PODCAST
Faithfulness Rather than Ritual
January 12th, 2014
2 Chronicles 30:13—31:1
Hezekiah was one of the few good kings in Judah’s history. He sought to return his wayward nation back to the Lord. This involved destroying symbols of idol worship and restoring the rituals established through Moses, especially observance of Passover. Elaborate rituals of purification were required to qualify the participants. The priests performed these rituals in preparation for their role but many of the people who attended were not ceremonially clean and thus theoretically unable to eat the Passover meal. Nonetheless they ate the Passover anyway, “contrary to what was written” (v. 18).
Enter Hezekiah! He felt that God would be more concerned for the love and commitment of his children than the proper observance of the ritual. Thus he prayed for a dispensation of grace. This does not mean that prescribed rituals were unimportant but that far more important was the attitude of the heart.
The important thing is to participate in those rituals that symbolize aspects of the faith, but with a heart completely committed to love and faithfulness to the God to whom they point.
Author: H. Ray Dunning
Tags: Sacraments
