2 Kings 18:7 And the Lord was with him; and he prospered withersoever he went forth: and he rebelled against the king of Assyria, and served him not.
Yes my Friends, that was Hezekiah’s blessing in the early years of his reign as king of Judah. And why did the Lord prosper him? Because ‘He did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that David his father did.’ (vs:3) And what did he do that was so right in the eyes of the Lord? ‘He removed the high places, and brake the images, and cut down the groves, and brake in pieces the brazen serpent that Moses had made: for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to it: and he called it Nehushtan.’ (vs.4) We need to have a short history lesson here to understand all this. (smile) Now Hezekiah inherited the throne of Judah from his biological father, Ahaz. But, Ahaz had allowed the kingdom to degenerate to idolatry. However, when Hezekiah took over, being fiercely loyal to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, he began initiating religious reforms. Things were so bad that the people were worshipping the brass snake the Lord had Moses make as an antidote for the snake bites He’d afflicted them with, when they came up out of Egypt and began complaining about the hard times and lack of food. (Num.21:5-9) Hezekiah referred to it though as ‘Nehushtan,’ literally translated, ‘a bronze thing.’ Hezekiah is noted for his abundant, abiding trust in the Lord, so much so that the Good Book records, ‘He trusted in the Lord God of Israel; so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor any that were before him.’ (vs.5) And why is that? ‘For he clave to the Lord and departed not from following him, but kept his commandments, which the Lord commanded Moses.’ (vs.6) Ah my Friends, my people, my brethren, that verse there says it all! It’s the panacea for all our ills. And it’s not like it hasn’t been preached, sermonized, brow beaten or gently inculcated into us from the very beginning of time; from the very day the Lord made Adam and Eve. Yet foolishly, we still refuse to accept and follow it. It’s so simple that I guess we find it too easy, or like reverse psychology, because it’s so simple, we believe it’s really hard. ‘LOVE the Lord and obey His rules!’ What’s so hard about that my people? We obey our earthly fathers without a murmur, cause we know they meet out punishment for disobedience, but our heavenly Father we disobey with no qualms. Don’t forget, He punishes too, and even worse than our mortal fathers. Adam and Eve were the first to make that dreadful mistake of disobedience and see what happened to them. Since then, the whole of creation has been paying the hefty price. Not very bright of our first parents eh? They possibly thought that the Lord was joking. But Friends, the Lord doesn’t joke on serious matters like that. And yuh know, even after seeing the harsh results of disobedience over many eons, this generation is still perpetuating the stupidity. What does that say about our brains eh my Friends? Possibly that we have none, no common sense either, that we’re so stupid to want to tangle with the Lord of all Creation. How can a mere mortal ever defeat Him, when He’s the Creator of all, the Giver of all, the Controller of all, the Being who pulls all the strings of the universe? It’s one of those cases where the smart money says, ‘if you can’t beat them, then join them!’ And my people, that’s all the Lord really wants us to do yes; to join His happy band of prosperous followers. Just look at Hezekiah’s example. He obeyed the Lord’s commandments, and what happened? ‘And the Lord was with him.’ Just like in the reign of Asa, when the prophet Azariah cautioned him: ‘Hear ye me Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin; the Lord is with you, while ye be with him; and if ye seek him, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you.’ (2 Chron.15:2) It can’t be put any clearer than that my brethren. Hezekiah was smart enough to understand that principle, that’s why ‘the Lord was with him; and he prospered withersoever he went forth.’ It was the same with Bruh Joseph: ‘And the Lord was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian. And his master saw that the Lord was with him, and that the Lord made all that he did to prosper in his hand.’ (Gen.39:2-3) Oh my people, even an idol worshipper, an unbeliever, a slave master, could see that Bruh Joseph had something special going for him and put all his possessions in his care. So why can’t we see it and behave likewise eh? Bruh David was also smart enough to take the message to heart, so that when Saul became jealous and tried to kill him, the Good Book says; ‘And David behaved himself wisely in all his ways; and the Lord was with him.'(1 Sam.18:14) The Lord was so much in Hezekiah’s corner that ‘he rebelled against the king of Assyria, and served him not.’ His father, Ahaz, had put the Assyrian yoke on Judah when he entreated the king with gifts to come and save them from the Syrians. But Hezekiah’s confidence in his God was strong enough to throw off that yoke and also smite the Philistines. Then, a few years later, the king of Assyria successfully besieged the kingdom of Israel and carried away the people to exile and bondage. Why? ‘Because they obeyed not the voice of the Lord their God, but transgressed his covenant, and all that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded, and would not hear them, nor do them.’ (vs.12) But they didn’t touch Judah, for the Lord was with Hezekiah, for he believed as Bruh David wrote: ‘Give us help from trouble: for vain is the help of man. Through God we shall do valiantly: for it is he that shall tread down our enemies.’ (Ps.60:11-12) Oh my people, isn’t it time we learn that lesson; stop seeking man’s help and turn to the Most High God Jehovah, the Creator of man? All history proves that He’s the only invincible Being in existence. It’s time we seriously start putting our money on Him, else we’re going to lose…and lose big time too. Much LOVE!…Jesus…He’s the only sure thing…
Yes my Friends, that was Hezekiah’s blessing in the early years of his reign as king of Judah. And why did the Lord prosper him? Because ‘He did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that David his father did.’ (vs:3) And what did he do that was so right in the eyes of the Lord? ‘He removed the high places, and brake the images, and cut down the groves, and brake in pieces the brazen serpent that Moses had made: for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to it: and he called it Nehushtan.’ (vs.4) We need to have a short history lesson here to understand all this. (smile) Now Hezekiah inherited the throne of Judah from his biological father, Ahaz. But, Ahaz had allowed the kingdom to degenerate to idolatry. However, when Hezekiah took over, being fiercely loyal to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, he began initiating religious reforms. Things were so bad that the people were worshipping the brass snake the Lord had Moses make as an antidote for the snake bites He’d afflicted them with, when they came up out of Egypt and began complaining about the hard times and lack of food. (Num.21:5-9) Hezekiah referred to it though as ‘Nehushtan,’ literally translated, ‘a bronze thing.’ Hezekiah is noted for his abundant, abiding trust in the Lord, so much so that the Good Book records, ‘He trusted in the Lord God of Israel; so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor any that were before him.’ (vs.5) And why is that? ‘For he clave to the Lord and departed not from following him, but kept his commandments, which the Lord commanded Moses.’ (vs.6) Ah my Friends, my people, my brethren, that verse there says it all! It’s the panacea for all our ills. And it’s not like it hasn’t been preached, sermonized, brow beaten or gently inculcated into us from the very beginning of time; from the very day the Lord made Adam and Eve. Yet foolishly, we still refuse to accept and follow it. It’s so simple that I guess we find it too easy, or like reverse psychology, because it’s so simple, we believe it’s really hard. ‘LOVE the Lord and obey His rules!’ What’s so hard about that my people? We obey our earthly fathers without a murmur, cause we know they meet out punishment for disobedience, but our heavenly Father we disobey with no qualms. Don’t forget, He punishes too, and even worse than our mortal fathers. Adam and Eve were the first to make that dreadful mistake of disobedience and see what happened to them. Since then, the whole of creation has been paying the hefty price. Not very bright of our first parents eh? They possibly thought that the Lord was joking. But Friends, the Lord doesn’t joke on serious matters like that. And yuh know, even after seeing the harsh results of disobedience over many eons, this generation is still perpetuating the stupidity. What does that say about our brains eh my Friends? Possibly that we have none, no common sense either, that we’re so stupid to want to tangle with the Lord of all Creation. How can a mere mortal ever defeat Him, when He’s the Creator of all, the Giver of all, the Controller of all, the Being who pulls all the strings of the universe? It’s one of those cases where the smart money says, ‘if you can’t beat them, then join them!’ And my people, that’s all the Lord really wants us to do yes; to join His happy band of prosperous followers. Just look at Hezekiah’s example. He obeyed the Lord’s commandments, and what happened? ‘And the Lord was with him.’ Just like in the reign of Asa, when the prophet Azariah cautioned him: ‘Hear ye me Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin; the Lord is with you, while ye be with him; and if ye seek him, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you.’ (2 Chron.15:2) It can’t be put any clearer than that my brethren. Hezekiah was smart enough to understand that principle, that’s why ‘the Lord was with him; and he prospered withersoever he went forth.’ It was the same with Bruh Joseph: ‘And the Lord was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian. And his master saw that the Lord was with him, and that the Lord made all that he did to prosper in his hand.’ (Gen.39:2-3) Oh my people, even an idol worshipper, an unbeliever, a slave master, could see that Bruh Joseph had something special going for him and put all his possessions in his care. So why can’t we see it and behave likewise eh? Bruh David was also smart enough to take the message to heart, so that when Saul became jealous and tried to kill him, the Good Book says; ‘And David behaved himself wisely in all his ways; and the Lord was with him.'(1 Sam.18:14) The Lord was so much in Hezekiah’s corner that ‘he rebelled against the king of Assyria, and served him not.’ His father, Ahaz, had put the Assyrian yoke on Judah when he entreated the king with gifts to come and save them from the Syrians. But Hezekiah’s confidence in his God was strong enough to throw off that yoke and also smite the Philistines. Then, a few years later, the king of Assyria successfully besieged the kingdom of Israel and carried away the people to exile and bondage. Why? ‘Because they obeyed not the voice of the Lord their God, but transgressed his covenant, and all that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded, and would not hear them, nor do them.’ (vs.12) But they didn’t touch Judah, for the Lord was with Hezekiah, for he believed as Bruh David wrote: ‘Give us help from trouble: for vain is the help of man. Through God we shall do valiantly: for it is he that shall tread down our enemies.’ (Ps.60:11-12) Oh my people, isn’t it time we learn that lesson; stop seeking man’s help and turn to the Most High God Jehovah, the Creator of man? All history proves that He’s the only invincible Being in existence. It’s time we seriously start putting our money on Him, else we’re going to lose…and lose big time too. Much LOVE!…Jesus…He’s the only sure thing…
SCRIP-BITS 