2 Kings 19:14-19 – “Then Hezekiah took the letter from the hand of the messengers and read it, and he went up to the house of the Lord and spread it out before the Lord. ¹⁵ Hezekiah prayed before the Lord and said, “O Lord, the God of Israel, who are enthroned above the cherubim, You are the God, You alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. ¹⁶ Incline Your ear, O Lord, and hear; open Your eyes, O Lord, and see; and listen to the words of Sennacherib, which he has sent to reproach the living God. ¹⁷ Truly, O Lord, the kings of Assyria have devastated the nations and their lands ¹⁸ and have cast their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone. So, they have destroyed them. ¹⁹ Now, O Lord our God, I pray, deliver us from his hand that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You alone, O Lord, are God.”

As I read, prayed, and pondered the Word of God today, I was inspired to pray, but not just to petition.   Sometimes we face things that far exceed our ability to handle.  We come face-to-face with the glaring reality, “I Can’t!”   In that moment, we have a life-or-death choice to make.   We can give up and surrender to the enemy.  We can wail in the despair of our hopelessness.   We can turn to our only true source of help. 

Hezekiah did the latter in 2 Kings 19:14-19.  He read Sennacherib’s threats.   He did not ignore or deny the problem.  He took to heart the validity of the enemy’s claims and threats.  That’s step one – Face the problem.

Then, he took the threats, placed them on the altar, and prayed a prayer that was like the opening statement of the plaintiff in a court of law.     In verse 16, He argued that the taunts, blasphemy, and threats were only indirectly directed at Israel, but were, in fact, taunts against The Living God!

In verses 17-18, He acknowledged that what Assyria claimed was a factual historical record.   They had done what they said and would do the same to Israel unless God intervened.

In verse 19, He made his petition – It was Help!   Sometimes the simplest prayers are the most powerful!  “God, here is the situation.   We can’t handle it – HELP!”   In verse 34, we have God’s response, I will shield you!

Hezekiah sent to Isaiah for a Word from God.   What do we do?   God’s Word came in 2 Kings 20:5 – I have heard your prayers.   (I have considered your case).  I have seen your tears. (I see your heart).  I will heal you.  (The Word heal = make complete or whole).   They did not need physical healing; they needed deliverance from an enemy far superior in power!   God said I will make you whole!

From Revelation 8:5, a challenge came to my mind.     Prayer releases the fire of God.  Hezekiah prayed, and God acted.  The Early Church prayed, and God acted.  James 5:16 – “The effectual fervent prayer of the righteous avails much.”    Let me rephrase that: “When we pray in total sincerity and honesty according to God’s Word, God moves.”   

1 John 5:14-15 should be learned as a life guide.   If we pray according to God’s will & word, He hears us.  If He hears us, we are assured our prayers are answered.   Like Hezekiah, we need to be totally honest and transparent.   We must become totally dependent on God.  We must be willing to follow His directions explicitly.  We must pray with expectation.

LORD, help us to guard against double-mindedness and live in total surrender!

2 Kings 12-1-3 – “In the seventh year of Jehu, Jehoash became king, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was Zibiah of Beersheba. ² Jehoash did right in the sight of the Lord all his days in which Jehoiada the priest instructed him. ³ Only the high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places.”

As I read, prayed, and meditated on the Word of God today, the phrase “Incomplete Obedience” reverberated inside my head and heart. This is totally unacceptable to God and leads to snares.

In 2 Kings 10:31 – “But Jehu did not carefully and wholeheartedly obey…He did not repudiate the sins which Jeroboam had encouraged Israel to commit.”  As a result, God reduced the size of Israel. Incomplete Obedience weakens us.

2 Kings 12:2-3, Jehoash did what God approved…BUT.  That’s the problem, but he failed to be complete and let idolatry continue in some areas.  As a result, the temple was in disarray, and King Hazael of Syria seized its sacred items.

2 Kings 13:14-19, Elisha gave the king a prophetic directive, which he obeyed half-heartedly. The result: Incomplete victory.   2 Kings 14:1-6, King Amaziah obeyed, but not totally.  He allowed temple worship to be mixed with idolatry. The result: they were defeated in battle.

God requires total obedience.   He expects explicit obedience.  He is gracious and patient, but we must remember that disobedience and Incomplete obedience open the door to the devil.  If we give him legal ground, he can and will do damage.   

If we want victory, we must close the door to him.  It is then that we can walk through the Open Door as John in Revelation 4:1. In Revelation 3, in the message to the church at Philadelphia, we have the promise of an open door unshuttable by man or the devil. Total victory for total obedience.

It is not a small thing to disobey. Small acts of disobedience become cumulative and large! Every act of disobedience should be followed by immediate repentance.

Let’s close the doors to the devil and receive the open doors of God! Total victory in total obedience.

1 John 2:3-6 – “By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. ⁴ The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; ⁵ but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: ⁶ the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.”

As I read, prayed, and meditated on the Word of God today, I was literally stunned by something so simple but (for me) revolutionary!  How many times have we heard the question or maybe wondered, “How can I know, For Certain, I Am Saved?”

It is more than a little prayer of confession.  It is more than church attendance.  It is more than membership or being baptized into a church. There are simple keys that reveal the truth.  Those keys do not leave loopholes or even wiggle room.  They exhibit God’s spotlight of revelation.

One of the key themes of 1 John is the answer to that question.   It begins with experiencing Jesus and embracing the Good News!   1 John 1:1 – What we have heard, seen, and touched produces fellowship with Jesus.   In verses 5-7, we come face to face with an absolute.  If we claim to be a Christian but keep living like we are not, we are not!

1 John 2:3-6 brings our question into focus: “By this we KNOW that we are IN Him.”   How?   We walk in truth, exhibiting righteousness and obedience to God. We live as Jesus lived (Love and Obedience).

The ability to live, 1 John 2:15-17, is an outflow of the previous verses about who we are.  Because of whom He is and who we are in Him, we can be and do this. Overcome the flesh. 

How can we know? 1 John 3:15-16 – we know because we love others. Unlove can be translated as a form of hate.  Hate = Death. Love = Life.  How can we know?   1 John 4:7-11 – those Fathered by God Love; those who don’t love have not been Fathered by God. Love acts.

1 John 4:15-18 – “By this love is perfected in us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment, because just as Jesus is, So Are We in this world.”   Love is demonstrated in the Christian.

How can we know?  1 John 5:1-3 – if we have been Fathered by God (born again), we love others who have been Fathered by God. We keep His Commandments; we obey Him.

How do we know?  1 John 5:13-15 – we believe, obey, love, and trust Him. The fruit and benefit are eternal life, and verses 14-15 become a constant companion.

A benefit and promise to the Believers is 1 John 5:18.  We become The Untouchables!  Simple but liberatingly powerful.

LORD, help us to know and show that we are Yours!

1 Kings 6:11-13 – “Now the word of the Lord came to Solomon saying, ¹² “Concerning this house which you are building, if you will walk in My statutes and execute My ordinances and keep all My commandments by walking in them, then I will carry out My word with you which I spoke to David your father. ¹³ I will dwell among the sons of Israel, and will not forsake My people Israel.”

As I read, prayed, and pondered the Word of God today, obedience and grace filled my thoughts.  In obedience, we have access to God. In obedience, we have the blessings of God.  In obedience, we realize the presence of God.

1 Kings 6:11-13: God spoke to Solomon regarding the temple.   If you obey (explicitly), I will fulfill My promises, and I will live among you. (The presence of obedience).

1 Peter 1:3-11 should become a dedicated study for every believer.  Through God’s Divine Power and Immeasurable Grace, we Have Been Given everything necessary for life and godliness.   That has come through the rich knowledge of Jesus. (Not knowing about Him but knowing Him.)

Through Power and Grace, we have the Promises which enable us to:

• Partake of the Divine Nature. (That deals with the sin problem).
• Deliverance from fleshly desires.
• Enables us to become.

Our assignment or responsibility is – “Make every effort to do several things.”  This all flows out of salvation faith.   Notice the progression: We add excellence (moral excellence or virtue).   To that, we add knowledge (intimacy with God).  To that we add self-control (discipline).   To that, we add perseverance.   To that we add godliness (shun the very appearance of evil). To that we add brotherly affection, unselfish love (agape).

If those are developed and increasing, we will be enabled to be effective and productive in our pursuit of knowing Jesus intimately!   But if we do not, we reveal a destructive blindness and evidence that we do not have a memorial marker reminding us of what God has done in us.  We lose sight of the Cross and grace.

If we dedicate ourselves to these things and that level of knowing, we will never stumble. (Verse 10).  This is a portal or entrance into the eternal kingdom of God, and Jesus will make the journey with us. (Verse 11).

Keeping in mind that there is an eternal judgment and reward, 2 Peter 3:11 asks, “With that in mind, How Should We Conduct Ourselves?”   God gives us a pathway to peace and His presence.   He provides a pathway to stability. Our task is to turn our whole hearts to Him. 

Jesus, I ask You to take us by the hand and lead us out of this darkness into Your marvelous light.

2 Samuel 12:7 – “Nathan then said to David, “You are the man! Thus says the Lord God of Israel, ‘It is I who anointed you king over Israel and it is I who delivered you from the hand of Saul.”

As I read, prayed, and mused on the Word of God today, my heart was awed by God’s incredible grace! I saw His desire and disdain.  I saw His keys to blessing and causes for curses.  I saw His purpose for His people and our part in participation.   It would be impossible in a short text to detail it all, so let it suffice to see some highlights, hopefully inspiring each one to dig deeper into the treasure mine of God’s grace and revelation.

In 2 Samuel 11, the tragic story of David, Bathsheba, and her husband Uriah is presented.   It is a contrast of integrity (Uriah) and lust (David).   In 2 Samuel 12:7, Nathan the prophet confronts David’s sin: “You are the man.” David repented, but verse 12 reveals God’s curse: the sword will never depart from your house.  Sin has a lasting effect even after forgiveness. (Reap what we sow).

This declaration of God bears fruit in Amnon, then in Absalom. Absalom nurtured hate for two full years, then it became murder and later rebellion!

How do we combat and guard against the power of the flesh?  One key is found in 1 Peter 1:22: we purify our souls by obeying the truth.  That requires us to actively focus on Christ and definitively take steps to rid ourselves of even the appearance of evil, reject all deceit (manipulation and misrepresentation), avoid hypocrisy (be honest about everything), guard against envy (learn contentment and be who we are), and never engage in slander.   Instead, yearn for Spiritual truth like a newborn yearns for milk.

1 Peter 3:8-9 lists life objectives in interpersonal relationships that enhance our relationship with God. Harmonious, sympathetic, affectionate, compassionate, and humble, not retaliatory.

A major key is 1 Peter 4:1 – Arm ourselves with the mind of Christ.  Think and act like Jesus!  The best way to achieve that is to never allow an instant reaction out of pride or because we think we must defend ourselves.  Stop, look, and listen – What would Jesus do?   That’s more than a catchy fad or cliché; it is a safety valve opening the door to peace and victory. Overcome by submitting ourselves to God and resisting the devil.  We can because Jesus did! Christ IN us enables us to live as overcomers!

It is a choice and a process! Make the choice!   God’s Grace is Amazing!