THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION

The Books Of The Chronicles: God's Preservation Of His Davidic And Levitical Covenants

XLVI. Handling Confusion Over Today's Critical Issues

(2 Chronicles 34:1-21)

Introduction: (To show the need . . . )

We have a great need today to deal with confusion over critically important issues that we face:

(1) The Republican-American editorial, "Economy in the throes" (September 7, 2020, p. 8A) claimed "some good news" has come out "about American jobs," that "(e)mployers added 1.4 million jobs in August, and the unemployment rate dropped to 8.4%." However, "(n)ot all the news" is "encouraging. 'Several large companies have warned of job cuts,' The Wall Street Journal reported Sept. 4," Ibid.

The editorial sought to edify its readers, adding, "What America, and other industrialized countries, are seeing is an outbreak of what Austrian economist Joseph Schumpeter called 'creative destruction' . . . the dismantling of long-standing practices in order to make way for innovation.'" As a result, "(f)or working people, this is a time of great loss, as venerable companies and old ways of doing business fade away, sometimes quite rapidly. But if America's economic history is to be a guide, it's also a time of great opportunity," Ibid.

So, one asks if the economy is getting better or worse, or if it in the throes of "creative destruction"? Regardless what is happening, we may ask how we at the grassroots level can know what to do to secure our future?

(2) There are "growing questions about the scientific credibility of the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and their" alleged "vulnerability to political pressure from President Donald Trump" prematurely to approve a vaccine for COVID-19 before the election. (Linda A. Johnson and Michelle R. Smith, "White House faces skepticism over prospects for vaccine," Ibid., September 4, 2020, p. 12A) If a vaccine for the pandemic is produced before the election, will the public trust the integrity of the vaccine and take it?

(3) "[President] Trump's . . . questions about the integrity of mail voting came the same day that the Department of Homeland Security sent a memo to election officials warning that 'Russia is likely to continue amplifying criticisms of vote-by-mail and shifting voting processes amidst the . . . pandemic to undermine public trust in the electoral process . . ." ("President suggest polling places check for mail-in votes," Ibid., p. 11A)

So, is the President right to question voting by mail or is Russia pushing distrust about it on us to unsettle us?

(4) We face it in Christian circles, too: in an interview with Mike Matthews, Dr. John C. Whitcomb claimed, "'Today . . . the book of Genesis -- creation through the Flood -- is" often "viewed as poetry. 'Don't take it literally,' the scholars say. 'Don't take it seriously. Don't take it scientifically. It's a beautiful story.''" (Mike Matthews, "Why Genesis Still Matters," Answers, November-December 2017, p. 74)

So, are the Genesis Creation and Flood accounts poetry so that we should take them figuratively, allowing for millions of years and evolutionary processes to occur to explain the origin of the universe? How can we know?!

Need: So, we ask, "How would God have us handle the great confusion we face on today's critical issues?!"

I. Though Josiah had never been exposed to God's truth in written Scripture, when he began to rule on Judah's throne, he already had a heart that was devoted to following the Lord, 2 Chronicles 34:1-3a:

A. When Josiah began to rule in Judah, he made a commitment to follow the Lord precisely, 2 Chronicles 34:1-2.

B. This commitment led Josiah to start purging both Judah and Israel of all of their idols, 2 Chronicles 34:3b-7.

C. This commitment also led Josiah to begin to repair the temple of the Lord, 2 Chronicles 34:8-13.

II. Thus prepared by his heart attitude, Josiah's first exposure to the innately powerful Scriptures was met by his instant, full reception of its message and wholehearted repentance, 2 Chronicles 34:14-21:

A. In the midst of the repair work on the temple, Hilkiah the High Priest found a copy of the Book of the Law of God that had been given by Moses, and it was brought to Josiah and read to him, 2 Chronicles 34:14-18.

B. Hebrews 4:12-13 teaches that the divinely inspired Scriptures have their own innate power, and when its power is mingled with an open human heart, the hearer of the Word will respond greatly. (Matthew 13:18-23)

C. This is what occurred in Josiah's experience: he responded greatly to the reading of God's Word, tearing his clothes in remorse over learning of God's wrath against his nation for its idolatry, and directing his servants to seek God's guidance from a prophet on what he should do to please the Lord, 2 Chronicles 34:19-21.

Lesson: Since his heart was open to God's truth, once God's innately powerful Word was read to him, though it was his first exposure to it, Josiah instantly and fully accepted Scripture's message as true and acted upon it.

Application: (1) May we trust in Christ Who died as our Atoning Sacrifice for sin that we might receive God's gift of eternal life, John 3:16; 1 Corinthians 15:1-11. (2) May we like Josiah be so open to God's truth that when we are exposed to Scripture in its innate power, we instantly, wholeheartedly receive it as God's truth and act upon it.

Conclusion: (To illustrate the message . . . )

Presuming that we are applying this sermon's lesson and are thus open to God's truth, we view Scripture passages that guide us on handling confusion we face over the issues we noted in our introduction (as follows):

(1) On the confusion over the future of the economy and what to do for our own welfare, (a) James 4:13-15 asserts that we should rely on God's leading for the direction to take in our future employment. (b) However, God also offers practical guidance on earning a livelihood at all times (as follows): (i) we will meet our livelihood needs if we utilize time-honored, basic income streams (Proverbs 27:23-27; 12:11) and work hard (Proverbs 14:23). (ii) Also, Ecclesiastes 11:1-6 repeatedly claims that in view of our ignorance of the future of the economy, investing boldly with diversification for the long-term and consistently adding to each investment will secure a future profit.

(2) On the issue of a COVID-19 vaccine coming out before or after the election, doubts many people have on the efficacy of current vaccines for other ailments indicate many will question the value of a vaccine for COVID-19 when it is produced. (a) Thus, as we before noted, Paul in 1 Timothy 5:23 told Timothy medicinally to use a little wine for this stomach, so we should use common sense and home remedies to bolster our immune systems regardless whether we choose to get or not to get the COVID-19 vaccine. (b) Proverbs 20:12 calls us to use our eyes, our ears and hence also our brains to weigh all the facts we can obtain on such issues to make good decisions about them.

(3) On the issue of an election by mail, (a) we recall the Revelation 3:21 prophecy that we will face intrigue and oppressive rulers in our era, so it may be impossible for us at the grassroots level of society to discern credible from false claims about the voting process in the coming election. (b) However, Romans 13:1 promises that every official who comes to power is ordained of God to arrive there, even bad rulers like Nero who ruled Rome when Paul wrote that verse! (Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, 1978, p. 1593, "Introduction to the Letter of Paul to the Romans;" Zon. Pict. Ency. Bible, vol. Four, p. 410-411) We should thus vote with integrity but leave the election results with God.

(4) On whether the Genesis Creation and Flood accounts are poetry that to allow for millions of years for evolution to occur and teach a local versus a worldwide flood or whether they are prose and do not allow for evolution and a local flood, (a) Exodus 20:8-11 cites the Genesis 1-2 creation in six consecutive "days" as the basis for observing each seventh solar day as the Sabbath. The author of Exodus 20 treated Genesis 1-2 literally as prose and did not allow for evolution. (b) Jesus treated both the Genesis 1-2 Creation and the Genesis 7-8 Naohic Flood as events to be understood literally as prose, not allowing for evolution or a local flood: (i) in Matthew 19:4-6, Jesus alluded to Genesis 1 and Genesis 2 as the same creation event opposite Liberal Theology (that makes these chapters differing and competing accounts), and He based His argument that divorce was not permitted on the literal record of the creation of Eve from Adam's rib so that they were one flesh, relationally indivisible. [Man's creation in Genesis 2 certainly does not allow for evolution as Eve was miraculously created from a fully grown man's rib!] (ii) In Matthew 24:37-39, Jesus referred to the Noahic Flood of Genesis 7-8 as an event that killed "all" mankind, referring to a universal flood that destroyed the entire human race outside of the ark, the literal interpretation of Genesis 7-8!

(c) The Hebrew grammar of Genesis 1 is enlightening, too: George Buchanan Gray, Professor of Hebrew and Exegesis of the Old Testament at Oxford University in the early 20th century, in The Forms of Hebrew Poetry, 1915 (reprint 1972), p. 52-53, claimed Genesis 1:3-26 that describes creation in days one through partway of day six joins "clause to clause by means of the 'waw conversive' construction" (Ibid., p. 52), what scholars now call the "Waw Consecutive." (J. Weingreen, A Pract. Gram. For Class. Heb., 1969, p. 90-91) This construction starts with the first verb in the Perfect tense while the following verbs are in the Imperfect tense but prefixed by the letter waw to form "a continuous narration," Ibid. This format is "confined to consecutive narratives" (Ibid., p. 53), so Genesis 1:3-26 is not poetry, but a prose narration of consecutive events! This does not mean that Genesis 1:27-31 is not also prose, but that the waw consecutive format in Genesis 1:3-26 grammatically proves that that portion of Genesis 1:1-31 is prose!

Also, each "day" in Genesis 1 is described by the author as consisting of an evening and a morning (Genesis 1:5, 8, 13, 19, 23, 31), so the author of Genesis 1 meant to communicate that the events of Genesis 1 occurred in consecutive order in six consecutive solar days! Since the creation events in Genesis 1 when read in consecutive order also violate evolutionary theory on several major points (such as day and night existing before the sun and moon; plants existing before the stellar universe; birds existing before insects), Genesis 1 teaches pure creation!

May we trust in Christ Who died as our Atoning Sacrifice for sin that we might receive God's gift of eternal life, John 3:16; 1 Corinthians 11:1-6. May we handle the confusion we face from today's world by being open to God's truth so that when we are exposed to Scripture, we instantly, fully accept it and act on it!