Huldah Prophesies Disaster

 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

2 Chronicles 34:22-33

 

September 25, 2023

 

Huldah Prophesies Disaster

So Hilkiah and those whom the king had sent went to Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tokhath, son of Hasrah, keeper of the wardrobe (now she lived in Jerusalem in the Second Quarter) and spoke to her to that effect.  And she said to them, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ‘Tell the man who sent you to me, Thus says the Lord, Behold, I will bring disaster upon this place and upon its inhabitants, all the curses that are written in the book that was read before the king of Judah.  Because they have forsaken me and have made offerings to other gods, that they might provoke me to anger with all the works of their hands, therefore my wrath will be poured out on this place and will not be quenched.  But to the king of Judah, who sent you to inquire of the Lord, thus shall you say to him, Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Regarding the words that you have heard, because your heart was tender and you humbled yourself before God when you heard his words against this place and its inhabitants, and you have humbled yourself before me and have torn your clothes and wept before me, I also have heard you, declares the Lord.  Behold, I will gather you to your fathers, and you shall be gathered to your grave in peace, and your eyes shall not see all the disaster that I will bring upon this place and its inhabitants.’” And they brought back word to the king.

Then the king sent and gathered together all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem.  And the king went up to the house of the Lord, with all the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and the priests and the Levites, all the people both great and small. And he read in their hearing all the words of the Book of the Covenant that had been found in the house of the Lord.  And the king stood in his place and made a covenant before the Lord, to walk after the Lord and to keep his commandments and his testimonies and his statutes, with all his heart and all his soul, to perform the words of the covenant that were written in this book.  Then he made all who were present in Jerusalem and in Benjamin join in it. And the inhabitants of Jerusalem did according to the covenant of God, the God of their fathers.  And Josiah took away all the abominations from all the territory that belonged to the people of Israel and made all who were present in Israel serve the Lord their God. All his days they did not turn away from following the Lord, the God of their fathers.

Can you envision a leader of any of the powerful nations sending anyone to enquire of God?  Have you as a follower of Christ sought the heart of God, have you a tender heart to God’s desires, and have you humbled your heart before our Lord?  Do you understand each of us who are in Christ, no matter our social standing, or color of skin, are referred to as priests to our God?  Revelation 1:4-6 

“Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth.  To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.”

 

 

Now a word to the wise, the King of Kings and Lord of lords has given you and I the title of priest to our God and Father.  Would we be wise to do as the eight-year-old king, Josiah who looked to God and destroyed the little gods his dad had worshiped?  And when the Law of God was found 18 years into his being king, he humbled himself before God and had a tender heart for His God.

 

When the word came to Josiah from the Huldah the prophetess, he took action and called the leaders, and the people great and small to the house of God and read the word of God to them.  He then enters into a covenant with God and the people.

 

As priest before our God are you tender in heart to his ways, are you asking for discernment and wisdom in your walk before those whom you encounter, and those in your circle of influence?  I have examined myself in this area and was found needed.

 

From the Back Porch,

 

Bob Rice

The Book of the Law Found

 

 

 

2 Chronicles 34:8-21

 

September 24, 2023

 

The Book of the Law Found

Now in the eighteenth year of his reign, when he had cleansed the land and the house, he sent Shaphan the son of Azaliah, and Maaseiah the governor of the city, and Joah the son of Joahaz, the recorder, to repair the house of the Lord his God.  They came to Hilkiah the high priest and gave him the money that had been brought into the house of God, which the Levites, the keepers of the threshold, had collected from Manasseh and Ephraim and from all the remnant of Israel and from all Judah and Benjamin and from the inhabitants of Jerusalem.  And they gave it to the workmen who were working in the house of the Lord. And the workmen who were working in the house of the Lord gave it for repairing and restoring the house.  They gave it to the carpenters and the builders to buy quarried stone, and timber for binders and beams for the buildings that the kings of Judah had let go to ruin.  And the men did the work faithfully. Over them were set Jahath and Obadiah the Levites, of the sons of Merari, and Zechariah and Meshullam, of the sons of the Kohathites, to have oversight. The Levites, all who were skillful with instruments of music, were over the burden-bearers and directed all who did work in every kind of service, and some of the Levites were scribes and officials and gatekeepers.

While they were bringing out the money that had been brought into the house of the Lord, Hilkiah the priest found the Book of the Law of the Lord given through Moses.  Then Hilkiah answered and said to Shaphan the secretary, “I have found the Book of the Law in the house of the Lord.” And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan.  Shaphan brought the book to the king, and further reported to the king, “All that was committed to your servants they are doing.  They have emptied out the money that was found in the house of the Lord and have given it into the hand of the overseers and the workmen.”  Then Shaphan the secretary told the king, “Hilkiah the priest has given me a book.” And Shaphan read from it before the king.

And when the king heard the words of the Law, he tore his clothes.  And the king commanded Hilkiah, Ahikam the son of Shaphan, Abdon the son of Micah, Shaphan the secretary, and Asaiah the king's servant, saying, “Go, inquire of the Lord for me and for those who are left in Israel and in Judah, concerning the words of the book that has been found. For great is the wrath of the Lord that is poured out on us, because our fathers have not kept the word of the Lord, to do according to all that is written in this book.”

 

And that reminds me of Ken Ryan, my second mentor's words; Bob do you believe what we just read from God’s Word?  And my answer was a quick yes.  Ken would reply that not true, if you believe it, you would obey and do what it says.

 

Today's Church has not lost the Word of God, but many have ignored or not been compliant.  Jan and I were in Vienna, Austria, Valinda & Mark Kimmel, and Val, wanted to take us into Czechoslovakia, to see what living behind the Iron Curtain was like.  As she drove Jan and their two children were in the back seat with Jan and Valinda said children, I ask you not to do whatever they were doing.  Then she said we have taught you that obedience is obeying the first time you are told, and The Spirit of God said to me, Bob did you hear that, you need to do so.

 

That is a message the Church needs to hear, anything short of that is disobedience.  I often ask myself this question: What if, I did so, what if all that were followers of Christ did so?  How would the righteous Right Hand of our Lord change our Nation?  All I know is history and God’s written word tell us that obedience brings blessings, and disobedience brings about many troubles.

 

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Josiah Reigns in Judah

  

2 Chronicles 34:1-7

 

September 23, 2023

 

Josiah Reigns in Judah

 

Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned thirty-one years in Jerusalem.  And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, and walked in the ways of David his father, and he did not turn aside to the right hand or to the left.  For in the eighth year of his reign, while he was yet a boy, he began to seek the God of David his father, and in the twelfth year, he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem of the high places, the Asherim, and the carved and the metal images.  And they chopped down the altars of the Baals in his presence, and he cut down the incense altars that stood above them. And he broke in pieces the Asherim and the carved and the metal images, and he made dust of them and scattered it over the graves of those who had sacrificed to them.  He also burned the bones of the priests on their altars and cleansed Judah and Jerusalem.  And in the cities of Manasseh, Ephraim, and Simeon, and as far as Naphtali, in their ruins all around,  he broke down the altars and beat the Asherim and the images into powder and cut down all the incense altars throughout all the land of Israel. Then he returned to Jerusalem.

 

What a lesson for each of us to grasp.  Josiah, dad was wicked but his son chose at a very early age, to model a man who was very different than his dad.  Yes, he modeled the life of a great King, a man God called a man after His own heart.  I have been so blessed to have men like David in my life, my dad was such a man, and after him, God has sent me many men to guide me in the ways of God.  A few have been my pastors, but most have been businessmen who had a heart to invest in men.  They have been older and younger, men of valor.

 

How different would our world look if men who knew God, would invest in young men who the world has given up on?

 

From the Back Porch,

 

Bob Rice

Return to the Lord

 

 

Joel 2:12-17

 

July 28, 2024

 

Return to the Lord

“Yet even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart,
with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; and rend your hearts and not your garments.”  Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster.  Who knows whether he will not turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind him, a grain offering and a drink offering for the Lord your God?  Blow the trumpet in Zion; consecrate a fast; call a solemn assembly; gather the people.  Consecrate the congregation; assemble the elders; gather the children, even nursing infants.  Let the bridegroom leave his room, and the bride her chamber.   Between the vestibule and the altar let the priests, the ministers of the Lord, weep and say, “Spare your people, O Lord, and make not your heritage a reproach, a byword among the nations. Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?’”

You may be wondering why God's wrath was on them, Jeremiah 3:10-11, gives this insight;  ^“Yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah did not return to me with her whole heart, but in pretense, declares the Lord.”  And the Lord said to me, “Faithless Israel has shown herself more righteous than treacherous Judah.”

Ponder on this, yes, give great thought to where this thought is coming from.  It is the Lord calling His people back to fellowship, to act like people who are loved by the Most High God.  They had chased after the little gods, that could not see or hear, and had brought judgment on themselves.  Big on pretense, but not on trust and faith.

 

God is making it clear it is a heart problem, not a religious act that will bring them back into fellowship with the Lord.  As I read this my thoughts when to my nation, it has moved from “In God we Trust” to in the money, wealth, health, government, in stuff, we trust. 

 

I believe God saved President Trump's life; I also believe what is in yellow above is God calling the United States to return to Him.  We are not His chosen, but the Church, those few who by faith have asked Jesus to forgive them, to be the only authority in their lives, and to seek fellowship with Him. They are His children!

 

May I share a big problem the Church has they want a God like a granddad who overlooks their sins and just shows them mercy and grace, but that is not the God of the Bible.  My prayer is that the True Church wakes up rends their hearts, and seeks His face, not His hand.

 

From the Back Porch,

 

Bob Rice

 

Note: If you have been putting your hope in anyone but God, you are going in the wrong direction.  We have been invaded by young men from nations that hate us by the thousands, they are all of military age.  They are not here for good, the jails of many nations have sent their murderers and criminals by the hundreds, and we are experiencing rape and murders.  Many of you have been alarmed, but have you talked to the Lord, and asked Him to expose them to the Truth, Jesus is the only Truth, all men are liars.

 

It all hinges on will you the Church repent, for the wrath of God is at our doorstep.  A Word to the Wise is Sufficiency.  

 

I will end this paper with a word from Blaise Pascal, “There are only two kinds of men: the righteous who think they are sinners and the sinners who think they are righteous.”  And this; “In faith, there is enough light for those who want to believe and enough shadows to blind those who don't.”

A confused girl

 

Lord, raise me up, for I am Down

Feeling sorry for myself

I am lost – please make me found

I am praying for your help.

 

I’ve traveled the valley of shadow and death

And I stopped there once for a while

For in myself what was left

But an artificial smile.

 

I was nothing true to anyone

I was nothing real – you see

And being this just wasn’t fun

Least of all to me.

 

I didn’t want to follow

I thought that I was strong

But I found my soul hollow

My ideas are so very wrong.

 

Only you can raise me up

If Lord, it be your will

For I have fallen into a rut

And I am in it still.

 

Sometimes I rise from this depression

But now and then I sink

My future is regression

When I begin to think.

 

Lord, you are my Sheppard

And all I want is a soul completely free

From times in the past that continue to haunt

A confused girl – this is me.

 

Linda S. Connaway

November 27, 1969

 

Amon's Reign and Death

 

 

2 Chronicles 33:21-25

 

September 22, 2023

 

Amon's Reign and Death

Amon was twenty-two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned two years in Jerusalem.  And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, as Manasseh his father had done. Amon sacrificed to all the images that Manasseh his father had made, and served them. And he did not humble himself before the Lord, as Manasseh his father had humbled himself, but this Amon incurred guilt more and more.  And his servants conspired against him and put him to death in his house.  But the people of the land struck down all those who had conspired against King Amon. And the people of the land made Josiah his son king in his place.

Amon and many today do as they desire, yet this young man had to witness the change in his dad and how he quit worshiping anything but God.  Amon may not have noticed by his servants sure had and they did not what to see their nation go down that path again, so they conspired against him and killed him.

And I’m sure they thought they had done a good thing, but the people hunted them down and killed them, and made his son Josiah.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Manasseh's Repentance

 

2 Chronicles 33:10-20

 

September 21, 2023

 

Manasseh's Repentance

The Lord spoke to Manasseh and to his people, but they paid no attention.  Therefore, the Lord brought upon them the commanders of the army of the king of Assyria, who captured Manasseh with hooks and bound him with chains of bronze, and brought him to Babylon.  And when he was in distress, he entreated the favor of the Lord his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers.  He prayed to him, and God was moved by his entreaty and heard his plea, and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the Lord was God.

 

Church, this is a very clear picture of a man who humbled himself before a holy God.  But my do as Manasseh’s, and the people of Judah?

 

Afterward, he built an outer wall for the city of David west of Gihon, in the valley, and for the entrance into the Fish Gate, and carried it around Ophel, and raised it to a very great height. He also put commanders of the army in all the fortified cities in Judah.  And he took away the foreign gods and the idol from the house of the Lord and all the altars that he had built on the mountain of the house of the Lord and in Jerusalem, and he threw them outside of the city.  He also restored the altar of the Lord and offered on it sacrifices of peace offerings and of thanksgiving, and he commanded Judah to serve the Lord, the God of Israel.  Nevertheless, the people still sacrificed at the high places, but only to the Lord their God.

Now the rest of the acts of Manasseh, and his prayer to his God, and the words of the seers who spoke to him in the name of the Lord, the God of Israel, behold, they are in the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.  And his prayer, and how God was moved by his entreaty, and all his sin and his faithlessness, and the sites on which he built high places and set up the Asherim and the images, before he humbled himself, behold, they are written in the Chronicles of the Seers. So, Manasseh slept with his fathers, and they buried him in his house, and Amon his son reigned in his place.

 

Have you ever said that a person is not redeemable, My bride has often said Bob as long as they have breath, they are redeemable, and Manasseh is a great example of God’s mercy, forgiveness, and grace.

 

Church, what if we the Church, believe how fond God is of His Church, and that is you, if enter by the right door? Isaiah 62:3, “The Lord will hold you in His hand for all to see a splendid crown in the hand of God.”  What about Psalm 37:5, “Commit your future to the Lord.  Trust in Him, and He will act on your behalf.”  We the Church have been told by many teachers and preachers, that we are dirty rotten sinners, but that is not close to who you are in Christ.  Yes, you are a saint who sins, but it should break your heart when it comes to your mind.  So as a saint, not because of some great act but because God’s Word says you are, be a good neighbor to all, show mercy, for it has been shown to you, and tell God often thinks for His many blessings.

 

From The Back Porch,

Bob Rice

 

 

 

 

 

Manasseh Reigns in Judah

2 Chronicles 33:1-9

 

September 19, 2023

 

Manasseh Reigns in Judah

 Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-five years in Jerusalem.  And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to the abominations of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel.  For he rebuilt the high places that his father Hezekiah had broken down, and he erected altars to the Baals and made Asheroth, and worshiped all the host of heaven and served them.  And he built altars in the house of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, “In Jerusalem shall my name be forever.”  And he built altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the Lord.  And he burned his sons as an offering in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom and used fortune-telling and omens and sorcery, and dealt with mediums and with necromancers. He did much evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking him to anger.  And the carved image of the idol that he had made he set in the house of God, of which God said to David and to Solomon his son, “In this house, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, I will put my name forever, and I will no more remove the foot of Israel from the land that I appointed for your fathers if only they will be careful to do all that I have commanded them, all the law, the statutes, and the rules given through Moses.”  Manasseh led Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem astray, to do more evil than the nations whom the Lord destroyed before the people of Israel.

 

How can a son go so far from His dad, easily when the dad is too busy with his own agenda and does not spend time training his children in the ways of God?  This is a guess on my part, but can you imagine growing up as a son of Hezekiah?  He is the king and God has blessed him with wealth and wisdom, and he is a very busy man, running the kingdom, building so many things, and being honored by not only his people but those who fear him.

 

More than likely Dad is not at many of your spear-throwing events, he not giving you the time any son needs with his dad.   But that does not mean you do not have anything you want, and it became easy to do as you please with no need of God, for you are the son of a powerful and wealthy king.

 

One might say that Hezekiah forgot the most important thing of his responsibility as a dad, to bring up his children in the way that should go and when they are old they will not depart from it.  He did not teach Manasseh to fear and honor God.  Being a dad is a lot greater than being a good provider.

 

From the Back Porch

Bob Rice

 

Latter Days of Hezekiah's Life

                                                               2 Chronicles 32:27-33

 

September 18, 2023

 

Latter Days of Hezekiah's Life

And Hezekiah had very great riches and honor, and he made for himself treasuries for silver, for gold, for precious stones, for spices, for shields, and for all kinds of costly vessels; storehouses also for the yield of grain, wine, and oil; and stalls for all kinds of cattle and sheepfolds.  He likewise provided cities for himself, and flocks and herds in abundance, for God had given him very great possessions.  This same Hezekiah closed the upper outlet of the waters of Gihon and directed them down to the west side of the city of David. And Hezekiah prospered in all his works.  And so, in the matter of the envoys of the princes of Babylon, who had been sent to him to inquire about the sign that had been done in the land, God left him to himself, in order to test him and to know all that was in his heart.

Now the rest of the acts of Hezekiah and his good deeds, behold, they are written in the vision of Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, in the Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel.  And Hezekiah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the upper part of the tombs of the sons of David, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem did him honor at his death. And Manasseh his son reigned in his place.

If you have not spent time in Proverbs 30, I suggest doing so.  
And spend time on verses 7,8,9, “Two things I ask of you; deny them not to me before I die:  Remove far from me falsehood and lying; give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food that is needful for me, lest I be full and deny you and say, “Who is the Lord?” or lest I be poor and steal and profane the name of my God.”

 

As a young believer who was married when I read those words, I reread them and have many times since, but each time I’ve thanked God for honoring the prayer of a young believer who said that going to be my prayer.  Few men in history could handle great wealth and be under the authority of our God. 

 

Often, we forget that God is all-knowing, so when you read a verse like this do not come away with the wrong understanding, God knew what was in Hezekiah's heart, but He wanted Hezekiah to see what was in his heart.  God left him to himself, in order to test him and to know all that was in his heart.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

 

The Lord Delivers Jerusalem

 

2 Chronicles 32: 20-29

 

September 16, 2023

 

The Lord Delivers Jerusalem

Then Hezekiah the king and Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, prayed because of this and cried to heaven.  And the Lord sent an angel, who cut off all the mighty warriors and commanders and officers in the camp of the king of Assyria. So, he returned with shame of face to his own land. And when he came into the house of his god, some of his own sons struck him down there with the sword.  So, the Lord saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib king of Assyria, and from the hand of all his enemies, and he provided for them on every side.  And many brought gifts to the Lord to Jerusalem and precious things to Hezekiah king of Judah, so that he was exalted in the sight of all nations from that time onward.

When one thinks, they are bigger than our God, it only takes one angel sent by God with God’s authority to handle a vast army.  Do you recall that Jesus could have called 10,000 angels, but He loved you too much to do so, and took your place on the cross and God’s full wrath for your sins and mine?

 

It did not go well for Sennacherib king of Assyria because his sons killed him.  Yes, he blasphemes the name of God, people who go by the name Christian, people in my family do so, and many who claim to be Christ followers watch movies that make fun of or take the Lord’s name in vain, I once was guilt paying for a movie and not leaving with my Lord’s name was taken in vain.  Now, I always ask this question before paying for a movie, do they take the name of God in vain?  And at home, we had to turn off the T.V. on a movie or show we were watching.  It is simple, He is not only my God, He is my Lord and Father, and it breaks my heart to hear someone use His name that way.

 

I pray that we the Church will stop supporting anyone who makes fun of the Christian faith and takes our Lord’s name in vain.

 

From the Back Porch,

 

Bob Rice        

 

A need of Redemption

 

Colossians 1:14

 

September 16, 2010

 

 

Have you ever found yourself in need of redemption? My reasons for needing redemption are too numerous to list, but this one is from the eighth grade, and all parties but one unnamed girl.  She is not being named because I do not recall her name.  I did not attend school to obtain knowledge and that made bringing home report cards somewhat unpleasant, and that is an understatement.  So, I came up with a plan to make my Mother and Dad proud, I would apply myself; wrong, that was not the plan.  This was the plan; I would ask a young girl who worked in the office to remove a report card from the office secretly so that I could play a joke on my mother.  My next goal was to find someone who would sign my real report card and also put the B & C on the one I was taking home.  

 

It worked, and life was so good, Mother and Dad were very happy with my newfound skill-set until the pink slips kept coming in the mail.  Now if you do not understand the pink slip, it was a form that the teacher would send in the mail to your parents if you were not meeting the requirements of the course.  I will never forget the shock, the fear, and the surety of hellfire and damnation at seeing my mother in the vice principal’s office.  I needed redemption!

 

God looked down on His creation and found that like Adam, we all, everyone, has tried to live independently of God, and all of us have tried to send a dummy report card to our Creator.  Every one of us has fallen short of the mark, and we have tried to meet the requirements, we set a standard that looks good by the world system, but God has stated that our best efforts are disgustingly dirty in His sight, they are a failing grade on His report card.

 

I had a boss who enjoyed telling us that our past performance formed the way we were perceived by management.  If you turn to Romans 3:23 in the Manufacturer’s handbook, you will find this; “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,” we need the redemption found only in Christ Jesus.

 

One of many Scriptures that has enlightened me is 1 Corinthians 1:27-30, “But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so no human being might boast in the presence of God.  He is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, whom God made our wisdom and our righteousness and sanctification and redemption.”  We all come up short, we have all missed the mark, our test score is failing, we need redemption, we need forgiveness, and by His grace, God has provided Jesus Christ as your Redeemer. 

 

From the Back Porch,

 

Bob Rice

 

Sennacherib Blasphemes

 

 

 

2 Chronicles 32:9-19

 

September 15, 2023

 

Sennacherib Blasphemes

After this, Sennacherib king of Assyria, who was besieging Lachish with all his forces, sent his servants to Jerusalem to Hezekiah king of Judah and to all the people of Judah who were in Jerusalem, saying, “Thus says Sennacherib king of Assyria, ‘On what are you trusting, that you endure the siege in Jerusalem?  Is not Hezekiah misleading you, that he may give you over to die by famine and by thirst, when he tells you, “The Lord our God will deliver us from the hand of the king of Assyria”?  Has not this same Hezekiah taken away his high places and his altars and commanded Judah and Jerusalem, “Before one altar you shall worship, and on it you shall burn your sacrifices”?  Do you not know what I and my fathers have done to all the peoples of other lands? Were the gods of the nations of those lands at all able to deliver their lands out of my hand?  Who among all the gods of those nations that my fathers devoted to destruction was able to deliver his people from my hand, that your God should be able to deliver you from my hand?  Now, therefore, do not let Hezekiah deceive you or mislead you in this fashion, and do not believe him, for no god of any nation or kingdom has been able to deliver his people from my hand or from the hand of my fathers. How much less will your God deliver you out of my hand!’”

And his servants said still more against the Lord God and against his servant Hezekiah.  And he wrote letters to cast contempt on the Lord, the God of Israel, and to speak against him, saying, “Like the gods of the nations of the lands who have not delivered their people from my hands, so the God of Hezekiah will not deliver his people from my hand.” And they shouted it with a loud voice in the language of Judah to the people of Jerusalem who were on the wall, to frighten and terrify them, in order that they might take the city.  And they spoke of the God of Jerusalem as they spoke of the gods of the peoples of the earth, which are the work of men's hands.

 

Fear works when a person has not experienced truth, if you do not believe me just listen to the folks, selling gold, or the people pushing the Covet shot, or the mask promoters.  What about the global warming religion group?  So, Sennacherib king of Assyria, sent his press guy from a paper like the New York Times to put the spin on the people that the God of Israel was no different than the pagan gods he had defeated.  One problem, it is a lie, to the people who had seen and witnessed what God had done for the nation of Judah since they came back to God.  And last but not least, the messenger had no clue of what he was saying, just like the one referred to above.

 

If you are looking for Truth, look to Jesus, for in John 14:6, Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”  All other ways are like putting your hope in a lie, Jesus is the only way to the Father, to life, and to Truth.

 

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Sennacherib Invades Judah

 

 

 

2 Chronicles 32:1-9

 

September 14, 2023

 

Sennacherib Invades Judah

After these things and these acts of faithfulness, Sennacherib king of Assyria came and invaded Judah and encamped against the fortified cities, thinking to win them for himself.  And when Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had come and intended to fight against Jerusalem, he planned with his officers and his mighty men to stop the water of the springs that were outside the city; and they helped him.  A great many people were gathered, and they stopped all the springs and the brook that flowed through the land, saying, “Why should the kings of Assyria come and find much water?”  He set to work resolutely and built up all the wall that was broken down and raised towers upon it, and outside it, he built another wall, and he strengthened the Millo in the city of David. He also made weapons and shields in abundance.  And he set combat commanders over the people and gathered them together to him in the square at the gate of the city and spoke encouragingly to them, saying, “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or dismayed before the king of Assyria and all the horde that is with him, for there are more with us than with him.  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 took confidence from the words of Hezekiah king of Judah.

What can you and I learn from a leader like Hezekiah, he saw or was told of the king of Assyria invasion, and he assembled his officers and mighty men to come up with a plan to remove helpful resources to the invading army.  Next, he got the people to do the necessary work to protect Jerusalem.

But what he did next is a very important step for any leader, he gathered the people together and spoke encouragingly to them.  Let me repeat his message to them; “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or dismayed before the king of Assyria and all the horde that is with him, for there are more with us than with him.  With him is an arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God, to help us and to fight our battles.”  And that should be the cry of Israel today,

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Hezekiah Organizes the Priests

 

 

 

 

2 Chronicles 31:11-21

 

September 13, 2023

 

Hezekiah Organizes the Priests

 

 Then Hezekiah commanded them to prepare chambers in the house of the Lord, and they prepared them.  And they faithfully brought in the contributions, the tithes, and the dedicated things. The chief officer in charge of them was Conaniah the Levite, with Shimei his brother as second, while Jehiel, Azaziah, Nahath, Asahel, Jerimoth, Jozabad, Eliel, Ismachiah, Mahath, and Benaiah were overseers assisting Conaniah and Shimei his brother, by the appointment of Hezekiah the king and Azariah the chief officer of the house of God.  And Kore the son of Imnah the Levite, keeper of the east gate, was over the freewill offerings to God, to apportion the contribution reserved for the Lord and the most holy offerings.  Eden, Miniamin, Jeshua, Shemaiah, Amariah, and Shecaniah were faithfully assisting him in the cities of the priests, to distribute the portions to their brothers, old and young alike, by divisions, except those enrolled by genealogy, males from three years old and upward—all who entered the house of the Lord as the duty of each day required—for their service according to their offices, by their divisions.  The enrollment of the priests was according to their fathers' houses; that of the Levites from twenty years old and upward was according to their offices, by their divisions.  They were enrolled with all their little children, their wives, their sons, and their daughters, the whole assembly, for they were faithful in keeping themselves holy.  And for the sons of Aaron, the priests, who were in the fields of common land belonging to their cities, there were men in the several cities who were designated by name to distribute portions to every male among the priests and to everyone among the Levites who was enrolled.

Thus, Hezekiah did throughout all Judah, and he did what was good and right and faithful before the Lord his God.  And every work that he undertook in the service of the house of God and in accordance with the law and the commandments, seeking his God, he did with all his heart and prospered.

Have you ever given thought to the word “IF” only two letters yet it has changed history by those who took it seriously?  Some have looked at that word as Hezekiah has done and said, " I will lead my nation to do so, and others as is the case in our nation have not.  Just a two-letter word, but in it hangs the tide of history.  Nations have risen and fallen on what they did with the word if.

 

If we the Church, not the masses that show up on Sunday morning but the Church, would believe and obey 2 Chronicles 7:14, ^“If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”

You know that verse, and you quote it to others, but have you examined your heart to see if you following Jesus are some political party.  Being a follower of Christ has not one iota to do with your denominations, are your good acts, it does have to do with your will, have you confess your need for a Savior!  Have you asked Jesus to forgive you and ask him by the faith He has given you to come in and be your only authority?  

If for any reason the question above bothers you, maybe you need to read the gospels once more and ask Jesus to reveal himself to you.  It is the most important relationship you have.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice