You Better Know Who To Call When You Fall

Speaker: Pastor Kevin Hardy Source: COG Sanctuary Of Praise

We want to go now to the book of Second Kings, chapter 1, verses 1 through 3.

It reads like this:

“Then Moab rebelled against Israel after the death of Ahab. And Ahazia fell down through a lattice of his upper room in Samaria and was injured. And he sent messengers and said unto them, ‘Go inquire of Beelzebub, the God of Ekron, as to whether or not I shall recover of this disease.’ But the angel of the Lord said to Elijah the Tishbite, ‘Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria and say unto them, Is it not because there is not a God in Israel that you go to inquire of Beelzebub, the God of Ekron?’ Now therefore, thus saith the Lord, thou shalt not come down from the bed on which thou art gone up, but shall surely die.” And Elijah departed.

Lord, add a blessing to the reading of Your word for the edifying of our souls.

I want you to just repeat this topic to three people around you. Tell them, “Neighbor, you better know who to call when you fall.”

Falling Does Not Have to Be Fatal

A doctor told his aging patient, “If you want to live a long time, I've got two words for you: don't fall [47:03].” The older we get, the more harmful a fall can be. Our bones do not heal as quickly, and recovery is a more challenging feat than when we were younger. A few years ago, the keynote speaker at a university graduation said to the audience, “The older you get, the less opportunities you have for do-overs [48:05].” In other words, when you make mistakes as a child or a youngster, the teacher can just say, “Go do it over.” But the older you get, do-overs are harder and harder to come by.

But can I tell you, in Christ, it is much different. The scriptures tell us in the book of Proverbs 24:16 that a just man or a righteous man fallth seven times and will rise again. This verse tells us that falling does not have to be fatal [48:52].

Psalms 37:24 reads:

“Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down, for the Lord upholds him with his hand.”

If you know the power of God, you can tell somebody around you, “He is upholding me [49:37].” I am not worried about what can happen because I know that Christ is with me and He is upholding me.

The book of Micah 7:8 says:

“Do not rejoice over me, my enemy, when I fall, I will arise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me.”

The prophet knew and understood that we have a God who restores, a God who lifts again [01:05:03]. For whatever reason I may have fallen and suffered—maybe it was a public fall, maybe it was a private fall, maybe it was a spiritual fall, or a fall due to generational issues—whatever my fall was, do not rejoice over me, my enemy, because when I fall, I will arise [50:51].

The Spiritual Fall of King Ahazia

In our text today, King Ahazia fell from a window, probably on the second floor of his palace, and he subsequently died from that fall [51:18]. But it was not Ahazia's physical fall that caused him to die; it was a spiritual fall. That is, he refused to acknowledge the true and living God, even in his fall.

God spoke to his people early in Israel's history, as recorded in Deuteronomy 30:19, saying:

“See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil.”

In other words, I have given you a choice. You must make a choice to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commandments, statutes, and judgments, that you may live and multiply. But if your heart turns away, and you worship other gods and serve them, then you shall surely perish.

He says in verse 19:

“I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing. Therefore, choose life that both you and your descendants may live [53:05].”

We cannot leave life and blessings up to chance. If we are going to walk in healing and blessings and deliverance, we have to make that choice. You have to have a made-up mind to go after the God who gives life, and that more abundantly.

Three Realities from the Text

Ahazia was the son of Ahab. Ahab did more to provoke God to anger than all the kings of Israel that were before him [57:37]. He disregarded the true God and worshiped Baal. Ahab saw the power of God—suffered famine, saw the prophets of Baal defeated, and was warned of his death—yet he still would not acknowledge God.

What makes this passage about his son, Ahazia, so rich is that Ahazia, even after all his father went through, still chose idol gods over the true and living God. He did evil in the sight of God and walked in the way of his father, serving Baal and provoking the Lord God of Israel to anger [01:00:32].

These three verses in our text (2 Kings 1:1-3) offer three realities that remind us that our fall does not have to be fatal, and that we must know who to call when we fall:

1. The Stubborn, Stiff-Necked Nature of Man [01:01:33]

Man has a tendency to persist in his own way. Sometimes we will not allow ourselves to change course or self-correct, even when devastation seems to be on the way. How many times have we persisted in our sin or our ways, knowing that it displeased God?

We can get to the point where we would rather die from our disease than put our trust in the living God. Naaman, the captain in Syria, had fallen into sickness with leprosy [01:03:10]. He had a way that he thought healing should come, and he almost missed his healing because his pride refused to follow the man of God’s simple instruction to dip in the Jordan River seven times.

• God resists the proud, but He will give grace to the humble.

• No matter what mistakes you have made, if you can humble yourself, God can deliver you from your stubbornness [01:04:16].

• He said, "I will give you a new heart, a new spirit... and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh" [01:05:11].

2. The Longsuffering of God [01:06:07]

Our refusal to turn to God does not make Him any less God. God is forever God, and He does not change. Second Peter 3:9 says:

“The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance [01:08:05].”

God is saying, "I know you have it coming, but I am going to wait to see if you can get it together. I am going to extend some grace to you. I am going to give you some more time [01:08:15]." Even in Ahazia's refusal, God still sent a prophet to him, asking, "Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are seeking after a false god [01:08:47]?" He is longsuffering, telling us to get it together.

Romans 6:23 reminds us, "The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord [01:09:58]." Sin brings separation, captivity, and condemnation.

3. The Power of Calling Upon a God Who Restores [01:11:11]

Though we are fallen or dead in our sins, Christ has the power to give us life. No matter how low we have fallen—how public or bruising our fall was—God has the power to cause us to rise again.

There is power in calling upon God! [01:11:22]

Ephesians 5:14 reads:

“Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light [01:12:53].”

My fallen friend, get up from the place where you have fallen. Get up from your sin or your disobedience. Get up from your failure and disappointment, and Christ shall give you light.

Ahazia, even while on his bed of affliction, sought after a false god. But I hear God speaking to somebody today: You may have fallen, but you can call on God! [01:14:02] You can call on the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, because it is not about how low you fall, but it is about the name you call [01:14:33].

His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the Prince of Peace, the Everlasting Father [01:14:45]. I challenge you to call upon Him in your fallen state.

The Psalmist said, “In my distress, I called upon the Lord, and cried unto my God, and He heard me.” [01:14:59]

Sometimes when you fall, people will go the other way. They may laugh at you or talk about you. But the poor man cried, and He heard me, and He lifted me from a horrible pit [01:15:50].

I am so glad Jesus lifted me [01:16:28]! He is our resurrected Savior. He died, went all the way down, but He did not stay there. On the third day, He got up with all power in His hands and the keys of hell and the grave [01:17:56], saying, “I am He who was dead, but is now alive.”

We are cast down, but we are not forsaken. We are not destroyed [01:19:31].

I come to offer hope today [01:20:17]: Hope to the one who has fallen, hope to the one who seems to have been discouraged. Maybe it was your own stubborn will that got you to this point, but God reminds us today, “My hand is outstretched still.” Call upon Me in your day of trouble, and I will hide you in my pavilion [01:21:00].

The Lord is passing by. The Lord is passing by. The Lord is passing by [01:22:50]. His virtue saves. He heals your spirit and your soul.

The full sermon can be viewed here: Know Who To Call When You Fall | Pastor Kevin Hardy | 11.2.25