2 Chronicles 14:1-5 "So Abijah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David: and Asa his son reigned in his stead. In his days the land was quiet ten years. (2) And Asa did that which was good and right in the eyes of the LORD his God: (3) For he took away the altars of the strange gods, and the high places, and brake down the images, and cut down the groves: (4) And commanded Judah to seek the LORD God of their fathers, and to do the law and the commandment. (5) Also he took away out of all the cities of Judah the high places and the images: and the kingdom was quiet before him."
Asa, the son of Abijah, is now reigning in Judah. It is apparent that Asa
paid attention to the actions of his father, Abijah. There are two things that
Asa did as king that set the tone for Judah. They seem to be simple statements;
yet, the nation profited from these actions. First, Asa did that which was good
and right in the eyes of the Lord his God. He did what he was supposed to do
according to the will of God. But there is a second part of Asa's actions. Not
only did he do what was right, he did not do that which was not right.
There is a big difference and when the two were combined, his kingdom was quiet
before him. In other words, there was peace in the land.
You might ask what is the difference? Aren't they the same? Until this morning,
it really had not hit me that there is a difference and the combination of the
two make for right living before the Lord. It is wonderful that Asa did that
which was good before the Lord. I think that is pretty much self explanatory at
the moment. But then he also "took away the altars of the strange gods,
and the high places, and brake down the images, and cut down the groves."
It seems the people were trying to ride the fence with the matter of
worship. We will go to the temple and worship, but then we will go to the
groves (group of trees) where we can hide as we sacrifice to other gods and bow
before their images. You mean people would actually do that? It is apparent
that they did.
What about in our time? How many times have you heard of people who are in
church on Sunday and living like the world Monday through Saturday? They can
say, "Oh we are doing good by going to church." But the thought is,
do they have other gods that are worshipped through the week? Are there idols
in our lives that through the week detract from our worship and devotion to the
Lord? I have used the pronoun "they" a lot, haven't I? I must
take inventory of my life to see if there are any groves? Are there idols? Are
there things in my life that have become the focus of my attention to the point
that it takes my mind away from the Lord God Almighty?
Asa did that which was good in the sight of the Lord and he also took away that
which detracted from the worship of God. How is it in my life? Is there unrest
and upheaval in our nation? Sure there is. Is it time that we as a nation do
what is good in the sight of the Lord and tear down what is wrong? Is there
unrest and upheaval in my life? Do I need more peace and quiet? Should I
look in the secret places of my heart to see if there is anything that needs to
be torn out and replaced with proper worship?