Isaiah 36:4 The
field commander said to them, "Tell Hezekiah, "`This is what
the great king, the king of Assyria, says: On what are you
basing this confidence of yours?
In accordance with his
warnings in the Law of Moses (Deut 28:15+) the Lord had
assigned Sennacherib king of Assyria to bring judgment upon the
Northern kingdom of Israel. However in defiance Sennacherib
determined to attack the Southern kingdom of Judah as well.
(Typical of authorities forces themselves on others outside of
their legitimate realm of authority)
Like Jesus being tempted by
the devil in the wilderness so were the tauntings of this field
commander to Judah and its king Hezekiah. Nonetheless they present
questions to consider.What is implied in this first question is
that the confidence Judah had was outstanding. So also we
Christians should have such a hope and confidence that it would
lead people to question us as well, as Peter writes, "Always be prepared to give an answer to
everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you
have." 1Peter 3:15 What would lead people
to ask us such a question? Confidence is really revealed under
duress such as the context in which Peter was writing and such as
the situation we see here in Isaiah in which this small nation of
Judah is under attack by a much larger and powerful nation. And
thus Christians under persecution and tribulation have a natural
avenue for evangelism by just holding on to their confidence, as
the writer of Hebrews says, "Sometimes
you were publicly exposed to insult and persecution; at other
times you stood side by side with those who were so treated.
You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted the
confiscation of your property, because you knew that you
yourselves had better and lasting possessions. So do not throw
away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded."Heb
33-35 And "Most assuredly, I say
to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and
dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much
grain."John 12:24
What is the basis of our
confidence or our assurance of salvation? It is based firstly upon
God's Word, that is his promise of salvation. But such a promise
is not unconditional God's solid
foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: "The
Lord knows those who are his," and, "Everyone who confesses
the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness."2Tim 2:19 If we are His then we are secure. We become His
through faith in Christ, through whom we have forgiveness of sins,
but also through whom we have sanctification. He saved us from our
sins and is saving us from our innate sinfulness. Thus the effect
of salvation should be evident in our lives. "We know that we have come to know him if we
obey his commands." 1John 2:3
And "This is how we know who the
children of God are and who the children of the devil are:
Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God;
nor is anyone who does not love his brother." 1John
3:10 "Therefore everyone who hears
these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise
man who built his house on the rock." Matthew
7:24 "and that rock was Christ." 1Cor
10:4 And "no one can lay any
foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus
Christ." 1Cor 3:11
We will see from the reaction of Hezekiah and his people
that they were indeed putting their confidence in the Lord. In
fact it's not so important to God all the troubles we go through,
but rather how we react to them.