It Really Comes Down To What God Says About It

"And Asa did what was good and right in the eyes of the LORD his God." — 2 Chronicles 14:2, ESV


Asa begins his reign in Judah.  And as the verse above tells us, he did what was good and right in the eyes of God.  An example of what he did was this:  "He took away the foreign altars and the high places and broke down the pillars and cut down the Asherim and commandedJudah to seek the LORD,..." (2 Chronicles 14:3-4a, ESV).  Asa was not "politically correct" in his decision to get rid of all of the altars and high places that had been set up for idol worship.  He did not consult the people about their opinion on this subject.  Rather, he sought the opinion of God.  And as a little boy I wonder if he had learned this commandment that would come back to his mind while making this decision:

"You shall have no other gods before me.  You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.  You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments" (Exodus 2:3-6, ESV).


Asa knew God's opinion on false gods.  He didn't need to pray about it.  He didn't need to seek counsel on it.  God had made it very clear what he thought about this subject.  So, Asa responded to what he knew to be the expressed will of God.  Period.

I know that I am so used to democracy, where everyone has a vote and a say in how things happen.  As I'm reading through Scripture this year, I'm not seeing God's kingdom as a democracy, but rather as theocracy.  In God's kingdom, he is the king.  He doesn't have a cabinet.  He doesn't have a press secretary.  He doesn't play politics.  His standard is his holiness and his expectations are based on his will.  That's it.

I know it's hard to relate with this if you're part of a democracy.  I know it is for me.  It's a challenge to get used to this type of thinking.  God has desires.  He has things that he likes and doesn't like.  We can debate them all that we want, but if he has made them very clear in his word, that's what he expects.  He expects obedience, not our opinions of his imperatives.

At the end of my life I pray that it can be said of me, "And Brian did what was good and right in the eyes of the LORD his God."  The problem is if I live with this as a goal, many people will disagree with me and decide for me God's leading in my life.  However, I am ready to face that type of criticism and opposition.  In the end, Jesus' opinion of me matters more than any other person's will ever matter.  What about you?