Holding fast to the Lord

Jehoshaphat was known as a king who followed the commands of God, and he is definitely a relative that we would love to see in our own genealogy, let alone in the lineage of Jesus. He succeeded his father (Asa) when he was about 35 and reigned for another 25 years. 

The bible mentions him a few times, including:

1 Kings 22:43 - Jehoshaphat was a good king, following the example of his father, Asa. He did what was pleasing in the Lord’s sight. 

One of his success stories was that he managed to make peace with the king of Israel - at this point in history the 2 kingdoms were divided, and this was a remarkable achievement. His reliance on the Lord is evident in this exchange with the king of Israel:

"Then the king of Israel turned to Jehoshaphat and asked, “Will you join me in battle to recover Ramoth-Gilead?” Jehoshaphat replied to the king of Israel, “Why, of course! You and I are as one. My troops are your troops, and my horses are your horses.” Then Jehoshaphat added, “But first let’s find out what the Lord says.” - 1 Kings 22:4-5

Those last words are very telling, for me. They show me that he was willing to seek the wisdom of the Lord first, before he ran into any situation, or he was tempted to make rash decisions. 

Jesus was also very good at doing this. Before he had to make any major decision, we note how he withdrew to a quiet place and spent time in prayer with his Father. It seems that some of the great wisdom of Jehoshaphat may have worked its way down the family line :) 

Thought: Advent is a time for pausing and reflecting on our relationship with Christ and others. Are we able to seek the face of Jesus, despite the noise around us? Are we able to hold fast to the Lord, as Jehoshaphat did?

Living in Grace

D3LM3