In the Year That King Uzziah Died

I still haven’t got over attending a certain prayer meeting nearly a decade ago. President G. W. Bush had just got re-elected (2005) and the whole of the church was rejoicing. The majority of the prayer meeting was spent thanking God for the election of G. W. Bush. I, on the other hand, could not help but think of poor old King Uzziah and Isaiah 6, “In the year that King Uzziah died….” I was shaken within that a thoroughly conservative-evangelical church had spent nigh an hour focused on a man! Some say that King Uzziah’s kingdom was wealthier than Solomon’s. King Uzziah was a godly man. But he was just that- a man. His pride got in the way, and he entered the temple and tried to burn incense, which only priests could do. For his sin, God struck King Uzziah with leprosy. The poor man died alone and could not even rest right beside his royal ancestors (2 Chronicles 26). Before his first election, I’d seen an interview of G. W.. He was asked if he was against gays. He said that all gays have a part in the democratic process. This was a truism, but it highlighted to me the chronic limitations and weaknesses of any potential political savior. As the crescendo of praise grew in the prayer meeting for President Bush, I fell further and further into despair, with the voice inside the entire time saying, “In the year that King Uzziah died”. The irony was, the church had just lost a pastor a week prior, but managed but a few prayers for him.

Nor will I forget the disgust, repulsion, and dread I felt at reading a Billy Graham Crusade poster, “Billy Graham. The man who will save you.” We are obsessed with men-saviors in the Christian community. We don’t literally call them “saviors,” but we treat them as such. Famous and powerful Christians are vaunted as demi-gods. The tweets of Tebow get more traction than the New Testament. The Jonas Brothers are followed with more devotion than Christ himself. “You shall not bow down to idols”. Like the ill lying on the streets of Jerusalem awaiting the shadow of Peter to touch and heal them, so these Christians await a divine moment with exalted popular Christians.

But what happens when a popular Christian is unveiled as weak or ineffective? What did G.W. do for the Gospel? Nada! But then again, he wasn’t there as president to preach the Gospel. Why was it, then, that so many Christians were so relieved to see him in power? Why are we so disposed, in this country, to place our hope in Christian politicians? They are mere politicians, after all. Why do some in the younger generation lay such importance upon popular Christians, who are but mere men and women? A faith that looks for its inspiration to men, will last as long as the men themselves.

Isaiah understood all this, for he saw the LORD, and yelled out, “Woe am I!” (Isaiah 6:5). Isaiah, the great prophet, was only a mere man, and as such he was as sinful and weak as anyone else. The solution was not an earthly man, but the heavenly King, high and lifted up, surrounded by the heralding seraphim (vv1-4). He had to see God (Oh!) before he saw himself (woe!). From there, his sins were forgiven (lo, v7). Then he was ready to preach (go) (vv8-9). What did Isaiah preach? He preached “no”: most of Israel would not receive the blessing of God (vv9-12). For how long? Until there was left a few faithful ones. This is the “yo!” of the Gospel!

So, there you have it: Christians must not look to men, for they fail; they must look to the King of men, the Lord of the Church, the giver of salvation. The year that king Uzziah died was a dreadful year, but it was the beginning, too, of the salvation of Israel. Let us not panic that Christians are exposed as weak; let us rather look to the risen king, Jesus, and his Gospel message.