"The LORD will save me..." (Isaiah 38:20)
This is most certainly a statement of contented assurance.
There is no doubt that king Hezekiah knew of the reliability of his God, so much so, that he hesitated not before making his pronouncement. "The Lord will save me." There was no reason for weeping, no reason for fear. There was no unsure wavering in his words, nor did he cower behind his robe.
No, these were words of declaration! They were words of intent. They were destined for the ears and hearts of all who would listen. They were meant to go forth into the ferocities of battle; conquering, triumphant screams of bold faith!
Oh, what a pleasure it must have been to the ears of the Lord to hear such echoes of faith being spoken from the heart of His servant. If only we could know what joy this was to God, we would be nothing less than overwhelmed with emotions of glory!
After all, this was a man. This was not an angel, not a god or mythological being, nor was it any supernatural entity at all. This was nothing more than a mere creation. Yet, such authority was his to wield because of his simple faith and trust in the Truth of his God; "The Lord will Save me."
How many of us can boast the same? How many can boast such an absolute reliance on the power of God that your profession can be heard atop the mountains? Will we stand and live our salvation when our faith is threatened, or will we be that soldier that stays quiet in the trench, while brothers bleed? In what, or Who, is our faith?
If our next utterances were to be a prayer, let us pray this: that our faith in Christ would be our drive, our goal, our declaration, our victorious scream. That we would stop doubting and simply BELIEVE those God pleasing words... The Lord will Save me!
Some details...
- Hey
- My name is Matthew Robert Kean. I'm a Canadian (from Newfoundland specifically) who now lives in Australia. I married a beautiful young lass named Fiona and we serve as officers in The Salvation Army. The Lord has been so very good to us and we are forever indebted to His grace. In comparison to knowing Him, all else pales.
Friday, July 3, 2009
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7 comments:
Hey Mat it looks like you failed to read the context. The part verse comes at the end of a writing of Hezekiah after he had been ill and had recovered. Get you context right instead of taking a part of a text and turning it into a pretext to say what you want say.
I would agree with anon that you have got the context wrong. It is not the Isaiah speaking here it is the king. Surely you can at least get that right, but then again you seem not to want to read the plain meaning of the text and instead prefer your own interpretation. Good interpretation begins with the plain meaning of the text. Plain meaning has to do with Isaiah’s original intent when he recorded the king’s poem. Something I assume you would have learnt in the College your attending. What you say, then, is quite foreign to the text as a whole. What about the rest of the verse? “…and we will sing with stringed instruments all the days of our lives in the temple of the LORD”. How does that related to the rest of your piece? Hezekiah seems to be praising God that he will recover and live longer and has a deep appreciation for his family and the little things he would have missed had he died. What we learn is that God is the source of life and his promises are true and he forgives sins. The reasonable response to these truths is to praise God for his salvation and share our experience with others.
Thanks for correcting me in my ignorance, guys. You are right... I didn't really research this before writing it. I was simply inspired by the words I read and decided to write about it. I appreciate that you take the time to help bring clarity to these things. I do however have one question: why does it seem that you are writing out of contempt? I will gladly accept any criticism and am always willing to be challenged, but please, let's try to exemplify the character of our Lord with our words.
Read the comments and your response but was wondering about your conclusion that they were written out of contempt. Contmept for what?
I would ask the same question regarding the contempt bit. Maybe the comment about College was what you are upset about. Have heard though that you have been saying you are bored and are receiving a second class education there. You might like to clarify your comment. I can understand being inspired by certain word,and getting carried away, glad to see you see the need for clarity in what you write - trust this also goes for sermons you preach as well. Johno
Fixed it. It would bother me too much to let it stay wrong. Thanks for the tip.
Matt
Fixed it. Fixed what? Seems to be saying the same thing to me. Hezekiah had been told by God that he was about to die and he was to set his house in order. Something he was not too pleased to hear. However he prays. Verses 9-20 are his reponse to Isaiah's words that God has heard his prayer and so he writes in order to express his praise and thankingiving for answered prayer. Suggest you need to rethink what you have written in light of a plain reading of the whole passage not just a portion of one particular text. You still haven't said what the 'contempt' bit was about. Johno
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