The world held their breath this week when Kate Middleton, Duchess of Cambridge and wife to Prince William, went into labor to deliver an heir to throne. Then it happened…the birth a prince.
In the week prior to this much anticipated event, I was visiting some royal courts myself! No, I wasn’t traveling overseas, but I was going back in time to the kings who reigned over the divided kingdoms of Israel (to the north) and Judah (to the south). My oh my, the ever-present current of the world caused God’s people to drift during this explosive time in history. My own journey through 1 and 2 Chronicles inspired me, but also had me shaking my head at those royals who found themselves at the helm of power.
The Kings
Did you know that the northern kingdom of Israel welcomed in and waved good-bye to 19 kings? Judah, despite lasting about 135 years longer than Israel, ushered in 20 kings? Even more interesting and shocking is that out of 39 combined royal rulers, only 8 were good kings? . . . and all of them reigned in Judah. Not ONE good king found his way to throne in the Northern Kingdom. Wickedness ruled the day way back then. (As I look around our world and focus in on many of the leaders, I wonder if things ever change . . . there are still plenty of terrible leaders wreaking havoc around the world today.)
There are plenty of fascinating stories about all the kings, good and wicked, but I was particularly taken by the story of Joash, the eighth king of Judah. He started strong, but traded godly obedience for disobedience by the time his rule ended. Here is what Charles Stanley, pastor and author, said about Joash:
“He drifted away from the Lord because he wasn’t anchored in God’s truth. Rather, he became caught up in the current of other people’s opinions, and that led him to destruction.”¹
Joash was a godly king as long as Jehoida was priest — the nation prospered and followed God. But, when Jehoida died, it was like the rudder keeping Joash on course broke off leaving the king floating aimlessly. This could have been avoided had the sitting king developed an anchor during his time of guidance from the priest. However, when Jehoida died, there went the king’s guidance system and he started taking advice from less stalwart officials of Judah (2 Chronicles 24:17 and 18). Without an anchor keeping him firmly attached God’s ways, Joash, who started out strong and united with God, strayed in a big way and ended up stoned to death. Joash is usually listed as a “good” king because he was a godly ruler for much of his reign, but without a godly anchor, he did not finish well.
On the other hand, there is King Josiah, one of the good ones.
“He did right in the sight of the Lord, and walked in the ways of his father David and did not turn aside to the right or to the left,” (2 Chronicles 34:2 NIV).
Wow, Josiah “walked in the ways of his father David.” David was a sinner, far from perfect but he had a heart for God. Although we don’t know as much about Josiah’s tenure as king, it’s safe to assume he did a great job. The fact that Scripture compares him to David, Josiah must have had a heart, mind, and soul that were firmly anchored in God.
Anchors and Rudders
Anchors are a huge, heavy weight, usually on the end of a chain. It keeps a water faring vessel (big or small) secured in one place despite the current, wind, and the vessel’s tendency to drift in general. God is like an anchor that keeps Christians from getting off course. However, sometimes, that boat needs to move and it’s “anchors aweigh” . . . which means the anchor is just free of the bottom and the boat is free to float. When that happens, the boat is kept on course by a rudder, attached the its underside.
Royalty
Most of us will never know what it is like to live as kings and queens . . . or to give birth to a prince/princess. However, we CAN know what it is like to live as royalty. For those of us who accept Jesus as Lord and Savior, we are children of the King. However, just like Joash and Josiah, we have the choice to anchor ourselves to King and his ways, and use His Word as a guiding rudder. Joash started strong but didn’t develop his own spiritual anchor and rudder. He relied too much on Jehoida the priest. When that influence disappeared, so did the “good” King Joash. King Josiah, on the other hand, committed himself to following the Lord. He kept God’s mandates, renewed the covenants of the forefathers, and initiated revival in the land. He constantly relied on and sought God and as a result Josiah didn’t drift.
As sons and daughters of the King of Kings, I’ll leave you with a few more words from Charles Stanley:
“It’s easy to drift because you get caught up in the ways of the world. On the other hand, it takes a great deal of effort to stay on track with God because you’re constantly fighting the world’s current.”²
You ARE royalty and, as such, instead of adorning yourself with crowns and septors you need to prepare yourself with anchors and rudders. They come in the form of prayer, obedience, humility and God’s Word . . . just to name a few.
©2013 Shona Neff
¹ The Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Daily Bible, Biblical Principles for Each Day of the Year. Charles F. Stanley. Copyright ©2011 by Thomas Nelson. Pg. 893.
²Ibid. Pg. 893.
