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2 Kings 19 (Part 1) Bible Study (Isaiah Reassures Hezekiah/Sennacherib Defies the Lord) | Pastor Daniel Batarseh · Bible Study with Pr. Daniel Batarseh | Verse by Verse Series | Maranatha Bible Church - Chicago

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Let's turn to our Bibles now in Second Kings chapter 19.
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And as you turn there, I want to ask you, what do you do when
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you're caught in a dilemma that seems to have no way out, when
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you are confronted with a circumstance that does not
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provide any visible door to escape?
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Does the Word of God provide any kind of counsel, wisdom for the
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most righteous Christ honoring and profitable outcome for
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suffocating threats or dead end situations?
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I'm here to tell you from the beginning it does.
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And what we have before us in this chapter is a blueprint
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given to us by the Holy Spirit through the example of Hezekiah
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that shows us how each of us in this place can receive divine
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intervention. I'm talking about heavenly
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invasions in our lives for a variety of predicaments that are
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outside of our control. And so being here tonight, I can
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guarantee you this, that you will have your faith built up,
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that your heart will be prepared for those cloudy days, that you
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will hopefully know what to do when you are surprised by an
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attack. And if we remember, hopefully
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from last week, we concluded with Hezekiah's three
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representatives returning to the king with torn clothes and the
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awful report of a serious, blasphemous intimidation.
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And Hezekiah in this new chapter is going to give us a play by
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play of how we can respond to things that overwhelm us, not
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things that we've created for ourselves necessarily, though
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this still works for such situations, but for anything,
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but for really anything, especially those things that we
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did not expect. And this obstacle, though it is
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unique to this man, provides principles that are timeless.
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Hezekiah's actions are driven by convictions that you and I can
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share and possess and live by. And with that, expect the same
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kind of results if we implement them by faith.
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And so we're not going to complete this chapter, but I
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want us to look at Second Kings 19 verses 1 to 13.
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But we'll read in one sitting the 1st 7 verses.
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Let's do that. As soon as King Hezekiah heard
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it, he tore his clothes and covered himself with sackcloth
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and went into the House of the Lord.
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And he sent a like him who was over the household, and Shebna
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the secretary, and the senior priest, covered with sackcloth
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to the prophet Isaiah, the son of Amos.
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They said to him. Thus says Hezekiah, this day is
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a day of distress, of rebuke, and a disgrace.
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Children have come to the point of birth, and there is no
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strength to bring them forth. It may be that the Lord your God
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heard all the words of the Rapsheke, whom his master, the
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king of Assyria, has sent to mock the living God, and will
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rebuke the words of the Lord your God has heard.
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Therefore lift up your prayer for the remnant that is left.
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When the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah, Isaiah
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said to them, Say to your master.
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Thus says the Lord, Do not be afraid because of the words that
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you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria
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have reviled me. Behold, I will put a spirit in
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him so that he shall hear a rumor and return to his own
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land, and I will make him fall by the sword in his own land.
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O righteous Father, we believe with all of our hearts that we
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are handling the very oracles of God.
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We tremble at Your word. This is Your book.
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We believe that, but we need Your help to understand it, and
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we need Your help for it to burn in our hearts.
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And so, Lord, the same grace that you gave to your disciples
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in Luke 24, where you open their minds to understand the
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Scriptures. We pray that Your sweet guidance
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would be felt tonight as we look at every verse with
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intentionality and great hunger. So Lord, we submit every faculty
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of our beings and we trust that You will reward us in Your word.
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In Jesus name we pray. Amen.
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It's no surprise that Hezekiah imitates the grief and the
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sorrow of his servants concerning the ordeal that
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surrounds them. And we can take comfort to know
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that we have liberty to feel the weight of such things of a
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situation that may overwhelm us with honesty and in integrity.
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However, Hezekiah in this moment teaches us something very vital
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that we should never allow our emotions to dictate or to
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paralyze us from making the necessary steps to discovering a
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solution. So although he rends his
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garments here, he does not stay in that state.
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He actually picks himself up and as a reflex, almost
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instinctively, he makes his way toward the House of the Lord.
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Now, it would be wrong to assume that Hezekiah, in his
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desperation, went into the holy place or the most Holy Place.
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Those areas were designated for the priest alone.
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What he did do, though, was enter into the courts, the
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courts of the temple that were available for any worshipper.
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And here's the wisdom of Hezekiah's initial steps in
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response to this news that was devastating, life threatening.
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He planted himself in an atmosphere of faith.
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When his faith was challenged, he planted himself in an
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atmosphere of faith. And that place is so obvious,
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the House of God. Even in the old covenant, we
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learned that something powerful happens within the walls of
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God's dwelling place. And what we see over and over
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again by way of promise and example is that when we enter
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and when we participate in the corporate gathering, we receive
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either an awakening or a strengthening for our faith.
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And I wonder when I was reading this the other day, I wonder if
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the words of the psalmist Asaph came through in Hezekiah's mind,
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because Asaph, Psalm, Psalm 73, presents his own personal crisis
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of faith, but it also tells us the turn around, where it went
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from misery to revelation of hope.
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And something that's offering to you and me.
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Look at Psalm 7316 and 17. This is very famous, very well
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known to us. But when I thought how to
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understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task, until I went
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into the sanctuary of God. Then I discern their end, that
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precious word. Until something happened to
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Asaph's faith the moment he stepped foot into the courts of
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God. And the same thing happens with
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Hezekiah. Understand this, both in the old
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and in the New Covenant, the Lord designed His dwelling place
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to be a channel of clarity and confidence for His struggling
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people. Listen, where you are sitting
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tonight carries the power for doubts to dissolve.
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Where you are tonight and where you go every Sunday has so much
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potency, so much promise for things that try to sabotage our
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hope and our vigor and our joy and to reverse it at the place
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our feet on a solid rock within a a small time frame of just
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being exposed to where God calls us to be as His people can do
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wonders. So I want you to tuck this truth
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deep in your soul for times like this.
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Like Hezekiah, though, yes again, his predicaments are very
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peculiar, but the idea of being surrounded, as we just saying,
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do not discount for a moment the rich remedy of standing with
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God's people and singing the truths of God, of sitting under
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the washing of God's Word as it is expounded and as it is
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preached and as it is taught, even when it is read.
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Do not dismiss what can take place as you park your weary
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soul in the midst of the sweet fellowship of Spirit filled
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believers. It absolutely breaks my heart
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when I look at Christians who do not consider the gift of the
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church for the hurting. Now, we studied the Old
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Testament and in great detail. I believe there are a lot of
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differences between the Tabernacle and the Temple.
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Does anybody remember the names of the two pillars that were
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placed at the porch of the Temple of Solomon?
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Because we studied this in First Kings.
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If you know what, you can say it out loud.
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Two names for these two pillars. One was you can say it louder.
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Oh, I know. People whisper because they're
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worried. Well, let's turn there.
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First King 7/21, because this is what Hezekiah would have been
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confronted with when he entered the courts of God.
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First king 7/21, he set up the pillars at the vestibule of the
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Temple. He set up the pillar on the
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South and called its name Jakin. And he set up the pillar on the
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north and called its name Boaz. And on the tops of the pillars
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were Lily work. Thus the work of the pillars was
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finished. So we have Jacob and Boaz.
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Jacob means he will establish and most believe that Boaz
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implies in him is strength. And so this is designed by God.
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These pillars are testifying of God's faithfulness in one
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establishing His house and sustaining the temple along with
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the dynasty of David. That's what the people would
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have been confronted with as they walked in the shadows of
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those pillars. God is faithful.
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He created this place, He will maintain this place, and He will
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be faithful. But I believe there's a personal
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application that as these worshippers made their way into
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this place, they would have also understood that true
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fortification comes from God experience in God within the
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House of God. There's a level of impartation
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that can only be realized there. You know, as I was just speaking
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from my heart to the Lord before the Bible study, another passage
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came to mind. And again, it's another famous
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one. But sometimes with these
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familiar Psalms, we, we miss the the application.
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So you don't have to turn that. But listen, Psalm 92 and verse
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12 and 13, we read about the righteous flourishing,
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flourishing like a palm tree and growing like the cedar of
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Lebanon and flourishing in the courts of God.
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So in Psalm 9212 and 13 you have the word flourish appearing
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twice, but there's something in between.
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If we're going to flourish, we have to be planted in the House
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of the Lord. That's what it says in those two
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verses. The righteous will flourish like
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the palm tree. The righteous will flourish in
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the courts of our God. But in between the flourishing
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there is the requirement of us being planted where God calls us
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to be planted. I'm afraid people do not know
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great heights in their faith because they don't have the
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discipline or the conviction to live in God's house.
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Being planted mean that's where your roots are, that that's
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where you get life, that's where you get your nutrients.
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And so for those who have a light attitude towards God, how
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God's house, they will not know the fragrance and the
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flourishing that can come from there alone.
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Well, let's now come back to our main text and look at verse 2
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because this is not the only thing that Hezekiah did.
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This particular trial would require more spiritual
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reinforcement. So in verse 2 it says that he
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sent a like him who is over the household and Shebna the
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secretary and the senior priest covered with sackcloth to the
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prophet Isaiah. So the next thing that this man
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does is he sends a message to this nobleman of God.
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And while gathering publicly with the priest and fellow
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worshippers was valuable, having a personal confident was just as
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essential. Now you hear that?
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You think that's common sense. Unfortunately, it's not so
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common. Unfortunately, many believers
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lack the wisdom of choosing the right counselors in their lives.
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They often gravitate towards ill informed advisors, but not
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Hezekiah. Hezekiah makes the choice to go
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to a man who walked with God. Here's my question for you.
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Was this, was this something that Hezekiah did immediately
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when learning that he was surrounded by Syria or is this
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an afterthought? Any idea?
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Think about last week's study that Hezekiah have a lapse of
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faith in Second Kings 18. He did one, we know that he
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entertained partnership with the nation of Egypt, which went
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against what Isaiah preached about in his very book.
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Woe to those who go down to Egypt.
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Secondly, what it What did Hezekiah do to try to appease
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Assyria? Anybody remember?
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It had to do with the House of God.
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He didn't go to the House of God to see God.
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He stripped the gold from the doors.
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He took the treasures from God's house and he laid it at the feet
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of this enemy of God. Better late than never, sure.
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But before we read Hezekiah humbling himself and coming to
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this man who had a special relationship with the Lord,
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That's why he says in his inquiry, it may be that the Lord
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your God. He's not saying that Isaiah's
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God is not his God. He's just acknowledging that
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Isaiah has a special relationship with God.
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But before he does this, he trusted in the flesh.
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Before he does this, who knows what kind of advice he received
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from others? And it makes us wonder.
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It raises the question, how many problems could this man have
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avoided if he had gone to Isaiah first?
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And here's my question for you. Can you identify someone, a man
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or a woman, who clearly walks with the Lord, offering sound
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counsel because their life overflows with the wisdom of
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God? And if you can identify such a
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person, let me ask you this. Is your relationship to them
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something that is reliant upon you getting yourself in trouble?
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Do you seek counsel and correction and instruction after
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only after you find yourself in a mess?
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Or is it a pre emptive conviction?
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Is this something that you look for before you make any
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significant decisions? Learn from this man's example.
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Yes, it's better late than never, but he could have avoided
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many issues if he had just believed that in the in the
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counsel of many there is safety. So now he reaches out to the
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prophet. But what does he ask of the
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prophet? Look at verse 4 at the end of
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it. Therefore, lift up your prayer
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for the remnant that is left. There are times in life where
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the most needed thing is biblically grounded practical
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advice. There are some people who just
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need to be told what to do and not have to really pray about
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it. There's some people who pray to
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the degree where they disobey. Prayer does not replace
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practical obedience. But there are also other times
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where a situation demands something of you, where the only
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thing and the only thing you can do is pray.
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This is one of those situations. But Hezekiah was not just a man
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who prayed. He was a man who believed in the
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power of others praying for him. Do we?
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I've learned something in my study of God's Word that
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righteous men and women of God not only pray, they covet the
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prayers of others. You see here with Hezekiah, he
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asked Isaiah to partner with him in this way, and you see it
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throughout the New Testament, notably with the apostle Paul in
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2nd Corinthians 111. He tells the Corinthian Church
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of all the churches, come on the Corinthian church, so you must
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also help us by prayer. Then he goes on to say, so that
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many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted
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us through the prayers of many. It is generally agreed upon that
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the Corinthian church is one of the most troubled assemblies in
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Paul's day. They had a lot of problems.
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I actually think if any of us walked into the Corinthian
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church today, we would think you guys aren't believers.
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There's no way. Imagine, imagine a majority of a
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church that doubted the resurrection.
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That's what we're talking about here.
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And that's just one slice of the problem that was going on in
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this congregation. But listen, as imperfect as they
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were, the apostle still asked them to intercede on his behalf.
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That's staggering to me. Because he's not just saying
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this to be courteous. He's not.
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He's not saying this to seem humble.
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He actually believed that even with struggling Christians who
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genuinely pray, they can touch God.
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Think about this. Be moved with this, that you
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have one of the greatest Christians who've ever lived, a
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giant in the faith, requesting a bunch of troubled Christians to
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help him in prayer, sincerely believing that through their
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prayers heaven will send help. And so, so many things come to
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my mind when I meditate on this. God will honor even the prayers
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of such weak Saints. We just take the time to bend
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the knee, call out to him and ask, Lord, you must do something
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for our brother Paul. You must do something for our
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church. Paul had this understanding, and
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he shares it with us so that we can believe the same thing.
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But listen, you cannot arrive to this conviction unless you're
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first convinced of something deeper.
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Do you know why so many people don't pray?
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Can I tell you why I'm talking about Christians?
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Nevermind the world. You know why so many Christians
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don't pray? Because they don't believe how
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weak they are. They don't understand just how
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needy they are if there's going to be anything lasting and
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genuine to come through in their lives or in their situations or
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in their ministries, or whatever it may be.
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We see it with Hezekiah. Did we miss it?
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Go back to Second Kings 19 and look at the end of verse 3.
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Let's just read the whole verse they said to him.
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Thus says Hezekiah, this day is a day of distress, of rebuke,
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and of disgrace. Children have come to the point
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of birth and there is no strength to bring them forth.
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That's just a parabolic way of saying we're at our wit's end.
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There is nothing left within ourselves to produce any good
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results. Anything valuable, anything that
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will deliver us from this crisis, we have no more
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strength. We need something outside of
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ourselves to bring a solution. Weak people pray, and I'm not
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talking about weakness in in terms of falling into sin, A
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revelation of your absolute dependency on a good and
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powerful God. And this mighty man of God
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understood that. And so he asked this prophet to
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pray. And what I find so glorious
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about this truth is that this appeal is not strictly about his
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own preservation. Look at verse 4 again.
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He mentions God three times, does he not?
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It may be that the Lord your God then Scroll down.
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The king of Assyria has sent to mock the living God and again
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and we'll rebuke the words that the Lord your God.
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What is this man consumed with the glory of God, the glory of
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God. I say I'm asking you to part of
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me in prayer because God's name is at stake here and not just
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God's glory, but look at the last part of verse 4.
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Therefore, lift up your prayer for the remnant that is left.
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This is how this verse convicted me.
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How much of my praying is motivated for God's glory and
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the good of others. That's what I thought.
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There is nothing wrong and asking God to come through for
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us personally, but we got to broaden our understanding of
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what prayer can do. We got to understand what it is,
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what are the ingredients that invites greater testimonies of
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answer prayer in our lives. And one of them certainly is for
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the glory of God. And surely the Lord will honor a
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person who has enough love for a precious St. to say God.
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I'm praying for the remaining remnant.
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Hezekiah inspires me. And so yes, he goes to the House
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of God, but he also goes to a man of God, a friend, and he
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believes that as they both pray, God will do something.
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Now look at this. Hezekiah is immediately rewarded
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for his faith in verse 5, when the servants of king Hezekiah
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came to Isaiah, Isaiah said to them, say to your master.
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Thus says the Lord, do not be afraid because of the words that
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you have heard with which the servants of the king of Assyria
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have reviled me. So Isaiah was ready with a
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prophecy. That's not to say that he
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disregards the call to prayer. Next week we're going to see
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that both Isaiah and Hezekiah are going to pray.
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They're going to pray. But the the purpose of this
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section is to show how God wanted to provide immediate
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relief to his Servant, and he does so on the basis of his
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word. He he wields and presents them
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His precious word. Thus says the Lord.
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Yes, I'm aware that this is a personalized declaration, but
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there's something about this peculiar prophecy that can
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comfort us as well. I understand that this is unique
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to the story and to this man, but what's the essence of the
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message? What is Isaiah saying to
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Hezekiah? The main thing is God is fully
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aware of the evils committed by your enemies.
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In fact, if you read back, Hezekiah admits that he's
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doubting. Look again.
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Look at verse 4. It may be that the Lord your God
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heard all the words of the rapture.
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So what was the concern of Hezekiah?
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I hope God really heard what we heard.
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Isn't it freeing to know that you can come into God's presence
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stumbling in doubt with imperfect faith and He'll still
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answer you? Because the very approach, the
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very act of prayer is a demonstration of faith in
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itself. So God will honor that.
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So here, imagine, here's here's the guy saying it may be that
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God hurt. I'm hoping that God heard.
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I'm hoping he saw what we saw and the Lord reassures him.
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I did hear it. I heard the words of the
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servants of the king of Syria, the words that reviled me.
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What's the take away from this? I believe 1 main take away is
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that there is a flood of peace awaiting those who believe that
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God sees and knows absolutely everything taking place in your
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life, especially the source of your pain and turmoil.
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In fact, that is one of the introductory revelations of the
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nature and character of God that the Scripture provides us.
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Do we remember what Hagar called the name of the Lord when she
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was visited by the Angel of the Lord in the wilderness?
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The God who sees? But there's something deeper in
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that message. Go to Genesis 16.
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When I was looking at this, it made me so excited to do a study
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in the book of Genesis. We will do so very, very soon.
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I think. Genesis 16.
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Look at verse 13, this is when Hagar was mistreated by Sarai
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and she flees into the wilderness and the Angel of the
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Lord, a pre Incarnate manifestation of Christ comforts
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her with a promise and this is how she reacts.
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And Genesis 16 verse 13 So she called the name of the Lord who
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spoke to her. You are a God of seeing, for she
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said truly here I have seen Him who looks after me.
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Therefore the well was called Beer Lahai Royi.
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It lies between Kadesh and Bered.
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And before I say anything, I find it so encouraging that the
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first theophany, which is a manifestation of God in a very
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tangible way, the first manifestation of God for a woman
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in the Bible is here. This is the first time a woman
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experiences God in such a way. And why that should move us is
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because who Hagar is, she's a servant.
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She she's not in direct covenant with God like Abraham and his
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wife were. In fact, they were mistreated by
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those who had this covenant with God.
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And yet the Lord honors Hagar with a special experience and a
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promise, even though in our estimation she is unworthy.
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She she's not a likely candidate to know this and to experience
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this. And this so moved this woman
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that there's a well where it happened and she names it.
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She she, she creates this monumental thing and she calls
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it beer. Lahoy Roy, meaning what it
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means. You are a God of seeing, and
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this was not just a personal reference for her.
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It was a public, public testimony so that if anybody
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would come to this well and realize its name, it would be
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associated with a refreshment of a deep well filled with crisp
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water. You are a God of seeing.
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And this monument for public testimony worked.
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Does anybody know the next time that this name, the name of this
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well, appears in the Bible? It only appears a total of three
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times. This is the first one.
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Any idea when it appears next? It's in Genesis.
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Somebody said it, I think Isaac go to Genesis in chapter 24.
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This is when the servant of Abraham looks for a wife for his
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master's son Isaac, and Rebecca's on her way to her new
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husband. And we read this in Genesis 2461
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and 62. Then Rebecca and her young woman
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arose and rode on the camels and followed the man.
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Thus the servant took Rebecca and went his way.
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Now Isaac had returned from Beer Lahai Roy and was dwelling in
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the Nugget. Why do we need to know that
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Isaac was at this? Well, now we don't have concrete
31:20
evidence. Can I tell you what I believe?
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I believe he wanted to plant himself by the revelation that
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God is the one who sees. Why do you need to find comfort
31:34
in that truth? I think you find the answer in
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verse 67. Then Isaac brought her into the
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10th of Sarah, his mother, and took Rebecca, and she became his
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wife and he loved her. So Isaac was comforted after his
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mother's death. This man was struggling with the
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loss of his mother, and I believe that he was at the well
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that was named. You are the God of seeing.
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To just receive that truth for his own hurt, his own grief.
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Isn't it amazing that where Hagar names us well, God
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provides an answer beforehand. And mending her heart, How did
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He do it? He appeared to her in a very
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real and powerful supernatural way.
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Now fast, for the next time this well is brought up, you have
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Isaac. And we learned that he was
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struggling with the loss of his mother.
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And could it be that the Lord who saw comforted Isaac not with
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a theophany, but with a wife, a companion, a new relationship?
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Now let me give you the third time it is mentioned.
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It's also with Isaac very nearby.
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Come to Genesis 25, verse 11. After the death of Abraham, God
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blessed Isaac his son and Isaac settled at Beer Lahai Roy.
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So why does he go back to the well again?
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Because now he loses his dad and I believe Isaac needed to return
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to that truth. You are the God of seeing.
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So collecting these these three unique references, is it
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coincidental that each time the name you are the God who sees
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you are the God of seeing appears in in relation to
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relational pain? With Hagar, it was the hurt and
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betrayal of those that brought her into their home and and and
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because of their lack of faith set her up only for her to
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experience the brunt and the rejection of the whole thing
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abandoned. And then you come to Isaac and
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the loss of both his parents is in connection with this well
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that carries this revelation, the peace that comes with the
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knowledge. God sees me and he doesn't look
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upon me with indifference with with just it's not just his
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omniscience that's an operation here.
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He he sees with his heart. He sees with the preparation of
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bringing a solution to bring some kind of relief to you.
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So how much do you believe that that as you're trying to manage
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the suffering, God sees and he doesn't leave us there.
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He's ready to do something to rescue us, to bring us some kind
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of level of hope and and sanity. That's what we see with Isaiah's
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message to Hezekiah. God knows you're not in this
35:13
thing alone. He is aware and not not just
35:16
aware. He is your partner and He is
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going to bring a solution. That's what he says in verse
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seven of our main tax. Behold, I will put a spirit in
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him so that he shall hear a room and return to his own land, and
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I will make him fall by the sword in his own land.
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We'll see that next week, but let's complete the study
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together with the last five verses here.
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Once Hezekiah received this promise of victory, everything
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began to shift in a new direction.
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Look at verse 8. Let's read it down to verse 13.
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The rapture could return and found the king of Assyria
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fighting against Libna, for he heard that the king had left
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Lahish. Now the king heard concerning
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Tirhaka, king of Kush. Behold, he set out to fight
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against you. So he sent messages again to
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Hezekiah, saying, Thus shall you speak to Hezekiah, king of
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Judah. Do not let your God, in whom you
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trust, deceive you by promising that Jerusalem will not be given
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into the hand of the king of Assyria.
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Behold, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to
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all the lands, devoting them to destruction.
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And shall you be delivered? Have the gods of the nations
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deliver them? The nations that my father's
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destroyed, Gozen, Haran, Rezaf, and the people of Eden who are
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in Telesar. Where's the king of Hamath, the
36:28
king of Arpad, the king of the city of Sepharbaim, the king of
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Hina, or the king of Eva? So what's happening here?
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This is so important to to note, we read that the Rap Shakur
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returns. He's reunited with the king of
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Assyria because of a new scrimmage that takes place at
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Libna. So this is another city of
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Judah, right? Originally they were there at
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Lahish, and now something happens at a new city.
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So they go there and the Rap Shakur, the spokesperson for the
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Kingdom of Assyria, joins the king.
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And at the same time, they received news that the king of
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Kush, a foreign enemy, is approaching the Assyrians, ready
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to fight them. So the Rap Shaka, now in
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desperation as a last ditch effort, sends a message to
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Hezekiah in Jerusalem saying it's time to surrender.
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It's this final attack to try to get them to give up.
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But here's what's different. The Rap Shaka is not nearby to
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speak with his voice. He sends a letter.
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How do we know that? Look at the beginning of verse
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14. Hezekiah received the letter
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from the hand of the messengers and read it.
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So now it comes in the mail. And there are a couple of
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important insights regarding this that can help us understand
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how the enemy operates. Remember last week we looked at
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how the enemy wars against our minds and, and the seven lies,
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at least seven of the lies of the father of lies that we
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should expect. So we're we're here again, we're
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looking at how Satan works. And one way that we know he
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works is that if he can't keep you from being exposed to God's
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word like you are here tonight, if he can't keep you from
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receiving God's word, he is ready to assault you after you
38:25
receive it. Notice the timing of Seneca reps
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threats. It came shortly after the
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comforting ministry of the prophet Isaiah, the message of
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victory that was guaranteed. And almost immediately, Hezekiah
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receives another voice saying, don't believe it.
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It's not going to happen. Come on.
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Look at look at this and look at that.
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And so he is revisited with the same lies that we looked at last
39:00
week. And here's what you have to
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understand. I see so many Christians, they
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miss this in the same way that the king of Assyria did not
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easily give up to discourage and lie to the servant of God.
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You and I should be ready always for the same kind of approach
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and at the same time the same relentlessness to stand up
39:24
against those lies. So people who struggle, they
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come, they're like, you know, I barely have any strength to even
39:33
show my face anywhere, but I'll do it.
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So they come to the House of God and they walk out and go, well,
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that didn't really do much for me.
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They call the man of God. They call a friend who's a woman
39:45
of God. And they and they receive prayer
39:47
and nothing seems to change right away.
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So what do they do? They just give in.
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They just surrender. They just wallow.
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Is that what we see Hezekiah doing even though there's a
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second attempt from the king of Assyria?
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No, look again at verse 14. Hezekiah received the letter
40:05
from the hand of the messengers and read it, and Hezekiah went
40:08
up to the House of the Lord and spread it before the Lord.
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Almost a copy paste of what we read earlier.
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So he is attacked again. And what did you do?
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All right, fine, I'm going. I'm going to the House of the
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Lord again. He's assaulted again.
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His faith is being challenging. What did you do?
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I'm going to pray again. I'm going to keep my head in the
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word. I'm going to, I'm going to still
40:33
fellowship with the Saints. I'm not just going to give up.
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This is a war. Scripture tells us we're
40:40
wrestling against these things. And so be reminded that Satan
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will not give up. Why do you give up so easily?
40:52
This man's a wonderful example not to give up.
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Here's the second thing. Although the goal of Snack Reb
40:59
was the same, his method slightly changed.
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Remember the first time he amplified his voice and he spoke
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in the language of the citizens of Jerusalem, the people of
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Judah. I'm here for you.
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You're all coming with me to Syria.
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Now he's at a distance, so he sends a letter.
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The enemy is very creative and he has different methods of
41:29
messing with us, different avenues, different means,
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different servants, and so there are times where Satan will
41:43
inspire and implant a lie directly into your heart.
41:50
Do you know, do I know how I know he can do that?
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I may not explain, be able to explain how that works.
41:55
All I know is that it happens. Let me give you a New Testament
41:58
example. Look at John 13 verse 2.
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This is in the upper Room discourse, at least in
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preparation for it in John 13. Two, what do we read during
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supper when the devil had already put it into the heart of
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Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him?
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Now you read later on this chapter that Satan entered into
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Judas. So this is not the devil working
42:27
in Judas's heart because he abided in Judas.
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No, that would come later. This, I believe, is evidence
42:34
that Satan can put things in our hearts, and the way we make room
42:43
for that is through sin, disobedience, sometimes fear,
42:48
unbelief. There are footholds that we can
42:51
give to. Satan is not what we read in
42:53
Ephesians that we should not go to bed before the sun comes down
42:57
in our anger, lest we give a foothold to the devil.
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So one of the ways where Satan can meddle with us is directly
43:08
the mechanics of that. I may not be able to explain.
43:10
I just see that it's possible sometimes Satan can lie to us
43:16
and discourage us through other people, people that we know and
43:20
people that we don't know. Can anybody provide evidence for
43:24
that in the New Testament? Good.
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I heard it. Peter and Jesus, Matthew 1623.
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Get behind me. What Satan?
43:39
And why was Peter in that moment a tool for Satan?
43:44
Because his mind was set on the things of men and not on the
43:47
things of God. His thinking was not in
43:50
alignment with the truth, so Satan could take advantage of
43:53
that. And how was Satan going to try
43:55
to get to the Son of God through one of his closest friends?
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I wouldn't use as an excuse for you to call people Satan, by the
44:04
way. Be very slow to do that.
44:08
Satan can also use seemingly innocent, even charming things
44:16
to persuade us. I think of Genesis 31, the
44:21
serpent being the craftiest of all the animals approached Eve.
44:29
There are so many Christians who lack discernment.
44:31
They don't even understand how the things that they entertain,
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the things that they keep as pets, and I'm not talking about
44:37
actual pets, entertainment, things that they allow here and
44:44
then here, and they are being discipled into unbelief.
44:51
They are being aroused to sin, failing to understand that the
44:58
Prince of the power of the air is in charge of this evil world,
45:04
and he is clever enough to use clever things to clutch us and
45:11
to create fogginess in our thinking and to weaken us in our
45:16
fight against his lies. Despite all the weapons that the
45:22
enemy may wield, we possess 1 weapon that defends against them
45:27
all, the written word of the living God.
45:33
And even in this very battle, what do we see?
45:34
A clash of two messages. One message from God who says
45:39
I'm going to give you victory, Hezekiah, and a message from the
45:44
enemy who says don't believe him.
45:48
Which one will Hezekiah believe? That is really the essence of
45:51
spiritual warfare, by the way. Every single day you and I have
45:55
to muster up the strength, and the strength is really given by
45:58
God if we receive it from Him humbly.
46:00
But we try to find the strength in God to believe Him.
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It really boils down to that, right?
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Why do people sin? Because they believe the lie of
46:13
that temptation. Why do people sin?
46:16
Because in that moment where they give in to that temptation,
46:19
they don't believe God. They believe this will satisfy
46:24
me, where God says no, this will hurt you.
46:27
They believe that this will prosper me.
46:29
When God says no, this will poison you.
46:32
They believe that this will bring purpose to me.
46:34
When God says no, this will deform you.
46:39
And so the essence of spiritual warfare on a daily basis is
46:42
choosing to believe God. That's how we know victory.
46:47
And when you and I say no to lies, whether it's in the form
46:50
of a temptation for a lust or to fear, when we choose to believe
46:59
God, that's one step of V1 step closer to knowing all that God
47:05
has for us and to being the ones who have Satan underneath our
47:09
feet. Well, I think this is a good
47:12
place to pause before we continue.
47:15
Will we choose to believe God? Is there anything in your life
47:25
where you are not trusting God? Lay your unbelief.
47:44
Lay the lies that have bombarded you all week, all month, maybe
47:49
even all year. Lay them at the feet of the
47:53
Lord, as you now find yourself in the House of the Lord.
47:57
Spread it before God. And even if your faith is not
48:01
complete, trust that your very act of surrender is enough to
48:07
move God to move on your behalf. Finally, let's ask God to help
48:17
us believe that He sees everything.
48:24
We tend to believe that for our accountability.
48:26
No, let's believe that for our good.
48:31
Believe it for your comfort. Believe it for your future,
48:33
believe it for your pain. Lord, tonight we've heard your
48:39
voice so loud and clear. Help us believe every part of
48:53
it. We pray for any discouragement,
49:06
any overpowering temptation. Any recurring lie seems to never
49:12
be able to go away. We asked by your divine
49:17
intervention that today would be the turning point and that the
49:22
struggling one tonight would have the same testimony as Asaph
49:27
until I went to the sanctuary of God and discern their end.
49:32
Lastly, Lord, we asked for Maranatha Bible Church that
49:36
whenever these doors are opened and people choose to come in,
49:43
they would know greater clarity and confidence and that we would
49:49
have your perspective imparted for our predicaments.
50:00
And it's it's very possible, Lord, that as we even walk out
50:02
of here, the enemy is waiting to cause us to doubt.
50:11
So even though we may not feel the inspiration that we sense in
50:15
this very moment tonight or even tomorrow morning, help us not
50:18
give up and go to war and show up here on Sunday and stay on
50:25
our knees and make those phone calls until we overcome.
50:32
We worship you tonight. We say thank you for this Bible
50:34
study. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.
50:38
Let's stand, let's worship the living God together.
50:40
He sees us, He knows us. I
51:15
want to offer you maybe a tip to recalibrate your prayer life.
51:21
A tip that's helped me since I first came to Christ.
51:26
We've all been there where you try to be intentional to pray
51:29
and you're instead visited by a mental reminder of your laundry
51:37
and the things that you got to do and maybe situations and
51:40
instead of praying about them, you're just thinking about them.
51:44
In those times I I stop and I sometimes even will say this out
51:52
loud. I am talking to Jesus Christ of
51:59
Nazareth who walked this earth 2000 years ago, died, was
52:05
buried, rose from the grave and is seated at the right hand of
52:12
God and promised me that if I ask anything in his name, He not
52:19
only hears me but will answer me.
52:22
Jesus Christ sees me in this very moment and it never fails
52:31
to help me get back into real praying.
52:36
And I can tell you over a cup of coffee about the times we're
52:43
leaving that kind of a room, that kind of a moment in my car
52:47
or a long walk where he showed me.
52:50
I, I heard you and I see you and it's no different for you.
52:56
So we're going to end this time tonight.
52:58
But after hearing all that, I'll be remiss not to make an
53:03
invitation. If you need a miracle from God,
53:08
if you need somebody to partner with you in prayer for anything,
53:12
I'm here. Nothing spectacular, no
53:17
spectacle, just simple prayer between two siblings in Christ
53:23
to believe in all powerful God, to help you where you might feel
53:26
surrounded. Amen.
53:28
Well, we thank you for the study.
53:31
We thank you that we don't just study these truths, we can live
53:35
and experience them. We pray that we would be a
53:38
people of the book, not just in knowledge, but with testimonies
53:42
of how what we've studied we can also experience and say it's
53:47
true, it's true, it's true. Lord, go with us.
53:51
We set you before us and you're our right hand.
53:53
Therefore, we will not be shaken and we pray for your protection
53:56
over every baptism candidate for this Sunday.
53:58
We pray for your name to be exalted this upcoming Sunday and
54:02
that there will be great praise and honor for your name.
54:06
We love you and we we are privileged to serve you.
54:10
In Jesus name we pray, Amen.