adonai- the story of king uzziah
First off, MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! Also so sad that this is the last week of this series looking at what it means to have God as the Adonai over your life. This has been such a fun series to dive into and learn about, hopefully, you’ve been able to take away something from this series as well! I know I have learned so much these past 4 weeks. This week we are looking at the prophet Isaiah, King Uzziah, and the vision that he had of Adonai.
In Isaiah 6, Isaiah was granted a magnificent and humbling vision of Adonai “sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of his robe filling the temple” (Isaiah 6:1). This vision came to Isaiah in the year of King Uzziah’s death. King Uzziah was one of the great kings of Judah, and he had had a long and distinguished reign. He was a king whose fame extended to the border of Egypt. He began his reign when he was 16 years old and reigned for 52 years. King Uzziah was a good king, he did what was right in the sight of the Lord.
However, King Uzziah’s life ended tragically. His fame and power are what ultimately led to his downfall. 2 Chronicles 26:16 says “But when he became strong, his heart was so proud that he acted corruptly, and he was unfaithful to the Lord his God” So in response to King Uzziah, God struck him with leprosy, and he became an isolated leper until his death.
Isaiah witnessed the downfall and death of one who appeared to be “master of his fate; captain of his soul” (William Henley). William Henley was a poet who died at the age of 53 from falling off a railway carriage. He had tuberculosis, so when he fell, he injured his leg and his tuberculosis flared up and he died. The point of this is that Henley was in no way, shape, or form the master of his fate or the captain of his soul.
How often do we do the same thing? Okay not fall off a railway carriage, but believe that we are in control of our lives? How often do we leave God out of our plans? Maybe you’re thinking that this isn’t you. You definitely don’t try to take your life into your own hands. Okay, maybe, but I have another question– Do you have a calendar? How much do you have scheduled for the next six months? Is your schedule completely full?
I’m not saying there is anything wrong with having a calendar, we should be responsible caretakers of the lives and opportunities that God has given us. However… I am encouraging you to have a heart check with yourself. Are you managing your time to glorify God? Or is your schedule a reflection of your desire to manage the future, which belongs solely to God? It’s so easy for things like our calendars and schedules to become an idol.
As a result of the fundamentally flawed ethic that led to King Uzziah’s death, gave way to a vision of Adonai as the One truly seated on the throne, the only lord of the universe to whom the angels cry out (Isaiah 6:3).
You and I cannot come to Adonai holding onto other lords and masters, whether that is your calendar or something else, Adonai demands (and deserves) complete Lordship. The good news about ceding ownership of our lives to Adonai is that He, like any good owner is responsible for what He owns. It becomes freeing to understand that everything we have is on loan from Adonai. God can be the only real “Master of our fate” and “Captain of our soul.” And we have to remember that His name is Adonai.
Ceding ownership of our lives to Adonai means the death of all other “lords” in our lives.
