Do You Know Where You're Headed?

Do you know where you're headed, sir?

I was walking through our conference center this week when an area coordinator asked me that question. There are many meeting rooms there, and her job is to ensure people get directed to the right place.  But at that moment, as I moved from one business meeting to the next, I had actually been thinking about how great God is and how fortunate I am for the life I have. It was if God were asking me the question.

My answer is: Yes, I think so. I am going to Heaven. Not because I deserve it, but because God is merciful. He casts my sins away as far as the east is from the west. I try to be faithful of heart, as David was. I fall short of how I should act, but I try to be loving, generous, and thoughtful to those around me, and grateful to God for all I have. I think that's what God wants. Could I do it better? Of course. Am I sorry that I don't? For sure. But I have also noticed so far, as I have made my way through the Old Testament, that God repeatedly counsels His people not to be afraid. He doesn't say "don't be sad" or "don't cry" or "don't grieve" or "don't be angry". These are part of being human. But He does say "Do not be afraid." 

And so, I am not afraid (or, at least, I try not to be afraid) that He will abandon me, or that He will withdraw His love from me, or that He will renege on His promise of everlasting life for me. I do feel sad and grieve when I recognize how far I fall short of the person I should be, but being confident in His mercy and love helps me shake off that sorrow and move forward.

Do I know where I am going? Yes, I think I do. Thank God.

1 Maccabees 1-5

After the reign of Alexander, the lands he conquered were divided among his officers.  They and their offspring ruled the various lands. One of these leaders, Antiochus Epiphanes, becomes King of the Greeks and commences an era of aggressive attacks against the Jewish people across many cities. In some locations, the Jewish people respond meekly, unable or unwilling to fight back and in this way bringing shame upon the descendants of Jacob. The king goes so far as to forbid the practice of any religion other than that of the Gentiles. Again, some Jews acquiesce. But some, most prominently Mattathias and his five sons, openly challenge the edict and the prevailing political situation. They refuse to obey the edict; they refuse to run and hide, as some of the Jews did, but instead, they fight back bravely and successfully. 

As Mattathias is dying, he gathers his sons together and instructs them to "be zealous for the law and give your lives for the covenant of our fathers." He encourages them as follows:

Consider this from generation to generation, that none who hope in him shall fail in strength. Do not fear the words of a sinful man, for his glory ends in corruption and worms. Today he is exalted, and tomorrow he is not to be found, because he has returned to his dust, and his schemes have perished.  Children! be courageous and strong in keeping the law, for by it you shall be glorified.

What a wonderful and hopeful idea, that no one who hopes in God shall fail in strength.  The notion of being zealous for the law and strong in keeping the law takes me back again to the concept of faithfulness of heart. To reset, David is the paradigm of the Old Testament man who lives rightly--not because he was perfect, but because he was faithful of heart. He desired to do right, to honor God's commands, to do so lovingly and faithfully, and to hope and trust in God. It is just this sort of faithfulness of heart that Mattathias hopes to leave as his legacy in his sons.

What follows are many scenes (too many to describe) that essentially repeat the same chain of events: A Gentile leader persecutes Jews in the community or gathers an army to attack the Jews; the sons of Mattathias--the Maccabees--led by the warrior Judas, gather their own army and defeat the Gentiles, killing them and (often) plundering their belongings. At one point the victorious Jewish army recaptures Mount Zion and the desecrated temple. They rebuild, restore, and reconsecrate the temple and the altar, setting off eight days of celebration that are re-enacted today during the feast of Hannukah. 

2 Chronicles 29-36

Good kings and not so good kings are at the heart of this last section of 2 Chronicles. Hezekiah is a model king, like his ancestor David, at least until late in his life when he succumbed, for a time, to pride. Josiah, too, was an admirable king. Others, such as Manasseh, Amon, and Zedekiah--well, not so much. These kings, good and bad, demonstrate the gifts and responsibilities of leadership. When the king turns to the Lord in humility and obedience, in joy and thanksgiving, the people follow. And when he turns away,   disobeying God's commands and worshipping other gods, the people he leads do the same. Either way, they lead by example. 

This is a lesson not just for kings, but for leaders of all sorts--business managers, government officials, and, most especially, parents. Do I live in joy and thanksgiving? Do I seek God's help when I need it--as He virtually demands that I do? Do I show trust in Him in my words and actions? Do I strive to be faithful of heart in all that I do? To the extent I don't live this way, I am not being the leader that God calls me to be. 

The story of Manasseh shows that it is never too late to reverse course and become the right kind of leader. Having been defeated, captured, and taken as a prisoner to Babylon, Manasseh undergoes a change of heart:

In this distress, he began to appease the Lord, his God. He humbled himself abjectly before the God of his fathers and prayed to him. The Lord let himself be won over: he heard his prayer and restored him to his kingdom in Jerusalem. Then Manasseh understood that the Lord is indeed God.

Isn't that a great image--that God let himself be won over? I love that expression.