WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:06.240 Well, good morning. It's good to see you all here. I'm glad you have joined us for worship 00:00:06.240 --> 00:00:12.320 ! This morning. Again, I just want to reiterate, if you find yourself too hot and distracted by the heat, 00:00:12.320 --> 00:00:19.920 through these doors, the ushers can direct you down the stairs, and you'll be able to find a cooler 00:00:19.920 --> 00:00:29.600 place to hear the sermon and continue to worship. Helen Rosevere was a missionary, a medical 00:00:29.600 --> 00:00:37.359 missionary in Central Africa in the mid-20th century. She tells a story about a difficult 00:00:37.359 --> 00:00:43.439 pregnancy where she delivered the baby, but the mother passed away. The baby was born premature, 00:00:44.560 --> 00:00:52.880 and as they were readying a hot water bottle in order to try to keep this preemie warm, the last 00:00:52.880 --> 00:01:00.640 hot water bottle they had burst. And they had no other way to easily keep this baby alive. 00:01:01.680 --> 00:01:08.320 She took this need to a group of children who were at the compound where she worked, 00:01:09.439 --> 00:01:16.159 and she writes this. During the prayer time, one 10-year-old girl, Ruth, prayed with the usual 00:01:16.159 --> 00:01:23.359 blunt consciousness. Please, God, she prayed, send us a water bottle. It'll be no good tomorrow, God. The 00:01:23.359 --> 00:01:33.519 baby will be dead. So please send it this afternoon. While I gasped inwardly at the audacity of the prayer, 00:01:33.519 --> 00:01:41.199 she added by way of corollary, and while you're at it, would you please send a dolly for the little girl, 00:01:41.200 --> 00:01:52.000 so she'll know you really love her. Helen writes this, as often with children's prayers, I was put on the spot. 00:01:52.960 --> 00:02:03.120 Could I honestly say amen? I just did not believe that God could do this. Oh yes, I know God can do 00:02:03.120 --> 00:02:10.560 everything. The Bible says so, but there are limits, aren't there? The only way God could answer this particular prayer 00:02:11.039 --> 00:02:17.280 would be by sending a parcel from the homeland. I had been in Africa for almost four years at the time, 00:02:17.280 --> 00:02:24.479 and I had never ever received a parcel from home. Anyway, if anyone did send a parcel, 00:02:24.479 --> 00:02:28.159 who would put a hot water bottle in? I lived in the equator. 00:02:28.159 --> 00:02:42.960 Can we trust God in the face of crises in our lives? I know He can help. I know He can save in theory, 00:02:42.960 --> 00:02:51.840 but do I believe that He will? And as with all crises, we see that there is a crisis of the actual 00:02:51.840 --> 00:02:58.080 circumstances, the physical realities or whatever it is that we're facing, and there is a crisis behind 00:02:58.080 --> 00:03:07.600 the crisis, and that is the crisis of faith. What do we really believe about God? And we live in an era 00:03:07.600 --> 00:03:15.920 today where there's a lot that speaks against actually believing in and trusting in God, 00:03:17.200 --> 00:03:23.840 the God of the Bible, to be our help in these circumstances. Just a couple that come to mind. 00:03:23.840 --> 00:03:32.159 Pluralism today would be described as a recognition that not everybody believes God, and there's a 00:03:32.159 --> 00:03:39.199 right recognition that pluralism is a reality, but often pluralism asserts more. Pluralism asserts 00:03:39.920 --> 00:03:45.680 all gods are actually the same. There's not really a big difference. The proverbial blind men and the 00:03:45.680 --> 00:03:52.640 elephant, isn't it all the same God? And so, it doesn't really matter what you believe as long as you 00:03:52.639 --> 00:03:57.519 believe something, because that belief will be helpful to you, even though the object of what you 00:03:57.519 --> 00:04:03.679 believe, it doesn't matter, because God is some vague force that everything, every religious and 00:04:03.679 --> 00:04:12.479 spiritual impulse taps into. So, that would be one thing that would make us maybe think, does it really 00:04:12.479 --> 00:04:22.399 matter if we pray to the God of the Bible? Another voice in our culture today would be that of atheistic 00:04:22.399 --> 00:04:31.039 naturalism. It says the world is a closed system. The world is driven by physical, natural forces, 00:04:31.920 --> 00:04:37.279 and it denies the possibility of a supernatural. It denies the possibility of God's existence, 00:04:37.279 --> 00:04:45.839 let alone His action in this world. This worldview often comes with an affirmation of human spirit that 00:04:45.839 --> 00:04:52.719 humans have done without God for a long time. He's not really needed, is He? And in the face of crises, 00:04:53.359 --> 00:04:56.879 we think maybe the best of humanity will make it a little better. 00:04:59.039 --> 00:05:05.519 And then I think there are some today, pluralism and naturalistic atheism are two of the voices that 00:05:05.519 --> 00:05:13.919 speak against this. The third one may be cynicism and pessimism. Look at the world, what a mess it is. 00:05:15.359 --> 00:05:21.919 Could there really be a God in charge of this? Humans aren't much good either. We don't live in a fairy 00:05:21.919 --> 00:05:33.359 tale. But we face crises and trials with honest realism and with grim fatalism. All of these voices in our 00:05:33.360 --> 00:05:41.920 culture speak to us in various ways through media, through entertainment, through intellectual discussion, 00:05:42.639 --> 00:05:50.800 and all of them ask a question, why would it be worth trusting in God? Is it really any good? 00:05:52.240 --> 00:06:02.000 These questions have a corrosive effect on our souls. They undermine the possibility of confident trust in God. 00:06:02.000 --> 00:06:10.480 God. Our text today is about a crisis that challenges trust in God as well. 00:06:11.279 --> 00:06:18.240 So, we are in a series, if you're just visiting, we're in a series in 2 Chronicles in the back end, 00:06:18.240 --> 00:06:27.360 and we're going to be 2 Chronicles chapter 32. I think that is page 354 or so in the Pew Bible. No, 00:06:27.360 --> 00:06:33.680 oh wait, David is saying 351, 381, 3… 00:06:36.160 --> 00:06:45.920 356. All right, close enough. 356. Chapter 32 in your Pew Bibles of 2 Chronicles. And it'd be helpful if 00:06:45.920 --> 00:06:50.560 you look there because we'll be looking through the passage as we go. And as you're turning there, 00:06:50.560 --> 00:06:57.759 just a reminder again, if you're new here, the book of 2 Chronicles was written to God's people after 00:06:57.759 --> 00:07:04.000 they had returned from the worst cataclysm and crisis they'd ever experienced, which is the exile 00:07:04.000 --> 00:07:12.720 to Babylon. The Babylonians had come in and taken over all of Israel, removed many people as slaves to 00:07:12.720 --> 00:07:22.880 Babylon. And then 70 years later, they returned to Israel and they were restarting the nation of Israel 00:07:22.880 --> 00:07:28.240 again in many ways. And they're asking the question, what does God have for us and what does it mean to 00:07:28.240 --> 00:07:36.560 be his people? And as the writing of 2 Chronicles happened, the writer was looking back at the nation 00:07:36.560 --> 00:07:42.720 of Israel as it existed in a kingdom earlier in the time of the kings from David and Solomon all the way 00:07:42.720 --> 00:07:49.040 up to the exile. And it's telling that story. And particularly in these last couple of verses, 00:07:49.040 --> 00:07:57.040 we've been looking at the kingship of King Hezekiah, who was approximately 715 to 687 BC. 00:07:57.840 --> 00:08:04.560 If you remember, he came to power after Ahaz, his father, who was about the worst king ever. 00:08:04.560 --> 00:08:13.040 He was unfaithful. He trusted in himself and in political alliances. He worshipped other gods. He 00:08:13.040 --> 00:08:17.040 was the worst king that Israel... He actually wasn't the worst, but he was about the worst. 00:08:18.160 --> 00:08:26.240 And so Hezekiah came in bringing change, winds of change and renewal. So he renewed spiritually the 00:08:26.240 --> 00:08:32.559 people of God, rebuilding the temple, reinstituting temple worship and observing the Passover. And this is 00:08:32.559 --> 00:08:39.039 what we've seen. Hezekiah sought God with all of his heart and sought to reunify his people who had 00:08:39.039 --> 00:08:47.279 been divided. And he is recorded as a good king. But in this passage this morning, he faces a crisis, 00:08:48.079 --> 00:08:58.639 one that challenged the very core of his trust in God. So that's where we're at. Let's read together, 00:08:58.639 --> 00:09:04.080 2 Chronicles chapter 32. We're going to read the whole thing and then we'll walk through it together. 00:09:08.240 --> 00:09:15.439 After these things and these acts of faithfulness, Sennacherib, king of Assyria, came and invaded Judah 00:09:15.439 --> 00:09:20.319 and encamped against the fortified cities, thinking to win them for himself. 00:09:20.320 --> 00:09:26.000 And when Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had come and intended to fight against Jerusalem, 00:09:26.000 --> 00:09:30.960 he planned with his officers and his mighty men to stop the water of the springs that were outside 00:09:30.960 --> 00:09:37.920 the city and they helped him. A great many people were gathered and they stopped all the springs and 00:09:37.920 --> 00:09:44.160 the brook that flowed through the land saying, why should the kings of Assyria come and find much water? 00:09:44.159 --> 00:09:50.719 He set to work resolutely to build up all the wall that was broken down and raised towers upon it. 00:09:50.719 --> 00:09:55.759 And outside it, he built another wall and he strengthened the millow in the city of David. 00:09:55.759 --> 00:10:03.519 He also made weapons and shields in abundance. He set us combat commanders over the people and 00:10:03.519 --> 00:10:10.480 gathered them together to him in the square at the gate of the city and spoke encouragingly to them, 00:10:10.480 --> 00:10:19.920 saying, be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or dismayed before the king of Assyria and all the 00:10:19.920 --> 00:10:31.840 horde that is with him, for there are more with us than with him. With him is an arm of flesh, but with us 00:10:31.840 --> 00:10:39.360 is the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles. And the people took confidence from the words of 00:10:39.360 --> 00:10:47.840 Hezekiah, king of Judah. After this, Sennacherib, king of Assyria, who was besieging Lakshish with all his 00:10:47.840 --> 00:10:53.759 forces, sent his servants to Jerusalem, to Hezekiah, king of Judah, and to all the people of Judah who 00:10:53.759 --> 00:11:03.039 were in Jerusalem, saying, thus says Sennacherib, king of Assyria, on what are you trusting? That you endure the 00:11:03.039 --> 00:11:10.879 siege in Jerusalem? Is not Hezekiah misleading you, that he may give you over to die by famine and by 00:11:10.879 --> 00:11:15.839 thirst when he tells you the Lord our God will deliver us from the hand of the king of Assyria? 00:11:16.559 --> 00:11:23.279 Has not this same Hezekiah taken away his high places and his altars and commanded Judah and Jerusalem 00:11:23.279 --> 00:11:28.399 before one altar you shall worship and on it you shall burn your sacrifices? 00:11:28.399 --> 00:11:34.879 Do you not know what I and my fathers have done to all the peoples of other lands? 00:11:35.600 --> 00:11:42.720 Were the gods of nations of those lands at all able to deliver their lands out of my hand? 00:11:43.279 --> 00:11:47.600 Who among all the gods of the nations that my fathers devoted to destruction 00:11:48.559 --> 00:11:57.199 was able to deliver his people from my hand? That your God should be able to deliver you from my hand. 00:11:57.200 --> 00:12:03.200 Now, therefore, do not let Hezekiah deceive you or mislead you in this fashion and do not believe him, 00:12:03.200 --> 00:12:09.920 for no god of any nation or kingdom has been able to deliver his people from my hand or from the hand 00:12:09.920 --> 00:12:20.080 of my fathers. How much less will your God deliver you out of my hand? And his servants said still more 00:12:20.080 --> 00:12:27.200 against the Lord God and against his servant Hezekiah. He wrote letters to cast contempt on the Lord, 00:12:27.200 --> 00:12:33.040 the God of Israel, and to speak against him saying, like the gods of the nations of the lands who have 00:12:33.040 --> 00:12:40.560 not delivered their people from my hands, so the God of Hezekiah will not deliver his people from my hand. 00:12:40.559 --> 00:12:45.519 And they shouted it with a loud voice in the language of Judah to the people, 00:12:47.359 --> 00:12:52.479 to the people of Jerusalem who are on the wall to frighten and terrify them in order that they might 00:12:52.479 --> 00:12:59.839 take the city. And they spoke of the God of Jerusalem as they spoke of the gods of the peoples of the 00:12:59.840 --> 00:13:09.519 earth, which are the work of man's hands. Then Hezekiah the king and Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, 00:13:10.160 --> 00:13:17.519 prayed because of this and cried to heaven. And the Lord sent an angel who cut off all the mighty 00:13:17.519 --> 00:13:24.639 warriors and commanders and officers in the camp of the king of Assyria. So he returned with shame on 00:13:24.639 --> 00:13:31.679 his face to his own land. And when he came into the house of his God, some of his own sons struck him 00:13:31.679 --> 00:13:39.360 down there with the sword. So the Lord saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem from the hand of 00:13:39.360 --> 00:13:46.240 Sennacherib, king of Assyria, and from the hand of all his enemies, and he provided for them on every side. 00:13:46.879 --> 00:13:54.399 And many brought gifts to the Lord, to Jerusalem, and precious things to Hezekiah, king of Judah. 00:13:54.399 --> 00:14:00.480 So that he was exalted in the sight of all nations from that time onward. 00:14:01.279 --> 00:14:05.759 We're going to end our reading there this morning. Let's pray and ask for God's help as we look at His 00:14:05.759 --> 00:14:14.000 Word. Lord, thank you for this passage and for this account. And Lord, we thank you that it turns our eyes 00:14:14.000 --> 00:14:20.079 towards you. And we pray that you would help us this morning, that our eyes and our hearts would be 00:14:20.080 --> 00:14:27.280 turned towards you. Lord, I don't know what crises and challenges are being faced by many in this 00:14:28.080 --> 00:14:34.560 building this morning. But Lord, you do. And I pray for each of us that we would be turning towards you. 00:14:35.840 --> 00:14:44.720 Lord, looking to you and that you would help us by your Word to have faith and trust in you. Lord, 00:14:44.720 --> 00:14:52.560 I pray for your help that you would help me to speak as I ought this morning. We pray these things in Jesus' name. Amen. 00:14:55.840 --> 00:15:01.360 Friends, the point of this passage this morning is really simple. God delivers His people. 00:15:01.360 --> 00:15:10.159 God delivers His people as they trust in Him in the face of great trials. That is simply the message. 00:15:10.159 --> 00:15:15.440 Now, we're going to unpack that. We're going to look at the preparations of a heart that trusts God. We're 00:15:15.440 --> 00:15:20.560 going to look at the taunts of the enemies that challenge a heart that trusts God. We're going to 00:15:20.560 --> 00:15:26.800 look at the expression of a heart that trusts God in prayer. So, if you're taking your outline, 00:15:26.799 --> 00:15:32.319 there's your… there's your outline. I'll try to repeat those. But first, we're going to look at 00:15:32.319 --> 00:15:40.000 verses 1 through 8 and the preparations of a heart that trusts God in the face of crisis. So, remember, 00:15:41.439 --> 00:15:46.639 we're talking about Hezekiah and he's the king of Judah, the southern kingdom where Jerusalem is, 00:15:46.639 --> 00:15:55.120 and they are in big trouble because Assyria is this large national superpower at this point. 00:15:55.120 --> 00:16:03.519 It came to ascendancy around 750 BC and started conquering the nations around it. And at this 00:16:03.519 --> 00:16:12.159 point, it's already conquered the northern kingdom of Israel and the 10 tribes that were a part of the 00:16:12.159 --> 00:16:20.399 northern kingdom have been scattered and they cease to exist as a political entity. If we went back and 00:16:20.399 --> 00:16:28.079 looked at 2 Chronicles chapter 28, we would see that Hezekiah's king played fast and loose with 00:16:28.079 --> 00:16:34.159 political alliances with Assyria. And he said, hey, Assyria, will you help us against these other nations 00:16:34.159 --> 00:16:38.240 that are trying to attack us? And then he changed his mind and he said, no, actually, we're going to 00:16:38.240 --> 00:16:47.600 lie with these other people, leaving them in a very vulnerable position politically. Imagine yourself, 00:16:47.600 --> 00:17:01.519 say, in France in 1939 as Germany expands across Europe, right? And you just know it's coming. You 00:17:01.519 --> 00:17:09.200 know this invasion is coming and it feels overwhelming. It feels unstoppable. This is what it probably felt 00:17:09.200 --> 00:17:23.920 like in Jerusalem at this time. And so, we see, sure enough, Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, sets his 00:17:23.920 --> 00:17:31.759 eyes to invade Judah and particularly Jerusalem and to take it over. This is what verse 1 says. 00:17:33.920 --> 00:17:40.640 So, this is the threat. This is the challenge. This is the crisis. What are we going to do? And you see two things 00:17:40.640 --> 00:17:47.920 that Hezekiah does in response to this threat. He responds in actions and he responds in words. In verses 2-5, 00:17:47.920 --> 00:17:54.640 He responds in actions. He knows that Jerusalem is the heart of the kingdom and He knows that He needs 00:17:54.640 --> 00:18:05.360 to protect it above all things. So, He takes practical steps to try to strengthen, fortify Jerusalem. 00:18:05.360 --> 00:18:12.400 He does things like He diverts water streams, right? Some of the water He diverts into the city of 00:18:12.400 --> 00:18:17.680 Jerusalem so that they'll be able to withstand a siege. Some of the other water He stops up so that 00:18:17.680 --> 00:18:24.640 Assyria can't get it, right? He repairs towers. He builds walls in defense against the Assyrian battering 00:18:24.640 --> 00:18:32.320 rams and siege engines. There's some cool archaeology. They found these massive walls in uncovering the 00:18:32.320 --> 00:18:38.320 ancient city of Jerusalem. He reorganizes His army, bringing order, appointing officers so that they are 00:18:38.319 --> 00:18:47.599 ready to be a fighting force, right? And so, he with eyes of faith in trusting God does practical things 00:18:48.240 --> 00:18:54.879 to try to prepare himself for this occasion. Now, it's interesting. Some commentators actually see 00:18:54.879 --> 00:19:02.240 this as faithlessness on his part, where it looks like he may be trusting in himself. But it doesn't 00:19:02.240 --> 00:19:08.159 seem that the chronicler sees him that way because of what comes right after. Because with His word, 00:19:08.160 --> 00:19:15.200 in verses 6 through 8, He says something very different, right? When you look at verses 6 through 8, 00:19:15.200 --> 00:19:21.440 remember His words, starting in verse 7. He says to the people, be strong and courageous. Do not be 00:19:21.440 --> 00:19:27.440 afraid or dismayed before the king of Assyria and all the horde that is with him, for there are more with 00:19:27.440 --> 00:19:36.800 us than with him. With him is an arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God to help us and fight our 00:19:36.799 --> 00:19:44.559 battles. And the people took confidence in the words of Hezekiah king of Judah. Now look, Hezekiah looks at 00:19:44.559 --> 00:19:51.519 the situation, and if you started counting soldiers, this just isn't true, right? Assyria's army was 00:19:51.519 --> 00:19:58.159 overwhelmingly large compared to the Judean defense force, right? It would have been completely 00:19:58.160 --> 00:20:06.800 overwhelmed militarily. But Hezekiah sees his situation with eyes of faith. And he says, 00:20:06.800 --> 00:20:15.200 they may have lots of horses and chariots and soldiers, but we have God. They may have a bigger 00:20:15.200 --> 00:20:24.800 army, but we have a bigger God. And He will fight our battles for us. And remember the history of Israel. 00:20:24.799 --> 00:20:32.639 God has fought so many battles for His people. He delivered them from Egypt when they were enslaved. 00:20:32.639 --> 00:20:38.960 They weren't even a military force. They were slaves and God delivered them. As they traveled from Egypt 00:20:38.960 --> 00:20:47.279 up to the Promised Land, God defeated the kings that would stand in their way and seek to bring them in 00:20:47.279 --> 00:20:53.519 or to attack them as they entered the Promised Land. God defeated His enemies. And throughout the kingship 00:20:54.879 --> 00:21:03.839 era, God protected and preserved His people over and over again. And it was seen that God could do this 00:21:03.839 --> 00:21:10.799 not because He provided them with enough armies that humanly we just saw, oh, He's going to do it. He did it 00:21:10.799 --> 00:21:18.319 in ways that showed that God Himself was acting. And this was the history that Hezekiah was reminding the 00:21:18.319 --> 00:21:29.359 people of when he said, we have a bigger God. So Hezekiah worked to prepare, but the most important thing is to trust God. 00:21:29.359 --> 00:21:39.919 Okay. So have you ever wondered why the Marvel superhero movers are so popular today? Right? 00:21:40.879 --> 00:21:46.959 Have you ever wondered why it's captured our imagination and they're the blockbusters of all blockbusters, 00:21:46.959 --> 00:21:53.119 even the terrible ones? Like everyone goes to see them. Maybe not quite so much now. But why it's captured 00:21:53.119 --> 00:22:00.719 our imagination because they tap into our feeling of crisis. They connect with our helplessness. There 00:22:00.719 --> 00:22:12.639 always seems like there's a bad guy who's so overwhelmingly powerful that it taps into our sense of a need 00:22:13.439 --> 00:22:21.759 for someone to help us and to deliver us. Right? We need a superhero. And as Iron Man says in the 00:22:21.759 --> 00:22:31.039 Avengers, we have a Hulk. Right? And what God is reminding Hezekiah and the people of Israel in this 00:22:31.039 --> 00:22:42.319 passage is God is better than the Hulk. Now, that's sort of trite to say. But our love and our culture for 00:22:42.319 --> 00:22:49.039 superheroes is something in our soul that makes us long for a deliverer and a savior, for a power that's 00:22:49.039 --> 00:23:00.399 greater than us. And this is because we were made to know God and to trust Him. 00:23:03.759 --> 00:23:13.200 He is greater than any situation, any enemy, any trial we face. But it's not always easy to trust God, 00:23:13.200 --> 00:23:20.400 is it? Particularly when the voices we hear challenge us. And this is what we see in the second part of the 00:23:20.400 --> 00:23:27.920 passage. In verses 9 through 19, the taunts of the enemy challenge a heart that trusts in God. 00:23:29.440 --> 00:23:38.080 Sennacherib was a shrewd warrior. He was cunning. He didn't just fight with armies. He fought with words. 00:23:38.079 --> 00:23:45.439 He fought with words. Right? Now, this is a little sidebar. The chronicler tells this story in one 00:23:45.439 --> 00:23:54.720 chapter. This same story is told in two different places in 2 Kings chapters 18 and 19 and in Isaiah 00:23:54.720 --> 00:24:04.639 chapters 36 and 37. And there's a whole lot more nuance and particularity about this story. 00:24:04.640 --> 00:24:11.759 And it's fascinating that the chronicler just wants us to see the bare bones of what this looked like. 00:24:11.759 --> 00:24:18.560 But notice how much time he spends on the taunts. He wants us to think through what this means. Right? 00:24:22.160 --> 00:24:29.520 One of the important details that you see is not listed here. If you read this passage just as it's 00:24:29.519 --> 00:24:36.720 written, right, it sounds like maybe Sennacherib just sent a little small group to say, 00:24:36.720 --> 00:24:42.160 hey, we're going to come and taunt you. We're going to come and mock you and see if you'll just surrender 00:24:42.160 --> 00:24:49.680 without even having an army with us. But when you look at 2 Kings, it's actually very clear that 00:24:49.680 --> 00:24:57.360 the emissaries brought a whole army with them. Lots and lots of soldiers. So the threat was real. 00:24:58.720 --> 00:25:07.600 But the attack first comes with these questions. On whom are you trusting? You're trusting in Hezekiah? 00:25:07.600 --> 00:25:13.600 Are you kidding me? Hezekiah just tore down all these religious places. 00:25:14.480 --> 00:25:19.599 Isn't that going to offend your God? It's fascinating. Sennacherib clearly does not understand the God of 00:25:19.599 --> 00:25:24.719 Israel at all. Because that would have actually pleased the God of Israel to tear down the high 00:25:24.719 --> 00:25:30.559 places and the altars and all those things. But Sennacherib doesn't know that because he's a pluralist. 00:25:30.559 --> 00:25:34.719 And so he just thinks they're all worshiping the same God. So he thinks if you tore down all those 00:25:34.720 --> 00:25:44.079 religious things, how terrible would that be? Hezekiah isn't pleasing God. He's making him mad. He's not going to help you. 00:25:46.720 --> 00:25:53.120 And then he says, and look around. Look at how great our conquest has gone so far. 00:25:54.079 --> 00:25:57.360 Look at Syria. Look at Neo-Babylon. 00:25:57.359 --> 00:26:07.279 Go on and on. Look at the Northern Kingdom. How well did they do? Did their God save them? No, of course not. 00:26:07.279 --> 00:26:11.199 Is your God going to save you? No, of course not. 00:26:11.200 --> 00:26:19.440 Why would you think that God is going to save you? Why would you put your trust in Hezekiah? Just give up now. 00:26:21.039 --> 00:26:24.480 And so the summary is, verse 15, 00:26:24.480 --> 00:26:49.120 And then 16 through 19, it goes on and he says, and they didn't just do this in Aramaic, which would 00:26:49.119 --> 00:26:54.799 have been the language of diplomacy that the leaders would have understood. They came and they spoke Hebrew. 00:26:55.679 --> 00:27:03.279 So that the soldiers on the walls and the people working behind the walls, the everyday people would 00:27:03.279 --> 00:27:11.359 hear these taunts. And they spoke with contempt in an attempt to frighten and to terrify the people. 00:27:11.359 --> 00:27:21.039 And the thing that's above all, verse 19, and they spoke of the God of Jerusalem as they spoke of the 00:27:21.039 --> 00:27:26.000 gods of the people of the earth, which are the work of man's hands. 00:27:30.079 --> 00:27:37.439 Do you see what's at the core of this? Your God is no God at all. It's just like all these other 00:27:37.440 --> 00:28:07.360 gods made by human hands. Do these lines of 00:28:07.359 --> 00:28:14.479 thinking and questioning sound familiar to you? On whom are you trusting? 00:28:16.639 --> 00:28:25.119 We live in a world that says, I trust in hard work. I trust in myself and my own self-determination. 00:28:25.759 --> 00:28:32.079 I trust in human effort or the human spirit. I trust in the things that I can control. 00:28:37.359 --> 00:28:40.559 I trust in my life and my own self-determination. I trust in my life and my own self-determination. 00:28:40.559 --> 00:28:40.559 00:28:40.559 --> 00:28:40.559 00:28:40.559 --> 00:28:40.559 00:28:40.559 --> 00:28:46.339 do you really think your Bible study, your prayer, or your faithfulness matters? 00:28:47.539 --> 00:28:54.220 You suffer just like your neighbors do. They don't care about God. Do you really think God 00:28:54.220 --> 00:28:57.940 is going to help you? Do you really think God is going to deliver you? 00:29:01.179 --> 00:29:07.319 Isn't your God just like what everyone else believes in a different form? Isn't it all the 00:29:07.319 --> 00:29:18.119 same? Isn't God just something else that was made up? All these arguments have a corrosive effect on 00:29:18.119 --> 00:29:24.099 our hearts, don't they? They cause doubt and uncertainty. They are not the honest questions 00:29:24.099 --> 00:29:32.500 of seeking faith, but they are the voices that seek to attack. And friends, we need to be aware 00:29:32.500 --> 00:29:39.940 of how these questions and these voices resonate and ring in our heads. We need to be aware of them, 00:29:40.440 --> 00:29:46.759 and we need to confront them, and we need to see them. And that's what we see as we move 00:29:46.759 --> 00:29:53.240 to the last part of our passage, that Hezekiah saw those voices and he confronted them. And it's 00:29:53.240 --> 00:29:59.039 fascinating because the chronicler doesn't give us a long description. It's actually incredibly brief 00:29:59.039 --> 00:30:06.019 what he says, but what we see is an expression of a heart that trusts God through prayer. Hezekiah 00:30:06.019 --> 00:30:14.879 fought the words, the battle of words of these doubting questions with his own words, that is, 00:30:15.000 --> 00:30:23.079 of prayer. So Hezekiah and Isaiah, who was a prophet during the time of this… And there's discussion, 00:30:23.240 --> 00:30:27.639 is this Isaiah who wrote the book of Isaiah? That's a long story. We could talk about that another time. 00:30:27.640 --> 00:30:33.740 But this Isaiah comes in and they together… I think it is, by the way… They come in together 00:30:33.740 --> 00:30:41.720 and they pray. And we don't see the content of their prayer, but I think it's worth looking at it 00:30:41.720 --> 00:30:49.860 in 2 Kings. So Richard's going to put it up on the screen. 2 Kings chapter 19 verse 15 and following. 00:30:50.040 --> 00:30:54.000 This is the prayer of Hezekiah in this context. And he says this, 00:30:54.000 --> 00:31:01.839 O Lord, the God of Israel, enthroned above the cherubim, You are the God, You alone of all the 00:31:01.839 --> 00:31:08.519 kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. Incline Your ear, O Lord, and hear. Open Your 00:31:08.519 --> 00:31:15.779 eyes, O Lord, and see. And hear the words of Sennacherib, which he has sent to mock the living God. 00:31:15.779 --> 00:31:22.319 Truly, O God, O Lord, the kings of Assyria have laid waste to the nations and their lands, 00:31:22.480 --> 00:31:27.680 and have cast their gods into the fire, for they were not gods, but the work of men's hands, 00:31:27.839 --> 00:31:35.519 wood and stone. Therefore, they were destroyed. So now, O Lord our God, save us, please, 00:31:35.899 --> 00:31:44.559 from His hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You, O Lord, are God alone. 00:31:44.559 --> 00:31:53.599 Do you see how He confronts these taunting, corrosive questions with an affirmation? 00:31:54.039 --> 00:32:01.559 There is one God, and He is the God of the Bible who created heavens and earth. He is the sovereign 00:32:01.559 --> 00:32:07.980 creator, and He is the Lord over all kings and all nations. And yes, other nations do have gods, 00:32:08.079 --> 00:32:13.500 but they're not really gods. They're just statues. They're idols made of wood and stone that will burn. 00:32:13.500 --> 00:32:18.960 And they were literally created by human hands. But you are not a God who lives in human temples. 00:32:19.279 --> 00:32:26.640 You are not a God who was created by people. But you are a God who created us to know You, 00:32:26.920 --> 00:32:34.259 and to love You, and to follow You. And You alone, of anywhere we would look, 00:32:34.259 --> 00:32:44.879 You alone are God, and You alone are able to save us. Hezekiah reminds the people in his prayer 00:32:44.879 --> 00:32:50.420 through a declaration of who the God of the Bible actually is. 00:32:52.420 --> 00:32:59.079 And God responds. And again, this is the briefest explanation. You can go and see more in those 00:32:59.079 --> 00:33:04.799 other accounts. He sends an angel. The angel destroys the leadership of the Assyrian army, 00:33:04.799 --> 00:33:11.419 and the king tucks his tail between his legs and heads home. And that's what happens. There's no 00:33:11.419 --> 00:33:20.379 battle. There's no fight. God supernaturally and in… And what's the word I'm thinking of? God 00:33:20.380 --> 00:33:31.580 supernaturally intervened and acted to deliver them without them having to do anything but pray. 00:33:33.420 --> 00:33:39.660 And so, the summary in verses 22 and 23. So, the Lord saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of 00:33:39.660 --> 00:33:44.900 Jerusalem from the hands of Sennacherib, king of Assyria, and from the hands of all his enemies, 00:33:44.900 --> 00:33:59.360 and He provided for them on every side. To the original hearers in the post-exilic period, 00:33:59.660 --> 00:34:06.519 a small remnant of Israel brought back to the land of Palestine, seeking to rebuild and having a temple 00:34:06.519 --> 00:34:11.500 with less glory that was there before, having no king sitting on the throne and wondering, 00:34:11.500 --> 00:34:19.619 how do we do this? There is this promise and this pattern and this expression of who God is. 00:34:20.039 --> 00:34:27.860 God is able to save. God is able to deliver. God will provide for you on every side. 00:34:29.139 --> 00:34:37.239 He delivered Hezekiah from Assyria. He delivered Israel from Babylon. He will deliver you. 00:34:41.500 --> 00:34:50.519 And we are encouraged to trust God in the same way. Are we not? Now, here's the thing. Here's the 00:34:50.519 --> 00:34:55.679 challenge. Because as I prepared the sermon, I thought, okay, this is what this passage is about. 00:34:55.920 --> 00:35:05.719 I'm going to tell you, trust God. Try harder to trust God more. But we all know how hard that is, 00:35:05.719 --> 00:35:12.819 isn't it? Hezekiah himself showed that. If we read the rest of the chapter, we'd see Hezekiah stumbled 00:35:12.819 --> 00:35:18.579 at the end. Even though he believed God and sought God and did so many things, his pride captured his 00:35:18.579 --> 00:35:24.459 heart and he ended up showing the riches of his treasury to Babylon, putting the seed of the Babylonian 00:35:24.459 --> 00:35:32.419 exile into the geopolitical world. And he didn't please God in that. And he didn't trust God in those 00:35:32.420 --> 00:35:40.119 things. And we struggle, don't we, to trust God in every circumstance. And it's harder the further 00:35:40.119 --> 00:35:46.659 along we go in life, it feels, to continue to trust God as we face yet another crisis, another trial. 00:35:48.159 --> 00:35:58.720 We need help that's beyond ourselves to trust God. But friends, you know this because God has done that 00:35:58.719 --> 00:36:08.639 for us. God has sent us the help that we need. Jesus is our Savior and our Deliverer, and He understands 00:36:08.639 --> 00:36:17.739 because He Himself was mocked and reviled for trusting God. The Gospel of Matthew in chapter 27, 00:36:17.919 --> 00:36:23.739 as Jesus is hanging on the cross, records this starting in verse 39. He says this, 00:36:23.739 --> 00:36:30.519 And those who passed by derided Jesus, wagging their heads and saying, You who would destroy the 00:36:30.519 --> 00:36:36.739 temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself. If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross. 00:36:37.159 --> 00:36:43.199 So also the chief priests and the scribes and the elders mocked Him, saying, He saved others. He cannot 00:36:43.199 --> 00:36:49.079 save Himself. He is the King of Israel. Let Him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in Him. 00:36:49.079 --> 00:36:58.019 He trusts God. Let God deliver Him now if He desires Him. For He said, I am the Son of God. And the robbers 00:36:58.019 --> 00:37:08.059 who were crucified with Him also reviled Him in the same way. Friends, Jesus endured the same questioning, 00:37:08.059 --> 00:37:23.400 the same mocking as He hung on the cross for us. And yet, the Apostle Peter reminds us of this in 1 Peter 2, 22. 00:37:24.400 --> 00:37:32.059 He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in His mouth. When He was reviled, He did not revile in return. 00:37:32.059 --> 00:37:42.719 When He suffered, He did not threaten, but continued, trusting Himself to Him who judges justly. 00:37:43.759 --> 00:37:51.820 He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. 00:37:52.579 --> 00:37:57.279 By His wounds, you have been healed, for you were straying like sheep, 00:37:57.280 --> 00:38:02.140 but have now returned to the shepherd and overseer of your souls. 00:38:04.140 --> 00:38:10.800 Do you see this, friends? Jesus trusted to the very end when we couldn't. 00:38:11.519 --> 00:38:19.740 He trusted in our failure, and He trusted God all the way to death. 00:38:19.739 --> 00:38:31.619 And the people who mocked Him, the people who reviled Him, all of those taunts were turned to dust. 00:38:32.859 --> 00:38:35.419 Will God deliver Him? Will God save Him? 00:38:35.719 --> 00:38:42.299 God raised Him from the dead and exalted Him in a place that is above every name, 00:38:42.399 --> 00:38:47.759 so that every knee shall bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord. 00:38:47.760 --> 00:38:55.700 Did God abandon Him in that time of trial? No, He did vindicate Him. He did deliver Him. 00:38:56.740 --> 00:39:02.620 His body was raised on the third day. He did not save Himself, but He gave Himself, 00:39:02.880 --> 00:39:08.700 so that we who are unfaithful and untrusting of God could be saved by Him. 00:39:08.699 --> 00:39:11.639 This is our great deliverance. 00:39:11.980 --> 00:39:17.960 And we know that in that victory and in that exaltation, there is a victory to come in the end. 00:39:18.519 --> 00:39:26.399 Right now, He has defeated sin and death, and so that all by faith in Him will know that victory now. 00:39:26.599 --> 00:39:31.059 But we know that one day, He will put all things under His feet, 00:39:31.059 --> 00:39:33.179 and His victory will be complete. 00:39:33.179 --> 00:39:40.860 And all the voices that doubt that God is God alone in the world will be silenced, 00:39:41.179 --> 00:39:44.880 and the whole world will be filled with worship, 00:39:45.880 --> 00:39:53.460 just as Hezekiah prayed, so that the whole world would know that you alone are God. 00:39:53.460 --> 00:40:03.840 This is the God of the Bible. This is Jesus who died and was raised for us as our deliverer and our Savior, 00:40:03.840 --> 00:40:08.440 so that we can put our trust in Him no matter what. 00:40:10.199 --> 00:40:17.800 Even when we fail to do it, He will carry us as we continue to turn to Him. 00:40:17.800 --> 00:40:21.240 Friends, I need to be honest with you. 00:40:21.580 --> 00:40:25.580 God isn't going to deliver you from every Sennacherib in your life. 00:40:30.100 --> 00:40:31.180 You know this. 00:40:32.100 --> 00:40:37.640 God doesn't choose to save us from every trial, every difficulty, every sickness. 00:40:40.980 --> 00:40:45.620 But I have seen that even in the midst of those trials and those difficulties, 00:40:45.619 --> 00:40:50.059 when we look to God, He has delivered. 00:40:50.679 --> 00:40:52.599 He has delivered me from despair. 00:40:53.139 --> 00:40:55.159 He has delivered me from faithlessness. 00:40:55.159 --> 00:40:58.339 He has delivered me from spiritual death. 00:41:00.519 --> 00:41:05.000 And He has reminded me that when I am joined with Christ by faith, 00:41:05.039 --> 00:41:08.420 I am raised to a new and imperishable life. 00:41:08.839 --> 00:41:12.539 And this will carry us through the trials. 00:41:12.539 --> 00:41:17.360 And sometimes God will. 00:41:20.679 --> 00:41:23.119 Helen Rosevear finishes her story. 00:41:25.119 --> 00:41:29.320 A package arrived midday that day, unlooked for. 00:41:30.659 --> 00:41:32.000 She opened it. 00:41:33.079 --> 00:41:40.079 Yes, under the clothes and other gifts was a brand new hot water bottle. 00:41:40.079 --> 00:41:41.579 She cried. 00:41:42.380 --> 00:41:42.940 She writes, 00:41:43.059 --> 00:41:44.659 I had not asked God to send it. 00:41:44.779 --> 00:41:46.519 I had not truly believed that He could. 00:41:47.980 --> 00:41:51.500 Ruth was in the front row of the children. 00:41:51.659 --> 00:41:52.880 She rushed forward crying, 00:41:53.199 --> 00:41:56.500 If God has sent the bottle, He must have sent the dolly too. 00:41:56.880 --> 00:42:00.679 And rummaging down to the bottom of the box, 00:42:00.679 --> 00:42:04.659 she pulled out the small, beautifully dressed dolly. 00:42:05.759 --> 00:42:07.119 And her eyes shone. 00:42:09.419 --> 00:42:10.919 She had never doubted. 00:42:12.299 --> 00:42:15.219 Friends, this is the God that we serve. 00:42:15.799 --> 00:42:16.359 Let's pray. 00:42:16.360 --> 00:42:23.200 Lord, we believe. 00:42:23.320 --> 00:42:24.420 Help our unbelief. 00:42:29.420 --> 00:42:33.079 Lord, we confess how often we find our faith eroded 00:42:33.079 --> 00:42:36.920 by the voices of our world, 00:42:37.320 --> 00:42:41.099 by the disappointments and hurts of life in this world. 00:42:41.099 --> 00:42:45.019 Lord, help us this morning 00:42:45.019 --> 00:42:50.179 to be renewed in our trust in You as we gaze upon Jesus, 00:42:51.179 --> 00:42:55.860 the One who entrusted Himself completely to You, 00:42:55.980 --> 00:42:56.980 even unto death. 00:42:58.960 --> 00:43:00.719 Lord, that we might be saved 00:43:00.719 --> 00:43:04.279 and that He might gain the victory. 00:43:05.319 --> 00:43:06.380 Help us, we pray. 00:43:07.480 --> 00:43:08.519 In Jesus' name. 00:43:09.119 --> 00:43:09.420 Amen.