King Hezekiah

One day the King Hezekiah got sick. The sickness he had was deadly and there was no cure for i t . Isaiah, the prophet, came and told him that he was going to die.

The king started praying fervently that he would get better. Hezekiah was a good king and he served God faithfully, so God had mercy on him and told the prophet Isaiah to go back and tell him that he would live. Now just imagine if somebody told you that you were going to die and then a while later they told you that you would live, wouldn’t you get a little confused? Well Hezekiah was, so he asked God for a sign. He asked that the sun move backwards 10 degrees. So it happened. Today that would be the equivalent of 40 minutes. So wouldn’t you wonder what happened if the sun went
backwards across the sky instead of forwards? Well, some Babylonian wise men did. They told their king, whose name was Merodach-baladan, and he sent ambassadors to Hezekiah to learn more about the God that performed that miracle. But King Hezekiah did not tell them about God. He showed them his treasures. Since he did that, the ambassadors went back and told their greedy king about the riches they had seen. Later they decided to make war on Israel to get them.

Then Isaiah told Hezekiah he had sinned a great sin. He didn’t tell of God’s mercy and truth.

Sometimes we make the same mistake and only talk about ourselves to others. We should be living examples of Jesus. “The story of Hezekiah’s failure to prove true to his trust at the time of the visit of the ambassadors is fraught with an important lesson for all. Far more than we do, we need to speak of the precious chapters in our experience, of the mercy and loving-kindness of God, of the matchless depths of the Saviour’s love. When mind and heart are filled with the love of God. it will not be difficult to impart that which enters into the spiritual life. Great thoughts, noble aspirations, clear perception of truth, unselfish purposes, yearning for piety and holiness, will find expression in words that reveal the character of the heart treasure.

“Those with whom we associate day by day need our help, our guidance. They may be in such a condition of mind that a word spoken in season will be as a nail in a sure place. Tomorrow some of these souls may be where we can never reach them again. What is our influence over these fellow travelers”Every day of life is freighted with responsibilities which we must bear. Every day, our words and acts are making impressions upon those with whom we associate. How great the need that we set a watch upon our lips and guard carefully our steps’ One reckless movement, one imprudent step, and the surging waves of some strong temptation may seep a soul into the downward path. We cannot gather up the thoughts we have planted in human minds. If they have been evil, we may have set in motion a train of circumstances, a tide of evil, which we are powerless to stay. On the other hand, if by our example we aid others in the development of good principles, we give them power to do good. In their turn they exert the same beneficial influence over others. Thus hundreds and thousands are helped by our unconscious influence. The true follower of Christ strengthens the good purposes of all with whom he comes in contact. Before an unbelieving, sin-loving world he reveals the power of God’s grace and the perfection of His character.” Prophets and Kings, p, 348.

Sharon Eaton