“Remember, O LORD, how I have walked before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion and have done what is good in your eyes.”” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.”
– 2 Kings 20:3
Hi James and Ellen,
Are you okay with talking about dying? What would you do if you knew that you were about to die? Do you know Who controls death’s strings? Death has been and will be an inevitable experience for every guy, gal and kid who has been and will be born on planet Earth. Dying may be an instant occurrence or an extended episode. Dying may be a time of extreme anguish for the guy, gal or kid who has no future hope as he or she arrives at the finish line of his or her final life season on planet Earth or it may be a time of optimistic joy for the guy, gal or kid who is heart ready for living eternally in Heaven. The hands of God – as God the Father, control the exact instant a guy, gal and kid will die. God – as God the Father, knew precisely when and how each Haitian guy, gal and kid would die who died in this week’s 7.0 earthquake that indiscriminately pummeled Port-au-Prince’s homes, schools, businesses and Haiti’s palace. Spectators who are at death arenas wrestle with a myriad of emotions. Different intensities of grief will be surfaced when realization rakes across heartstrings when a guy, gal or kid – who the guy, gal or kid had a familial or friendship relationship with, is no longer planet Earth bound. Different sensations of loss will invariably leave a stomach churning agonizingly when the angst filter can no longer stay in denial when a guy, gal or kid – who the guy, gal or kid had a kinship, companionship or acquaintance connection, had his or her plant Earth tenure end. Different helpless feelings will create incessant mind battles in a guy, gal or kid in his or her attempts to resolve the why for why a guy, gal or kid – who had family, friend or colleague affiliation, is no longer alive on planet Earth.
For about two and a half years – when your grandpaa was a student at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, your grandmaa, grandpaa, dad and Aunt Lynn lived literally alongside death. During these two and a half years that your grandpaa was a student at Moody Bible Institute, your grandmaa, grandpaa, dad and Aunt Lynn lived as caretakers in a funeral home. During the two and a half years – when your grandmaa and grandpaa were the caretakers at the Zeiger-Mueller Funeral Home, your grandmaa and grandpaa saw very different reactions from guys and gals to the death of a guy or gal who had been a family member, friend or acquaintance. After your grandmaa and grandpaa had settled into the responsibilities of being the Zeiger-Mueller Funeral Home caretakers, your grandmaa and grandpaa began noticing that if a dead guy or gal had been a Christ-follower – which would be confirmed by the guys, gals and kids who came to the scheduled viewing for the guy or gal, the guy or gal would have a peaceful look on his or her face while a dead guy or gal who your grandmaa and grandpaa suspected had never made a decision of faith to become a Christ-follower would not have that same look on his or her face. When God had Isaiah – who was one of His prophet spokesmen, tell Hezekiah – who was king over the guys and gals who lived in the land a Judah, that he was at death’s door, Hezekiah did not hesitate to let God – as God the Father, know about how unhappy that he was about what he had just been told about his pending death. The Kings Book historian scribed in 2 Kings 20 about a boil that Hezekiah had – which quite possibly had become badly infected and which potentially . . . verse 3 has Hezekiah’s response to God after Isaiah passed on to him the mortifying news that his days on planet Earth were numbered, ““Remember, O LORD, how I have walked before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion and have done what is good in your eyes.”” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.” Because he purposively had been trying to live his life in a faithful way before God and because he had been wholeheartedly, persistently trying to devote his life to serving God, Hezekiah is communicating that he really believes that God owes him a longer life on planet Earth. Incongruously – at least to your grandpaa, God – as God the Father, – when He hears poor Hezekiah lamenting about his ‘bad’ fortune, immediately turns Isaiah around – even before he has a chance to leave the middle court, with another message for him to tell Hezekiah. The message from God – as God the Father, for Hezekiah through Isaiah was that because He saw Hezekiah’s genuine tears, that He is going to let him live for another fifteen years. After a fig poultice was put on Hezekiah’s boil, Hezekiah recouped quickly to full health.
Even though Hezekiah thought of himself a serious, authentic God-follower, your grandpaa wonders about Hezekiah’s conception of God – as God the Father. Instead of instantly bursting into sincere tears of thankfulness to God – as God the Father, for having bailed him out of death’s playground to live for another fifteen years, Hezekiah asks Isaiah for a sign that would be proof to him that God – as God the Father, really was going to extend his life for another fifteen years. Isaiah gave Hezekiah the option of having God back the sun’s shadow up ten palace steps or having Him make it go down ten palace steps. Hezekiah decides that it would not look very impressive if the sun’s shadow suddenly went up ten palace steps so . . . then Hezekiah arrogantly showed off to Merodach-Baladan – who was Babylonia’s king’s kid, the palace treasures when this guy showed up – after he had heard that Hezekiah was very sick, with gifts. When Isaiah got wind that Hezekiah had shown Merodach-Baladan the palace treasures, Isaiah had a God-driven conniption. Why do you think that death is invariably thought of as being the worst case scenario?
2 Kings 20 (1049)