april 2012
CityLight.org 23
travel to Jerusalem to worship. He went as
far as to appoint priests from all sorts of
people, even though they were not Levites,
as God commanded. Many of the priests
and Levites in the north began to migrate
to Judah because Jeroboam bypassed them
and appointed cult personnel instead. Je-
roboam even assumed the forbidden role
of priest himself. Jeroboam eventually lost
everything...the throne...the nation...he
was assassinated and his family was mur-
dered... all because of his poor decision.
He would forever be known as the one
who caused Israel to sin. Each king that
succeeded him waxed worse and worse
creating a period of assassinations and
intense struggle between those who wor-
shipped the Lord alone, represented by the
prophets, and those who worshipped the
Lord along with other deities that led to
God's judgment upon Israel with the As-
syrian captivity.
How important is a leader? It is the differ-
ence between life and death; freedom and
captivity; unity or division
whether it be in the individ-
ual, home, or nation. When a
leader speaks, don't just listen
to his words however good
they may sound, but watch
what he actually does. Does
his talk match his walk? To
answer the question of why
my sons turned out like they
did as devout men of God is
to say that they followed their
Dad... Joe Grimaud. Joe is a
good, righteous leader who
walks the talk. Jesus, as the au-
thor and finisher of our faith,
taught us the same lesson. Be-
fore Jesus could lead the hu-
man race to salvation, He had
to follow and obey His Dad.
He humbled Himself and be-
came obedient to death, even
the death of the cross. His
words to us: "deny yourself;"
"take up your cross and follow me;" "if you
love me keep my commandments." As long
as Jesus was miraculously feeding the poor
and healing the sick, He had thousands of
followers. But when Jesus began to talk
about dying on a cross, thousands left Him
and followed Him no more. Many are ask-
ing today, "What does a real Christian look
like?" Not everyone who says, "Lord, Lord,"
shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven,
but only he who does the will of the Father
who is in Heaven. Pretty clear, isn't it? This
means to place your life under the author-
ity of the word of God and live it out in
minute detail in everyday living. This is not
legalism. This is to have the very Son of
God press through the pores of your skin
and live inside you. To be a Christian is just
as it has always been...to honor God and
keep His commandments, only now, it is
the Son of God inside that empowers you
to live the righteous life! Wow! How about
you? Who are you following and whom are
you leading? Is the road you are on leading
to a blessing or a curse, to heaven or hell?