Have you ever had someone come up to you and start talking to you, and it's obvious that he or she knows you, but for the life of you, you can't figure out who they are? You stand there racking your brain, trying to remember who that person is, all the while pretending like you know who they are while they're talking to you. I remember one time I had someone come up to Marsha and me and start speaking to me and I carried on a brief conversation with them. And when he walked away, Marsha asked me, who was that? To which I replied, I have absolutely no idea. I was really glad the conversation didn't last too long because at some point I would have been expected to introduce him to Marsha and the jig would have been up. Well, I've sometimes felt the same way when I read the Bible. I'll read someone's name in the scriptures and wonder, who is that guy? I have absolutely no idea who he was. I'm sure you felt the same way. Let me take you to what I'm sure is a familiar passage to most of you and show you what I mean. Now as a side note, let me just mention that as I teach this evening, I will be using the Legacy Standard Bible. It is a newer version of the New American Standard that most of you are familiar with, so you'll find that while most of it reads the same, there are some differences that will be apparent as we go along. But let's begin by turning to Isaiah 6. Isaiah 6, verse 1. This passage is that great wonderful passage in which Isaiah has his vision of the pre-incarnate, exalted Christ enthralled in all his glory. And verse one says this, in the year of King Uzziah's death, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne high and lifted up with the train of his robe filling the temple. And for many years as I read that verse, I would be so wrapped up in getting to the rest of the passage about Isaiah's vision of the Lord, that I would jump right over the name there at the beginning of verse one, King Uzziah. But one day, several years ago, when I was studying this passage for the first time, I asked myself the question, who was that guy? And I began to study about him in the scriptures and I found that the story of his life is filled with a great number of rich truths that we need to know and to apply to our own lives. So please turn with me in what I refer to as the clean pages of your Bible back to 2 Chronicles 26. 2nd Chronicles 26. It's back in your Old Testament in the section where all of the double books are found. 1st Samuel, 2nd Samuel, 1st Kings, 2nd Kings, 1st Chronicles, 2nd Chronicles. 2nd Chronicles 26, beginning at verse one. And all the people of Judah took Uzziah, who was 16 years old, and made him king in the place of his father Amaziah. He built Eloth and restored it to Judah after the king slept with his fathers. Uzziah was 16 years old when he became king, and he reigned 52 years in Jerusalem, and his mother's name was Jechaliah of Jerusalem. And he did what was right in the sight of Yahweh according to all that his father Amaziah had done. And he continued to seek God in the days of Zechariah, who had understanding through the vision of God. And as long as he sought Yahweh, God made him succeed. Then he went out and fought against the Philistines and broke down the wall of Gath and the wall of Jabnah and the wall of Ashdod. And he built cities in the area of Ashdod and among the Philistines. And God helped him against the Philistines and against the Arabians who lived in Gerbale and the Meunites. The Ammonites also gave tribute to Uzziah and his fame extended to the border of Egypt for he became very strong. Moreover, Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem at the corner gate, and at the valley gate, and at the corner buttress, and strengthened them. He also built towers in the wilderness, and hewed many cisterns, for he had much livestock, both in the Shephelah and in the plain. He also had plowmen and vinedressers in the hill country and the fertile fields, for he loved the soil. Moreover, Uzziah had a military force which could wage war, which went out for military duty by divisions according to the number of their muster, prepared by the hand of Jael, the scribe, and Maaseah, the officer, under the hand of Hananiah, one of the king's officials. The total number of the heads of the households of mighty men of valor was 2,600, and under their hand was a mighty army of 307,500 who could wage war with mighty power. to help the king against the enemy. Moreover, Uzziah prepared for all the army shields, spears, helmets, body armor, bows, and stones for sling. In Jerusalem, he also made devices of war, devised by skillful designers to be on the towers and on the corners for the purpose of shooting arrows and great stones. Hence, his fame spread afar, for he was marvelously helped until he was strong." When we read that, The first thoughts that may come to your mind are wonderful. What a good and godly king. After all, it says in verse four that he did right in the sight of Yahweh. And verse five says that as long as he sought Yahweh, God prospered him. It says he reigned 52 years. That's longer than any other king of Judah. He defeated the nation's enemies, the Philistines. He received tribute taxes from the Ammonites, who was another one of Israel's enemies. He built a huge, powerful army. He increased greatly in wealth and resources. He loved farming, and so he focused on increasing the bounty of the soil there in Judah. And while he was king, the land was safe and secure and prospered greatly. From a human perspective, Uzziah truly was a great king. Everything seemed right and proper. He worshipped the true God. He listened to the wise counsel of a prophet named Zechariah, who is not the same person as the book by that name. And he took care of his people and the nation. That's why when he died, the nation was in turmoil. They were unsure of what would happen next. Would his son Jotham rule with the same wisdom and care with which his father had ruled? And that's when Isaiah had his vision of the Lord who was still sovereignly reigning over all. It didn't matter that Uzziah had died. God was still in control. But if all we knew about Uzziah was what was in this passage, we would miss some important details that should cause us to think through the issue of what it means to fully obey the Lord. Because when you look at what God required of Israelite kings, you might be surprised to learn that Uzziah did not completely obey the Lord. While he was a great king for most of his reign, Towards the end of his reign, he disobeyed God and it was very costly to him. What appears to be obedience from a human perspective isn't complete obedience from God's perspective. God may have blessed Uzziah to a certain extent, but he was still disobedient. To see what I mean, turn with me to Deuteronomy 17. There in Deuteronomy, where God established the details of his laws for his people, He lays out the requirements for kings in that nation. And look at what he says beginning in verse 14 of Deuteronomy 17. When you enter the land which Yahweh your God gives you and you possess it and live in it. And you say, I will set a king over me like all the nations who are around me. You shall surely set a king over you whom Yahweh your God chooses. One from among your brothers you shall set as king over yourselves. You may not put a foreigner over yourselves who is not your brother. Moreover, he shall not multiply horses for himself, nor shall he cause the people to return to Egypt to multiply horses. Yahweh has said to you, you shall never again return that way. And he shall not multiply wives for himself, or else his heart will turn away, nor shall he greatly increase silver and gold for himself." Now you say, Brussels seemed like strange rules for a king. What's God doing here? Well, basically, God wanted the kings of Israel to trust in him and not in military might or in wealth. He wanted them to be wholly faithful to him. So he says, do not multiply horses. That's military might. The most powerful armies of that day had great numbers of horses. God wanted Israel's kings to trust in him for protection rather than trusting in their military power. Second, he said, don't multiply wives. That goes back to the very beginning of creation when God gave Eve to Adam and established that marriage was to be a one-man, one-woman relationship, each remaining faithful to that one person. God knew that when kings took more wives, their hearts would be turned away to follow the gods of those wives rather than remaining faithful to him. That's exactly what happened to Solomon. who disobeyed and took hundreds of wives. And in his old age, he turned from worshiping the Lord to worshiping false idols. God's standard was faithfulness to Yahweh and faithfulness to one wife. Finally, God said, don't increase your wealth. Again, God understood that wealth is a deceiver, which will draw men's hearts away from trusting fully in him for the provision of their daily needs and to trusting in their own riches rather than in him. Proverbs 11.28 says, he who trusts in his riches will fall. And when we consider Uzziah, we see that he violated two of God's standards for a king. As God-honoring as he wanted to be, he became caught up in the trappings of power and might and wealth, built a large and powerful army, greatly increased his riches, and in doing so violated God's law. There's another of God's requirements for a king that Uzziah violated, but we have to go to another passage that tells us about his life to learn about this one. So look for a moment at 2 Kings 15. verses 1 to 4. 2 Kings 15, 1 to 4. This is a parallel passage to our text, and here we see a brief overview of Uzziah's life. However, there's another name for him that is used here, the name Azariah. It was common in Old Testament times for a man to be known by more than one name, sometimes because languages did not have standardized spellings, and other times because a man would change his name when he became kings, much like the popes in the Roman Catholic Church do when they're elected to that position. So his name was probably Azariah when he was a prince, but when he became the official king, he changed it to Uzziah. Anyway, both names refer to the same person. So let's read verses 1 to 4 of 2 Kings 15. In the 27th year of Jeroboam, king of Israel, Azariah, son of Amaziah, king of Judah, became king. He was 16 years old when he became king and he reigned 52 years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Jechaliah of Jerusalem. And he did what was right in the sight of Yahweh according to all that his father Amaziah had done. Only the high places were not taken away. The people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. Now, did you notice verse 4? It says the high places were not taken away. The high places were high hills, or what is known as a tel, upon which the people continued to sacrifice to their false gods, such as Baal or the Asherim. In other words, Uzziah maintained a policy of freedom of religion for his subjects. He let people worship whatever god they choose to worship. Now you say, Bruce, I treasure my freedom of religion. It's in the Constitution. It provides us with the opportunity to gather and worship as we choose without fear of government interference. Are you saying that freedom of religion is not a good thing? Well, please don't misunderstand me here. We must distinguish between God's chosen people and the rest of the nations. When God chose Abraham and set him apart to establish a nation of God's chosen people, he established a covenant relationship with him. And in Genesis 17, 7, when God declared that covenant, he stated, and I will establish my covenant between me and you and your seed after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant to be God to you and to your seed after you. And in verse 8, he says, I will be their God. Yahweh was to be the exclusive God for his chosen people. And he wanted no other gods to be allowed to compete for the affections of his people. But the United States is not God's chosen people. And so for the government to grant freedom of religion to those who live here is not a violation of God's law. Don't confuse God's requirements for his covenant people living in a theocracy with his permissive will for the rest of the nations. His covenant with Israel requires that nation and people to worship him and him alone. He has no such covenant with any other nation or people. So the problem with Uzziah was that he tolerated the worship of false gods within the household of God's covenant people. This was a serious violation of God's law. Listen to what God commanded in Deuteronomy 12, 2 and 3. You shall utterly destroy all the places where the nations whom you shall dispossess serve their gods, on the high mountains and on the hills and under every green tree. And you shall tear down their altars and shatter their sacred pillars and burn their ashram with fire. And you shall cut the graven images of their gods in pieces and destroy their name from that place. When the Israelite people entered the land of Canaan, God told them to utterly destroy the false gods and false religious system of that land. Every idol, every altar, every part was to be obliterated from the land. Why? Because God knew that false worship is like cancer. Suppose you had a cancerous tumor. And you were going to have surgery, and the night before the surgery, the surgeon came by your hospital room and said, I know you have a malignant tumor. It's a very deadly, aggressive form of the disease, but I'm only going to remove 80% of it. Because I'm going to leave the rest of it, because I think that maybe your immune system might be able to keep that last 20% in check. What would you say? You'd say, forget it, doc. Cut it out. Cut it all out. Get rid of it. Because I know a little bit about cancer and I know enough to know that if you leave a little bit, it'll eventually grow back and it'll kill me. That's exactly the same reason God told the Israelites to utterly destroy and obliterate the false idols and false worship from the land. Because if they left a little bit, It would be a cancer that would eventually destroy their worship of the true God, and that's precisely what happened. I'm sure you recall how throughout the history of the nation of Israel, the people were continually going off into idolatry and false worship, ravaged by the deadly disease their kings had allowed to remain in their midst. So what was the outcome of Uzziah's violations of God's law? After all, from what we've seen in 2 Chronicles 26 so far, he appeared to have been greatly blessed by God in spite of his disobedience. So what was the outcome of his sin? Well, let's go back to our text, 2 Chronicles 26, and let's pick up in verse 16. It says, but when he became strong, his heart was so proud that he acted corruptly, and he was unfaithful to Yahweh his God. And he entered the temple of Yahweh to burn incense on the altar of incense. Then Azariah the priest entered after him, and with him eighty priests of Yahweh, men of valor. And they stood against Uzziah the king and said to him, It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to Yahweh, but for the priests, the sons of Aaron, who were set apart as holy to burn incense. Get out of the sanctuary, for you have been unfaithful and will have no honor from Yahweh God. But Uzziah, with a censer in his hand for burning incense was enraged. And while he was enraged with the priests, the leprosy broke out on his forehead before the priests in the house of Yahweh beside the altar of incense. Then Azariah the chief priest and all the priests looked at him, and behold, he was leprous on his forehead. And they hurried him out of there, and he himself also hastened to get out, because Yahweh had smitten him. So King Uzziah was a leper to the day of his death, and he lived in a separate house, being a leper, for he was cut off from the house of Yahweh. And Jotham, his son, was over the king's house, judging the people of the land. Now the rest of the Acts of Uzziah, first to last, the prophet Isaiah, the son of Amos, has written. So Uzziah slept with his fathers, and they buried him with his fathers in the field of the grave which belonged to the kings. For they said, he is a leper. And Jotham his son became a king in his place. It's quite a dramatic story, isn't it? Uzziah's pride and self-importance became so great that he thought he could do anything he pleased. So he decided that he would usurp the role that was specifically given to the priest of that nation and offer incense to God in the temple. And when confronted in his sin by the high priest and the other priests, he became enraged at them. And at that moment, God struck him with leprosy on his forehead. Priest quickly got him out of the temple and the text says he himself also hastened to get out. I'm sure it was because he was afraid God's judgment would get even worse if he remained there. And the result was that he was a leper until the day of his death, living out a lonely existence in a house separate from everyone else, completely cut off from the house of the Lord while his son performed many of his kingly functions. It's likely that this incident happened within the later years of his life because after his death, his son Jotham officially became the king Chapter 27 verse 1 tells us that he was 25 years old when he became king. And since he filled his father's place as judge over the people during those years of his father's illness, it's likely that it occurred when he was old enough to assume those duties. In fact, there's a statement in 2 Kings 15 30, which seems to indicate that Jotham may have taken over from his father when he was 20 years old, meaning that Uzziah lived the last five years as a leper because of his sin. Imagine that, living your life in isolation, lonely, unable to be with your family, unable to go worship with others, rejected by God because of your disobedience. That's how Uzziah spent his final years. And when he died, although they buried him with the rest of the kings, they didn't forget that he was a leper. and it became his final epitaph. He is a leper. Now what about this issue of Uzziah's pride and self-centeredness costing him so much? After all, had God ever given any specific instructions on what a king was to do that would have warned Uzziah that such an act was dangerous? I mean, wouldn't it seem unfair if God had never given any instructions that would give Uzziah advance warning that doing such was wrong? Well, actually, God did give Israel's kings that kind of instruction. Go back with me again to Deuteronomy 17. Deuteronomy 17. After giving warnings to Israel's kings about pursuing military might and multiple wives and wealth, God then gave an extremely important instruction for which he gives very specific requirements for what a king was to do to ensure that he and his sons would enjoy a long and prosperous reign. As we look at these requirements, I think we can draw out some applications for us as well. We are after all God's children and Peter calls us a royal priesthood. So we ought to look at these requirements and see how they apply to us as well. Let's read beginning in verse 18 of Deuteronomy 17. Now it will be when he sits on the throne of his kingdom that he shall write for himself a copy of this law on a scroll in the presence of the Levitical priest. And it shall be with him, and he shall read it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear Yahweh his God, to carefully observe all the words of this law and these statutes, that his heart may not be lifted up above his brothers, and that he may not turn aside from the commandment to the right or to the left, so that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he and his sons in the midst of Israel." Notice then that the primary requirement for a king was to prepare a copy of the law for himself while in the presence of the Levitical priest and then to keep it with himself all the time. Keep it with him all the time. There's a built-in accountability here. the king was required to prepare a copy in the presence of the priest. That meant that they knew he had read the law himself. Therefore, if he didn't obey the law, he couldn't come back later and say, well, I didn't know that's what God required. And then from this requirement, there comes five reasons or purposes why God wants the king to have this scroll. The first, reason was that the king was to read and study God's law. He was to write a copy of the law for himself in the presence of the priest, keep it with him, and the first part of verse 19 says, he shall read it all the days of his life. The Word of God was to be an ever-present guide and reference for him. Every action, every decision, every verdict was to be guided by what he read and knew about God's law. Knowing God's Word was to be the first priority of his life. You see, the scriptures are the sufficient source of all wisdom and knowledge for life. Israel's greatest king, David, wrote it this way in Psalm 119. Oh, how I love your law. It is my meditation all the day. Your commandments make me wiser than my enemies, for they are mine forever. I have more insight than all my teachers, for your testimonies are my meditation. I perceive more than the aged, because I have observed your precepts. It's the word which would make a king wise, and it's the word which will make us wise. The word would keep a king from sin, it's the word which keeps us from sin. David said, your word I've treasured in my heart that I may not sin against you. Unfortunately, in our society today and in most of the churches in our land, the word of God is not held in such esteem. It's considered outdated and outmoded without any answers for the problems of the modern technological age. And such a view, sadly, is often found among those who call themselves believers. And then there are those Christians who reject the instruction of the Word in favor of man's answers to their problems, such as philosophy or psychology. Although they wouldn't say, I don't believe the Bible. Instead, they would say, Well, the Bible doesn't specifically address my problem. And my problem is of such a deep and profound psychological nature that it takes a specially trained psychologist to find the answer to my problem. And the truth is that many of them do so because they're looking for a way to solve their problems without surrendering to what they know God's word requires of them. Peter said, his divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness through the full knowledge of him who called us. Second Peter 1.3, everything we need pertaining to life and godliness is found in God's word because that is where we gain the true knowledge of Christ who called us to himself. God's word is sufficient. So let me ask you, Is God's Word that important to you? Is it the first reference book you go to when you have a problem? Are the truths it contains the very first thoughts that come to your mind when you're trying to solve a problem? If not, then you need to begin the process of saturating your mind with God's Word like the kings of Israel were supposed to do. The second reason God gave for requiring the kings to copy the law was so that they would learn to reverence the Lord. To reverence the Lord. Look at verse 19, that he may learn to fear Yahweh his God. The first benefit of reading and studying God's word was that the king would learn to reverence God, to worship him for who he is and not for who or how he might want him to be. You see, most of the time people worship a God of their own creation. They may call him God, they may even say that Jesus Christ is God, but many times they're worshiping nothing more than a God that they have designed themselves, that fits into their own framework, who is non-threatening. In his book, The Trivialization of God, Donald McCullough writes, we prefer the illusion of a safer deity, and so we have pared God down to more manageable proportions. This flawed view of God is what McCullough refers to as the user-friendly picture of God. That refers to a God who has been reduced to such human dimensions that he appears almost finite. Instead of seeing man created in God's image, man is now reconfiguring God into his own image. Our perceptions of him become shamefully minuscule and man-centered. As a result, our understanding of who God is has reached an all-time low, so much so that it is pulling everyone and everything else down to it. These demeaning pictures of God have ushered in a day of superficial living and shallow worship and sterile evangelism. They're wreaking havoc on individual believers as well as on the corporate body of Christ in the church. Without a doubt, the church today is suffering from low views of the one who is in reality high and lifted up. Please understand that whenever we begin with man and reason upward, we manufacture an idol. Idolatry is more than dancing around a statue of silver or gold. It is constructing a mental idea of a deity that bears little resemblance to the God who actually exists. Idolatry is giving respectability to our own opinions of God formed after our own likeness. Idolatry is fashioning an idea of God according to our inclinations and preferences. It is to pare God down to more manageable proportions. That's what Uzziah did. He apparently allowed his own pride to cause him to overlook the teachings of the law of God about God's immutability, his unchangeableness. God doesn't change. What was a violation of his law today is a violation tomorrow and the day after and so on throughout eternity. And if Uzziah had thought about it, he would have realized that God had clearly given him his role and the priests their role, and that God would not change those roles to fit his particular desires. He wanted to make God into a more manageable deity who fit into his own desires and framework. Why does man do that? Because he wants a God who's more tolerant, less demanding, less judgmental. The God of the Bible is an exclusive God. He appears so demanding that the moment you become acquainted with him, he begins to raise sin issues. And because we resent such intrusions, we prefer a God we can manage. Not an omnipotent God, but an accepting deity committed to helping us fulfill our human potential. Ever notice that When a believer goes off in pursuit of some sin, they will withdraw from their friends at church and form new friendships with people who will accept their choices without judging and will look for people who will affirm their decision rather than rebuke them. In the same way, we want a God who will not mess with the core of our lives. So the essence of idolatry is to entertain wrong thoughts about God. When we construct an idea of God from our imaginations, this idolatry of the heart is just as bad as idolatry of the hand. Over in Psalm 115, three through eight, the psalmist gives us a wonderful contrast between the idols of our hands with the true God he had come to know through personal revelation. I'm going to read it from the New English translation because I love the way it reads. It says, Our God is in heaven. He does whatever he pleases. Their idols are made of silver and gold. They're man-made. They have mouths but cannot speak, eyes but cannot see, ears but cannot hear, noses but cannot smell, hands but cannot touch, feet but cannot walk. They cannot even clear their throats. Those who make them will end up like them, as will everyone who trusts in them. When we look into God's word and see him for who he truly is, infinitely high and holy, our only reaction is to see ourselves as unholy. Between God's holiness and man's holiness is a gulf. And until a person understands the holiness of God, he will never understand or know the depth of his own sin. We ought to be shaken to our core when we see ourselves in comparison to Him. Without such a vision of God's holiness, true worship is not possible. Worship is not giddy. It does not rush into God's presence unprepared and insensitive to his majesty. It is not shallow or superficial or flippant. Worship is life lived in the presence of an infinitely righteous and omnipresent God by someone who is utterly aware of God's holiness and consequently overwhelmed with his own unholiness. Our sense of sinfulness and fear is proportional to our experience of the presence of God. If you have never worshipped God with a broken and contrite spirit, you've never fully worshipped God. But doing so will result in you coming to know Him like you've never known Him before. Nothing will change a person's life more than coming to know God in a personal, intimate way. That kind of relationship involves knowing God for who He really is. his character, his attributes, his personality. An accurate high view of God leads to a wonderfully close relationship with our Lord that in turn leads to a life that's pleasing to Him. And the only way to truly know who God is and what He's like is to read His Word, to study it, to meditate upon it, to ruminate on its truths, That's what God required of Israel's kings. That's what he wants us to do too. The third reason Israel's kings were required to copy the law was so that after he read and studied God's word, he was to obey God's word. To obey God's word. The end of verse 19 says, to carefully observe all the words of this law and these statutes. Now you might think that this is obvious. Certainly someone ought to expect that if God tells you to read something, he wants you to follow the instructions that he's given you. But if that is so obvious, then tell me why we have so many Christians who take such a callous view of obeying God's word. To them, it isn't really the commands of God. It's more like a book of guidelines that sort of gives them some basic truths and principles that are nice to obey, but really aren't mandatory. But over and over and over in scripture, we see illustration after illustration of disobedience bringing God's judgment and obedience bringing his blessing. Uzziah, the subject of our study, certainly illustrates how disobedience brings God's judgment upon the transgressor. There's a terrible consequence to sin. And just as Uzziah had to live the rest of his life as a leper, God will not necessarily remove the consequences of sin, even though the individual repents of that sin. One of the most obvious examples in the Old Testament was Saul, who was sent to fight Agag and told to destroy him and all of his people and children and flocks and herds, everything. But Saul spared Agag and the best of his flocks and herds and his disobedience was so serious to God that he immediately deposed Saul and his descendants forever from the throne of Israel. And when Saul tried to tell Samuel that he intended to bring the flocks and herds back in order to offer a great sacrifice to God, Samuel's response was what? To obey is better than sacrifice. In other words, obedience to what God tells you to do is more important to Him than your claim to be willing to worship Him. God expected the kings of his nation to follow his instructions precisely, and he expects us to do the same. We are to obey his word and follow its instructions, not because by doing so we will merit any grace, that's impossible, but because he has saved us by grace through faith apart from works, we have then been created in Christ Jesus for good works. The fourth reason for the king to copy and obey the law is found in the beginning of verse 20, that his heart may not be lifted up above his brothers. In other words, he was to be humble. Uzziah certainly violated this statute. He apparently became proud of his great position and power and strength as king and began to think that he could do that which God had designated as the responsibility of the priests, that is, to lead the nation in worship. His heart was lifted up and he began to think that he was able to function in a way that God had not authorized. You see, humility is to be a characteristic of every true Christian. In fact, it is a requirement for anyone to be saved. Until a person comes to Christ recognizing that he is a sinner, completely separated from God, unable to save himself, incapable of doing anything worthy of God's grace, he cannot be saved. A broken, humble spirit is required before God will save anyone. But it is the Holy Spirit who gives that humble spirit, who breaks the will of the sinner so that he sees himself for who he truly is, and then draws that person to Jesus Christ in saving faith. And then after salvation, we're all called to live a life of humility. Jesus said, everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted. James 4, 6 tells us that God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Peter says the same thing in 1 Peter 5, 5. And Philippians 2, 3 says we're to do nothing from self-ambition or vain glory, but with humility of mind, regard one another as more important than yourselves. So humility is the clarion call to all of us who are the children of God. It was God's standard for kings. In fact, when Jesus came riding into Jerusalem on a donkey to be hailed as king, Matthew records the scene with a quote from Zechariah 9.9. Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion. Make a loud shout, O daughter of Jerusalem. Behold, your king is coming to you. He is righteous and endowed with salvation, lowly and mounted on a donkey, even on a colt, the foal of a pack animal. Christ the King was humble, and so should we be. Finally, the last reason is given why the kings of Israel are to read and study God's word. Verse 20, that he may not turn aside from the commandment to the right or to the left. In other words, stay in line with God's will. The word of God is his revealed will for us. You and I don't have to go around wondering what God's will is for our lives. If we will just set our minds on being completely obedient to everything we find in the revealed will of God, we won't have any problem knowing what his specific will is when we need to know. When we obey God's word, we're going to be in line with God's will. Uzziah completely missed it here. His pride became so great that he willingly overlooked the part of the law in Leviticus where God established that only the Levites and Aaron's priesthood could offer sacrifices and offerings before the Lord. And God said, okay Uzziah, I'll fix it so you can never ever go back into the house of the Lord. I'll make you a leper. A leper was forbidden in the law from serving as a priest or entering the temple so long as he was unclean due to leprosy, and Uzziah was a leper until he died. So what can we learn from this story of a king tucked away there in the clean pages of your Bible, largely ignored and rarely studied? We learn that how man views success is not always what God views as success. Man looks at power and strength and possessions and wealth and sees God's blessing in one's life. But God looks at those things and says, are you trusting in your power and wealth or are you trusting in me? Are you faithfully devoted to me and me alone or do the ideas of the world attract you more than me? What would happen if you didn't have those things? Would you trust me for your protection? Would you trust me for your provision? We also learn that we need to place great value on the reading and study of God's word. I hope you appreciate a church like Lakeside, where each week you have men who dig into God's word to explain to you the riches that are found there. Many churches in our land are only offering what a pastor of years gone by used to call sermonettes for Christianettes. If the message goes more than 20 minutes and ever talks about sin, the people get nervous and start talking about getting a new pastor. Other churches are focusing on being seeker sensitive, which is nothing more than a pragmatic approach to ministry that tries to make it attractive to lost people so that they will come. They focus on making sure the service is entertaining and encouraging. and would never dream of giving a message on God's wrath towards those who reject his offer of salvation through Jesus Christ. And when they emphasize that they're trying to reach those who are seeking God, when they try to say that that's what we're doing, we're gonna try to reach all those people that are seeking after God, they're completely missing the point of Romans 3.11, which says there is none who seeks for God. No one comes to God apart from the effectual work of the Holy Spirit and drawing that one to Christ. And if God is working in their life to draw them to himself, he doesn't need flashy entertainment and a slick market-driven sermon to do the job. We also learn that not only do we need to be digging into the Word and studying the Word, we also need to be obeying the Word, applying it to our lives. As has been said here before, if you claim to have the root, then let's see the fruit. Your life needs to demonstrate your obedience to the Word of God. And that obedience will be shown in a humble spirit in your daily interactions with both believers and unbelievers. And as you continue to obey, your life will be characterized by harmony with God's will in everything you do. And what will be the result? The result will be that God will exalt you in His proper timing. That's what both James and Peter tell us in their epistles. Just like the kings of Israel who were promised long and successful kingdoms if they obeyed, so too God promises to make you successful. Not in terms of power, money, fame, health, or any of the other things the health and wealth gospel is going to promise you, but rather in true spiritual riches including eternal rewards and glory with Jesus. Don't be like Uzziah. Don't obey God partially. Partial obedience can be very costly to you, both spiritually and physically. Others may think you're a wonderful, godly Christian, but if you've not been completely obedient to God, you're in danger of His discipline in your life. The Apostle Paul was greatly concerned about this. That's why in 1 Corinthians 9, 27, he said, I discipline my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified. He was afraid that he would disobey God's word regarding how he was to live his life in the flesh, so he worked at bringing his body into obedient submission lest he might be disqualified from ministry. That's what we're to do, to strive to obey completely from hearts that are wholly devoted to God. Perhaps you're here this evening and you say, Bruce, I'm just like Uzziah. Most people would look at my life and say he or she really has their act together both physically and spiritually. Just look at how God is blessing him or her. But the reality is you recognize in your heart that you're disobedient. You haven't fully obeyed the Lord in every area that He's commanded you to obey Him. If so, if that's the case, then you need to do the things you should have done. Read and study God's Word. Learn its precepts so that it becomes the first thing that comes to your mind when you're faced with a decision or a temptation. Reverence and fear the Lord. In other words, worship Him for who He is, not for who you would like Him to be. Recognize His infinite majesty and submit to His authority over every area of your life. Third, obey the Word. Don't just learn what it says. Apply it. to your life and submit to its authority to instruct you. Fourth, walk in humility. Consider others and their desires and wishes to be more important than your own. Do everything you can to promote others instead of yourself. And finally, make sure your life lines up with God's will. You need to continually evaluate your life to make sure that you're obedient to the word. And when you do that, you'll be walking in the will of God. God's will is not some mystical, magical secret. It's simply a matter of continually walking in obedience to the word. Some may be here who say, Bruce, I have no idea at all what you're talking about or how to do those things. It seems like you're talking about something that's impossible. That's true. It is impossible for you if you've never placed your full faith and trust in Jesus Christ for your salvation. Until you come to Him recognizing that your sin has offended Him, realizing that you rightly deserve eternal hell because of your sin, repenting of that sin and trusting Christ who took your place and paid the penalty for your sin, you will never understand or be able to do any of these things. Because you'll be trying to do them in your own power. And apart from the work of Christ in your life and the indwelling Spirit of God, you cannot do them. So I invite you to come to Christ this evening receive his forgiveness and God will then come into you and give you the ability to do that which pleases him. If you want to know more about that, come see me after the service and I'll be happy to show you from God's word how to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Let's bow together in prayer. Father, we thank you for your word, the revealed will of God for each of us. And Lord, we're stunned at your greatness and majesty and holiness. We see it demonstrated in this story of King Uzziah and your judgment upon him for his disobedience. Lord, I pray that each of us would learn to trust you for everything. For our protection and our provision to be wholly devoted to you. To be so wholly devoted that A passion for your glory becomes the driving motivation of our lives. And Father, may we be students of your word. May we desire it more than gold. May it be sweeter to us than honeycomb. May we apply its truths to our lives and live humbly and obediently to all that it instructs us to do. Lord, may all that we think and say and do be in complete harmony with your purposes. May your desires be our desires. May your will be our will. May none of us ever become a spiritual leper, judged by you to be disqualified from ministry and service to you because of sin in our lives. Thank you again for your precious word, both written and incarnate. In whose name we pray, amen.