Yahweh’s Bulldog

Scripture

So Josiah removed everything that was detestable from all the lands belonging to the Israelites, and he required all who were present in Israel to serve the Lord their God. Throughout his reign they did not turn aside from following the Lord, the God of their ancestors.

~ 2 Chronicles 34:33 (CSB)

Quote

Determination will get you a long way.

~Charles Colson

There would be no doubt in the mind of any Jew that David was the benchmark when it came to Kings. David is the one who established the kingdom of Israel. Of course, a united Israel did not last long [70 years]. Saul tried to establish the kingdom but he was never able to subdue Israel’s enemies which of course David accomplished. David came from the working class and worked his way through the ranks. He never lost his ability to relate to common people. His concern for the welfare of his people, his love for worship and his incredible abilities made him an ideal king but David had a moral blowout, a lapse of faith and in many ways, he never recovered. In my opinion, Bathsheba was not a good influence. She plus David’s lust brought the sword into the family. David’s life is proof that we can choose to sin but we cannot avoid the consequences once we make that wrong decision. Hezekiah was a very good king. His resume would be flawless had it not been for his lapse of pride. God gave Hezekiah success in everything he did and he let it go to his head. Josiah became king at the youthful age of eight. I am sure he had a good mother because his father was horrible. I refer to Josiah as Yahweh’s Bulldog because of his tenacious spirit and his determination to eradicate idolatry in Israel. It does seem that Josiah made an error in judgment in his confrontation with King Neco of Egypt but other than that; he had an unblemished record. He loved the word of God and he hated idolatry. He went after the Baals and the Cult Shrines like a bulldog goes after a cat. He was not going to be deterred or discouraged. He spent his life cleansing the nation {Judah} and even Israel {North} of shrines and images. He had no jurisdiction in the North but that didn’t stop him. No one could stop him. Have you ever talked a bulldog is to letting go of the cat? Josiah was devoted to the LORD and relentless in his effort to eliminate idolatry. When it came to his passion for serving the LORD, the writer of the Chronicles says, “None of the kings of Israel were a comparison.” [2 Chronicles 35:18]

What lessons do we take from the brief history of Israel’s {Judah} three great kings?

  1. Watch out for pride. Swindoll says, “Pride will not sit down and shut up and it will not go away.” You and I are going to have to battle pride until we are promoted or until Jesus comes. If we don’t develop some spiritual disciplines, pride will get the best of us, just like it did with David and Hezekiah. Remember, success is much harder to manage than failure.
  2. Watch out for temptation. As long as we dwell in this body of flesh, there is going to be temptation. We do not reach a point of maturity that is beyond the reach of temptation. Jesus was even tempted and you and I must learn to deal with temptation. Jesus showed us how: we resist the devil with the word of God. The key to overcoming temptation is to saturate your soul with the word of God.
  3. Watch out for discouragement. It is Satan’s favorite device. This may mean that you have to change company. Do not hang out with those who discourage you. Learn to detect disparaging remarks and label them immediately. It is Satan behind the discouragement. He wants you to quit, to throw in the towel and he will use others to encourage you to do so. Be like Josiah, be like the bulldog, bit in like a mad sow and don’t let go. God created the bulldog when a nose that can breath with his mouth shut tight on whatever is in it’s bite. God didn’t create us to quit. You don’t quit! Never, never, never quit! All of Jerusalem and Judah mourned the death of Josiah. He was loved by the masses. They may not have agreed with everything he did but they revered him for his tenacious spirit. Josiah lived only 39 years but he made every day of every year count. Jeremiah preached his funeral. Even Josiah’s funeral changed the way the Jews did funerals. You can’t make a difference if you quit so don’t quit.

  • For the first time in my life, I visited the little town of Piedmont, east of Gadsden and near the Georgia line. I also drove a stretch of highway I’d never driven before, Hwy 9 from Piedmont to Centre. I love the Centre area; it the crappie center of the world. I love lakes and mountains and there you have them both.
  • I need prayer folks: I have a wedding today at 4:00 and I’m as nervous as a long tail cat in a room filled with rocking chairs. I don’t do many wedding: they all make me nervous but I prefer the kind Stedman had, out under a tree with no rehearsal or whoop la. I’m doing Seth and Megs this evening and a nephew tomorrow. For the record, my fee is $500. If you can afford a $3,000 venue, you can surely afford to pay the preacher. Of course family and friends get a discount. Usually a 100% discount.
  • PTL for a beautiful day yesterday: didn’t that sun look and feel good! Give the LORD praise for the sun and the Son. Both are vitally important.
  • Luke 14 Sunday night!
  • Pig Skin Predictions: Alabama, State, Liberty, LSwho, Ole Miss, A & M, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky and Tennessee. I was kidding about Liberty, all they have is a prayer. Auburn will prevail. Actually, the only two that may go either way is Tenn/Missouri and Ole Miss Vandy. Tennessee and Missouri are both playing well after horrible starts whereas Ole Miss has a good offense and Vandy has good defense. Both of these are too close to call in my opinion.

 

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