1 Kings 22:43 And he [Jehoshaphat] walked in all the ways of Asa his father, he turned not aside from it, doing that which was right in the eyes of the Lord, nevertheless the high places were not taken away; for the people offered and burnt incense yet in the high places.
The Bible gives a spiritual evaluation of each king’s reign. Every Northern king did evil and worshipped false gods. Only six Southern (Judah) kings did what was right and were considered good in the eyes of God. However, only two of those six went all the way in the worship of the Lord alone, Hezekiah and Josiah.
Jehoshaphat and the other “good” kings were not completely good. He did not take away the high places where the people still worshipped idols. His response to God’s goodness was commendable, but he did not go far enough. He left places, shrines and idols, where people could still have other gods beside the Lord.
The response of Jehoshaphat to God’s kingdom rule is similar to the spiritual life of many Christians. They believe in Jesus for life and generally live a pretty good life, but nevertheless they hold on to some besetting sins that still need repentance and forgiveness. It seems the sinner keeps some “high places” in the heart that he is unable to take away and let it go.
Like Jehoshaphat and the good kings, we are genuinely saved believers who are forgiven by grace, but secret sins remain. The Holy Spirit continues to work out our salvation with fear and trembling, and He will not give up, but pockets of resistance in the heart are stubborn things that are susceptible to temptation. Satan knows these high places and tries to use them to mess up our life with God. But thank God, Jesus knows them, too, and He forgives and tears them down.