2 Kings 17:1-18:12
Acts 20:1-38
Psalm 148:1-14
Proverbs 18:6-7
2 Kings - In this section of 2 Kings, we see a third and final invasion into Israel by the Assyrians that occurred as punishment from God for breaking away from His laws. By this time He had given them ample warnings through various prophets sent to warn the Israelites. Yet, the kingdom of Israel, under Hoshea, finally fell to the invading Assyrians for discontinuing to pay tribute to Assyria, a penalty they had to deal with after breaking away from God. It was repeated over and over again that:
"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. They worshipped other gods and followed the practices of the nations the Lord had driven out before them, as well as the practices that the kings of Israel had introduced." 2 Kings 17:7-8
It seems like a broken record to us when reading about the history of Israel and Judah through recorded texts. It's easy for us to see the outcome of the poor choices they made, but this also raises a question. How many times have you seen this in your own personal life? How many times have you broken away from God's ways? Once? Twice? Or, over and over again? Thankfully, The Lord our God is merciful and patient with us. He is so merciful that He sent us His Son to wipe away our sins, but that still may not be enough to keep us from drifting away. When everyone around you is telling you "have it your way", "go ahead, it'll be fun", "you're not hurting anyone" etc., you must remember the words from God, "Do not do as they do." 2 Kings 17:15. If we continue to do as others do, we may fall so far away that we may become unreachable. Instead, we need to persevere against worldly and false views, for God's reward for us is unmeasurable and overshadows anything that the world offers.
We should be like King Hezekiah, who was King of Judah while all this was happening to Israel. We later read that Judah also ended up having to deal with the Assyrians. The difference between Hoshea and Hezekiah was that Hezekiah was backed by the Lord because of his obedience to God's commands. 2 Kings 18:7. He did not worship false gods or idols, or serve the King of Assyria. He stayed close to God throughout his reign, and because of this, he showed great success and even confidence when he was confronted by the Assyrian King.
Psalm 148 is such a beautiful reminder of what we are called to do. It's a calling to praise the Lord, no matter who, or what, or where we are. Praising the Lord involves obedience, and obedience is something that we must have throughout our lives.
Written by Anthony :)
So Will I - Hillsong United
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