Discover His heart: He sees our good deeds but rewards our strong and faithful finish
As somewhat of an overachiever in school, my dismay at discovering an Incomplete for one of my college grades one semester was huge. How did it happen? This was unacceptable! After an investigation, I found that someone, a professor who will remain nameless, had lost my final term paper, leaving my classroom work unfinished, incomplete, undone. Of course, as dramatic as this was for me, it pales in comparison to, say, Schubert’s The Unfinished Symphony, or Tolkien’s Unfinished Tales. However, my term paper eventually was recovered, and I received the grade I desired. And these two gentlemen? Well, let’s just say that they have some work left to do.
Today we read about a number of other men who failed to complete the task they had started, and the repercussions were much more impacting than incomplete grades, symphonies and novels. The kings of Judah, namely Joash, Amaziah, Uzziah and Jotham, started their reigns on the right track but didn’t finish strong, “Joash did what was pleasing in the Lord’s sight…Yet even so, he did not destroy the pagan shrines, and the people still offered sacrifices and burned incense there.” (12:2-3) This was said about each of these kings. Many of them accomplished good things for Israel but did not complete the work that needed to be done as their forefather David had done in removing the occult places of worship and sacrifice. Why didn’t they finish the job, complete the task, do the deed?
As for Joash, he became king at the ripe age of 7. The priest, Jehoiada, influenced much of Joash’s early years, including the repairing of the temple. Perhaps they felt that with the temple once again a beautiful house of worship, the Israelites would soon forget about the pagan shrines, but it didn’t happen. It would have been wiser destroying the sin rather than ignoring it with the hope that it would just go away. When we don’t deal with sin, it somehow manages to rear its ugly head somewhere down the line. Eventually, Joash worshipped at the shrines himself. Ugh.
Popularity may have been an issue for the kings. The Israelites loved their pagan shrines and the immoral festivities that took place around them, and certainly any king who destroyed them would suffer drastically in the polls. However, I would think these kings would have preferred unpopularity over the murder and disease that finally took them. The story could have ended differently for these leaders had they completed their tasks and finished strong.
Rather than accomplishing just a few good things in my life and then falling off the wagon because of sin or seeking popularity instead of godliness, I’m challenged to finish strong for Him. I want to say with Paul, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful.” (2 Timothy 4:7) No more incompletes for me!
Moving Forward: May I remain faithful to Him, not only finishing the job but finishing strong!
Tomorrow @ Psalms 84-86
Phyllis Benigas 