Nestled comfortably in the Old Testament, amidst all the accounts of the kings and rulers of Israel and Judah, is the story of a young king named Josiah. Who, you ask? Most of us haven't heard of him, but he was the greatest king in the history of Judah. (Better than King David, you ask? Well, he was a descendant of David, but David ruled over God's chosen people when they were a "united kingdom" (no, not THAT United Kingdom). The 12 tribes of Israel split after the reign of King Solomon, leaving two nations: Israel and Judah.
For the long version, check out 1 Samuel through 2 Chronicles. But to make a long story short, God's divided nations began to forget that they were the chosen people of God, called to live a certain way (as written in those first 5 book of our Bible today, called the "Pentateuch"). Kings were corrupt, the Temple was destroyed, and people worshipped idols. Fast-forward a few dozen years... keep going... there, now stop! Here's Josiah:
During his reign as the king of Judah, King Josiah decided to go on a cleaning spree - it was time to repair the Temple. During the massive clean-up one of the workers stumbled upon some dusty old documents. As it turned out, those documents were the Book of the Law - those first 5 books of our Bible, the covenant God gave his people under the leadership of Moses, way back when!
King Josiah had never before seen or heard the words from the Book of the Law. When he heard God's Word, he tore his clothes in sorrow - his nation had been living completely contrary to God's law for years and years. Immediately Josiah called together all the leaders of Judah, who then gathered the kingdom. The Law was read aloud and Josiah asked his people to promise to faithfully obey the Lord and live according to the covenant once again.
So... what does this have to do with us, you ask? Well, lots. Judah was a corrupt nation. They had stopped practicing their faith and honoring God for so long that generations had passed. This was a nation that had forgotten its roots, had forgotten that at the heart of their identity was a God who had rescued them from slavery and set them free to love, live, and serve.
Have you ever forgotten that you are a child of God? To be honest, I don't always remember. I don't always live like it, either. The fact is that we are claimed by the one true God, called to live a life of love and service, forgiven and redeemed! How often do you go back to God's book - not of law, but of love? If you were to read the story of Jesus today, would you react at all like Josiah - convicted by God's love and inspired to live differently? I hope I would. In fact, I think I'm going to give those stories a read-though right now...
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