Month: October 2023

1 Kings 13:17-19 For it was said unto me by the word of the Lord, Thou shalt eat no bread nor drink water there….So he went back with him and did eat bread in his house and drank water.

A man of God came up from Judah to Bethel to cry against the altar there that it would be rent and its ashes poured out. Jeroboam heard of it and went to stretch out his hand, but it withered and he couldn’t pull it back. The man of God prayed for him and God restored his hand. The king wanted to reward him by inviting him to his house, but the man of God refused, saying that God told him not to eat and drink.

A prophet of Bethel invited him his home, but he refused again. Then the prophet lied to him, saying, “But an angel told me….” So he went with him to eat and drink. When he was eating and drinking the Lord spoke through the prophet: “Because you disobeyed the mouth of the Lord you will die.” Sure enough, a lion met him on the way home and killed him.

This gruesome story makes us think of God as being vindictive and cruel. But it also reminds us He takes obedience to His Word seriously. Breaking the rules always brings death. For this reason God gave His Son to die for us so that we might live before the Lord eternally. Meanwhile, because of that Gospel we desire to obey.

1 Kings 12:28, 30 Whereupon the king took, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt….And this thing became a sin: for the people went to worship before the one, even unto Dan.

King Jeroboam of Israel was set upon keeping his people from going up to Jerusalem in Judah for worship, for it was outside the territory of the Ten Tribes. So he set up two calf idols in two places within Israel. This thing became a sin. All of the succeeding kings of the Northern Kingdom did evil in following the sin of Jeroboam. Blatantly disobeying the First Commandment, he made idols like the golden calf of Aaron in Moses’ day, and attributed to them the Salvation that the Lord alone had granted.

This gross sin was done for political reasons to maintain control, for selfish reasons to secure power, and for the sake of convenience. For continuing in this sin, the kingdom of Israel was destroyed and national identity lost forever.

The demon gods of this world seek our worship and devotion, tempting us to believe that good things come to us from them, not from the one and only true God. For the sake of power, riches, and convenience we begin to believe the lie that good things come from self and the world. It is too easy to forget God.

Our response is to single-mindedly and whole-heartedly worship our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and thank God for everything always.

1 Kings 12:15-16 Wherefore the king hearkened not unto the people; for the cause was from the Lord, that he might perform his saying…So when all Israel saw that the king hearkened not unto them….Israel departed unto their tents.

Jereboam and Rehoboam both did what was good for themselves, not that which was good for their people. Rehoboam was harsh and did not listen. Jereboam built idols in new places of worship to keep his people away from Jerusalem. Both actions backfired because they were based on selfish motives. They sinned against God’s basic Law: “Love the the Lord and Love your neighbor.”

This turn of affairs, the division of the kingdom, was predicted by the Lord through the prophet Ahijah. It was “from the Lord.” That does not excuse the sin of it; it just prophesies the consequences of self-centered sins. Rehoboam’s selfish decision led to the division of the kingdom. And Jereboam’s setting up idol calves for worship led to the downfall of the kingdom.

Making decisions only for your own interests will backfire and cause you to lose more than if you had kept the interests of others in mind. God’s way is always the right way, without exception; our own way, the selfish way, is the wrong way. A large part of the human condition involves the struggle between our stubborn self-will and God’s perfect will. Thus we pray, “Thy will be done.”

1 Kings 12:6, 8, 13-14 And king Rehoboam consulted with the old men…How do you advise?…But he forsook the counsel of the old men, and consulted with the young man….And the king forsook the old men’s counsel, ans spake to them And the king forsook the old men’s counsel, and spake to them after the counsel of the young men.

Solomon’s son, Rehoboam, was asked by Jereboam and the people of Israel to lower the taxes and lighten the yoke. He said, “Let me think about it.” He asked the advice of the elders, who had spiritual maturity and wisdom. They answered, “Speak good words to the people.” He forsook their advice.

After rejecting their advice he consulted the young and inexperienced men. They answered, “Increase the taxes and make the yoke heavy,” He followed this bad advice, and ignited rebellion and division in which ten tribes separated and divided the kingdom.

It is a wise and helpful idea in a crisis to ask for the advice of godly men. And then we should listen and follow good advice. But like Rehoboam, we don’t like that advice, and we ask others until we hear what we want. Be humble enough to ask advice, but then be wise enough to follow it. Evaluate advice, whether it is realistic, workable, and consistent with biblical principles. Seek out the wise.

1 Kings 11:1-4 But long Solomon loved many strange women,….Of the nations concerning which the Lord said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away your heart after other gods….And his wives turned away his heart…His wives turned away his heart.

God had blessed Solomon abundantly with great wisdom, the greatest on earth; with it He blessed him with an expanded kingdom of peace and prosperity, riches and wealth, power, and personal pleasures. We enjoy the earthly blessings that come from God’s hand. But along with worldly riches, power, and pleasure comes a great danger: the temptation to turn away from God. We can forget where it all comes from and use it for selfish pride, pleasure, and power. The world has the power to turn the heart away.

Solomon had hundreds of foreign wives who brought their false gods with them, corrupting his heart and later rending the kingdom. For the sake of David, this division did not happen in Solomon’s lifetime, but the consequences were nonetheless severe.

These things are written for our learning. Nothing good can come from turning the heart away from the Lord. We need to beware of the pull of the world, desiring to be rich, seeking worldly pleasures, striving for power. There are many worldly gods that are continually pulling us away from pure, simple, wholehearted devotion to our Savior and Lord. Believing God’s Word and knowing the dangers helps our response of love to the overwhelming love of God in Christ.

1 Kings 10:2 y-27 aAnd Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen….And the king made silver to be in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars made he to be as the sycamore trees that in the vale, for abundance.

David gave Solomon a peaceful kingdom, and God gave him the wisdom to make it prosperous. However, the Lord had prohibited the king from building up such power and wealth in Deuteronomy 17. Now it was coming true. God knew this would hurt the nation politically and spiritually. Earthly blessings are not always blessings. Luxury resulted in higher taxation, which led to unrest, which caused revolution, which split the kingdom after Solomon’s death. Likely the worst issue was his growing a large harem of foreign wives who brought their foreign gods.

A better response would have been humble gratitude instead of personal pride and ostentatious aggrandizement. Power can corrupt and riches can become a root of all evil. We must learn the lesson that constant thankfulness must be our response to the material blessings we enjoy from God’s grace. Paul said in Philippians 4:11-13: “I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”

Our response to God’s abundant blessings is not to selfishly accumulate more power and wealth, but to learn to be content with Jesus, “giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ [Ephesians 5:20].”

1 Kings 10:4-5 And when the queen of Sheba had seen all of Solomon’s wisdom, and the house that he had built….there was no more spirit in her.

The queen of Sheba had heard of Solomon by reputation; she had to come see for herself. She was blown away by the wisdom of Solomon and by the wealth, power, and glory of the kingdom built through God’s wisdom. She was impressed, overwhelmed, and awed by God’s kingdom. There was no more spirit in her.

When we really see and experience God in the glorious Gospel of Salvation the same thing happens to us. We are impressed with the Wisdom of God, not to mention His love, grace, glory, and power. Jesus is the Wisdom of God. He is awe-inspiring. He takes our breath away. The inborn human spirit is full of pride, rebellion, and self-reliance. When we are baptized and come to believe in Jesus the Holy Spirit comes in with overwhelming love to take over the place of the human spirit.

We may not always feel this Spirit takeover, though at times we do sense His presence. However, this is what really happens when God touches us, whether we realize it or not. We know it because the Word says so. Therefore, we seek first the kingdom of God. And we pray daily that awesome prayer, “For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever and ever. Amen.”

1 Kings 8:61 Let your heart therefore be perfect with the Lord our God, to walk in his statutes, and to keep his commandments, as at this day.

Solomon continues his address to the people at the dedication of the temple: “Let your heart be perfect with God.” Now that you know where God is and how to approach Him you have no reason to not be perfect with the Lord. You know what sacrifices to make, you know the ritual rules, you know the Moral Law of God, and you know how to receive forgiveness and cleansing. Now do it.

No one is perfect and no man can become perfect with the Lord. But God still demands and expects perfection from human beings: “Be ye perfect; you shall be holy.” Since the Lord will not relax the standard, He Himself had to enter human history and do something about it. Therefore, the Son of God was sent as a human to forgive our sins and declare us righteous through His life, death, and resurrection.

We know where God is and we know how to approach Him. We come before the Lord holy, righteous, and perfect through the blood of Jesus Christ, by faith in His sacrifice for us. By faith we are perfect with the Lord. We maintain that position by daily repentance and renewal of faith. After we receive God’s perfection through the Gospel we live from there, and walk and keep. Go to church, pray daily, maintain the faith, and life is better.

1 Kings 8:58 That he may incline our hearts unto him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and his statutes, and his judgments, which he commanded our fathers.

When Solomon finished dedicating the temple, he stood and turned to bless the people. In the prayer of blessing he asked the Lord to incline the hearts of the people to God with the result that they will walk in his ways and keep his commandments. Living an obedient life does not come naturally to sinful humans, even if we try with all our might. Walking in His ways comes out of a heart that is inclined toward God.

But since by nature we are not inclined toward God we need to respond by praying that the Lord will incline our heart. The love of God, the power of the Gospel, and the work of the Holy Spirit through the gospel inclines the heart of man toward God. This is why the meaning of the commandments begins with the words, “We should fear and love God that we may….” We are inclined to keep the Commandments when God does the inclining in us.

The Spirit convicts us of sin and of forgiveness and so grants the ability to incline. Philippians 2:13: “For it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.” He it is who actually grants the desire and the ability to walk and keep in our daily lives. We expose ourselves to the gospel and respond with the Lord’s Prayer asking the Father to change me (incline my heart).

We will live a better life and really change when we pray without ceasing, are poised toward God, and are aware of His presence more of the time. So we pray the Lord’s Prayer and mean it.

1 Kings 8:10-11 The cloud filled the house of the Lord, So that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of the Lord had filled the house of the Lord.

When the Temple of Solomon was dedicated, the cloud of glory filled the house of the Lord. The response of the priests was to fall prostrate before the powerful presence of God. The Almighty, All-powerful, Creator God showed up and manifested Himself in the cloud of glory. The nearby witnesses could not stand. This is the natural and expected reaction to the revelation of God coming into our earthly existence.

The least response to God appearing is to kneel, but in several cases the breaking through of the spiritual into the physical world causes the witness to fall flat. Philippians 2:10: God has highly exalted Jesus so that “at the name of Jesus every knee should bow.” This will happen to all people when Jesus is revealed in all His glory, in real life. For now, it happens to us by faith, in the Spirit. We may physically kneel or lie prone before the Glory of the Gospel, but not usually. It happens in our spirit, invisibly, when the awesome love of God sweeps over us in our receiving of the Gospel.

We don’t always feel it, but this is what really is going on when we are baptized, when we take Communion, when we receive absolution, or however we hear the Gospel. We respond in humble worship and grateful praise, and in a spiritual, but real, sense we cannot stand. Our God is so good and so great! His love bowls us over.