Fatal Mistake!

2 Kings 18:33 Has the god of any nation ever delivered his land from the hand of the king of Assyria?

Sometimes leaders make mistakes without even realizing the depth of their mistake until it is too late. This is often due to a lack of proper perspective. But we all have a limited perspective. We can’t see the world from every perspective. We especially can’t see it from the LORD’s perspective!

But we get glimpses of the LORD’s perspective from the Scriptures and from the history of His dealings with His people. We see His character and nature. We can predict what He will do in certain circumstances, what actions will line up with His will and what actions won’t. But sometimes the lines aren’t so clear cut.

The cast of characters for out text today includes the king of Assyria, the king of Judah and the prophet Isaiah. There is a host of minor actors, but these three make up the storyline. These three have the key roles.

So the story is this. The king of Assyria has already taken Israel, the Northern kingdom into captivity. He has moved the people from their homeland to Assyria, in present day Iraq. Now he has come back to complete his military campaign against Judah, the Southern kingdom. He has been successful with every enemy he has gone against in battle. And that is his downfall.

You see the king of Assyria equates his success in battle and his enemy’s defeat to the strength their gods. Since he has been successful, he believes his god is stronger than all the other gods. And this is where he makes his mistake. He believes his god is stronger than the God of Israel, the LORD.

So it becomes his boast. He is puffed up and the LORD is about to put a pin in his balloon.

Judah’s king is a very godly, wise man. He is obedient and completely faithful to the LORD, unlike any of his predecessors. He trusts the LORD completely. So he sends a messenger to the godly and faithful prophet Isaiah to get the LORD’s perspective. And Isaiah hears from the LORD. The king of Assyria will NOT invade Jerusalem.

You see, when the king of Assyria started boasting that his god was greater than the LORD, that was his mistake. No one picks a battle with the LORD and comes out on top. The LORD will defend His reputation among the nations.

The boasting by the king of Assyria continues and the king of Judah goes to prayer! What a powerful position, on his face before the LORD. Helpless and desperate he cries out. And the LORD answers. He is spared and so is Jerusalem.

You see, being desperate before the LORD is a good thing. We are to live dependent on Him, seeking His face, obediently following the directives we already know. We are held responsible for doing what we know, not what we don’t know.

So in these difficult times, times of uncertainty and upheaval, cry out in desperation to the LORD. Give it all to Him. Surrender to the One who can make the difference.