Prophetic Glimpses -- Testing
(Isaiah 36-39)
Sermon Outline from the Morning Service - 23 January 2000
I. Satan's Strategies for Defeat -- ch. 36
A. Listen to reason.
1. Rabshakeh came waving the white flag for peace talks. It was a peaceful solution for him, but not
for the Jews
2. The main ways that Satan trips us up is by following the logic of the world, looking only past
experience or statistics, making us think we have lots of time & opportunity to eventually get around to
doing what we ought, or by following a course that would be the easy way for us and not cause people
to think we are weird.
B. You can join the winners. "the great king, the king of Assyria" (4, 13)
1. Rabshakeh boasted of great power and authority and the invitation was to join him, be a part of that.
2. Join the majority; everyone else is doing it. Your choice, you choose; you deserve the best.
C. Ridicule. "You think Egypt, you think your God can help?" vv. 5-6, 8, 14-15
1. He was hoping to knock the props out from under them. We know how you think and we are
already 2 steps ahead of you.
2. Religion is just a crutch for emotional cripples who can't stand on their own 2 feet; "the opiate of
the masses."
D. Doubt. "You've made Him angry, we are here at His orders" -- vv. 7, 10
1. The Jews had made God angry, but not by getting rid of all those altars all over the city. Rabshakeh
hoped to breed doubt.
2. Satan will appear as an angel of light to confuse the issues with his slant on Scriptures. The doubts
will come -- the task is impossible.
E. Divide and conquer. Shouting to the people on the walls -- vv. 11-13
1. Rabshakeh hoped to create disunity among the inhabitants of Jerusalem; he wanted to have people
deserting Hezekiah.
2. One of Satan's effective weapons is disunity among the believers.
F. Desire. "You'll have all you desire and need if you give in now" -- vv. 16-17
1. Rabshakeh described a situation that not only avoided the unpleasant, but gave them what they
wanted.
2. Satan dangles the carrots of peace and prosperity in front of us. For everything the enemy offers
you, there is an "until" (v. 17).
G. Conformity "see the nations around you?" -- vv. 18-20
1. Rabshakeh turns up the peer pressure to cause embarrassment.
2. Most important is obedience to God. Rom. 12:2
II. Sure Strategies for Victory -- ch. 36-39
A. Testing by siege -- 36 & 37
1. Unrivaled worship (36:7). We need to clear out the clutter that keeps us away from or unaware of
His presence. "Thou shalt have no other gods..." and that includes the gods of mammon & pleasure.
2. Obedient people (36:11, 21). It may seem a small matter (in this case not to speak), but we are to
be in subjection to those over us, and to the will and Word of God.
3. Being upset by unrighteousness (36:22). Their torn clothes were more than a show of concern for their circumstances. They had heard blasphemy; their God was defied and disgraced. Society used to have blacks and whites....but now everything is gray.
4. Turn to the Lord (37:1, 14). He knew he couldn't trust Sennacherib -- 2 Kings 18:14. He only got
poorer, not safer, by trusting in man. Now he was wiser.
B. Testing by sickness -- 38
1. Live an exemplary life (38:3). Many times the ammunition Satan or unbelievers use against us is
provided by our own unfaithfulness. When we live as we ought to, we are less likely to be shot down.
2. Claim His promises (long life -- 38:3) (See Dt. 4:40; 5:16; Ps. 91:16;
Pr. 3:1-2). Don't be afraid to call on God to honor His what He has said in His Word. We must be
careful of being presumptuous, but we must also take care that we are not "care-less"
3. Turn to the Lord (38:2). Even in bitter disappointment we can call out to God and air our
complaints to Him.
C. Testing by spies -- 39. Turn to the Lord -- the lesson he didn't learn until it was too late.
1. It is easy to see why he turned to the Lord in the first 2 testings, but in this testing there seemed to be
no danger. We know there are times we need to turn to Him, but we think there are times we don't
need to, that we can handle thing quite nicely by ourselves.
2.Two things Hezekiah learned was that he wasn't above sin and that he needed close communion with
God in everything.
3. Prov. 27:6 -- Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.
If Satan can't scare you as a lion, then he might try to snare you as a serpent.
