The Success And Failures Of King Hezekiah

THE SUCCESS AND FAILURES OF KING HEZEKIAH

11 KINGS 18:1-7

Everyone likes to read success stories. We don’t like failures. One of the greatest success and failure stories is that of the Ford Motor Company..In 1908, Model T sales were 10,000. Eight years later they were 730,000, and from 1908-1927, it was 15 million. But in 1958 their car, the Edsel was proclaimed the car of the future. Yet it was a bust, a failure. Its future was just one year.

Now in the Bible, we read stories of People who were successful like Caleb, Elijah, Joshua, and Paul. But sad to say, we also read of stories of people who in parts of their lives were failures: Solomon, Noah, and Demas.

Today we are going to look at a man’s life according to verse five, was the greatest King Judah ever had, and he was a king who was not very good in his latter end.

Let us look at Hezekiah and learn some lessons both from his success and his failure.

I-NOTICE HEZEKIAH’S SUCCESSES:

A-HE WAS SUCCESSFUL BECAUSE OF HIS DECISION: 18:2

He was made King at the age of 25. At an early age he made a decision to be a follower of the Lord, and even at a young age, he became one of the best Kings to serve.

This teaches us that God can use us while we are young:

 Joan of Arc-at the age of 19 did her greatest work.

 Martin Luther-started the Protestant movement at age of 25

 Patrick Henry-was 26 when he said, “give me liberty or give me death”

 Billy Sunday-left baseball in his early 20’s to preach the Gospel.

 Billy Graham-started in Evangelism in his early 20’s.

According to a Baptist Press release, 16 year old Jennifer Cody attended a youth camp in July 1987, sponsored by the Southern Baptists. She had missed the registration deadline at The Church on Mill in Tempe, Arizona, where she attended, but a boy canceled his and that made it possible for her to attend. She not only went to the camp, late one evening she asked Jesus Christ to come into her life as Lord and Savior. After returning home from camp, she went to Michigan to visit relatives. Then, with her mother, Susie, she boarded Northwest Airlines Flight 255 on the evening of August 16, bound for Phoenix and home. You know that story: the second worst airline accident in American history - with only one survivor, a little girl [not Jennifer]. [Plane lost power on takeoff, crashed into highway embankment.] Thank God, Jennifer had gotten saved barely a month before. And thank God for Christian camps.

B-HE WAS SUCCESSFUL BECAUSE OF HIS DOING: 18:3A - And he did

It says the King didn’t plan, he didn’t make a suggestion, but it say, “he did”.

One day a man came home from work to find total mayhem at home. The kids were outside still in their pajamas playing in the mud. There were empty food boxes and wrappers all around. Entering the house, he found an even bigger mess. Dishes on the counter, dog food spilled on the floor, a broken glass under the table, and a small pile of sand by the back door. The family room was strewn with toys and various items of clothing, and a lamp had been knocked over. He headed up the stairs, stepping over toys, to look for his wife. He was becoming worried that she may be ill, or that something had happened to her. He found her in the bedroom, still in bed with her pajamas on, reading a book. She looked up at him, smiled, and asked how his day went. He looked at her bewildered and asked, "What happened here today?"She again smiled and answered, "You know every day when you come home from work and ask me what I did today?" "Yes," he replied." She answered, "Well, today I didn’t do it!"

There are three kinds of workers. For example, when a piano is to be moved, the first kind gets behind and pushes, the second pulls and guides, and the third grabs the piano stool.

C-HE WAS SUCCESSFUL BECAUSE OF HIS DEEDS: 18:3

His deeds or what he did was right in the sight of the Lord, not in the sight of men.

What a different world you and I would live in if everyone would do what is right in the sight of the Lord.

I heard about a storeowner whose store windows were broken out by a young boy. The storeowner was very bitter and wanted to get back at him some way. The next Sunday, he went to Church and the preacher preached on “bitterness” and how we should overcome it by love. The next week, he found the boy and forgave him and paid his way to go a Christian camp where he was saved.