I’ve read the story of King Hezekiah before. I know how it ends.
But it’s nice to pause in this chapter and reflect on all the good accomplished during his reign. Hezekiah not only broke down the idols, but he inspired the people to turn back to God in droves! The Spirit of God was again on Israel and the people were blessed and turned their blessings into generosity, providing for the priests and Levites so abundantly that they had to build storehouses to hold the surplus.
Moments like these are often the shaky ground on which the prosperity gospel rests. The chapter is summed up, “In everything that he undertook in the service of God’s temple and in obedience to the law and the commands, he sought his God and worked wholeheartedly. And so he prospered.”
It’s understandable that so many people see this as a promise that if we are seeking God and working wholeheartedly, we, too, will prosper.
And that is true.
But Hezekiah’s prosperity (and ours) isn’t about a fat bank account or a large stock portfolio. It isn’t about big houses, fancy cars, or lavish lifestyles.
The prosperity God promises is spiritual riches, eternal dwellings with many rooms on streets of gold, and joy overflowing.
God’s Word does promise that He will provide for those whose hearts are set on Him. From manna in the desert to ravens feeding Elijah to a boy’s lunch of fish and loaves, God tells us over and over that we need not worry about our needs being met.
But just as Romans 8:28 promise of God working all things together for good requires us to glimpse God’s definition of good, God’s promise to meet our needs requires us to consider how God differentiates between needs and wants.
We see needs as everything required to keep our bodies alive and healthy.
God’s priority is our soul. Our needs are everything required to keep our souls alive and healthy.
Paul tells us he learned to be content in all circumstances, and we know his circumstances included all types of pain, hunger, suffering, even torture. Yet God met his every need, because his greatest need was not food or freedom from pain, but contentment in God.
How do you find contentment in God? What circumstances has God allowed in your life that you struggled to find contentment in?
But it’s nice to pause in this chapter and reflect on all the good accomplished during his reign. Hezekiah not only broke down the idols, but he inspired the people to turn back to God in droves! The Spirit of God was again on Israel and the people were blessed and turned their blessings into generosity, providing for the priests and Levites so abundantly that they had to build storehouses to hold the surplus.
Moments like these are often the shaky ground on which the prosperity gospel rests. The chapter is summed up, “In everything that he undertook in the service of God’s temple and in obedience to the law and the commands, he sought his God and worked wholeheartedly. And so he prospered.”
It’s understandable that so many people see this as a promise that if we are seeking God and working wholeheartedly, we, too, will prosper.
And that is true.
But Hezekiah’s prosperity (and ours) isn’t about a fat bank account or a large stock portfolio. It isn’t about big houses, fancy cars, or lavish lifestyles.
The prosperity God promises is spiritual riches, eternal dwellings with many rooms on streets of gold, and joy overflowing.
God’s Word does promise that He will provide for those whose hearts are set on Him. From manna in the desert to ravens feeding Elijah to a boy’s lunch of fish and loaves, God tells us over and over that we need not worry about our needs being met.
But just as Romans 8:28 promise of God working all things together for good requires us to glimpse God’s definition of good, God’s promise to meet our needs requires us to consider how God differentiates between needs and wants.
We see needs as everything required to keep our bodies alive and healthy.
God’s priority is our soul. Our needs are everything required to keep our souls alive and healthy.
Paul tells us he learned to be content in all circumstances, and we know his circumstances included all types of pain, hunger, suffering, even torture. Yet God met his every need, because his greatest need was not food or freedom from pain, but contentment in God.
How do you find contentment in God? What circumstances has God allowed in your life that you struggled to find contentment in?
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