Generational Strongholds ii – Reformation

..our fathers have inherited nothing but lies, worthless things in which there is no profit. Jeremiah 16:19

Generational sins are passed down from one generation to another, sin when accommodated and accepted as norm becomes a stronghold. Sin becomes acceptable and at times honorable, children who grow up in this home will not know better but follow in the footsteps of their parents, it takes great courage to break from this destructive believe systems.  This is because this believe systems, are most of the times part of our culture and society. A good examples in scripture is the sin of Jeroboam the son of Nebat

And Jeroboam said in his heart, “Now the kingdom will turn back to the house of David. If this people go up to offer sacrifices in the temple of the Lord at Jerusalem, then the heart of this people will turn again to their lord, to Rehoboam king of Judah, and they will kill me and return to Rehoboam king of Judah.” So the king took counsel and made two calves of gold. And he said to the people, “You have gone up to Jerusalem long enough. Behold your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.” And he set one in Bethel, and the other he put in Dan. Then this thing became a sin, for the people went as far as Dan to be before one. 1 Kings 12:26-30

God had given Jeroboam the Kingdom of Israel and promised him that he would sustain Him if he kept the word of the Lord, but because of his insecurities Jeroboam created a golden calf so that the children of Israel would worship it instead of crossing over to Judah. The golden calf was supposed to be a substitute because Israel did not have a temple, this sin became rooted in the culture and lifestyle of Israel. Subsequent kings although good could not contemplate removing this golden calf, it was a stronghold, even Jehu 10 kings after Jeroboam was unable to undo..

Jehu eradicated Baal from Israel, but he did not turn away from the sins that Jeroboam son of Nebat had caused Israel to commit—the worship of the golden calves at Bethel and Dan. Nevertheless, the LORD said to Jehu, “Because you have done well in carrying out what is right in My sight and have done to the house of Ahab all that was in My heart, four generations of your sons will sit on the throne of Israel.”… 2 Kings 10:28-290:28-29

There are generational strongholds that are difficult to undo because they have been established over many generations, they are interwoven into our lives and society.  Unfortunately, God’s standard does not change, he expects us to be bold and reform our families by exposing and destroying this strongholds and the demonic altars that sponsor them.

The greatest generational reforms in the bible were implemented by two successive kings..Asa took over the kingship of Israel after 3 generations of sin, backsliding and apostasy from the word of God. His reforms were not completed by him but his son Jehoshaphat, in this article we review the reforms that he did

1. Spiritual Reforms

Asa did what was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God. He removed the foreign altars and the high places, smashed the sacred stones and cut down the Asherah poles.He commanded Judah to seek the Lord, the God of their ancestors, and to obey his laws and commands. He removed the high places and incense altars in every town in Judah, 2 Chronicles 14:2-6

Whenever God raised a deliverer the first area of reforms was to identify idols and destroy them together with those who led people to worship them. This is what people seek instead of God, it is what they put their hope in. The removal of this idols and their followers was a violent and painful process that even claimed Asa’s own mother

Even Maacah, his mother, King Asa removed from being queen mother because she had made a detestable image for Asherah. Asa cut down her image, crushed it, and burned it at the brook Kidron 2 Chronicles 15:16

He also commanded Judah to seek God and to follow his laws and commandments. This resonates with what was said about Abraham in Genesis 18:19. It basically meant that Israel was to make the word of God the standard for living, this included restoring priests and teachers of the law, Jehoshaphat went further and appointed Judges who could judge and enforce the laws

and Jehoshaphat said to the judges, “Consider what you do, for you judge not for man but for the Lord. He is with you in giving judgment. Now then, let the fear of the Lord be upon you. Be careful what you do, for there is no injustice with the Lord our God, or partiality or taking bribes.” 2 Chronicles 19:6

2. Building a strong defense and offense

And he said to Judah, “Let us build these cities and surround them with walls and towers, gates and bars. The land is still ours, because we have sought the Lord our God. We have sought him, and he has given us peace on every side.” So they built and prospered. And Asa had an army of 300,000 from Judah, armed with large shields and spears, and 280,000 men from Benjamin that carried shields and drew bows. All these were mighty men of valor 2 Chronicles 14:2-6

Great wealth attracts great envy and attacks, the next logical thing after receiving God’s blessings was to establish mechanisms to protect it. Asa took pride in constructing and building structures that could keep Judah safe… as we lead our families out of bondage we should work on both physical and spiritual safeguards to protect and also if necessary attack our enemies. Never let our guard down

3. Unity in purpose and worship

They assembled at Jerusalem in the third month of the fifteenth year of Asa’s reign. At that time they sacrificed to the Lord seven hundred head of cattle and seven thousand sheep and goats from the plunder they had brought back.They entered into a covenant to seek the Lord, the God of their ancestors, with all their heart and soul. 2 Chronicles 15:10

They joined together to worship God, through sacrifices and making a covenant that was a symbol of their commitment to follow God. The seriousness of this commitment they made wholeheartedly with great celebration had a disclaimer “All who would not seek the Lord, the God of Israel, were to be put to death,” the reformation effort ends with this observation.

They sought God eagerly, and he was found by them. So the Lord gave them rest on every side. 2 Chronicles 15:15