2 Chronicles 30: 18 NIV
Although most of the many people who came from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar and Zebulun had not purified themselves, yet they at the Passover, contrary to what was written. But Hezekiah prayed for them, saying, “May the Lord, who is good, pardon everyone who sets his heart on seeking God – the Lord, the God of his fathers – even if he is not clean according to the rules of the sanctuary.” And the Lord heard Hezekiah and healed the people.
At first glance it appears that Hezekiah convinced God to do something for the people that He was otherwise either not thinking of Himself or had no intention to do. Let us look at this story through different eyes today and I believe we will see the dynamic of working with God open up before us.
God has always wanted to and offered to lead His people both individually and collectively. This passage reveals the prayers of Hezekiah who was, in fact, the king and a man of God. He called the people back to God, called them back to worshipping Him but the people had wandered so far that there were not even enough ceremonially clean priests to perform the rites. Hezekiah witnessed the people partaking of the feast without being clean. For the moment let us leave aside the prophetic nuances here that reflect forward thousands of years to us being unclean and partaking of the lamb and just look at this event on its surface.
God saw the people’s actions just as clearly as did Hezekiah. God didn’t judge them, though, and rain fire down from heaven. What did He do? He spoke to Hezekiah’s heart and led Him to pray for the people so that He could rain forgiveness down upon them. So many people have an image of a vengeful and angry Old Testament God and because of this preset in the minds of people they miss the gentle kindness that was actually present. God knew how to handle the situation so He spoke to His anointed one and just had Him pray. It was that simple. The problem was taken care of in an instant.
This story is significant because it reveals the true heart of God which is and always has been to help His people but also because it is a pattern for today. God is still working the same way. He sees the problems and He knows the solution. He wants to send soothing comfort to His people but He so often cannot find anyone who will pray. You see, the earth and the heavens were created by God and He owned it all but He gave the earth to humans and He gave us the authority for its administration. Although God is sovereign that does not mean that He is without restraint. He is Holy and because He is Holy and cannot lie He must abide by the rules that He has set out. That means that He cannot intervene where He has delegated His authority. That shouldn’t be a big problem for Him, though, because He has thousands of us to pray, inviting Him into situations, right? Well, there you see the problem we have faced. This is not a new problem but is a persistent one. In the second verse of Isaiah 50 we find this lament from God, “Why was there no man when I came? When I called, why was there none to answer? Is my hand so short that it cannot ransom? Or have I no power to deliver?” God, through the prophet Isaiah, is lamenting the times that He could not find someone like Hezekiah who would be His earthly partner and follow His leading.
There is a really large lesson in here for modern day believers. We can see through this example that there is a role that we are to play in the administration of the earth. We are God’s partners in the earth. We pray and He the answers. How is He send prayer answer if someone does not first pray? As the Apostle Paul taught, helping us to pray is one of the significant roles of the Holy Spirit. “For we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words;” (Romans 8: 26). Another translation reads, “… But the Spirit intercedes along with our groans that cannot be expressed in words, (God’s Word Translation). God sent an intermediary to help us with our part of the equation. When we put all of these pieces together we begin to see the picture emerge of how we are supposed to function in the earth and what our role is. Our prayer time, so often, has become nothing more than a “bless me” session but that is not as it should be. We are each powerful warriors in the elite forces of God’s army. We are each strategically placed. As we understand this dynamic and open up our hearts and ears God will, through the Holy Spirit, lead us into what to pray even as He did Hezekiah in today’s passage. From there an avenue of God’s power and mercy is opened up in the earth.
God wants to send healing, forgiveness and blessing into the earth and into the lives of people that we each know. Each of us provides that portal when we hearken to the voice of our Lord and pray as He leads. Get a revelation of what a prayer life can and should be. See yourself as a key logistical asset in the Kingdom of God. You may not have been able to imagine how significant you are but hopefully as you meditate on the effect of Hezekiah’s obedience and on his partnership with God you will begin to see the great influence you can extend in the earth. God is just looking for a few folks who will pray His prayers.