high places

2 Kings 15:34-35
He (Jotham) did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, just as his father Uzziah had done. ³⁵ The high places, however, were not removed; the people continued to offer sacrifices and burn incense there. Jotham rebuilt the Upper Gate of the temple of the LORD.

With all the good that Jotham did in his life and reign, his refusal to remove sin would still be his headline and his contribution to God's house only a footnote. Yes, he did take God and His Temple seriously (yet never actually entered the Temple; 2 Chron. 27:2)... however he did not take sin seriously enough. Jotham failed to understand the priority and importance of total purity before the Lord. For Jotham, the high places were just too far away or too difficult to tare down or simply not worth the effort. 2 Chronicles 27 seems to suggest that Jotham was so busy building up that he failed to tare down what was evil. In the end, this would be his legacy, a good man that let sin linger. A king who allowed sin to invade and take his people captive while he fought off all human threats. (Ironically, God promised to take care of all other threats if the king was diligent to defeat sin within the country.)
Am I like Jotham? Have I been diligent to build up while failing to tare down sin? Have I let sin linger in my life, my home or my family? Have I taken certain sin lightly and failed to understand the priority and importance of perfect purity?

Father - open my eyes to the sin in my life and give me the strength, courage and focus to remove it. Let me be diligent to not only build up for You, but also to tare down for You as well. Let my legacy be on of purity and honor to my King. Amen.