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Musings on Faith #9 Hezekiah Trusted in the Lord | |
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One of my favorite figures in the Old Testament is Hezekiah, King of Judah. You will find the account of his reign in Second Kings, 18:1 through 20:21. The testimony of the chronicler of Hezekiah, in 2 Kings 16:5-7(a) is powerful indeed: "Hezekiah trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel. There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, either before him or after him. He held fast to the Lord and did not cease to follow him: he kept the commands the Lord had given Moses. And the Lord was with him (NIV)". Hezekiah came to mind this morning as I was praying for our Country, and our leaders and soon-to-be leaders, including our President and those now contending for the position of President of the United States.
We might pose the question as "Is there any like Hezekiah among us today?", but I believe that is the wrong question. The correct question is "Would we accept as our leader anyone like Hezekiah today?" and, unfortunately, the answer is "No!". We say we wish for a real leader, one who will "tell it like it is" and do what's right regardless of the consequences to his/her personal career, but we do not bear out that wish in our personal conduct and attitudes as Americans. We do not, and will not, elect anyone who does what is right and tells the truth, consequences be damned. Thus, we are given the choice of several candidates, all of whom |
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are afraid to tell the truth, because they know that if they tell the truth they will not get to first base in their bid for office. We do not want to hear the truth: we demand to hear what we want to hear. We want empty platitudes instead of substance, and we want someone who will do something for us, regardless of the consequences to our Nation or to other citizens. We are a short-sighted, selfish, instant gratification society. It is interesting to note that at the time Hezekiah came to the throne of Judah, Israel fell to the Assyrians and ceased to exist as a nation, its people exiled and dispersed. A parallel may be drawn between Israel in its last days and the United States of today. This Nation is a Nation filled with millions of wonderful people, but unfortunately even among the best of us greed and selfishness have crept into our way of living and thinking. We are spoiled. I believe that it is time, and perhaps past time, for us, as a people and a Nation, to wake up and return to obedience to God, to lay aside our selfish "me" attitudes, and promote and vote the public welfare. We need to seek leaders like Hezekiah, and we need to be willing to receive the truth, rather than what we want to hear. Otherwise, God will not continue to bless us and this great Nation will go the way of ancient Israel. |
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