Signs from God6/23/2024 ![]() 2 Kings 20:11 ~ "And Isaiah the prophet called to the LORD, and he brought the shadow back ten steps, by which it had gone down on the steps of Ahaz." Hezekiah was suffering an illness that would lead to his death. Warned to put his house in order by Isaiah the prophet, the king wept bitterly and prayed to the LORD. His prayer was not to be rescued from the illness or to be delivered from harm, but he prayed to be remembered by God. 2 Kings 20:3 recounts Hezekiah's prayer, "Now, O Lord, please remember how I have walked before you in faithfulness and with a whole heart, and have done what is good in your sight." I would encourage you to take a moment and read the opening of 2 Kings, chapter twenty, so that you have a clear understanding of all that transpired. After the king prays, God sends Isaiah back to where the monarch remained and pronounced God's word that Hezekiah would revive in three days, worship the LORD and then live another fifteen years. God did remember Hezekiah, and the LORD did heal the king, and the verification that it would happen came from a sign offered by God. It was a dramatic sign--a sign that, in truth, impacted the entire world. For the sign that was given was the shadow upon the steps reversing course and going in the opposite direction. For this sign to take place, God would stop the planet and reverse the earth's rotation. It was a dramatic display of God's absolute sovereign power over His own creation. Now, before you run off looking for any variety of signs in your circumstances, remember that God sends signs for a specific purpose and those same signs cannot be mistaken. The signs sent by God are often dramatic and clearly understood. Gideon did not question it when God, on two different occasions provided dew on either the fleece or the ground (see Judges 6:36-40). Noah did not doubt the sign of the rainbow that illuminated the sky (see Genesis 9:8-17). I fear today that there are those who are chasing after signs in the hopes of discovering some untold truth from God or of finding some new means of pursuing His will. Yet, in the Scriptures, Divine and providential signs are very few--and have specific purposes governed by God alone. They cannot be demanded nor can anyone manipulate God into providing one. There is one ultimate sign that God provided, and that is the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Our LORD says in Matthew 12:39-40, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth." This same statement is also found in Matthew 16:4, Mark 8:12, and Luke 11:29. Beloved, if we believe the greatest sign given in the resurrection of Christ, let us then trust Him. As Hezekiah could trust that he would recover from his illness because of the power of God, then let us trust that we are redeemed from our sins by the resurrection of Christ. Yet, my friends, there is a sign for which we must still watch. In Matthew 24:3, the disciples asked the LORD the very question that sits upon the heart of many believers, "Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?" As all of God's given signs are clearly evident, so this one will be also. Consider what our LORD says in Matthew 24:30, "Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory." That day is coming soon, dear ones. It will not be delayed, nor will there be anyone who has the power to prevent it. As we see the condition of our world deteriorating rapidly, our hearts cry out for the coming of the LORD. He will come, and we will see Him. So, if you must seek after a sign, seek for the LORD, and watch until He returns. In His Grace, Pastor Michael
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