That all the people may know
It is true, Lord, that the kings of Assyria have destroyed all these nations. And they have thrown the gods of these nations into the fire and burned them. But of course the Assyrians could destroy them! They were not gods at all—only idols of wood and stone shaped by human hands. Now, O Lord our God, rescue us from his power; then all the kingdoms of the earth will know that you alone, O Lord, are God.” Then Isaiah son of Amoz sent this message to Hezekiah: “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Because you prayed about King Sennacherib of Assyria. Isaiah 37:18-21 NLT
We are confronted with this question about our existence: “Why are we here?” Related to this is to ask this question especially when we are facing difficulties in life: “Lord, why are you allowing me to face these trials?” From the text, King Hezekiah demonstrated a change of heart. Before, his attitude was to surrender to the Assyrians for he realized that their army is no much to fight the Assyrians. King Hezekiah is now asking God to intervene on their behalf. “O Lord our God, rescue us from his power; then all the kingdoms of the earth will know that you alone, O Lord, are God.” He realized that life’s meaning is not found in obtaining his own selfish desires but rather to have the Lord God be glorified. He is asking God to use his circumstances so that God will be known by all people. We need to pray and see our lives this way. Why are we here? We are here to be living proof that God saves sinners and that He is with us when we are facing difficulties in life. God is here with us not to facilitate our convenience and make life comfortable for us by giving in to our whims and selfish dreams. God is with us so He could display His glory in our salvation. When our motivation and passion is to glorify God, we are not robbed, we are not lessened instead we are dignified and are able to overcome the trials we are facing and the obstacles the devil will place in our path. Let us make God the definitive that will change the whole agenda of our lives. Hezekiah finally sees what Isaiah has been admonishing the Israelites to do. It is not this world with whom we have to deal with, it is always God. The acquisition of power and status, having the intellectual superiority are not the ultimate that will define each of us. It is our relationship with God that will define us. It is His power and presence working in us that will prove that we are serving Him for His glory.
Blessings,
