Walking by Faith: 2 Kings #26
This is an exposition of 2 Kings 21:1-26. This message by Pastor Rod Harris was delivered at Trinity Baptist Church on Sunday evening, January 29, 2017.
Intro:
Have you noticed life doesn’t always work out as you planned? Ever notice that things don’t always go according to script? You had things figured out. You knew how things should have gone. You were certain that God was onboard because you had chapter and verse but things didn’t go as planned. Someone had changed the script or some of the actors in your little drama decided to improvise. Whatever the reason, your life isn’t what you thought it would be, it doesn’t seem to square with your understanding of the will of God and you’re mad about it!
Have you ever had a time when nothing in your world made sense and there was nothing you could do about it? Nothing you could say? Nothing you could do? You just had to hang on and try to ride it out? It seems I spend a lot of time, anymore, shaking my head in unbelief. I look at the world around me and I’m thinking, “Toto, we are not in Kansas anymore.” It seems the world has changed and I don’t recognize things. That’s how it was for the righteous remnant in Jerusalem in the years not long before the Babylonian exile. The Northern kingdom had gone out of existence. A time of refreshment came to Judah and it looked as if they might escape the horrifying judgment of God. King Hezekiah was a breath of fresh air. He got rid of the high places. He cut done the Asherah and restored true worship to the temple. Thus God was with him. This new David brought stability and integrity to the kingdom. Yet, dark clouds were rolling in.
Hezekiah did what was right in the eyes of the LORD but he had feet of clay and when threatened by the Assyrians he sought to hedge his bet by joining with Babylon and Egypt against the Assyrians. From his death bed he cried out to God and asked for mercy. He asked God to extend his life. God graciously agreed to not only heal the king but to take care of that whole Assyrian mess. Yes, God was exceedingly gracious to the king and to the nation. Of course during that extra 15 years the king had a son who would become the most vile king in the nation’s history. Our text this evening is the 21st chapter of 2 Kings.
Text: 2 Kings 21:1-26
As we work our way through this chapter we are going to learn that…
Thesis: In times of confusion, doubt and upheaval believers refuse to give in to what they see but rather tenaciously cling to the promise of God by faith.
Scripture admonishes us to “walk by faith and not by sight.” This is not a call to ignore the obvious and blindly follow religious dogma. It means we trust in the Word of God. We rely on the revelation God has given to us and when there is a conflict between what God has said and what we see or understand we chose to believe what God has said. We chose to believe because God has proven to be faithful. We are the fallen sons and daughters of Adam and we are fallible. We make mistakes. We are often wrong. God is always faithful. His Word is always true. His will is always accomplished. So, we believe.
Now, I’m not at all suggesting that this is easy.
But this is to be our frame of reference.
I trust His judgment over mine.
I believe His promise over my ability to assess the situation.
I will also admit it is easy to say this tonight. It is easy for me to preach a sermon and say, “This is how we are to respond.” It is often another thing all together when it comes to putting this principle into practice “out there” in the real world.
Let me pull three principles out of this text to help us live out this truth.
- Biblical faith accepts that the ways of God are beyond our understanding. (21:1-9)
- Biblical faith understands that God will not be mocked and justice will ultimately prevail. (21:10-16)
- Biblical faith is not destroyed by political or religious corruption but rather clings tenaciously to God’s promise. (21:17-26)
Conclusion:
One writer said, “Like dropping anchor to ride out a furious storm, they hold to Yahweh’s kingdom promise in spite of the disappointments and wickedness that have closed in on them.”
They didn’t have all the answers to their nation’s troubles but they seemed to know the next step – place another descendant of David on the throne. That may not solve today’s troubles but it’s the promise of God, and the promise is the anchor until the answer comes.