Photo by Gary Meulemans on Unsplash

Do You Love Jesus – Or The World?

Opening: I get a publication from the Colson Center called “Breakpoint Daily”. It keeps me up with trends and fads, and reminds us as Christians that our job is really never done. We are to be the “light of the world” (Matthew 5:14), not our light, but like the moon we are to reflect the light of the Son (John 9:5), Jesus Christ our Lord. The most recent article was called “A Decade of “Words of the Year”. Every year since 2004, Oxford Dictionary has chosen a “word of the year”. The “word of the year” is not necessarily one word. It can be a popular phrase in American society. The “word of the year” shows how far our America has drifted from Biblical truth. Frankly, I had never actually heard these words. The list since 2016 is:

The “Word of the Year” has nothing to do with the True Word, the Word of God. It had everything to do with redefining truth, and the drifting hopelessness of the world in which we now live.

The Breakpoint article summed this up with:

“Truth is a Person. Jesus is the ultimate anchor for reality: unchanging, compassionate, and authoritative. He validates our feelings by bringing them into alignment with what actually is. He calls us to see the world as it is, not as the algorithms present it. He invites us to resist the cognitive and emotional conditioning of brain rot, aura farming, and rage bait.

The last decade of Words of the Year teaches us that when we try to feel our way into truth, our reality collapses. When we allow algorithms, outrage, or curated self-performance to define reality, we fragment into rage, passivity, and distortion. But when we anchor ourselves in the reality of God’s image, we reclaim the capacity for thoughtful engagement, creativity, and authentic relationships—both with Him and with others who share that image. ”

If we want to make a difference for the Kingdom of God, we who are saved by faith in Christ must live as faithful witnesses to the Gospel. We need to follow the pattern of Hezekiah!

Hezekiah Loved The Lord His God

Proverbs 25:1 These are also proverbs of Solomon, which the MEN OF HEZEKIAH King of Judah copied out.

Solomon was a flawed, but wise man whom the Lord used. When King Hezekiah came to the throne (about 270 years after Solomon’s reign), the King had his scribes search the royal vaults to collect additional sayings of Solomon. These words make up chapters 25-29 of this Book.

God used humans in writing His holy Scripture. He could have written the Scriptures through angels had He wanted, but God used man created in His image (Genesis 9:6) to relay His Word.

King Hezekiah was a good and Godly King. He loved the Lord Christ. He wanted to honor God in his office. The Bible says:

2 Kings 18:2-7 (NKJV) {Hezekiah} was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name [was] Abi the daughter of Zechariah. 3 And HE DID WHAT WAS RIGHT IN THE SIGHT OF THE LORD, according to all that his father David had done. 4 He removed the high places and broke the [sacred] pillars, cut down the wooden image and broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made; for until those days the children of Israel burned incense to it, and called it Nehushtan. 5 HE TRUSTED IN THE LORD GOD OF ISRAEL, so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor who were before him. 6 For HE HELD FAST TO THE LORD; he did not depart from following Him, but kept His commandments, which the LORD had commanded Moses. 7 The LORD WAS WITH HIM; HE PROSPERED WHERE EVER HE WENT. And he rebelled against the king of Assyria and did not serve him.

Hezekiah (Hebrew ḥizqîyâ, meaning “Jehovah is my Strength”) was not the only good King Judah (Southern Israel) had. The Southern Kingdom of Israel had eight good Kings who loved God, who were saved by faith in Christ. The Northern Kingdom had NO good kings, for they departed from God’s Word and God’s Commandment. When Hezekiah became King, the wisest thing he did was seek out the Word of God, and expand the Book of Proverbs. The Bible tells us that Solomon wrote about 3000 Proverbs (1 Kings 4:32), and many of those had not been transcribed up to this point. If Hezekiah was going to be an effective King, he wanted to cling to the Word of God! We are told in 2 Timothy 3:16 that “all scripture is God breathed”. Further the Apostle tells us:

2 Peter 1:20-21 (ESV) knowing this FIRST OF ALL, that NO prophecy of SCRIPTURE comes from someone ‘s own interpretation. 21 For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but MEN SPOKE FROM GOD AS THEY WERE CARRIED ALONG BY THE HOLY SPIRIT.

Hezekiah did what every wise leader should do: he sought out God’s Word so he could live by it.

There Are Kings – Then There Is THE King

Proverbs 25:2-5 It is the glory of God to conceal a thing: but the honor of kings is to search out a matter. 3 The heaven for height, and the earth for depth, and the heart of kings is unsearchable. 4 Take away the dross from the silver, and there shall come forth a vessel for the finer. 5 Take away the wicked from before the king, and his throne shall be established in righteousness.

Our God is “King of Kings and Lord of Lords” (Revelation 19:16). God does not tell us everything, but conceals certain things from us. Human kings, like us, are limited in what they can do, what they understand. But our God is INFINITE. We who are FINITE cannot fully understand the will of God, or His very nature. The Bible says in Romans11:33 (ESV), “Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How UNSEARCHABLE ARE HIS JUDGMENTS AND HOW INSCRUTABLE HIS WAYS!”. God reveals some things to show us His glory. As David Rives quoted on Sunday,

Psalm 19:1 (ESV) The HEAVENS DECLARE THE GLORY OF GOD, and the sky above proclaims His handiwork.

God reveals His glory in creation itself. But God does not tell us everything.

Deuteronomy 29:29 (ESV) The SECRET THINGS belong to the Lord our God, but the THINGS THAT ARE REVEALED BELONG TO US and to our children forever, that WE MAY DO ALL THE WORDS OF THIS LAW.

God knows all things. But the earthly King does not know all things. “But the honor of kings is to search out a matter”. Good rulers will seek out the truth. They will not rush to judgment, nor try to rule according to their opinions. Hezekiah ordered the proverbs of good King Solomon be researched and brought out of the vaults. Hezekiah was aware that (Proverbs 1:7, ESV) the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Proverbs 25:3 The heaven for height, and the earth for depth, and the HEART OF KINGS IS UNSEARCHABLE.

The decisions that leaders make are often misunderstood by the populace. The people know that the Heaven is high, but not how high. They know that the earth has depth, but they don’t know how deep. The responsibility of a good leader is to protect the people while drawing them close to the Lord Who made them. What is the primary calling of the good King?

Proverbs 25:4-5 Take away the DROSS from the silver, and there shall come forth a vessel for the finer. 5 Take away the wicked from before the king, and his throne shall be established in righteousness.

The value of silver goes up when the DROSS, the pollutants are removed from the silver. No fine vessel can be made with DROSS or impurities in it. So the King should seek to remove the DROSS from the nation. “Take away the wicked from before the king, and his throne shall be established in righteousness”. Adam Clarke noted in his commentary:

“You cannot have a pure silver vessel till you have purified the silver; and no nation can have a king a public blessing till the wicked – all bad counselors, wicked and interested ministers, and sycophants – are banished from the court and cabinet.”

The first thing Hezekiah did when becoming King was to have scribes uncover more of the Word of God. The second thing Hezekiah did was:

2 Kings 18:4 He removed the high places and broke the [sacred] pillars, cut down the wooden image and BROKE IN PIECES THE BRONZE SERPENT THAT MOSES HAD MADE; for until those days the children of Israel burned incense to it, and called it Nehushtan {nᵊḥuštān}.

When Israel drifted from following God under Moses, the Lord sent fiery serpents into the camp to bite and kill the people (Numbers 21:6). The Bible tells us that “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). God graphically and literally proved this by the fiery serpents. When the people REPENTED and came to Moses, saying “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD, and against thee; pray unto the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us”, their leader Moses went to the Lord in prayer. God told MOSES:

Numbers 21:8 Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.

God was teaching Israel – and us – what saving faith is. Every Israelite who stopped fighting the serpents, and who looked UPWARD at the Nehushtan, the bronze serpent, would be healed if they were bitten by the snakes (which represented the wages of sin).This is an Old Testament picture of the crucifixion of our Lord Jesus Christ. Our Lord Jesus said:

John 3:14-15 (KJV) And as MOSES LIFTED UP THE SERPENT in the wilderness, even so MUST THE SON OF MAN BE LIFTED UP: 15 That whosoever BELIEVETH IN HIM SHOULD NOT PERISH, but have eternal life.

Just as the Israelite under Moses’ leadership looked up in faith and believed and did not perish, those who look upward to Jesus – nailed to that Cross for our sins – will not perish!

Faith is to believe in the PERSON of God giving Himself for us. When Hezekiah came to office, the people had stopped believing in the PERSON of God, and began to believe in the POWER OF THE MAN MADE SERPENT. They began to worship the serpent, calling it Nehushtan, the bronze thing worthy of worship. They burned incense to it, something they were only to do with God Himself. They began to fall away from God, and they

Romans 1:25 (ESV) … EXCHANGED THE TRUTH ABOUT GOD for a lie and worshiped and SERVED THE CREATURE RATHER THAN THE CREATOR, who is blessed forever! Amen.

This same thing happened with the Ark of the Covenant. God caused it to be lost because Israel began to worship it, rather than the Savior God Who had it made. The Ark was a symbol of God’s presence (Exodus 25:22), but it had no power. At one time Israel said:

1 Samuel 4:3 (NKJV) … Let us bring the ark of the covenant of the LORD from Shiloh to us, that when it comes among us IT MAY SAVE US it may save us from the hand of our enemies.

That did not work out well. The Bible says that Israel was defeated by the Philistines, and lost 30,000 foot soldiers. Also the High Priests sons Hophni and Phinehas died. When Hezekiah came to the throne, he had the revered Nehushtan destroyed so that people could not worship it. God says:

Isaiah 42:8 I am the LORD: that is My Name: and My glory will I not give to another, neither My praise to graven images.

Hezekiah knew that the best he could do for his Kingdom was to establish the throne in righteousness. God will not bless sin. He will not bless idolatry. God will not share His glory with any others. He is God!

God Will Not Bless Pride And Arrogance

Proverbs 25:6-7 Put not forth thyself in the presence of the king, and stand not in the place of great men: 7 For better it is that it be said unto thee, Come up hither; than that thou shouldest be PUT LOWER IN THE PRESENCE OF THE PRINCE whom thine eyes have seen.

There are always those who feel they know better than the King. There are people – the created – who feel they know better than Almighty God! Hezekiah realized that he was on the throne of Israel because God allowed him to do so.

Romans 13:1-2 (NKJV) Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For THERE IS NO AUTHORITY EXCEPT FROM GOD, and THE AUTHORITIES THAT EXIST ARE APPOINTED BY GOD. 2 Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves.

Our Lord Jesus taught this same principle when He said:

Luke 14:8-11 (ESV) When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in a place of honor, lest someone more distinguished than you be invited by him, 9 and he who invited you both will come and say to you, ‘Give your place to this person,’ and then you will begin with shame to take the lowest place. 10 But when you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place, so that when your host comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at table with you. 11 For EVERYONE WHO EXALTS HIMSELF WILL BE HUMBLED, AND HE WHO HUMBLES HIMSELF WILL BE EXALTED.

When we “humble ourselves in the sight of the LORD, He will lift us up” (James 4:10). It is better to be nobody that the King honors, than to think you are somebody and be called nobody publicly!

Proverbs 25:8-10 Go not forth hastily to STRIVE {rîḇ}, lest thou know not what to do in the end thereof, when thy neighbor hath put thee to shame. 9 Debate thy cause with thy neighbor himself; and discover not a secret to another: 10 LEST HE THAT HEARETH IT PUT THEE TO SHAME, and thine infamy turn not away.

Word Study: The word “STRIVE” is the Hebrew rîḇ, which means in this context “to conduct a case or a legal suit, to sue in court”. Various versions translate this as:

Do not go hastily to court (NKJV)
do not hastily bring into court (ESV)
Do not go out hastily to plead your case (LSB)

Before carrying the “case” to court, the Lord tells us to try and work it out at the lowest level possible. Talk to the neighbor first. Jesus taught this in:

Matthew 18:15-20 (ESV) If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. 16 But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. 17 If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.

If you rush to judgment, you may find yourself in a worst position than had you humbled yourself and talked it over with the neighbor. Adam Clarke wrote in his commentary:

“A man who deliberates about going to law should have, 1. A good cause; 2. A good purse; 3. A good skillful attorney; 4. Good evidence; 5. Good able counsel; 6. A good upright judge; 7. A good intelligent jury; and with all these on his side, if he have not, 8. Good luck… ”

Ending With A Good Word

Proverbs 25:11-13 A WORD FITLY SPOKEN is like apples of gold in pictures of silver. 12 As an earring of gold, and an ornament of fine gold, so is a WISE REPROVER upon an OBEDIENT EAR. 13 As the cold of snow in the time of harvest, so is a FAITHFUL MESSENGER to them that send him: for he refresheth the soul of his masters.

The “WORD FITLY SPOKEN” is a beautiful thing. The “WORD FITLY SPOKEN” is not just an encouraging or complimentary word (for that is all that some wish to hear), but it is “WISE REPROOF” to the “OBEDIENT EAR”. Jesus did not speak all encouragement, but He rebuked as necessary, according to the Word of God. Jesus was a “FAITHFUL MESSENGER” Who spoke the Word of God (Hebrews 3:1-2). Jesus said, “Whatsoever I speak … I speak just as the Father has said unto Me” (John 12:49-50).

As believers in Christ, we live by His Word. We give an obedient ear to Him Who gave Himself to us. As Jesus is “the Faithful Witness” (Revelation 1:5), let us live for Him.