June 24 - Man of God

 Read today’s texts first: 2 Kings 11,12; 2 Chronicles 24; 1 Timothy 6

 MAXIMize YOUR DAY

He who floats his boat on the tide of public opinion
will soon be shipwrecked.

Paul called his young protégé “Man of God” (6:11), while encouraging him to stand up against false teachers. It takes a real man to resist social pressure, be it from authority figures, peers, or those who serve under us. Scripture continually teaches and illustrates how we should be dependent on God; in fact, that is a sign of spiritual maturity. But that doesn’t mean we should be dependent on people or easily swayed by public opinion. Spiritual maturity often calls for us to go against the flow of people pressure, which isn’t always easy for a young man.

This gives us some context for the story of the young king, Joash. In some ways he was mature beyond his years, considering his dysfunctional (to say the least) family. After his father, King Ahaziah, died, his grandmother, Athaliah, proceeded to execute all her grandchildren so she could rule in her son’s place (not exactly a candidate for grandmother-of-the-year!). Fortunately Joash had a good aunt, Jehosheba, who protected him from Queen Athaliah, and a godly priest, Jehoiada, who instructed Joash throughout most of his reign: Joash did what was right in the eyes of the Lord all the years Jehoiada the priest instructed him (12:2). However, after Jehoiada died, Joash started to listen to the wrong people and completely went off the rails (24:17-25). He would be among the many Bible leaders who did not finish well.

While Timothy lived up to his “Man of God” title, Joash will be known as the “Boy King.” That may be mostly because he assumed the throne at age 7, but it could also be that he never quite grew into a “man.” Nor was he “of God.” He served God vicariously through Jehoiada, but he was really only serving people. That’s a critical distinction and a warning to all believers.

“Lord, my desire as a man is to obey You and You alone. While I hope I will always respect people and their opinions, I also hope they will never rule my life. I want to be known as a ‘Man of God’!”