Are You a Hoshea Or a Hezekiah?
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
July 3-4, 2021 Bloomingdale Church Are you a Hoshea or a Hezekiah? The Text: 2 Kings 17-19 The Context: Israel (north) and Judah (south) are both threatened by military invasion by the aggressive, outnumbering Assyrian military. Their two leaders of each kingdom deal with the threat in two very different ways. Review: We are all ________________ in something. We are ______________ others. We are either _________ leaders or ______ leaders. Hoshea ●2 Kings 17:1 In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah, Hoshea son of Elah became king of Israel in Samaria, and he reigned nine years. 2He did evil in the eyes of the Lord. ●17:5 The king of Assyria invaded the entire land, marched against Samaria and laid siege to it for three years. 6 In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria and deported the Israelites to Assyria. ●17:7 All this took place because the Israelites had sinned against the Lord their God, who had brought them up out of Egypt from under the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt. ●17:11They did wicked things that provoked the Lord to anger. ●17:13 The Lord warned Israel and Judah through all his prophets and seers: "Turn from your evil ways… 14 But they would not listen and were as stiff-necked as their fathers, who did not trust in the Lord their God, Meanwhile In Judah… Hezekiah ●2 Kings 18:1 In the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, Hezekiah son of Ahaz king of Judah began to reign. 2He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-nine years… 3He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father David had done. 4He removed the high places, smashed the sacred stones and cut down the Asherah poles. ●18:5 Hezekiah trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel. ●18:6 He held fast to the Lord and did not cease to follow him; he kept the commands the Lord had given Moses. 7And the Lord was with him; he was successful in whatever he undertook. An Ominous Threat: ●18:29 This is what the king (of Assyria) says: “Do not let Hezekiah deceive you. He cannot deliver you from my hand. 30Do not let Hezekiah persuade you to trust in the Lord when he says, The Lord will surely deliver us; this city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.” ●19:10 “Say to Hezekiah king of Judah: Do not let the god you depend on deceive you when he says, ‘Jerusalem will not be given into the hands of the king of Assyria.’ 11Surely you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the countries, destroying them completely. And will you be delivered?” What Did Hezekiah Do? ●19:14 Hezekiah received the letter from the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the temple of the Lord and spread it out before the Lord. 15And Hezekiah prayed to the Lord: “O Lord, God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. 16Give ear, O Lord, and hear; open your eyes, O Lord, and see; listen to the words Sennacherib has sent to insult the living God.” ●19:19 “Now, O Lord our God, deliver us from his hand, so that all kingdoms on earth may know that you alone, O Lord, are God.” God’s Response: ●19:32 Therefore this is what the Lord says concerning the king of Assyria: “He will not enter this city or shoot an arrow here. He will not come before it with shield or build a siege ramp against it. 33 By the way that he came he will return; he will not enter this city, declares the Lord. 34 I will defend this city and save it, for my sake and for the sake of David my servant.” ●19:35 That night the angel of the Lord went out and put to death a hundred and eighty- five thousand men in the Assyrian camp. When the people got up the next morning-- there were all the dead bodies! 36 So Sennacherib king of Assyria broke camp and withdrew. He returned to Nineveh and stayed there. Practical Applications: 1 Seek God vs. Defy God Hezekiah Hoshea 2 3 A Problem? A Problem? A Sinner’s Prayer: Lord, I am a sinner who has offended you. Please forgive me. I believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross for my sins and I place my trust in Christ’s sacrifice as the only way to be right with you. Thank you for loving me and coming into my heart. I want to follow You and do Your will in my life. In Jesus’ name, amen. Each weekend’s message video & PDF outline are available at bloomingdalechurch.org/watch. Sermon slides are also available at bloomingdalechurch.org/digdeep..