CHAPTER 7
PART 4
He becomes your Lord
“For
what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord…”(2
Corinthians 4:5).\
*
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| 1 CORINTHIANS 2:9 |
You won’t always understand his
holy ways or what he may have prepared for you. “But as it is written: “Eye hath not seen, nor ear
heard, neither have entered into the heart of man the things which God
hath prepared for those who love Him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9 KJV).
We
will end this chapter with a brief glance at King Hezekiah and how God tested
his heart. “… God left him, to try him that he might know all that was in his heart…”
(2 Chronicles 32:31 KJV). At first glance it appears Hezekiah did a lot of good
things, especially when he restored the temple and its worship practices.
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| HEZEKIAH'S HEART WAS FULL OF PRIDE |
However,
his own heart was not right before God and God knew it. “In those days Hezekiah
became ill and was at the point of death. He prayed to the Lord,
who answered him and gave him a miraculous sign. But Hezekiah’s
heart was proud and he did not respond to the kindness shown him; therefore the
Lord’s wrath was on him and on Judah and Jerusalem”
(2 Chronicles 32:24-25 NIV).
He
fooled man, but he didn’t fool God; God is all-knowing. He had a rebellious,
selfish, and prideful side that God knew was lurking in his heart. “But Hezekiah’s heart
was proud…” (2 Chronicles 32:25
NIV). God put Hezekiah in a
situation where he had to look at what was truly in his own desperately wicked heart
and he learned about his many sins (Jeremiah 17:9).
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| 1 CHRONICLES 32:25 |
Only
then could Hezekiah see the darkness that lurked in his heart as well as his many
weaknesses. All that God had done for Hezekiah and yet his behavior reflected a
blatant ingratitude.
“But Hezekiah’s heart was proud and he did not respond to the kindness shown
him…” (2 Chronicles 32:25
NIV). Hezekiah’s attitude
and behaviors did not give God the glory for the great things he had done (Isaiah
12:4-5).
Eventually
Hezekiah “… repented of the pride of his heart,
as did the people of Jerusalem; therefore the Lord’s
wrath did not come on them…
(1 Chronicles 32:26 NIV). God wants you to live right and have a clean heart.
The
trials we go through for hours, days, weeks, months, or years are the events
God uses as a way to encourage the Lordship of Jesus. In the stories of Lazarus
and the little girl when the people were humbled by the situation; Jesus showed
up as Lord!!! Things happen for “…the
glory God,
that the Son of God might be glorified thereby…”
(John 11:4 KJV).
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| JOHN 11:4 |
The
enemy of Lordship is sin and rebellion and self-will. It is the most difficult
trials and tribulations that exposes the sins of your heart and reveal the
absence of Lordship of Christ in your life. Sin is always in conflict with
Jesus’ Lordship, but tribulation often comes to bring about a change of heart.
Like in the case of Hezekiah, certain trials
bring about repentance and humility to help believers walk in the Lordship of
Jesus. God allows certain trials and tribulations to intervene in our lives to bring
about righteous or holy changes and solve personal sin problems.
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| IS JESUS BOTH YOUR "LORD" & SAVIOR? |
God
chooses you, draws you, gives you a “measure of faith”, loves you, changes your
identity, speaks to you, and becomes Lord. Lordship means Jesus rightfully has
sovereignty over your life. God, “….hath made
…Jesus, whom [was] …crucified, both Lord and Christ…. (Acts 2:36 KJV). Is Jesus your Lord?
EXCERPT FROM THE CHAPTER
"HE BECOMES YOUR LORD" FROM THE
BOOK TRANSFORMING LOVE
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