1 00:00:00,800 --> 00:00:04,040 Meet me in Second Kings chapter 25. 2 00:00:04,960 --> 00:00:08,600 As many of you know, maybe you don't know, tonight marks the 3 00:00:08,600 --> 00:00:12,880 final chapter of our study of the kings of Israel and of 4 00:00:12,880 --> 00:00:16,320 Judah. And as I was preparing a couple 5 00:00:16,320 --> 00:00:19,600 of days ago, meditating on these things, I thought, let me go 6 00:00:19,600 --> 00:00:22,400 back and see how many Fridays we spent together. 7 00:00:22,720 --> 00:00:25,800 When we combine our study in First and Second Kings, and it 8 00:00:25,800 --> 00:00:31,120 looks like we spent over 80 Fridays looking at these 9 00:00:31,120 --> 00:00:35,880 chapters carefully. And I hope that these sessions 10 00:00:35,880 --> 00:00:38,800 have been a blessing to you, just as they have been to me. 11 00:00:39,640 --> 00:00:41,320 But I don't want to make it sound like tonight is the 12 00:00:41,320 --> 00:00:44,440 finale. Yes, this is the concluding 13 00:00:44,440 --> 00:00:47,880 chapter we'll be examining. However, we'll only be covering 14 00:00:47,920 --> 00:00:50,760 part of it. And the reason for this is 15 00:00:50,760 --> 00:00:56,320 because as we look at the final ruler of Judah, whose name was 16 00:00:56,320 --> 00:01:01,520 Matanaya, but had his name later changed to what Zedekiah by King 17 00:01:01,520 --> 00:01:04,599 Babylon, there is much coverage about him. 18 00:01:05,840 --> 00:01:08,360 And you would only know the extent of what's mentioned about 19 00:01:08,360 --> 00:01:13,120 Zedekiah if you have read the book of Jeremiah. 20 00:01:15,040 --> 00:01:18,040 So tonight, we're going to rely heavily on Jeremiah. 21 00:01:18,040 --> 00:01:22,080 There's going to be different cross references presented here, 22 00:01:22,440 --> 00:01:26,160 and it might be scripture heavy, but my goal is in Bible study. 23 00:01:26,160 --> 00:01:28,880 One of the goals at least, is for you to see how the Bible 24 00:01:28,880 --> 00:01:32,520 complements itself, how these different books enrich your 25 00:01:32,520 --> 00:01:34,960 readings in a particular passage. 26 00:01:35,200 --> 00:01:39,680 And if we do take the time to visit those texts in Jeremiah, I 27 00:01:39,680 --> 00:01:43,520 assure you that it will deepen your understanding of the verses 28 00:01:43,520 --> 00:01:46,040 that we will cover here in chapter 25. 29 00:01:46,840 --> 00:01:49,320 But before we do that, let's begin. 30 00:01:49,480 --> 00:01:53,120 I asked you to go to chapter 25, but let's scroll back to verse 31 00:01:53,120 --> 00:01:57,280 18 of chapter 24 because this is where Zedekiah is introduced to 32 00:01:57,280 --> 00:01:59,720 us. And we will read down here in 33 00:01:59,720 --> 00:02:04,720 chapter 25 up to verse 2. And as we're going there, if if 34 00:02:04,720 --> 00:02:07,040 the sound team can help with the buzzing a little bit, you may 35 00:02:07,040 --> 00:02:10,080 not hear it, but I hear it. And it was gone for a long time, 36 00:02:10,080 --> 00:02:11,720 but it's come back to harass me again. 37 00:02:12,200 --> 00:02:16,320 Thank you for that. Second Kings 24 verse 18. 38 00:02:17,960 --> 00:02:22,640 Zedekiah was 21 years old when he became king, and he reigned 39 00:02:22,640 --> 00:02:26,440 11 years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Hamouta, 40 00:02:26,440 --> 00:02:28,280 the daughter of Jeremiah of Libna. 41 00:02:28,280 --> 00:02:31,720 And he did what was evil on the side of the Lord, according to 42 00:02:31,720 --> 00:02:35,720 all that Yahoo Akim had done. For because of the anger of the 43 00:02:35,720 --> 00:02:39,280 Lord, it came to the point in Jerusalem and Judah that he cast 44 00:02:39,280 --> 00:02:43,640 them out from his presence. And Zedekiah rebelled against 45 00:02:43,640 --> 00:02:47,600 the king of Babylon. And the ninth year of his reign 46 00:02:47,960 --> 00:02:50,560 in the 10th month, on the 10th day of the month, 47 00:02:50,600 --> 00:02:53,920 Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, came with all his army against 48 00:02:53,920 --> 00:02:58,880 Jerusalem and laid siege to it. And they built siege works all 49 00:02:58,880 --> 00:03:02,000 around it. So the city was besieged till 50 00:03:02,000 --> 00:03:08,280 the 11th year of King Zedekiah. Father, we ask as we've already 51 00:03:08,280 --> 00:03:12,600 prayed and as you've been faithful to us in our previous 52 00:03:12,600 --> 00:03:18,560 studies, Lord, that as we come to this last chapter that we 53 00:03:18,560 --> 00:03:21,400 would experience a greater measure of your grace and 54 00:03:21,400 --> 00:03:24,120 wisdom. We pray, Lord, that in your 55 00:03:24,120 --> 00:03:28,960 power you would apprehend every hint of distraction, that not 56 00:03:28,960 --> 00:03:33,080 one thing would be missed, that we would all emulate the 57 00:03:33,080 --> 00:03:37,520 attitude of Cornelius who said when Peter came into his home. 58 00:03:38,160 --> 00:03:41,400 We have all now gathered together in the presence of God 59 00:03:41,400 --> 00:03:44,760 to hear all that the Lord has commanded you to say. 60 00:03:45,360 --> 00:03:49,840 Lord, we want everything that you have to say and we trust 61 00:03:49,840 --> 00:03:52,840 that you will help us in your power to achieve it. 62 00:03:53,280 --> 00:03:56,760 We pray these things in the precious and matchless name of 63 00:03:56,760 --> 00:03:59,880 the Lord Jesus Christ, Amen and Amen. 64 00:04:01,120 --> 00:04:04,400 There are many ways that we can approach and explain the text 65 00:04:04,600 --> 00:04:08,440 that is before us tonight, but I want to take a different 66 00:04:08,480 --> 00:04:10,920 approach. I want to approach this with a 67 00:04:10,920 --> 00:04:13,080 different direction than we have in the past. 68 00:04:13,800 --> 00:04:18,320 Since Zedekiah is the final king of the Kingdom of Judah, and 69 00:04:18,320 --> 00:04:22,480 really his administration is defined by utter destruction 70 00:04:22,520 --> 00:04:26,320 unlike anything that we've seen in the history of kings, I want 71 00:04:26,320 --> 00:04:31,000 to use him as a case study. I want us to look at Zedekiah 72 00:04:31,480 --> 00:04:39,880 and learn what not to do if we seek to avoid heartache, 73 00:04:41,040 --> 00:04:45,880 spiritual ruin, and being the cause of collateral damage in 74 00:04:45,880 --> 00:04:50,640 the lives of others. This may not seem like the most 75 00:04:50,640 --> 00:04:55,400 uplifting Bible study, but it will be valuable nonetheless. 76 00:04:57,000 --> 00:04:59,720 And to provide a source of encouragement, I will let you 77 00:04:59,720 --> 00:05:05,480 know upfront that the way Second Kings ends actually ends may 78 00:05:05,480 --> 00:05:09,440 surprise us, especially with the lasting impression that it will 79 00:05:09,440 --> 00:05:12,760 leave us. But before we get there, we have 80 00:05:12,760 --> 00:05:15,960 to embrace this portion of Scripture the way the Spirit of 81 00:05:15,960 --> 00:05:20,440 God intended it to be received. So we will seek to answer this 82 00:05:20,440 --> 00:05:24,880 question. What did Hezekiah do to himself 83 00:05:26,000 --> 00:05:31,600 to set himself up for such a disastrous future? 84 00:05:34,040 --> 00:05:36,880 And the overarching answer is this. 85 00:05:37,640 --> 00:05:42,520 He possessed attitudes and made decisions that are easily 86 00:05:42,800 --> 00:05:46,520 imitatable by any of us, even if we're not. 87 00:05:46,520 --> 00:05:50,920 We're not kings and Queens. What is Zedekiah chose to do? 88 00:05:51,440 --> 00:05:55,520 What his outlook was, what his inlook was, is something any of 89 00:05:55,520 --> 00:05:59,360 us can follow, and we want to avoid that. 90 00:05:59,360 --> 00:06:06,320 And in my study, I saw at least three things that Zedekiah did 91 00:06:07,400 --> 00:06:12,400 to ensure avoidable turmoil. See, what is going to happen to 92 00:06:12,400 --> 00:06:16,720 this king did not have to happen, but it did because of 93 00:06:16,720 --> 00:06:20,200 three things. The first thing I wanted to 94 00:06:20,200 --> 00:06:26,160 understand about Zedekiah is that he was unconcerned with 95 00:06:26,160 --> 00:06:30,120 God's commands. He was unfazed. 96 00:06:31,120 --> 00:06:33,840 He did not tremble at God's Word. 97 00:06:35,000 --> 00:06:38,760 Look again at the last sentence of chapter 24, and Zedekiah 98 00:06:38,760 --> 00:06:42,080 rebelled against the king of Babylon. 99 00:06:42,920 --> 00:06:46,480 You'll remember hopefully that earlier in chapter 24 we learned 100 00:06:47,040 --> 00:06:51,680 that Babylon came and controlled Jerusalem. 101 00:06:53,320 --> 00:06:57,320 It's subjugated this city and this Kingdom to becoming a 102 00:06:57,400 --> 00:07:01,600 vassal nation. Jerusalem owed Babylon taxes, 103 00:07:02,560 --> 00:07:05,720 and essentially they were surrendered to its superiority 104 00:07:05,720 --> 00:07:08,880 and its authority. Whatever Babylon said they had 105 00:07:08,880 --> 00:07:11,080 to do. If Babylon wanted them to have a 106 00:07:11,080 --> 00:07:13,120 different king, they couldn't say anything about it. 107 00:07:13,280 --> 00:07:17,760 So there was a sense in which there was a level of autonomy in 108 00:07:17,760 --> 00:07:22,640 Jerusalem, but in reality, Babylon was controlling it. 109 00:07:24,160 --> 00:07:25,840 And this is what we have to understand. 110 00:07:26,760 --> 00:07:29,080 When we read that Zedekiah rebelled against the king of 111 00:07:29,080 --> 00:07:35,400 Babylon, we might be tempted to approve of this action, maybe 112 00:07:35,400 --> 00:07:39,320 even celebrate it. Yes, shake free, get your 113 00:07:39,320 --> 00:07:42,480 independence. Again, this is not the way God 114 00:07:42,480 --> 00:07:46,920 designed Jerusalem to function. God is supposed to be ruling 115 00:07:46,920 --> 00:07:49,160 over this place, not a foreign people group. 116 00:07:50,480 --> 00:07:53,680 But I'm afraid that if we're not familiar with Zedekiah's story 117 00:07:54,640 --> 00:07:59,600 and a wider scale, then we will take this at face value and fail 118 00:07:59,600 --> 00:08:02,200 to understand just how profound this action was. 119 00:08:02,560 --> 00:08:07,520 For Zedekiah to rebel is greater in significance than what we see 120 00:08:07,520 --> 00:08:11,920 in this one sentence. Now we learn here that he ruled 121 00:08:11,920 --> 00:08:14,800 for how many years? 11 years? 122 00:08:15,120 --> 00:08:19,880 That's how chapter 25 begins and we are fast forwarded to the 9th 123 00:08:19,880 --> 00:08:22,080 year of his reign at the opening of this chapter. 124 00:08:22,600 --> 00:08:26,040 However, when you go to Jeremiah's writings, he actually 125 00:08:26,040 --> 00:08:30,320 brings us to some events at the beginning of Zedekiah's reign. 126 00:08:30,440 --> 00:08:32,000 And this is where we need to turn right away. 127 00:08:32,440 --> 00:08:40,440 Go to Jeremiah with me, chapter 27, Jeremiah 27, and let's go to 128 00:08:40,440 --> 00:08:45,680 the verse one. This is very insightful. 129 00:08:49,160 --> 00:08:52,960 It says here in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah, the son 130 00:08:52,960 --> 00:08:57,120 of Josiah king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the 131 00:08:57,120 --> 00:09:00,840 Lord. Thus the Lord said to me, Make 132 00:09:00,840 --> 00:09:04,400 yourself straps and yoke bars and put them on your neck. 133 00:09:04,680 --> 00:09:08,400 Send word to the king of Edom, the king of Moab, the king of 134 00:09:08,400 --> 00:09:12,000 the sons of Amon, the king of Tyre, and the king of Saidon, by 135 00:09:12,000 --> 00:09:15,800 the hand of the envoys who who have come to Jerusalem, to 136 00:09:15,800 --> 00:09:20,080 Zedekiah king of Judah. So what do you have here? 137 00:09:20,280 --> 00:09:23,200 The word of the Lord comes to the weeping prophet and he 138 00:09:23,200 --> 00:09:26,760 informs him all these neighboring nations have visited 139 00:09:26,760 --> 00:09:30,080 Jerusalem to meet with King Zedekiah and I need you to say 140 00:09:30,080 --> 00:09:32,040 something to them. Now. 141 00:09:32,040 --> 00:09:34,320 We won't read it, but what's the summary of this chapter? 142 00:09:34,480 --> 00:09:37,800 It's essentially this. God is sovereign over all 143 00:09:37,800 --> 00:09:40,600 creation. God is sovereign over all 144 00:09:40,600 --> 00:09:44,040 nations. God has raised up Babylon to be 145 00:09:44,040 --> 00:09:46,520 the Dom dominating power in this region. 146 00:09:47,440 --> 00:09:50,800 Submit to him, all you nations, and you will live. 147 00:09:51,400 --> 00:09:53,520 Resist him and you will surely die. 148 00:09:54,360 --> 00:09:56,200 That's essentially this man's message. 149 00:09:57,240 --> 00:10:00,240 And what you have here is these nations with their 150 00:10:00,240 --> 00:10:02,800 representatives coming to Jerusalem because they all 151 00:10:02,800 --> 00:10:08,000 recognize that this Babylon is now rising with such dominance 152 00:10:08,400 --> 00:10:11,120 and force. So they're hopefully seeking to 153 00:10:11,120 --> 00:10:14,240 unite now and usurp this new authority. 154 00:10:15,280 --> 00:10:18,880 And before they can even devise a plan, Jeremiah receives word 155 00:10:18,880 --> 00:10:21,840 from God and he informs these nations, you're wasting your 156 00:10:21,840 --> 00:10:24,600 time. Nothing's going to change. 157 00:10:24,640 --> 00:10:27,920 In fact, to resist what's happening with Babylon in this 158 00:10:27,920 --> 00:10:33,320 region is to defy God himself. It's an amazing prophecy, and 159 00:10:33,320 --> 00:10:34,920 it's not just made to the nation's. 160 00:10:35,000 --> 00:10:39,640 Scroll down in Jeremiah 27. Look at verse 12 to Zedekiah, 161 00:10:39,640 --> 00:10:42,480 king of Judah, I spoke in like manner. 162 00:10:42,720 --> 00:10:45,960 Bring your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and 163 00:10:45,960 --> 00:10:48,680 serve him and his people, and live. 164 00:10:49,440 --> 00:10:52,760 Why will you and your people die by the sword, by famine, and by 165 00:10:52,760 --> 00:10:54,680 pestilence? As the Lord has spoken 166 00:10:54,680 --> 00:10:58,080 concerning any nation that will not serve the king of Babylon, 167 00:10:59,800 --> 00:11:04,320 so at the very beginning of Zedekiah's reign, Jeremiah's 168 00:11:04,320 --> 00:11:06,360 message was clear, right? We read that back in verse one 169 00:11:06,360 --> 00:11:08,200 in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah. 170 00:11:09,040 --> 00:11:17,440 Submit to Babylon, don't try to escape his rule, obey his 171 00:11:17,440 --> 00:11:20,880 demands, and as long as you do that, you will live along with 172 00:11:20,880 --> 00:11:22,480 your people. Can't get any more obvious than 173 00:11:22,480 --> 00:11:25,840 this. But what does he do? 174 00:11:26,760 --> 00:11:28,440 We read it back in Second Kings 24. 175 00:11:29,880 --> 00:11:34,160 Zedekiah rebelled against Babylon, failing to understand 176 00:11:34,160 --> 00:11:37,280 that God was the one behind it, failing to understand that 177 00:11:38,160 --> 00:11:41,360 Zedekiah had to yield to the discipline of the Lord 178 00:11:41,360 --> 00:11:48,280 manifested through Babylon. Did you know that we're actually 179 00:11:48,280 --> 00:11:53,120 told one major way that Zedekiah, how he rebelled 180 00:11:53,120 --> 00:11:57,800 against Babylon, We're told specifically it's not through 181 00:11:57,800 --> 00:12:01,880 Jeremiah's writings, though. Which prophet did we touch on in 182 00:12:01,880 --> 00:12:04,560 last week's study that's related to the story? 183 00:12:05,360 --> 00:12:10,000 Very good Ezekiel. God actually visits Ezekiel 184 00:12:10,000 --> 00:12:13,880 while he's in exile. Remember, when we're talking 185 00:12:13,880 --> 00:12:17,440 about the Babylonian exile, we have to understand it the way 186 00:12:17,440 --> 00:12:20,560 it's described here. In three major deportations. 187 00:12:21,120 --> 00:12:23,880 The first one, Daniel, was brought out. 188 00:12:24,200 --> 00:12:27,280 The second one, Ezekiel, was brought out, and now we're about 189 00:12:27,280 --> 00:12:28,800 to discover the 3rd and final one. 190 00:12:29,200 --> 00:12:34,320 Ezekiel was taken captive in the second one and while he's there 191 00:12:34,320 --> 00:12:37,840 in Babylon, he's receiving visions and prophecies for both 192 00:12:37,840 --> 00:12:40,600 the people who were brought into exile with him and even the 193 00:12:40,600 --> 00:12:45,120 people here back in Jerusalem. So there's a one place where God 194 00:12:45,120 --> 00:12:48,800 gives him a parable and then he gives them the interpretation of 195 00:12:48,800 --> 00:12:52,160 the parable. And it has to do with Zedekiah 196 00:12:52,400 --> 00:12:55,360 and how he rebelled against Babylon. 197 00:12:55,680 --> 00:12:58,680 Again, I, I told you this is going to be scripture heavy, but 198 00:12:58,680 --> 00:13:02,520 that's the point of Bible study. So when you come to Ezekiel 17 199 00:13:03,600 --> 00:13:07,600 and let's begin in verse 11, earlier in this chapter God gave 200 00:13:07,600 --> 00:13:12,000 the prophet a parable. Now he interprets it and this is 201 00:13:12,000 --> 00:13:15,080 the interpretation of this vision. 202 00:13:16,280 --> 00:13:24,120 Ezekiel 17, verse 11. Then the word of the Lord came 203 00:13:24,120 --> 00:13:27,800 to me, Say now to the rebellious house. 204 00:13:28,000 --> 00:13:30,760 Do you not know what these things mean? 205 00:13:31,320 --> 00:13:35,440 Tell them, Behold, the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and 206 00:13:35,440 --> 00:13:39,280 took her king and her Princess and brought them to him to 207 00:13:39,280 --> 00:13:40,800 Babylon. He's talking about the second 208 00:13:40,800 --> 00:13:44,800 deportation that's already happened, verse 13. 209 00:13:45,160 --> 00:13:47,960 And he took one of the royal offspring and made a covenant 210 00:13:47,960 --> 00:13:52,080 with him, putting him underoath the chief men of the land he had 211 00:13:52,080 --> 00:13:56,600 taken away, that the Kingdom might be humble and not lift 212 00:13:56,600 --> 00:14:00,200 itself up and keep his covenant, that it might stand. 213 00:14:00,200 --> 00:14:01,840 Pause. He's talking about Zedekiah 214 00:14:01,840 --> 00:14:05,640 here. He removed Jehoiah kin from 215 00:14:05,640 --> 00:14:10,240 before Zedekiah's reign. He sets up Zedekiah as the king, 216 00:14:11,240 --> 00:14:12,720 and he makes a covenant with Zedekiah. 217 00:14:12,880 --> 00:14:15,320 And Zedekiah apparently made a promise to the king of Babylon. 218 00:14:15,920 --> 00:14:17,480 But notice in verse 15 what happens? 219 00:14:18,240 --> 00:14:21,760 But he rebelled against them. By doing what? 220 00:14:22,080 --> 00:14:27,240 By sending his ambassadors to Egypt, that they might give him 221 00:14:27,240 --> 00:14:31,280 horses and a large army. Will he thrive? 222 00:14:31,720 --> 00:14:34,440 Can one escape who does such things? 223 00:14:34,680 --> 00:14:37,880 Can he break the covenant and yet escape? 224 00:14:38,840 --> 00:14:42,400 Do you see how the last sentence of chapter 24, Second Kings has 225 00:14:42,400 --> 00:14:44,840 so much to offer in other portions of the Scripture? 226 00:14:46,040 --> 00:14:48,960 How did he rebel? The major way is that he sent 227 00:14:48,960 --> 00:14:51,160 messengers to Egypt and he says, can you help us? 228 00:14:51,960 --> 00:14:54,160 Can you help us fight against Babylon? 229 00:14:55,880 --> 00:14:58,160 And God says you broke your covenant. 230 00:14:59,080 --> 00:15:02,840 You made a promise to Nebuchadnezzar and I saw how you 231 00:15:02,840 --> 00:15:06,320 are breaking this vow and you're not going to succeed. 232 00:15:06,320 --> 00:15:10,920 In fact, look at verse 16 as I live, declares the Lord God 233 00:15:10,920 --> 00:15:14,440 surely in the place where the king dwells, who made him king, 234 00:15:14,880 --> 00:15:18,960 whose oath he despised, and whose covenant with him he broke 235 00:15:19,240 --> 00:15:25,240 in Babylon, he shall die. In other words, Zedekiah, you 236 00:15:25,240 --> 00:15:28,600 think that you're going to regain your freedom and your 237 00:15:28,600 --> 00:15:30,800 independence. I'm here to tell you that you're 238 00:15:30,800 --> 00:15:33,360 actually going to be brought into Babylon and die there. 239 00:15:35,040 --> 00:15:37,720 Here's the most important part about the interpretation of this 240 00:15:37,720 --> 00:15:40,360 vision. Verse 19 of Ezekiel 17. 241 00:15:40,960 --> 00:15:46,360 Therefore, thus says the Lord God, as I live, surely it is my 242 00:15:46,360 --> 00:15:50,920 oath that he despised and my covenant that he broke. 243 00:15:51,160 --> 00:15:57,440 I will return it upon his head. Do you see how God views this 244 00:15:57,440 --> 00:16:00,880 covenant? It wasn't between two nations. 245 00:16:00,920 --> 00:16:04,240 It was ultimately between the king of Jerusalem and God 246 00:16:04,240 --> 00:16:07,360 himself, because God was working behind Babylon. 247 00:16:07,360 --> 00:16:13,040 It was God's will that Babylon would overtake Jerusalem, and 248 00:16:13,040 --> 00:16:15,360 Zedekiah broke a promise with God. 249 00:16:17,600 --> 00:16:20,160 I mentioned all this to show that Zedekiah is rebelling. 250 00:16:20,160 --> 00:16:22,720 He was not ultimately against Babylon, but against the Lord 251 00:16:22,720 --> 00:16:26,360 himself. And here's the main take away at 252 00:16:26,360 --> 00:16:30,680 this point. Often times, God's commands 253 00:16:30,760 --> 00:16:34,560 usually don't appease or make sense to our flesh. 254 00:16:35,520 --> 00:16:40,880 But if it's in His Word, it's always right, and it's always 255 00:16:40,880 --> 00:16:42,400 for our good. Always. 256 00:16:43,640 --> 00:16:45,720 Put yourself in Zedekiah's shoes for a moment. 257 00:16:45,960 --> 00:16:49,440 You can imagine how much he wrestled with this idea of 258 00:16:49,440 --> 00:16:53,880 submitting to Babylon. That's humiliating, that's 259 00:16:53,880 --> 00:16:59,360 uncomfortable, that's costly, and even terrifying to some 260 00:16:59,360 --> 00:17:02,680 degree. You're asking me to yield and to 261 00:17:02,680 --> 00:17:06,200 give myself to the leadership of a Pagan nation. 262 00:17:07,480 --> 00:17:11,760 And oftentimes even God's commands may feel like that at 263 00:17:11,760 --> 00:17:14,880 first. It jars us. 264 00:17:15,520 --> 00:17:19,480 It almost paralyzes us. It makes us reconsider. 265 00:17:19,880 --> 00:17:23,520 It makes alternative ways to approach a situation more 266 00:17:23,520 --> 00:17:27,079 attractive than what God presents or cause us to do. 267 00:17:28,560 --> 00:17:31,840 And if you and I struggle, maybe you're here even tonight and and 268 00:17:31,840 --> 00:17:34,680 you have been facing something that you know God says you have 269 00:17:34,680 --> 00:17:37,440 to do and you can't get yourself to do it. 270 00:17:38,160 --> 00:17:44,080 Remember Zedekiah's example? Don't forget it, because this 271 00:17:44,080 --> 00:17:47,720 man shows us that as much as he thought to protect and preserve 272 00:17:47,720 --> 00:17:50,720 himself and disobeying it would cost him way more. 273 00:17:52,400 --> 00:17:56,320 So listen, if you know that you've offended somebody and you 274 00:17:56,320 --> 00:17:59,480 have not taken Christ command seriously to approach them in 275 00:17:59,480 --> 00:18:03,600 humility and sincerity and to try to figure it out, obey Him, 276 00:18:04,760 --> 00:18:10,440 Obey the Lord. If you have not been taking the 277 00:18:10,440 --> 00:18:13,680 command of the Lord to assemble together with the Saints as a 278 00:18:13,680 --> 00:18:17,920 priority and you've been justifying your distance and 279 00:18:17,920 --> 00:18:22,560 you've been downplaying its importance, obey the Lord. 280 00:18:24,200 --> 00:18:27,520 If you know that you're you are being confronted with something 281 00:18:27,520 --> 00:18:33,120 and it requires honesty, even if that honesty is costly, obey 282 00:18:33,120 --> 00:18:37,280 God. Church leaders. 283 00:18:37,640 --> 00:18:40,920 If there is a situation that requires church discipline and 284 00:18:40,920 --> 00:18:44,040 it doesn't seem to be a favorable thing in the eyes of 285 00:18:44,040 --> 00:18:46,840 others who are not discerning whatever the case may be, you 286 00:18:46,840 --> 00:18:49,840 have to trust God's protocol. Obey Christ. 287 00:18:50,000 --> 00:18:53,360 How many more examples can I give many of God's instructions 288 00:18:53,360 --> 00:18:58,160 to us, like Zedekiah at 1st may not appease the flesh and that's 289 00:18:58,160 --> 00:19:02,080 that's to be expected and yet it still calls for our trust. 290 00:19:03,680 --> 00:19:05,880 Every act of obedience is an act of faith. 291 00:19:08,120 --> 00:19:10,360 Over the years I've heard Christians say strange things. 292 00:19:10,360 --> 00:19:13,200 One of the strange things that I've heard, I don't hear it as 293 00:19:13,200 --> 00:19:14,680 often lately. Thank God. 294 00:19:17,240 --> 00:19:19,840 I know the word of God says this, but but what? 295 00:19:21,320 --> 00:19:25,800 But what if it's clear and it's applicable to the situation? 296 00:19:25,800 --> 00:19:29,080 It's settled, but what? Like it's not up for 297 00:19:29,080 --> 00:19:33,520 negotiation? I I know but but, but, but what? 298 00:19:34,920 --> 00:19:37,120 Zedekiah, I'm sure thought similar things. 299 00:19:37,680 --> 00:19:41,920 To wilfully disobey what God had clearly made known is a 300 00:19:41,920 --> 00:19:46,720 dangerous precedent no matter what the command entails. 301 00:19:49,200 --> 00:19:52,680 And the final chapter of Second Chronicles actually summarizes 302 00:19:53,160 --> 00:19:57,960 Zedekiah's attitude towards God's Word in a much more clear 303 00:19:57,960 --> 00:20:01,480 fashion. Second Chronicles 36 is the last 304 00:20:01,480 --> 00:20:05,680 chapter of that book, which parallels what we find here in 305 00:20:05,680 --> 00:20:09,120 Second Kings 25. Look at verse 11 of Second 306 00:20:09,120 --> 00:20:13,640 Chronicles 36. Zedekiah was 21 years old when 307 00:20:13,640 --> 00:20:17,800 he began to reign, and he reigned 11 years in Jerusalem. 308 00:20:18,480 --> 00:20:21,200 He did what was evil in the side of the Lord his God. 309 00:20:21,600 --> 00:20:26,840 He did not humble himself before Jeremiah the prophet who spoke 310 00:20:27,080 --> 00:20:33,360 from the mouth of the Lord. How did he not humble himself? 311 00:20:33,600 --> 00:20:35,920 By not obeying, sure. But more than that, by not 312 00:20:35,920 --> 00:20:40,160 trusting, just trust me. I mean, if you read Jeremiah's 313 00:20:40,160 --> 00:20:43,280 prophecies over and over again, he he, he says it more than 314 00:20:43,280 --> 00:20:45,120 once. And although this is a 315 00:20:45,120 --> 00:20:48,400 convicting part of this study, I'm also comforted because 316 00:20:49,000 --> 00:20:52,160 Jeremiah started this message at the beginning of Zedekiah's 317 00:20:52,160 --> 00:20:54,960 reign, and he continues to say the same thing throughout the 318 00:20:54,960 --> 00:20:57,320 years. And this man stubbornly refused 319 00:20:57,320 --> 00:21:03,000 to give himself to obey it. So God is patient even when 320 00:21:03,000 --> 00:21:05,440 we're stubborn, but there is a limit. 321 00:21:05,720 --> 00:21:08,000 And this is really a summary of this man's attitude. 322 00:21:08,000 --> 00:21:10,880 He, he could not get himself to say God is right. 323 00:21:10,880 --> 00:21:13,360 I will trust him. I know that this doesn't make 324 00:21:13,360 --> 00:21:15,160 sense to me. I know that my flesh doesn't 325 00:21:15,160 --> 00:21:18,320 like it. And so he paid for it. 326 00:21:20,720 --> 00:21:27,080 One certain way of paving a path of avoidable hardship is by 327 00:21:27,080 --> 00:21:32,800 being unconcerned, unfazed, unmoved by God's commands. 328 00:21:33,920 --> 00:21:37,400 We learn in Isaiah that God looks upon the one who trembles 329 00:21:37,480 --> 00:21:42,920 at his word. And if I ever find myself no 330 00:21:42,920 --> 00:21:47,680 longer trembling at God's Word, inevitably I will find myself in 331 00:21:47,680 --> 00:21:54,120 trouble at one point or another. I don't know about you, but for 332 00:21:54,120 --> 00:22:00,480 me I think it's appropriate to be scared if I no longer tremble 333 00:22:00,800 --> 00:22:04,920 at God's Word. I have nothing to fear if I 334 00:22:04,920 --> 00:22:07,560 tremble at God's Word. I have so much to fear if I 335 00:22:07,560 --> 00:22:13,160 don't tremble. Imagine that to actually, every 336 00:22:13,160 --> 00:22:17,480 time you hear an exhortation, every time you hear some kind of 337 00:22:17,480 --> 00:22:22,520 command, it should cause your heart to to jolt to some degree, 338 00:22:22,520 --> 00:22:25,640 like the Lord is saying this to Christians. 339 00:22:25,680 --> 00:22:28,680 I'm a Christian, I'm a follower of Christ. 340 00:22:28,840 --> 00:22:32,120 This is what God Almighty asked of me. 341 00:22:32,120 --> 00:22:38,760 And when that sense of awe and majesty and weightiness 342 00:22:39,000 --> 00:22:46,960 dissipates, that's troubling. So this is where it all began. 343 00:22:47,640 --> 00:22:49,640 He was unconcerned with God's commands. 344 00:22:50,120 --> 00:22:52,160 But more specifically, and this is the second point of the 345 00:22:52,160 --> 00:22:57,080 study, Zedekiah was convinced that there are no consequences 346 00:22:57,080 --> 00:22:59,680 for sin. Let's come back down to our main 347 00:22:59,680 --> 00:23:02,920 chapter, Second Kings 25. Let's revisit the 1st 2 verses. 348 00:23:04,080 --> 00:23:07,880 And in the ninth year of his reign, in the 10th month, on the 349 00:23:07,880 --> 00:23:10,840 10th day of the month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon 350 00:23:10,840 --> 00:23:14,440 came with all his army against Jerusalem and laid siege to it 351 00:23:14,840 --> 00:23:16,880 and they built siege work all around it. 352 00:23:17,080 --> 00:23:20,520 So the city was besieged till the 11th year of King Zedekiah. 353 00:23:20,920 --> 00:23:23,720 So what's happening here? Well the way second Kings 24 354 00:23:23,720 --> 00:23:27,440 ends tells us he rebels. Babylon finds out, 355 00:23:28,520 --> 00:23:29,800 Nebuchadnezzar says enough is enough. 356 00:23:31,240 --> 00:23:34,080 I was willing to oversee you. I was willing to give you some 357 00:23:34,080 --> 00:23:39,120 level of control, but now I have to bring about full control. 358 00:23:39,560 --> 00:23:42,400 I have to now bring you to total surrender. 359 00:23:42,880 --> 00:23:46,080 And this is not surprising. But you know what is shocking to 360 00:23:46,080 --> 00:23:49,880 me? Zedekiah's initial response to 361 00:23:49,880 --> 00:23:53,000 the news that the city now is surrounded by his enemy. 362 00:23:54,800 --> 00:23:59,480 It's like jarring, actually so jarring that we have to make it 363 00:23:59,480 --> 00:24:07,280 a point in in this Bible study. Jeremiah's book is not precisely 364 00:24:07,600 --> 00:24:11,200 chronological, though. There is an overarching theme 365 00:24:11,200 --> 00:24:13,600 where you see the beginning of his calling and then you see the 366 00:24:13,600 --> 00:24:18,120 end of really Jerusalem. The parts in between are more 367 00:24:18,120 --> 00:24:22,600 thematically organized. So in Jeremiah 27 we read about 368 00:24:22,600 --> 00:24:25,280 his prophecy at the beginning of Zedekiah's reign. 369 00:24:25,520 --> 00:24:29,720 But when you go to Jeremiah 21, it's actually a prophecy at this 370 00:24:29,720 --> 00:24:33,080 point of Zedekiah's reign. Notice what Zedekiah does when 371 00:24:33,080 --> 00:24:36,560 he learns that Babylon is ready to wage war against Jerusalem. 372 00:24:36,760 --> 00:24:40,000 Go there with me, Jeremiah 21. Look at verse one. 373 00:24:49,480 --> 00:24:52,120 This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord. 374 00:24:52,120 --> 00:24:57,200 When King Zedekiah is sent to him, Pashure the son of Messiah, 375 00:24:57,360 --> 00:25:01,960 and Zephaniah the priest, the son of Messiah, saying, Inquire 376 00:25:01,960 --> 00:25:05,400 of the Lord for us, for Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, 377 00:25:05,600 --> 00:25:09,520 is making war against us. Perhaps the Lord will deal with 378 00:25:09,520 --> 00:25:12,800 us according to all his wonderful deeds and will make 379 00:25:12,800 --> 00:25:18,680 him withdraw from us. OK, if you read this in 380 00:25:18,680 --> 00:25:22,440 isolation without knowing the back story, you might think that 381 00:25:22,440 --> 00:25:26,520 Zedekiah is approaching the man of God in good faith and a clear 382 00:25:26,520 --> 00:25:28,640 conscience. As though this is like him 383 00:25:28,640 --> 00:25:32,240 stepping out because he believes that God can intervene. 384 00:25:32,880 --> 00:25:35,200 In the same way that Hezekiah believed God when he was 385 00:25:35,200 --> 00:25:36,920 surrounded by who? Assyria? 386 00:25:36,920 --> 00:25:38,440 When Assyria was at his front step. 387 00:25:39,720 --> 00:25:44,080 But that's not the case. Is that a guy here is operating 388 00:25:44,080 --> 00:25:47,440 with a self perceived faith and purity. 389 00:25:48,880 --> 00:25:51,920 So here's the man saying Jeremiah, inquire of the Lord 390 00:25:51,920 --> 00:25:54,040 for us. Maybe God will manifest his 391 00:25:54,040 --> 00:25:56,640 wonderful deeds and he'll intervene and save us. 392 00:25:57,720 --> 00:26:00,840 And here am I thinking while reading this, you don't deserve 393 00:26:00,840 --> 00:26:03,680 it. What are you talking about? 394 00:26:04,960 --> 00:26:07,040 Don't you understand that the reason why Babylon is 395 00:26:07,040 --> 00:26:10,320 surrounding you is because of your disobedience? 396 00:26:11,360 --> 00:26:13,720 But there's no sense of that. He's not broken, He's not 397 00:26:13,720 --> 00:26:15,800 contrite. He's not coming in repentance. 398 00:26:15,960 --> 00:26:17,840 He's coming as though he deserves that. 399 00:26:17,840 --> 00:26:20,840 He, he's owed this. That if he just comes with this 400 00:26:20,840 --> 00:26:23,400 supposed trust that God is going to say, you know what Zedekiah, 401 00:26:23,400 --> 00:26:28,120 I'm going to help you out here. When you read about Hezekiah's 402 00:26:28,120 --> 00:26:31,360 story in Second Chronicles, we studied this when we looked at 403 00:26:31,360 --> 00:26:37,600 his administration, it says that Assyria came to Jerusalem after 404 00:26:37,600 --> 00:26:43,800 these acts of faithfulness that Second Chronicles 32 verse one, 405 00:26:44,160 --> 00:26:47,720 after Hezekiah did his part to purge the land of all the 406 00:26:47,720 --> 00:26:51,200 idolatry. Then Assyria came teaching us 407 00:26:51,200 --> 00:26:55,160 what that many times tests of faith come while we obey the 408 00:26:55,160 --> 00:26:58,400 Lord. That does not apply to Zedekiah. 409 00:26:59,000 --> 00:27:02,520 He wasn't faithful, and now Babylon's coming so that he can 410 00:27:02,520 --> 00:27:04,200 grow and mature in his trust in God. 411 00:27:04,320 --> 00:27:08,360 No, he was faithless and God sent Babylon to punish him. 412 00:27:13,240 --> 00:27:17,280 Here's a man who has 0 awareness that the problems around him are 413 00:27:17,280 --> 00:27:19,720 the direct result of his own pride and stubbornness. 414 00:27:21,480 --> 00:27:24,960 And please, I don't want any of us to confuse this point with 415 00:27:24,960 --> 00:27:28,160 the reality that Christians can make genuine mistakes. 416 00:27:28,200 --> 00:27:30,880 Thank God for His grace and His abundant forgiveness. 417 00:27:30,880 --> 00:27:34,920 That's not the point here. I'm using this to address those 418 00:27:35,280 --> 00:27:39,440 who show little to no awareness that sin is destructive and 419 00:27:39,440 --> 00:27:41,880 carries real consequences. And they're out there. 420 00:27:41,880 --> 00:27:48,240 People like this are out there. What are some of the reasons why 421 00:27:48,240 --> 00:27:49,760 professing Christians think this way? 422 00:27:51,160 --> 00:27:58,480 That virtually any sin can be committed and it not be followed 423 00:27:58,480 --> 00:28:04,480 with dire ramifications? I'll give you one reason, a 424 00:28:04,480 --> 00:28:11,760 false sense of security. For some reason there are many 425 00:28:12,200 --> 00:28:18,000 who really don't understand how God deals with mankind in their 426 00:28:18,000 --> 00:28:23,120 sin, especially with His own children, and I believe that was 427 00:28:23,120 --> 00:28:26,840 Zedekiah's problem along with his people. 428 00:28:27,480 --> 00:28:30,160 We didn't read it yet, but when you come down later in Second 429 00:28:30,160 --> 00:28:34,240 Kings 25 from verse 13 down to verse 18, that chunk of 430 00:28:34,240 --> 00:28:39,320 Scripture gives us an elaborate description of the total 431 00:28:39,320 --> 00:28:42,880 destruction of the temple, like details what happens to the 432 00:28:42,880 --> 00:28:46,040 House of worship. And one of the reasons why that 433 00:28:46,040 --> 00:28:51,400 passage is so significant is because for the longest time the 434 00:28:51,400 --> 00:28:57,400 temple was some form of security net for the people of Judah that 435 00:28:57,400 --> 00:29:02,040 in their minds, as long as the temple is here and intact, God 436 00:29:02,040 --> 00:29:05,640 will never allow a foreign power to overtake us. 437 00:29:06,280 --> 00:29:10,280 That's how they understood this. So most of the people in 438 00:29:10,280 --> 00:29:14,880 Jerusalem at this time were persuaded that because of the 439 00:29:14,880 --> 00:29:18,840 significance and the glory attached to the temple, the Lord 440 00:29:18,840 --> 00:29:23,440 will never allow Jerusalem to be taken over. 441 00:29:25,040 --> 00:29:29,720 In fact, that's what false prophets used to give false 442 00:29:29,720 --> 00:29:32,360 confidence in the hearts of sinners. 443 00:29:33,760 --> 00:29:38,640 And this was so paramount, so prevalent that God visits 444 00:29:38,640 --> 00:29:43,440 Jeremiah and he says, I need you to challenge this misplaced 445 00:29:43,440 --> 00:29:45,080 confidence that these people have. 446 00:29:46,280 --> 00:29:49,080 Jeremiah 7, You need to see it with me. 447 00:29:49,480 --> 00:30:02,510 Verse one, Jeremiah 7, Verse one, the word that came to 448 00:30:02,510 --> 00:30:06,590 Jeremiah from the Lord. Stand in the gate of the Lord's 449 00:30:06,590 --> 00:30:11,030 house and proclaim there this word and say, hear the word, the 450 00:30:11,030 --> 00:30:13,270 Lord. All you men of Judah who entered 451 00:30:13,270 --> 00:30:16,840 these gates to worship the Lord, pause here. 452 00:30:16,840 --> 00:30:18,760 Can you imagine being commissioned to do this? 453 00:30:20,400 --> 00:30:23,560 I want you. This is a poor example, but 454 00:30:23,960 --> 00:30:25,280 hopefully you'll help to some degree. 455 00:30:25,600 --> 00:30:28,080 I want you to stand at the front of Maranatha Bible Church on 456 00:30:28,080 --> 00:30:30,720 Sunday morning, and I want you to preach. 457 00:30:30,720 --> 00:30:34,960 This message as people are walking in the temple is much 458 00:30:34,960 --> 00:30:39,200 more significant in terms of size and occupancy than what we 459 00:30:39,200 --> 00:30:42,120 have here on a weekly basis. So you can just imagine what 460 00:30:42,120 --> 00:30:44,400 this demanded of Jeremiah. You asked me to go to the gate 461 00:30:44,400 --> 00:30:46,320 of the temple and preach. What? 462 00:30:46,640 --> 00:30:48,560 Welcome. No, not welcome. 463 00:30:49,880 --> 00:30:54,880 Look what he says, verse three that says the Lord of hosts, the 464 00:30:54,880 --> 00:30:58,640 God of Israel, amend your ways and your deeds and I will let 465 00:30:58,640 --> 00:31:02,360 you dwell in this place. Do not trust in these deceptive 466 00:31:02,360 --> 00:31:04,760 words. This is the temple of the Lord, 467 00:31:05,080 --> 00:31:08,560 the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord. 468 00:31:12,080 --> 00:31:15,160 The people dismissed Jeremiah's warning because they believe 469 00:31:15,160 --> 00:31:18,920 that as long as the temple was among them, God would never 470 00:31:18,920 --> 00:31:23,000 allow total takeover. They were trusting in those 471 00:31:23,000 --> 00:31:26,000 deceptive words. And I want to say similarly, 472 00:31:26,000 --> 00:31:28,560 there are professing believers who make the same mistake and 473 00:31:28,560 --> 00:31:31,920 how they understand God's dealing with us in our sin. 474 00:31:34,120 --> 00:31:40,600 There are far too many stories of servants of Christ who think 475 00:31:41,720 --> 00:31:47,200 that the success of their gift or the size of their ministry 476 00:31:48,600 --> 00:31:50,760 can be a shield to divine discipline. 477 00:31:52,880 --> 00:31:57,520 It's far too common. And I know that I'm speaking to 478 00:31:57,520 --> 00:32:00,520 a room filled with people who are serving Christ and long to 479 00:32:00,520 --> 00:32:04,720 serve Him at greater capacity. So I want to mention this to 480 00:32:04,720 --> 00:32:06,360 you. If you and I want to know 481 00:32:06,360 --> 00:32:13,080 longevity and you and I want to be strengthening our resistance 482 00:32:13,080 --> 00:32:16,600 to the deception that we can be immune to the consequences of 483 00:32:16,600 --> 00:32:19,640 sin, you have to just apply this one thing. 484 00:32:19,640 --> 00:32:24,600 You ready for this? You and I must believe that we 485 00:32:24,600 --> 00:32:29,960 are replaceable. I know self improving and self 486 00:32:29,960 --> 00:32:32,240 improving gurus will tell you otherwise, right? 487 00:32:32,840 --> 00:32:34,640 But God's economy works differently. 488 00:32:35,240 --> 00:32:40,840 You and I are totally replaceable when it comes to 489 00:32:40,840 --> 00:32:46,920 serving God. It's extremely dangerous to 490 00:32:46,920 --> 00:32:50,880 believe that a church or ministry won't truly thrive or 491 00:32:50,880 --> 00:32:59,440 survive without my presence, without my involvement, because 492 00:32:59,440 --> 00:33:01,520 Satan exploits that kind of mindset. 493 00:33:02,920 --> 00:33:09,240 And that is the foothold that breeds the false notion then, 494 00:33:09,400 --> 00:33:14,600 that I can behave how I want because I am needed. 495 00:33:17,920 --> 00:33:22,280 This temple can't be replaced. This temple isn't going to go 496 00:33:22,280 --> 00:33:25,400 anywhere. Surely God won't remove this 497 00:33:25,400 --> 00:33:30,640 thing because of its value and its history and its 498 00:33:30,640 --> 00:33:33,280 significance. And you know what? 499 00:33:33,280 --> 00:33:37,840 God says I actually I can Scroll down quickly here. 500 00:33:38,520 --> 00:33:43,000 Look at verse 12 of Jeremiah 7. He tells the same group of 501 00:33:43,000 --> 00:33:46,920 people, go now to my place that was in Shiloh. 502 00:33:46,920 --> 00:33:50,040 Do you remember Shiloh? We studied this in First Samuel. 503 00:33:51,920 --> 00:33:57,080 Shiloh was where the Tabernacle resided and it was destroyed 504 00:33:58,560 --> 00:34:02,200 especially after Eli and his sons disobeyed God. 505 00:34:02,360 --> 00:34:03,960 So what is the Lord saying here to the same group? 506 00:34:04,120 --> 00:34:06,000 Hey, hey, hey, do you guys remember Shiloh? 507 00:34:06,840 --> 00:34:08,920 Go visit it. It's been abandoned for 508 00:34:08,920 --> 00:34:11,719 centuries. Let's continue where I made my 509 00:34:11,719 --> 00:34:14,000 name dwell at 1st and see what I did to it. 510 00:34:14,000 --> 00:34:16,000 Because of the evil of my people, Israel. 511 00:34:16,639 --> 00:34:18,679 And now because you have done all these things, declares the 512 00:34:18,679 --> 00:34:19,920 Lord. And when I spoke to you 513 00:34:19,920 --> 00:34:22,440 persistently, you did not listen. 514 00:34:22,600 --> 00:34:24,280 And when I called you, you did not answer. 515 00:34:24,280 --> 00:34:27,080 Therefore, I will do to the house that is called by my name 516 00:34:27,440 --> 00:34:30,159 and which you trust, to the place that I gave to you and to 517 00:34:30,159 --> 00:34:31,880 your father's, as I did to Shiloh. 518 00:34:36,840 --> 00:34:39,920 Where did problems ensue for Zedekiah and his population? 519 00:34:40,280 --> 00:34:44,360 They thought that the temple was going nowhere. 520 00:34:45,679 --> 00:34:49,719 Let's apply it personally. When I begin to think that I am 521 00:34:49,760 --> 00:34:57,760 irreplaceable, that I'm somehow an anomaly in God's Kingdom, the 522 00:34:57,760 --> 00:35:02,480 up and coming, the main threat that holds everything together 523 00:35:02,760 --> 00:35:06,760 wherever I serve, Brother, sister, a dangerous game. 524 00:35:07,360 --> 00:35:11,560 A dangerous game. Because Satan takes advantage of 525 00:35:11,560 --> 00:35:12,920 that. He begins to whisper things in 526 00:35:12,920 --> 00:35:14,480 your mind. You know how you and I should 527 00:35:14,480 --> 00:35:17,400 think, Lord, I don't deserve to do anything for you. 528 00:35:18,600 --> 00:35:23,720 Any opportunity I get to serve you is a complete gift. 529 00:35:24,320 --> 00:35:30,680 You don't need me. I need you always, Lord, I 530 00:35:30,680 --> 00:35:35,000 believe wholeheartedly, though you are immensely gracious, so 531 00:35:35,000 --> 00:35:40,480 forgiving, so patient, that you can also, in your wisdom, if I 532 00:35:40,480 --> 00:35:43,920 continue to sin or sin so grievously, to flick me off 533 00:35:45,320 --> 00:35:50,760 whatever platform, whatever presence, whatever influence, 534 00:35:50,960 --> 00:35:59,320 and easily raise up somebody else to bring you glory, that 535 00:35:59,320 --> 00:36:01,400 will keep you and I on our faces. 536 00:36:03,000 --> 00:36:05,440 And unfortunately, Judah did not believe this about themselves, 537 00:36:06,920 --> 00:36:10,320 so God sent Jeremiah to remind them that the temple was 538 00:36:10,320 --> 00:36:15,480 replaceable. So when you and I nurture this 539 00:36:15,480 --> 00:36:21,760 idea that sin doesn't have real lasting consequences, we open 540 00:36:21,760 --> 00:36:25,240 ourselves to greater danger in our future. 541 00:36:26,840 --> 00:36:28,000 But that's only the second point. 542 00:36:28,720 --> 00:36:31,640 We come down to the last one. Let's come back to Second Kings 543 00:36:31,640 --> 00:36:40,680 25, verse 3. On the 9th day of the fourth 544 00:36:40,680 --> 00:36:46,800 month, the famine was so severe in the city that there was no 545 00:36:46,800 --> 00:36:51,040 food for the people of the land. Then a breach was made in the 546 00:36:51,040 --> 00:36:55,080 city, and all the men of war fled by night by the way of the 547 00:36:55,080 --> 00:36:58,760 gate between the two walls, by the King's garden. 548 00:37:00,040 --> 00:37:03,040 And the Chaldeans were around the city, and they went in the 549 00:37:03,040 --> 00:37:06,280 direction of the Araba. But the army of the Chaldeans 550 00:37:06,280 --> 00:37:09,400 pursued the king and overtook him in the plains of Jericho, 551 00:37:09,760 --> 00:37:12,280 and all his army was scattered from him. 552 00:37:14,200 --> 00:37:17,440 So there's an important phrase here in verse 4. 553 00:37:18,320 --> 00:37:20,840 There was a famine. That's the natural outcome of a 554 00:37:20,840 --> 00:37:22,600 siege. That's the strategy. 555 00:37:22,600 --> 00:37:27,000 Starve the people out, make them so weak so that they can't fight 556 00:37:27,000 --> 00:37:30,200 back. And their intelligent agency 557 00:37:30,200 --> 00:37:32,320 understood that this was the case within the walls of 558 00:37:32,320 --> 00:37:33,840 Jerusalem. So look at verse 4 again. 559 00:37:33,840 --> 00:37:37,280 Then a breach was made in the city, telling us what? 560 00:37:38,240 --> 00:37:41,080 That Babylon now came and entered into the very walls of 561 00:37:41,080 --> 00:37:42,960 Jerusalem. They no longer surrounded it. 562 00:37:42,960 --> 00:37:47,520 Now they're within it. And once this was learned by the 563 00:37:47,520 --> 00:37:51,560 government, you would think naturally that if a Kingdom was 564 00:37:51,560 --> 00:37:54,240 invaded in this way, that the army would what? 565 00:37:54,240 --> 00:37:58,360 Defend the city that a noble king would even fight on behalf 566 00:37:58,360 --> 00:38:00,560 of the people. But what do we read instead? 567 00:38:01,200 --> 00:38:06,240 That the army fled. Why did they flee? 568 00:38:06,960 --> 00:38:11,440 To protect and surround the king as he tried to deliver himself 569 00:38:12,560 --> 00:38:14,840 by turning his back on his people when they needed him the 570 00:38:14,840 --> 00:38:20,360 most. I find it interesting that 571 00:38:20,360 --> 00:38:25,320 within this theme of destruction in this passage, Zedekiah's 572 00:38:25,320 --> 00:38:32,040 selfishness is highlighted #3 this is just what the text I 573 00:38:32,040 --> 00:38:34,400 believe is saying to us. If we're approaching in this 574 00:38:34,400 --> 00:38:39,840 way, a guaranteed ingredient for you and I to pave the path of 575 00:38:39,840 --> 00:38:44,040 hardship, collateral damage, spiritual ruin, avoidable 576 00:38:44,040 --> 00:38:52,920 heartache, is to be self absorbed, to be selfish, to 577 00:38:52,920 --> 00:38:56,720 think of me and me alone as my priority. 578 00:38:57,400 --> 00:38:58,960 That's what we have with this king. 579 00:39:00,040 --> 00:39:02,760 Now, I'm not suggesting that Zedekiah should have stayed back 580 00:39:02,760 --> 00:39:05,480 to fight Babylon because he wouldn't have succeeded. 581 00:39:06,920 --> 00:39:09,000 In fact, what he should have done is what Jeremiah told him 582 00:39:09,000 --> 00:39:12,640 repeatedly to do. And what surrender again. 583 00:39:12,840 --> 00:39:15,240 You'll never read the book of Jeremiah the same way again. 584 00:39:16,080 --> 00:39:19,840 So many places in that book, he tells Zedekiah, just surrender 585 00:39:19,840 --> 00:39:22,280 and you will live and the people will live. 586 00:39:22,280 --> 00:39:24,480 And more than that, this city will be spared. 587 00:39:24,800 --> 00:39:26,480 All of this could have been dodged. 588 00:39:28,160 --> 00:39:32,240 So he he should have just dug his heeled in the earth and just 589 00:39:32,240 --> 00:39:35,880 humbly come before the king of Babylon says, I, I surrender. 590 00:39:36,400 --> 00:39:40,080 I was a fool. Instead he runs into the dark. 591 00:39:40,720 --> 00:39:43,760 Who knows where he's going, but he's trying to get as fast as 592 00:39:43,760 --> 00:39:46,840 possible away from these new invaders. 593 00:39:48,200 --> 00:39:52,800 And as I meditated on this, I thought this man, in the final 594 00:39:52,800 --> 00:39:57,720 moments of his life, added a final layer of disgrace to his 595 00:39:57,720 --> 00:40:02,440 testimony. Be a man, Be noble. 596 00:40:02,720 --> 00:40:04,840 Do you have a shred of integrity? 597 00:40:05,520 --> 00:40:08,680 You're the leader of this people, and you abandoned them. 598 00:40:10,640 --> 00:40:15,000 And so I leaned back on my chair earlier today and my mind goes 599 00:40:15,000 --> 00:40:18,640 to. What Paul told Timothy when he 600 00:40:18,640 --> 00:40:25,320 gave him a list of features concerning the last days and he 601 00:40:25,520 --> 00:40:29,480 presents in a span of four verses there in Second Timothy 602 00:40:29,480 --> 00:40:35,080 3, all these ugly traits that will surface and intensify as we 603 00:40:35,080 --> 00:40:39,080 approach the return of Christ. Before you turn there and we 604 00:40:39,080 --> 00:40:44,080 don't even have to turn there, does anyone remember the first 605 00:40:44,080 --> 00:40:50,320 thing that Paul puts in that catalog after he says? 606 00:40:50,320 --> 00:40:53,080 But understand this, in the last days there will come times of 607 00:40:53,080 --> 00:40:55,640 difficulty. What's the first thing that Paul 608 00:40:55,640 --> 00:41:01,440 mentioned to Timothy? People will be lovers of South 609 00:41:02,520 --> 00:41:07,640 Second Timothy 3/2. That's not accidental, That's 610 00:41:07,640 --> 00:41:09,640 not random. That is strategic. 611 00:41:10,840 --> 00:41:17,640 Self love is the swamp in which all these other sins love to 612 00:41:17,640 --> 00:41:23,280 swim in. People will love themselves. 613 00:41:24,920 --> 00:41:26,920 And we're living in a culture that promotes self love more 614 00:41:26,920 --> 00:41:29,960 than any other time. People are addicted to 615 00:41:29,960 --> 00:41:33,280 themselves, right? This is not just a cultural 616 00:41:33,280 --> 00:41:36,480 phenomenon, this is a manifestation. 617 00:41:36,480 --> 00:41:43,720 This is a symptom of a deeper problem, self love, and the 618 00:41:43,720 --> 00:41:46,640 reason why it's mentioned first is because it's the foundation 619 00:41:46,640 --> 00:41:48,760 by which all these other iniquities are built on. 620 00:41:50,040 --> 00:41:54,880 Everything flows from this, and we even know this since Christ 621 00:41:54,880 --> 00:41:59,000 attacks that very thing. When he lays out the basic 622 00:41:59,000 --> 00:42:03,240 conditions for discipleship, what does he tell us? 623 00:42:04,000 --> 00:42:06,160 What do we need to deny if we're going to be followers of Him? 624 00:42:06,440 --> 00:42:08,040 Deny who? Yourself. 625 00:42:09,560 --> 00:42:13,080 Totally antithetical to what Paul listed in Second Timothy 3. 626 00:42:13,480 --> 00:42:16,640 In the last days everybody will be lovers of self. 627 00:42:16,880 --> 00:42:18,920 And Jesus says if you want to follow me, you got to deny 628 00:42:18,920 --> 00:42:22,000 yourself. You got to deny yourself. 629 00:42:23,880 --> 00:42:29,800 So think about it this way. If self denial is the basis for 630 00:42:30,080 --> 00:42:35,000 practical holiness and righteousness to flourish and 631 00:42:35,000 --> 00:42:40,400 honor God and bless others, then self love surely breeds the 632 00:42:40,400 --> 00:42:44,160 opposite. It dishonors God and it will 633 00:42:44,160 --> 00:42:48,120 surely injure others in more than one way. 634 00:42:49,720 --> 00:42:51,360 And that's exemplified by Zedekiah. 635 00:42:52,040 --> 00:42:55,200 It's just all about him. He's not concerned about the 636 00:42:55,200 --> 00:42:58,920 people, the families, the children, the reputation of the 637 00:42:58,920 --> 00:43:00,920 temple. No, no, no, it's about myself. 638 00:43:00,920 --> 00:43:04,920 Preservation. And it invited so much trouble. 639 00:43:06,520 --> 00:43:08,800 That will be true for your marriage, husband. 640 00:43:09,840 --> 00:43:12,880 That'll be true in your relationship with your children, 641 00:43:12,880 --> 00:43:15,640 mother. That'll be true for you, Elder. 642 00:43:15,960 --> 00:43:17,920 That'll be true for you, leader of that Bible study. 643 00:43:17,920 --> 00:43:19,880 That'll be true for you and your friend group. 644 00:43:19,880 --> 00:43:22,680 You, you won't have many friends, at least healthy ones. 645 00:43:22,680 --> 00:43:26,080 You have a toxic group of friends if you are possessed 646 00:43:26,200 --> 00:43:30,600 with self love. But oh, if everybody apprehends 647 00:43:30,600 --> 00:43:34,320 this attitude of Christ, then we'll have the scent of heaven 648 00:43:34,640 --> 00:43:36,600 in every atmosphere that we step foot in. 649 00:43:38,600 --> 00:43:42,240 This is such an ugly picture. I was actually so disgusted with 650 00:43:42,240 --> 00:43:46,560 Zedekiah here. You find this principle 651 00:43:46,560 --> 00:43:50,760 throughout the scriptures. My mind even went to Jesus's 652 00:43:50,760 --> 00:43:55,960 description of a false shepherd. John 10 is that well known 653 00:43:55,960 --> 00:43:59,080 passage about the Good Shepherd. But in it you get insight of 654 00:43:59,080 --> 00:44:01,760 what a false leader, spiritual leader looks like. 655 00:44:02,880 --> 00:44:06,920 We remember this right, he says in John 1012 to 13, as I 656 00:44:06,920 --> 00:44:11,440 paraphrase, that when a hireling, A hired hand, meaning 657 00:44:11,640 --> 00:44:15,360 not somebody who owns the sheep, but someone who the owner of the 658 00:44:15,360 --> 00:44:20,000 sheep hires to supervise the sheep, when that hired hand sees 659 00:44:20,000 --> 00:44:22,680 a wolf coming, what does he do? Grab his staff and fight. 660 00:44:23,520 --> 00:44:26,120 What does he do? He flees. 661 00:44:27,800 --> 00:44:32,560 He flees. And Jesus says, not caring for 662 00:44:32,560 --> 00:44:35,480 the sheep, what did he care for His paycheck? 663 00:44:37,760 --> 00:44:41,840 What did he sign up for, for, to, to to benefit himself. 664 00:44:45,280 --> 00:44:49,080 And when real danger comes or when real, real problems arise, 665 00:44:49,880 --> 00:44:53,200 Jesus mentions you will know a shepherd, a spiritual shepherd 666 00:44:53,200 --> 00:44:59,760 is a false one when he abandons people in a time where they're 667 00:44:59,760 --> 00:45:02,360 in need of the most concerning their leadership, their insight, 668 00:45:02,680 --> 00:45:08,600 and their courage. Fascinating example after 669 00:45:08,600 --> 00:45:10,120 example. We see it in the Old Testament. 670 00:45:10,120 --> 00:45:15,320 We see it in the New Testament that self love erodes and 671 00:45:15,320 --> 00:45:20,520 destroys so much, including Zedekiah's own life. 672 00:45:22,000 --> 00:45:23,800 Let's come to the concluding verses of this. 673 00:45:23,800 --> 00:45:25,520 We're going to end in verse 7 tonight. 674 00:45:27,520 --> 00:45:34,800 So the king flees, right? Look at verse 6 now Then they 675 00:45:34,800 --> 00:45:37,920 captured the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at 676 00:45:37,920 --> 00:45:40,800 Ribla and they passed sentence on him. 677 00:45:41,520 --> 00:45:46,040 They slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes and put 678 00:45:46,040 --> 00:45:49,280 out the eyes of Zedekiah and bound him in chains and took him 679 00:45:49,280 --> 00:45:52,680 to Babylon. This is very graphic and very 680 00:45:52,680 --> 00:45:54,840 gruesome. I don't want to be too 681 00:45:54,840 --> 00:45:56,520 descriptive here. I think it's plain. 682 00:45:58,440 --> 00:46:04,200 Zedekiah tries to escape. He's captured and a sentence is 683 00:46:04,200 --> 00:46:05,920 placed on him. Here's the punishment. 684 00:46:06,800 --> 00:46:10,560 I'm going to take out your eyes, but I want the last thing you 685 00:46:10,560 --> 00:46:16,040 see is me killing your sons. So they slaughter his sons, they 686 00:46:16,040 --> 00:46:19,480 gouge out his eyes, they take him to Babylon, and he dies a 687 00:46:19,480 --> 00:46:24,720 blind man. You're saying, I appreciate the 688 00:46:24,720 --> 00:46:27,920 honesty of Scripture, but how does that benefit me to know 689 00:46:27,920 --> 00:46:29,160 this? I'll tell you how it benefits 690 00:46:29,160 --> 00:46:32,200 us. Long before Zedekiah lost his 691 00:46:32,200 --> 00:46:35,920 physical eyes, he was blinded in the eyes of his heart. 692 00:46:37,760 --> 00:46:39,680 This blindness came way later on. 693 00:46:40,080 --> 00:46:43,080 He was plagued with a different darkness way before. 694 00:46:44,160 --> 00:46:49,280 If only Zedekiah had truly perceived and recognized that 695 00:46:49,280 --> 00:46:51,760 God's commands are to be taken seriously. 696 00:46:52,360 --> 00:46:56,120 If only he had registered that there are real consequences to 697 00:46:56,120 --> 00:47:01,480 sin, if only he had really believed that selfishness is 698 00:47:01,480 --> 00:47:07,600 spiritual suicide, He might have been able to keep his eyes, but 699 00:47:07,600 --> 00:47:10,520 he lost them. So sad. 700 00:47:12,320 --> 00:47:19,800 Always ask God to keep your eyes open and true, and He will never 701 00:47:19,800 --> 00:47:22,920 fail to do that. Always ask Him for discernment 702 00:47:22,920 --> 00:47:25,480 concerning His will. Always ask Him to open your eyes 703 00:47:25,480 --> 00:47:28,160 in the scriptures. Always ask Him to see people the 704 00:47:28,160 --> 00:47:30,960 way He sees people, to see ministry the way He sees 705 00:47:30,960 --> 00:47:33,520 ministry, to see sin the way He sees sin. 706 00:47:33,680 --> 00:47:39,640 And He will faithfully refine you and clean your lenses and 707 00:47:39,640 --> 00:47:42,200 help you and inspire you and warn you. 708 00:47:42,200 --> 00:47:45,600 He is so good. I'm one of those who firmly 709 00:47:45,600 --> 00:47:48,920 believe that whoever starts out as a follower of Christ, whoever 710 00:47:48,920 --> 00:47:51,960 even starts out in ministry, can actually finish well without any 711 00:47:51,960 --> 00:47:53,960 scandal. I believe that. 712 00:47:57,000 --> 00:48:01,080 And God has given us examples like Zedekiah to keep us in that 713 00:48:01,080 --> 00:48:03,200 place, to keep us dependent on Him. 714 00:48:04,120 --> 00:48:05,400 Let me highlight one more thing here. 715 00:48:05,520 --> 00:48:09,760 Did you notice where he was arrested while he was in flight? 716 00:48:09,920 --> 00:48:13,040 Look back at verse 5. But the army of the Chaldeans 717 00:48:13,040 --> 00:48:14,600 pursued the king and overtook him. 718 00:48:14,600 --> 00:48:18,040 Where? In the plains of Jericho? 719 00:48:20,920 --> 00:48:29,440 The Bible is so poetic. Jericho was the very first place 720 00:48:29,720 --> 00:48:32,360 that the Israelites experienced victory when they step into the 721 00:48:32,360 --> 00:48:36,360 Promised land. It's right at the border of the 722 00:48:36,360 --> 00:48:41,560 Jordan, and how interesting is it that with the Last King of 723 00:48:41,560 --> 00:48:47,360 Israel showcasing the ultimate defeat of this very same people, 724 00:48:48,440 --> 00:48:52,320 it all happened in the very same place with a new victory. 725 00:48:55,720 --> 00:48:57,840 It's amazing to see how the Scriptures pull these things 726 00:48:57,840 --> 00:49:01,480 together. Jericho is where it all started, 727 00:49:02,000 --> 00:49:04,800 where faith brought about wonderful fruit. 728 00:49:05,040 --> 00:49:11,240 And now Zedekiah is arrested in the plains of Jericho, and 729 00:49:11,240 --> 00:49:15,280 following that will lead to the final deportation of the very 730 00:49:15,280 --> 00:49:17,840 same people who entered into that land. 731 00:49:18,400 --> 00:49:21,600 The place where it all started is now where all ends, and they 732 00:49:21,600 --> 00:49:24,480 will be removed from what was their inheritance. 733 00:49:26,920 --> 00:49:29,840 I can assure you that as we come closer to the end of Second 734 00:49:29,840 --> 00:49:34,360 Kings 25, it will be more encouraging, but I believe it's 735 00:49:34,360 --> 00:49:39,600 appropriate to receive the weightiness of a text when it is 736 00:49:39,600 --> 00:49:43,280 designed to be weighty. And so I want us to just sit 737 00:49:43,280 --> 00:49:48,080 here and deal with what we heard and ask God to make it. 738 00:49:49,040 --> 00:49:53,880 Make it true for us, make it helpful for us, and make it 739 00:49:53,880 --> 00:49:58,000 changes. Lord, we thank you that although 740 00:49:58,000 --> 00:50:10,360 this was indeed a difficult text, we are thankful for it. 741 00:50:14,480 --> 00:50:21,920 We are not of those who change the meaning of your words or 742 00:50:21,920 --> 00:50:27,360 seek to massage or manipulate your message so that it suits 743 00:50:27,360 --> 00:50:32,000 the flesh. We trust that in your infinite 744 00:50:32,000 --> 00:50:38,040 wisdom, you've given us Zedekiah's example to help us 745 00:50:38,360 --> 00:50:43,680 avoid the same mistakes. So though we think about your 746 00:50:43,680 --> 00:50:50,240 commands, refresh in us a sense of awe of every word you've 747 00:50:50,240 --> 00:50:57,240 given us to obey. May we be urgent when we know 748 00:50:57,240 --> 00:50:59,640 that we're supposed to do something, even though it's 749 00:50:59,640 --> 00:51:03,360 challenging. May we have fresh faith when 750 00:51:03,560 --> 00:51:06,760 when we know You're asking us to go somewhere or approach a 751 00:51:06,760 --> 00:51:12,840 situation or surrender a certain right that may not feel good in 752 00:51:12,840 --> 00:51:16,000 the moment. Help us believe that such a 753 00:51:16,000 --> 00:51:20,320 decision will lead to life. Lord, may we always understand 754 00:51:20,320 --> 00:51:22,480 that there are consequences to sin while we rest in your 755 00:51:22,480 --> 00:51:24,560 forgiveness. Lord, may we never fall into the 756 00:51:24,560 --> 00:51:30,320 trap of thinking that we are invincible, or that we are stars 757 00:51:30,320 --> 00:51:35,400 in Your Kingdom, or that we are irreplaceable in our service to 758 00:51:35,400 --> 00:51:38,720 You. And we always recognize that you 759 00:51:38,720 --> 00:51:42,400 were after humility, and with humility there is great reward. 760 00:51:43,560 --> 00:51:48,160 And lastly, Lord, expel from our hearts all selfishness, any 761 00:51:48,160 --> 00:51:51,160 tendency to be self absorbed, self pitying. 762 00:51:54,360 --> 00:51:58,880 Help us remember that self love is not equal to self respect or 763 00:51:58,880 --> 00:52:06,360 self-care, but that it speaks of one who elevates one's own 764 00:52:06,360 --> 00:52:09,040 desires above everybody else, even at the cost of everybody 765 00:52:09,040 --> 00:52:11,440 else's. Oh Lord, destroy that in our 766 00:52:11,440 --> 00:52:15,080 hearts. And Lord, we believe that if we 767 00:52:15,080 --> 00:52:18,320 apply these truths, we will know nothing but victory ahead, 768 00:52:19,080 --> 00:52:22,280 light, joy and blessing to others. 769 00:52:23,200 --> 00:52:28,120 So Lord, give us the ambition and the empowerment to follow in 770 00:52:28,120 --> 00:52:32,040 the opposite direction of this poor example of a king. 771 00:52:32,920 --> 00:52:36,400 We ask these things in Jesus name, Amen and Amen. 772 00:52:37,400 --> 00:52:38,960 Let's stand and worship the Lord together.