Don’t Be Defined By How It’s Going

Intro:

Have you ever set about a project or task that made you anxious? Simply because you wanted it to go well?

Have you ever sent a text message or email initiating a conversation? That left you anxious with how it would be recieved?

There are things in our lives that bring anxiety because we long for them to go well and things rarely go as hoped or expected. I am currently working on a few projects, and to be honest, I long for them to thrive, be done perfectly and just soar, but they’re not. If you look at some of the data, they just seem to be getting by. And it makes me anxious, because I want them to go well.

Anxiety is defined by how it’s been and how it’s going.

Last week Pastor Kyle introduced us to King Hezekiah. Hezekiah was a good king, one who navigated anxious times, times in which things weren’t going as well as he had hoped, but he navigated anxious moments with wisdom. Today, we will gain clarity on how we can do likewise. To do so, turn with me to 2 Chronicles 30:1, this is found on page 650 of your Blue Bibles.

2 Chronicles 30:1–5 NIV

1 Hezekiah sent word to all Israel and Judah and also wrote letters to Ephraim and Manasseh, inviting them to come to the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem and celebrate the Passover to the Lord, the God of Israel. 2 The king and his officials and the whole assembly in Jerusalem decided to celebrate the Passover in the second month. 3 They had not been able to celebrate it at the regular time because not enough priests had consecrated themselves and the people had not assembled in Jerusalem. 4 The plan seemed right both to the king and to the whole assembly. 5 They decided to send a proclamation throughout Israel, from Beersheba to Dan, calling the people to come to Jerusalem and celebrate the Passover to the Lord, the God of Israel. It had not been celebrated in large numbers according to what was written.

Background

So a little bit of context to this passage, Israel was divided into a Northern and Southern Kingdom. The Southern Kingdom consisted of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin, so King Hezekiah is a Judean King. All the other tribes of Israel (the other 10), are a part of the Northern Kingdom. The issue is not only is Israel currently divided. The issue is that in 725, Assyria attacked Israel and began taking them into captivity and exile. So the Northern Kingdom is under Assyrian oppression.

And King Hezekiah decides that he want’s to invite Ephraim & Manasseh (large tribes of the Northern Kingdom) to a large Passover Celebration. This is bold for tow reasons:

Israel was divided and not on best terms between Northern and Southern

North was under Assyrian control

Now for Hezekiah to invite them to a Passover Celebration is analogous to him inviting them to a Easter Celebration. The Passover Celebration was the largest celebration of the Jewish people, and they hadn’t been celebrating it - because they had become so idolatrous - it’s like if you and I didn’t celebrate Easter. Passover was a symbol of God’s deliverance and salvation.

So, Hezekiah decides to send a invite

The Invite

2 Chronicles 30:6–9 NIV

6 At the king’s command, couriers went throughout Israel and Judah with letters from the king and from his officials, which read: “People of Israel, return to the Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, that he may return to you who are left, who have escaped from the hand of the kings of Assyria. 7 Do not be like your parents and your fellow Israelites, who were unfaithful to the Lord, the God of their ancestors, so that he made them an object of horror, as you see. 8 Do not be stiff-necked, as your ancestors were; submit to the Lord. Come to his sanctuary, which he has consecrated forever. Serve the Lord your God, so that his fierce anger will turn away from you. 9 If you return to the Lord, then your fellow Israelites and your children will be shown compassion by their captors and will return to this land, for the Lord your God is gracious and compassionate. He will not turn his face from you if you return to him.”

Hezekiah is bold - he doesn’t allow anxious thoughts to control his actions.

He seeks to establish unity between the nation of Israel and invites Northern and Southern tribes to worship together

He calls them out on their sin

He invites them to return to God and worship YHWH.

Too often we allow anxiety to inhibit our activity.

We are anxious about whether or not we can truly reconcile a relationship, so we don’t make the effort

we are anxious about confronting a friend or family member about an issue, because we’re worried how they will respond

we are anxious about inviting people to church because we don’t know if they’ll be receptive to our invitation

So we allow anxiety to inhibit our activity.

Sometimes - we are anxious to even pursue God because of our own past or sinfulness, but we need not be anxious about drawing near to God.

Draw near to Jesus

Is he wrathful and just? Yes! That is why Israel was in Assyrian exile. The text even says, God is angry.

2 Chronicles 30:8 “8 Do not be stiff-necked, as your ancestors were; submit to the Lord. Come to his sanctuary, which he has consecrated forever. Serve the Lord your God, so that his fierce anger will turn away from you.”

He has fierce anger - but it can be turned away from you - how?

2 Chronicles 30:9 NIV

9 If you return to the Lord, then your fellow Israelites and your children will be shown compassion by their captors and will return to this land, for the Lord your God is gracious and compassionate. He will not turn his face from you if you return to him.”

God is gracious and compassionate

James 4:8 NIV

8 Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

Draw near to Jesus! He is gracious and compassionate.

What is true.

Anxiety focuses on aspects of truth - but they are truths based on how it is going.

Living without anxiety means we focus our thoughts on who God is and what is true of Him.

Anxiety says, “you’re not good enough, failure, sinner, guilty, worthless, unwelcome”

God says, “you’re loved, valued, and welcome”

It is this verse, verse 9, that gives us clarity in the source of Hezekiah’s confidence. The reason Hezekiah is not anxious, is because he isn’t allowing how it’s going to dictate his actions, but rather who God is!

And so, the couriers comply with the king’s command.

2 Chronicles 30:10–12 NIV

10 The couriers went from town to town in Ephraim and Manasseh, as far as Zebulun, but people scorned and ridiculed them. 11 Nevertheless, some from Asher, Manasseh and Zebulun humbled themselves and went to Jerusalem. 12 Also in Judah the hand of God was on the people to give them unity of mind to carry out what the king and his officials had ordered, following the word of the Lord.

And what we see is that upon the invite being sent - it isn’t recieved with gladness but ridicule.

Have you ever invited someone to Christmas or Easter or even any Sunday morning only to be ridiculed? It can be discouraging, but that doesn’t mean it’s not worthwhile.

If Hezekiah was insecure - and allowed the receptivity of his message to dictate whether or not he clicked send, he would have never created a profound moment of worship for the people of Israel.

Some will response.

2 Chronicles 30:13–14 NIV

13 A very large crowd of people assembled in Jerusalem to celebrate the Festival of Unleavened Bread in the second month. 14 They removed the altars in Jerusalem and cleared away the incense altars and threw them into the Kidron Valley.

A large crowd gathered! People responded to his invite.

Now we get a new detail that adds to the imperfection of the moment.

2 Chron 30:13, “in the second month”

The passover was supposed to be held in the first month, not the second.

Now if you’re like me, you can relate to this. I am very Type A, achievement oriented, and I tend to be a perfectionist. So much so that oftentimes my perfectionism becomes an inhibition to my execution. If it’s not going to be perfect, I don’t want to do it.

Sometimes we just need to start - Jesus cares more about our pursuit of him than he cares about our perfection. Does He deserve perfection? Yes, but none of us can meet that standard. Which is why we ought to focus on pursuit of Him.

Not only was the timing imperfect but so were the people.

2 Chronicles 30:15–17 NIV

15 They slaughtered the Passover lamb on the fourteenth day of the second month. The priests and the Levites were ashamed and consecrated themselves and brought burnt offerings to the temple of the Lord. 16 Then they took up their regular positions as prescribed in the Law of Moses the man of God. The priests splashed against the altar the blood handed to them by the Levites. 17 Since many in the crowd had not consecrated themselves, the Levites had to kill the Passover lambs for all those who were not ceremonially clean and could not consecrate their lambs to the Lord.

Anxious Assessment:

this whole endeavor is a mess!

1. It’s not the right time

2. the people are impure

3. not everyone is here, we’re still divided

4. we don’t even have enough priests to pull this thing off

An anxious perspective is defined by how it’s going.

But that isn’t King Hezekiah’s assessment. Here is a Non-anxious response:

2 Chronicles 30:18–20 NIV

18 Although most of the many people who came from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar and Zebulun had not purified themselves, yet they ate the Passover, contrary to what was written. But Hezekiah prayed for them, saying, “May the Lord, who is good, pardon everyone 19 who sets their heart on seeking God—the Lord, the God of their ancestors—even if they are not clean according to the rules of the sanctuary.” 20 And the Lord heard Hezekiah and healed the people.

What is it about Hezekiah’s response that allows him to be non-anxious? Is it prayer? Certainly prayer is a part of it, 1 Peter 5:7, but its deeper than that. It’s that He knows who God is, GOOD & Forgiving (v18) this is evidenced in v20 - God HEARD & HEALS the people.

Some of you need to know that God hears you - and He cares enough about you not only to listen, but enough to act.

So how does this passage conclude?

Hezekiah encourages the people and they celebrate the Passover!

Why do we do this? Not only does Passover remind us of who God is, but it reminds us of who we are - as His people.

This week as I was preparing for this, I actually experienced a lot of anxiety and what began to give me clarity was when I focused on my identity

Oftentimes we are so anxious because we are expected to be someone or we long to be a certain type of person, and when we define ourselves by how it’s going instead of who we are.

The interesting thing about circumstances is that they can cultivate who we become, circumstance and trials can certainly help develop our character. However, circumstances can also help bring clarity to who we are.

Hezekiah was the ruler of a Kingdom torn in two. The northern Kingdom was under Assyrian rule, and he was 25yrs old when he came to power. If he allowed himself to be defined by how it was going he certainly would have had reason to be anxious. However, he knew who His God was and who he was.

A non-anxious response is defined by who we are.

Just as King Hezekiah prayed, so also we should respond in prayer. Set up prayer moment.

Transition Passover —> communion

Key Aspects/Actions:

2 Chron 29:34 Levites were more conscientious in consecrating themselves than the priests and had to assists the priests. Takeaway: heart and intentionality of the laity

2 Chron 30:1, Hez makes a step toward unity through Passover celebration - Passover - celebrating God’s deliverance & avoiding his wrath

2 Chron 30:12 God gives them UNITY of mind (community is impt for combating anxiety)

2 Chron 30:18-20 Hez prays for healing for his people. Healing wasn’t found in the physical rituals but in God.

2 Chron 30:22 Hez spoke encouragingly encouragement combats anxiety

2 Chron 30:23 celebrated joyfully

2 Chron 30:27 prayed to God

2 Chron 31:1 Destroyed idols

2 Chron 31:5 Gave generously

2 Chron 31:8 Praised God

2 Chron 32:1 Faithful to God

2 Chron 32:6-8 Hez spoke encouragingly to them “Be strong and courageous”

Life isn’t binary. Life is never simply good or bad.

Often times we have aspects of our lives that are going well, and aspects that are challenging. Yet the state of our soul

Briefing Overview:

2. Don’t Be Defined By How It’s Going

Passages: 2 Chronicles 30:1-14; 18-20; 30:26-31:1; 2 Chronicles 32:1; John 16:33

Date: January 11, 2026

Speaker: Kyle (Jon @ Edina)

Big Idea: We aren’t defined by how it’s going – good or bad. We are defined by Jesus who has overcome

all troubles, and who is with us in the midst of our days of trouble.

Outline/Notes: Hezekiah continues in his reforms. After reopening the Temple, he invites all of Israel to

celebrate the Passover. This had not been done since the split of the Northern and Southern Kingdoms

after Solomon. Amazingly, he invites the same people who had attacked and gone to war against his own

father. Hezekiah does what is good and right…and yet, not all of it goes well. Many of the people who

came didn’t properly purify themselves. We don’t know what specifically happened to make this apparent,

but in the midst of this good and honorable celebration, there was hardship. Hezekiah prays for the

people – interceding on their behalf – and the LORD responded in healing the people. This shows how

God is more concerned about the inward nature of people than about the outward nature. This could have

been a moment for Hezekiah to be discouraged or frustrated, yet he is focused on the desire to honor

God in all he does. Often in life we allow our circumstances or situations to define us. This leads to all

sorts of anxiety. We are never to be defined by how it’s going; rather, we are to be defined by Jesus…He

overcame all trouble, and we can know Jesus is with us in our day of trouble. Even after doing all this

good, tragedy still strikes Hezekiah. But because he wasn’t defined by how it was going, he was prepared

to deal with the crisis (which we will see the next three weekends in how he prayed through the anxiety-

producing situations).

Action: Allow the LORD to search our hearts to know what we are for and what we are seeking. Release

being defined by how it’s going; instead be defined by who Jesus says we are – His! Close with a time of

prayer, asking God to search our hearts and reveal to us “what we are for” instead of “how it’s going.”