ARTICLE:

 YOUR KNOWLEDGE VS RESPONSIBILITY

''He who reads and doesn't obey has no advantage over he who cannot read or respond''
                                                                                                                     -Mark Twain

Anchor passage: 2Chronicles.34:3

''During the eighth year of his reign, while he was still young, Josiah began to seek the God of his ancestor David. Then in the twelfth year, he began to purify Judah and Jerusalem, destroying all the pagan shrines, the Asherah poles, and the carved idols and cast images.''

      The present day sixteen year old teenager can never be identified with piety. They would rather be known for their immaturity, mischief or irresponsibility. Perhaps some voracious appetite and knowledge of the latest trend in fashion and entertainment too, but certainly not for piety, even if they are found to be reigning monarchs.

      Young King Josiah was different. We are not told what led Josiah to earnestly desire an experience of the Lord. It certainly was not the example of his father, King Amon, or his grandfather, King Manasseh, both of whom were wicked kings. Something was born in Josiah’s heart that led him to take seriously both his own spiritual well-being and his royal obligation for the well-being of his people. In a few short years, he used his royal power and prestige to rid his territory of the infamous idolatry that plagued his people and to commission the refurbishing of the neglected temple (34:8). All this by the time he was twenty-six years of age!. Josiah’s devotion to the Lord and spiritual leadership were developed without the benefit of the Scriptures, which makes his accomplishments even more remarkable. Prior to the rediscovery of the Scriptures, Josiah had known enough about the Lord to know that he needed to know more, and he had seen enough of idol worship to know that it was clearly wrong. Acting on the limited information available to him, he achieved great things. But when he received the word of the Lord, his vision was expanded and his experience enlarged.

      So when Hilkiah the priest eventually discovered the lost Scriptures (34:14), Josiah was horrified to discover how far he and his people had strayed from the Lord’s commands. He immediately ordered further study and inquired of the prophet Huldah. When he understood the significance of the word of the Lord, he put it into practice and called the people to follow his lead.

     Our sense of responsibilty lies not only in responding to what we know but in knowing what we should know. To know the word and not to obey it is wrong. To have the word and not to read and know it is no better. The bible says in James.1:25;
He that looks into the perfect law of liberty and abides therein, being not only a hearer but also a doer of the word, the same shall be blessed in all his ways.

      Most of us have access to the word of God but do nothing about reading or observing to do as it says. The kind of knowledge we mostly expose ourselves to isnt always profitable enough. We, the young people of this age are in the know of the latest trend in fashion, sports, entertainment and the likes, but have very little of the word of God in our hearts. Sometimes, our true sense of responsibility lies in knowing the right thing and to observe to do them.