2 Kings 10-12
God commissioned Jehu to clean up Israel. He wiped out all of the house of Ahab as well as the house and prophets of Baal. Jehu even took out Ahaziah, the evil King of Judah. God rewarded Jehu for his zeal by promising Israel’s throne to his sons for four generations. “But Jehu was not careful to walk in the law of the LORD, the God of Israel, with all his heart.” (2 Kings 10:31). Though he wiped out Baal, he did not remove the golden calves that were in Bethel and Dan. Thus he continued in the sins of Jeroboam, causing Israel to likewise not give their whole hearts to God alone.
I wonder about this. Why do all that he did, even proclaiming his zeal for God as he went, and then stop short of a full repentance? Was he, like Jeroboam, afraid that if he sent the Israelites to Jerusalem to worship and offer sacrifices to God, that they would turn away from him as their king? Clearly there was something his heart clung to that he would not turn over to God. This prompts me to examine my own heart. Is there any fear, pride, or greed that I am not giving to God? Am I allowing anything else to rule even a part of my heart in His place? God desires that we love and serve Him with our whole heart, not just part of it. Jesus himself tells us that we cannot serve two masters. So help me, LORD, to wholeheartedly serve you alone!
I was also thinking on God’s instruction to the people to offer their sacrifices only at the Temple in Jerusalem – the place He chose for His presence. It is noted in 2 Kings 12 that Joash (or Jehoash), like so many of Judah’s other kings, did not remove the high places, where people continued to sacrifice and make offerings. This is in contradiction to the singular location that God chose for this practice. But why the Temple only? I can certainly see the problem with the golden calves. But I believe the high places were simply altars located on mountaintops (high places) – no graven images involved. Perhaps the singular location is simply to emphasize that there is only one God. Or perhaps it is a little more than that.
The thought creeping into my mind this morning is that maybe the singular location is stark imagery of Jesus as the only way to God. The New Testament narrative makes it clear that the Temple is symbolic of Jesus. So it seems very reasonable to me that God’s requirement for the Jews to come to the Temple for sacrifices and offerings is a direct image of His requirement for all of us to come to Jesus to access God. The fact that the veil blocking access to the Holy of Holies was torn at Jesus’ death reinforces this thought to me. Practicing religion at the high places was not the same as seeking to be in God’s presence with humble-hearted submission to Him alone. Likewise, any attempt on my part to seek righteousness through any avenue other than Jesus alone, no matter how noble the deed, is just as futile.
James 4
Since we are talking about wholehearted commitment to God alone, let’s continue that thought. James 4:8 says, “Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.” Do you see it? That reference to serving two masters? Being wholeheartedly committed to God means to love Him with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind – your entire being.
The “double-minded” reference here in James indicates that there is something you are clinging to and not committing to God. You are serving two masters. When we find this to be the case, we need to purify our hearts. We need to remove those “high places” and return to Jesus. It is only then, with hearts humbled to receive God’s grace, that our desires will be God’s desires. Only then can we live in complete harmony with Him and love others as we should.