TREASURES OF THE BIBLE, Week of May 29 to June 4, 2023, "You can be loyal to Jehovah even if your parents are not", Prepared Speech.

TREASURES OF THE BIBLE, 29-May-4-June 2023, "You can be loyal to Jehovah even if your parents are not", Prepared Speech. 

“You Can Be Loyal to Jehovah Even If Your Parents Are Not” (10 min.)

The vast majority of us have heard the expression like father, like son, and almost always the application that is given is, just as a father or a mother is, so will the children be.

Proof of this is that when one is little, it is not true that our parents comb our hair according to how they are combed, they dress us according to their tastes, they never ask us for our opinion, if we like the color or not because we are very Little ones, they make the decisions and when we get older, haven't you heard the expression? Walk the same as your mom or talk the same as your dad, have the same gestures as him or her.

However, as the son or daughter grows in age and physical and mental maturity, they make their own decisions. And they begin to change their tastes for fashion, for music or perhaps even for the profession. And we are also going to apply that in the spiritual field.

Therefore, in this section of treasures of the Bible we have the theme: "You can be loyal, even if your parents are not." And let's see one of the many biblical examples of young people or children who did not do the same as their parents. Let's talk about here, what would be the stick. And Hezekiah that would be the splinter. And we will try to give you the application for our days. Let's see how was that father or that stick named Ahaz. If we look in two chronicles 28:1, it says like this:.

WE ARE GOING TO READ 2 CHRONICLES 28:1.

Ahaz was 20 years old when he became king, and he reigned 16 years in Jerusalem. He did not do what was right in the eyes of Jehovah, as his ancestor David had done.

So we could say that a young man raised a child. Now something interesting is that Hezekiah was already born when Ahaz became king, Hezekiah was possibly 8 years old. That is, he conceived it here when he was approximately 12 years old. So he was a child raising another child. 

We are thinking that the customs, characteristics or model was very attached because normally a 12-year-old boy would create his newborn brother, he automatically passes on all his characteristics and customs, because the little boy imitates the older one. So the stick, so to speak, of Ahaz, was very strong in terms of the example that he set for Hezekiah. But the same verse 28 says that Ahaz did not do what was right in the eyes of Jehovah.

This young king Ahaz was so depraved that he promoted the worship of false gods in all his people whom he was leading. He even reached the point of burning alive some of his children to offer us to a pagan god. Mentally he was wrong and spiritually not to be said.

Can you imagine Hezekiah, with a father like that? With a stick like that, he could be a bad chip. But what personality did Hezekiah have when he became king? Let's see, please, in 2 Chronicles 29:1-3.

WE ARE GOING TO READ 2 CHRONICLES 29:1-3.

Hezekiah became king at the age of 25, and he reigned 29 years in Jerusalem. His mother was called Abijah, the daughter of Zacharias. 2 He did what was right in the eyes of Jehovah, just as his ancestor David had done from him. 3 In the first year of his reign, in the first month, he opened the doors of the house of Jehovah and repaired them.

We see here, a splinter that had nothing to do with the stick. A polar opposite, 25-year-old Hezekiah, when he began to rule and his father died at about 36. So they were really two young people who were almost at the same time living and there was a lot to absorb. But how different in verse 2 it says: He did what he was seeing in the eyes of Jehovah. Very different from home that he did not do the things that Jehovah was commanding his people, and even more so the king.

It seems that Hezekiah preferred the advice of spiritually strong mature people, like Isaiah, Micah and Osseous who lived at that time and who accompanied him during much of his reign, and accepting the advice of these faithful servants of Jehovah. That is why in the first year of his reign he opened the doors of the house of God and immediately separated it. The first thing was the pure worship of Jehovah, putting it in its rightful place.

But not only he wanted to do things right. He wanted all the people to do it. That is the reason we find in 2 chronicles 29: 4-6, the exhortation that he makes to the people. He says like this: 

WE ARE GOING TO READ 2 CHRONICLES 29:4-6.

Then he brought the priests and the Levites, and assembled them in the square that was to the east. He 5 he Said to them: “Listen to me, Levites. Now sanctify yourselves and sanctify the house of Jehovah, the God of his ancestors, and remove from the holy place what is unclean. 6 Because our fathers were unfaithful and did what was wrong in the eyes of Jehovah our God. They abandoned him, turned away from the tabernacle of Jehovah, and turned their backs on him.

These words were full of humility, but also of great courage, because he was telling the Levites who should keep the pure worship of Jehovah in its proper place. He was correcting them, saying that they first had to sanctify themselves and also help make that place holy and pure. And in verse 6 he acknowledges that his parents were unfaithful and did what was wrong in the eyes of Jehovah.

So Hezekiah decided to follow Jehovah and do what was right despite his father's negative influence. This example reminds us that loyalty to Jehovah is a personal decision, to be made by each one for himself. And sometimes in the congregation there are many young people who we could also help to have a good example within the congregation, even though their parents do not serve Jehovah.

You can see the photos here in our activity guide a young man may be 12 13 14 years old his family is preparing for a religious activity but he is dedicating himself to preparing The Watchtower because he wants to go to the meeting So he is serving Jehovah alone and when is in the kingdom hall Well he is participating He is enjoying a personal relationship with Jehovah even though he does not have the support of his family and How good others around him feel seeing that example of loyalty even though he is alone is a very different splinter than stick 

And under the photographs it says How can I help young people who are alone in the truth? To answer this question, we can cite an example that appeared in The Watchtower of 2002, October 1, pages 9 to 11, of a young brother named Noah. He said: "I have never felt alone because Jehovah has always been by my side." I have had the support of many loving brothers and sisters who have become my fathers, mothers and spiritual brothers.

So each one of us in the congregation can be a good influence for that splinter to serve Jehovah faithfully. Therefore, let's not allow our parents' decisions to define us.

It is a personal decision of loyalty to Jehovah, and each one of us can contribute so that these young people who had a bad blow, or so to speak a bad example in their parents, can be an excellent splinter, who will be able to continue praising Jehovah for always with the support of each one of us.