Text: 2 Kings 19: 1-37

1 And it came to pass, when king Hezekiah heard it, that he rent his clothes, and covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the LORD.   2 And he sent Eliakim, which was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz.   3 And they said unto him, Thus saith Hezekiah, This day is a day of trouble, and of rebuke, and blasphemy:  for the children are come to the birth, and there is not strength to bring forth.   4 It may be the LORD thy God will hear all the words of Rabshakeh, whom the king of Assyria his master hath sent to reproach the living God;  and will reprove the words which the LORD thy God hath heard:  wherefore lift up thy prayer for the remnant that are left.   5 So the servants of king Hezekiah came to Isaiah.   6 And Isaiah said unto them, Thus shall ye say to your master, Thus saith the LORD, Be not afraid of the words which thou hast heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me.   7 Behold, I will send a blast upon him, and he shall hear a rumour, and shall return to his own land;  and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.  

8 So Rabshakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah:  for he had heard that he was departed from Lachish.   9 And when he heard say of Tirhakah king of Ethiopia, Behold, he is come out to fight against thee:  he sent messengers again unto Hezekiah, saying, 10 Thus shall ye speak to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying, Let not thy God in whom thou trustest deceive thee, saying, Jerusalem shall not be delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria.   11 Behold, thou hast heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands, by destroying them utterly:  and shalt thou be delivered?  12 Have the gods of the nations delivered them which my fathers have destroyed;  as Gozan, and Haran, and Rezeph, and the children of Eden which were in Thelasar?  13 Where is the king of Hamath, and the king of Arpad, and the king of the city of Sepharvaim, of Hena, and Ivah?  14 And Hezekiah received the letter of the hand of the messengers, and read it:  and Hezekiah went up into the house of the LORD, and spread it before the LORD.   15 And Hezekiah prayed before the LORD, and said, O LORD God of Israel, which dwellest between the cherubims, thou art the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth;  thou hast made heaven and earth.   16 LORD, bow down thine ear, and hear:  open, LORD, thine eyes, and see:  and hear the words of Sennacherib, which hath sent him to reproach the living God.   17 Of a truth, LORD, the kings of Assyria have destroyed the nations and their lands, 18 And have cast their gods into the fire:  for they were no gods, but the work of men's hands, wood and stone:  therefore they have destroyed them.   19 Now therefore, O LORD our God, I beseech thee, save thou us out of his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou art the LORD God, even thou only.  

20 Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, That which thou hast prayed to me against Sennacherib king of Assyria I have heard.   21 This is the word that the LORD hath spoken concerning him;  The virgin the daughter of Zion hath despised thee, and laughed thee to scorn;  the daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee.   22 Whom hast thou reproached and blasphemed?  and against whom hast thou exalted thy voice, and lifted up thine eyes on high?  even against the Holy One of Israel.   23 By thy messengers thou hast reproached the Lord, and hast said, With the multitude of my chariots I am come up to the height of the mountains, to the sides of Lebanon, and will cut down the tall cedar trees thereof, and the choice fir trees thereof:  and I will enter into the lodgings of his borders, and into the forest of his Carmel.   24 I have digged and drunk strange waters, and with the sole of my feet have I dried up all the rivers of besieged places.   25 Hast thou not heard long ago how I have done it, and of ancient times that I have formed it?  now have I brought it to pass, that thou shouldest be to lay waste fenced cities into ruinous heaps.   26 Therefore their inhabitants were of small power, they were dismayed and confounded;  they were as the grass of the field, and as the green herb, as the grass on the house tops, and as corn blasted before it be grown up.   27 But I know thy abode, and thy going out, and thy coming in, and thy rage against me.   28 Because thy rage against me and thy tumult is come up into mine ears, therefore I will put my hook in thy nose, and my bridle in thy lips, and I will turn thee back by the way by which thou camest.   29 And this shall be a sign unto thee, Ye shall eat this year such things as grow of themselves, and in the second year that which springeth of the same;  and in the third year sow ye, and reap, and plant vineyards, and eat the fruits thereof.   30 And the remnant that is escaped of the house of Judah shall yet again take root downward, and bear fruit upward.   31 For out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and they that escape out of mount Zion:  the zeal of the LORD of hosts shall do this.   32 Therefore thus saith the LORD concerning the king of Assyria, He shall not come into this city, nor shoot an arrow there, nor come before it with shield, nor cast a bank against it.   33 By the way that he came, by the same shall he return, and shall not come into this city, saith the LORD.   34 For I will defend this city, to save it, for mine own sake, and for my servant David's sake.  

35 And it came to pass that night, that the angel of the LORD went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore and five thousand:  and when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses.   36 So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, and went and returned, and dwelt at Nineveh.   37 And it came to pass, as he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god, that Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons smote him with the sword:  and they escaped into the land of Armenia.   And Esarhaddon his son reigned in his stead.  

Monday, 22^nd January 2024; Day Seventeen of the 21 days fasting.

COMBATING THE SPIRIT OF FEAR

Text: 2 Kings 19: 1-37

Memory verse: 2 Kings 19:6 And Isaiah said unto them, Thus shall ye say to your master, Thus saith the LORD, Be not afraid of the words which thou hast heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me. 7 Behold, I will send a blast upon him, and he shall hear a rumour, and shall return to his own land; and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.

Fear can become more than just a passing emotion. It can grip and take control of our lives and thoughts distracting us from trusting and obeying God. The enemy use the same tactics over and over most times to knock us down. Prayer is something we will never master.  We continually need to be reminded to bring every detail to the Lord, so he can calm our hearts down, reveal his will and be glorified as he works in our lives. A godly king rose up in Judah, besides King David, King Hezekiah was one of the most righteous king of Judah.  But just because he lived an upright life, did not mean his life was easy, it was quite the contrary. Instead, he was the target of attack by the King of Assyria.  Assyria was a much more powerful nation, but it was Hezekiah’s prayer life that saved them from their attacks.

In 2 Kings 18, threats from the King of Assyria came to the people of Judah and they were in such distress that it says the women were at the point of birth but had no strength to deliver their babies 2 Kings 19:3. The king’s threats literally scared the women to death, imagine that. Look at the first thing King Hezekiah did when he heard the threats from the King of Assyria. As soon as King Hezekiah heard it, he tore his clothes and covered himself with sackcloth and went into the house of the Lord 2 Kings 19:1. When crisis hits, Hezekiah immediately goes to the house of the Lord. Where do you go in times of crisis? Are you found in the house of the Lord? Then God sent the prophet Isaiah to Hezekiah to tell him, don’t be afraid and assure him that God will save them.

Isaiah said to them, “Say to your master, ‘Thus says the Lord: Do not be afraid because of the words that you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have reviled me.  Behold, I will put a spirit in him, so that he shall hear a rumour and return to his own land, and I will make him fall by the sword in his own land.’

Hezekiah needed a gentle reminder from God, to not be afraid. If something is troubling you today, let this be a gentle reminder to you, do not be afraid.  God is with you, and he will help you. Then the King of Assyria continued to play on Hezekiah’s fears by sending threatening letter to him, but Hezekiah knew just what to do with that letter.  Look what he did: Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers and read it; and again, Hezekiah went up to the house of the Lord and spread it before the Lord 2 Kings 19:14.

Hezekiah knew his only hope was God.  He went straight to the house of the Lord and spread the letter out before the Lord. We spread our problems out before trusted friends, a pastor, or a counsellor. This is wise but we must not neglect going FIRST to the Lord in prayer and spreading out all the details before him. Look at how Hezekiah approached God’s throne in prayer: And Hezekiah prayed before the Lord and said: “O Lord, the God of Israel, enthroned above the cherubim, you are the God, you alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; you have made heaven and earth 2 Kings 19:15. 

CGDS Hymn 11; SS & S 811:

FEAR NOT GOD IS THY SHIELD 

1. Fear not! God is thy shield,
And He thy great reward;
His might has won the field:
Thy strength is in the Lord!

            Refrain:
            Fear not! ‘tis God’s own voice
            That speaks to thee this word;
            Lift up your head: rejoice
            In Jesus Christ thy Lord.

2. Fear not! for God has heard
The cry of thy distress;
The water of His word
Thy fainting soul shall bless.

3. Fear not! be not dismayed!
He evermore will be
With thee, to give His aid,
And He will strengthen thee.

4. Fear not! ye little flock;
Your Shepherd soon will come,
Give water from the rock,
And bring you to His home!

 Prayers  

1.  Lord God, I reject the spirit of fear in my life this year 2024 Jesus’s name. Amen.

2.  Lord God Almighty, I receive the spirit of love and sound mind, but not of fear this year 2024 in Jesus’s name. Amen.

3.  Lord God Almighty, let Your words to me expel fear totally from my heart this year 2024 in Jesus’s name. Amen.

4.  Lord God Almighty, make conscious of Your presence with me this year 2024 in Jesus’s name. Amen.

5.  Oh God, put Your words in my heart to fuel my faith and not my fears this year 2024 in Jesus’s name. Amen.

6.  Lord God Almighty, my fears will not manifest, but my desire for your strength and power will manifest this year 2024 in Jesus’s name. Amen.

7.  Lord God Almighty, let my constant intake of Your words give me another level of courage and strength this year 2024 in Jesus’s name. Amen.

8.  Holy Spirit, put Your words in my mouth concerning the oppressed this year 2024 in Jesus’s name. Amen.

9.  Holy Spirit, help me to be a source of faith and not of fear to men this year 2024 in Jesus’s name. Amen.

10.  Lord God Almighty, close my ears to any word that will bring fear to my heart this year 2024 in Jesus’s name. Amen.

11.  Lord God Almighty, increase my faith with Your words to me this year 2024 in Jesus’s name. Amen.

12.  Lord God Almighty, strengthen my heart to do Your command without any form of hesitation and fear this year 2024 in Jesus’s name. Amen.

13.  Oh God, make me to become more like You in all things this year in Jesus’ name. Amen.

14.  Lord God Almighty, put Your praise in my mouth concerning all things always this year in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Declarations

Lord God, I reject the spirit of fear in my life, I receive the spirit of love and sound mind, but not of fear, let Your words to me expel fear totally from my heart, make conscious of Your presence with me, put Your words in my heart to fuel my faith and not my fears, my fears will not manifest, but my desire for your strength and power will manifest, let my constant intake of Your words give me another level of courage and strength, Holy Spirit, help me to be a source of faith and not of fear to men, close my ears to any word that will bring fear to my heart, increase my faith with Your words to me, strengthen my heart to do Your command without any form of hesitation and fear, Oh God, make me to become more like You in all things, put Your praise in my mouth concerning all things always. Psalms 125:1says, hey that trust in the LORD shall be as mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abideth for ever. My trust for you shall not fail me, I will stand firm like Mount Zion and no forces from the kingdom of darkness can move me in Jesus’ name, Amen.