February 24, 2016
Today’s reading from Encounter with God

Trust God and…

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Opening Prayer

Heavenly Father, You are not a stingy God. Your kindness has no limits, and Your mercy is abundant. I give You my praise.

Read 2 KINGS 18:1-16

[1] In the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, Hezekiah son of Ahaz king of Judah began to reign. [2] He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-nine years. His mother’s name was Abijah daughter of Zechariah. [3] He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, just as his father David had done. [4] He removed the high places, smashed the sacred stones and cut down the Asherah poles. He broke into pieces the bronze snake Moses had made, for up to that time the Israelites had been burning incense to it. (It was called Nehushtan.) [5] Hezekiah trusted in the LORD, the God of Israel. There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, either before him or after him. [6] He held fast to the LORD and did not stop following him; he kept the commands the LORD had given Moses. [7] And the LORD was with him; he was successful in whatever he undertook. He rebelled against the king of Assyria and did not serve him. [8] From watchtower to fortified city, he defeated the Philistines, as far as Gaza and its territory. [9] In King Hezekiah’s fourth year, which was the seventh year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, Shalmaneser king of Assyria marched against Samaria and laid siege to it. [10] At the end of three years the Assyrians took it. So Samaria was captured in Hezekiah’s sixth year, which was the ninth year of Hoshea king of Israel. [11] The king of Assyria deported Israel to Assyria and settled them in Halah, in Gozan on the Habor River and in towns of the Medes. [12] This happened because they had not obeyed the LORD their God, but had violated his covenant-all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded. They neither listened to the commands nor carried them out. [13] In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah’s reign, Sennacherib king of Assyria attacked all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them. [14] So Hezekiah king of Judah sent this message to the king of Assyria at Lachish: “I have done wrong. Withdraw from me, and I will pay whatever you demand of me.” The king of Assyria exacted from Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold. [15] So Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found in the temple of the LORD and in the treasuries of the royal palace. [16] At this time Hezekiah king of Judah stripped off the gold with which he had covered the doors and doorposts of the temple of the LORD, and gave it to the king of Assyria.

Scripture taken from the THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, NIV Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Reflect

“The bright light of Christ makes your way plain. No more stumbling around… Figure out what will please Christ, and then do it” (Eph. 5:8,10; The Message)!

After the tragedy of Israel’s exile to Assyria, it is a relief to find a story of a good Judean king, especially one who finally gets rid of the tempting high places and relics (4) that have become a fetish. Many will be familiar with the incident in this king’s life (ch. 20) when he prays for his life to be extended. A friend, of mine; whose youngest child was only three years old at the time, recalls lying in hospital with a life-threatening illness, praying that like Hezekiah she would be given 15 more years to see her child grow up. God answered her with healing, but she says, “I always remember that this king did not end his life well.”

Even at this earlier point, given the statements that Hezekiah did right (3) and relied on the Lord (5), the narrative continues in a surprising way. Though Hezekiah has some military victories against the Philistines, Assyria’s allies (8), his trust in the Lord doesn’t protect Judah from eventual loss of towns. He is not relying on God alone–he surrenders the tribute demanded and later petitions Egypt for help, an action specifically forbidden through the prophet Isaiah (Isa. 22:8-11; 30; 31).

You have probably heard the saying, “Trust in God and keep your powder dry.” Is that the right blend of reliance on God and sensible self-help? Certainly God seems to expect his chosen leaders to use the wisdom and resources he has given them, but he also delights in delivering against the odds (e.g. Gideon, Judg.  7) so that his hand is seen in the outcome. Nevertheless that doesn’t override the importance of seeking his face and asking for his help. That is the first step in trusting.

Apply

“You do not have because you do not ask God” or because “you ask with wrong motives” (Jas. 4:2-3). How can you apply James’s warning in your own life?

Closing prayer

Lord Jesus, You were faithful to Your Father’s call, right to the end. I want to finish well for You.

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