Copyright © 2006 Ron Schwartz
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The Revival That Almost Was

September 9, 2006

By Ron Schwartz

There are a lot of good men who honestly attempt to do the work of the Lord.  Many have the zeal and passion of Jehu.  Many have spent their lives coming against idolatry and the forces of evil that support it.  They study hard and are dedicated to preaching the gospel of Christ.   Some have spent their entire lives in this pursuit.  They have zealously confronted evil and have never strayed from the work of the Lord.  They work hard, pray continuously, and desire to see God’s Kingdom come.  They have seen fruit from their labor and growth among their congregations.  But for all their labor and good intentions they still don’t see the flames of revival they so desperately desire.  What is wrong?  Why are the heavens shut up?  Why do godly men come up “short?”

Jehu’s story is one of a king’s zeal and passion for the Lord.  His drive against sin was described as that of a mad man.  He single-handedly rid Israel of the idolatry of Baal.  Yet for all his dedication and zeal, revival never came.  The reason?  There was another sin.  A sin that become so commonly accepted that people saw it as the service of God.  It is that sin which, the Bible tells us, caused this great man to come up “short.”

Jehu lived during one of the spiritually darkest hours of Israel’s history.  His story can be found in 2 Kings 9 and 10.  Israel had experienced a long spiral downward into idolatry.  All the kings before him were evil. The worship of Baal had become completely interwoven into the fabric of all their political and religious institutions.  This was a time when it was NOT popular to worship Jehovah.  In fact, the worship of Jehovah had all but disappeared.  The true followers of Jehovah hid, worshipping in secret, and most of the prophets of Jehovah hid from persecution.

When we first hear about Jehu, Jehoram the son of Ahab is king.   Jehu is a commander of the army and respected by his peers.  They do not hesitate to give their support to him when they discover that he has been anointed as king.  Jehu wastes no time pursuing and killing both of the evil kings of Israel and Judah.  The scripture records that he drove his chariot toward the castle of the king “furiously (2 Kings 9:20).”   The word actually means “crazily” or “madly.”   He was like a crazy man.  No one dared or even attempted to stop him.

So Jehu comes on the scene like lightning.  He thunders across the plains of Israel and kills the leaders and supporters of Baal with furious zeal and passion.   The bodies of all who supported Baal lay in his wake.  He kills both of the kings of Israel and Judah, all the sons of Ahab, and every political leader who supported them.  Jehu understood that if he merely cut down the tree, it would grow back.  The roots needed to die.  Therefore, he first went after the political support of Baal, the roots that allowed it to grow and flourish as a nation dedicated to another God.  When the kings, relatives, and their supporters were gone, there were only the worshippers and priests of Baal to contend with.

Jehu then brought the priests and worshippers of Baal all together by proclaiming a celebration to their god.   All the worshippers of Baal came to their temple from all across the kingdom.  Once they were all together, Jehu ordered a massacre.  The worshippers are killed, the idols in the temple are burned, and the large idol of Baal is broken into pieces.  As a final act of humiliation and desecration, Jehu orders the temple broken down and made into a public outhouse.   The Bible summarizes these events by saying, “Thus Jehu destroyed Baal out of Israel (2 Kings 10:28).”

It was a shining moment in Israel’s history.  It should have been one that turned Israel around.  Instead, it served only as a dam. Upon Jehu’s death, Israel once again continued its spiral downward into apostasy.   So, what went wrong?

2 Kings 10:29-33 KJV

29 Howbeit from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin, Jehu departed not from after them, to wit, the golden calves that were in Bethel, and that were in Dan.

30 And the LORD said unto Jehu, Because thou hast done well in executing that which is right in mine eyes, and hast done unto the house of Ahab according to all that was in mine heart, thy children of the fourth generation shall sit on the throne of Israel.

31 But Jehu took no heed to walk in the law of the LORD God of Israel with all his heart: for he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam, which made Israel to sin.

32 In those days the LORD began to cut Israel short: and Hazael smote them in all the coasts of Israel;

33 From Jordan eastward, all the land of Gilead, the Gadites, and the Reubenites, and the Manassites, from Aroer, which is by the river Arnon, even Gilead and Bashan.

God instructed Jehu to rid the kingdom of an evil monarchy.   Jehu did so with zeal.  But Jehu didn’t stop there.  He understood the heart of God and so he set about to rid Israel of the worship of Baal.  This he also did with the same zeal and passion.   But it wasn’t enough.  There was more he should have done.  Once idolatry was gone, he should have continued by ridding the land of the sins of Jeroboam.

To understand the sins of Jeroboam, you need to go back to the time when Israel split into two kingdoms.   Jeroboam became the first king of the ten tribes that went by the name Israel.  Once king, he became concerned about the people becoming sentimental.  He knew that each year they would return to Jerusalem to celebrate the feasts (Jerusalem being in the other Hebrew nation called Judah).  Once there with their brethren, they may decide that they should once again combine the nation together under one king, and Jeroboam might lose his kingdom.  So he devised a plot designed specifically to keep God’s people divided.

1 Kings 12:26-33 KJV

26 And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David:

27 If this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they shall kill me, and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah.

28 Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.

29 And he set the one in Bethel, and the other put he in Dan.

30 And this thing became a sin: for the people went to worship before the one, even unto Dan.

31 And he made an house of high places, and made priests of the lowest of the people, which were not of the sons of Levi.

32 And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like unto the feast that is in Judah, and he offered upon the altar. So did he in Bethel, sacrificing unto the calves that he had made: and he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places which he had made.

33 So he offered upon the altar which he had made in Bethel the fifteenth day of the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised of his own heart; and ordained a feast unto the children of Israel: and he offered upon the altar, and burnt incense.

The people of Israel were deeply religious, so preventing them from worshipping was not a viable option.  The solution he arrived at was to replace their worship with something else.  His solution involved giving the people a form of worship that was similar to what they were used to.  He referenced the scripture concerning their freedom from Egypt (v.28).  His two calves were reminiscent of the two angels of the Ark of the Covenant.  It was the place where God dwelt.   He created “an house” like the temple.  He made priests who weren’t Levites (v.31).  He even gave them a new feast like the Feast of Tabernacles.  His new form of religion was a comprehensive copy of that which had been ordained by God.  It was so similar to what they were used to doing that the people readily embraced it.  But probably the most strategic thing he did was to choose his priests “of the lowest of the people,” or “all sorts of people.”  By doing this, he made it popular.  Instead of being a Levite, anyone who wanted to could be a priest.

The sin of Jeroboam eventually became status quo.  It became the de facto standard for how God was worshipped and pleased.  This sin was overlooked because few, if any, saw it as sin.  Even the zealous king Jehu practiced it.  Therefore, the nation of Israel remained “almost righteous” during his entire reign.

Almost Righteous

The sin of Jeroboam was one of attempted duplication, counterfeit copying.  It was a man’s attempt to copy something divinely inspired by God.  Like Jeroboam’s duplication of the temple and feast, many churches are little more than poor imitations of the true Church described in the scripture.  Just as the temple and the feasts originated from God, so did the original Church.  Jesus didn’t give the apostles a manual for creating and running a church.  He told them to wait and pray.  Today, however, we find educated pastors who pale in comparison to the anointing that once moved on men of old.  These modern preachers have an academic knowledge of things concerning the church and its operations.  So they set about to create more imitations just like the men who went before them.  They manufacture churches that will function under their control, by their design, and through their effort.  When this happens, we find the sin of Jeroboam: churches that are copies of the Church that God designed.  Even the most superficial observation of the contemporary church reveals this.   Consider how the contemporary church is like the Old Testament:

·    Has an elite class of ministers who minister in a church building (Old Testament: “But thou shalt appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of testimony, and over all the vessels thereof, and over all things that belong to it: they shall bear the tabernacle, and all the vessels thereof; and they shall minister unto it, and shall encamp round about the tabernacle.”  Numbers 1:50).

·    Finances ministers through a tithe (Old Testament: “But the tithes of the children of Israel, which they offer as an heave offering unto the LORD, I have given to the Levites to inherit: therefore I have said unto them, Among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance.” Numbers 18:24).

·    Revolves everything around the church buildings (Old Testament: “Then the tabernacle of the congregation shall set forward with the camp of the Levites in the midst of the camp: as they encamp, so shall they set forward, every man in his place by their standards.”  Numbers 2:17) instead of around God.

·    Hires ministers to represent us before God (Old testament: “…And Micah said unto him [a Levite], Dwell with me, and be unto me a father and a priest, and I will give thee ten shekels of silver by the year, and a suit of apparel, and thy victuals. So the Levite went in…” Judges 17:7-13).

·    Worships in a building and in a sanctuary (Old Testament: “For there was a tabernacle made; the first, wherein was the candlestick, and the table, and the shewbread; which is called the sanctuary.”  Hebrews 9:2).

·    Has ordinances (Old Testament: “Then verily the first covenant had also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary.” Hebrews 9:1).

·    Has a place called an Altar at the front of the sanctuary (Old Testament: “And thou shalt make an altar of shittim wood, five cubits long, and five cubits broad; the altar shall be foursquare: and the height thereof shall be three cubits.”  Exodus 27:1).

But the sin of Jeroboam goes beyond simply patterning churches after Old Testament instruments and practices.  It replaces the operation (and therefore sovereignty) of God with the will of men.  The division we see in the contemporary church is result of men who like Jeroboam are looking to protect their interest.  Like Jeroboam, men have created doctrinal distinctions to keep “their” people separate from their brethren.   Call it denominationalism, independent churches, or even house churches.  Men create distinctive differences in an effort to keep their people separate and therefore insure the longevity of their own kingdoms.  But God would never endorse the practice of dividing His people up like so many pieces of pie. 

Also, like Jeroboam, men have come to believe that the sovereignty of God cannot exist.  So men have dismissed the operation of God as easily as they dismiss spiritual gifts and replaced it with the will of men.  No longer do people look to God for the direction and health of the Church but to their preachers.  They can do nothing without his approval or under his management.  So they sit in their pews  (or chairs) each week as spectators while the preachers run the show.  And down the street the same thing happens at all the other churches.  All the while, each pastor explains to his congregation how they are different and special, and unity is therefore impossible.

This modern sin of Jeroboam is commonplace.  It has long since become established as the acceptable way to worship God.  And it is the sin that keeps revival from taking place.

Conclusion

After Jehu’s victory over Baal, the Bible tells us that Jehu stopped short of ridding the land of evil.   As a result, God also stopped short in His protection.

2 Kings 10:31-33 KJV

31 But Jehu took no heed to walk in the law of the LORD God of Israel with all his heart: for he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam, which made Israel to sin.

32 In those days the LORD began to cut Israel short: and Hazael smote them in all the coasts of Israel;

33 From Jordan eastward, all the land of Gilead, the Gadites, and the Reubenites, and the Manassites, from Aroer, which is by the river Arnon, even Gilead and Bashan.

Like Israel in Jehu’s day, God has cut us short.  Just like Israel, we are losing ground to the enemy.  Given amount of labor, prayer, and preaching that we see every week, we are not seeing the revivals that should be burning across this land.  The questions we must ask are: “Are we satisfied with status quo?”  “Are we okay with a steady erosion of God’s kingdom?”  “Are we satisfied with coming up short?”

The sin of Jeroboam is found in almost every church today, endorsed by good men like Jehu who are zealous and passionate for the Lord.  Perhaps you are one.  Perhaps you have taken a stand against sin and idolatry.  Perhaps you are as passionate as Jehu.  Perhaps people have described you as a mad man when it comes to battling the forces of evil.  Perhaps you are tired of coming up short, of watching the erosion of God’s kingdom.

It’s not that God is unhappy with what many pastors have done.  He’s not.  They have done a lot of good.  He just wants them to finish the job.  He wants them to rid the Church of the copies, of the sin that divides His people and (like Jeroboam) creates kingdoms for men.

Being a great man of God isn’t good enough.  There is no guarantee that your zeal and passion is enough.  Jehu found that out.  There are plenty of good men who honestly attempt to do the work of the Lord.  Many have the zeal and passion of Jehu.  Many have spent their lives coming against idolatry and the forces of evil that support it.  They study hard and are dedicated to preaching the gospel of Christ.   Some have spent their entire lives in this pursuit.  They have zealously confronted evil and have never strayed from the work of the Lord.  They work hard, pray continuously, and desire to see God’s Kingdom come.  They have seen fruit from their labor and growth among their congregations.  But for all their labor and good intentions, they still don’t see the flames of revival they so desperately desire.  What is wrong?  Why are the heavens shut up?  Why do godly men come up “short?”  It’s because they have shorted God.  Do you want revival?  Do you REALLY want revival?  Are you ready to lose your kingdom for God’s glory?

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