OPEN: A man spoke of one of the most challenging courses he’d had at his college as being a business law class in which the professor gave difficult true/false tests. "During one of the more exasperating exams, I noticed another student flipping a coin. The professor approached him. ’Son are you guessing on this test?’ he asked.
’No sir,’ replied the student. ’I’m just checking my answers.’"
APPLY: When I was in college it was a fact of life that you’d be given tests. There were essay tests, true and false tests, fill in the blank tests… and I got to the point where I knew which teachers would give what kind of tests – and I’d study accordingly.
The purpose of tests was to find out how much I (and others in class) had learned. But, for the most part, they were never fun. They were just part of college life.
Now, here we have the story of Hezekiah.
II Chronicles 32:32 tells us God put him to the test… but the closer I looked at his life, the more I realized that this was only one of many tests God had Hezekiah take.
We often get the impression that when we belong to God, the road will be smooth. Kind of like getting in our car and driving down a superhighway with no obstacles in sight. But in reality, life with God is often more like the roads we encounter around here… road work, detours, and delays that drive us to distraction. That’s because God tests us. He challenges our faith on occasion. In the same way, Hezekiah’s faith was constantly being tested and challenged.
In Deuteronomy 13 the Israelites were instructed to watch any prophet or “dreamer of dreams” very closely to make sure that such individuals would not try to lead them astray with heretical teachings. Then it says the oddest thing: “you must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer. The LORD your God is testing you to find out whether you love him with all your heart and with all your soul.” Deuteronomy 13:3
God tests His people because He loves us… and He tested Hezekiah for the same reason.
I. Now, to begin with, it’s important that we realize what kind of man Hezekiah was.
Hezekiah was an impressive leader. He was the kind of man that every leader in this church should seek to model himself after.
2 Kings 18:3 tells us “He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, just as his father David had done.” And 2 Kings 18:5 tells us “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.”
That was no small accomplishment on his part… because Hezekiah’s father Ahaz was perhaps one of the wickedest men that ever ruled Judah. II Chronicles 28:22-25 told of how King Ahaz stripped the Temple of it’s furnishings, and closed it down. Then he had altars built on every street corner in Jerusalem and on all the high places in the country. Verse 3 of the chapter tells us that he even sacrificed his sons to pagan gods.
Since his dad was inclined to sacrifice his sons to pagan idols, it’s a wonder Hezekiah survived to reign to begin with. But once his father had died and Hezekiah took the throne… he began to clean house.
For 16 days, under his directive, the Temple was cleansed and refurbished. The pagan altars and pillars were torn down and one of the relics of Israel’s past – the snake on the pole that Moses had been ordered to build – was destroyed because it had become an object of worship.
Hezekiah was indeed a righteous man, unlike many others who ruled in those days.
Why did Hezekiah do all this?
Two great influences probably shaped his life.
1. His mother (the daughter of a Levitical priest) who probably introduced him to the most influential men in his life:
2. Isaiah.
So, let’s get it clear from the beginning: Hezekiah was a Godly and admirable man. Considering the nature of the text we read this morning, you might get a different impression… but never forget, this was a man who loved God and whom God loved deeply in return.
II. Now, let’s take a look at the events that shaped Hezekiah’s reign.
No sooner do we read about his monumental cleansing of Judah’s pagan influences than a great terror begins to overshadow the nation. Sennacharib, the King of the Assyrians comes to pay a visit, and he’s not there for a social call. He’s come to take Jerusalem by force.
This was Hezekiah’s first great test. Hezekiah rebelled against the Assyrians and refused to serve them… but it wasn’t for several years that Assyria decided to punish Judah for it’s audacity.
When Sennacharib comes to visit, he’s not satisfied with simply taking his bribe and going home. He intends to make an example of Hezekiah and the city of Jerusalem. And I don’t think this was a coincidence. I believe God was setting Hezekiah up for his first test.
What catches my attention in this part of the story is how much text in Scripture is dedicated to Sennacharib’s taunting words at the walls of the city (2 Kings 18:19-35) Rarely does God’s Word give so much play to the kind of arrogance and pride.
ILLUS: I once read about the movie artistry of Alfred Hitchcock. Commenting on how he succeeded in creating suspense in his movies, he explained how he spent a great of time helping his audience to understand the power of the villain in his story… and the amount of danger the hero was in. It wasn’t enough to simply startle his viewers. They needed to be emotionally involved in what was at stake.
That’s what God is doing here. He’s setting the stage, both for Hezekiah… and for us. He wants us to understand, in no uncertain terms, that Jerusalem doesn’t stand a chance against such a powerful foe. He wants us to comprehend the danger Hezekiah faced, and the temptation to “give in” he must have considered. It was hard test, but Hezekiah passed it with flying colors. He doesn’t fold. He doesn’t give in. He doesn’t surrender. Instead, he does the most important thing he could possibly do.
2 Kings 19:1 tells us “When King Hezekiah heard this, he tore his clothes and put on sackcloth and went into the temple of the LORD.” Then he sends word to Isaiah to plead with God on Jerusalem’s behalf.
The result: God stepped in and the Assyrians were crushed in one night by the power of a single angel. 185,000 of their soldiers die, and the might of Sennacharib returns home with its tail between its legs.
III. Test #2 comes some time later.
II Kings 20 begins by telling us:
“In those days Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz went to him and said, ‘This is what the LORD says: Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover.’” 2 Kings 20:1
Now I find this a bit odd. No other person that I can think of, in all of Scripture, was ever told when they were going to die. But God takes a special effort to have Isaiah go pay the King a visit. Again, I don’t believe this was simply a social call. I believe God was putting Hezekiah to the test again. And again, Hezekiah passed with flying colors. The test drove him to pray as he may never have prayed before.
“Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the LORD, ‘Remember, O LORD, how I have walked before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion and have done what is good in your eyes.’ And Hezekiah wept bitterly.” 2 Kings 20:2-3
Isaiah is barely out the door of the palace when God tells him to turn around and inform the King that he will live another 15 years.
IV. Now, in our passage this morning (II Chronicles 32) we find that God is testing Hezekiah one more time… but this time, the test is more serious.
2 Chronicles 32:31 says “But when envoys were sent by the rulers of Babylon to ask him about the miraculous sign that had occurred in the land, God left him to TEST HIM and to know everything that was in his heart.”
ILLUS: The purpose of tests is to show the instructor what the student has learned. But in this case, the instructor is God… He already knows what is in our hearts. Thus, His tests are different because they are intended to help us know where we are in our walk with God. They are a teaching tool from God to shape our personality.
Now, we need to understand that every believer is going to go through these tests. God cares enough for our personal walk with Him that, periodically, these tests are going to challenge us. And how we respond to the challenge determines whether we pass or fail.
Sometimes we fail. Sometimes we make the wrong decisions. Take heart, many of God’s people have made bad decisions and fallen short on their test. An excellent example is Abraham.
ILLUS: Abraham is spoken of as the Great Man of Faith. He is the Father of those who show faith in their lives. But Abraham didn’t always come off that way.
For example, when he and his wife went down to Egypt, it was common knowledge that the King there liked pretty women and wasn’t always particular about whether they were married or not. If he liked the woman, the husband often died unexpectantly.
Sarah was a pretty woman and Abraham began to worry. So he told his wife to say that she was his sister. (pause) Where was his faith? Why did Abe decide to depend upon deception to protect himself? Because God was testing him… and he failed.
That’s why, a few years later, Abraham finds himself in a similar situation in Gerar. Again, Abraham tells his wife to say she’s his sister. Again, he failed the test.
Several times throughout his life, Abraham made bad decisions, and failed several tests. But ultimately, he passed the test on Mt. Moriah when he was asked by God to sacrifice Isaac.
Failing God’s tests are rarely fatal. God simply brings along another test to challenge our faith and nudge us closer to trusting Him.
What’s remarkable about Hezekiah is that he has passed every test God has put before him. He is indeed a Godly man… but toward the end of his reign, Hezekiah became impressed with himself. He became proud. And Scripture says that “God LEFT HIM to TEST HIM”
Hmmm. That’s a bit odd. God left him? Why would He do that?
Well, as James 4:6b says “…God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”
ILLUS: In a church, God tells us that certain people need to be disciplined. If their sin is blatant and obvious enough, unrepentant sinners are to be “cut off” – removed from the fellowship.
What is the purpose of such an action? To bring the sinful person to repentance. The removing of fellowship is intended to discipline the wayward by taking away the comfort of their friendships in the congregation. It’s intended to create a loneliness and emptiness that shocks the system and wakes the sinner up to the effects of their sin.
That’s why Scripture says, “God left him”. God wanted to shock Hezekiah into understanding the gravity of his sin. Many of us have felt the odd feeling of not being able to sense God’s presence. To feel as if there’s a wall between Him and us… and I know that this has often forced me to my knees and has increased the intensity of my prayers.
That was the objective for God as well. And it was effective.
2 Chronicles 32:26 says “Then Hezekiah repented of the pride of his heart, as did the people of Jerusalem; therefore the LORD’s wrath did not come upon them during the days of Hezekiah.”
CLOSE: Tests are one of God’s tools to shape our faith and challenge our tendency to just “get by” in our walk with Him. These tests are not a rejection of our love and faith, but instead a way to help us know how much He really does love and care for us.
Intriguingly, the word “Testimony” begins with the word for “Test.” I don’t believe that’s accidental. Our testimonies are often the result of our having gone thru difficult times that have “tested” our faith and our trust in God. What makes testimonies so powerful is that they often reflect – not only that we passed the test – but that God showed His love and His mercy in the midst of the storm.
As Joyce C. Lock once said: “Today’s Difficulties are Tomorrow’s Testimonies.”
