Family, the story of Israel’s kings is not just a cautionary tale from ancient history, it is a prophetic mirror held up to the face of the current church we see here in the West and throughout the world. Let’s not deceive ourselves. God’s Word does not flatter, and it does not leave room for half-measures or excuses.
Again and again, in 1 and 2 Kings, we see this phrase like a hammer: “He did right in the sight of the LORD, yet the high places were not taken away,” (2 Kings 15:4). You see, it doesn’t matter how much right we do, how passionate our worship, how many people we serve, or how many sermons we preach, if we leave the high places standing, we leave the door open for compromise, mixture, and eventually, destruction. This is not an Old Testament problem. It is the same cancer that is eating away at the heart of today’s church.
Leadership without full obedience is failure, no matter the applause.
Let’s be honest. Some kings restored temple worship, but left the idols for another day. Some pastors build great ministries, but allow the idolatry of self, comfort, or platform to thrive under the surface. In the end, God does not weigh our good deeds against our disobedience. He judges the heart, the motives, and the altars we allow to stand when we should have torn them down.
In the modern institutional church system, we have grown skilled at “doing right” in the eyes of the people and sometimes even in the eyes of God, yet we tolerate, even coddle, the very idols that have crippled the witness and purity of Christ’s body. We say we hate sin, but refuse to confront the altars built to man, to celebrity, to the Sunday spectacle, to our own ego, to financial security, and to religious tradition. These are our modern high places. We have exchanged the living God for the applause of men, the convenience of routine, and the fleeting thrill of relevance.
So why do we leave the idols standing? Well, let’s ask some hard questions. Are we afraid of losing our influence if we challenge the “way things are”? Are we more committed to maintaining a system than to seeing people set free? Are we afraid of offending those who benefit from these idols, even if it means grieving the Holy Spirit? Are we so enamored with being liked, being safe, or being successful that we will not pay the price to see the altars smashed? If we are honest, most leaders, myself included, have felt the weight of these temptations.
There is a cost to confronting the idols. There will be backlash. Some will leave. Resources may dry up. Your reputation might take a hit. But there is a greater cost for leaving them untouched, you forfeit the blessing, the anointing, and the presence of God that comes only where He alone is worshipped.
Here is the thing, true fathers, true shepherds, tear down the idols, no matter the cost. If we are called to lead, we are called to war, not with flesh and blood, but against every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God (2 Corinthians 10:4-5). We cannot love our people and leave them enslaved. We cannot shepherd God’s flock and allow the wolves to roam free among the sheep. A true father, a true shepherd, is willing to be misunderstood, maligned, even betrayed, for the sake of leading God’s people into purity and wholeness. Look at Josiah:
“He did right in the sight of the LORD…and he broke down the altars…and crushed them to powder…so that they would never rise again.” (2 Kings 23:12-15), I paraphrased for clarity.
This is the spirit of Christ in a leader unwilling to tolerate divided loyalties, passionate for the holiness of God’s people, relentless in the pursuit of a church with no mixture, no compromise, no rival thrones.
Beloved leaders, shepherds, elders, pastors, I say this with deep love, as one who has walked this path and bears these scars. If we do not tear down the idols, we are handing God’s people over to spiritual famine. We are robbing the next generation of the move of God they so desperately need. We are settling for maintenance when God has called us to reformation. This, of course, has nothing to do with anger or bitterness; it’s about being holy and courageous. It’s about loving the Bride of Christ more than we love our own comfort. So enough with half-hearted measures.
Enough with hiding behind busyness, numbers, and the appearance of fruitfulness while refusing to deal with what is rotten at the root. If we truly love the people of God, if we truly want to see revival, healing, and the power of God return to the church, then we must, “WE MUST” tear down the high places. Even if it costs us everything. Because, in the end, it will cost us far more to leave them standing.
Will we be remembered as the ones who did good but left the idols untouched or as the ones who, in the fear and love of God, tore them down for the sake of His glory and the healing of His people? This is the kind of leadership that changes history. This is the kind of courage the church desperately needs. The next move of God depends on it.
Let’s not settle for anything less.
