II Chronicles 32:8, “With him is an arm of flesh; but with us is the Lord our God to help us, and to fight our battles. And the people rested themselves upon the words of Hezekiah king of Judah.”
What you do with the Word of God will determine what God does with you. If you set your Bible on the shelf to collect dust, you will be set on the shelf rather than used. But if you pay attention to, value, and use the Word of God, you will most likely be used in some manner by God Himself. II Chronicles describes Sennacherib as the Adolf Hitler of his generation, who took away their economic resources and their freedom. During this oppression, King Hezekiah comforted them with these words: “There be more with us than with him” (II Chr. 32:7.) Hezekiah had a confidence that did not come from self or from evaluation; it came from God Himself. Notice three basic steps to prepare for resting on the Kings words:
It began by research and reception. How did King Hezekiah know that God would deliver them? He took personal initiative to find out what God had said and then communicated that to the people. Before we can rest on the words of the King, we must diligently seek out God’s mind on the issues we face in life. He will lead you to a promise, a precept, a principle, or a personal example to help you to overcome your Sennacherib! “Seek ye out of the book of the Lord and read: no one of these shall fail” (Isaiah 34:16.)
They returned to the Lord and repaired their relationship with Him. They returned to the Lord, and priority was immediately placed on repairing the place where they were to worship before the Lord: the house of God. We are the house of the Lord, yet many members find themselves in desperate need of repair. Are you a vital part of the body, or are you a lifeless limb? Do you come to get and receive or to give and repair? Rest on the words of the King, and allow Him to make you complete for service “thoroughly furnished unto all good works” (II Timothy 3:17.)
They repented and restored worship and service. They returned to worship in the house of the Lord and were brought back to their original practice of seeking God. This repentance helped the tribe of Judah to avoid extermination by the enemy. When we respond properly to the Sennacherib in our life, we should resume our worship of God and wholehearted service to Him. If we will submit ourselves to God’s commands, we too can be protected from the enemy. “Submit yourselves therefore to God; resist the devil, and he will flee from you”(James 4:7.) We can rest upon the words of this promise from our King! Are you submitted?
We have the rock solid truth of a God Who is authentic, Who cannot lie, and Who is as faithful as the words He has spoken. When you read His promises, be assured that you can rest assured on the words of the King! We become restless when we fail to rest upon the words of the King, and weakness is always the result. We should read the word of God (Rev. 1:3.) We should study the word of God (II Tim. 2:15.) We should be examples of people who search out and lean on the promises of God as found in his word. Does your example inspire people to believe in God and rest upon the faithfulness of His promises?
– Dr. Paul Kingsbury
