Success in Spite of Our Past

So the other day I wrote about Ahaz, among the bottom rung of the kings of Judah. Ahaz's son, however, is probably the best king of Judah. From Ahaz to his son Hezekiah, we go from worst to first.

Have you ever noticed that Ahaz is described as having 'passed his sons through the fire'? Researching that practice, it would appear to be a ritual where the sons are passed through a flame or between two flames in order to dedicate them to a pagan god, perhaps one named Molech. I wonder if Hezekiah was subjected to this as a boy? Did he have burns on his skin, on his arm or leg for example, from being 'passed through the fire' by his father Ahaz?

Even if Hezekiah didn't have a physical mark to remind him of his childhood, he had to have vivid recollections of his father's unGodly life. His father had 'worshipped' at the sex-and-religion shrines -- basically his father had had sex with prostitutes under the theme of a pagan religion, and everyone knew it. His father had looked to the neighboring nation of Assyria -- instead of to God -- for help. Eventually, his father had ransacked the temple of God, then boarded it up, putting it out of business for good (or so it probably seemed).

Truly, Hezekiah had witnessed his father trying everything under the sun -- except following God -- to be successful. And in the end, Ahaz was a dramatic failure, called one of the worst kings of Judah.

Looking at the line of kings before Ahaz, it would probably have been easy for Hezekiah to try his own way, too. You can imagine that much of the common culture in Judah was in line with Ahaz's beliefs. Ahaz wasn't the only one visiting the sex-and-religion shrines, or worshipping pagan Gods -- the people of Judah (and Israel) were all guilty of this. The culture was so infected that even the priests of God's temple had become lazy in following the commands of God about purification and worship. So Hezekiah could have simply gone along, living for himself, hoping to create his own success.

But that's not what happened. Hezekiah chose a different path. In the face of a culture that said 'live for today', and 'serve whatever god pleases you the most', Hezekiah turned to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

How hard do you suppose that was? How many childhood friends and close relatives -- many of whom most likely worshipped other gods -- did he risk offending? Judah had just begun worshipping Assyrian gods under Ahaz's reign; if Judah now rejected those gods, did Judah risk the wrath of Assyria, or the nations who worshipped the various other 'gods' at the shrines and high places in Judah?

Honestly, I sometimes find myself fretting over using the word 'God' at the office, for fear of coming across as 'holier than thou' or whatever.

And yet Hezekiah made a hard choice to do what would please God, and let the chips fall where they may. He overcame a childhood and a culture. And God smiled on him. Check this out:

Hezekiah carried out this work and kept it up everywhere in Judah. He was the very best—good, right, and true before his God. Everything he took up, whether it had to do with worship in God's Temple or the carrying out of God's Law and Commandments, he did well in a spirit of prayerful worship. He was a great success. 2 Chr 31:20ff

What are we willing to overcome, what are we willing to do, to be a success in the eyes of God?