“When all this had ended, the Israelites who were there went out to the towns of Judah, smashed the sacred stones and cut down the Asherah poles. They destroyed the high places and the altars throughout Judah and Benjamin and in Ephraim and Manasseh. After they had destroyed all of them, the Israelites returned to their own towns and to their own property.” 2 Chronicles 31:1

Dear Friends and Members of IBC, On Sunday, we reflected on the parable of the four soils in Luke 8:4–15 and how each soil represents a different heart posture in response to the seed of the gospel. In this week’s Word for the Week, we will explore a key evidence of a truly changed heart. Let me cast your mind back to the time of Hezekiah. After cleansing and restoring the temple of the Lord, Hezekiah calls on the priests to consecrate themselves and restores proper worship and sacrifices according to God’s law. He calls all of Israel to celebrate the Passover, which had been neglected for many years. After seven days of worship, with many priests devoting themselves to God, and joy throughout Jerusalem, we see the evidence of changed hearts: people turn away from all the false gods they have set up. And they don’t just turn away. They strongly, deeply, renounce these idols. In this single verse, the words smash, destroy, and cut down are repeated four times. They seriously broke those idols up into pieces. This must have taken considerable effort. The carved poles or styled trees, representing Asherah, the Canaanite fertility goddess, were spread throughout Israel. No doubt these actions then caused problems with their neighbours who still wanted to worship Asherah. But what Hezekiah began as personal renewal, has become a widespread movement of reform. We see similar powerful social change in many revivals in church history. During the Welsh revival in the 1900s, crime rates throughout Wales fell dramatically. Some bars became bankrupt because people stopped getting drunk. The police became unemployed in certain districts because there was nothing for them to do. When God draws us closer to Himself, when we seek Him wholeheartedly and experience His presence, then He often starts showing us our own ‘Asherah poles’. And if we don’t give those idols up, then God just remains there, His finger pressed upon them. Friends, do we have this same kind of destroying and smashing attitude towards the idols in our own lives? It might help us to think carefully about the occasions when we are most vulnerable to temptation. Reflect on your habits. What are the circumstances that might lead you to sin? If you struggle with sexual sin, but still like to visit old social media sites, secretly hoping there is a chance you might see something, don’t be surprised if you mess up. If you struggle with overspending, but still enjoy fantasising about a material lifestyle, don’t be surprised if you end up buying that never-used item again. If we play around with the occasions for sin, we will soon be sinning. So, watch yourself. Remember the words of Haggai 1:5: “Now this is what the LORD Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways”. And keep your gaze fixed on Jesus, who has done this gracious, marvellous work of giving you a changed heart. He will surely continue the good work He has begun in you! God Bless you James