If I Want a New Deck

And Jehoiada made a covenant between himself and all the people and the king that they should be the LORD’S people. Then all the people went to the house of Baal and tore it down; his altars and his images they broke in pieces, and they killed Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars. 2 Chronicles 23:16-17

When we bought our current home a few years ago, it was obvious that the lakeside deck and stairs needed help. The stairs leaned one direction while the deck leaned another. They were usable though, and, because we were building a house, they just weren’t a priority. So, for a couple of years, we limped along with our leaning stairs and deck. This winter though, we decided it was time and so, this spring, I pulled the deck apart.

To rebuild the deck, I had to completely remove the old one, even tearing out the old footings which were rotten. Remodeling just wasn’t an option. As long as the old, decayed footings remained in place, the deck was going to sit on a corrupt foundation. For a new deck to be built, the old one had to be completely destroyed. With new footings in place, I’m now in the process of rebuilding a new, and hopefully level, deck.

For the new to come, the old must go. This is the lesson of today’s passage, which tells of the reforms of Jehoida the priest. Suffering under several idol-worshipping rulers, Jehoida had enough. In rebellion, he led a coup against Queen Athaliah, putting Joash, the rightful king on the throne. Then, he rallied the people, leading them back to following God. For a new society to be built though, the old one had to go. Baal, his temple, his altar, and his priest, all had to be destroyed. Repentance wasn’t possible while the people still followed Baal. For new life to come, the old one had to go.

The same is true in my life. When I got sober back in 2014, to find recovery, I had to tear down the old life, making a lot of radical changes. With my deck, that is hopefully a once-and-done project. I don’t want to have to rebuild the foundations next spring. That’s where my deck analogy falters though. As I’m currently relearning, to continue living in the new life, I must continually be destroying the old. Even though I made a lot of changes in 2014, the old life has a way of slowly creeping back. Selfishness, gluttony, pride, and an appetite for the unhealthy have a way of resurrecting themselves. This is why Jesus said that to follow him, we must daily die to the old life (Luke 9:23).

For the new to come, the old must go. This isn’t easy or painless, but to truly follow Christ, it’s a process which I must daily choose. If I want to continue to enjoy the new life, I must continue to rid myself of the old one.