Alan Fong
3 min read
Alan Fong
3 min read
Alan Fong
3 min read
The Man Who Blew the Whistle
Today’s Verse
And Azariah the priest went in after him, and with him fourscore priests of the LORD, that were valiant men: ~2 Chronicles 26:17
A whistleblower is someone who makes a public disclosure regarding behavior that is corrupt and wrong. He is someone who is willing to accept the ramifications of retaliation and setback in order to do the right thing. This morning, we see a powerful incident when a righteous man blew the whistle on the highest-ranking man in Judah.
We see Azariah and his consecration.
Azariah was the high priest in the nation of Judah. He was a man set apart for the service of God. He was a descendant of Aaron. He was responsible for the Passover and the Day of Atonement. He was the only man allowed to enter into the Holy of Holies and to sprinkle the blood sacrifice on the mercy seat. He supervised all the other priests and maintained order in the service of God. He was a God-fearing man who lived his life and performed his duties to the glory of God. His life was dedicated to glorifying God through his service.
We see Azariah and his company.
He and eighty other priests confronted King Uzziah for his sin of burning incense in the temple. The burning of incense was the responsibility of the priests. Uzziah flagrantly rebelled against God and the priests. Azariah and the priests were righteous men who are described as valiant men. They were not men that were weakened or blinded by friendships, favors, or preferences. Together, they made sure that God’s house was clean. The men of a church should follow the faith of their pastor and not be different in belief or practices.
We see Azariah and his conviction.
They had biblical convictions. He and the priests had deep-seated convictions about the service of the Lord. They knew that King Uzziah had sinned against the Lord when he entered into the temple and burned incense. It’s important that God’s men have strong, unwavering convictions about the Bible, prayer, soulwinning, doctrine, the church, and moral righteousness. We live in a day when men have shifted from what they once believed and, instead, have adapted their beliefs to the culture. God’s people must have biblical convictions on the moral issues of the day that are clearly sinful and unbiblical.
We see Azariah and his courage.
As they withstood King Uzziah, he became wroth and may have thought about calling his militia in to kill the priests. Instead, God honored the courage and conviction of Azariah, and Uzziah was afflicted with a fast-rising leprosy in his body. As the men of God saw the leprosy rise in the king’s forehead, they courageously “thrust” him out of the temple. They thrust him out because he had trespassed, but they thrust him also because he was unquestionably unclean. It requires godly courage to take a stand against public and perverted sins in the house of God. It might cost us, but it is the right thing to do.
Azariah blew the whistle on King Uzziah. I am sure that Azariah never dreamed that he would ever have to do this against the highest-ranking man in his country. However, his rock-solid convictions gave him the needed boldness to do the right thing when he had to. Don’t let the softness of this culture keep you from being a Christian with strong convictions.
Have a consecrated God Morning!
Bible Reading Schedule: Numbers 11-13
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