daily bible readings

Uzziah’s reign over Judah is presented in positive terms. “Then all the people of Judah took Uzziah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king in place of his father Amaziah. 2 He was the one who rebuilt Elath and restored it to Judah after Amaziah rested with his fathers. 3 Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem fifty-two years. His mother’s name was Jecoliah; she was from Jerusalem. 4 He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father Amaziah had done. 5 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.” 2 Chronicles 26:1–5.

Unfortunately, though, as we’ve seen several times before, the last part of verse 5 creates tension for us. “As long as [Uzziah] sought the Lord, God gave him success.” This sentence immediately makes us wonder what’s coming up and whether or not Uzziah would continue to seek the Lord. And so as we ask ourselves Was Uzziah a good and obedient king? We are forced to answer “Yes, but…”

It’s imperative that we see clearly the implications of verse 5 for our own lives. Uzziah was instructed in the fear of the Lord by Zechariah and sought the Lord in the early stages of his reign. During this time when he sought the Lord, the Lord granted him success in his endeavours and projects. We need to be careful that we do not turn this verse into a health, wealth and prosperity gospel message that distorts the true gospel. God granted Uzziah success in his kingdom work and rule as the king of God’s people.

As we seek God in all areas of our life, ministry and service, God will grant us success. But, we need to be careful that we do not automatically see this success as an increase in health, wealth and prosperity. We will be granted success in bringing glory to God and in doing His work.

Each one of us should continually assess our lives so that there is no “Yes, but…” as there was in Uzziah’s life. We do not want to allow ourselves to end up in the similar kind of situation where serve the Lord, but… We do not want to have situations in our lives that are blatantly against the Lord and against His will. We do not want areas in our lives where the Lord may discipline us or rebuke us.

Prayer:

Adoration:

• Adore God that He is pure and holy, perfect and righteous in all things.
• Adore the Lord Almighty that He disciplines us for our good and that He loves us enough to discipline us and deal with the sin in our lives.

Confession:

• Take time to confess your sins to the Lord and to ask for forgiveness.

Thanks:

• Thank God that He has chosen to lavish you with his love.
• Thank God that you are precious to the Lord and that He will not let you continue in sinful pathways.
• Thank God that every hard situation we go through can be seen as discipline from the Lord.

Supplication:

• Pray that the Committee of Management would be wise and skilful in the way that it attends to the monetary and temporal affairs of the church, seeking to equip and allow the saints to minister and serve continually.
• Pray that God would allow the CMTC students to continue growing and maturing in the Word as they read through the Bible in 2 years and study it thoroughly.

Discussion Questions

1. Is Uzziah’s reign introduced positively or negatively? Explain your answer.
2. What function do vv4-5 play in the immediate narrative?
3. What function do the kings who fell into sin play in the Chronicles narrative?