us and worrying too much about how we will look in front of others? What if our question in the most basic function in life was “God, what do you want from me in this situation?”  What if our genuine deepest desire was to glorify his name through our lives each day by simply living in obedience to his leadership?

We were born with a factory setting focused on self and this world.  As a result, a reprogramming of the mind is required to truly get to the place where we understand that our path in this life is to be lived for “his name’s sake” alone.  His glory is to be the central focus and motivator in every venue in life.

Here are a few other verses for us:

Psalm 25:11: For the sake of your name, O Lord, forgive my iniquity, though it is great.

Psalm 31:3–5: ³ Since you are my rock and my fortress, for the sake of your name lead and guide me.  ⁴ Free me from the trap that is set for me, for you are my refuge.  ⁵ Into your hands I commit my spirit; redeem me, O Lord, the God of truth.

Psalm 79:9–10: ⁹ Help us, O God our Savior, for the glory of your name; deliver us and forgive our sins for your name’s sake.  ¹⁰ Why should the nations say, “Where is their God?”  Before our eyes, make known among the nations that you avenge the outpoured blood of your servants.

Psalm 106:8: Yet he saved them for his name’s sake, to make his mighty power known.

Psalm 143:11: For your name’s sake, O Lord, preserve my life; in your righteousness, bring me out of trouble.

When we understand that our lives are a means through which God can manifest his glory to the nations, it changes everything.  The Supreme Shepherd is working in our lives for “his name’s sake.”  The path down which God is Shepherding us is a purpose that far exceeds any one of us individually.  We are part of a divine collage.

When we understand that our lives are guided for “his name’s sake,” we understand that we are part of something much bigger than ourselves.

Such a perspective should challenge and change us in dramatic ways.

www.newlineministries.com