2 Chronicles 12: 13-14–So King Rehoboam grew strong in Jerusalem and reigned. Rehoboam was forty-one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city that the Lord had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel to put his name there. His mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonite. And he did evil, for he did not set his heart to seek the Lord.
We must decide and be determined to walk with God daily. All the kings of Judah and Israel who followed the way of evil rather than God’s path violated what was said to the Children of Israel. Moses gave instructions to them before entering the Promise Land:
Deuteronomy 6: 4-6– Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.
Daniel, who was still in his teen years, was taken into Babylonian captivity and exposed to all evil in a pagan culture. Despite all of this, he did not violate any of the laws of God despite the pressure upon him. The reason becomes clear in one specific instance that was typical of the way he lived:
Daniel 1:8–But Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the king’s food, or with the wine that he drank. Therefore he asked the chief of the eunuchs to allow him not to defile himself.
As Christ-followers, we have an advantage in making heart decisions when compared with the Old Testament believers like Daniel. In the prayers of Paul for the Ephesian believers, the reference to Christ’s indwelling presence through the Holy Spirit, the one who empowers us to make the heart decision for God’s will:
Ephesians 3:16-17– that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love…
Blessings–Pastor Christopher
- Has your decision to follow Christ come from your heart or your head?
- Can you relate to Daniel’s determination to follow God? Why or why not?
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