SERMON

JOSIAH: PRINCIPLES OF BEING A DISCIPLE

He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord and followed completely the ways of his father David, not turning aside to the right or to the left.

Introduction:

Josiah was not brought in a household of bad kings
However, he did not follow in the foot steps of his fathers but kept to God’s ways.

Principle 1: Align Yourself to Godly Influence

Josiah’s influence in his life was his mother and the priests. He chose to follow in their footsteps
If you want to be a disciple of Christ, you need to align yourself to godly influence.
Intentionally seek out godly influences. Don’t let your surrounding circumstances affect you.
Allow godly influences to shape you.

Principle 2: Re-establish the Centrality of God’s Word

The Israelites had been having temple worship but they did not have the Word of God. And when they found it and read it, Josiah tore his clothes and repented before the Lord because he knew they weren’t walking in the ways of God.
The word of God gives us the direction in life. We have to return and align ourselves to the word of God.
God wants to reveal His purpose to you in your life so that it can be achieved through you in your life. God wants to speak to you according to your needs.

Principle 3: Repair the Space of Worship

The fact that the temple of God was in ruins shows the spiritual state of the Israelites. They didn’t care much about worship.
Repair your own space of worship. Identify the things that are not of God and put it out.
Worship is not about what we sing or say but it is about who we are. It is an attitude of surrendering our life to God.
Make your life a lifestyle of worship.

Principle 4: Removing Everything that is Detestable

Josiah had to go into the temple and remove what is detestable in the temple. It was bold of him to do it as those would have been practices from the days of his fathers
Sometimes the devil disguises what is godly to look very godly and it has crept into the church. So how do we, like Josiah, know what is detestable and what is not? It is from reading the word of God. The more you read God’s Word, the more God will reveal what you should remove in your life.

Principle 5: Remember and Rejoice in God’s Word

Nobody celebrated the Passover like Josiah who gave everything he had so that everyone would remember what God had done.
Remember and rejoice in the work that God has done on the cross through the blood of Jesus Christ.
God has redeemed us from death to life and because of that we should live our life as a disciple of Christ in the freedom that He has brought us into.

Conclusion: