Hezekiah
as king accomplished a number of things. He was king when God defeated the
Assyrian army. He was king when God gave him fifteen years of additional life;
but in our text Hezekiah, the king, had led the nation back into temple
worship. The people had been worshipping false gods, but through Hezekiah’s
dedication to God the altars of the false gods were destroyed and worship of
Jehovah was returned. As a result of this change, Hezekiah had the priests
cleanse themselves and had the people give an offering of thanksgiving to God.
Our giving, as well, is a reflection
of our gratitude toward God. The following story sadly illustrates
many believers’ gratitude toward the blessings of God.
“Once upon a time there was a man who
had nothing, and God gave him ten apples.
He gave him the first three apples to eat.
He gave him the second three apples to trade for shelter from the
sun and rain.
He gave him the third three apples to trade for clothing to wear.
He gave him the last apple to give back to God in order that he
could show his gratitude for the other nine.
The man ate the first three apples.
He traded the second three apples for shelter from the sun and
rain.
He traded the third three apples for clothing to wear.
Then he looked at the tenth apple. It seemed bigger and juicier
than the rest. He knew that God had given him the tenth apple so that he might
demonstrate his love and gratitude by returning it to God. But it was so much
bigger and juicier than the rest; and he began to reason within himself, ‘God
has all the other apples in the orchard, he’ll not miss this one.’ So the man
ate the apple and gave God the core.”
✞ Remember that our giving or not giving reflects our attitude toward God.
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