Stealing From Our Future
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There’s a proverb that states:
A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children, But the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous.
If a good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children, what can we deduce about a man that is willing to sell his inheritance for his own comfort?
We see such a man in king Hezekiah.
At the Beginning
At the Beginning
Hezekiah started off as a pretty good king.
Now it came to pass in the third year of Hoshea the son of Elah, king of Israel, that Hezekiah the son of Ahaz, king of Judah, began to reign. He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Abi the daughter of Zechariah. And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father David had done.
So Hezekiah was 25 years old when he became king, he reigned 29 years, and it was said he did what was right in the sight of the Lord.
What did Hezekiah do?
He removed the high places and broke the sacred pillars, cut down the wooden image and broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made; for until those days the children of Israel burned incense to it, and called it Nehushtan. He trusted in the Lord God of Israel, so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor who were before him. For he held fast to the Lord; he did not depart from following Him, but kept His commandments, which the Lord had commanded Moses. The Lord was with him; he prospered wherever he went. And he rebelled against the king of Assyria and did not serve him. He subdued the Philistines, as far as Gaza and its territory, from watchtower to fortified city.
Quite a list of accomplishments.
He removed the high places and destroyed Israel’s idols.
He trusted the Lord God, holding fast and not departing from following him.
He rebelled against Assyria and subdued the Philistines.
He even trusted God when things got sticky with Assyria.
Now it came to pass in the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah that Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them. Then the king of Assyria sent the Rabshakeh with a great army from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem. And he stood by the aqueduct from the upper pool, on the highway to the Fuller’s Field.
Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, isn’t too happy about Hezekiah rebelling against him.
So he sends an army.
They take all of the fortified cities of Judah, except one.
Jerusalem.
Sennacherib sends a great army, along with a spokesman, the Rabshakeh.
Probably his chief of staff or some other official.
Who delivers some serious threats to all in the city.
What did king Hezekiah do?
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. 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.
Step one… cover himself with sackcloth, a sign of mourning.
Step two… reach out to God’s prophet.
Not a bad plan.
Isaiah prophesies what’s going to happen,
That Jerusalem will be safe, and Sennacherib will not enter.
Before leaving, Rabshekah sends a message to Hezekiah.
“Thus you shall speak to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying: ‘Do not let your God in whom you trust deceive you, saying, “Jerusalem shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.”
To put this in the modern vernacular… “I’ll be back!”
What’s Hezekiah’s response?
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:
Still, a pretty good reaction.
I guess Hezekiah was a pretty good king after all.
God even extended his life 15 years after Hezekiah had gotten sick.
But then the Babylonians make an appearance.
At that time Merodach-Baladan the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present to Hezekiah, for he heard that he had been sick and had recovered. And Hezekiah was pleased with them, and showed them the house of his treasures—the silver and gold, the spices and precious ointment, and all his armory—all that was found among his treasures. There was nothing in his house or in all his dominion that Hezekiah did not show them.
Merodach-Baladan sends some messengers after heard that Hezekiah had been sick.
Seems like a nice gesture.
That is until Isaiah weighs in.
Then Isaiah the prophet went to King Hezekiah, and said to him, “What did these men say, and from where did they come to you?” So Hezekiah said, “They came to me from a far country, from Babylon.” And he said, “What have they seen in your house?” So Hezekiah answered, “They have seen all that is in my house; there is nothing among my treasures that I have not shown them.”
Who are these strangers and why did they come here?
More importantly, what did you show them?
Hezekiah had shown them everything.
Which turned out to be a bad move.
Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Hear the word of the Lord of hosts: ‘Behold, the days are coming when all that is in your house, and what your fathers have accumulated until this day, shall be carried to Babylon; nothing shall be left,’ says the Lord. ‘And they shall take away some of your sons who will descend from you, whom you will beget; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.’ ”
Ooops. Hezekiah didn’t know about Israel’s future with the Babylonian Empire.
How do you think Hezekiah reacted to this bad news?
So Hezekiah said to Isaiah, “The word of the Lord which you have spoken is good!” For he said, “At least there will be peace and truth in my days.”
Wait, what?
OK, the Word of the Lord is always good, even if it is unpleasant.
But this attitude of “At least there will be peace and truth in my days.”
That is cold.
Then again, that is EXACTLY what the American people are doing today.
This country as a $35 trillion dollar deficit.
That means that we have borrowed 35 million, million dollars,
With absolutely no way to pay it off.
Leaving this unholy debt to our children.
But at least we get to live comfortably.
How many people who call themselves Christians have voted for those who have been so fiscally irresponsible?
How many have voted for them because of the promise of goodies, programs, and projects paid for by that fiscal irresponsibility?
For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it—
How many churches have borrowed money without first counting the cost?
Then leaving the debt for others to deal with?
I hear people today say we should just charge forth and trust that God will provide a way.
Never asking God if this is the way He wants us to go.
God told David that He would leave an inheritance, but there was an if…
Now therefore, in the sight of all Israel, the assembly of the Lord, and in the hearing of our God, be careful to seek out all the commandments of the Lord your God, that you may possess this good land, and leave it as an inheritance for your children after you forever.
We were all born in a country that once loved God, and was blessed for it.
We were not always right, but enough of We the People sought God that our rights and liberties were handed down as an inheritance.
But as we stopped seeking out God’s commandments, so too has our inheritance shriveled.
Until today, when the seeking of God is considered evil in the sight of those who claim the positions of leadership.
Who seek to rule rather than serve.
As a nation, we have become so focused on our own ease,
We care little for the impact it has on others.
A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children, But the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous.
Tell me, what is the inheritance we are leaving to our children and out children’s children?
Debt
Debauchery
Servitude
Can we call ourselves good for the inheritance we are leaving?