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God punished
King Uzziah for his pride
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Bible verse : 2
Chronicles 26:19 (NIV)
Uzziah,
who had a censer in his hand ready to burn incense, became angry.
While he was raging at the priests in their presence before the incense altar
in the LORD'S temple, leprosy broke out on his forehead.
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Uzziah became king of Judah at a very
young age. Uzziah became king at the age of 16. Uzziah is the 10th king of
Judah.
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There
was a prophet by the side of young King Uzziah.
The prophet's name was Zechariah. Prophet Zechariah taught Uzziah the word of
God and helped him live according to the word.
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King Uzziah
personally put into practice the teachings of the prophet Zechariah. Although
he became king at a young age, he did many things that were right before God.
God was very pleased with what King Uzziah did.
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God
was with Uzziah and helped him in his work. When Uzziah went to war,
God helped him win. The nation of Judah, ruled by Uzziah, gradually developed
into a strong nation. The borders of the nation of Judah became much wider
than before and it became a large country.
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Uzziah
worked hard to maintain the nation that God had made strong.
He built more cities and strengthened the walls. He also prepared for war by
building a high tower and made weapons to be used in war.
Uzziah was not conceited and prepared well for a war that might occur.
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However, as the country became
stronger and wealthier, King Uzziah began to change little by little. He
forgot God, who had made it all happen, and pride began to grow in his heart.
He did not serve God properly and acted as if he had accomplished everything.
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Uzziah himself thought that he
could do whatever he wanted because he was the king who made Judah into a
great nation. What's worse is that the arrogance that made him disregard the
laws and order established by God grew bigger and bigger in his heart.
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In the temple where God resides,
there is a place called the sanctuary.
No one except the priests chosen by God can enter this place. It is a place
that God has designated as a place that even a king should never enter.
The priests burned incense here every morning and evening.
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However, King Uzziah,
who fell into pride, broke God's law and entered the sanctuary to burn
incense himself. About 80 brave priests, including Azariah, quickly followed
King Uzziah and stopped him from offering incense.
¡°You have no right to burn incense to the LORD. Only the priests, sons of
Aaron, who have been specially set apart for this purpose, can burn incense.
You must leave this holy place. You have not listened to the voice of the
LORD. Therefore, Jehovah God will not exalt you.¡±
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However, King Uzziah, who was filled with pride, ignored the
words of the priests. He was already standing by the incense altar and
holding a censer in his hand.
He actually became very angry at the priests who did not allow him, the king,
to offer incense.
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When
King Uzziah was angry with the priests, something terrible happened to King
Uzziah. Symptoms of leprosy began to appear on King Uzziah's forehead.
God personally punished the arrogant King Uzziah, who took his words lightly,
with leprosy.
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When High Priest
Azariah and the other priests saw that King Uzziah was suffering from
leprosy, they hurriedly kicked Uzziah out of the temple.
When King Uzziah found out that he had leprosy, he quickly ran out of the
temple.
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God directly punished Uzziah, who believed that he had
accomplished what God had accomplished and fell into pride and disobeyed
God's words.
From that day on, King Uzziah suffered from leprosy and lived in a separate
house until the day he died. From that day on, he was not allowed to enter
Jehovah's temple for the rest of his life.
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Even after King Uzziah died, he was not buried in the royal tomb,
but was buried in a cemetery prepared a little distance away.
The Bible showed through Uzziah how serious the sin of pride was, which was
to forsake God's grace and despise God's law. Uzziah, who was punished by
God, lived a miserable life and died.
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It is very easy and simple for
God¡¯s children to succeed. As long as anyone does the right thing according
to God's word, God exalts that person and makes them successful in everything
they do. However, no matter how much a person is loved by God, if he loses
his first intention and does not keep the law and order established by God
with a proud heart, God will punish him.
Children of God receive salvation as a gift through faith in
Jesus, who died on the cross for
our sins.
Children of God must follow the laws and order established by God.
No matter what we do, we must be people who pray without losing humility and
live according to the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
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(This
is the sample conclusion provided by CTM. Please feel free to change the
conclusion to best suit the listeners of your sermon.)
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