2 Chronicles 28:16 says, At that time did king Ahaz send unto the kings of Assyria to help him. Ahaz was looking to another king to help him, because he had stopped putting his faith in God and his own people. We need to look to God and our fellow Christians to help us in times of trouble today and never think that we must have the help of the lost people of the world to give us the power to be successful spiritually. Verse seventeen adds, For again the Edomites had come and smitten Judah, and carried away captives. Ahaz did this because without God empowering them, they had been defeated by the Edomites who had taken some people of Judah away captive. If we stop following God as Christians, we may find ourselves defeated by ungodly people, but if we repent and return to God if we are, we will be spiritually successful. We can never find everlasting security by any alliance with the lost people of the world. We must look to God alone. Verse eighteen continues, The Philistines also had invaded the cities of the low country, and of the south of Judah, and had taken Bethshemesh, and Ajalon, and Gederoth, and Shocho with the villages thereof, and Timnah with the villages thereof, Gimzo also and the villages thereof: and they dwelt there. Not only had the Edomites defeated and carried some of the people of Israel away captive, but the Philistines were also defeating them in other parts of Judah. If we allow one sin into our life, we may find that we have others defeating us as well. Verse nineteen concludes, For the LORD brought Judah low because of Ahaz king of Israel; for he made Judah naked, and transgressed sore against the Lord. We are told very plainly that Judah was made naked, or powerless, because God was not with them. If we begin to be overpowered spiritually today as Christians, it may be that God has removed His protective hand from us because we have sin in our life. Verse twenty states, And Tilgathpilneser king of Assyria came unto him, and distressed him, but strengthened him not. Instead of helping Ahaz, the king of Assyria distressed, or fought against him instead. If we look to the world for help today instead of looking to God, we may find ourselves in even worse shape than we were before. If we are seen as weak and helpless as followers of Christ, and we will be if we don't rely on the leadership and power of the Holy Spirit, those that we look to for help may try to cause us even more distress. Verse twenty-one adds, For Ahaz took away a portion out of the house of the Lord, and out of the house of the king, and of the princes, and gave it unto the king of Assyria: but he helped him not. Even though Ahaz had given the king of Assyria treasures from the house of God and from his own palace and from the princes of Israel, he did not help Ahaz. We cannot buy spiritual security, and we certainly should not use the things of God in order to attempt to do so. Verse twenty-two continues, And in the time of his distress did he trespass yet more against the Lord: this is that king Ahaz. The more distressed Ahaz became, the more he sinned. If we are spiritually distressed, we will never find peace by being even more rebellious against God and sinning more. Verse twenty-three says, For he sacrificed unto the gods of Damascus, which smote him: and he said, Because the gods of the kings of Syria help them, therefore will I sacrifice to them, that they may help me. But they were the ruin of him, and of all Israel. Instead of turning to God after getting no help from Assyria, Ahaz begin to sacrifice to the gods of Syria instead. He gave these false gods credit for Syria's success. If we have been allowing ourselves to be influenced by any false god, we are never going to find success by worshipping another one. This applies to both Christians and non-Christians, but it worse for the Christian, because we know the one true God. Verse twenty-four adds, And Ahaz gathered together the vessels of the house of God, and cut in pieces the vessels of the house of God, and shut up the doors of the house of the Lord, and he made him altars in every corner of Jerusalem. Ahaz then cut up all the vessels of the house of God and shut up the doors to the house of God. Since he was supposed to be the leader of God's people, he had committed a very bad sin. As God's people, we cannot afford to think that we can find success spiritually by doing away with the things of God in our life and closing up the meeting places. Yet, if we stop going to church, the meeting place of God's people, we are effectively closing up the doors in our life. Ahaz begin to set up false gods everywhere, and if we turn away from the leadership of the Holy Spirit, we are allowing some false god to run our life. Verse twenty-five continues, And in every several city of Judah he made high places to burn incense unto other gods, and provoked to anger the Lord God of his fathers. Ahaz set up high places throughout Judah to burn incense to these false gods. All, he needed to do was repent and turn to God once more and he would have been successful, but he looked everywhere except to God. There is nothing else that will give us success in our spiritual life but obedience to God. Verse twenty-six states, Now the rest of his acts and of all his ways, first and last, behold, they are written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel. As with the other kings, we are told that rest of his actions were recorded, in his case in the in the book of the kings, though some were said to be recorded in other books. Verse twenty-seven adds, And Ahaz slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city, even in Jerusalem: but they brought him not into the sepulchres of the kings of Israel: and Hezekiah his son reigned in his stead. Ahaz was buried in Jerusalem, but not in the burial place of the kings. As stated, many times, where we are buried doesn't really matter, but our relationship with Jesus Christ will determine if we spend our everlasting life with God and His people or not.
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