O Altar, O Altar

Then he cried out against the altar by the word of the Lord, and said, “O altar, altar! Thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, a child, Josiah by name, shall be born to the house of David; and on you he shall sacrifice the priests of the high places who burn incense on you, and men’s bones shall be burned on you.’ ” 1 Kings 13:2

In this passage, we see a man of God who had received a word from the Lord. He came from Judah, a day’s journey from Israel, bearing the word from the Lord. God had given the man of God the now word or the word for this season. This word created a ripple in the kingdom of Israel. ‘O Altar O Altar,’ is the voice that resonated in the kingdom of Jeroboam.

The Altar is the place where the sins of Jeroboam began. People went from all over Israel to worship the Lord in His temple in Jerusalem. To keep people from going to Jerusalem, Jeroboam built altars and high places in Israel itself. It was a business plan to keep Israelites from visiting Jerusalem. This business plan proved to be a serious sin against God. Jeroboam built man-made altars and high places without God’s leading or plan. So many times, our business plans that are not guided by God’s will can turn into dangerous sins that bring God’s wrath down on our land and church.

God does not like the business plans we implement in the Church. God is enraged by our business plans implemented with human wisdom to grow congregation size or gain wealth. All plans in the church need to be implemented with the guidance of the Holy Spirit. A plan without the Holy Spirit’s guidance is a business plan. The business plans are motivated by lot of self-motives, including fame, rapid growth, money, etc. We are called to be servants of God implementing God’s plans and will. A lot of churches in the land are promoting their ministries, meetings, and agendas through business propaganda. It’s their ministry only.

They portray an image that God comes, speaks or appears only at their church’s meetings. This is also a business plan in which they take precedence over others. This business strategy is known as the Self strategy where their ministry or self is better or important than others. God is fed up with these strategies and those who do business in God’s name. You will either have God’s word or your business strategy. Stay away from business strategies if you want God’s word. A saint once – You be a caretaker of the word, let your team be the caretaker of everything else including money. You can’t be the caretaker for both at the same time.

Jeroboam established an alternative place to worship instead of worshipping in the temple at Jerusalem. The place of worship built by Jeroboam may have spared most of the Israelites from walking, but it led them to idol worship. Even if you have to travel a great distance, go to a church where God is truly present. Jeroboam subtly established an alternative place of worship. The altar pattern was the same, and the worship was similar to that of the Temple in Jerusalem, but it was not done in God’s will or according to God’s plan. The alternative place to worship was a man-made temple to promote their business strategy. Look and be cautious with preachers like Jeroboam who sutly create alternatives for worship, bible reading, prayer. The pattern is the same, but the presence of God is not.

Don’t be deceived by outward appearance of church; instead, be led by the Holy Spirit. We must be strong in our fundamentals, such as prayer, repentance, and the importance of Cross of Jesus. False altars and wicked ways are the root causes of all sins in Jeroboam’s kingdom. Here comes the young man of God, bearing a word from God that exposes the root cause of all sins, namely the false altar. He reveals the root cause of all sins, provides a from word from God, shows a sign that the word from God is true, and finally reveals the remedy for sins. The man-made altar will split, and the shrine’s priests will be sacrificed on the same altar.

After the word from God pierces the sin, its upto the person to accept the piercing and turn to God in repentance or rebel against the word from God and in turn rebel against God. Its either the word of God pierces the sins and nullifies the sins or the sins nullifies the word from God.

Within 10 lines or 5 min talk the young man of God conveyed the entire word from God. It was clear and sharp. He discussed the underlying problem as well as the remedy. A word from God pierces or wounds the sin in a sinner. Because this word came from the Lord, it caused a ripple in the Kingdom. When we have a word from God, we don’t need elaborate or over emphasize. We simply need to convey it as it is. God’s power was visibly present when the young man of God conveyed the exact word he received from God. He did not add to or subtract from the word he received from God. The young man of God presented in the pure form in which he received from God. These days, when we receive a word from God, we add or subtract from it based on our needs and situations. Adding or subtracting from the word from God causes it to lose its power. The young man’s riches or wealth is that he is the bearer of heaven’s power and will.