Ten Minute Bible Talks Devotional Bible Study - The Danger of Influencers | The Writings | 2 Chronicles

Episode Date: March 27, 2024

When you think of an influencer, what do you think of? A mommy-blogger promoting products? A fitness guru? A fired-up political personality? In reality, anything can influence you. In today's episode, Jensen discusses 2 Chronicles 23-24 and the importance of influence. Read the Bible with us in 2024! This year, we’re tackling a group of Old Testament books traditionally known as “The Writings”— Psalms, Chronicles, Proverbs, Daniel, Ruth and more! Download your reading plan now. Your support makes TMBT possible. Ten Minute Bible Talks is a crowd-funded project. Join the TMBTeam to reach more people with the Bible. Give now. Like this content? Make sure to leave us a rating and share it so that others can find it, too. Use #asktmbt to connect with us, ask questions, and suggest topics. We'd love to hear from you! To learn more, visit our website and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter@TenMinuteBibleTalks. Don't forget to subscribe to the TMBT Newsletter here. Passages: 2 Chronicles 23-24

Welcome to 10-minute Bible Talks, where we connect the Bible to your life and the time it takes to get to work. I'm Jensen Holt McNair. Have you ever heard of de-influencing? It's a trend on social media where influencers, people whose job it is to get their followers to buy the products they tell them about, these influencers have started trying to de-influence their followers. They've begun posting short videos with quippy captions like, allow me to de-influence you. And then, then they proceed to show you why the products other influencers are telling you that you need are not actually worth it. Now, some of the videos are truly altruistic in nature. The creators are just trying to shine a light on kitchens that look like normal kitchens, unorganized pantries and

closets that aren't aesthetically pleasing, clothes that aren't perfectly curated in a water bottle that came from Walmart. See, their goal is to remind their audience that they don't need to buy the products they're being influenced to buy to live a perfectly happy life. But some of the videos are sneaky. They're de-influencing you from buying the popular items, convincing you they're a trustworthy source by being honest with you, authentic about their opinions, and then ending their video with a different product you actually do need, because it's half the price and way better. See, they earn your trust, making you think they're helping you, saving you money,

all the while still attempting to sell you something. They aren't really de-influencing you. They're merely attempting to steal your trust so that you can be influenced by them now. Now, I read articles designed to teach influencers how to capitalize on de-influencing to continue to sell products, how de-influencing can gain them trust with their audience

and enable them to more effectively sell the products they want to sell. Now, it should come as no surprise to us that the influencer industry has boomed. As humans, we are easily influenced, easily persuaded by the things we see, the people we surround ourselves with, the circles we run in. Think about clicks.

Mix up a group of middle schoolers, and you probably won't have a difficult time reorganizing them back into their different friend groups just by what they're wearing. I was walking around the mall with my kids last week, and I kid you not. As I was walking, I passed one group of teenagers. All of them were wearing white tennis shoes,

black leggings, and a white tea with the exact same belt bag and a Starbucks drink in hand. Two minutes later, I walked past another group, all wearing black-wrapped jeans, large combat boots, and lace-trimmed black tops, and a heavy-handed dose of eyeliner. Two completely different styles and two completely different groups of friends, both suffering from the same problem. We are deeply influenced by what we surround ourselves with. and that is why your attention is one of the most valuable things you have. It's why influencers are trying to de-influence you, gain your trust, and with it, your

attention. Because once they have your attention, they can sell you whatever they want. A product, a lifestyle, a belief system, a way of life. John Mark Comer says it best in his bestselling book, The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry. Because what you give your attention to is the person you become. Put another way, the mind is the portal to the soul, and what you fill your mind with will shape the trajectory of your character. In the end, your life is no more than the sum of what you gave your attention to. It isn't just our wallets or our fashion sense they're at stake. It's our lives. In the 23rd and 24th chapters of Second Chronicles, we meet a new king of Judah, one who

tragically shows us the dangers of giving your attention to the wrong things. The reign of Joash is broken up into two periods of time, one where he is faithful and one where he tragically rebels against God. Chapter 23 actually begins with a coup. The throne of Judah has been taken over by an evil woman who has no right to the throne. She believes that she's killed off the line of David, but in chapter 22, we learned that those faithful to the Lord hid Joash, the rightful king, still a baby, from her violence. Joash grew up in secret in the temple of the Lord under the care and instruction of the priest Jehoiada. And when the time came for Joash to reign, Jehoiada overthrows the woman and establishes Joash as the rightful king. And on that day we read, that Jehoiada made a covenant between himself and all the people and the king that they should be the Lord's people.

As chapter 24 opens we read this account of Joash's reign. Joash was seven years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem 40 years. His mother's name was Zibia. She was from Bershiba. Joash did what was right in the eyes of the Lord all the years of Jehoiada, the priest. As long as Joash had Jehoiada, he did what was right. He raised money for the temple. He restored it. He tore down temples to foreign gods. He kept the covenant with the Lord. But Jehoiada cannot live forever. We learned that at the age of 130, he dies and was buried among the kings.

A great honor given to this man who saved the king, restored the throne of David, and re-establish the nation of Judah as the Lord's people. And yet almost instantly, we enter into the second portion of Joash's reign. The change is stark. Joash begins building temples to foreign gods. he ignores the word of the Lord to bring him back to faithfulness. And when Zechariah, the son of Jehoiada, the one who rescued him when he was in danger, who raised him and cared for him, when Zechariah speaks out against his misdeeds,

Joash murders him. How did he get here? How did Joash turn from doing what is right in the eyes of the Lord, a faithful king, to a heartless murderer sold out to other gods? We read the turning point in verse 17. After the death of Jehoiada, the officials of Judah came and paid homage to the king, and he listened to them. They abandoned the temple of the Lord, the god of their ancestors, and worshipped Asherapoles and idols. Did you catch it? Evil men who had followed in the ways

of the king before him, officials of Judah came to him and Joash listened to them. Without the influence of Jehoiada, Joash is easily swayed by these officials. He gives them his attention, he listens, and his life trajectory is tragically changed. In the end, God sends judgment through a small army of Syria, one that should not prevail against Judah, but does, and Joash wounded and alone in his room is betrayed and murdered by his servants. The story of Joash is not an uplifting one. He showed such promise, and yet in the end, he succumbed to the influence of others. Another king falling short, failing to remain faithful, to lead the people, to keep a covenant with the Lord.

Can you feel the weight of his failure? Joash gives us a clear picture of the dangers of giving our attention over to the wrong things, of just how vulnerable the human heart is to persuasion. You can be sure that every day our attention is under attack. Influencers, podcasters, newscasters, journalists, politicians, friends, bosses, spouses, everyone is vying. for your attention, your trust, your listening ear. They all want to influence you, to show you how to live, to show you what to believe, to keep you coming back to them for direction. Here's the thing. The fact that what we give our attention to shapes our life is not an evil thing, and everyone vying for your attention does not have evil motives. In his book, John Mark Comer continues on saying

this. In the end, your life is no more than the sum of what you gave your attention to. That bodes well for those apprentices of Jesus who give the bulk of their attention to him and to all that is good, beautiful, and true in this world. But not for those who give their attention to the 24-7 news cycle of outrage and anxiety and emotion-charged drama, or the non-stop feed of celebrity gossip, titillation, and cultural drivel, as if we give it in the world. in the first place. Much of it is stolen by a clever algorithm out to monetize our precious attention. But again, we become what we give our attention to, for better or for worse. What we give our attention to can be good. Remember the first part of Johash's reign? The one where the people

surrounding him were faithful followers of God? Who has your ear? What do you give your attention to. That may be one of the most important questions you ever answer for yourself. Your life is shaped by what and who you give your attention to. At the end of your life, do you want to look back and realize you've become a disciple of the influencers you follow? A disciple of CNN? A disciple of your favorite podcaster or Hollywood director? Or do you want to know every day that you were a disciple of the true king, King Jesus? That you were a disciple. You were a disciple of the true king, King Jesus, that you listen to the Word of God, that you gave your time, your attention to His word, that you surrounded yourself with wise counsel, with mentors who love Jesus deeply, and

encourage you to know Him more and more. You will become what you give your attention to. You will be shaped and molded by the waters that you swim in. Let the downfall of Joach remind you of what is at stake? Let them point you to the one who deserves your attention, the one you can trust, King Jesus.