November 3, 2024 - God's Faithfulness
Notes
Transcript
1000 Illustrations for Preaching & Teaching Loyalty Inspires
In his book, Vision and Betrayal in America, former Congressman John B. Anderson of Illinois reminds us of the “black year” of the American Revolution—1777–1778—when there were fewer than five-hundred men in the colonies who were willing to pledge their lives, fortunes, and sacred honor for the cause of the nascent republic. Although small in number, the colonists’ commitment inspired others, and the foundations of liberty were successfully laid.
Here we see that loyalty in a FEW can INSPIRE loyalty in the MANY.
We are getting closer and closer to the end of our trek through 2 Kings...
And TODAY - we will see God’s Faithfulness on display..
Because we’re covering 2 chapters today - we’ll march through the text AS IT COMES...
And so - let’s get to it.
1 In the third year of Hoshea son of Elah, king of Israel, Hezekiah the son of Ahaz, king of Judah, began to reign.
2 He was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Abi the daughter of Zechariah.
3 And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, according to all that David his father had done.
4 He removed the high places and broke the pillars and cut down the Asherah. And he broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the people of Israel had made offerings to it (it was called Nehushtan).
5 He trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel, so that there was none like him among all the kings of Judah after him, nor among those who were before him.
6 For he held fast to the Lord. He did not depart from following him, but kept the commandments that the Lord commanded Moses.
7 And the Lord was with him; wherever he went out, he prospered. He rebelled against the king of Assyria and would not serve him.
Here we see HEZEKIAH come on the scene - and begin to REIGN in Jerusalem.
We’re told here that he DID WHAT WAS RIGHT in the eyes of the Lord… One of the FEW kings to do so.
And so - on the SURFACE - we might want to give PROPS to Hezekiah for his - character / choice to FOLLOW the Lord...
BUT - the text here I think points in a different direction...
What did Hezekiah DO?
4 He removed the high places and broke the pillars and cut down the Asherah. And he broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the people of Israel had made offerings to it (it was called Nehushtan).
WOW - he REMOVED the high places...
Something every other king just let SLIDE by...
Remember the bronze serpent that Moses had lifted up?
It seems the people TOOK THAT SYMBOL...
And decided it was something worth WORSHIPING!
So Hezekiah destroyed it!
Hezekiah was ALL ABOUT the LORD - BUT - the text also tells us where this came from!
3 And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, according to all that David his father had done.
Hezekiah OPERATED under the same manner as DAVID...
And v6 sheds more light on where this LOYALTY came from...
6 For he held fast to the Lord. He did not depart from following him, but kept the commandments that the Lord commanded Moses.
OK - so here’s what we see...
SLIDE: God’s Faithfulness: By Means of His Word
God’s Faithfulness
God’s Faithfulness
You might be thinking - WAIT - Hezekiah was the one who OBEYED the Lord…
HEZEKIAH was the one who was - faithful…SOOOO
Why are we now talking about God’s Faithfulness?
What did the text say?
6 For he held fast to the Lord. He did not depart from following him, but kept the commandments that the Lord commanded Moses.
Hezekiah refused to COMPROMISE…
He didn’t let the CUSTOMS of man - that had GROWN over time - to become HIS CUSTOM.
We’ve heard about these HIGH PLACES - a lot in this book of 2 Kings -
These places were offensive to God because God had commanded WHERE the people should go to make sacrifices…
And INSTEAD - the people did their own thing - making these HIGH PLACES.
And so - over the course of many centuries = these HIGH PLACES just became part of the CUSTOM of Israel.
Even GOOD KINGS would leave the high places in place…
But NOT SO for Hezekiah.
He WENT BACK to the commandments of God.
God’s WORD.
God’s WORD is the ANCHOR of our existence.
And so the BLESSINGS that came due to Hezekiah OBEYING God - can be attributed to…
God’s FAITHFULNESS by means of His word!!
SLIDE:
God’s promises to man manifest themselves in the lives of man through the living out of God’s word.
The reason that our text today said this….
2 Kings 18:7 (ESV)
7 And the Lord was with him; wherever he went out, he prospered…
..is BECAUSE - Hezekiah held fast to God’s WORD…
He TRUSTED God’s WORD!
HEZEKIAH was TAUGHT by God’s word…this is what God’s word does!
6 And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.
7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.
8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.
9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
7 The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple;
8 the precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes;
9 How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word.
130 The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple.
16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.
HEZEKIAH was CORRECTED by God’s WORD… this is what God’s word does!
11 Moreover, by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward.
12 Who can discern his errors? Declare me innocent from hidden faults.
13 Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me! Then I shall be blameless, and innocent of great transgression.
11 Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come.
12 Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall.
HEZEKIAH was TRAINED in Righteousness by God’s WORD…
29 “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.
16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
HEZEKIAH would have been REASSURED by God’s WORD…
76 Let your steadfast love comfort me according to your promise to your servant.
And so BY GOD’S WORD - God’s faithfulness SHOWN through to HEZEKIAH - As Hezekiah RELIED on God’s WORD for all of life…for HOW to govern!
But things weren’t all CUPCAKES and RAINBOWS!
WHY?
Because we live in a - FALLEN WORLD!
What happens? - Back to our text
9 In the fourth year of King Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Hoshea son of Elah, king of Israel, Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up against Samaria and besieged it,
10 and at the end of three years he took it. In the sixth year of Hezekiah, which was the ninth year of Hoshea king of Israel, Samaria was taken.
And so Samaria is TAKEN over…
Why did this happen?
12 because they did not obey the voice of the Lord their God but transgressed his covenant, even all that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded. They neither listened nor obeyed.
What else?
13 In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them.
Here we see JUDAH is overtaken…
So Samaria and Judah - overtaken…
And so DUE to God’s JUDGMENT - these cities are OVERTAKEN by the enemies of God’s people.
And what do we see?
SLIDE: God’s Faithfulness: By Means of His Judgment
God’s Faithfulness
God’s Faithfulness
Now- we might think - OK, how is God FAITHFUL in judging us?
Let’s start here…
What’s our STATUS before salvation?
1 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins
2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—
We were - DEAD - spiritually.
We were SATURATED to our CORE - with - SIN!
Is there anything we can do to CHANGE this?
7 For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot.
14 The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.
So we’re DEAD spiritually - unable to accept the things of God...
YET - God’s PLAN of redemption is STILL ACTIVE!!!
So we have a SINFUL HUMANITY...
And a HOLY GOD…!
Understand this...
SLIDE:
Because the world is saturated with sin, and because God is holy, untainted with sin, God’s existence alone stands in judgment against all that is outside of God.
God Himself, His nature, His character, stands in judgment against sin.
And so God’s judgment - isn’t merely a DECISION by God against things He disagrees with...
His judgment ultimately BOILS DOWN to WHO HE IS…
Think about it -
What does LIGHT ALWAYS do to darkness?
(flashlight in a dark room)...
Light ALWAYS pushes back the darkness…why?
Because the light decided that it’s BETTER than the darkness?
NO...
Because the LIGHT - BY NATURE - by WHAT Light IS… pushes back the darkness!
Does LIGHT EVER compromise - and MINGLE with darkness?
NO!
Next question: Are we blessed by LIGHT?
Of course.
And even the Bible references this...
9 Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world.
There’s a spiritual side to this verse - but Jesus ALSO knows - this verse is true - PRACTICALLY
The LIGHT - by it’s nature - JUDGES the darkness and pushes it back!
And so - BECAUSE we are FALLEN…sinners against God...
And BECAUSE God’s plan is to REDEEM to Himself a people...
- God displays his Faithfulness to His plan - by means of Him judging sin.
- The only way His plan can be fulfilled is through His judgment of sin.
His law is a reflection of His character, and so His JUDGMENT exists - because He HIMSELF exists
And so - without God’s judgment - REDEMPTION would not be possible!
And so - God displays His faithfulness by means of His judgment!
We - as BELIEVERS - WANT to be JUDGED by God - WHY?
So that we can be found - FORGIVEN by faith - and RIGHTEOUS (the imputed righteousness of Christ) BY FAITH!
Parents will FAITHFULLY LOVE their children - by judging their children / correcting their children / disciplining their children.
For to NOT judge/discipline our kids is UNLOVING to them.
But God displays His faithfulness by means of His judgment!
And in our text today - God’s judgment CAME upon His people.
His judgment here would have been painful - but yet - STILL LOVING!
But that’s not all we see regarding the Faithfulness of God!
Judah is OVERTAKEN - but then God steps in and sends the king of Assyria OUT of JUDAH...
BUT then this happens!
8 The Rabshakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria fighting against Libnah, for he heard that the king had left Lachish.
9 Now the king heard concerning Tirhakah king of Cush, “Behold, he has set out to fight against you.” So he sent messengers again to Hezekiah, saying,
10 “Thus shall you speak to Hezekiah king of Judah: ‘Do not let your God in whom you trust deceive you by promising that Jerusalem will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.
So this king of Syria - Sennacherib - was now BACK AT IT - threatening Jerusalem...
And so How does Hezekiah respond??
14 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.
15 And Hezekiah prayed before the Lord and said: “O Lord, the God of Israel, enthroned above the cherubim, you are the God, you alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; you have made heaven and earth.
16 Incline your ear, O Lord, and hear; open your eyes, O Lord, and see; and hear the words of Sennacherib, which he has sent to mock the living God.
17 Truly, O Lord, the kings of Assyria have laid waste the nations and their lands
18 and have cast their gods into the fire, for they were not gods, but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone. Therefore they were destroyed.
19 So now, O Lord our God, save us, please, from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, O Lord, are God alone.”
Hezekiah PRAYS!
He doesn’t MAKE PLANS - he doesn’t STRATEGIZE...
He PRAYS!
He takes it - to the Lord
20 Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Your prayer to me about Sennacherib king of Assyria I have heard.
30 And the surviving remnant of the house of Judah shall again take root downward and bear fruit upward.
31 For out of Jerusalem shall go a remnant, and out of Mount Zion a band of survivors. The zeal of the Lord will do this.
WOW - so there’s HOPE for Judah!!
HOW?
32 “Therefore thus says the Lord concerning the king of Assyria: He shall not come into this city or shoot an arrow there, or come before it with a shield or cast up a siege mound against it.
33 By the way that he came, by the same he shall return, and he shall not come into this city, declares the Lord.
34 For I will defend this city to save it, for my own sake and for the sake of my servant David.”
35 And that night the angel of the Lord went out and struck down 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians. And when people arose early in the morning, behold, these were all dead bodies.
36 Then Sennacherib king of Assyria departed and went home and lived at Nineveh.
37 And as he was worshiping in the house of Nisroch his god, Adrammelech and Sharezer, his sons, struck him down with the sword and escaped into the land of Ararat. And Esarhaddon his son reigned in his place.
WOW - Prayer PRAYED!
PRAYER HEARD!
And God MOVED!
185,000 Assyrians KILLED - overnight.
Victory - won.
AND what do we see?
SLIDE: God’s Faithfulness: By Means of Prayer
God’s Faithfulness
God’s Faithfulness
All throughout scripture we see men and women - PRAYING to God.
Not only that - but we also see Christ PRAY to the Father.
Christ also TELLS us how to pray...
9 Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.
10 Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread,
12 and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
Think of this fact alone -
Jesus WANTS us to PRAY!
God WANTS US to bring our concerns to Him...
Our WORRY to Him!
NOT ONLY THAT _ But God wants us to LAY OURSELVES on the ALTAR of PRAYER!
What do I mean?
Question - Will God’s WILL - be DONE on this earth…in our LIVES?
It’s not a trick question = YES
The Bible tells us - that God DOES as He pleases!
God’s WILL - WILL be done…YET - Jesus tells us to pray FOR IT TO HAPPEN!
WHY? - because by praying for it - we’re LAYING OURSELVES DOWN...
We’re SUBMITTING ourselves to - God’s WILL.
“God - whatever YOU want to happen - we pray that THAT happens - and we ask FOR JOY IN THAT!”
And so - God’s PROMISES to His people - often find their manifestation - by means of our PRAYERS!
The apostle Paul’s ministry was HELD UP - by the prayers of God’s people!
18 praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints,
19 and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel,
20 for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.
Paul knew that PRAYERS LIFTED up for him - would RESULT in boldness....
He also knew PRAYER is what would sustain him...
30 I appeal to you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf,
And think of the Christian WALK of Paul -
The LAUNDRY list of suffering - Gospel Suffering!
How was Paul able to ENDURE?
And so - we can see a biblical connection between...
SLIDE:
Prayer and Perseverance
Paul endured - PARTLY because of the prayers lifted up FOR HIM...
In our text today - we see HEZEKIAH praying to God… as Syria came to ATTACK the people of God...
*Was it ever part of God’s PLAN - that His people would be WIPED out completely?
NO!
Were they wiped out in our text today?
NO - but why?
Let’s go to Isaiah to see GOD’s FAITHFULNESS to HIS PEOPLE - by MEANS of Prayer...
21 Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Because you have prayed to me concerning Sennacherib king of Assyria,
Same chapter...
33 “Therefore thus says the Lord concerning the king of Assyria: He shall not come into this city or shoot an arrow there or come before it with a shield or cast up a siege mound against it.
BECAUSE Hezekiah prayed - God MOVED.
God’s FAITHFULNESS CAME - by means of PRAYER!
This is what the TEXT - says.
And so - OH HOW POWERFUL prayer is!!
When in DOUBT - pray.
When CERTAIN - pray.
it matters!
But this isn’t ALL we see in our text today regarding God’s Faithfulness!
We just read how God MOVED because Hezekiah PRAYED.
That God PROTECTED His people...
by killing 185,000 Syrians
Now - God tells us that He moved - BECAUSE Hezekiah prayed...
And that’s true of course -
BUT - there is a DEEPER underlying reason that God moved!
And we see it in our text...
29 “And this shall be the sign for you: this year eat what grows of itself, and in the second year what springs of the same. Then in the third year sow and reap and plant vineyards, and eat their fruit.
30 And the surviving remnant of the house of Judah shall again take root downward and bear fruit upward.
31 For out of Jerusalem shall go a remnant, and out of Mount Zion a band of survivors. The zeal of the Lord will do this.
Here God says - the House of Judah shall again TAKE ROOT downward and bear fruit UPWARD!
SLIDE: God’s Faithfulness: By Means of His Covenant Promises
God’s Faithfulness
God’s Faithfulness
And it reminds us of the WORDS SPOKEN to Judah, the 4th son of Jacob - BY Jacob...
8 “Judah, your brothers shall praise you; your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; your father’s sons shall bow down before you.
9 Judah is a lion’s cub; from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He stooped down; he crouched as a lion and as a lioness; who dares rouse him?
10 The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until tribute comes to him; and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.
And this prophecy here - finds it’s continuation in the prophecy made regarding the SEED OF DAVID...
These words spoken TO David...
12 When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom.
13 He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.
14 I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men,
15 but my steadfast love will not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you.
16 And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.’ ”
So FROM the line of David would come the Christ...
And so we SEE - WHY Jesus was often referred to as - the Son of David.
When people referred to Jesus as the Son of David, they meant that He was the long-awaited Deliverer, the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies.
…that He WAS the promised Messiah!
And so GOD - ACTING to SUSTAIN Judah - in our text - showed God’s Faithfulness.
He was FAITHFUL to His promises...
And so - By Means of His covenant promises - He remained faithful.
SUMMARY
God’s Faithfulness
By Means of His Word
By Means of His Judgment
By Means of Prayer
By Means of His Covenant Promises
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