What does it look like to trust God in faith during a tough time? We all know that we have a spiritual enemy. When the enemy comes against us, is God really our Deliverer?
In Isaiah 36 and 37, King Hezekiah was tested when Sennacherib, King of Assyria, came against Judah. King Hezekiah's first move was to take the letter from the King of Assyria and “spread it out” before the Lord. He didn't go to the armory and count all of his weapons of war, he spread out the problem before the Lord. This action reminds me of Psalm 37:5. In the Amplified translation of the Bible it says, “Commit your way to the Lord [roll and repose each care of your load on Him]; trust (lean on, rely on, and be confident) also in Him and He will bring it to pass.” He rolled his care of the situation onto the Lord. Hezekiah's faith work was not easy. The Field Commander, Sennacherib's hatchet man, was sent to deliver his master's message. He boldly told the Jewish people in their own language that the siege that Assyria had brought against them would have them “eating their own dung and drinking their own urine.” Continuing to intimidate, this field commander told them several things to strike terror and get Judah to give up and give in. He told them: 1) make a bargain with your enemy, 2) It's God's idea for us to destroy you, 3) Don't listen to words of faith, 4) No one else has ever been delivered from our destruction so why would you?, 5) The enemy will give you something like what God has promised, and you should be happy with that. These are the very lies that the devil uses on us when we are in need of God's intervention.
The commander also asked if “mere words would pass for warlike counsel”. The answer to that cocky commander should have been, “Yes, if they're God's words they do!”
Put the words of faith, the words of God, into your mouth. The Bible calls the word of God the “sword of the Spirit”, our only offensive weapon against the enemy. Over and over again the word assures us that God will deliver us! Let us believe and speak this truth. The story ends with Isaiah proclaiming in answer to Hezekiah's prayer, that “God will defend this city and save it.” And sure enough, “the angel of the LORD went out and put to death a hundred and eighty-five thousand in the Assyrian camp.” God does hear, He does save, He does deliver!
– Mary Atwood