Rev. Don Campbell
Isaiah 37-39; Psalm 76
THOUGHT FOR TODAY, July 25, 2019
“HEZEKIAH’S PRAYER FOR DELIVERANCE”
The king of Assyria sent a messenger to Hezekiah which warned: “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’” (Isaiah 37:10). The threat went on to name other nations whose gods had not saved them when the Assyrians attacked them. Hezekiah did not respond to the letter, but laid the situation before God: “O Lord of hosts, 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. Incline your ear, O Lord, and hear; open your eyes, O Lord, and see; and hear all the words of Sennacherib, which he has sent to mock the living God. Truly, O Lord, the kings of Assyria have laid waste all the nations and their lands, and have cast their gods into the fire. For they were no gods, but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone. Therefore they were destroyed. So now, O Lord our God, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you alone are the Lord” (Isaiah 37:16-20).
God heard his prayer and assured the king through Isaiah that Sennacherib would not set foot in Jerusalem. I call attention to God’s words: “For I will defend this city to save it, for my own sake and for the sake of my servant David” (Isaiah 37:35).
It is always right to pray for ourselves and for our nation. We must remember, however, that God’s plans and God’s promises may not always coincide with our needs and desires. In the honor roll of faith, the writer speaks of those who obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, were made strong out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight, and some receiving their dead back by resurrection (Hebrews 11:33-35a). He then says, “Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life. Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated— of whom the world was not worthy—wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth” (Hebrews 11:35-38).
‘Name-it-and-claim” preachers preach that the Scriptures are like a catalog from heaven containing all kinds of blessing that are ours for the asking, often holding their own lavish lifestyles up as proof of their position. There is not a single hero of faith listed in Hebrews 11 who lived a sheltered, pain-free life.
The apostle of faith shares his story: Fourteen years before he wrote 2 Corinthians, he had been caught up to the third heaven. He did not know if this was an out-of-body experience or not, but it was real. His personal call by Christ, his commission, his visions—all of these could gender pride. God knew what Paul needed, and it wasn’t a victory parade. Paul was given a thorn in the flesh, a thorn which he asked God three times to remove. God’s reply was “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9).
If God does not remove our thorns, he will give us grace-sufficient.
1. Do you believe that “fairy-tale weddings” are one of the reasons for failure in marriage, because the day-to-day challenges cannot match the realities of life?
2. Do you believe that the promises some peddle in the name of God are fairy-tale promises that ignore the fact our Christianity does not destroy our humanity and that Jesus said that in this world we would have trouble?
