THERE WILL BE PEACE AND SECURITY IN MY DAYS Part III

III. THERE WILL BE PEACE AND SECURITY IN MY DAYS

This selfish response captures the tragedy of a Hezekiah figure. He was willing to sacrifice the future of his children for the pleasure of a moment. The cause of the exile and loss of Jerusalem, this preacher concedes, is complex. But for this text, however, it is clear that the primary cause for Judah’s destruction lies with Hezekiah’s cavalier cooperation with evil superpowers. Hezekiah forgot, for a moment, in whom he trusted, in whom he believed, in what he hoped, and upon whom he counted. He forgot everything in his eagerness to purchase his own desperate years of peace and power. Hezekiah is a study of a state of mind that resists change, fights against progress, for the sake of complacency. The Hezekiah attitude can kill a nation . . . or a church.

Our 1994 budget, on which you will vote next Sunday, is no wimpish budget. Your Session is bold in its assertion of God’s provision and miraculous power–after, this budget assumes a $20,000 deposit. The king preferred military alliances to the slow, hard gift of peace given by God in the midst of risk. Real victory will not come quickly–it is a long term gift from God, and admits of no quick fix. Likewise, your session was willing to take a chance for our future generation rather than watch us slowly die.

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