II Chronicles 17
2 And he placed forces in all the fenced cities of Judah, and set garrisons in the land of Judah, and in the cities of Ephraim, which Asa his father had taken.
3 And the Lord was with Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the first ways of his father David, and sought not unto Baalim;
5 Therefore the Lord stablished the kingdom in his hand; and all Judah brought to Jehoshaphat presents; and he had riches and honour in abundance.
6 And his heart was lifted up in the ways of the Lord: moreover he took away the high places and groves out of Judah.
7 Also in the third year of his reign he sent to his princes, even to Benhail, and to Obadiah, and to Zechariah, and to Nethaneel, and to Michaiah, to teach in the cities of Judah.
8 And with them he sent Levites, even Shemaiah, and Nethaniah, and Zebadiah, and Asahel, and Shemiramoth, and Jehonathan, and Adonijah, and Tobijah, and Tobadonijah, Levites; and with them Elishama and Jehoram, priests.
9 And they taught in Judah, and had the book of the law of the Lord with them, and went about throughout all the cities of Judah, and taught the people.
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The good ways of Jehoshaphat:
* He sought the will of God.
* He walked in the commandments of God.
* He removed the idols.
* He sent Levites to do the work of God as they were called to do by God.
* He had those appointed by God to teach the people the ways of God.
* They taught the people the law of God from the book of the law of God.
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That which our churches are doing today:
* Like Jeroboam, they pick out their own men to be their teachers, men who were not appointed by God for the work of the ministry.
* They set aside verses of scripture and set up their own doctrines in their church group, allowing evil into the church group.
* They teach their people to do "religious seeming things" not in the Bible. (crossing themselves; lighting candles with prayer; praying to dead "saints" instead of praying directly to God; confessing their sins to men rather than confessing their sins directly to God; setting up graven images of humans and teaching their people to kneel before these images and recite words; calling crackers/grape juice the Lord's supper instead of teaching their people that the Word of God is the Lord's supper for the church.)
* They call themselves "Reverend", not in Bible to do this, exalting their ministers to idols in the sight of the people.
* Their ministers love to wear long robes to identify themselves in the eyes of people, or collars, or hats, or "prayer" shalls, or other garments not in Bible to do such things.
* They turn from the ministries Jesus set up for the New Testament church after Jesus arose: apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor, teacher. (Ephesians 4:8;11-12)
* The people blindly follow their churches and do not care what is in the Bible concerning the ministers and the church.
There is no way they nor their followers can stand before God at the judgment seat of Christ.
Romans 15:4 For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.
They ignore the examples given us in both the Old and New Testament Bibles.
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