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2 Kings (KJV) 23:25”And like unto him was there no king before him, that turned to the LORD with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; neither after him arose there any like him.”
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Josiah followed “natural law”, the law of God! He was a statesman! What's the difference? A practical politician is a government official who legislates and administers an official organization and through the office provides enticements to the electorate so as to retain power. A “statesman” serves the same purpose, but governs with an eye on what is just, right and proper without regard to retaining power.
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Josiah did what was right and he had an adviser – Jeremiah the Prophet! What is proper, right and just is natural law and Jeremiah was there at the right time. He was the “Billy Graham” of that age. Hilkiah, the high priest, discovered a roll, which was likely the original copy of the “law”, the entire Pentateuch, written by Moses and this scroll was the constitution for reform! What Josiah did and Jeremiah instituted was reformation. They did what God said to do in “The Law”. Whereas, revolution seeks change by force and seeks to overthrow those in power, reformation means that the system you have is radically changed! Positive “change” is good, but negative “change” leads to more evil. Negative change is going against natural law. We are in a period of negative change right now and our very livelihood is in danger!
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Eventually, the great reformer, Josiah, died in battle, fighting the Egyptian army and wounded at Armegiddo (Megiddon) . He died in Jerusalem (as did Jesus). This was said of him, “the man who is remembered today as one who wrought 'change'. He reformed the nation in obedience to the will of God.” Thirty-one years of “change” took place! Zechariah (KJV) 12:11 “In that day (Josiah's Death) shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadadrimmon (a dead God) in the valley of Megiddon.” (Incidentally, Armageddon is where the apocalyptic war of all wars will end in the defeat of evil). “King Josiah” (aka Joshua, Jesus) was a picture of the coming Jesus who will have a millennial reign. Next time the battle at Armageddon will be won once and for all! (He was the ancestor of Jesus)!
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Then we had a counter-reformation. “Change” came again! “Negative change”! Josiah was succeeded by his son Jehoahaz who was deposed to Egypt within three months by Pharaoh Necho II. He didn't continue the reformation of his father, Josiah. Jehoahaz was succeeded by his older brother Eliakim (Jehoiakim) as puppet king of Judah under Necho. He was under the influence and control of evil-doers. Pharaoh Necho required massive tribute from Judah. Excessively high taxes were required to pay the tribute. The people rebelled against the tyranny of high taxes!
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If you'll remember the deal God made with Abraham, if the Jews obey they will prosper and if they rebel against God, they will fall? Judah fell as Israel had before! Necho was defeated by the Babylonian forces and Jehoiakim was carried off to Babylon where he died. Before he died Jehoiakim turned away from the God of his father, the God of David, a man who was after His won heart! Johoikim instituted negative “change”.
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Jeremiah warned the king and the nation! They failed to listen. Jerusalem finally fell in 597 B.C. And the inhabitants killed and dispersed. A few remained there who became vassals of the state. David's great empire was now dead, God's Temple destroyed, and although Herod rebuilt the temple, Israel remained insignificant until 1948 when God's promises came true. Israel became a nation again so that the apocalyptic prophecy might be fulfilled.
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Jeremiah (KJV) 5:19 “And it shall come to pass, when ye shall say, Wherefore doeth the LORD our God all these things unto us? then shalt thou answer them, Like as ye have forsaken me, and served strange gods in your land, so shall ye serve strangers in a land that is not yours.”
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Jeremiah, known as the “weeping prophet” wasn't accepted! He prophesied gloom and doom, the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple. Not only did the rulers not want to hear what he predicted, but neither did the people! Just as Rome afterward, people continued to live for self-gratification and failed to heed the warnings of Jeremiah. As previously stated, Jeremiah was right! Jerusalem fell and with it went the temple and God's Law. Nobody ever wants to hear the negative, but many politicians implement the negative … “negative change”. Jehoiakim “changed” things alright! He had destroyed his nation through immorality and high taxes. He and the nation were defeated by the rejection of God by him and his people. We don't have a “Jeremiah” today, but we do have God's Word. God has written what will happen when enough of His people are in rebellion. We are all priests and have the ability to understand the message which God has left us.
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We are a nation in rebellion! Christians are not much better than the world. We are in disbelief. Some of us believe we will fall, but we think that will be a later generation. As the walls fall down we wallow in self-gratification. We fail to witness to the lost ourselves. We fail to apply the lessons of the Jews to our own lives. Just as Jeremiah prophesied the end of life as they knew it, the Bible tells us that we will suffer the same fate! Truth will become lies and lies truth. Statesmen will be non-existent or ridiculed. Politicians will seek power and control. Freedom will be lost as will God's will. Taxes will enslave the nation. We're now in the first stages.
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Mr. Reader … I know of Jeremiah and I'm no Jeremiah. However, I know that the warnings of
Jeremiah are valid today because the Bible tells me so! Christian, take heed! If you're not lost, don't you even care that your children and grandchildren may be? We need to do our commission. We need to witness to the lost that they might be saved, then after their salvation, obedience to God's will save us from secular destruction; the persecution of those evil.
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We need to listen to our grounded religious leaders and do right in what the Bible says about the world. This world is the Kingdom of Satan and we mustn't be deceived by those who seek power and those who dilute God's word through deceit and immediate gratifications.
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Politicians are just that. Seek out those who stand for “right” even though they may lose power. “Popular” policy is often “easy” policy. People will accept what's easy, but the easy is seldom the best!
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Prosperity is promised by God if the people obey His precepts. For America to prosper we need to first obey God. If the evils of drugs, hedonism, false Gods (materialism), abortion and homosexuality are abandoned we will prosper again.
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Excessive taxation breeds rebellion and revolution. People choose to keep what they earn. Wage-earners don't want to work hard to have the wages of their efforts given to the undeserving whether the rich or the lazy.
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We need to do what's best for the nation. The inclination now for the masses is for each to demand that all their needs are fulfilled. They believe that they are entitled to happiness and prosperity without motivation and hard work. The Bible teaches that each should pull their own weight.
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Along with that, converts are made through charity and love. Christians are converted, not by attack nor argument, but by example. To convert the lost requires the Christian to act and behave as a Christian! Most of us fail here.
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We need to pray! We need to pray for “change”! However, remember that “change” is directional. We desire change toward God. We can pray for our nation and our politicians. We can read the Bible and seek truth. “Truth shall set you free!” Never fall for the lies of those who want to retain power. Listen to those who want truth to prevail.
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Look at the record of your leader. They're often is a stark contrast between what politicians say and what they actually do! The “best” can spin evil-doing into “the good for the people” without flinching an eye!
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Have Christian principle! Vote for those who espouse Godly beliefs. Never put “economic” issues above issues of morality. The Germans tried that! With morality will come prosperity!
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The modern church is the Laodicean (ungodly) church. They are the apostate church of the apocalypse. They are “The Great Whore Babylon”. Select a biblical church which doesn't deny the creation, personal salvation, the end-of-time evil, hell and the hope which the resurrection provides. Live like the devil is chasing you because he is! Pray like your life depended on it because it does! Testify like your child's life depends on it because it does! Vote like the nation's future depends on it because without righteous leaders we're hurrying our own destruction.
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