Easter Week Devotion by Barbara Baker
Good morning! Today our Lord is encouraging us in 2 Kings 20:1-6:
In those days Hezekiah was sick and near death. And Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, went to him and said to him, ‘Thus says the Lord: Set your house in order, for you shall die, and not live.’ Then he turned his face toward the wall and prayed to the Lord, saying, ‘Remember now, O Lord, I pray, how I have walked before You in truth and with a loyal heart, and have done what was good in Your sight.’ And Hezekiah wept bitterly. And it happened, before Isaiah had gone out into the middle court, that the word of the Lord came to him, saying, ‘Return and tell Hezekiah the leader of My people, “Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: ‘I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears, surely I will heal you. On the third day you shall go up to the house of the Lord, and I will add to your days fifteen years…’’.
2 Kings 20:1-6
Somehow, we just don’t expect to find a recounting of divine healing amid Old Testament kings and conflict. This passage goes on to say that, in addition to healing the King, God will deliver the city in upcoming combat. Then the king is instructed in verse 7 to “Take a lump of figs. So, they took and laid it on the boil and he recovered.” It seems that God decided to heal the king, honoring his faithful service, and used a medical treatment—a poultice on a sore—as part of the process. God alone is our Healer. He can choose to heal us by miracle means, by natural means, and by medical processes. Whichever way healing comes, we praise God and know that it is all for Kingdom glory. King Hezekiah’s divine healing
came from God alone.
Our call to passionate prayer is fueled to greater intensity by the King’s appeal to the Lord and God’s quick response. Isaiah had not walked far, only from the throne room to the middle court of the fortress, before God stopped him with the message of healing. Where did the number of fifteen years come from? All King Hezekiah did was earnestly pray, asking Almighty God to remember his loyal heart and faithful service. Reading the next chapter reveals that when King Hezekiah died fifteen years later, his twelve-year-old son took the throne. That son wouldn’t have been born if he had died when Isaiah brought the original message. It is never inappropriate for us to pray and believe for healing in the direst of circumstances, including terminal illness.
He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I deliver him and honor him.
Psalm 91:15
Seeking the face of our Lord and Savior in all situations, including healing, is our first course of action. Let’s trust Him and know that He spreads the blanket of His unconditional love over all His beloved children, and we can rest in His promises of deliverance.
Jesus loves you! Me, too