Jotham rebuilt the Upper Gate of the temple of the LORD and did extensive work on the wall at the hill of Ophel. He built towns in the Judean hills and forts and towers in the wooded areas. Jotham made war on the king of the Ammonites and conquered them. -II Chronicles 27:3-5b
When we look at all that King Jotham accomplished in his 16 year reign we see that he was a tireless and hard-working king who sought to do some positive works for the Lord. He had made up his mind that he was going to serve the Lord. Never underestimate the power of God at work in a mind that is set on God. A made up mind is a powerful force in a person’s life. Jotham reconstructed an important gate of the temple, he built cities in the southern region of Judah, and he built up defensive fortresses and towers. He also went to war against the nations that had been enemies of God’s people – and he was victorious. All of this was because he trusted God, inclined his heart to wisdom, and set his mind on serving the Lord. Because he took such an attitude the Lord blessed him.
Jotham could have easily taken the easy way out. And what is that easy way? This is the way of saying, "I will just do what seems okay, I’ll go with the flow, I’ll go with the crowd, and I will do what looks to be popular at the time." However, he resisted that approach entirely. When we make up our minds to serve the Lord we are empowered to rise above such a lazy and half-hearted approach to life. Serving the Lord daily is a life-long challenge. Going with the crowd requires little to no thought, effort, or backbone. Anyone can drift aimlessly along, but it takes firm commitment (dare I say it takes guts?) to take a stand for Jesus Christ. Jotham was not a man who was willing to just sort of sit around, hope for the best, and let life happen. Instead, he took a pro-active approach to serving God. He got up and he got busy – doing what the Lord had called him to do. This is the attitude we can take and the Lord will use such an attitude to His glory.
There are countless people who are in the pit of sin, hopelessness, and despair. They often desire to rise up out of that pit, but they do not know how to do so. Those who are in the slime pit will often resent those who decide to try and climb out. They will say, “Who do you think you are? Do you think you’re better than us?” Many earnestly want to climb out of the pit of sin, ungodliness, and an empty life, but they don’t know where to begin. Jesus Christ specializes in helping people out of the pit of sin, discouragement, and immorality. Once people open their hearts to the Lord they are amazed at His power to work miracles in their lives. Because of Jotham’s faith in God he was able to accomplish tasks that he might not have imagined possible.
Why is it that one of the first truths that we forget after we come to faith in Jesus is that with God all things are possible? Is anything too hard for God? Is there some task or challenge that God can’t handle? The answer is, certainly not! God is always ready to do in our lives that which appears to be impossible.
No comments:
Post a Comment