READING: 2 Chronicles 25-27, John 16
“But when he became strong, he grew arrogant and it led to his own destruction.”
2 Chronicles 26:16
It’s a problem that all of us face, especially if we are in ministry. We start out trusting God and fully leaning on Him, but we potentially turn to trust ourselves instead. We become self-dependent rather than God dependent.
That’s what happened to Uzziah, as today’s reading shows. He was crowned king at age 16, and “he did what was right in the Lord’s sight as his father Amaziah had done” (2 Chron. 26:4). We are then told, though, that he walked faithfully with God “throughout the lifetime of Zechariah, the teacher of the fear of God” (2 Chron. 26:5). Though Uzziah prospered as long as he sought the Lord, the wording of 2 Chronicles 26:5 suggests that something different would eventually happen.
Indeed, it did. God had made Uzziah “very powerful” (2 Chron. 26:8); in fact, he was “marvelously helped until he became strong” (2 Chron. 26:15). That strength, though, became his downfall. He usurped the role of the priest by entering the Temple to burn incense, and that choice resulted in his bearing leprosy and living in quarantine. Here’s how the text records what happened to the king: “But when he became strong, he grew arrogant and it led to his own destruction” (2 Chron. 26:16). He apparently sought to be both king and priest, but that desire would bring only anguish. His power and strength (though God-given) resulted in disease when Uzziah became prideful rather than thank God for that strength.
I fear we do the same thing at times. We trust God when we’re young in ministry, but then turn to self at a later point. It’s easy to do, too – our strength becomes a source of pride, and pride leads to our destruction (Prov. 16:18). To avoid that sin, we must live in the tension of wanting to do great things for God in His power while understanding we must remain humble in the process. None of us defaults into humility, however, so we can walk as God wishes only if He chooses to do both: use us mightily, and humble us clearly.
ACTION STEPS:
- Ask God to use you in a powerful way.
- Ask God to keep you humble in the process – and trust Him to do so, however He wishes.
PRAYER: “God, I want others to see in me Your power and grace. Use me – but keep me humble.”
TOMORROW’S READING: 2 Chronicles 28-29, John 17
