What Do You Want To Hear God Say To You?

“But I know you well—where you stay and when you come and go. I know the way you have raged against me. And because of your raging against me and your arrogance, which I have heard for myself, I will put my hook in your nose and my bit in your mouth. I will make you return by the same road on which you came.” [2 Kings 19.27-28]

I guess there are a lot of things we all would like to hear God say to us, however, not so much the words above! These were the words of God to Sennacherib through the prophet Isaiah.

I can imagine God saying these things to those who would eliminate Him from the United States of America.

I can imagine God saying these things to those who insist that the extermination of countless millions of innocent unborn children is okay.

I can imagine God saying these things to those who unashamedly deny the clear implications of the Bible about sexual misconduct and perversion.

But there is then a dilemma with which I am faced. Every single person to whom I can imagine God saying these things is also a person God would rather be saved and understand the truth. So, I am left with a decision to make about how I deal with people to whom God would say "these things."

I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them. Pray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity. This is good and pleases God our Savior, who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth. [1 Timothy 2.1-4]

To "intercede" for these people is simply to ask God to forgive them. To ask God to forgive anyone is the same as asking for their salvation, healing, provision, and for them to be filled with His Holy Spirit.

Anyone who opposes God is already cursed from long ago. The Old Testament in the Bible is very clear that every imaginable and unimaginable curse is affixed to the disobedient "by default" if you will. It is the commission of God upon His followers to intercede for the world following Jesus' example on the Cross, "Father, forgive them, they do not know what they are doing."

Now, just because God's people are to intercede for the world does not mean the world is freed from God's judgment! The world ultimately still has its own decision to make. The prayers of God's people (intercession) make that decision easier to make, but the prayers of God's people do not make the decision. Each individual is responsible for making his or her own decision about Jesus Christ and His offer of eternal life in exchange for the obedience of repentance and faith.

Sennacherib doubted God's Word but it did not change God's Word. Sennacherib ultimately lost his life as the result of his arrogance against God at the hands of his own sons.

Sadly, Sennacherib 'thought' he knew God as the narrative of the story goes, but it turns out that he didn't.

Father, the lessons from Sennacherib and Your Word to him are many. Help us to understand our role in declaring Your Word while remaining humble toward those in opposition to it.