And Asa did that which was right in
the eyes of the Lord, as did David his
father. And he took away the sodomites out of the land, and
removed all the idols that his fathers had made. And also Maachah his
mother, even her he removed from being queen, because she had made an idol in a
grove; and Asa destroyed her idol, and burnt it by the brook Kidron. But the high places were not removed:
nevertheless Asa's heart was perfect with the Lord all his days.
1 Kings 15:11-14
Finally, a good king! It has been a
lot of bad so far, and that is to be expected because the good are rare when it
comes to kings of Judah and nonexistent in Israel. So what makes Asa a
good king? Let’s consult the Word above.
He did what was right in the sight of
the Lord. The Lord is the standard. The Law of the Lord is perfect converting
the soul. The testimony of the Lord is sure making wise the simple (Psalm
19:7). When we look at all rulers, we compare them first to this standard. No
man can be a great leader without doing right in the eyes of the Lord.
He followed the right examples in his
family. First, Asa is compared to David; he was like David in this way. This
does not mean that he is without sin. For we know that David, like all men,
sinned and fell short of the glory of God. We know one thing: that Asa did not
completely remove the high places. Yet the Word says, “Nevertheless Asa's heart was perfect with the Lord all his days.”
He rejected the wrong examples in his
family. He removed the idols of his father and even went as far as removing his
mother as queen. Asa would not tolerate the idolatry even of his mother, and he
destroyed her idol in a grove. He removed the sodomites out of the land even
though that practice was accepted under the former regime.
We, too, can be like Asa; we can walk
in the standard of the Lord and His standard alone. We can affirm the example
of our faithful brethren. We can reject the false traditions of our families
that are contrary to the Word. Let us use good examples for good living.
Grace and Peace,
Ryan
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