A Breakdown

“And he did  that which was evil in the sigh of the Lord, as his fathers had don: he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin.” —2 Kings 15:9

During WW2 the Germans allocated the production of parts for their army trucks to factories in various locations—The engine in one place, the chassis in another place, etc.  A group of anti-Nazis developed an abrasive compound and smuggled it into a French factory that assembled the motor parts for the trucks. The French workers would smear the abrasive on vital moving engine parts like the crank shaft, bearings, pistons, etc. The finished trucks would run OK for about sixty miles and then mysteriously break down.  The problem causing the mechanical breakdown was not the result of normal wear and tear, but something that happened at the start of it’s production.

Likewise, Israel’s breakdown can be traced to the abrasive worship of golden calves that was applied to the nation by Jeroboam at it’s beginning.  200 years later the nation is coming to a grinding halt.

A spiritual breakdown in a believer’s life can also be traced back to some sinful abrasive that was applied to their heart at a earlier point in their Christian walk.  The believer is OK at first, but suddenly the gears of their spiritual walk comes to a halt. I see it happen too many times!

As Frances Schaeffer wisely said, “Oppose wrong beginnings.”