2 Chronicles, Chapter 32, Verse 7
“Be strong and steadfast; do
not be afraid or dismayed because of
the king of Assyria and all the horde coming with him, for there is more with
us than with him.
Of course the more of us
is the power of the angels of God.
Kings come and Kings go[1]
·
King
Hezekiah immediately gets to work building up defenses in all the most
important cities in Judah. He's a good strategic thinker, but he also has one
thing that the Assyrians don't—God is on his side.
·
He
tells the people of Judah not to worry because God will help them out. Sure, he
didn't help Israel or any of the other countless nations the Assyrians have
smashed to bits, but he's totally going to help Judah.
·
King
Sennacherib sends his people to Jerusalem to give the city a message—you're
going down.
·
He
throws some shade at Hezekiah, too. Their king is lying to them about God being
able to protect them. Seriously, Hezekiah is so bad at ruling that he actually
took down all the altars in Judah and just left this one in Jerusalem.
·
Look,
King Sennacherib tells them, we've conquered a lot of nations. No god has ever
been able to hold us back. What makes you think your God is different?
·
So
King Hezekiah and the prophet Isaiah start to pray and God listens.
·
He
sends an angel to kill a lot of people in the Assyrian camp. With his army
depleted, King Sennacherib is forced to head back home. Later, his own sons
kill him.
·
Hezekiah
gets deathly sick and successfully prays to God for healing. He gets into some
minor trouble with God, but repents and goes on to do all kinds of successful
things as king.
·
God
blesses him with immense wealth. Gold, gems, spices, weapons, food, wine, oil,
and livestock—you name it, the guy has a whole warehouse full of it.
·
Finally,
after a lifetime of righteousness, King Hezekiah dies. Everyone mourns him.
The Gift of Fortitude[2]
Hiking[3]
In Central Europe the Feast of the Ascension is a popular time
for mountain climbing or picnicking on hilltops. No doubt this is in
commemoration of the summit of the Mount of Olives from which Christ ascended
and the heights to which he soared. A similarly inspired tradition is eating
some kind of bird for the Feast since on this day Christ "flew" to
Heaven.
Ascension Sunday[4]
Ascension Facts & Quotes
·
The Apostle's Creed, one of the statements of
faith in the Christian Church, mentions Jesus' ascension:
o
I believe in God the Father, Almighty, Maker of
heaven and earth; And in Jesus Christ, his only begotten Son, our Lord, who was
conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius
Pilate, was crucified, dead and buried. The third day he rose from the
dead. He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the
Father Almighty.
·
An ancient custom in England, called the Beating
of the Bounds, is often performed on or near Ascension. Before maps, this
was the day that people would mark the boundaries of their property with stones
marked with chalk. Some English churches still perform the custom, led by
the vicar. Church members carry sticks to wick at weeds as they process.
·
In the Orthodox tradition, celebration of the
Jesus' Ascension starts with an all-night vigil or vespers (evening) service
beginning on Saturday.
·
Jesus' ascension into heaven does not mean his
absence, but that he is alive among us in a new way, close to each one of us.
- Pope Francis via Twitter on 4/17/2013
Ascension Top Events and Things
to Do
·
Johann Sebastian Bach wrote several pieces
related to both Easter and the Ascension. Listen to Bach's the Ascension Oratorio, Lobet Gott
in seinen Reichen (Praise God in His Kingdoms) on YouTube.
·
Go bird watching. A custom in Sweden, is
to get up early in the morning of Ascension and venture out into the woods to
listen for the call of a cuckoo. It is considered good luck to hear one
on this holiday.
·
Go to church and learn about why Jesus'
ascension is important to the Christian faith. Jesus is considered to be
both human and divine, and the ascension is an illustration of Christ's divine
nature.
·
View paintings that depict the ascension.
One of the most famous works is The Ascension Of Christ by
Rembrandt Van Rijn.
Daily Devotions/Prayers
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