How strong is your faith? Do you have the kind of faith that can cast out demons or move mountains? In Mark 9, Jesus cast a demon out of a demon after the disciples had been unable to do so (verses 28-29). In Matthew 17:20-21, Jesus tells the disciples that even with faith the size of a mustard seed we could move mountains! I use these examples to show that are clearly different levels and strengths of faith. Given this sort of power, it's difficult to hide it (though many Christians do). Our faith flows out into actions and deeds done for the glory of God. James 2:17 states "In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.
So let's take a look at how faithful people follow God and see where we are measuring up.
1. Faithful people follow.
- Ahaz served as king for 16 years and had not been a godly leader. "Unlike David his father, he did not do what was right in the eyes of the Lord" (2Chronicles28:1). The people of Jerusalem had been living with a king who was bringing them to destruction with much turmoil in the land. It had to be difficult for them to believe in Hezekiah when he became king at 25 years old, but they were faithful and followed him because "he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father David had done"(v2). The first major thing he did after becoming king was opened the doors to the temple of the Lord (v3). In scripture, our bodies are referred to as "temples of the Lord" and we are called to a life of holiness and purity. Have we shut the doors to our temple and want to worship our way and not God's way? We are called to do like Hezekiah and open the doors to our temple and allow the chosen people of God (pastors, Sunday school teachers, Christian mentors) to minister to us through God's will, not our own. They are seeking his vision for themselves, their churches, and their communities. We are called to be faithful followers.
2. Faithful people renew.
- Hezekiah told the people to consecrate themselves and then consecrate the temple (v5). They were to remove all defilement and negative things from their own lives and then from the temple. Removing ungodly things from our lives such as greed, temptation, other sin helps us stay on a closer path and in a closer relationship with Christ. He started with the priests first before the rest of the members of the community. Sometimes we each need a reminder and an encouragement that we have all been given the command in the new testament to go out and reach others for Jesus Christ making us all priests. So jump back into the Word and into church today to renew your spirit.
3. Faithful people bring.
- In order to purify the temple, the people first had to bring everything inside the temple out into the courtyard (v16). We cannot grow the church without first getting anything that is "unclean" out of the church: that means personal desires that are not in line with God's will, things that become idols or other distractions to worship. Typically in our lives we try cleaning from the outside in when we really need to clean ourselves up from the inside out.
- Hezekiah ordered the people to in Jerusalem to bring the portion due to the priests (ch31 v4). The people did not hesitate to respond. As soon as the order was given they began bringing in the first fruits of everything. They began piling all that was being brought as a tithe into heaps and when Hezekiah saw all that was coming in he praised the Lord (v5-8). Are we giving to God his tithe off the top, from our first fruits? Are we remembering that everything we have is from him anyway? If not, then I would encourage to begin tithing as part of your worship and allow God to provide for you from there.
4. Faithful people bow.
- We should be happy and excited at church on Sundays, Wednesdays, or any other day we meet but so often we treat church worship services like a strict, uptight, time of stern silence. We should be in church upbeat, smiling, and having fun. Otherwise, why would anyone want to come to church to see a bunch of people sit around inside listening to music? In 2 Chronicles 29:28 it says "The whole assemble bowed in worship, while the singers sang and the trumpets played." I do believe in being reverent in church but as faithful Christians, we need to ensure that we are reverent and happy instead of seeming so gloomy all the time. One day, we will all bow before our Lord.
5. Faithful people rejoice.
- Hezekiah and all the people rejoiced at what God had done (v36). God had turned the people away from their sin miraculously fast thru Hezekiah's faithfulness. It took a strong leader with a focus on Christ to get the people of that time back on track. Wow how much better would America be if we had more Hezekiah's in places of political power and influence! Look at the unity they had, Hezekiah and ALL the people rejoiced, not some, not the people who liked him, but ALL. God provides for us more than we can imagine when we are faithful to Him.
- Our intentional efforts at worship lead to spontaneous acts of worship. I'm sure that when Hezekiah became king he didn't plan this celebration then, it came about because of God's work among the people and them doing what they were supposed to be doing all along. Wonder if we stay rooted daily in prayer and studying God's word how much more often we'll feel like worshipping or telling someone about what Jesus has done in our lives.
When people see you in your daily walk, can they tell how strong your faith is? Are you being faithful to God? Your family? Your church? After hearing a sermon on this topic the other day I am trying to really look at my life at each area of faith in those three categories. Unfortunately, I don't measure up in all areas and need some renewing at times to keep me on track and excited about what God is doing in my family, church, and community.
So let's take a look at how faithful people follow God and see where we are measuring up.
1. Faithful people follow.
- Ahaz served as king for 16 years and had not been a godly leader. "Unlike David his father, he did not do what was right in the eyes of the Lord" (2Chronicles28:1). The people of Jerusalem had been living with a king who was bringing them to destruction with much turmoil in the land. It had to be difficult for them to believe in Hezekiah when he became king at 25 years old, but they were faithful and followed him because "he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father David had done"(v2). The first major thing he did after becoming king was opened the doors to the temple of the Lord (v3). In scripture, our bodies are referred to as "temples of the Lord" and we are called to a life of holiness and purity. Have we shut the doors to our temple and want to worship our way and not God's way? We are called to do like Hezekiah and open the doors to our temple and allow the chosen people of God (pastors, Sunday school teachers, Christian mentors) to minister to us through God's will, not our own. They are seeking his vision for themselves, their churches, and their communities. We are called to be faithful followers.
2. Faithful people renew.
- Hezekiah told the people to consecrate themselves and then consecrate the temple (v5). They were to remove all defilement and negative things from their own lives and then from the temple. Removing ungodly things from our lives such as greed, temptation, other sin helps us stay on a closer path and in a closer relationship with Christ. He started with the priests first before the rest of the members of the community. Sometimes we each need a reminder and an encouragement that we have all been given the command in the new testament to go out and reach others for Jesus Christ making us all priests. So jump back into the Word and into church today to renew your spirit.
3. Faithful people bring.
- In order to purify the temple, the people first had to bring everything inside the temple out into the courtyard (v16). We cannot grow the church without first getting anything that is "unclean" out of the church: that means personal desires that are not in line with God's will, things that become idols or other distractions to worship. Typically in our lives we try cleaning from the outside in when we really need to clean ourselves up from the inside out.
- Hezekiah ordered the people to in Jerusalem to bring the portion due to the priests (ch31 v4). The people did not hesitate to respond. As soon as the order was given they began bringing in the first fruits of everything. They began piling all that was being brought as a tithe into heaps and when Hezekiah saw all that was coming in he praised the Lord (v5-8). Are we giving to God his tithe off the top, from our first fruits? Are we remembering that everything we have is from him anyway? If not, then I would encourage to begin tithing as part of your worship and allow God to provide for you from there.
4. Faithful people bow.
- We should be happy and excited at church on Sundays, Wednesdays, or any other day we meet but so often we treat church worship services like a strict, uptight, time of stern silence. We should be in church upbeat, smiling, and having fun. Otherwise, why would anyone want to come to church to see a bunch of people sit around inside listening to music? In 2 Chronicles 29:28 it says "The whole assemble bowed in worship, while the singers sang and the trumpets played." I do believe in being reverent in church but as faithful Christians, we need to ensure that we are reverent and happy instead of seeming so gloomy all the time. One day, we will all bow before our Lord.
5. Faithful people rejoice.
- Hezekiah and all the people rejoiced at what God had done (v36). God had turned the people away from their sin miraculously fast thru Hezekiah's faithfulness. It took a strong leader with a focus on Christ to get the people of that time back on track. Wow how much better would America be if we had more Hezekiah's in places of political power and influence! Look at the unity they had, Hezekiah and ALL the people rejoiced, not some, not the people who liked him, but ALL. God provides for us more than we can imagine when we are faithful to Him.
- Our intentional efforts at worship lead to spontaneous acts of worship. I'm sure that when Hezekiah became king he didn't plan this celebration then, it came about because of God's work among the people and them doing what they were supposed to be doing all along. Wonder if we stay rooted daily in prayer and studying God's word how much more often we'll feel like worshipping or telling someone about what Jesus has done in our lives.
When people see you in your daily walk, can they tell how strong your faith is? Are you being faithful to God? Your family? Your church? After hearing a sermon on this topic the other day I am trying to really look at my life at each area of faith in those three categories. Unfortunately, I don't measure up in all areas and need some renewing at times to keep me on track and excited about what God is doing in my family, church, and community.
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