Evil Days

  Did you ever read through the books of Kings and Chronicles in the Bible? These books tell the story of the nation of Israel after the days of its united monarchy. After the death of Solomon, the third king of Israel, the kingdom was divided; Rehoboam reigned in Jerusalem over two of the twelve tribes of Israel, and Jereboam reigned in Samaria over the remaining ten. Before the close of the Old Testament era, eighteen kings would succeed Rehoboam, and nineteen others would reign in the north. With only a few exceptions, the kings “did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord,” building upon the sinful atrocities of their fathers.

   I know that the kings of Israel lived in the distant past, but it is truly amazing how often history has been revisited with the ancient error of the kings of Israel and Judah. Today, men seem bent on satisfying the appetites of the flesh and escaping the ever watchful eye of God. Signs of the times abound: our societal obsession with elicit sexual encounters, rampant growth and acceptance of homosexuality, the degradation of the God ordained institution of family, the mutilation of the bodies of our youth with “cuttings,” studs and rings, multiple generations that embrace the moral relativism of the “New Age,” etc. Evil is indeed on the rise.

   As you know, ideas abound in the quick fix department. Social reform, political manipulation, educational programs and the like, each finds ready advocates from all walks of life, but none of them seem to be working. Only God knows what will pull us out of this downward spiral, and restore our nation to greatness. Believe it or not (and most people will not) God has nestled the solution to this age old problem in the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel...

   If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. (2 Chronicles 7:14).