I Can't Die Like This

Introduction

Grace, Mercy, and Peace be multiplied unto you from God our Father, and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I bring you greetings from Indianapolis, IN. I give honor to the leadership of this house… the right reverend Pastor Michael Leak and our First Lady, Lady Leak. I also honor my Pastor, Bishop Brandon A. Jacobs Sr.

And to all of you God’s people, I thank God for each of you because Everybody is Somebody in God’s Kingdom. Listen, it is good to be back at Bethlehem… Amen. I have been trying to get down here for a long time, and I thank God for your Pastor trusting me to bring the word on this Sunday Morning.

Listen, I want to get quickly to the Word of God.

Give Scripture: 2 Kings 20:1-6

while you are turning… their is a song on my heart and it says.

Song- It Overflows (Ronzel Pretlow)

Their was a woman in the service

That was speaking in other tongues

Praying in the spirit… Lord your will be done

And all the while that she was praying

The spirit touched my soul

I said I know that feeling, it overflows

Now when the Lord comes, let the spirit have his way

You’ll feel better tomorrow than you feel today

Your chains will be broken

That’s how it goes

I know that feeling, it overflows.

Read: 2 Kings 20:1-6

2 Kings 20:1–6 KJV 1900

1 In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And the prophet Isaiah the son of Amoz came to him, and said unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Set thine house in order; for thou shalt die, and not live. 2 Then he turned his face to the wall, and prayed unto the Lord, saying, 3 I beseech thee, O Lord, remember now how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept sore. 4 And it came to pass, afore Isaiah was gone out into the middle court, that the word of the Lord came to him, saying, 5 Turn again, and tell Hezekiah the captain of my people, Thus saith the Lord, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will heal thee: on the third day thou shalt go up unto the house of the Lord. 6 And I will add unto thy days fifteen years; and I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria; and I will defend this city for mine own sake, and for my servant David’s sake.

Subject: I Can’t Die Like This

Prayer

Introduction

One of the guarantees of life is that as surely as man is born… man shall also die.

Scripture, in fact, lets us know this fact.

It is in Ecclesiastes 3:1-2 that it lets us know“1 To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: 2 A time to be born, and a time to die; A time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;”

Even in the book of Job, in Job 14:1 the scripture makes it clear that “1 Man that is born of a woman Is of few days, and full of trouble.”

Death is one of those things that you can take to the bank as a shonuff bet as promised in the auspices of scripture.

And while we may resist death and try everything in our power to deny death a foothold, the reality is that death serves as a consequence for the sins of our forefathers who laid the path of sin and inequity from the Garden to Golgotha.

For we are born in sin and shapen iniquity, which makes us as human beings susceptible to the sting of death.

With that fact known, I have come to learn in my time on Earth that it is often not death itself that people fear.

For most people, death is an abstract thought that happens around us but we fight to separate ourselves from it.

In our youth we think we are too young to ever face death, so we live our lives ignoring death.

And in our old age, many times we have lived too long to care about facing death, so we simply live in spite of it.

Its only those who are in the middle who may find themselves seemingly marked for death, as they try to figure out if they should be looking backward to the good days or looking forward to the better days.

That fact in mind, most people do not even think about death until they see it around them, and even then death is not something that people dwell on.

I have instead learned that the fear people harbor for death is not in regards to death itself but is instead a fear for how they will meet death on that impending day.

I can remember the prayer I used to always pray, that if I die I want to go in my sleep because I did not want to be subject to some horrific accident or prolonged death.

My prayer was not that I live, so much as I wanted to die (when that day invariably came) in a peaceful way that allowed me to exert some kind of control.

But I wonder on this morning if anybody has said, I do not care about facing death and I do not care about how I face death…

But instead I want to talk to the people who are concerned with what they leave behind when they die.

I want to talk to the people who are concerned with the legacy they leave behind for their families and communities.

Its the legacy that I want to talk about on this morning because too many times we are worried about the wrong thing and we worry so much about the ceremonies regarding death but we abandon thought for what happens afterward.

We worry so much about how we are going to die and forget to take care for how our living can effect our dying.

And I came this morning, because I want to talk to somebody who made the confession to themselves that I cannot die like this.

Naww… Not like this.

I can’t die with my family still in poverty.

I can’t die and be the only person in my family who went to college.

I can’t die and leave my kids with generational trauma from my childhood.

I can’t die and still be making a rent payment.

I can’t die and leave my arrangements up to a gofundme or chicken plates.

I want to talk to some people that have said enough is enough… God is bigger than this.

He is bigger than the generational curses in my family.

He is bigger than the strongholds that are holding me bound.

He is bigger than my greatest problem.

I know this message is not for everybody, but have you ever asked God… how can I get out of this thing… how can I overcome this obstacle… how can I beat my greatest issue because I know that you do all things well and God I just have to know… what are you going to do because I CANNOT DIE LIKE THIS.

It is in this question… that we find our text on this morning.

2 Kings 20:1-6

In 2 Kings 20:1-6, we find a very familiar passage of scripture, where we see that King Hezekiah, is sick.

Many of us have heard that story and it can frankly be told from either 2 Kings or Isaiah as some of the phrasing is identical.

The books of 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles really fleshes out the story of Hezekiah, providing us great background on the man of God and his kingship in Jerusalem.

If you want to check me out on my reading, I encourage you to consult 2 Kings, 2 Chronicles, and Isaiah to uncover the background behind King Hezekiah.

If you do, be mindful of the differences between the three.

Isaiah is a book of prophecy

Kings is a book of history

Chronicles is a theological interpretation of history.

But to provide you the cliffnotes version, Hezekiah was the son of King Ahaz. And it was King Ahaz who did that which was right in his own eyes (or that which was evil in the sight of the Lord).

In fact, Ahaz did such great evil in the sight of the Lord, that you would be hard pressed to find an example of greater evil within the line of Kings in either the Northern or Southern Kingdom.

King Ahaz closes the temple, bans sacrifice, pushes the Levites into poverty, abandons the temple, ransacks the temple, and creates pagan worship areas using the utensils from the Temple that were used to worship God.

Hezekiah takes the throne from his Father and does that which is right in the sight of the Lord.

In defiance of the memory of his father he works to undo all of the evil works of his predecessors.

He strikes down the groves his grandfather had erected, he collects and repairs all of the vessels of the Temple, he has the Levites come in to work with an appointed staff in repairing and restoring the abandoned Temple, he restores the Levites to their rightful position and inheritance as the priests of the nation, he institutes offerings of various types and sorts, always starting with himself to lead by example, and he even blesses the people from his own treasures.

Hezekiah does all of these wonderful things but he suddenly finds himself sick and afflicted.

While suffering affliction, he is in the midst of war with the Assyrians who have been wreaking havoc throughout the borders of Judah and just when the Assyrians are preparing an invasion of Jerusalem, he gets sick.

He is sick and trying to figure out how he can save his people and the work he has done.

I need not tell you that if the Assyrians get the victory, every bit of progress the man of God made was on the line.

Now, lets be clear, the man is (at this point sick) but no statement is made that he is dying.

And right when it looks like it cannot get any worse, the eagle-eyed prophet who saw through 40 and 2 generations to the coming of Christ brings you a word that says you shall die.

And he says it so emphatically that he says it twice for the scripture says that you shall die and not live.

Isaiah is saying to Hezekiah, I am so confident in this prophetic word that I can say it to you twice that you shall not only surely die, but in fact you also will not live.

And so, the prophet turns to leave from the King and immediately the King begins to seek God and makes his supplication to the Father.

He makes his supplication to the Father… letting him know that my dead body cannot praise you.

He is making his petition to the father that… I Can’t Die Like This.

Slap somebody beside you and say I Can’t Die Like This.

Hezekiah makes his request known to God and says I cannot die like this because I have a work to do. And as I draw to my close, I see Hezekiah as an example for my own life, because I refuse to die like this.

Conclusion

And so, Hezekiah makes his request known to God… he says…

Lord, I have walked upright before you.

Lord, I have done that which was good... in thy sight.

Lord, I have tried to make up for the sins of my father.

Lord, I have done all you asked of me.

And I hear him saying, Lord, I Can’t Die Like This.

So God, hears the man of God and he has Isaiah to turn around and deliver a prophecy of life to the man of God. God makes a vow to save him from his sickness but he also vows to save him from his enemy.

And I can hear somebody in this room, this morning saying to God

Lord, I have served you faithfully.

Lord, I have followed your will for my life.

Lord, I have sacrificed so much in your name.

And right now, you find yourself in a situation where you are saying… I can’t die like this.

My momma prayed too many prayers, I can’t die like this.

I have sowed in tears and I am waiting to reap in joy, and I can’t die like this.

I worked too hard for too long to get where I am, and I can’t die like this.

I been sick too long and I feel like I can’t get well, and I can’t die like this.

I wonder if anybody here… done made up in their mind that I can’t die like this.

I’m closing now, but I want to leave you with a word to encourage your spirit, it says…

Be not dismayed,

Whatever betide you.

God will, take care of you.

Beneath his wings of love abide,

God will, take care of you.

When did he take care of it preacher.

He took care of it, one Friday afternoon.

On a hill called calvary, their stood an old rugged cross.

It was the emblem of suffering and shame.

They hung him high and stretched him wide.

He bowed his head and for me he died.

He died… so that you could declare Christ and him crucified.

He died… so you could tell the good news.

That he was wounded for our transgressions. Aw Shucks.

Bruised for our inequities.

The chastisement of our peace was laid upon him.

And by his stripes we are healed.

He died… so his strength could be made perfect in our weakness.

He died… so that this corruptible could put on incorruption.

He died… so that this mortal could put on immortality.

Didn’t he die. Yeah.

He died (I feel baptist now), until the Sun refused to shine.

He died, until the moon dripped in blood.

He died, until the Earth, Rocked and Rembled.

He died, until the veil of the temple was rent in twain.

He died, until the centurion said, SURELY (I feel my help now)… SURELY, this must be the Son of God.

But thats not how… the story ends… three days later… he rose again.

He got up out the grave, bright early… on Sunday morning, and he got up, with all power… all power… all power, in his hands.

Power… over your sickness.

Power… over your problems.

Power… over your situations.

And I heard Jesus saying… you can’t die…

Nah, You can’t die… not like this.