“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. He held fast to the Lord and did not cease to follow Him; he kept the commands the Lord had given Moses” (II Kings 18:5, 6).
What a commitment to God! Hezekiah was a godly man indeed! He set out to please the Lord by giving God his unwavering allegiance and trust. The testimony of the author of Scripture is even more significant when we realize the historical setting during the time of Hezekiah: apostasy, idolatry, and the rebellion of the nation of Judah and their northern counterpart the nation of Israel were the norm. During Hezekiah’s reign, Israel is taken captive by the Assyrians. This incident occurs in the same chapter which describes Hezekiah’s holiness: “This happened because they had not obeyed the Lord their God, but had violated His covenant—all that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded. They neither listened to the commands nor carried them out” (II Kings 18:12).
What a contrast! We often think that those “old time saints” didn’t have to deal with the pressures we deal with today in order to live holy lives—but that just isn’t true! Hezekiah was a leader. With tremendous courage, he not only stated his allegiance to Jehovah but was extremely “politically incorrect” and ‘”narrow” in his beliefs! He destroyed all the deviant gods and forms of worship that were not right nor ordered by God which had been worshiped and tolerated for generations! The Scriptures state that he not only took drastic action because of his faith, but he “held fast” and “did not cease to follow” – those two statements expose a resiliency which is very drastically needed today.
God noticed the faith and actions of Hezekiah and greatly blessed him for it. “And the Lord was with him, he was successful in whatever he undertook” (II Kings 18:7). So, it should be said of us today: we are greatly blessed because of our steadfast and resilient faith and resulting actions for God.
ACTION POINT:
Where is God asking you to take a stand or a drastic action contrary to the world’s pressure around you? Ask God to help you to be a “Holy Hezekiah” in this generation and to those around you.
