Time for a Change

My dear friends in Christ,

Do you ever find yourselves longing for something new? New carpeting to replace the old, worn out floor covering. An updated kitchen with brand new cabinets and appliances. A 2008 model to exchange for the old vehicle that's starting to wear out.

Do you ever find yourselves longing for something old? Some long to return to the days of their childhood, a simpler time. Some long for an old car, one that would be a classic today. Thousands of people in California are longing for their old homes—the ones that are now ashes and dust.

Whether we are longing for something new or something old, they both have something in common—a change. We want a change from the way life is at this moment. One of God's leaders, King Josiah, longed for a change. We might even call it a "reformation." As we dig into God's Word today, we'll see that Josiah longed for something old—to read and study the timeless Word of God. He also longed for something new—that he and his people would live what God had said.

King Josiah had good reason to long for something old. God's Word had been lost to his people for almost 60 years. Josiah's grandfather, Manasseh, had ascended to the throne of Judah in 697 B.C. In today's world, Manasseh would be categorized as a very "tolerant" ruler. He embraced all the popular religions, but he abandoned the LORD. He built altars to Baal and put up Asherah poles, even in the temple itself. He built altars in the temple courts so that he could worship the stars in the sky. He turned to mediums and spiritists for advice. He even sacrificed his own son in the fire. Here's how the LORD described Manasseh's reign: "Manasseh king of Judah has committed these detestable sins. He has done more evil than the Amorites who preceded him and has led Judah into sin with his idols" (2 Kings 21:11). Manasseh's wicked reign lasted 55 years. His son, Amon, succeeded him. Amon wasn't any different from Manasseh. He was just as tolerant, just as evil. His reign ended when he was assassinated after just two years on the throne.

God was ready for a change. He longed for something old—someone who would love and follow his Word. Following the wickedness of grandfather and father, the LORD brought a boy to the throne. Is anyone here 8 years old? That's how old Josiah was when he became king. Even at 8 years old, Josiah saw that it was time for a change. The Bible says, "He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD and walked in the ways of his father David, not turning aside to the right or to the left" (2 Chronicles 34:2). When he was 16 years old, he began to seek the LORD—trying to learn more about him. It was a difficult task, thanks to his father and grandfather, but Josiah continued his search. He talked with priests, with the elders of the people, with anyone who knew anything about the LORD. When he turned 20, Josiah began systematically and thoroughly destroying all of the altars and idols that were scattered throughout the land.

Josiah's longing for something old led him to the temple. His grandfather had polluted it with altars to false gods. The main section of the temple had fallen into disrepair. Josiah collected offerings from all of his people, then hired craftsmen to repair God's house. During the restoration project, the high priest found a dusty old scroll that had been discarded in one of the temple storerooms. He read some of it, and realized that it was the Book of the Law—the first five books of Moses. They had rediscovered the Word that had been lost for so long. The high priest took it to King Josiah. Josiah read it, including the words of Deuteronomy 28, "If you do not carefully follow all the words of this law, which are written in this book, and do not revere this glorious and awesome name—the LORD your God— the LORD will send fearful plagues on you and your descendants…. Just as it pleased the LORD to make you prosper and increase in number, so it will please him to ruin and destroy you" (Deuteronomy 28:58-59,63).

Josiah realized that they needed to get back to the "old"—reading and studying God's Word. He didn't hesitate. He called the spiritual leaders—the priests and Levites—to Jerusalem. He summoned all of the people to the temple. It didn't matter whether they were grandpas and grandmas or babies in their mothers' arms—they all came. Josiah himself read the entire scroll out loud. The people listened to the creation account. They heard the stories of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. They reviewed their ancestors' slavery in Egypt. They heard the eyewitness accounts of God's mighty power at the Red Sea and the rest of Israel's journey to the Promised Land. They heard God's laws and promises that had been lost to them for 60 years! It was time for a change, and Josiah led the people back to reading and studying God's Word.

That's what "reformation" is all about. At times throughout history, God's Word has fallen into disuse. Sometimes, sinful human beings try to hide and even destroy God's Word. Sometimes God takes away his Word because people continually reject it. The LORD said through the prophet Amos, "The days are coming when I will send a famine through the land— not a famine of food or a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the words of the LORD. Men will stagger from sea to sea and wander from north to east, searching for the word of the LORD, but they will not find it" (Amos 8:11-12).

 Despite attempts to destroy the Bible and people's unbelief, God will never allow his Word to be completely lost. He provides someone at just the right time to rediscover his Word, and lead people back into it. In 640 BC, it was Josiah. In AD 29, it was John the Baptist. In 1517, it was Martin Luther. God has blessed us through the efforts of those faithful believers, and many others, to make sure that we have his Word in its truth and purity today.

God wants us to long for a return to the old—to read and study his Word. It's easy to push it off. There's not enough time to get through the religion sheets at supper time. We'll do it in the morning, but then we're too busy getting ready for school. We have Sunday school and Bible study on Sunday mornings, but there are so many other things to do—brunch, reading the paper, resting up after a long night with friends. Our sinful nature tells us that God's Word isn't that important.

Josiah's example reminds us that the Word has to be our number 1 priority, because without the Word, we can't get our work done. We can't follow Jesus' great commission to make disciples of all nations if we can't share what Jesus did. We can't carry out Christian education through our school if we don't review the stories of God's power and grace throughout the Bible. We can't grow in our faith if we aren't digging into the Bible and getting to know it better through Sunday school and Bible studies. We need to read it. We need to learn it.

There's more to it than just reading and studying the Word. Josiah recognized that. He longed for another change—something new. He longed for God's people to start living God's Word. Josiah had read God's law. He saw how far he and the people had fallen. He wanted to change and live for the LORD, so he led the people by example. "The king stood by his pillar and renewed the covenant in the presence of the LORD—to follow the LORD and keep his commands, regulations and decrees with all his heart and all his soul, and to obey the words of the covenant written in this book" (2 Chronicles 34:31).

Josiah took the Word to heart. His promise echoed Moses' words in Deuteronomy 6: "Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. Fear the LORD your God, serve him only" (Deuteronomy 6:5,13). With the LORD's help and blessing, Josiah kept his promise. He continued destroying idols and altars. He renewed the Passover in a way that had not been matched since the days of Samuel, about 400 years earlier. Josiah practiced what he preached. He loved God's Word, and he lived it!

Sadly, Josiah's success had a hollow ring to it. The people's response was not one of commitment to the LORD and joy in his forgiveness and love. They followed the LORD only as long as Josiah was alive. They offered lip service to the LORD. Josiah was 39 years old when he marched against Pharaoh Neco at the Battle of Carchemish. Egyptian arrows found their mark, and Josiah lost his life. Once Josiah was dead, the people returned to their unbelief, and God carried out his judgment by sending them to exile in Babylon.

That hollow success haunts us today. It's easy to give lip service to God. We say, "Yes, LORD, I'll do everything you say." When everything is going well and we're happy, we'll do what God says is right. As soon as times get tough, or we don't like something that God says, it's easier to turn away from the Word and do what seems right to us.

God wants us to long for something new, just like Josiah did. Paul wrote, "Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship" (Romans 12:1). Our lives need to reflect what God has done for us. How merciful has God been? He sent Jesus, our perfect King. Jesus loved his heavenly Father with all his heart, soul and strength. He put God's Word first. He honored his parents, took care of the sick, the dying, and even the dead. He taught his followers the truth. He sacrificed his life to protect his subjects from eternal death.

God calls us to live in view of that tremendous success. We need to destroy the idols and altars that stand in our homes and in our hearts, distracting us from God's Word. We need to live in our baptism every day—repenting when we've done wrong and trusting that Jesus has washed away all our sins. We need to regularly celebrate the Lord's Supper, and celebrate it every time as though it hasn't been offered for the past 400 years. We need to go out these doors and show the world we live in that we're different because Jesus lives in our hearts and they need him too.

It's time for a change. As love for God and his Word slowly erodes in this world, we have been called to long for something old—to cherish the ancient words of our Savior God. As people's lives reflect self-importance and self-advancement, we have been called to long for something new—to live God's Word. Love the Word and live for him. That's a change the whole world needs! Amen.