Uzziah: God-Given Success...Continued from page 6

Caught red-handed with the incense censer in hand, Uzziah burns with anger toward these priests who have called him to accountability. He screams and yells words at them that are not printed in the text. He rages around the altar. He is accountable to no one! This sin is even more egregious than the first. As Azariah and his associate priests look at Uzziah, they notice a white, leathery spot has suddenly appeared on his forehead. Recognizing the judgment of God and the reality that a contagious leper in the Temple is a threat to the entire body of worshipers, the band of priests immediately rush the powerful king off of the grounds. Finally, he is broken. Realizing his condition, "[Uzziah] himself was eager to leave" (v. 20 NIV). He knows that his arrogance has resulted in his undoing. Yet God's mercy will continue to sustain him.

The true judgment, as verse 21 indicates, is that Uzziah would never enter the Temple again. Seclusion from the nation was bad enough, but severance from the house of the Lord is worse. He will not have the opportunity to right his wrongs. His son will govern in his place. Nonetheless, God does allow Uzziah to live out his days in security and safety, along with the pleasure of seeing the rule of the kingdom peaceably pass onto his son.

Though guilty of sinful pride, Uzziah at least refuses to serve polytheistic pagan cults. This places him among those imperfect leaders who were given success by God.

CONCLUSION

The life of Uzziah stands as a testimony to the truth that success lies in God alone. The day Uzziah began to focus on his own perceived rights and powers, success was taken from him. This was not only true of Uzziah and the other kings of Judah, but in our own lives as well. "You are not your own; you were bought at a price," Paul says in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (NIV). As followers of God, we do not own ourselves, much less our success.

GOLDEN TEXT CHALLENGE

There was a direct connection between seeking and success in the reign of King Uzziah. It was not when Uzziah sought success that he found it, but when he sought after God.

The word sought emphasizes continued inquiry and devotion. It comes from a word which meant "to tread a place or path." It depicted someone regularly going to a place, seeking or searching, and, as a result, treading a path. As long as Uzziah regularly sought the Lord, God made him to prosper.

This formula for success was not just true for Uzziah. The psalmist wrote, "How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked. . . . But his delight is in the law of the Lord. . . . And in whatever he does, he prospers" (Ps. 1:1-3 NASB).