A Renewed Faith - 2 Kings 23:1-3

Introduction

In July, we had the opportunity to spend some time on the Gulf Coast. Our oldest two are finally at the age where they can really enjoy the ocean without mom or dad holding them up. So, we kind of set the parameters for them as to how deep that they could go, and Megan and I enjoyed watching them play from the beach. And, they’re riding body boards and having fun, but they’re not paying attention to where we are. And you know how this goes, gradually they drift further and further down the beach without realizing it, and Megan and I would have to go and get them to bring them closer.

That’s a good picture of how many of us might describe our faith. We met Jesus, and we desired to honor him, live for him, and to stay close to him. We started by just playing in the waves close by, but without realizing it, we began to drift further and further away. It was just an inch here and a foot there. It was so subtle and slow we didn’t recognize it. But, then the riptides of work and parenting and marriage and sickness began to take us further and further away. So, today, you’re exhausted and drowning, unsure of how to escape. It seems like a long time since you had a thriving faith that could anchor you in the stormy beaches of your life.

God’s Word

That’s similar to what happened in Judah when Josiah came along. They were adrift, and they had drifted for so long and were so far away that they had no recollection of a time when God seemed near. And, Josiah recognizes that they needed rescue, and he recognizes that they needed rescue by means of a renewed faith in their God. A Pathway to a Renewed Faith: (Headline)

Recognize the “need” for “renewal.”

If God told you that you were good with him and would live in peace, how would you respond? Your answer to that question indicates if you really understand the gospel and have really encountered God. You see, human nature is to say that a peaceful life is good enough, that to know a little of God is to know enough of God. But, whenever you read in the gospels that someone had a life-altering in encounter with the Son of God, they can never have enough. They’ve found the source of life, and they want more and more life. They’ve received from Jesus the greatest gift with the greatest hope, and they want to know best how to honor him and express their love for him.

Josiah knew God like that. He hears the Law of God in what appears to me to be a conversion experience, and when we turn to chapter 23 he’s leading all of Judah to renew their covenant with God. He understands that the only hope for drowning people is a renewed faith to anchor them to hope. In verse 3, Josiah was showing his people and is showing us what a renewed faith looks like, and there’s a place for us to evaluate our faith to see if it’s need of renewal. With a renewed faith...

God is your chief “pursuit.”

2 Kings 23:3 “And the king stood by the 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 his heart and all his soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people joined in the covenant.”

There’s really two components to the renewed faith that Josiah expresses in verse three. The first component expresses how you live your life. These are characteristics and priorities that are observable from the outside. Think of what it means “to walk after the Lord and to keep his command.” It’s to say, “God, I’m not interested in my own path. I will only go where you send me. I’ll only go where I know that you are. I’ll only take the steps that you say take. I’ll only do what you say do.” That is, God is your first commitment and top priority.

That is, the renewed faith is a decisive one. It’s to decide straightaway that your life is going to be a godward one. You don’t have to debate sexual ethics. You’ve predetermined that God’s way is your way. You don’t have to weigh the pros and cons of leaving your husband or staying with him. Your scales are always tipped toward what God has said. You don’t measure the rightness of an action by considering both your friend’s opinion and God’s. God’s opinion is the only one you count. Your life is on a decisive path toward holiness and godliness. Now, I didn’t say a perfect path, but a decisive one. It’s a life for which every decision and every step is aimed at God.

That leads us to the second component:

God is your greatest “passion.”

2 Kings 23:3 “And the king stood by the 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 his heart and all his soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people joined in the covenant.”

The second component expresses why you live like you do. This resides in the heart and soul of the person. Only they know it and recognize it. Josiah wasn’t just going to walk in the way of God robotically because he had to do it. He was going to do it “with all his heart and all his soul.” That is, he was going to live a life fast after God because it was his passion, his overwhelming desire to do so.

A renewed faith in an impassioned one. To simply keep the rules as though God were a warden is a pathway of misery that dishonors God. But, when you’re living in a desert that spends every hour of every day sucking the life out of you in the sweltering heat, and you discover that there is a God who has bought you a fountain with the life of his own Son. Man, you don’t want to be anywhere else. You want to be where there is life. You want to be where there is hope. You want to be where there is joy and peace. So, it’s a godward life driven by a godward passion.

The Heidelberg Catechism summarizes a true, renewed faith this way: “What is the chief end of man? To glorify God and enjoy him forever!” That’s what Josiah is talking about. That’s what I’m talking about. Not mindless rule following. Passion! Not feely, flighty emotions. A substantial life aimed at God. An inward-outward devotion to the only One who will not betray your devotion. Is this what your faith looks like? Do you need renewal?

There’s a second step along the path of renewal:

Deal “ruthlessly” with your “sin.”

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus says some really radical things our sin. He says that if you harbor anger that you’re a murderer. If you lust, you’re an adulterer. And, he says we must deal ruthlessly with our sin that we might avoid hell. If our right eye is causing us to sin, we should gouge it out. If our right arm is causing us to sin, we should cut it off. You see, Jesus isn’t nearly as casual about our sin as we want to believe He is. He says to deal ruthlessly with it.

We should deal ruthlessly with our sin because: Unrepentant sin extinguishes the renewal of faith. Josiah enacts sweeping spiritual reforms across Judah and beyond as he seeks to renew the covenant between God and his people. We see in Josiah the form repentance must take as we travel the path of renewal.

That is our...

Repentance must be “radical.”

2 Kings 23:4-6 “And the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest and the priests of the second order and the keepers of the threshold to bring out of the temple of the Lord all the vessels made for Baal, for Asherah, and for all the host of heaven. He burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of the Kidron and carried their ashes to Bethel. And he deposed the priests whom the kings of Judah had ordained to make offerings in the high places at the cities of Judah and around Jerusalem; those also who burned incense to Baal, to the sun and the moon and the constellations and all the host of the heavens. And he brought out the Asherah from the house of the Lord, outside Jerusalem, to the brook Kidron, and burned it at the brook Kidron and beat it to dust and cast the dust of it upon the graves of the common people.”

Like a man who gouges out his eye and cuts off his hand, Josiah pulls no punches and spares no effort when it comes to dealing with the sinfulness and idolatry that had filled Judah. He finds the priests leading the worship of false gods and he deposes them. He goes to these gods that are supposed to hold great sway and power in the cosmos, and he shows just how weak and impotent they are. He drags them out of the temple and “burned” them and “beat (them) to dust.”

That’s a lot different than we normally treat our stored idols and favorite sins. We attempt to operate on our favorite sins with a scalpel. We want to keep as much as possible with as little change as possible. Josiah uses a chainsaw to saw off everything close to a sin. He’s more concerned with being right with God than he is with enjoying the tiny trinkets that moths and rust destroy. What sins do you want to keep? What sins are you hoping I don’t mention? What sins are waiting on you when you get home today? Those are the sins that must deal with most radically. Drag them out of your house and into the yard. Burn them, and grind them to dust. They’re promising you pleasure while sucking the life out of you.

Josiah goes a step farther in his radical repentance. He shows us that our....

Repentance must be “fearless.”

2 Kings 23:8 “And he brought all the priests out of the cities of Judah, and defiled the high places where the priests had made offerings, from Geba to Beersheba. And he broke down the high places of the gates that were at the entrance of the gate of Joshua the governor of the city, which were on one’s left at the gate of the city.”

2 Kings 23:10 “And he defiled Topheth, which is in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, that no one might burn his son or his daughter as an offering to Molech.”

2 Kings 23:13 “And the king defiled the high places that were east of Jerusalem, to the south of the mount of corruption, which Solomon the king of Israel had built for Ashtoreth the abomination of the Sidonians, and for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, and for Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.”

2 Kings 23:16 “And as Josiah turned, he saw the tombs there on the mount. And he sent and took the bones out of the tombs and burned them on the altar and defiled it, according to the word of the Lord that the man of God proclaimed, who had predicted these things.”

It says in verse 8 that Josiah “defiled” the high places. That is, he went to the places that where these other gods were worshiped and sacrificed to, and he did his best to desecrate them. He’d drag bones upon them because the dead were seen as unclean. He’d take their own priests and sacrifice them upon the altars where children had been sacrificed. And, what’s he doing? He’s spitting in the face of the false gods. He’s telling them that he’s not afraid of them, and he knows they can’t do a darn thing to stop him. It’s a way of putting all of his chips upon the Lord.

There ought to be some defiance in our repentance. The world says you can’t be happy without spending on yourself. What if you were defiant? What if you were determined to show what a pitiful god money is and you gave away large sums to people who can never do anything for you? The world says you need freedom from your responsibilities if you’re going to enjoy the tiny life you had. What if in defiance of the world you started taking responsibility for kids at church and for suffering in the community that doesn’t even impact you? You see, Jesus Christ has been raised from the dead. There is a greater life to come. We can defy and abandon all of the sins of self-indulgence we’re tempted with here. Let’s not just turn away from our sins. Let’s defy them!

And, Josiah didn’t stop within his territory. He was the king of Judah in the low country, but revival so filled his heart that he couldn’t stop. He went north to Samaria and Bethel. You see,

Repentance must be “expansive.”

2 Kings 23:19-20 “And Josiah removed all the shrines also of the high places that were in the cities of Samaria, which kings of Israel had made, provoking the Lord to anger. He did to them according to all that he had done at Bethel. And he sacrificed all the priests of the high places who were there, on the altars, and burned human bones on them. Then he returned to Jerusalem.”

We ought to be on a mission in our life to have our repentance reach every corner of our hearts and every area of our life. Let me ask you this: Will you let God touch your untouchable sins? Will you open the hidden closets of your life and let him in there? Will you let him deal with your secret affair? Will you let him deal with your stealing and lying? Will you let him deal with your greed? Will you let him have control of your social media and porn addictions? That’s what renewal will take.

Approach “God” on his “terms.”

Our doctrine of God drives everything that we do. And, a proper understanding of who God is and how we are to approach him is our only hope of real, lasting renewal. We must recognize that we don’t get to approach God or worship God in any way we choose. We don’t decide how renewal comes. God does!

And, that’s what we’re seeing as Israel reinstitute the Passover. They’re seeking to come to God and worship God on his terms. And, the Passover was a gift God had given them long ago that they might remember his love for them and be renewed. A proper doctrine of God meant for them and us that we must...

“Return” in “humility.”

2 Kings 23:21-23 “And the king commanded all the people, “Keep the Passover to the Lord your God, as it is written in this Book of the Covenant.” For no such Passover had been kept since the days of the judges who judged Israel, or during all the days of the kings of Israel or of the kings of Judah. But in the eighteenth year of King Josiah this Passover was kept to the Lord in Jerusalem.”

You see, the Passover was a bloody event. In the original Passover in Egypt, lamb’s blood was painted over the doorposts of the house so that death would passover them. In Josiah’s event, there would’ve been a bull or ram slaughtered and offered for every 10 or so people in the nation. We’re talking tens of thousands of animals slain. But while it was the blood of bulls and rams was spilled, it should have been the people themselves, “for there is no remission of sin without the shedding of blood.”

It’s a reminder that sinners don’t strut into the presence of this God and tell him who He is and what He must do. He is a holy and transcendent God before whom every knee will bow. We can come to him only one way — through the blood of his Son. And, you can’t look upon the Son of God nailed for you and be casual in your sin.

But, once you recognize the holiness and transcendence of God, you’re ready for the life-giving, renewing imminence and accessibility of God. Passover invited its participants back in humility and to...

“Rest” in “grace.”

2 Kings 23:21-23 “And the king commanded all the people, “Keep the Passover to the Lord your God, as it is written in this Book of the Covenant.” For no such Passover had been kept since the days of the judges who judged Israel, or during all the days of the kings of Israel or of the kings of Judah. But in the eighteenth year of King Josiah this Passover was kept to the Lord in Jerusalem.”

Very often, in Passover, the celebrants would dress themselves for travel because they had to be ready to go when God said go. But, they would eat the meal while laying on the couch. Why? Because God’s love and provision for them had been proven all those years ago when the angel of death passed over them.

Your renewal and rest is not dependent upon the blood of goats and lambs. Your renewal and rest has been bought outright by the blood of God himself. You see, the cross is the doorway to renewal. When you visit the cross, you’re reminded that there’s no debt hanging over you and no problem that’s insurmountable. You don’t have to beat yourself up over your past sins. It’s paid in full. Repent and rest in grace. You don’t have to worry about what you’re going to miss out on. You’ve been chosen by Jesus for abundant life. Abide in him and rest in grace. You don’t have to fear what’s going to happen in the future. Jesus’ resurrection assures your future. Wait for him and rest in grace.

You see, a renewed faith allows you to...

“Remember” what “matters.”

2 Kings 23:25 “Before him there was no king like him, who 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, nor did any like him arise after him.”

Josiah left behind quite a legacy. The narrator sums up his reign by saying: “there was no king like him.” In a lineage that included David, Solomon, Uzziah, and Hezekiah, Josiah was incomparable. But, how? It doesn’t say that he was the greatest warrior. He wasn’t. That surely was David. It doesn’t say that he was the greatest builder. He wasn’t. That surely was Solomon. It doesn’t say that he was the greatest reformer. That was Hezekiah. But, what set him apart from all the others was that he “turned to the Lord with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his might.” Josiah’s legacy is that he always kept the main thing the main thing. He is remembered as a man without scandal and without ever bringing shame to his God.

That is, what set Josiah apart was that his eyes never drifted from the Lord. You see, when Gracie and Sara were playing in the ocean and kept drifting away, Megan and I told them that they needed to continually look up and find us. That would keep them close. And, if we want to stay on a path of renewed faith and not drift away from the Lord, our eyes, like Josiah, must remain on him. Where are your eyes?