June 2019 – Page 2 – Praying Pint

190. “If you walk in my statutes and observe my commandments and do them”

2 Kings 21:1 Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-five years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hephzibah. And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to the despicable practices of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel. For he rebuilt the high places that Hezekiah his father had destroyed, and he erected altars for Baal and made an Asherah, as Ahab king of Israel had done, and worshiped all the host of heaven and served them. And he built altars in the house of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, “In Jerusalem will I put my name.” And he built altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the Lord. And he burned his son as an offering and used fortune-telling and omens and dealt with mediums and with necromancers. He did much evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking him to anger. And the carved image of Asherah that he had made he set in the house of which the Lord said to David and to Solomon his son, “In this house, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, I will put my name forever. And I will not cause the feet of Israel to wander anymore out of the land that I gave to their fathers, if only they will be careful to do according to all that I have commanded them, and according to all the Law that my servant Moses commanded them.” But they did not listen, and Manasseh led them astray to do more evil than the nations had done whom the Lord destroyed before the people of Israel.

Leviticus 26:3-13 “If you walk in my statutes and observe my commandments and do them, then I will give you your rains in their season, and the land shall yield its increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. Your threshing shall last to the time of the grape harvest, and the grape harvest shall last to the time for sowing. And you shall eat your bread to the full and dwell in your land securely. I will give peace in the land, and you shall lie down, and none shall make you afraid. And I will remove harmful beasts from the land, and the sword shall not go through your land. You shall chase your enemies, and they shall fall before you by the sword. Five of you shall chase a hundred, and a hundred of you shall chase ten thousand, and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword. I will turn to you and make you fruitful and multiply you and will confirm my covenant with you. You shall eat old store long kept, and you shall clear out the old to make way for the new. I will make my dwelling among you, and my soul shall not abhor you. And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people. I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that you should not be their slaves. And I have broken the bars of your yoke and made you walk erect.

Jeremiah 17:20-27 Yet they did not listen or incline their ear, but stiffened their neck, that they might not hear and receive instruction.

Hezekiah reigned 25 years as King and did what was right in the eyes of the Lord. He destroyed all of the idols and put God first. He brought the people back to God. He was a leader who led the people in worship of God by what he said and the actions he took against anything that was a substitute/replacement for God. He did what was right in the eyes of God by humbly serving, honoring, following, trusting, relying upon, and obeying God.

However, his son did not. He replaced everything that Hezekiah removed that was an abomination to God. He led the people for 55 years down paths away from God and to the place where it says they were “doing more evil than the nations had done whom the Lord destroyed” Can you imagine it? In one generation Hezekiah brought the people back to God and in one generation his son led them astray.

We can not assume the people too are not to blame as well. They willingly followed. “Yet they did not listen or incline their ear, but stiffened their neck, that they might not hear and receive instruction.” We need to be mindful of how we view things in and around us and have God’s word richly dwelling deep within our heart, mind, and soul so that we can discern what is right and acceptable according to it rather than what is acceptable to the world.

189. “Why not, if there will be peace and security in my days?”

2 Kings 20:12 At that time Merodach-baladan the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent envoys with letters and a present to Hezekiah, for he heard that Hezekiah had been sick. And Hezekiah welcomed them, and he showed them all his treasure house, the silver, the gold, the spices, the precious oil, his armory, all that was found in his storehouses. There was nothing in his house or in all his realm that Hezekiah did not show them. Then Isaiah the prophet came to King Hezekiah, and said to him, “What did these men say? And from where did they come to you?” And Hezekiah said, “They have come from a far country, from Babylon.” He said, “What have they seen in your house?” And Hezekiah answered, “They have seen all that is in my house; there is nothing in my storehouses that I did not show them.”

Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Hear the word of the Lord: Behold, the days are coming, when all that is in your house, and that which your fathers have stored up till this day, shall be carried to Babylon. Nothing shall be left, says the Lord. And some of your own sons, who will come from you, whom you will father, shall be taken away, and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.” Then Hezekiah said to Isaiah, “The word of the Lord that you have spoken is good.” For he thought, “Why not, if there will be peace and security in my days?”

2 Chronicles 36:10     In the spring of the year King Nebuchadnezzar sent and brought him to Babylon, with the precious vessels of the house of the LORD, and made his brother Zedekiah king over Judah and Jerusalem.

2 Chronicles 36:18    And all the vessels of the house of God, great and small, and the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king and of his princes, all these he brought to Babylon.

Jeremiah 27:21-22     thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning the vessels that are left in the house of the LORD, in the house of the king of Judah, and in Jerusalem:  They shall be carried to Babylon and remain there until the day when I visit them, declares the LORD. Then I will bring them back and restore them to this place.”

Jeremiah 52:17-19    And the pillars of bronze that were in the house of the LORD, and the stands and the bronze sea that were in the house of the LORD, the Chaldeans broke in pieces, and carried all the bronze to Babylon.  And they took away the pots and the shovels and the snuffers and the basins and the dishes for incense and all the vessels of bronze used in the temple service;  also the small bowls and the fire pans and the basins and the pots and the lampstands and the dishes for incense and the bowls for drink offerings. What was of gold the captain of the guard took away as gold, and what was of silver, as silver.

Trials and trouble are on the way and this has been proclaimed by God through the prophet Isaiah. What does Hezekiah think about when he hears this news; “Why no, if there will be peace and security in my days?” Is this the proper response one should have when you hear of pending doom for your country? Would you not plead for repentance from the people and forgiveness from God? Wouldn’t your heartache at the news? Wouldn’t you do something to intercede?

Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to lead and guide us into all truth, to open our eyes and ears to the wisdom and knowledge of God through His word. Jesus said, “go make disciples.” Why did He say this? Because of the proclamation of the Good News of the Gospel was the answer to the proclamation of the coming judgment. Unlike Hezekiah who was not told of a redemption plan from the pending troubles at the hand of God through the Babylonians, we have. We have been entrusted with the Gospel and the call to make disciples and to humbly serve, honor, glorify, listen to, follow, obey, rely on, and trust in Jesus Christ. The reason for our whole purpose and plan this side of eternity, is to do this. We are to make Jesus first and last in all we think, say, and do.

We fail to honor Jesus if we respond like Hezekiah; “why not if there will be peace and security in my days?” How shallow would it be to know that you have been saved by grace, not of works, through the redeeming work of Jesus Christ and the sacrifice He made for you while you were yet a sinner and without hope of being cleansed from sin and being made right in the eyes of God- and then to say “let them get what they deserve, I am going to keep quiet and live my life in peace and security I have in Christ.”

We have a calling to humbly serve, honor, glorify, follow, listen to, obey, rely on, and trust in Jesus Christ and to tell those who are perishing about the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and to make disciples.

Share the Love of Jesus Christ in word, thought, and deed.

188. I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears.

2 Kings 20:1 In those days Hezekiah became sick and was at the point of death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came to him and said to him, “Thus says the Lord, Set your house in order, for you shall die; you shall not recover.’” Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, saying, “Now, O Lord, please remember how I have walked before you in faithfulness and with a whole heart, and have done what is good in your sight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly. And before Isaiah had gone out of the middle court, the word of the Lord came to him: “Turn back, and say to Hezekiah the leader of my people, Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. Behold, I will heal you. On the third day you shall go up to the house of the Lord, and I will add fifteen years to your life. I will deliver you and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria, and I will defend this city for my own sake and for my servant David’s sake.” And Isaiah said, “Bring a cake of figs. And let them take and lay it on the boil, that he may recover.”

And Hezekiah said to Isaiah, “What shall be the sign that the Lord will heal me, and that I shall go up to the house of the Lord on the third day?” And Isaiah said, “This shall be the sign to you from the Lord, that the Lord will do the thing that he has promised: shall the shadow go forward ten steps, or go back ten steps?” And Hezekiah answered, “It is an easy thing for the shadow to lengthen ten steps. Rather let the shadow go back ten steps.” And Isaiah the prophet called to the Lord, and he brought the shadow back ten steps, by which it had gone down on the steps of Ahaz.

Joshua 10:12-14 At that time Joshua spoke to the LORD in the day when the LORD gave the Amorites over to the sons of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel, “Sun, stand still at Gibeon, and moon, in the Valley of Aijalon.” And the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, until the nation took vengeance on their enemies. Is this not written in the Book of Jashar? The sun stopped in the midst of heaven and did not hurry to set for about a whole day. There has been no day like it before or since, when the LORD heeded the voice of a man, for the LORD fought for Israel

God creator, author of all there is, all powerful, and all mighty spoke all there is into being. All of nature and science obeys the voice of God from creation to forever. Why do we find it hard to understand that the author and creator can control and manipulate what He has created? Stopping the sun and moon for a full day, retreating the sun for however far it takes to go back ten steps is nothing compared to what God can do. He is unlimited. Scripture says He can do more than we ask and much more than we can imagine. And we still have doubts. We still have anxious thoughts. We worry and fret. We become afraid. When we come to the place where we have surrendered our trial/trouble in the hands of Jesus, and we say not my will but yours be done, it is then we find the blessed assurance, peace that passes all understanding, faith that moves mountains, hope that conquers fears, and trust that gives us strength and courage in the midst of our trials/troubles. Stay close to Him, seek Him, desire Him, and above all lay your burdens at His feet and rest in His unfailing love.

187. O LORD, you have searched me and known me!

2 Kings 19:27 “But I know your sitting down and your going out and coming in, and your raging against me. Because you have raged against me and your complacency has come into my ears, I will put my hook in your nose and my bit in your mouth, and I will turn you back on the way by which you came. “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. And the surviving remnant of the house of Judah shall again take root downward and bear fruit upward. 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.

“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. By the way that he came, by the same he shall return, and he shall not come into this city, declares the Lord. For I will defend this city to save it, for my own sake and for the sake of my servant David.”

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. Then Sennacherib king of Assyria departed and went home and lived at Nineveh. 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.

Psalms 139:1-11 O LORD, you have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O LORD, you know it altogether. You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain it. Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me. If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the light about me be night,”

Jeremiah 23:23-24 “Am I a God at hand, declares the LORD, and not a God far away? Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him? declares the LORD. Do I not fill heaven and earth? declares the LORD.

The King of Assyria was full of pride. He brought to Hezekiah’s attention that all of the other lands he had conquered and that these kingdoms and their gods could do nothing to stop them. We read God responding to Hezekiah’s prayer and Assyrian King Sennacherib pride. God’s response; “I know your sitting down and your going out and coming in, and your raging against me” Nothing is hidden from God and though the Assyrian King thought himself to be something God made it clear that He would put a hook in his nose and a bit in his mouth and lead him right back the same way he came. Can you imagine being the King of Assyria and waking the next morning and 185,000 of your army is dead? Sennacherib gave no thought to the one and only true God. To him, the gods were all the same and have no power.

David knows God is everywhere and sees everything. He proclaims God knows our thoughts from a long way off and that a word does not form on our tongue but what God does not know it already. Knowing God this way builds our faith, trust, and reliance. Knowing God is always present gives us hope, peace, joy, love, and courage to face whatever comes our way. We have confidence that our God is in control and that “all things work together for the Good of those called by Him.

God is ever-present, all powerful, all knowing, and steadfast in His love for those who choose to humbly serve, honor, and obey.

186. Do not be afraid because of the words that you have heard

2 Kings 19:1 As soon as King Hezekiah heard it, he tore his clothes and covered himself with sackcloth and went into the house of the Lord. And he sent Eliakim, who was over the household, and Shebna the secretary, and the senior priests, covered with sackcloth, to the prophet Isaiah the son of Amoz. They said to him, “Thus says Hezekiah, This day is a day of distress, of rebuke, and of disgrace; children have come to the point of birth, and there is no strength to bring them forth. It may be that the Lord your God heard all the words of the Rabshakeh, whom his master the king of Assyria has sent to mock the living God, and will rebuke the words that the Lord your God has heard; therefore lift up your prayer for the remnant that is left.” When the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah, Isaiah said to them, “Say to your master, ‘Thus says the Lord: Do not be afraid because of the words that you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have reviled me. Behold, I will put a spirit in him, so that he shall hear a rumor and return to his own land, and I will make him fall by the sword in his own land.’

We read this of Hezekiah, “And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, according to all that David his father had done. 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). 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. For he held fast to the Lord. He did not depart from following him but kept the commandments that the Lord commanded Moses. And the Lord was with him; wherever he went out, he prospered. He rebelled against the king of Assyria and would not serve him.”

Hezekiah did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, and yet, he and his people are besieged. The Assyrian king sent his men to overtake Judah. They mocked Hezekiah and the God he served, trusted, and relied on.

I think it important to note that trouble and trials come to every person under the sun. We do well to recognize God in and through our troubles and trials. Never give up hope in His steadfast love, power, and might. Be like Job when he heard the news of the loss of his children. Job 1:20-21 “Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped. And he said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.”

Do not allow the troubles and trials of the day take you away from trusting God more, relying on God more, and clinging to God more. In our heart we hurt, in our mind, we become numb and lost, but in our soul, we will find a peace that passes all understanding when we humbly lay our hurts, troubles, and trials at the feet of Jesus and honor and glorify Him through ever increasing trust and faith in him.

185. Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion, which cannot be moved, but abides forever.

2 Kings 18:26 Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, and Shebnah, and Joah, said to the Rabshakeh, “Please speak to your servants in Aramaic, for we understand it. Do not speak to us in the language of Judah within the hearing of the people who are on the wall.” But the Rabshakeh said to them, “Has my master sent me to speak these words to your master and to you, and not to the men sitting on the wall, who are doomed with you to eat their own dung and to drink their own urine?”

Then the Rabshakeh stood and called out in a loud voice in the language of Judah: “Hear the word of the great king, the king of Assyria! Thus says the king: ‘Do not let Hezekiah deceive you, for he will not be able to deliver you out of my hand. Do not let Hezekiah make you trust in the Lord by saying, The Lord will surely deliver us, and this city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.’ Do not listen to Hezekiah, for thus says the king of Assyria: ‘Make your peace with me and come out to me. Then each one of you will eat of his own vine, and each one of his own fig tree, and each one of you will drink the water of his own cistern, until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of grain and wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive trees and honey, that you may live, and not die. And do not listen to Hezekiah when he misleads you by saying, “The Lord will deliver us.” Has any of the gods of the nations ever delivered his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria? Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah? Have they delivered Samaria out of my hand? Who among all the gods of the lands have delivered their lands out of my hand, that the Lord should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand?’”

But the people were silent and answered him not a word, for the king’s command was, “Do not answer him.” Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebna the secretary, and Joah the son of Asaph, the recorder, came to Hezekiah with their clothes torn and told him the words of the Rabshakeh.

Psalms 11:1   In the LORD I take refuge; how can you say to my soul, “Flee like a bird to your mountain,

Psalms 125:1-2    Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion, which cannot be moved, but abides forever.  As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the LORD surrounds his people, from this time forth and forevermore.

Matthew 27:43    He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him. For he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’”

Luke 23:35   And the people stood by, watching, but the rulers scoffed at him, saying, “He saved others; let him save himself, if he is the Christ of God, his Chosen One!”

When we face trials and troubles, chaos and confusion, and anxiousness and worries where do we turn for peace within the storm. We see the flashes of lightning and the roar of thunder within our problem and want to run into the saving arms of Jesus. As we take steps toward Him and as we are putting more and more of our faith, trust and reliance on Him, there are those who mock this thinking. They may or may not come right out and say that this problem is bigger than what faith needs and then give you all of the worldly ways to find help apart from Jesus. They have no basis in their heart, mind, and soul for faith. It makes no sense to them. They see leaning on and in the arms of Jesus as a weakness.

But to those who trust in Jesus, they will never be forsaken, never be left alone, never be powerless, and will never be afraid. “they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” They will close their eyes, ears, and mind to what the world is offering a solution. They will seek the Lord their God and trust in Him alone, “for He is able to do more than they ask and much more than they can imagine.”

How does faith like this come about? It is in and through the word of God. The more we desire it, seek it, listen to it, and want it speaking into our lives each and every day, we will grow in our understanding and knowledge of the Grace, Mercy, and Love of our Heavenly Father. It is intentionally daily choosing to desire, seek, and want to be led by Jesus Christ and live in such a way that we serve, honor, glorify, listen to, follow, obey, rely on, and trust in Him alone.

You do not want to wait until the storm clouds are upon you to decide to find wisdom, knowledge, and understanding of God through His word. The time to build and grow your faith is now. Choose to be in His word each day and be led by Him. Choose to listen to His guiding. Choose to follow and obey His leading. Choose to rely on and trust in Him. Choose the narrow path that leads to Jesus Christ, relies on Jesus Christ, waits on Jesus Christ, trusts in Jesus Christ, and lives to honor Jesus Christ.

184. On what do you rest this trust of yours?

2 Kings 18:13 In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them. And Hezekiah king of Judah sent to the king of Assyria at Lachish, saying, “I have done wrong; withdraw from me. Whatever you impose on me I will bear.” And the king of Assyria required of Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold. And Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found in the house of the Lord and in the treasuries of the king’s house. At that time Hezekiah stripped the gold from the doors of the temple of the Lord and from the doorposts that Hezekiah king of Judah had overlaid and gave it to the king of Assyria. And the king of Assyria sent the Tartan, the Rab-saris, and the Rabshakeh with a great army from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem. And they went up and came to Jerusalem. When they arrived, they came and stood by the conduit of the upper pool, which is on the highway to the Washer’s Field. And when they called for the king, there came out to them Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebnah the secretary, and Joah the son of Asaph, the recorder.

And the Rabshakeh said to them, “Say to Hezekiah, ‘Thus says the great king, the king of Assyria: On what do you rest this trust of yours? Do you think that mere words are strategy and power for war? In whom do you now trust, that you have rebelled against me? Behold, you are trusting now in Egypt, that broken reed of a staff, which will pierce the hand of any man who leans on it. Such is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust in him. But if you say to me, “We trust in the Lord our God,” is it not he whose high places and altars Hezekiah has removed, saying to Judah and to Jerusalem, “You shall worship before this altar in Jerusalem”? Come now, make a wager with my master the king of Assyria: I will give you two thousand horses, if you are able on your part to set riders on them. How then can you repulse a single captain among the least of my master’s servants, when you trust in Egypt for chariots and for horsemen? Moreover, is it without the Lord that I have come up against this place to destroy it? The Lord said to me, “Go up against this land and destroy it.”’”

1 Kings 13:18   And he said to him, “I also am a prophet as you are, and an angel spoke to me by the word of the LORD, saying, ‘Bring him back with you into your house that he may eat bread and drink water.’” But he lied to him.

Amos 3:6    Is a trumpet blown in a city, and the people are not afraid? Does disaster come to a city, unless the LORD has done it?

John 19:10-11   So Pilate said to him, “You will not speak to me? Do you not know that I have authority to release you and authority to crucify you?”  Jesus answered him, “You would have no authority over me at all unless it had been given you from above. Therefore he who delivered me over to you has the greater sin.”

We have to always be mindful of lying spirits speaking lies into the hearts and minds of others speaking to us. This is always a possibility and for us to know the will of the Lord in all circumstances we must have discernment, wisdom, and understanding which can only come from God speaking into our lives and us having willing ears to hear and obedient heart and mind. We know the prince of this world is here to entice us to stay in our sinful nature and apart from God by promising things the world cannot give; such as peace, hope, satisfaction, joy, refuge, to name a few. These lies are believed by many who should know better.

When it comes to things of God and our Lord and Savior, we will not find them apart from His word, time in His word seeking and desiring to be fed, led, and rooted in His word. People will say many things and some of it may be the truth and some of it may be false. Too often we hang on words that are said from not Spirit-filled worldly people. We dwell and think about it as though it has great meaning rather than putting it into the context of “Worldly”. When it has been put into context we can then see it through the lens of scripture and know our God is above all of this and more powerful and all of this and more than able to handle of this and will encourage, empower, and guide us.

Stay close to God through His word and prayer believing in His leading and ability to lead you in thought and action.

183.And you shall do what is right and good in the sight of the LORD, that it may go well with you

2 Kings 18:1 In the third year of Hoshea son of Elah, king of Israel, Hezekiah the son of Ahaz, king of Judah, began to reign. 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. And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, according to all that David his father had done. 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). 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. For he held fast to the Lord. He did not depart from following him, but kept the commandments that the Lord commanded Moses. And the Lord was with him; wherever he went out, he prospered. He rebelled against the king of Assyria and would not serve him. He struck down the Philistines as far as Gaza and its territory, from watchtower to fortified city.

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, 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. The king of Assyria carried the Israelites away to Assyria and put them in Halah, and on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes, 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.

Deuteronomy 6:18    And you shall do what is right and good in the sight of the LORD, that it may go well with you

Nehemiah 9:17    They refused to obey and were not mindful of the wonders that you performed among them, but they stiffened their neck

Daniel 9:8    To us, O LORD, belongs open shame, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against you.

Micah 3:4    Then they will cry to the LORD, but he will not answer them; he will hide his face from them at that time,

We can certainly see both sides of the coin in these 12 verses of 2 Kings 18. Hezekiah, King of Judah, listened, believed, followed, obeyed, and did what was right in the eyes of God. Hoshea, King of Israel, neither listened nor obeyed. The outcomes of these two countries were very different. Judah prospered during the time of Hezekiah and Israel was carried away.

What I make note of is how we are so easily swayed to walk paths that are not “Doing what is right in the eyes of God”. It seems to take form when one area of life is allowed to dip its feet into what God has clearly said: “stay away from doing this”. What we don’t realize is that once our feet hit the slippery bottom of what we are dipping into we soon are falling headlong into the pool of “Not doing what is right in the eyes of God”. The pool does not look deep nor does it look like anything menacing, in fact, it looks inviting. There are numerous ones who are there ahead of us and they call out with invitation too. We might have been warned in the past to stay away from this but once we have gotten close and see others who seem to be enjoying the refreshing appearance of freedom our guard is down and our ears only hear the call of the forbidden. We are so close now that the voice of God can not be heard over the noise of those to whom we have chosen to get close to and even join.

There is truth in “Right is Right even if only one is doing it” and “Wrong is Wrong even if everyone is doing it” If we are going to do what is right we better know where to look to find out what right is. If we neglect this book of truth we will not have the ability to hear the leading of the Holy Spirit, the power of the Holy Spirit, and the wisdom of the Holy Spirit to know and understand follies of man. It is easy to follow what seems right in our own eyes and it is easy to listen to ourselves. Both of these actions will make us deaf and blind to the Word of God and knowing what is right in His eyes.

182. How long will you limp along?

2 Kings 17:24 And the king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the people of Israel. And they took possession of Samaria and lived in its cities. And at the beginning of their dwelling there, they did not fear the Lord. Therefore the Lord sent lions among them, which killed some of them. So the king of Assyria was told, “The nations that you have carried away and placed in the cities of Samaria do not know the law of the god of the land. Therefore he has sent lions among them, and behold, they are killing them, because they do not know the law of the god of the land.” Then the king of Assyria commanded, “Send there one of the priests whom you carried away from there, and let him go and dwell there and teach them the law of the god of the land.” So one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and lived in Bethel and taught them how they should fear the Lord.

But every nation still made gods of its own and put them in the shrines of the high places that the Samaritans had made, every nation in the cities in which they lived. The men of Babylon made Succoth-benoth, the men of Cuth made Nergal, the men of Hamath made Ashima, and the Avvites made Nibhaz and Tartak; and the Sepharvites burned their children in the fire to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim. They also feared the Lord and appointed from among themselves all sorts of people as priests of the high places, who sacrificed for them in the shrines of the high places. So they feared the Lord but also served their own gods, after the manner of the nations from among whom they had been carried away.

To this day they do according to the former manner. They do not fear the Lord, and they do not follow the statutes or the rules or the law or the commandment that the Lord commanded the children of Jacob, whom he named Israel. The Lord made a covenant with them and commanded them, “You shall not fear other gods or bow yourselves to them or serve them or sacrifice to them, but you shall fear the Lord, who brought you out of the land of Egypt with great power and with an outstretched arm. You shall bow yourselves to him, and to him you shall sacrifice. And the statutes and the rules and the law and the commandment that he wrote for you, you shall always be careful to do. You shall not fear other gods, and you shall not forget the covenant that I have made with you. You shall not fear other gods, but you shall fear the Lord your God, and he will deliver you out of the hand of all your enemies.” However, they would not listen, but they did according to their former manner.

So these nations feared the Lord and also served their carved images. Their children did likewise, and their children’s children—as their fathers did, so they do to this day.

1 Kings 18:21 And Elijah came near to all the people and said, “How long will you go limping between two different opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him.” And the people did not answer him a word.

How close do we resemble “limping along between God’s word and what the world/culture/society approves”? A heart and mind divided on how to worship, honor, follow, obey, and trust God will take paths in life that do none of these. To honor, serve, follow, obey and trust God requires faith, an undivided faith. It is a faith that does not look to luck, fortune, or fate but sees all things in and through God’s hands, God’s plans, and God’s purposes. Their faith is built on and continues to grow through their time in His word with seeking and desiring heart to know more and more of His holiness, grace, and mercy.

I fear we limp along in our walk with God because we share our time, thoughts, and actions with Him and what the world has to offer, committing to the one deemed most important at the time. We can not have it both ways. We either serve God with our whole heart, mind, and soul or we don’t. There is no half or partial way that is recognized by God as sufficient.

181. Yet they did not listen to me or incline their ear

2 Kings 17:7 And this occurred because the people of Israel had sinned against the Lord their God, who had brought them up out of the land of Egypt from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other gods and walked in the customs of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel, and in the customs that the kings of Israel had practiced. And the people of Israel did secretly against the Lord their God things that were not right. They built for themselves high places in all their towns, from watchtower to fortified city. They set up for themselves pillars and Asherim on every high hill and under every green tree, and there they made offerings on all the high places, as the nations did whom the Lord carried away before them. And they did wicked things, provoking the Lord to anger, and they served idols, of which the Lord had said to them, “You shall not do this.” Yet the Lord warned Israel and Judah by every prophet and every seer, saying, “Turn from your evil ways and keep my commandments and my statutes, in accordance with all the Law that I commanded your fathers, and that I sent to you by my servants the prophets.”

But they would not listen, but were stubborn, as their fathers had been, who did not believe in the Lord their God. They despised his statutes and his covenant that he made with their fathers and the warnings that he gave them. They went after false idols and became false, and they followed the nations that were around them, concerning whom the Lord had commanded them that they should not do like them. And they abandoned all the commandments of the Lord their God

Deuteronomy 31:27   For I know how rebellious and stubborn you are. Behold, even today while I am yet alive with you, you have been rebellious against the LORD. How much more after my death!

2 Chronicles 36:13     He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear by God. He stiffened his neck and hardened his heart against turning to the LORD, the God of Israel.

Jeremiah 7:26    Yet they did not listen to me or incline their ear, but stiffened their neck. They did worse than their fathers.

Romans 2:4-5   Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?  But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.

Hebrews 3:7-8     Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, “Today, if you hear his voice,  do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, on the day of testing in the wilderness,

The starting point for avoiding a hardened heart is to recognize and submit to God’s authority through His inspired Word. To learn from God, we must submit to His inspired Word. As Paul says, these things “were written for our instruction”. We disobey or ignore them to our own peril (harden our heart). The starting point is that we hear His voice with a heart soft to the voice of God, the word of God. Thus, to avoid hardness of heart, we must submit to the authority of God’s Word and we must do business with God on the heart level. The only way that we can know God’s ways are as He has revealed them to us in the Scriptures. We can’t plead ignorance. We can’t protest, “But, God, I didn’t know”. When we have time but choose to neglect His word in our life, in our thoughts, in our heart, we have chosen to harden our heart and stiffen our neck against God. We follow the crowd and what is approved by society/culture rather than being led by the Holy Spirit through the Word of God. Your heart is either hardening against God because you are resisting His sovereign ways with you, or it is growing softer toward God because you are submitting to His Word and His ways. For God’s word to be active in your life, it must be actively desired in your heart and in your daily life. If it is only an occasional reading there is no softening of your heart to His word. Choose to be led, encouraged, strengthened, empowered, and softened by His word each day