Hezekiah is not a great man of faith. He’s not a student of faith, he’s a King, a ruler of people. But he does the right thing. He hails the man of Faith. It’s Isaiah. He’s one of the great men of faith. He’s the man who hears from God daily. He’s the student of God’s Word and has the anointing.
So, Hezekiah describes this emergency. Isaiah does the same thing Hezekiah did. Now look at Psalms 46. Isaiah becomes still and realizes who God is. It’s the same process as Hezekiah, but at a much higher faith level, much deeper.
1 God is our protection and source of strength. He is always ready to help us in times of trouble.
God is abundantly available for help in tight places. GOD IS. It’s the Universe of God. He always is. Then he gets specific. Refuge, Strength, Healer and so on. It’s like electricity which is universal. What it powers is specific. Light bulbs, fans, TVs, radios etc.
GOD IS. You get this and you’re home free. No matter if I have my act together or not. HE IS. I’m not worried about what he was, because everything HE WAS, HE IS. The same, yesterday, today and forever. Don’t have to ask God to become anything, because HE IS.
2 So we are not afraid when the earth quakes and the mountains fall into the sea.
Because He is, we are not. Not what? Not afraid. We will not fear. Even though the earth quakes and the mountains fall into the sea.
Look at Daniel 3:16-18. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered the king, Nebuchadnezzar. We believe our GOD IS able to deliver us from the fire. BUT IF NOT….Are you like this? Or do you whine and cry when God doesn’t do it your way.
3 We are not afraid when the seas become rough and dark and the mountains tremble. Selah.
The roaring waters and foam are a type of Syria. Like a sea out of control, but WE will not fear.
Did you notice, Isaiah has not prayed yet. He’s just sunbathing in God. It’s exactly what Hezekiah did. Very little asking is going on. There’s very little asking in the Bible. There is lots of declaring who God Is and the way things are. In today’s Christian world, this would seem strange. We constantly ask God, even demand, instead of resting in who HE IS, and telling Him who HE IS.
Now jump to verse 10 of Psalms 46. It reads in the Easy to Read version “God says, “Stop fighting and know that I am God! I am the one who defeats the nations; I am the one who controls the world.”
Be still……Cease Striving. It means to Sink Down. Let your hands drop. Relax. Quit worrying. Isaiah is saying, there’s an earth quake upon us. The seas are raging. There’s trouble and turmoil at every turn. BUT GOD SAYS……HANGOUT! Relax.
But see, when all this is going on, we just can’t help it. We have to do something. Find a solution. Or at least we should worry.
God says the first step when you’re in trouble is relax, hang out, mellow out, BE STILL. You can’t do anything anyway, so chill out. If you are of the mind set, I’ve got to do something, you’ve lost already. It’s the wrong target.
The first step of faith is hang out with God. Relax. Quit trying to do it yourself. Go into the temple and know Who He Is. Sunbathe in Him. In God are all answers. All solutions. So, every problem or evil that comes is really an opportunity for God to manifest Himself. He said, before they call I’ll answer. Try that with your phone. God is the answer. Before you had the problem, He’s the answer. The problem only gives opportunity for God to show who HE IS. Hebrews says, He that comes to God, must believe that HE IS.
With God, answers come first. Isaiah is saying even though the King has destroyed nations. Even though he has great armies, GOD IS. SO, IF GOD IS, THEN HE’S NOT!
When Isaiah realizes all of who God Is, faith came out of his lips. In 2 Kings 19 he’s speaking to Sennacherib who’s a long way off. That doesn’t mean anything to God. Isaiah has discovered God Is.
So, if God Is, then things aren’t as they seem to be. Sennacherib is saying, “I’m a great king”. You’re God is nothing. Ah, but God was right there listening. God could have wiped him out a long time ago, but he called Sennacherib out. He says, “Sennacherib, you wanted to fight me, well come on, come on. I know your plans”. You’ve done just what I wanted. You’ve come to Jerusalem right where I’ve got true men. I’ll use your words to draw their faith to a place it’s never been before. Now Sennacherib, you’ll be humiliated by these two men. They’ll do this with no weapons, just words.
In verse 28 of 2 Kings 19, God says He’ll put a hook in his nose and bridle on his lips. God uses the very cruelty against the enemy, that the enemy employs. Sennacherib would put hooks in men’s noses to lead them.
So, first we relax, rest, be still. Then we pray. Thirdly we declare to the situation who God Is. You say to the mountain be removed. This is real History, but it’s a shadow of something to come.
On a day when God drew out all evil, gathered at the Cross, It was God’s strategy. Father, Son and Holy Ghost conspired to cause this event. They said “Come on, Come on”.
Jesus stripped all evil of power. Declared it is finished. Evil was totally crushed. But, then He chose to leave a defeated Satan on Earth. Why?? The battle was won, but He chose to permit a defeated Satan to stay on earth, and lay plans of evil against us.
Why would God allow this defeated foe to hang around and lay plans against Him and His people?
The Head wants the Body to enjoy the same victory that Jesus secured at the cross. God allows the defeated foe to come to your doorstep in order to draw out your faith. It’s so that you can walk in and experience areas in your life that you’ve only read about before.
Remember when 185,000 soldiers were killed by a single angel? This was the destruction of Sennacherib. The bible says “Lo, when the men rose up in the morning they were all dead.” Now that’s funny right there. When they woke up, they were dead.
So, when evil comes to our door, we speak “Jesus is Lord”. We speak the blood of Jesus is now the blood of the everlasting covenant. We are seated with Him in heavenly places, and that’s the way it is .
That’s not to be prayed about, begged for, or fretted over. That’s the way it is. The great wisdom of God knows evil will come to us. But He uses that so we can experience faith at a new level, and watch God, Who is all in all. It’s hard for us to be still, because we are the church of the distracted. Be still.
God is more Latin than American. He’s saying Mañana. There’s plenty of time. Just rest in my Presence. Tell me who I Am. When we are telling God who HE IS… The problem is not. Grace and Peace.
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