Covenant in Context

II Chronicles 26:1–5, 15

“Then all the people of Judah took Uzziah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king in place of his father Amaziah. He was the one who rebuilt Elath and restored it to Judah after Amaziah rested with his ancestors. Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem fifty-two years. His mother’s name was Jekoliah; she was from Jerusalem. He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, just as his father Amaziah had done. He sought God during the days of Zechariah, who instructed him in the fear of God. As long as he sought the LORD, God gave him success… In Jerusalem he made devices invented for use on the towers and on the corner defenses so that soldiers could shoot arrows and hurl large stones from the walls. His fame spread far and wide, for he was greatly helped until he became powerful.”

We have been looking at the Kings of Old of Judah and Israel and how their obedience or disobedience affects their nation, the battles, the politics, the society, and the economy, that as we read with King Uzziah today, “as long as he sought the LORD, God gave him success (v. 5)”. In many ways I believe it parallels our lives, however, lest we misunderstand the covenant setup of Israel with God and think that our own faithfulness to God, the works that we do, and the obedience we exercise guarantees the blessings of the LORD, I think the Bible does not afford us such notion. Indeed God blesses us, and desires for us to prosper and to succeed in life, but it is in a way according to His purposes for us where He may be glorified, and that may be different for each of us. Indeed, God is faithful even if we are not (II Tim 2:11–13), it rests, however, in our understanding that God, and our relationship with Him, is most important in life. I read a fine article on this as I struggled with “misappropriating Old Testament blessings and curses”, Christian author Bill Muehlenberg writes, “in contrast to the prosperity [gospel] version of things, the enjoyment of blessing is very much based on the continuous and conscious choice of Israel to walk in obedience to Yahweh. The blessings are not some automatic favour to be enjoyed at the snap of a finger. And in the New Testament, blessings are seen [or emphasised] more in spiritual than in such physical terms” (http://bit.ly/2E4Om2H): “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ (Eph 1:3).” God, our Heavenly Father, knows what we need to live (Matt 6:8, 32, Luke 12:30) but He knows better what and how to ultimately provide our deepest desire for Him and eternal life with Him. This is our Lord Jesus Christ’s promise to give us life to the fullest (John 10:10) and comprehending that it means knowing God: “Now this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only True God, and Jesus Christ, whom You have sent (John 17:3).” This is the promise of His birth, His incarnation on earth, that “to all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God (John 1:12).” He is our father who loves us, let us keep close and treasure our most precious possession, He has given us life and in Christ our relationship with Him to enjoy.