Tuesday August 11, 2015

Read Jeremiah 52:1-3

If you could organise to have an epithet written on your tombstone, what would it read? What characteristics would you want brought out and highlighted? What would you want written on your tombstone for the entire world to remember you by?

Unfortunately for King Zedekiah, the epithet was not a positive one. Zedekiah, son of godly King Josiah was 21 years old when he was made king by the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar. In 597 Zedekiah’s nephew Jehoiachin was deported  to Babylon and Zedekiah was given the kingship. In the vein of 1 and 2 Kings we read in Jeremiah 52:2, “He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, just as Jehoiakim had done.” Even though Zedekiah did some positive and good things, for example he allowed the foreign servant Ebed-Melech to rescue Jeremiah from the well into which he had been dropped, he will be ever remembered as the king who allowed the devastating exile to occur.

Even more so, the above epithet is followed by a comment that sums up the outcome of the evil that the kings, the nation and the people had done.

Jeremiah 52:3

“It was because of the Lord’s anger that all this happened to Jerusalem and Judah, and in the end He thrust them from His presence. Now Zedekiah rebelled against the King of Babylon.”

The reality is that you and I will leave a legacy. Whether or not that legacy is positive depends largely not on what we say/preach/teach but on how we live.

People both inside and outside the church see our lives and make a comparison with what we have taught and proclaimed. Our lives are a living sermon or lesson for the world and for those in the church to see. When those in our charge see our lives being lived out in correlation of what we’ve preached and taught, it’s a powerful testimony to the Lord that leaves a formidable and long lasting legacy that will touch and affect many lives.

The implication is exceedingly clear. If we desire to leave a positive legacy and to bring glory to the Lord Jesus Christ, we must take great pains to walk in holiness and righteousness. We must take great pains to ensure that our lives reflect the purity of the gospel, the impeccability of the gospel and the holiness demanded by the Lord Himself. 

But even more so, we need to build habits into our lives that promote and grow holiness. Such habits include spending regular quality and quantity time in the Lord’s presence, praying with other believers, studying Scripture together, being overtly generous, prioritising Christian fellowship and seeking to be above board and transparent in all we do.

Prayer:

Using today’s Bible passage and notes write down points for

Adoration:

Confession

Thanks

Supplication:

· Ask the Lord to be growing each of the cell groups or Bible studies in your church into deep committed groups that encourage and promote habits that lead to holiness.

· Pray that individual believers in your church would be ready and willing to put into place these habits that grow holiness.

 

 Discussion Questions

1. What habits do you currently have that are growing holiness?

2. What negative issues are associated with growing habits?

3. How can we avoid these dangers?

4. What affect do good habits have on believers and non believers?