THE FINAL MEETING

Time with Jesus - 26 Sept. 2013

Hi all,

We know all about “four letter words”. We hear them constantly from the lips of men and women alike. Why this should be, I’ll never really know. It’s tragic to realise that the English speaking world has adopted as a swear word, a word used to describe the highest form of pleasure experienced by men and women since – and possibly before – the fall of man. 

For Phyllida and me, to hear the word coupled with that of our Saviour, is highly offensive. This “expression”, now in common use, serves to confirm the terrible grip Satan has on this world. It’s not odd that we never hear Mohammad’s name or Buddha’s name used in this way. Only Jesus’ name has been downgraded from that of the King of Kings to the lowest imaginable form of life. Only Satan would wish to do so.

There is another “four letter word” with which most men and women are thoroughly acquainted. Many, particularly misguided Christians, regard the word and associated activity, as anathema. The word is “work”. Please allow me to add another word to this morning’s lexicon. The word is “dead”, better known to most of us as “death”.

We are the strangest people. In the back of our minds, we all know that one day we will die. It is so certain, that no bookmaker will quote you the “odds” against you or me dying. None of us know where or when. The terror attack in Nairobi in the Westgate Mall this week confirms, it could happen to any one of us at any time! Indeed, there is no guarantee that I’ll complete this meditation, or that you will read it tomorrow. Hopefully, we all will. However …….

One of the better known stories in the Old Testament is the account of King Hezekiah’s illness and his brush with death. 2 Kings 20 and Isaiah 38 give the details. ¹ About that time Hezekiah became deathly ill, and the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz went to visit him. He gave the king this message: "This is what the LORD says: Set your affairs in order, for you are going to die. You will not recover from this illness." ² When Hezekiah heard this, he turned his face to the wall and prayed to the LORD, ³ "Remember, O LORD, how I have always been faithful to You and have served You single-mindedly, always doing what pleases You." Then he broke down and wept bitterly. 

⁴ But before Isaiah had left the middle courtyard, this message came to him from the LORD: ⁵ "Go back to Hezekiah, the leader of My people. Tell him, 'This is what the LORD, the God of your ancestor David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears. I will heal you, and three days from now you will get out of bed and go to the Temple of the LORD. ⁶ I will add fifteen years to your life, and I will rescue you and this city from the king of Assyria. I will defend this city for My own honour and for the sake of My servant David." 2 Kings 20:1-6 NLT (Isaiah 38:1-5)

Generally speaking, Hezekiah had been a good king. Not good in the sense that God is good. It was more a “comparative” goodness. He had followed the Lord and ruled his people according to God’s law as much as possible. It’s likely he was no more perfect than you or me. Be that as it may, on an occasion when he was ill, God sent Isaiah to tell him to get ready to die. “You are going to die. You will not recover from this illness!” 

Hezekiah's Sundial

Needless to say, Hezekiah did not receive the news enthusiastically. He turned his face to the wall and prayed to the LORD. He “reminded” the Lord of His years of obedience. He then broke down a wept bitterly. (I can’t say I blame him. I think I would do something similar in his place) In response, God gave Isaiah a second message. “I have heard your prayer and seen your tears. I will heal you, and three days from now you will get out of bed and go to the Temple of the LORD. I will add fifteen years to your life.”

Hezekiah's Tunnel

How would you have received such a message? With a sense of immediate relief, just as Hezekiah did? That’s probably what my reaction would have been. But was it a good idea to give Hezekiah an additional 15 years? That’s the problem. God knew exactly what would happen fifteen years later. From God’s point of view it might have been better if Hezekiah had died and not been given the additional 15 years.

In the interim, Hezekiah did some good things and some bad things, during those years. The very worst was to allow visitors from a distant, but up and coming nation, to look round Jerusalem. 

The temple and the nation’s treasures were included in the escorted tour. This nation was the one which eventually would destroy Jerusalem and lead many of the people away into captivity. The visitors had good memories and were from Babylon.

God’s word also tells us of one of the greatest tragedies to befall Hezekiah’s people. 2 Kings 21 tells us:

 ¹ Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem fifty-five years. His mother was Hephzibah. ² He did what was evil in the LORD's sight, following the detestable practices of the pagan nations that the LORD had driven from the land ahead of the Israelites. 2 Kings 21:1-2 NLT

According to Scripture, the worst King ever to rule in Judah followed Hezekiah. In many ways he was worse than those whom God had driven out of Canaan to allow the Israelites to take possession of the land. 

Assuming our mathematics is correct, Manasseh was born three years after Hezekiah was given his extra 15 years of life. I know that this is disputed by many.  I know that this is disputed by many. 

Manasseh taken Captive and in Chains

However, it seems God knew Manasseh would follow Hezekiah. But if Hezekiah died before Manasseh was born, things might have been very different. Sure, Hezekiah’s prayer was answered. But would it have been better if Hezekiah had died in the first place? You tell me.

Shalom,

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – 26 Sept. 2013			Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give
©	These devotionals are the intellectual property of Jim Strickland and copyright protected. You are welcome to copy and distribute them to anyone provided it is for non-commercial Christian purposes					©
	INTRODUCTION		DAILY LIGHT EVENING SCRIPTURES	THE FINAL MEETING
Horace Mann, the great American education reformer is reported to have said, “Education is the great equalizer of the conditions of men”. Our experience in South Africa doesn’t really prove this to be always true. We find highly educated idiots in government, along with ignorant uneducated idiots in governments. Education has not made them equal, the ANC has! There is another “equalizer”. One that has no regard for wealth, education, talent or the needs of the family. The great “equalizer” is death. Every person who has lived on this earth, has shared or will share, the experience of death. It’s guaranteed. God said so and only He can change it. Adam got the ball rolling, when he disobeyed God and decided to “lunch” on the fruit, of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Unfortunately he didn’t only get indigestion. He ingested an incurable condition. It was a “blight” which was passed on to the creation and all Adam’s descendants. Sadly it’s an incurable condition. Hollywood does not have a hero who will leap in front of the camera and shout, “’Eureka!’ I’ve fixed it.” Medical science has done everything it can to interfere with the process. All it can do is postpone the event. Charmers can’t charm it away. No legal system can prevent it. Even our Constitutional court is hamstrung. There have been dreams of somehow discovering the “elixir of youth”. All to no avail. You and I are going to die. Only God can change it. Someday He will. Those who are still alive, at that point in time will “miss out”. (Ag shame!) People have asked, what was so serious about eating the fruit of that tree? My answer is that it was toxic. Perhaps not within 24 hours. I understand it took Satan the best part of a millennium to figure out a way to have Adam laid out. But we all have our problems and this one was uniquely Satan’s. Since then, Satan has become a bit more adept at putting a nail in our coffins. But persistence is the one virtue he emulates. So now that he knows that it takes him ±70 years, to put the X at the end of our equations. Some go a little earlier. Some go a little later. But in the end, every man-jack of us has to go! But there is an answer. Not one of our making. We need a change of ownership. Since the fall of Adam, we have all belonged to Satan. He has called the shots. Today, we can change ownership; our registration on heavens computer. Then, when we end in the junkyard of life, our owner may claim what is left over. It doesn’t take much. A bit of stray DNA is quite adequate. Then when the scrapyard hands over the bits for a fancy piece of reconstruction, the records will say, “property of Jesus Christ”. Satan will “smart” a bit. But he isn’t smart anyway! Jim & Phyllida Strickland			54 When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory." 55 "O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?" 56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 15:54-57 ESV	We need a change in attitude to many different things. It isn’t just a matter of angels having wings. That answer is irrelevant; they don’t affect your life. But how you love your husband, or how you love your wife, Is absolutely critical. It’s what we have to do. It is the Lord’s commandment for folk like me and you. It really doesn’t matter if the body is cremated. A grave is just an overcoat where left overs are gated. The gender’s not important. A woman or a man, Are equally significant in God the Father’s plan. We have one thing in common. Each one of us must die. It truly is a certainty. No matter how we cry. We’ll end in a container which then is put away, To be consumed by fire, or to rot and to decay. Only two have “missed it” Enoch was the first. Perhaps it was the “rapture” that had to be rehearsed? The other was Elijah, in a chariot from God. Even the Lord Jesus “died” so death’s not something odd. We have to get our wages! Death is the “price” of sin. And we are going to get them and death is going to win. There isn’t an alternative till Jesus comes again. And none of us are certain just what will happen then! We know that we will meet Him in a body that is new. What happens to the old one? Why should that bother you? Perhaps it will be left behind as no longer required. The new one will be better; that’s all that is desired. Until the day it happens, we’ll go through the routine, Of living and then dying; regardless how we’ve been. It all began when Eve thought she should alter Adam’s diet. “The snake said it will make us wise. So here’s a bit, just try it.” And so he took a little bit and tested it for taste. That’s when the Lord’s creation by sin was put to waste. We wish it hadn’t happened. But now it’s far too late. And Jesus Christ is needed to come and change our fate. So do not get excited while you’re waiting for your turn. Do you want the carcass to be planted or to burn? It really doesn’t matter. You will not feel a thing. The next thing you will know is when you meet with Christ the King! Jim Strickland Written 26th September 2012
			14 Because God's children are human beings--made of flesh and blood--the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could He die, and only by dying could He break the power of the devil, who had the power of death. 15 Only in this way could He set free all who have lived their lives as slaves to the fear of dying. Hebrews 2:14-15 NLT
			7 For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin. 8 And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with Him. 9 We are sure of this because Christ was raised from the dead, and He will never die again. Death no longer has any power over Him. 10 When He died, He died once to break the power of sin. But now that He lives, He lives for the glory of God. 11 So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus. Romans 6:7-11 NLT
			35 Can anything ever separate us from Christ's love? Does it mean He no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? 36 (As the Scriptures say, "For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.") 37 No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. 38 And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God's love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow--not even the powers of hell can separate us from God's love. 39 No power in the sky above or in the earth below--indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:35-39 NLT