1KingsCh.9-18

Solomon was blessed with unsurpassed wisdom as well as riches and honor because of his original request for the discernment to effectively rule according to God’s will. So the Lord blessed him with what he asked for and what he did not ask for. Solomon’s wealth became legendary. In ideal conditions, people prosper when God runs their lives, but wealth does not prove that a person is living rightly with God and poverty does not indicate sin. It is important to regard that the most important “treasure” is heavenly, not earthly. A revolution was brewing in response to the heavy taxation because of the courts luxury. Solomon quickly forgot God and allowed greed and lust to overcome him once he had all he wanted. The spiritual corruption of the nation became accelerated by Solomon’s polygamy with hundreds of pagan women when he couldn’t resist temptation to follow in their practices. When God warned against intermarriage with the foreign lands, it was to protect His people from the idolatry He knew would result. As our creator, He knows our strengths and weaknesses and does not give us laws to follow for our punishment; but rather for our protection. It is not enough to know God’s word or believe it, what counts is if it’s FOLLOWED and APPLIED. So many people, including followers of Christ, talk the talk and are rightfully called hypocritical when their actions directly contradict their “convictions.” It is important to take God’s commands seriously, for like Solomon: the wisest man to ever live, we are not as strong as we may think. We can learn from Solomon’s Achilles heel, for we all have weak spots. He could not say no to compromise or to lustful desires. How many of us compromise our beliefs, however small, to appease others? Temptation strikes directly at our weak spots. Strengthen and protect your weaker areas, for we are only as strong as our weakest link. Solomon’s weak link with women is relevant to struggles today. Sometimes our love leads us to identify with the desires of those we care about; compromise. My father has some good advice about marriage and compromise when he once said that the marriages that are just right don’t have much to compromise about because when your foundations fit, you lessen the need to compromise. Relationships based on compromise are doomed to failure in my opinion. Compromise should be a tool used once in a blue moon on a small matter.

Solomon’s trend leading to idolatry and eventually his fall went something like this: Short-lived resistance, he then tolerated a more widespread practice of idolatry, then rationalized the dangers to himself and to the kingdom to please and identify with his loved ones. God asks us not to marry those who do not share our commitment to Him. It makes perfect sense when looking down the road at the people you shape as your children; how confusing it would be to have mixed messages and a bunch of “compromise.” Down the road I desire for my children to know and understand my convictions, commitments, and passion without confusion so that they can make their own choice based on a solid foundation in the loving environment I intend to create. An important lesson here is that spiritual coldness began with a minor departure from God. A small sin ultimately led to Solomon’s fall. So many times we excuse sin and it those very weaknesses of character that need to be addressed. Those weaknesses can spread like cancer and lead to our downfall in more ways than one. The problem with obesity in this country comes to mind. The one hamburger, donut, or sweet tooth can cascade into a food addiction that renders the body fat and unhealthy. The commercials advocating cereals as nutritious and fast-food joints as health conscious. These little sins of convenience, immediate self-gratification and profit from ignorance have turned our nation with the sin of gluttony and all its repercussions.
Solomon lost everything. Solomon started off holy and on a great path, but lacked the faith and obedience to follow through. Don’t be quick to pat yourself on the back for a good start in building anything; marriage, career, parenting, or a church. We must stick it out to the end as a peaceful warrior. Allow God to be in control from start to finish and he will give you the strength to see it through. Sometimes it’s difficult to discern our own voice and the voice of God. God gives us guidance through his word and sometimes through the advice of others. Have you ever had your mother or a stranger speak the exact words to you that you needed to hear at the exact moment you needed to hear them? To evaluate advice, ask if it is workable, realistic, and consistent with God’s word. Will the results of the advice be fair, make improvements, and give a positive solution or direction? It is important to seek counsel from those more experienced and wiser and from those who speak according to God’s truth. Making decisions only for yourself without considering the welfare of others will backfire and sometimes we need a wise outside voice to pull us out of our self-centeredness. Also a warning once you are following God not to listen to advice against moral action, for doing what God wants means doing it no matter the cost in time, energy, reputation or resources. Studying the Bible is an important journey as I apply the important lessons my own life and hopefully, in learning from the mistakes great people made in the past, I can hope to avoid disaster in my own life from repeating other’s mistakes.

With a divided kingdom, because God destroyed the rule of David’s line because of Solomon’s disobedience, God raised Jeroboam to be the next ruler of a divided territory. We can learn some great lessons from Jeroboams character in that although a natural leader and organizer, attempting to take over God’s role in a situation always leads to big mistakes. Isn’t interesting no matter how clear the warnings are, how hard it is to obey when we really want something? The Bible is filled with stories of people who had direction from God and decided to take their own way. Their disobedience grew from stubborn selfishness. God made it clear to Jeroboam that the same fate that destroyed the House of David would destroy his family if he refused to obey God. He decided to do whatever he needed to do to secure his position as King. He led his kingdom away from God and his family was eventually wiped out. Sin’s consequences are a guarantee, but the timing is not unpredictable. We can be fooled into thinking we got away with it if we don’t see an immediate consequence, but know that even though God loves us, He is just and will forgive us but not without consequence. Sin is always judged harshly, but the worst sinners are those who lead others into doing wrong. If you have been gifted the responsibility of leading others, remember the consequences of leading them astray, for teaching the truth is a responsibility that goes with the privilege of leadership.

Elijah was the first of a long list of prophets that God sent to Israel and Judah because of the lack of faithfulness of the Kings in the divided land. For the next 300 years, the men and women that God raised as prophets would serve their role in the encouragement of the people and leaders to turn back to God. Elijah bravely confronted the man who led his people into evil and God protected him in an unexpected way, “then the Lord said, leave here, turn eastward and hide in the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan. You will drink from the brook, and I have ordered the ravens to feed you there.” God has help where we least expect it. Have you ever been stuck, lost, needing help and out of nowhere, you are cared for by a complete stranger? God provides for us in ways that go beyond our expectations. We should always look for God’s caring touch; we may find protection in the strangest places. Miracles exist. Every miracle begins with an act of obedience. Take the first step of faith and you may find the solution shortly thereafter.

Elijah went before the people and said, “How long will you waver between two options? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal is god; follow him…but the people said nothing.”(1Kings18:21) How often are we in the grey area of our lives? Floating. In this example, the people knew the Lord was God, but enjoyed the sinful pleasures and benefits that came from idolatrous worship. To be a drifter and not stand for the Lord, one day you will discover that you’ve been worshiping the false god as yourself. Through Elijah, the Lord showed a miracle to end the pagan prophets and declare again to his people that there is only one Lord and the only One to answer in truth, guidance and wisdom when we call out to Him.

Elijah was the most famous and dramatic of Israel’s prophets. He predicted the beginning and end of a three-year drought, was used by God to restore a dead child to his mother, and represented God in a showdown with priests of Baal (pagan god). We learn significant lessons from his life: we are never closer to defeat than in our moments of greatest victory. We are never as alone as we may feel, for God is always here. God speaks in persistent whispers rather than a shout. God informed Elijah that part of his loneliness was based on ignorance. I have felt silly in loneliness at times when I consider the blessings that God has given me through family, friends, animals and most importantly, in knowing Him through His word. God has work for us to do even when we feel fear and failure and has more resources and people than we know about to help carry out His plans. The real miracle of Elijah’s life was his very personal relationship with God. Personal relationship doesn’t equate to religious in my view. I still view religion as a man-made entity and ultimately flawed. My trust is in God and having faith that the word of God comes directly from Him through the Holy Spirit’s guidance of the individuals that wrote it. It is the personal and intimate relationship with God that I find so miraculous.