Corona Devo 1065
It’s never too late to turn to the Lord.
And--it’s never too late to turn back to the
Lord.
Do we GET IT?
King Hezekiah GOT IT. The people in his area (Israel) had not been following the Lord, and they had fallen away from the (God-ordained) traditions that the Lord had designed to connect His people with Himself, like going to church (Temple), and like celebrating the festival of Passover. So they sent a proclamation throughout all Israel...inviting everyone to come to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover of the Lord, the God of Israel. The people had not been celebrating it in great numbers as required in the Law (2 Chronicles 30:5).
Hezekiah invited the people back to church! But how to get the word out?
He wrote letters of invitation to the people (2 Chronicles 30:1), but letters without delivery are dead messages. Hezekiah needed to get the letters...to God's people!
At the king’s command, runners were sent throughout Israel and Judah. They carried letters...The runners went from town to town throughout Ephraim and Manasseh and as far as the territory of Zebulun. ~2 Chronicles 30:6, 10
WE ARE GOD'S RUNNERS TODAY, FRIENDS!
Will we accept God’s Word in 2 Chronicles 30 as an invitation for us to “run” with His word today?
Not just anyone will accept this role of runner.
Actually, lots of people will say that they accept the role to run for God, but (any runners in the crowd?)…soon IT becomes no secret that it's hard work to put feet to the pavement for Him. We all look good at the starting line, but how are we doing after a ½ mile? What about a mile into the race? Only those with spiritual skin-in-the-game will keep running because the race-of-faith is a long-distance run, and it will be grueling at times.
But the "letter" that we carry and share is the Truth of the Bible, spilling over with God's hope, love and freedom for others. Keep running for the Lord today.
Hezekiah's runners kept running from city to city and from heart to heart, sharing a big message from the Lord: They carried letters that said:
“O people of Israel, return to the Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, so that he will return to the few of us who have survived the conquest of the Assyrian kings.
(7) Do not be like your ancestors and relatives who abandoned the Lord, the God of their ancestors, and became an object of derision, as you yourselves can see.
(8) Do not be stubborn, as they were, but submit yourselves to the Lord.
Come to his Temple, which he has set apart as holy forever. Worship the Lord your God so that his fierce anger will turn away from you.
(9) “For if you return to the Lord, your relatives and your children will be treated mercifully by their captors, and they will be able to return to this land.
For the Lord your God is gracious and merciful. If you return to him, he will not continue to turn his face from you.” ~2 Chronicles 30:6-9
They ran and they preached! But physical exhaustion was not their only hindrance in sharing what God was saying to His people.
It won't be ours either.
The runners went from town to town throughout Ephraim and Manasseh and as far as the territory of Zebulun. But most of the people just laughed at the runners and made fun of them. ~2 Chronicles 30:10
Are we laughed at for the message of Christ that we share, that we "carry"...that we live? Are we made fun of?
Keep running.
Our call by the Lord is to deliver His message. Receiving it is up to each individual heart. Keep running for the Lord today.
~~~
At the same time, God’s hand was on the people in the land of Judah, giving them all one heart to obey the orders of the king and his officials, who were following the word of the Lord. (13) So a huge crowd assembled at Jerusalem in midspring to celebrate the Festival of Unleavened Bread...
(21) So the people of Israel who were present in Jerusalem joyously celebrated the Festival of Unleavened Bread for seven days. ~2 Chronicles 30:12-13, 21
Hezekiah GOT IT when it came to understanding that the Lord is THE LORD of our lives, and Hezekiah had to spread the news! He used runners, who went the distance (on many levels) to serve God and to invite others to draw nearer to Him.
It worked.
It actually worked amazingly.
If I do my math correctly, I believe they celebrated the Lord for three weeks! :-)
(21) So the people of Israel who were present in Jerusalem joyously celebrated the Festival of Unleavened Bread for seven days...
(22) Hezekiah encouraged all the Levites regarding the skill they displayed as they served the Lord. The celebration continued for seven days. Peace offerings were sacrificed, and the people gave thanks to the Lord, the God of their ancestors.
(23) The entire assembly then decided to continue the festival another seven days, so they celebrated joyfully for another week. ~2 Chronicles 30:21-23
Please don't tell me that we serve a sour-grapes and fire-and-brimstone (only) God.
Not for His children that are willing to run for Him.
Not for His children who are willing to be made fun of because of their faith in Him.
Not for His children who celebrate and rejoice in Him.
The entire assembly of Judah rejoiced, including the priests, the Levites, all who came from the land of Israel, the foreigners who came to the festival, and all those who lived in Judah.
(26) There was great joy in the city, for Jerusalem had not seen a celebration like this one since the days of Solomon, King David’s son.
(27) Then the priests and Levites stood and blessed the people, and God heard their prayer from his holy dwelling in heaven. ~2 Chronicles 30:25-27
Wow.
That's enough to keep me running for the Lord today.
How about you?
sarah
https://sarahsundy04.blogspot.com
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