DOWN TO DELIGHT!
Notes
Transcript
Week 48 (5th Sunday)
This Week’s Theme: From Problems to Praise
Word for the Week is Praise: To boast, celebrate, glorify, or express admiration toward God for who He is and what He has done.
Memory verse: Psalm 146:2 While I live I will praise the LORD; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.
Sermon Focus: Thank God and praise Him for how He answers prayer.
Sermon Passage: Isaiah 38:9-20
9 This is the writing of Hezekiah king of Judah, when he had been sick and had recovered from his sickness:
Basic Identity
14th king of Judah (approx. 715–686 BC).
Son of King Ahaz and Abijah/Abi, daughter of Zechariah (2 Chr 29:1).
Ruled during the time of prophets Isaiah and Micah.
Name Hezekiah (Ḥizqîyāhû) means “Yahweh strengthens” or “Yahweh is my strength.”
Major Spiritual Reforms
Hezekiah is considered one of Judah’s most righteous kings.
WHY?
He:
Opened and repaired the Temple in his first year (2 Chr 29:3).
Reinstated proper priesthood and Levitical worship.
Restored the Passover—first time since Solomon (2 Chr 30).
Destroyed the high places, Asherah poles, and idols (2 Kgs 18:4).
Broke the bronze serpent (“Nehushtan”) which Israel had begun to worship.
Centralized worship in Jerusalem, fulfilling Deut 12.
Biblical Evaluation:
“He trusted in the LORD… there was none like him among all the kings of Judah.” (2 Kgs 18:5)
Military and Political Context
Reigned during the rise of the Assyrian Empire, the most powerful kingdom in the world.
Assyria took the northern kingdom of Israel into exile during his reign (722 BC).
He rebelled against Assyria (2 Kgs 18:7), refusing to continue as a vassal king.
Sennacherib, king of Assyria, invaded Judah around 701 BC.
The Assyrian Siege and Deliverance
Sennacherib’s army captured 46 fortified cities (recorded on Lachish Reliefs).
Jerusalem was surrounded.
Hezekiah PRAYED IN 2 KINGS 19:19
19 Now therefore, O Lord our God, I pray, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You are the Lord God, You alone.”
The Angel of the LORD struck down 185,000 Assyrian soldiers in one night (2 Kgs 19:35).
YET IN ISAIAH 38:1
1 In those days Hezekiah was sick and near death. And Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, went to him and said to him, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Set your house in order, for you shall die and not live.’ ”
WE HAVE BEFORE US TODAY THIS JOURNEY OF HEZEKIAH
WHAT HAPPEN TO THE KING AFTER HE HEARD THE NEWS?
I. DOWN
I. DOWN
A. BECAUSE OF THE DEPRIVATION
A. BECAUSE OF THE DEPRIVATION
LISTEN TO KING HEZEKIAH
10 I said, “In the prime of my life I shall go to the gates of Sheol; I am deprived of the remainder of my years.”
HEZEKIAH THOUGHT THAT IT SEEMED UNFAIR
TO BE CUT DOWN WHILE IN THE PRIME OF HIS LIFE.
11 I said, “I shall not see Yah, The Lord in the land of the living; I shall observe man no more among the inhabitants of the world.
12 My life span is gone, Taken from me like a shepherd’s tent; I have cut off my life like a weaver. He cuts me off from the loom; From day until night You make an end of me.
B. BECAUSE OF THE DISCOMFORT
B. BECAUSE OF THE DISCOMFORT
13I have considered until morning—
Like a lion,
So He breaks all my bones;
From day until night You make an end of me.
14Like a crane or a swallow, so I chattered;
I mourned like a dove;
My eyes fail from looking upward.
O Lord, I am oppressed;
Undertake for me!
HE THOUGHT ABOUT ALL NIGHT
“Like a lion, So He breaks all my bones”
From day until night You make an end of me.
CHATTERED
Like a crane or a swallow, so I chattered;
MOURNED
I mourned like a dove;
My eyes fail from looking upward.
OPPRESSED
O LORD, I am oppressed; Undertake for me!
C. BECAUSE OF THE DESIGNER
C. BECAUSE OF THE DESIGNER
15 “What shall I say? He has both spoken to me, And He Himself has done it. I shall walk carefully all my years In the bitterness of my soul.
VERSE 15
WHAT COULD HE SAY?
GOD SENT THE SICKNESS
DAVID SAID IN PS39:9
9 I was mute, I did not open my mouth, Because it was You who did it.
HURT YOU SO HE COULD HEAL YOU
HE CUT YOU SO HE COULD CURE YOU
HE MARRED YOU SO HE COULD MEND YOU
HE RUINED YOU SO HE COULD RESTORE YOU
HE HARMED YOU SO HE COULD HELP YOU
HE BROKE YOU SO HE COULD BLESS YOU
HE PULL YOU DOWN SO HE COULD PICK YOU UP
But what could I say? For he himself sent this sickness. Now I will walk humbly throughout my years because of this anguish I have felt.
16 Lord, your discipline is good, for it leads to life and health. You restore my health and allow me to live!
II. DELIGHTED
II. DELIGHTED
19 The living, the living man, he shall praise You, As I do this day; The father shall make known Your truth to the children.
PRAISE IS WHAT I DO!
TELL THE TRUTH TO MY CHILDREN
TELL THEM THAT
God Is Real and He Is the Creator
“Everything you see, including you, exists because God made it.”
• Genesis 1:1
• Acts 17:24–28
Teach them the world is not an accident—God is behind it.
TELL THEM THAT
God Made You for a Purpose
“You are not random—God has a plan for your life.”
• Jeremiah 29:11
• Ephesians 2:10
Purpose fights low self-worth and confusion.
TELL THEM THAT
God Sees Everything and Knows Everything
“You can’t hide from God—and you never need to.”
• Psalm 139:7–12
• Hebrews 4:13
This brings accountability AND comfort.
TELL THEM THAT
God Is Kind, Patient, and Good
“Everything God does is good—even when we don’t understand it.”
• Psalm 34:8
• Psalm 145:8–9
Helps children trust God through hardship.
God Takes Sin Seriously
“Sin separates us from God—but He made a way back.”
• Romans 3:23
• Romans 6:23
A father must teach truth, not sentimentality.
God Sent Jesus to Save Us
“God loves us so much that He sent His only Son to rescue us.”
• John 3:16
• Romans 5:8
The gospel must be clear, simple, and repeated.
Jesus Is the Only Way to God
“There are many voices in the world, but only one Savior.”
• John 14:6
• Acts 4:12
Establishes clarity in a culture of confusion.
God Hears Prayer
“You can talk to God anytime, anywhere.”
• 1 Thessalonians 5:17
• Psalm 34:17
This teaches children to look upward, not inward.
God Is Faithful and Keeps His Promises
“If God said it, He will do it.”
• 2 Corinthians 1:20
• Psalm 119:90
Stability in a world full of broken promises.
God Gives Strength in Hard Times
“When life is tough, God will be your strength.”
• Isaiah 41:10
• Psalm 46:1
Teach resilience anchored in the Lord.
God Forgives Those Who Come to Him
“No matter how badly you mess up, God can forgive and restore you.”
• 1 John 1:9
• Micah 7:18–19
Builds humility instead of shame.
God Always Does What Is Right
“You may not always understand Him, but you can always trust Him.”
• Deut 32:4
• Romans 8:28
This builds long-term trust in God’s character.
God Calls Us to Love Him Above Everything
“Your greatest duty in life is to love God with your whole heart.” Matthew 22:37–38
The foundation of obedience and worship.
SING HIS SONGS LOOK AT VERSE 20
20“The Lord was ready to save me;
Therefore we will sing my songs with stringed instruments
All the days of our life, in the house of the Lord.”
while I have my being.
SING SONGS OF PRAISE
TESTIFY OF HIS GOODNESS
Glory, Glory hallelujah since I laid my
TESTIFY OF YOUR HOPE
My hope is built on nothing less than
TESTIFY OF HIS DELIVERANCE
I was sinking deep in sin far from the peaceful shore
TESTIFY OF HIS GRACE AND MERCY
Amazing grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost but now I’m found I was blind but now I see.
SING PRAISES AS LONG AS I LIVE
LOOK AT Psalm 146:2.
2While I live I will praise the Lord;
I will sing praises to my God
DAVID SAID
1 I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth.
WILL YOU SAY
As long as I have breath, I will BLESS the LORD.
As long as I live, I WILL LIFT UP His name.
Every day I MAKE IT, I WILL MAGNIFY the LORD.
THE PSALMIST SAID
Psalm 63:4 “4 Thus I will bless You while I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name.”
WILL YOU SAY
For all my days, I will bless His name.
With every breath You give, I’ll give You praise.
As long as You sustain me, I’ll exalt Your name.
TELL THE WORLD THAT YOU WILL SHOUT GOD’S PRAISES
WHY? . . .
A. BECAUSE OF GOD’S DISCIPLINE
A. BECAUSE OF GOD’S DISCIPLINE
16 Lord, your discipline is good, for it leads to life and health. You restore my health and allow me to live!
17 Indeed it was for my own peace That I had great bitterness; But You have lovingly delivered my soul from the pit of corruption, For You have cast all my sins behind Your back.
Yes, this anguish was good for me, for you have rescued me from death and forgiven all my sins.
KING HEZEKIAH ECHOED THE SENTIMENT OF THE PSALMIST WHO DECLARED
IN PSALM 119:71
71 It is good for me that I have been afflicted, That I may learn Your statutes.
PAUL STATED
IN 1 CORINTHIANS 11:32
32 But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world.
THE WRITER OF HEBREWS PROCLAIMED
IN HEBREWS 12:10-11
10 For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best to them, but He for our profit, that we may be partakers of His holiness.
11 Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
GOD’S DISCIPLINE DISPLAYS HIS DEVOTION TO HIS CHILDREN
WHICH IS WHY JESUS SAID
IN REVELATION 3:19
As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent.
MAYBE YOU ARE LIKE THE PSALMIST WHO SAID
IN PSALM 119:67
67 Before I was afflicted I went astray, But now I keep Your word.
GOD’S DISCIPLINE CHANGED YOUR DIRECTION IN LIFE
GOD’S DISCIPLINE HALTS THE DESTRUCTIVE PATH
DELIGHTED BECAUSE
GOD’S DISCIPLINE DETOURS YOU FROM DANGER.
GOD’S DISCIPLINE DISRUPTS HARMFUL HABITS.
GOD’S DISCIPLINE DEVELOPS YOUR CHARACTER.
DELIGHTED BECAUSE
GOD’S DISCIPLINE DEEPENS YOUR DEPENDENCE ON HIM.
GOD’S DISCIPLINE DEFINES YOUR PRIORITIES.
GOD’S DISCIPLINE DRIVES YOU BACK TO HIM.
DELIGHTED BECAUSE
HE USES DISCIPLINE
TO DIRECTS YOUR STEPS.
TO DECLUTTERS YOUR HEART.
TO DRAWS YOU CLOSER.
DELIGHTED BECAUSE OF GOD’S DISCIPLINE BUT DELIGHTED . . .
B. BECAUSE OF GOD’S DELIVERANCE
B. BECAUSE OF GOD’S DELIVERANCE
17 Indeed it was for my own peace That I had great bitterness; But You have lovingly delivered my soul from the pit of corruption, For You have cast all my sins behind Your back.
2 He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, Out of the miry clay, And set my feet upon a rock, And established my steps.
13 For great is Your mercy toward me, And You have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol.
22 For I said in my haste, “I am cut off from before Your eyes”; Nevertheless You heard the voice of my supplications When I cried out to You.
BECAUSE OF HIS DILIGENCE
LOOK AT VERSE 20
20 “The Lord was ready to save me; Therefore we will sing my songs with stringed instruments All the days of our life, in the house of the Lord.”
GOD WAS READY TO DELIVER HEZEKIAH
DON’T YOU THINK, HE IS READY TO DELIVER HIS CHILDREN
LOOK AT WHAT DAVID SAID IN Psalm 27:13
I would have lost heart, unless I had believed That I would see the goodness of the Lord In the land of the living.
25 I have been young, and now am old; Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, Nor his descendants begging bread.
YOU MAY BE ASKING
WHY ME?
THE BIBLE TEACHES THAT
OBSTACLES HAVE A WAY OF OPENING YOUR HEART GOD THRU CHRIST
STRAIN HAS A WAY OF CAUSING MEN TO SEEK GOD THRU CHRIST
PAIN HAS A WAY OF PUSHING YOU TOWARD GOD THRU CHRIST
THAT IS WHY I AM BEFORE YOU TODAY
THIS IS WHY
IF YOU ARE
HURTING
DOWN IN THE DUMPS
I WANT TO INFORM YOU
THAT ON A HILL CALLED CALVARY
GOD’S WAY OUT OF NO WAY
JESUS
GOD’S ANSWER FOR A SIN SICK SOUL
JESUS
GOD’S CURE FOR AN INFECTED MIND
He came as a
Shepherd seeking sheep to nourish
Savior seeking sinners to forgive
Physician seeking patients to cure
Father seeking children to accept
Master seeking servants to reward
King seeking subjects to rule
What can..,
Wash away our sins…
lift us from the gutter…
redeem our eternal soul…
cleanse us from all corruption
free us from Satan’s bondage..,
make us whole again…
DON’T FOCUS on the problem
FOCUS ON the Problem-solver.
DON’T FOCUS ON the challenges
FOCUS ON Christ.
DON’T FOCUS ON the MESS OR MISFORTUNE
FOCUS ON the Master.
I WAS
BUT NOW I HAVE BEEN
“LIFTED UP BY THE LORD” (PSALM 27:6).
I WAS
BUT NOW I HAVE BEEN
“STRENGTHENED WITH MIGHT IN THE INNER MAN” (EPHESIANS 3:16).
I WAS
BUT NOW I HAVE BEEN
“REJOICING IN HOPE” (ROMANS 12:12).
I WAS
BUT NOW I HAVE BEEN
“SINGING A NEW SONG” (PSALM 40:3).
I WAS
BUT NOW I HAVE BEEN
“WALKING IN NEWNESS OF LIFE” (ROMANS 6:4).
I WAS
BUT NOW I HAVE BEEN
“ABOUNDING IN THANKSGIVING” (COLOSSIANS 2:7).
