today's meditation (Is.42) Allowing God to be Our Eyes and Ears

(Dear Lord Jesus, guide me and give me insight as I read and study Your word, and let it be the meditation of my heart...)

(Isaiah 42:1-25) 

1  “Behold, My Servant, whom I uphold;
     My chosen one in whom My soul delights.
     I have put My Spirit upon Him;
     He will bring forth justice to the nations.
2   He will not cry out nor raise His voice,
     Nor make His voice heard in the street.
3   A bent reed He will not break off 
     And a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish;
     He will faithfully bring forth justice.
4   He will not be disheartened or crushed 
     Until He has established justice on the earth;
     And the coastlands will wait expectantly for His law.”

5   This is what God the Lord says,

     Who created the heavens and stretched them out,
     Who spread out the earth and its offspring,
     Who gives breath to the people on it 
     And spirit to those who walk in it:
6   “I am the Lord, I have called You in righteousness,
     I will also hold You by the hand and watch over You,
     And I will appoint You as a covenant to the people,
     As a light to the nations,
7   To open blind eyes,
     To bring out prisoners from the dungeon 
     And those who dwell in darkness from the prison.
8   I am the Lord, that is My name;
     I will not give My glory to another,
     Nor My praise to idols.
9   Behold, the former things have come to pass,
     Now I declare new things;
     Before they sprout I proclaim them to you.”

10 Sing to the Lord a new song,
     Sing His praise from the end of the earth!
     You who go down to the sea, and all that is in it;
     You islands, and those who live on them.
11 Let the wilderness and its cities raise their voices,
     The settlements which Kedar inhabits.
     Let the inhabitants of Sela sing aloud,
     Let them shout for joy from the tops of the mountains.
12 Let them give glory to the Lord 
     And declare His praise in the coastlands.
13 The Lord will go out like a warrior,
     He will stir His zeal like a man of war.
     He will shout, indeed, He will raise a war cry.
     He will prevail against His enemies.

14 “I have kept silent for a long time,
     I have kept still and restrained Myself.
     Now like a woman in labor I will groan,
     I will both gasp and pant.
15 I will lay waste the mountains and hills 
     And wither all their vegetation;
     I will turn the rivers into coastlands 
     And dry up the ponds.
16 I will lead those who are blind by a way they have not known,
     In paths they have not known I will guide them.
     I will turn darkness into light before them
     And uneven land into plains.
     These are the things I will do,
     And I will not leave them undone.”
17 They will be turned back and be utterly put to shame,
     Who trust in idols,
     Who say to cast metal images,
     “You are our gods.”

18 Hear, you who are deaf!
     And look, you who are blind, so that you may see.
19 Who is blind but My servant,
     Or so deaf as My messenger whom I send?
     Who is so blind as one who is at peace with Me,
     Or so blind as the servant of the Lord?
20 You have seen many things, but you do not retain them;
     Your ears are open, but no one hears.
21 The Lord was pleased for His righteousness’ sake 
     To make the Law great and glorious.
22 But this is a people plundered and pillaged;
     All of them are trapped in caves,
     Or are hidden away in prisons;
     They have become plunder, with no one to save them,
     And spoils with no one to say, “Give them back!”

23 Who among you will listen to this?
     Who will pay attention and listen in the time to come?
24 Who gave Jacob up for spoils, and Israel to plunderers?
     Was it not the Lord, against whom we have sinned,
     And in whose ways they were not willing to walk,
     And whose Law they did not obey?
25 So He poured out on him the heat of His anger 
     And the fierceness of battle;
     And it set him aflame all around,
     Yet he did not recognize it;
     And it burned him, but he paid no attention.

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

Here is both a portrayal of what happens when one disobeys and denies the Lord because He is just, as well as the hope that one can have when we choose to follow Him because He is faithful.  At the start of this chapter, we see a lovely prophecy of Jesus coming to earth to provide the good news of salvation.  He is our light and our covenant (promise).  Only He is able to set us free from the chains of sin and death!  And then He is our guide and our righteousness and our hope!  

Jesus gives all of us a fair opportunity to make a decision.  Who will we place first in our lives?  In what or whom will we trust and put our faith in?  When we choose our way, we think we are hearing and seeing everything, but it is in wanting to know God's way which is unsearchable that we need His help.  Truly trusting and putting our faith in Jesus is to realize and admit that we are deaf and blind, and we need the Lord to be our ears and eyes, allowing Him to lead us as to where we should go and what we should hear, say and do!  

today's meditation (Is.41) Bringing Glory to the Lord

(Dear Lord Jesus, guide me and give me insight as I read and study Your word, and let it be the meditation of my heart...)

(Isaiah 41:1-29)

1   “Listen to Me in silence, you coastlands,
     And let the peoples gain new strength;
     Let them come forward, then let them speak;
     Let’s come together for judgment.
2   Who has stirred one from the east 
     Whom He calls in righteousness to His feet?
     He turns nations over to him 
     And subdues kings.
     He makes them like dust with his sword,
     Like the wind-driven chaff with his bow.
3   He pursues them, passing on in safety,
     By a way he had not been traversing with his feet.
4   Who has performed and accomplished it,
     Summoning the generations from the beginning?
     ‘I, the Lord, am the first, and with the last. I am He.’”

5   The coastlands have seen and are afraid;
     The ends of the earth tremble;
     They have approached and have come.
6   Each one helps his neighbor 
     And says to his brother, “Be strong!”
7   So the craftsman encourages the smelter,
     And he who smooths metal with the hammer encourages him who beats the anvil,
     Saying of the soldering, “It is good”;
     And he fastens it with nails,
     So that it will not totter.
8   “But you, Israel, My servant,
     Jacob whom I have chosen,
     Descendant of Abraham My friend,
9   You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth 
     And called from its remotest parts,
     And said to you, ‘You are My servant,
     I have chosen you and have not rejected you.
10 Do not fear, for I am with you;
     Do not be afraid, for I am your God.
     I will strengthen you, I will also help you,
     I will also uphold you with My righteous right hand.’
11 Behold, all those who are angered at you will be shamed and dishonored;
     Those who contend with you will be as nothing and will perish.
12 You will seek those who quarrel with you, but will not find them,
     Those who war with you will be as nothing and non-existent.
13 For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand,
     Who says to you, ‘Do not fear, I will help you.’
14 Do not fear, you worm Jacob, you people of Israel;
     I will help you,” declares the Lord, “and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.
15 Behold, I turned you into a new, sharp threshing sledge with double edges;
     You will thresh the mountains and pulverize them,
     And make the hills like chaff.
16 You will winnow them, and the wind will carry them away,
     And the storm will scatter them;
     But you will rejoice in the Lord,
     You will boast in the Holy One of Israel.

17 “The poor and needy are seeking water, but there is none,
     And their tongues are parched with thirst.
     I, the Lord, will answer them Myself;
     As the God of Israel I will not abandon them.
18 I will open rivers on the bare heights,
     And springs in the midst of the valleys;
     I will make the wilderness a pool of water,
     And the dry land fountains of water.
19 I will put the cedar in the wilderness,
     The acacia, the myrtle, and the olive tree;
     I will place the juniper in the desert,
     Together with the elm tree and the cypress,
20 So that they may see and recognize,
     And consider and gain insight as well,
     That the hand of the Lord has done this,
     And the Holy One of Israel has created it.

21 “Present your case,” the Lord says.
     “Bring forward your evidence,”
     The King of Jacob says.
22 Let them bring them forward and declare to us what is going to take place;
     As for the former events, declare what they were,
     So that we may consider them and know their outcome.
     Or announce to us what is coming;
23 Declare the things that are going to come afterward,
     So that we may know that you are gods;
     Indeed, do good or evil, that we may be afraid and fear together.
24 Behold, you are less than nothing,
     And your work is less than nothing!
     He who chooses you is an abomination.

25 “I have put one from the north into motion, and he has come;
     From the rising of the sun he will call on My name;
     And he will come upon rulers as upon mortar,
     As the potter treads on clay.”
26 Who has declared this from the beginning, that we might know?
     Or from former times, that we may say, “He is right!”?
     There was no one at all who declared,
     There was no one at all who proclaimed,
     There was no one at all who heard your words.
27 “Previously I said to Zion, ‘Behold, here they are.’
     And to Jerusalem, ‘I will give a messenger of good news.’
28 But when I look, there is no one,
     And there is no counselor among them 
     Who, if I ask, can give an answer.
29 Behold, all of them are false;
     Their works are nothing,
     Their cast metal images are wind and emptiness.

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

God chose the Israelites to be the missionaries to the world, to demonstrate the glory of the Lord.  One day (in the Milennium) they will be who God intended.  But until then, God knew they would fail, as would everyone else, because all of us fall short of God's glory.  This is why He had planned from the very beginning to come to earth in flesh, to be 100 % man while still being 100% God - to be what we cannot - to do what we cannot - and to accomplish what we cannot.

Whether a person wants to fight God or earn their way to God, it is impossible.  Our puny efforts are laughable, really.  Yet God cares and wants us to know Him personally and have eternal life with Him.  This is why He provided the way.  Salvation through Jesus is the only way, and it is our good news!  It is only through His power and provision that we are able to bring glory to Him.  It is He who saves us, and it is He who helps us live a blessed life that glorifies Him.

today's meditation (Is.40) Seeing the Whole Picture

(Dear Lord Jesus, guide me and give me insight as I read and study Your word, and let it be the meditation of my heart...)

(Isaiah 40:1-31) 

1  “Comfort, comfort My people,” says your God.
2  “Speak kindly to Jerusalem;
     And call out to her, that her warfare has ended,
     That her guilt has been removed,
     That she has received of the Lord’s hand 
     Double for all her sins.”

3   The voice of one calling out,
     “Clear the way for the Lord in the wilderness;
     Make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
4   Let every valley be lifted up,
     And every mountain and hill be made low;
     And let the uneven ground become a plain,
     And the rugged terrain a broad valley;
5   Then the glory of the Lord will be revealed,
     And all flesh will see it together;
     For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
6   A voice says, “Call out.”
     Then he answered, “What shall I call out?”
     All flesh is grass, and all its loveliness is like the flower of the field.
7   The grass withers, the flower fades,
     When the breath of the Lord blows upon it;
     The people are indeed grass!
8   The grass withers, the flower fades,
     But the word of our God stands forever.

9   Go up on a high mountain,
     Zion, messenger of good news,
     Raise your voice forcefully,
     Jerusalem, messenger of good news;
     Raise it up, do not fear.
     Say to the cities of Judah,
     “Here is your God!”
10 Behold, the Lord God will come with might,
     With His arm ruling for Him.
     Behold, His compensation is with Him,
     And His reward before Him.
11 Like a shepherd He will tend His flock,
     In His arm He will gather the lambs 
     And carry them in the fold of His robe;
     He will gently lead the nursing ewes.

12 Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand,
     And measured the heavens with a span,
     And calculated the dust of the earth with a measure,
     And weighed the mountains in a balance 
     And the hills in a pair of scales?
13 Who has directed the Spirit of the Lord,
     Or as His counselor has informed Him?
14 With whom did He consult and who gave Him understanding?
     And who taught Him in the path of justice and taught Him knowledge,
     And informed Him of the way of understanding?
15 Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket,
     And are regarded as a speck of dust on the scales;
     Behold, He lifts up the islands like fine dust.
16 Even Lebanon is not enough to burn,
     Nor its animals enough for a burnt offering.
17 All the nations are as nothing before Him,
     They are regarded by Him as less than nothing and meaningless.

18 To whom then will you liken God?
     Or what likeness will you compare with Him?
19 As for the idol, a craftsman casts it,
     A goldsmith plates it with gold,
     And a silversmith fashions chains of silver.
20 He who is too impoverished for such an offering 
     Selects a tree that does not rot;
     He seeks out for himself a skillful craftsman 
     To prepare an idol that will not totter.

21 Do you not know? Have you not heard?
     Has it not been declared to you from the beginning?
     Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?
22 It is He who sits above the circle of the earth,
     And its inhabitants are like grasshoppers,
     Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain 
     And spreads them out like a tent to live in.
23 It is He who reduces rulers to nothing,
     Who makes the judges of the earth meaningless.
24 Scarcely have they been planted,
     Scarcely have they been sown,
     Scarcely has their stock taken root in the earth,
     But He merely blows on them, and they wither,
     And the storm carries them away like stubble.
25 “To whom then will you compare Me 
     That I would be his equal?” says the Holy One.
26 Raise your eyes on high 
     And see who has created these stars,
     The One who brings out their multitude by number,
     He calls them all by name;
     Because of the greatness of His might and the strength of His power,
     Not one of them is missing.

27 Why do you say, Jacob, and you assert, Israel,
     “My way is hidden from the Lord,
     And the justice due me escapes the notice of my God”?
28 Do you not know? Have you not heard?
     The Everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth 
     Does not become weary or tired.
     His understanding is unsearchable.
29 He gives strength to the weary,
     And to the one who lacks might He increases power.
30 Though youths grow weary and tired,
     And vigorous young men stumble badly,
31 Yet those who wait for the Lord 
     Will gain new strength;
     They will mount up with wings like eagles,
     They will run and not get tired,
     They will walk and not become weary.

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

I'm really struggling to put all my thoughts down, because my mind is being blown away by how great God is!!!  In the grand picture of this passage, we are reminded that God is eternal, unchangeable, all-knowing and all-powerful.  Everything else is temporary, and everyone is nothing and life is meaningless without God!  

Hearing and knowing this might anger someone, but if we don't look at the full picture which includes the good news of Jesus Christ, we will not see or find the hope and glory that is only found in the Lord!  It is when we realize our weakness and need for the Lord's forgiveness, that He saves us!  And once we are His child, He wants to gather us up and carry us!  Guide us!  Protect us!  Provide for us!  And reward us!

To really know God personally, we cannot just look at one aspect of who He is... we need to see the whole picture.

today's meditation (Is.39) Keeping Out of Trouble

(Dear Lord Jesus, guide me and give me insight as I read and study Your word, and let it be the meditation of my heart...)

(Isaiah 39:1-8) 

1 At that time Merodach-baladan son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a gift to Hezekiah, for he heard that he had been sick and had recovered. 2 Hezekiah was pleased, and let them see all his treasure house, the silver, the gold, the balsam oil, the excellent olive oil, his entire armory, and everything that was found in his treasuries. There was nothing in his house nor in all his realm that Hezekiah did not let them see. 3 Then Isaiah the prophet came to King Hezekiah and said to him, “What did these men say, and from where did they come to you?” And Hezekiah said, “They came to me from a far country, from Babylon.” 4 Then he said, “What have they seen in your house?” So Hezekiah answered, “They have seen everything that is in my house; there is nothing among my treasuries that I have not let them see.”

5 Isaiah then said to Hezekiah, “Hear the word of the Lord of armies, 6 ‘Behold, the days are coming when everything that is in your house, and what your fathers have stored up to this day, will be carried to Babylon; nothing will be left,’ says the Lord. 7 ‘And some of your sons who will come from you, whom you will father, will be taken away, and they will become eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.’” 8 Then Hezekiah said to Isaiah, “The word of the Lord which you have spoken is good.” For he thought, “For there will be peace and truth in my days.”

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

Under the guise of kindness and friendship, Hezekiah decided to show off, which made the entire nation vulnerable to attack.  Just because we are a believer and a child of God, does not exempt us from consequences. Our actions can also bring about consequences for generations to come.  So with everything, by continually putting God first in our lives, our humility will keep us from showing off.  And by diligently seeking out God's will in every circumstance, our prudence and reliance on God's strength and wisdom will keep us from getting ourselves into trouble! 

today's meditation (Is.38) Becoming a Believer

(Dear Lord Jesus, guide me and give me insight as I read and study Your word, and let it be the meditation of my heart...)

(Isaiah 38:1-22) 

1 In those days Hezekiah became mortally ill. And Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, came to him and said to him, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Set your house in order, for you are going to die and not live.’” 2 Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, 3 and said, “Please, Lord, just remember how I have walked before You wholeheartedly and in truth, and have done what is good in Your sight.” And Hezekiah wept profusely.

4 Then the word of the Lord came to Isaiah, saying, 5 “Go and say to Hezekiah, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of your father David says: “I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; behold, I will add fifteen years to your life. 6 And I will save you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria; and I will protect this city.”’

7 “And this shall be the sign to you from the Lord, that the Lord will perform this word that He has spoken: 8 Behold, I will make the shadow on the stairway, which has gone down with the sun on the stairway of Ahaz, go back ten steps.” So the sun’s shadow went back ten steps on the stairway on which it had gone down.

9 This is a writing of Hezekiah king of Judah after his illness and recovery:

10 I said, “In the middle of my life 
     I am to enter the gates of Sheol;
     I have been deprived of the rest of my years.”
11 I said, “I will not see the Lord,
     The Lord in the land of the living;
     I will no longer look on mankind among the inhabitants of the world.
12 Like a shepherd’s tent my dwelling is pulled up and removed from me;
     As a weaver I rolled up my life.
     He cuts me off from the loom;
     From day until night You make an end of me.
13 I composed my soul until morning.
     Like a lion—so He breaks all my bones,
     From day until night You make an end of me.
14 Like a swallow, like a crane, so I twitter;
     I moan like a dove;
     My eyes look wistfully to the heights;
     Lord, I am oppressed, be my security.

15 “What shall I say?
     For He has spoken to me, and He Himself has done it;
     I will walk quietly all my years because of the bitterness of my soul.
16 Lord, by these things people live,
     And in all these is the life of my spirit;
     Restore me to health and let me live!
17 Behold, for my own welfare I had great bitterness;
     But You have kept my soul from the pit of nothingness,
     For You have hurled all my sins behind Your back.
18 For Sheol cannot thank You,
     Death cannot praise You;
     Those who go down to the pit cannot hope for Your faithfulness.
19 It is the living who give thanks to You, as I do today;
     A father tells his sons about Your faithfulness.
20 The Lord is certain to save me;
     So we will play my songs on stringed instruments 
     All the days of our life at the house of the Lord.”

21 Now Isaiah had said, “Have them take a cake of figs and apply it to the boil, so that he may recover.” 22 Then Hezekiah had said, “What is the sign that I will go up to the house of the Lord?”

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

After Hezekiah's very self-centered and self-serving prayer in verse 3, God still decided to answer it and allow him to live 15 more years.  BUT Hezekiah suffered with his illness - to the point that he finally turned to God with humility and repentance.  Because Hezekiah became a believer, immediately at that point in time, he was able to stand before the Lord, clean and righteous, no matter what he had done in the past.  

From verse 17, we can see that Hezekiah understood that in order to find eternal life, God allowed him to come close to death.  God is love, and God is also all-knowing, righteous and just.  God knew that Hezekiah would become a believer!  And He knew what it would take to get Hezekiah's attention!  And because of His forgiveness and amazing grace, God chooses to no longer remember our sins.

today's meditation (Is.37) Humbling Oneself

(Dear Lord Jesus, guide me and give me insight as I read and study Your word, and let it be the meditation of my heart...)

(Isaiah 37:1-38) 

1 Now when King Hezekiah heard the report, he tore his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth, and entered the house of the Lord. 2 Then he sent Eliakim, who was in charge of the household, with Shebna the scribe and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz. 3 And they said to him, “This is what Hezekiah says: ‘This day is a day of distress, rebuke, and humiliation; for children have come to the point of birth, and there is no strength to deliver them. 4 Perhaps the Lord your God will hear the words of Rabshakeh, whom his master the king of Assyria has sent to taunt the living God, and will avenge the words which the Lord your God has heard. Therefore, offer a prayer for the remnant that is left.’”

5 So the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah. 6 And Isaiah said to them, “This is what you shall say to your master: ‘This is what the Lord says: “Do not be afraid because of the words that you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed Me. 7 Behold, I am going to put a spirit in him so that he will hear news and return to his own land. And I will make him fall by the sword in his own land.”’”

8 Then Rabshakeh returned and found the king of Assyria fighting against Libnah, for he had heard that the king had left Lachish. 9 Now he heard them say regarding Tirhakah king of Cush, “He has come out to fight against you,” and when he heard it he sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying, 10 “This is what you shall say to Hezekiah king of Judah: ‘Do not let your God in whom you trust deceive you by saying, “Jerusalem will not be handed over to the king of Assyria.” 11 Behold, you yourself have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the lands, destroying them completely. So will you be saved? 12 Did the gods of the nations which my fathers destroyed save them: Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the sons of Eden who were in Telassar? 13 Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the city of Sepharvaim, and of Hena and Ivvah?’”

14 Then Hezekiah took the letter from the hand of the messengers and read it, and he went up to the house of the Lord and spread it out before the Lord. 15 Hezekiah prayed to the Lord, saying, 16 “Lord of armies, God of Israel, who is enthroned above the cherubim, You are the God, You alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. You made heaven and earth. 17 Incline Your ear, Lord, and hear; open Your eyes, Lord, and see; and listen to all the words of Sennacherib, who sent them to taunt the living God. 18 Truly, Lord, the kings of Assyria have laid waste all the countries and their lands, 19 and have thrown their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but only the work of human hands, wood and stone. So they have destroyed them. 20 But now Lord, our God, save us from his hand, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You alone, Lord, are God.”

21 Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent word to Hezekiah, saying, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel says: ‘Because you have prayed to Me about Sennacherib king of Assyria, 22 this is the word that the Lord has spoken against him:

     “She has shown contempt for you and derided you,
     The virgin daughter of Zion;
     The daughter of Jerusalem has shaken her head behind you!
23 Whom have you taunted and blasphemed?
     And against whom have you raised your voice 
     And haughtily raised your eyes?
     Against the Holy One of Israel!
24 Through your servants you have taunted the Lord,
     And you have said, ‘With my many chariots I came up to the heights of the mountains,
     To the remotest parts of Lebanon;
     And I cut down its tall cedars and its choice junipers.
     And I will come to its highest peak, its thickest forest.
25 I dug wells and drank waters,
     And with the sole of my feet I dried up
     All the canals of Egypt.’
26 Have you not heard?
     Long ago I did it,
     From ancient times I planned it.
     Now I have brought it about 
     That you would turn fortified cities into ruined heaps.
27 Therefore their inhabitants were powerless,
     They were shattered and put to shame;
     They were like the vegetation of the field and the green grass,
     Like grass on the housetops that is scorched before it has grown.
28 But I know your sitting down,
     Your going out, your coming in,
     And your raging against Me.
29 Because of your raging against Me 
     And because your complacency has come up to My ears,
     I will put My hook in your nose 
     And My bridle in your lips,
     And I will turn you back by the way that you came.

30 “Then this shall be the sign for you: you will eat this year what grows of itself, in the second year what grows from the same, and in the third year sow, harvest, plant vineyards, and eat their fruit. 31 The survivors that are left of the house of Judah will again take root downward and bear fruit upward. 32 For out of Jerusalem a remnant will go, and out of Mount Zion survivors. The zeal of the Lord of armies will perform this.”’

33 “Therefore, this is what the Lord says about the king of Assyria: ‘He will not come to this city nor shoot an arrow there; and he will not come before it with a shield, nor heap up an assault ramp against it. 34 By the way that he came, by the same he will return, and he will not come to this city,’ declares the Lord. 35 ‘For I will protect this city to save it for My own sake, and for My servant David’s sake.’”

36 Then the angel of the Lord went out and struck 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians; and when the rest got up early in the morning, behold, all of the 185,000 were dead. 37 So Sennacherib the king of Assyria departed and returned home and lived in Nineveh. 38 Then it came about, as he was worshiping in the house of Nisroch his god, that his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer killed him with the sword; and they escaped to the land of Ararat. And his son Esarhaddon became king in his place.

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

The king of Assyria made the mistake of assuming that he was high and mighty and that the Lord God was like all manmade gods.  He also made the mistake of assuming that God was on his side, and that he could attack God's chosen people since it was obvious they had abandoned Him.  King Hezekiah made the mistake of assuming that just because God had chosen Israel, that he didn't have to personally follow the Lord.  The part that Hezekiah was missing was humility, repentance and giving God his whole heart.  

Hm, "I can ignore, deny and taunt the Lord all I want, but don't you dare taunt my God???"  How easily we can take the Lord for granted and just expect Him to do our bidding.  God will allow us to suffer the consequences of our own actions or the consequences of other people's actions.  And sometimes He protects us, even when we don't deserve it, for the sake of others... or for whatever reason God has!

This doesn't mean that we can protect ourselves from consequences by staying close to those who believe in Him.  Being part of a group or family of believers does not make one a believer.  It is a personal decision.  And being a believer and part of a group or family of committed, obedient believers, does not make one committed or obedient.  It is a personal decision, followed by actions.  And it isn't ever too late to humble oneself to turn or return to God!  

today's meditation (Is.36) Relying on the Lord

(Dear Lord Jesus, guide me and give me insight as I read and study Your word, and let it be the meditation of my heart...)

(Isaiah 36:1-22)

1 Now in the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib king of Assyria marched against all the fortified cities of Judah and seized them. 2 And the king of Assyria sent Rabshakeh from Lachish to Jerusalem to King Hezekiah with a large army. And he stood by the conduit of the upper pool on the road to the fuller’s field. 3 Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph, the secretary, went out to him.

4 And Rabshakeh said to them, “Say now to Hezekiah, ‘This is what the great king, the king of Assyria says: “What is this confidence that you have? 5 I say, ‘Your plan and strength for the war are only empty words.’ Now on whom have you relied, that you have revolted against me? 6 Behold, you have relied on the staff of this broken reed, on Egypt, on which if a man leans, it will go into his hand and pierce it. So is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who rely on him. 7 But if you say to me, ‘We trust in the Lord our God,’ is it not He whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah has taken away and has said to Judah and to Jerusalem, ‘You shall worship before this altar’? 8 Now then, come make a wager with my master the king of Assyria: I will give you two thousand horses, if you are able on your part to put riders on them! 9 How then can you drive back even one official of the least of my master’s servants and rely on Egypt for chariots and horsemen? 10 And have I now come up without the Lord’s approval against this land to destroy it? The Lord said to me, ‘Go up against this land and destroy it.’”’”

11 Then Eliakim, Shebna, and Joah said to Rabshakeh, “Please speak to your servants in Aramaic, for we understand it; and do not speak to us in Judean so that the people who are on the wall hear you.” 12 But Rabshakeh said, “Has my master sent me only to your master and to you to speak these words, and not to the men who sit on the wall, doomed to eat their own dung and drink their own urine with you?”

13 Then Rabshakeh stood and called out with a loud voice in Judean and said, “Hear the words of the great king, the king of Assyria! 14 This is what the king says: ‘Do not let Hezekiah deceive you, for he will not be able to save you; 15 and do not let Hezekiah lead you to rely on the Lord, saying, “The Lord will certainly save us. This city will not be handed over to the king of Assyria!” 16 Do not listen to Hezekiah,’ for this is what the king of Assyria says: ‘Surrender to me and come out to me, and eat, each one, of his vine and each of his fig tree, and each drink of the waters of his own cistern, 17 until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards. 18 Beware that Hezekiah does not mislead you, saying, “The Lord will save us.” Has any one of the gods of the nations saved his land from the hand of the king of Assyria? 19 Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim? And when have they saved Samaria from my hand? 20 Who among all the gods of these lands have saved their land from my hand, that the Lord would save Jerusalem from my hand?’”

21 But they were silent and did not answer him so much as a word; for the king’s command was, “Do not answer him.” 22 Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph, the secretary, came to Hezekiah with their clothes torn, and reported to him the words of Rabshakeh.

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

People can mistakenly think that the Lord is on their side when things go their way.  Even as the king of Assyria had permission to invade Israel, God's plans were far beyond the king's understanding.  In the end, it did not go well for Assyria.  And just because things were not going well for Israel, didn't mean that God wasn't looking out for the nation.

People don't fully understand the Lord and the relationship that believers are able to have with Him, yet the world can see when "Christians" are not "walking the talk."  When someone says they are a Christian and that they trust in God, if they are not living out God's will, it will become obvious.  If we are not relying on God, then we are relying on someone or something else.  All gods are NOT God!  There is only one God, and He is all-powerful and all-knowing!  

Relying on the Lord God looks completely different from everything and anything else, because it is about humbling ourselves!  It is about humbling ourselves to realize our need for the Lord to save us.  And then it is about humbling ourselves to realize our continuous need to go to Him for guidance and help, giving God all the control, always and for everything.  Relying on the Lord is the only way we will really have the Lord's approval!