A Joy-Filled Journey

The kings in Jesus' lineage have not finished teaching us.  On this third Sunday of Advent, we'll consider the proclamation of joy.  For so many of us, we think that the only joy from the birth of Jesus is the forgiveness of sins and assurance of eternity with God.  But God has so much more joy to offer us than something gained in the past and hoped for in the future.  We can know a daily joy, if we will learn the lessons God has tucked away in the lives of these remaining sons of David.  From Matthew 1:6-11.

Introduction

This third week of Advent is the week of proclamation and joy, specifically recalling the announcement of the angels to the shepherds:  “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord” (Luke2:10-11, NIV84).

The coming of Christ fulfills both the promise to Abraham, that all peoples would be blessed through his descendant, and to David, that his Son would reign on his throne forever.

But the coming of Christ is not a cause for joy to all people, sadly!  He came at first to provide forgiveness for sins to all who believe in Him.  But to those who refuse, they remain in their sins; they don’t experience the joy of true forgiveness.  More than that, they don’t experience the joy that comes from repenting of their wrong ways and learning to walk in Jesus’ right ways.

Catch that:  The joy Christ brings is not just the joy of salvation, but an abiding joy of walking in obedience to His commands.  John records these words of Jesus in chapter 15 of his Gospel (15:9-11, NIV84): “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.”

There is a joy that comes from walking in obedience to the Father.  Jesus knew it and He came to share that joy to us.

We saw last week how David’s sons, kings in the genealogy of Jesus, pointed out the path of peace (and potholes that could derail us).  These are the same things that make for joy—or sabotage it—in our relationship with God.  These kings have so much to teach us that we couldn’t get through them all.  We’ll cover the rest today and see what secrets they reveal about maintaining joy in God.

Jehoram, Doomed by Love (Joram)

You’ll remember from last week that Jehoshaphat was a great example of obedience and devotion to God, though he got one thing wrong: loving those who hate God.  It appears he sealed his alliance with Ahab king of Israel by the marriage of his son Jehoram to Ahab’s daughter Athaliah.  Either that or he thought it was an appropriate way to underscore the union between the kingdoms of Judah and Israel.  They were, after all, one big family.  But it was a horrible idea.  God had expressly forbidden marriage to worshipers of other gods, knowing they would draw His people away (Deuteronomy 7:1-4).

Sadly, Jehoram put flesh to that truth.  He walked in the ways of Ahab and his family. No sooner was his father dead and himself ascended to the throne than he killed all his brothers (2Chronicles 21:1-4).  He led the people back into idol worship, after the pattern of his father-in-law, rather than in faithfulness to God like his own father.

Both 2 Kings 8 and 2 Chronicles 21 record this statement: “Nevertheless, because of the covenant the LORD had made with David, the LORD was not willing to destroy the house of David. He had promised to maintain a lamp for him and his descendants forever” (2 Chronicles 21:7, NIV84).

Jehoram enjoyed mercy because he belonged to the house and line of David, and God had committed to maintaining a son of David on Judah’s throne.  But that doesn’t mean God would overlook Jehoram’s sin.  There was no joy for God, and no joy from God.

Elijah sent a letter of rebuke to Jehoram, but he didn’t repent.  As promised by the Lord through Elijah, the surrounding nations attacked and succeeded against Jehoram, and Jehoram himself was struck by a severe disease of the bowels.  All his sons but the youngest were captured and killed by invaders.  Jehoram suffered for two years from his disease, until his bowels came out and he died in agony—“to no one’s regret,” as the last verse of 2 Chronicles 21 says.

As believers, we enjoy mercy from God because of Jesus’ righteousness, not our own. That doesn’t mean we’re free to live however we desire.  God saved us to walk in righteousness, and in righteousness we must train ourselves to walk.  That includes the continuing injunction against being bound together with unbelievers, as in marriage or business partnership or anything else where unbelievers have excessive influence over you (2 Corinthians 6:14-18).  That might bring you earthly joy, but it saps the joy from your relationship with God.

God calls us to righteousness, but our flesh longs for the pleasures of sin.  Bind yourself together with someone who has no such compulsion to restrain their flesh and you—or your children—will be drawn after them.  The lusts of our flesh and the pleasures of this world are powerful enticements to casts off godly restraint.  You’re deceiving yourself if you think God will preserve you if you douse yourself in gasoline and light a match.  He may protect you when cast into a blazing furnace for holding fast to Him, but not if you charge headlong in disobedience to His clear instructions.

Did you ever wonder why 2/3rds of our children turn their back on Christ and His church?  We need to look to the choices we’re making, the godly principles we’ve violated, the example we set for our children.  We need to repent and return to God with a whole heart, or else we’re dooming our children and others around us to an eternity without Christ.  Indeed, we need to ask ourselves if we even care what God thinks.  If we’re not convicted, we may not even belong to Christ.

Uzziah, Learning Limits (Azariah)

Matthew was led to jump over the next three kings in David’s line, two of which did all right, at least for part of their reign, but end up with no mention here.  We’ll follow Matthew’s lead and skip them too.

That bring us to Uzziah.  He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, except that he didn’t remove the high places where people continued to offer sacrifices, perhaps to God as well as to other gods.

Uzziah received the kingdom at age 16, but he had a mentor who loved the Lord and instructed him in the fear of the Lord.  For all the days of that mentor, Uzziah did well and enjoyed success in all he did.  Can you imagine the joy God showered on him for his faithfulness?

Unfortunately, as 2 Chronicles 26:16 tells us, “But after Uzziah became powerful, his pride led to his downfall. He was unfaithful to the LORD his God, and entered the temple of the LORD to burn incense on the altar of incense.”

He had such joy in serving God that he thought he should also have the privilege of serving as a priest.  He pushed past boundaries that God had set for him and for anyone not of the family of Aaron.  He confused God’s blessing and honor of him as king with immunity from God’s express limitations, even on kings.

Pride is a scary thing.  Especially when it comes from diligently following the Lord and enjoying His blessing on our efforts.  We can start to think that limits God has placed on His people don’t apply to us, because we’re so special in His eyes!  That is pride.

When it’s no longer God teaching and directing our obedience, but it is us deciding what we have to and what we don’t have to obey, we have crossed the line from submission to arrogance.  God has limits still in place that we’re obligated to submit to, if we love and trust Him.

For example, as an ordinary citizen of the United States, I have no right to carry out vigilante justice.  I can’t be Batman.  As someone born male, I have to accept that that is what God intended and I need to behave as a man.  I can’t choose to be a woman or act the part of a woman.  You who are women are not permitted to teach or have authority over a man, especially in the church (1 Timothy 2:11-15)—what sinners do, sinners will do; they don’t care what God thinks.  But you and I should, if we’re humble and seeking to please Him.  He has set all kinds of boundaries for us, and we who claim to believe in Him need to accept His limitations.

While Uzziah was arguing with the priests, God took matters into His own hands and struck Uzziah with leprosy.  Suddenly, Uzziah was all too happy to exit the Temple!  He remained a leper to the day of his death, living away from everyone in his own house. He was excluded from the temple and from everyday life.  His rejection of God’s natural limitations earned him new restrictions—that he apparently submitted to.

There is far more joy in submitting to God’s limits than in disregarding them.

Jotham, Steadfast Obedience

Jotham followed in his father’s good footsteps.  He did right in the eyes of the Lord, though like his father, he didn’t remove the high places.  2 Chronicles 27:2 points out that unlike his father, Jotham did not go into the temple.  He learned from his father’s mistake.  As each one of us should be learning from the testimony of those who went before us, especially from those whose lives are recorded in Scripture.

Jotham had success whenever he made war on Judah’s enemies.  2 Chronicles 27:6 (NIV84) testifies that “Jotham grew powerful because he walked steadfastly before the LORD his God.”

As believers in Jesus Christ, that’s a principle each one of us should take to heart.  Who knows in what ways God can make us powerful if we steadfastly walk before the Lord in His ways.

Ahaz, Admiring Men

Jotham’s son, Ahaz, however, did not learn from his father to walk in the ways of the Lord.  Instead, he looked across the border to Israel and chose to follow their practices. Why he rejected the Lord is unknown.

He was perhaps the second worst king in all of Judah’s history.  He sacrificed to other gods, he sacrificed his son in the fire, he promoted the detestable practices of the Canaanites, people God marked for destruction.  He didn’t fear God at all!

Instead, he seems to have feared and perhaps admired the might of Israel and Assyria more than the Lord.  He didn’t turn to the Lord for help or trust in Him, so the Lord allowed Israel to humiliate Judah.  Ahaz turned to the king of Assyria, asking him to attack Aram and Israel, and he obliged.  Ahaz went out of his way to change things in Jerusalem and even in the Lord’s temple to please the king of Assyria.  So Ahaz trusted more in the power of men than in the power of God.  He feared the power of men rather than the power of God.  Yet all the time, it was God handing him over to the power of these other kings.  He just didn’t get it.

And what a warning that is to us who claim to believe in Jesus.  How many of us admire the might or cleverness or success of men, especially those who care nothing for God, who perhaps even blaspheme God?

How many biographies of successful people have you read, in hopes of learning something to advance your own success?  How many of them actually love the Lord Jesus Christ?  Are you more inclined to read their books over God’s Book?  What is more important to you?  Success in this life, or success you can carry with you into God’s eternal kingdom?  Is it earthly joy you seek or eternal?

Be careful what you read.  Be careful what you watch.  You are learning something, but it may be principles contrary to God’s Word and ways.  Already, if you’re more interested in getting rich or more successful in this world, your heart is drifting further from God.

As believers in Jesus Christ, our life purpose should be to know the Lord so well that we gain a joyful welcome into Heaven.  1 Timothy 6:9-10 (NIV84) tells us:  “People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”

Ahaz brought great calamity on himself and on his people.  We have fled to Jesus Christ to save our souls.  Are we concerned for the souls around us?  Our families?  Our friends?  Our neighbors?  Or do we join them as they plunge headlong into a flood of worldly joys that lead to eternal grief?

Let it not be so.  Let us call our family and friends and neighbors to “pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness” (1 Timothy 6:11, NIV84).

Hezekiah, Hindered by Ingratitude

Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah are a great illustration of a lesson God taught through Ezekiel 18.  “The soul who sins will die.”  God speaks of a father who does what is good and right; he has a son who does the exact opposite; then the son has a son who sees all the evils of his father and decides to live in the fear of the Lord, doing what is just and right.  Jotham did well; Ahaz abandoned the ways of his father for the ways of wickedness; then Hezekiah sees the evil of his father and turns things completely around, back to where his grandfather was and even better.

Hezekiah removed all the high places, smashed all the idols, commanded the Temple be cleansed and restored to right service.  He held a Passover the likes of which hadn’t been seen since the days of Solomon!  2 Kings 18 gushes over him:

Hezekiah trusted in the LORD, the God of Israel. There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, either before him or after him. He held fast to the LORD and did not cease to follow him; he kept the commands the LORD had given Moses. And the LORD was with him; he was successful in whatever he undertook. He rebelled against the king of Assyria and did not serve him. (2 Kings 18:5-7)

He was the king who trusted God when the mighty Assyrian army came against Judah. They had wiped Israel from the map and were turning to Judah to bring Hezekiah back in line.  Hezekiah stood strong in faith and God sent an angel who killed 185,000 soldiers of the Assyrian army in one night.  The Assyrian king went home in disgrace and was killed by his sons!

But for all this, Hezekiah too fell into the trap of pride.  His fell ill and wept before the Lord and the Lord restored his health.  But he failed to respond correctly to the Lord’s kindness and incited the Lord to wrath.  Emissaries from Babylon came to honor him for his success and healing.  Hezekiah showed off his wealth and the greatness of his kingdom, as if he had brought it all about by himself.

What a challenge to us.  How often do we take credit for the kindness God shows to us? How often do we fail to honor Him for the good we enjoy?  How lightly we treat the sacrifice of His Son for the salvation of our souls, such that we don’t bother to put much effort into learning and practicing His ways in gratitude.

How much have we incited the Lord to wrath?  That’s not the way to lasting joy. Hezekiah repented, as did the people of Judah, and the Lord delayed the outpouring of His wrath to a later generation.  It’s not too late for us.  We too can still repent.  We can change our ways.  We can give God His rightful place in our lives.  We can live to serve and please Him, and stop living for the things of this life and this world.

Manasseh, the Worst

Hezekiah had a son in that latter part of his life, after his near-death experience. Manasseh seems to have absorbed the wrong of Hezekiah’s testimony rather than the good.

If Ahaz was the second worst of all Judah’s kings, Manasseh had to be the worst!  He undid all that his father had done.  He did everything Ahaz had done and more!  He filled the Lord’s House with the worship of all kinds of other gods and created things. He led Judah to do more evil than all the Canaanites, who were given over to destruction at the hands of the Israelites.

The Assyrians came against him and captured him.  They imprisoned him in Babylon, and while there, Manasseh did an amazing thing:  “In his distress he sought the favor of the LORD his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers. And when he prayed to him, the LORD was moved by his entreaty and listened to his plea; so he brought him back to Jerusalem and to his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the LORD is God” (2 Chronicles 33:12-13).

From that point on, Manasseh worked to undo all the sin he had brought into Judah.  He cleansed the temple and rid the city of false gods.  He offered his sacrifices to the Lord on His altar and called the people of Judah to do the same (they didn’t all listen).

But the damage was done.  Manasseh was forgiven, but God’s people had been so unfaithful again and again and again.  In Manasseh’s day, they had set a new low, and because of that, the Lord had sworn to cast Judah out of their land.  They would be exiled for 70 years—Manasseh bears the blame—but God would bring them back.

We have got to be quick to repent.  We must not go long in our sin.  When we know we are wrong, we must turn away from it and do all we can to make things right.  Quickly before things snowball and become far worse for us.  Manasseh was unique in that he did such evil, like no one before him, yet he repented.  God forbid any of us are going deeper and deeper into sin.  We need to catch ourselves as quickly as possible and throw ourselves into knowing and doing God’s will.

Amon, the Brief

That brings us to Amon, who, sadly, followed in the earlier ways of his father, worshiping his father’s old gods.  He didn’t humble himself like his father had done.  He didn’t repent.  But then, he wasn’t given much opportunity.  He reigned two years, then his officials killed him.  There seems to have been a lot of ill will toward evil kings.  Or else evil people simply turn on each other.  The people didn’t take joy in the officials who conspired against the king.  They killed the officials and put Amon’s 8-year-old son, Josiah, on the throne.

Josiah, Zealous for God

You just know Josiah had to have help behind the scenes.  And it was good help.  At age 16, he begins seeking the Lord and four years later he begins expansive reforms, bringing Judah back to worship the Lord correctly and running his kingdom by God’s Word.  He went beyond the borders of Judah into Samaria to cast down idols and destroy high places!

Along the way, they discovered the Book of the Law in the Temple.  When Josiah heard what it said, he knew they were in trouble.  He sent officials to inquire of the Lord, and they received word back that there was no stopping the wrath to come, but it would be delayed because of the tender heart of Josiah toward the Lord.

There is no stopping the wrath that is coming on this earth.  But there is perhaps the possibility of delaying it for another generation, to delay it from falling on your family and mine, if you and I will be responsive to the Lord, finding our greatest joy in knowing and doing what He desires.

The right response to knowing that you and I are safe in Jesus Christ is not to ignore the plight of those around us!  The right response is to redouble our efforts to warn the world and call them to repentance!

Sadly, Josiah insisted on fighting the king of Egypt who was on his way to fight Babylon. The Lord, through Pharaoh, tried to warn him off, but Josiah wouldn’t listen.  He ended up wounded in the battle and died a short time later.

As the people of God, we need to understand what God is trying to accomplish in the world and in our community around us.  We need to make sure we’re working with Him—not against Him—to attain His goals.  We don’t live to make ourselves look great, to put ourselves forward, to fight for our rights.  We must fight for what God wants and how He wants us to fight.  It is amazing to me that there can be Christians on opposite sides of the same moral issue, as if God is confused or clueless.  One side must be wrong; both cannot be right.  One side knows their God; the other is fighting for their wants.

Abortion is one of the defining issues of our day.  Sadly, there are many such issues. But the question of abortion isn’t difficult or unclear.  Some try to muddy the waters, calling it “health care,” but meaning contraception!  It’s wrong.  Period.  Those who know God, those who know His heart and His purposes and His commands know exactly where He stands!  But there are many who claim to love Jesus who will argue in favor of abortion.  They don’t know God!  And it’s the kind of ignorance that suggests they do not even have sufficient understanding to be saved!  Are they seeking the joy of God’s approval?  Or the joy of promiscuity without consequences?

Before we jump into a fight, we’d better be clear where God stands!  Christians must not work against God, because they may find themselves on the wrong side of His judgment!  How would you feel if Jesus actually did show up at a rally, and you found yourself raging against Him?  Do you really want to go against God?  There is no joy in that.

Jeconiah, End of the Line (Jehoiachin)

Three of Josiah’s sons spent time on the throne of Judah.  They cover a period of about 20 years, from the death of Josiah to the exile.  Of course, only one of those sons is in the line of Jesus, but none of them are mentioned by Matthew.  The first two sons were 22 and 25 years old when their father died; the third was 10 years old.  If Jeconiah, the son of the 25-year-old, was indeed 18 years old when he took the throne, he would have been 7 when his grandfather died.  He could very well have been raised in the same household—as if a little brother—alongside his father and uncles.  They all seemed cut from the same cloth, each in turn doing evil in the eyes of the Lord, rather than walking in the ways of Josiah.  It would not be difficult to see them all as brothers, especially for Jeconiah.

However, we’ll leave Jeconiah to next week, as he seems more connected to the exile than to the kings.

Conclusion

The evil kings of Jesus’ line missed a key element of God’s promise to David: They thought they could rule in whatever way they desired because of the promise; they misunderstood that God had definite expectations on them as inheritors of David’s promise.

We too make that same mistake, when we think we can believe in Jesus and live however we desire, as if God doesn’t care.  We take God’s promise to us through Jesus for granted, just as many of David’s descendants took God’s promise to David for granted.  But God’s promise to David came with a condition, as does God’s promise to us:  David’s sons were to walk in God’s ways; Jesus redeemed us to walk in God’s ways.

There is no joy in testing God to see how much sin you can get away with before He’s had enough of you.  Lay aside your pleasurable sins now.  Make every effort to live a life pleasing to the Lord who bought you with His own blood.

Psalm 97:10-12 (NIV84) says, “Let those who love the LORD hate evil, for he guards the lives of his faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked. Light is shed upon the righteous and joy on the upright in heart. Rejoice in the LORD, you who are righteous, and praise his holy name.”

Are you entertaining some evil in your life?  We’ve seen several possibilities today.

• Unbelievers who have no interest in repenting and turning to God?
• Rejection of God-ordained limits on your life?
• Inconsistent obedience?
• Admiration of unbelievers?
• Ingratitude toward God?
• Slowness to repent?
• Zeal without knowledge of God?

It’s time to hate it and put as much distance between you and it as possible.  The Lord sheds His joy upon those who love Him, who are faithful to Him, who are upright in heart.  You who are righteous can truly rejoice in the Lord.

Take some time this morning to confess to God the evil you tolerate in your life.  Tell Him you’re ready to give it up.  Plan what and how you’ll do things differently.

Work on humility.  Let godly people correct you where needed.  Put some distance between people who lead you away from God; get closer to those who will lead you in His ways.  Get rid of those influences that keep you distracted and inconsistent in obedience.  Set your heart on seeking the Lord.  We’re coming up on a new year and the time of resolutions.  Set your heart on reading God’s Word from cover to cover.  See who He is and what He delights in.  Do what He asks.  Don’t wait till January.  Start today.

Take a few moments right now to talk with God about what needs to change and how you’ll do it.

3 John 1:4 says, “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.”