Articles
What is in Your House?
At that time Berodach-baladan a son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present to Hezekiah, for he heard that Hezekiah had been sick. Hezekiah listened to them and showed them all his treasure house, the silver and the gold and the spices and the precious oil and the house of his armor and all that was found in his treasuries. There was nothing in his house nor in all his dominion that Hezekiah did not show them. Then Isaiah the prophet came to King Hezekiah and said to him, “What did these men say, and from where have they come to you?” And Hezekiah said, “They have come from a far country, from Babylon.” He said, “What have they seen in your house?” So Hezekiah answered, “They have seen all that is in my house; there is nothing among my treasuries that I have not shown them.” (2 Kings 20:12-15)
"What have they seen in your house?" is the sobering question Isaiah asks king Hezekiah after he has shown all of his treasure to Berodach-baladan, king of Babylon. In the passage that follows, Isaiah admonishes Hezekiah for disclosing all of his treasure and tells him that in the coming days Babylon will rise up as the world power of the day and will invade Jerusalem and carry off all of the treasure he has revealed.
The question, "What have they seen in your house?" has been a sobering and humbling question to me as I contemplate the spiritual ramifications of this question. If someone were to come to your house and examine it as thoroughly and carefully as Berodach-baladan did to Hezekiah's house, what would they find?
Would they find evidence of true spirituality? Would they hear spiritual conversations taking place about God’s Word and His kingdom? Would they see Bibles opened regularly as you study together as a family? Would they hear prayers being offered over meals and prayers of gratitude expressed to God for who He is and what He has done? Would they see you preparing for your Bible classes so that you might come to a better understanding of God's word and so you might encourage your fellow Christians?
Or would they see things that indicate a lack of spiritual interest in your home? What kinds of movies and television shows are watched? What kind of books are read? What kind of music is played on the radio? If someone were able to pull back the curtain and see inside your home would they conclude that your household is one that honors and fears the Lord or a home where the Lord is absent?
What kind of actions would one see when they looked inside your home? Would they see husbands and wives who are nurturing, cherishing, and growing in their relationship together and living out their God-given roles? Would they see children who respect and obey their parents in the Lord? (Eph. 6:1). What kind of language would such an observer hear in your home? Would they hear things that honor the Lord and build up those who hear? Would they hear words that are kind, gracious, gentle and spring from a heart filled with love? Or would they hear things that are hurtful and unbecoming as a child of God and end up fracturing the harmony and unity of your home?
For these reasons and many others is why the question, "What have they seen in your house?" is so humbling to me. This question should give us great pause as we consider the actions and language that reside in our homes. Perhaps even more sobering is that Jesus is always the unseen guest in our homes and is fully aware of what takes place when no one else does. What does He see in your house? May God help us as we cultivate homes that magnify and glorify Him.
