Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall be with child, and bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel. Isaiah 7:10-14
In this passage Ahaz is refusing to ask God for a sign which God is offering to him. His excuse of not wanting to test God is just that, an excuse. He is denying God’s will so that he can bargain with the Assyrians. Bargaining with the Assyrians is against God’s will and is a way of encouraging idolatry. Ahaz is committing a serious sin.
This passage is most closely related to Hoban’s core value of Reliance on Divine Providence. Living out this value means honoring God’s presence in our lives and acting according to His will. We must honor Him knowing that He has a plan for us and will always provide for us.How is our lives an example of the presence of God? What do I need to do to be a sign that God is with us?
In this passage Ahaz is refusing to ask God for a sign which God is offering to him. His excuse of not wanting to test God is just that, an excuse. He is denying God’s will so that he can bargain with the Assyrians. Bargaining with the Assyrians is against God’s will and is a way of encouraging idolatry. Ahaz is committing a serious sin.
The Lord has given King Ahaz the opportunity to ask a sign of the Lord, but he denied the testing of his Lord. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church says, "To this purpose, man strives to interpret the data of experience and the signs of the times assisted by the virtue of prudence, by the advice of competent people, and by the help of the Holy Spirit and his gifts."(CCC 1788) Ahaz believes that the Lord does not need to give him a sign, because Ahaz does not believe in God and has no intention of doing his will. The Lord can give many powerful signs to his people to lead them in the right direction. An example of this powerful sign, Isaiah told Ahaz that a women would give birth to a child, Immanuel.
This passage is most closely related to Hoban’s core value of Reliance on Divine Providence. Living out this value means honoring God’s presence in our lives and acting according to His will. We must honor Him knowing that He has a plan for us and will always provide for us.How is our lives an example of the presence of God? What do I need to do to be a sign that God is with us?
Call on the Lord when you need help,
for He will never turn His back on you.
Lord, give us the courage to ask for your help
when we need it.
May we never doubt your strength and miracles.
When we are having troubles and don’t know what to do,
show us a sign that you are with us
and that everything will be alright.
No matter how hard times may get,
remember, never lose faith.
Amen.
I believe this passage of the Bible is important. This reveals much about Ahaz and Isiah. This foreshadows the coming of Christ, or Emmanuel. I admire the bravery Ahaz had to not ask the Lord of a sign. Although he was foolish to deny the sign, he was also had a good explanation for it. I believe that not requesting a sign because of the faith Ahaz had in the Lord made his decision a proper one, but a sin.
ReplyDeleteI really like the way this scripture passage was summarized. I can tell that a lot of hard work and thought was put indo developing this blog. I personally put a lot of thought into developing the prayer. Hoping that it would inspire others to never lose faith in God and never give up. kw
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