September 21
Isaiah 37:1-38:22 | PS 65:1-13 | Prov 23:24 | Gal 6:1-18
What do you do when your back is up against a wall? When you find yourself in this position we must decide what is the order of our response. We can fight forward in our own strength. Not a bad thing, but our own strength is limited. We can try to move laterally by seeking help from others, which is also not a bad thing, as godly counsel can be helpful, but also comes with limitations. Or you can seek upwards and seek God who will never leave us nor forsake us. None of these options are bad, the question remains is God brought in early or is He sought out after all of our human efforts fail.
Hezekiah was surrounded by an army of experienced terrorists in the Assyrian army. He was outnumbered, out experienced, in fact he was out everything except for God. Before he was backed against the wall, he did move forward in human efforts, some of which was wise, such as building a tunnel for a water supply, other parts were unwise such as seeking the help of Egypt. When he sees the threat, we read in Isaiah 37:1, “And so it was, when King Hezekiah heard it, that he tore his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the Lord.” He went to the house of the Lord. Then rather than seeking out advice from generals and politicians, he next enlists the prophet Isaiah, as we read in 37:2-4, “Then he sent Eliakim, who was over the household, Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz. And they said to him, “Thus says Hezekiah: ‘This day is a day of trouble and rebuke and blasphemy; for the children have come to birth, but there is no strength to bring them forth. It may be that the Lord your God will hear the words of the Rabshakeh, whom his master the king of Assyria has sent to reproach the living God, and will rebuke the words which the Lord your God has heard. Therefore lift up your prayer for the remnant that is left.’ ””. Then he left it all to God, as we read in 37:14-15, “And Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and read it; and Hezekiah went up to the house of the Lord, and spread it before the Lord. Then Hezekiah prayed to the Lord, saying:”.
The result was God sent the Angel of the Lord (pre-incarnation appearance of Jesus) and 185,000 Assyrians were killed without a single arrow being launched. Now most of our situations are not as dire as this was for Hezekiah. Hezekiah quickly sought God’s perspective. Is this what we do? If not, why not? Do we think we can handle things on our own? Do we prefer not to bother God with the “small” things, only leaving the big things to God. Each of us in a healthy marriage realizes that for our relationship to be what it is, we work as a team, constantly communicating about both small and big things. We are always available to one another. This is the relationship that God wants with us, and this is the relationship that we all need if we are going to experience the peace of God in our lives.
Messages from Pastor Lloyd Pulley: