King James Bible Study – [Mark 8:34 And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.]
Date: Tuesday, August 02, 2022
Chapters: II CHRONICLES 32, II KINGS 20-21
Study: Only One Thing To Fear
Hello My Friend,
My focus was so off this morning, I had this dream and it was so bad that the first thing that I did was ask God to get the devil out of my head and remove any worldly thoughts that come to my mind. I was about to talk about the devil and how we fight with him every day, and that may come in to play as we read the chapters, but there is something else that God brought to my attention. Last night, twenty minutes before it was time to get off work, it started to rain. I made a comment that hopefully it will subside by the time we clock out. Then someone made a comment, “Praying to all the gods.” and I about had a fit, which probably explains the stupid dream. Well, guess what happened after that comment was made? Lighting and thunder like you would not believe, and I literally asked God to forgive them for they know not what they do. I tell you what, we may be in a battle with Satan, but it is not him that we need to fear, it is God.
[Luke 12:4-5 And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. 5 But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him.]
I am convinced that the only reason that God has not destroyed Satan yet and still keeps him around is due to the fact that the world is so clueless. It is not Satan that can cast anyone into hell, he can definitely intimidate us and put those wicked thoughts in our heads that lead us down a path of wickedness, but we are the ones who actually have more power that he does. Watch, as we return to the reading of 2 Chronicles, we are going back to the account of when the Assyrians were invading Judah. More details are given about the time that Isaiah prophesied in Jerusalem, and how Hezekiah sought God’s help and defeated them.
[2 Chronicles 32:2–3,5-8 And when Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib was come, and that he was purposed to fight against Jerusalem, 3 He took counsel with his princes and his mighty men to stop the waters of the fountains which were without the city: and they did help him. 5 Also he strengthened himself, and built up all the wall that was broken, and raised it up to the towers, and another wall without, and repaired Millo in the city of David, and made darts and shields in abundance. 6 And he set captains of war over the people, and gathered them together to him in the street of the gate of the city, and spake comfortably to them, saying, 7 Be strong and courageous, be not afraid nor dismayed for the king of Assyria, nor for all the multitude that is with him: for there be more with us than with him: 8 With him is an arm of flesh; but with us is the LORD our God to help us, and to fight our battles. And the people rested themselves upon the words of Hezekiah king of Judah.]
[but with us is the LORD our God to help us,] It does not matter if there is only one person to fight with us, we still have more with us because we have the Lord, Jesus Christ standing before us. In an instant Jesus could send a multitude of angels to destroy each and every one of our enemies. It is not really us that the world is fighting with, it is God, and He is the one who will fight for us, [Deuteronomy 3:22 Ye shall not fear them: for the LORD your God he shall fight for you.]
Well, I guess I can see how both topics do come into play, God just wanted me to address both issues I guess. We can understand the affliction someone goes through when they are not being faithful to God, but when they are faithful to God, we tend to wonder why. If there is one thing I truly come to understand this year, it is that God is in every circumstance, every battle, and every trial. We just need to look beyond the surface of our emotions to see that He fights every battle for us. And since Christ is on our side, we can expect the devil to show up and try to get us to doubt Him, and that is what he did when he sent Sennacherib to Jerusalem.
[2 Chronicles 32:14-15,17-18 Who was there among all the gods of those nations that my fathers utterly destroyed, that could deliver his people out of mine hand, that your God should be able to deliver you out of mine hand? 15 Now therefore let not Hezekiah deceive you, nor persuade you on this manner, neither yet believe him: for no god of any nation or kingdom was able to deliver his people out of mine hand, and out of the hand of my fathers: how much less shall your God deliver you out of mine hand? 17 He wrote also letters to rail on the LORD God of Israel, and to speak against him, saying, As the gods of the nations of other lands have not delivered their people out of mine hand, so shall not the God of Hezekiah deliver his people out of mine hand. 18 Then they cried with a loud voice in the Jews’ speech unto the people of Jerusalem that were on the wall, to affright them, and to trouble them; that they might take the city.]
[Then they cried with a loud voice in the Jews’ speech] Do you see how they tried to intimate them by speaking their language, and very loudly? The world thinks that if they can speak our language then they can get us to believe that they have all the control. Well, it may seem as though they do, but God is the one in control, we just have to trust Him, and let Him take the reins, [Psalms 7:9-11 Oh let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end; but establish the just: for the righteous God trieth the hearts and reins. 10 My defence is of God, which saveth the upright in heart. 11 God judgeth the righteous, and God is angry with the wicked every day.]
We really do not need a lot of faith, in fact, all it has to be is the size of a mustard seed and God will move a mountain, we just need some faith. God was about to prove Hezekiah’s faith again when He allowed the devil to afflict his body. He became deathly ill, even Isaiah came to tell him face to face that he was going to die. With his face turned away from him, and tears in his eyes, he pleads with God to extend his life. And before Isaiah even left the property, God sent him back with an answer.
[2 Kings 20:1-5 In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And the prophet Isaiah the son of Amoz came to him, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Set thine house in order; for thou shalt die, and not live. 2 Then he turned his face to the wall, and prayed unto the LORD, saying, 3 I beseech thee, O LORD, remember now how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept sore. 4 And it came to pass, afore Isaiah was gone out into the middle court, that the word of the LORD came to him, saying, 5 Turn again, and tell Hezekiah the captain of my people, Thus saith the LORD, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will heal thee: on the third day thou shalt go up unto the house of the LORD.]
[and tell Hezekiah the captain of my people,] I tell my Sunday school kids that they are soldiers for Jesus and even made that our class name, and they happen to call me their captain, and I supposed that I am in a sense. Being a captain over God’s people is not an easy task, and I tell you what, the devil surely tries you every step of the way, and here is the thing, God allows it. You see, we need to be careful when God starts blessing us because pride can kick in and before you know it we are forgetting that it is God who got us through it. After his recovery, God, blessed Judah tremendously, people came from all over, bringing gifts, including Babylon, and he began boasting about all that he had. Well, God did all this to actually prove Hezekiah.
[2 Chronicles 32:25-26,29-31 But Hezekiah rendered not again according to the benefit done unto him; for his heart was lifted up: therefore there was wrath upon him, and upon Judah and Jerusalem. 26 Notwithstanding Hezekiah humbled himself for the pride of his heart, both he and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the wrath of the LORD came not upon them in the days of Hezekiah. 29 Moreover he provided him cities, and possessions of flocks and herds in abundance: for God had given him substance very much. 30 This same Hezekiah also stopped the upper watercourse of Gihon, and brought it straight down to the west side of the city of David. And Hezekiah prospered in all his works. 31 Howbeit in the business of the ambassadors of the princes of Babylon, who sent unto him to enquire of the wonder that was done in the land, God left him, to try him, that he might know all that was in his heart.]
[to try him, that he might know all that was in his heart.] Now, there is nothing that we can do to convince God what is deep down in our heart because He already knows. When He tries us, He is proving what is really in our heart to ourselves and to the devil. Remember, when He sent the devil to try Job, it was the devil who said that the only reason why Job feared Him was because of the hedge that He had over him, [Job 1:9-12 Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought? 10 Hast not thou made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land. 11 But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face. 12 And the LORD said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only upon himself put not forth thine hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of the LORD.]
How exactly did God try Hezekiah? After the news got out of his miraculous recovery, it was then that the king of Babylon’s sons came to visit with him and Hezekiah made the very unwise decision to show them all the treasures and weapons in the kingdom as well as the temple. God sent Isaiah to warn him of what was to come for doing that.
[2 Kings 20:12-13,16-17,19 At that time Berodachbaladan, the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present unto Hezekiah: for he had heard that Hezekiah had been sick. 13 And Hezekiah hearkened unto them, and shewed them all the house of his precious things, the silver, and the gold, and the spices, and the precious ointment, and all the house of his armour, and all that was found in his treasures: there was nothing in his house, nor in all his dominion, that Hezekiah shewed them not. 16 And Isaiah said unto Hezekiah, Hear the word of the LORD. 17 Behold, the days come, that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store unto this day, shall be carried into Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith the LORD. 19 Then said Hezekiah unto Isaiah, Good is the word of the LORD which thou hast spoken. And he said, Is it not good, if peace and truth be in my days?]
[Good is the word of the LORD] Do you see how God will allow us to fall, but just a little bit? It humbles us. I will be honest and say that there have been times when I was dangling on the cliff with my fingers slipping one by one, but by the grace of God I never let go and was able to get back up. And it was not me that never let go, it was actually Jesus who never let go of me. This is why I believe that no true, saved, born again Christian can call completely away from their faith. When Jesus said that nothing or no one can pluck us from His hand, He is serious about that because when we belong to Jesus that means we belong to God, [John 10:29-30 My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand. 30 I and my Father are one.]
Hezekiah was the first king in centuries to accept judgment from God, and not turn on Him when it was given. One of the major issues that my country falters on is that it wants to tell the world our secrets. You know, transparency is a good thing, when it comes to being upfront in how the government handles our finances, protects our country, and our well being as a nation. However, exposing our strengths and weaknesses to the world is only ammunition for them to attack, and when they do, we would not be able to fight them. And let me tell you, all it takes is one wicked person to be in office to turn the entire country into something as wicked as the devil himself. Now, you would think that with Hezekiah’s success as a Godly king that his son, Manasseh would follow in his footsteps, but sadly he was did more to provoke God than even the heathen nations that his father drove out. In the fifty-five years that he reigned he managed to turn Jerusalem completely upside down.
[2 Kings 21:1,6,12-13 Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and reigned fifty and five years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Hephzibah. 6 And he made his son pass through the fire, and observed times, and used enchantments, and dealt with familiar spirits and wizards: he wrought much wickedness in the sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger. 12 Therefore thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Behold, I am bringing such evil upon Jerusalem and Judah, that whosoever heareth of it, both his ears shall tingle. 13 And I will stretch over Jerusalem the line of Samaria, and the plummet of the house of Ahab: and I will wipe Jerusalem as a man wipeth a dish, wiping it, and turning it upside down.]
[and Manasseh seduced them to do more evil than did the nations] When the heathen nations are more moral than the ones that God has instituted, then there is a huge problem. As you can tell with Manasseh’s mother being mentioned, she was the influence, and apparently, Manasseh did not have much communication with Hezekiah. This goes to show you why it is imperative that believers be not yoked together with unbelievers, we must also understand that this includes those of different denominations. Not every denomination bases its authority on the Word of God, many are lax or stricter than God, which by the way, even He is against our being aligned with them, [Matthew 23:3-4 All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not. 4 For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.]
Jesus sends us out into the world and even among other denominations for one reason only and that is to lead lost souls to Him. We are to observe what they do for one reason and that is to be able to discern whether or not they are true. We must remain separated from those who live their lives in the world. Trust me, if they are living in sin and you align yourself with them with the intent that you can get them to live the way you do it will not world. There is nothing that we can do in our physical strength to convince someone to walk in the ways of Christ as we do, only God has that power, but even that only comes by their own willingness to follow God with all their heart. There is a sad truth that we do not want to hear, but there are many that will not follow the ways of Christ, even saved Christians. Jesus said the same thing Isaiah said, [Matthew 13:15-16 For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. 16 But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.]
Today’s Prayer: God, Thank You for your faith in us, and for Your faithfulness to us, even when we are not always obedient. I know that the Bible is not some ordinary book, it is Your Word, holy, pure, alive, and it gives life to all who want You in their lives. Reading Your Word, studying it, and following it will never return void as we allow the Holy Spirit to guide us to what truly is and is not acceptable to You. It keeps us humble and separated from the world and those who are not like minded as well. Lord, as our nations face judgment because they put their trust in the false gods, give us Your hedge of protection from all its evil, fill us with Your power, strength, wisdom, and guidance to stand by Your Word, even if we are the only one standing. We have nothing to fear when we keep our faith and trust in You. I ask these things in Your name, Jesus. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
Are You 100% Sure You Are Going To Heaven?: https://imfollowingjesus.com/Biblestudy/ready-to-follow-jesus/
Receive The KJB Daily Devotions In Your Email: http://eepurl.com/2WMzT
Missed A Message: https://imfollowingjesus.com/Biblestudy/
Visit I’m Following Jesus: https://imfollowingjesus.com/Biblestudy/welcome/
Read Today’s Bible Reading: http://kingjamesbible.imfollowingjesus.com/
I’m Following Jesus On Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/readytofollowJesus/
Copyright © 2022 I’m Following Jesus, All rights reserved.