WHEN GOD IS FOR US, WHO CAN STAND AGAINST US?

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In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

In the eighteenth year of the reign of Jeroboam, Abijah became king of Judah, and he reigned in Jerusalem three years. His mother’s name was Maakah, a daughter of Uriel of Gibeah.

There was war between Abijah and Jeroboam. Abijah went into battle with an army of four hundred thousand able fighting men, and Jeroboam drew up a battle line against him with eight hundred thousand able troops.

Abijah stood on Mount Zemaraim, in the hill country of Ephraim, and said, “Jeroboam and all Israel, listen to me! Don’t you know that the Lord, the God of Israel, has given the kingship of Israel to David and his descendants forever by a covenant of salt? Yet Jeroboam son of Nebat, an official of Solomon son of David, rebelled against his master. Some worthless scoundrels gathered around him and opposed Rehoboam son of Solomon when he was young and indecisive and not strong enough to resist them.”

“And now you plan to resist the kingdom of the Lord, which is in the hands of David’s descendants. You are indeed a vast army and have with you the golden calves that Jeroboam made to be your gods. But didn’t you drive out the priests of the Lord, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites, and make priests of your own as the peoples of other lands do? Whoever comes to consecrate himself with a young bull and seven rams may become a priest of what are not gods.”

“As for us, the Lord is our God, and we have not forsaken Him. The priests who serve the Lord are sons of Aaron, and the Levites assist them. Every morning and evening they present burnt offerings and fragrant incense to the Lord. They set out the bread on the ceremonially clean table and light the lamps on the gold lampstand every evening. We are observing the requirements of the Lord our God. But you have forsaken Him. God is with us; He is our leader. His priests with their trumpets will sound the battle cry against you. People of Israel, do not fight against the Lord, the God of your ancestors, for you will not succeed.”

Now Jeroboam had sent troops around to the rear, so that while he was in front of Judah the ambush was behind them. Judah turned and saw that they were being attacked at both front and rear. Then they cried out to the Lord. The priests blew their trumpets and the men of Judah raised the battle cry. At the sound of their battle cry, God routed Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah. The Israelites fled before Judah, and God delivered them into their hands. Abijah and his troops inflicted heavy losses on them, so that there were five hundred thousand casualties among Israel’s able men. The Israelites were subdued on that occasion, and the people of Judah were victorious because they relied on the Lord, the God of their ancestors.

Abijah pursued Jeroboam and took from him the towns of Bethel, Jeshanah and Ephron, with their surrounding villages. Jeroboam did not regain power during the time of Abijah. And the Lord struck him down and he died.

But Abijah grew in strength. He married fourteen wives and had twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters.

The other events of Abijah’s reign, what he did and what he said, are written in the annotations of the prophet Iddo.

And Abijah rested with his ancestors and was buried in the City of David. Asa his son succeeded him as king, and in his days the country was at peace for ten years.

2 Chronicles 13 and 14:1

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

In times of trouble in life, especially when we face opposition in some way, perhaps no other words in scripture offer as much solace as these from the apostle Paul as he wrote to the Christians in Rome:

If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave Him up for us all—how will He not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:31b-35, 37-39

Friends, should this not give all believers a uniquely supreme confidence when it comes to living?

For those who place their faith and trust in the Lord might be in the world but they aren’t of the world and they certainly don’t belong to the world. No, they belong to a God who loves in them so much that nothing in creation can separate them from Him. Not even sin.

You see God took care of sin as well. That was part of the love package God gave His people. For He loved the world so much that He gave up His only Son Jesus as an atoning sin sacrifice so that those who would choose to believe in that Son as Savior would not perish but have everlasting life.

In other words, those who place their hope and trust in Jesus are victorious people now and forever. Nothing can take away the salvation promise they have been given and one day they will conquer death and the grave to live with God forever, just as Jesus did.

Yes, God is indeed with those who believe and trust in Him, the same God who formed the heavens and the earth and all within them. This God is the God that anyone opposing us must come up against and no one has the might to stand against Him.

If you want an example of this, look at our scripture passage from 2 Chronicles, Chapter 13. There we find a conflict brewing that was inevitable, a civil war between the Israelites who sided with Jeroboam after rejecting Rehoboam’s rule and the Israelites who remained in Judah, the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. All things considered equal, every person lined up for battle was an Israelite but there was one major factor that separated them. The Israelites of Judah who were now under the rule of Rehoboam’s son Abijah were following God, worshiping Him fully and obedient to His commands. Conversely, the Israelites loyal to Jeroboam were worshiping false gods in the form of golden calves.

So who was going to come out on top of the ensuing battle?

Go back to Paul’s words for your answer:

“If God is for us, who can be against us?”

Abijah certainly led with this kind of confidence. In fact, he tried and convince Jeroboam not to fight, to reconsider what he was about to do knowing that it wasn’t Abijah and his men that Jeroboam and his followers were battling but rather God Himself. And such a battle would not end well for the people who had forsaken God.

But Jeroboam would have nothing of Abijah’s suggestion. In fact, scripture tells us that while Abijah was speaking, Jeroboam’s army was forming up an ambush behind Abijah and his men, an ambush that was sprung as soon as he finished speaking. Predictably, this was not a good idea because Abijah and his men routed Jeroboam’s army, killing 500,000 losing and leaving Jeroboam powerless. The Lord took care of Him, striking him down dead.

The lesson to be learned?

Opposing someone who God is with is a fruitless endeavor. For no one can stand against God and expect victory.

This truth is so very precious and valuable to us, not just on this day but every day God blesses us with, every day He is with us. For if we are to truly focus our efforts on completing what Jesus called us to do -  to make disciples of all nations - then we can’t be concerned about those who would stand in our way and oppose us. This is why we need to ever keep in mind that God is with us, ensuring that we are and will always be victorious in accomplishing His purposes as we live for Him.

And nothing can separate us from His love in Christ Jesus.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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A PLACE YOU NEVER WANT TO BE

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In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

After Rehoboam’s position as king was established and he had become strong, he and all Israel with him abandoned the law of the Lord. Because they had been unfaithful to the Lord, Shishak king of Egypt attacked Jerusalem in the fifth year of King Rehoboam. With twelve hundred chariots and sixty thousand horsemen and the innumerable troops of Libyans, Sukkites and Cushites that came with him from Egypt, he captured the fortified cities of Judah and came as far as Jerusalem.

Then the prophet Shemaiah came to Rehoboam and to the leaders of Judah who had assembled in Jerusalem for fear of Shishak, and he said to them, “This is what the Lord says, ‘You have abandoned me; therefore, I now abandon you to Shishak.’”

The leaders of Israel and the king humbled themselves and said, “The Lord is just.”

When the Lord saw that they humbled themselves, this word of the Lord came to Shemaiah: “Since they have humbled themselves, I will not destroy them but will soon give them deliverance. My wrath will not be poured out on Jerusalem through Shishak. They will, however, become subject to him, so that they may learn the difference between serving me and serving the kings of other lands.”

When Shishak king of Egypt attacked Jerusalem, he carried off the treasures of the temple of the Lord and the treasures of the royal palace. He took everything, including the gold shields Solomon had made. So King Rehoboam made bronze shields to replace them and assigned these to the commanders of the guard on duty at the entrance to the royal palace. Whenever the king went to the Lord’s temple, the guards went with him, bearing the shields, and afterward they returned them to the guardroom.

Because Rehoboam humbled himself, the Lord’s anger turned from him, and he was not totally destroyed. Indeed, there was some good in Judah.

King Rehoboam established himself firmly in Jerusalem and continued as king. He was forty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city the Lord had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel in which to put his Name. His mother’s name was Naamah; she was an Ammonite. He did evil because he had not set his heart on seeking the Lord.

As for the events of Rehoboam’s reign, from beginning to end, are they not written in the records of Shemaiah the prophet and of Iddo the seer that deal with genealogies? There was continual warfare between Rehoboam and Jeroboam. Rehoboam rested with his ancestors and was buried in the City of David. And Abijah his son succeeded him as king.

2 Chronicles 12

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

I have to admit that I am an optimist at heart. Anyone who knows me would say that if asked. And as an optimist, I typically prescribe to the glass half-full perspective on things. In other words, even in the midst of what would be seemingly negative circumstances, there can be a positive takeaway.

As I look at the United States these days, it’s taking every ounce of my strength to maintain my optimism about where our country is heading. We’re in a clear state of moral decline and it is from the top down. We have taken the concept of separation of church and state to the place where our elected and appointed officials have decided to separate themselves from God in their decision making – and the people are following their lead. This is making us far from being a nation who places their trust in God as our coin currency states or “One Nation Under God” as we say when we recite our Pledge of Allegiance.

So where are we headed? Are we in the United States of America so arrogant and obstinate that we think we can continue our current national attitude without consequence from the God we are turning from, the God who blessed our nation to be as great as it has been?

If anyone thinks that we’re not in danger, perhaps they had better read the scriptures and note what happened when nations decided to turn away from God. Today’s scripture from the 12th Chapter of 2 Chronicles serves as a perfect example.

You’ll recall that Rehoboam had designs on attacking the ten tribes who had turned from his rule and restoring his kingdom but God sent a message via Shemaiah commanding that Rehoboam and his army return to Jerusalem because the division of Israel was his doing. Rehoboam was obedient to God’s command and as a result, he found safety and success within his territory of Judah. In fact, as the northern kingdom of Israel began to worship idols, the Levites and priests relocated to Judah where God was still being honored and worshiped properly. Scripture tells us that this injection of spiritual leaders who had their hearts set on God brought strength to Judah and established a worship environment that had been present when David and Solomon ruled.

It’s a shame it didn’t last.

For as Chapter 12 opens, we find that Judah had changed, joining Israel in abandoning the law of the Lord. Their unfaithfulness to the Lord did not go unaddressed for we read where Judah was attacked by Shishak, king of Israel, who defeated and captured all of Judah’s fortified cities before turning his eyes toward Jerusalem. The kingdom of Judah was in danger of annihilation and just in case Rehoboam was trying to figure out why things were playing out the way they were, God spoke to him again through Shemaiah saying, “You have abandoned me; therefore, I now abandon you to Shishak.”

At this, Rehoboam and all of Judah knew they were in deep trouble and so they did the only thing they could do. They humbled themselves and proclaimed the Lord as being just. In other words, they were getting what they deserved.

In return for this display of contrition and humble acknowledgement of sin, the Lord relented in completely destroying Jerusalem however He still needed to teach the Israelites a lesson. And so, although Jerusalem and its people would not be destroyed, they would be subject to Shishak so that they would “learn the difference between serving me and serving the kings of other lands.” In essence, the Lord was saying, “If you thought it was so hard to obey and follow Me, let me show you how hard it can be to follow someone else.”

And so it came to be. Shishak attacked Jerusalem and carried off all the treasures of the temple of the Lord and the treasures of the royal palace, including the gold shields Solomon had made. Rehoboam replaced the gold shields with bronze and his actions showed a humility that pleased God, so much so that the Lord’s anger turned from Him and the southern kingdom was not destroyed. In fact, the scriptures make it a point to say that there was good in Judah once again.

Rehoboam would rule for 17 years before handing the throne over to his son Abijah. And although he had seemingly learned from the Lord’s correction, his legacy as captured in God’s word was that he had not set his heart on the Lord and thus was identified as evil.

So what does this have to do with today and the United States of America?

Think about it. If God would abandon and turn from His chosen people of Israel and endorse the holy city of Jerusalem to be attacked and nearly destroyed, don’t think that there isn’t a nation on earth that is immune from His judgment if they do likewise. This is where we are heading in our nation if we don’t repent and turn back to being obedient and loyal to the God who made us and blessed us.

Far greater empires have risen and fallen. Go back to the Egyptian empire of Moses’ days and you’ll see just how much God can do to a nation. His consequences don’t have to come in the way of military action.

Where we choose to go is anyone’s guess but there’s absolutely no guesswork as to what will happen if we continue down the path we’re on now. For Jesus said that the wide path of sinfulness only leads to destruction (Matthew 7:13-14). And that’s not the place anyone should want to be.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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RECEIVING AND ACCEPTING GOD'S WILL

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In Christ, Mark

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

When Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he mustered Judah and Benjamin—a hundred and eighty thousand able young men—to go to war against Israel and to regain the kingdom for Rehoboam. But this word of the Lord came to Shemaiah the man of God: “Say to Rehoboam son of Solomon king of Judah and to all Israel in Judah and Benjamin, ‘This is what the Lord says: Do not go up to fight against your fellow Israelites. Go home, every one of you, for this is my doing.’” So they obeyed the words of the Lord and turned back from marching against Jeroboam.

Rehoboam lived in Jerusalem and built up towns for defense in Judah: Bethlehem, Etam, Tekoa, Beth Zur, Soko, Adullam, Gath, Mareshah, Ziph, Adoraim, Lachish, Azekah, Zorah, Aijalon and Hebron. These were fortified cities in Judah and Benjamin. He strengthened their defenses and put commanders in them, with supplies of food, olive oil and wine. He put shields and spears in all the cities, and made them very strong. So Judah and Benjamin were his.

The priests and Levites from all their districts throughout Israel sided with him. The Levites even abandoned their pasturelands and property and came to Judah and Jerusalem, because Jeroboam and his sons had rejected them as priests of the Lord when he appointed his own priests for the high places and for the goat and calf idols he had made. Those from every tribe of Israel who set their hearts on seeking the Lord, the God of Israel, followed the Levites to Jerusalem to offer sacrifices to the Lord, the God of their ancestors. They strengthened the kingdom of Judah and supported Rehoboam son of Solomon three years, following the ways of David and Solomon during this time.

Rehoboam married Mahalath, who was the daughter of David’s son Jerimoth and of Abihail, the daughter of Jesse’s son Eliab. She bore him sons: Jeush, Shemariah and Zaham. Then he married Maakah daughter of Absalom, who bore him Abijah, Attai, Ziza and Shelomith. Rehoboam loved Maakah daughter of Absalom more than any of his other wives and concubines. In all, he had eighteen wives and sixty concubines, twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters.

Rehoboam appointed Abijah son of Maakah as crown prince among his brothers, in order to make him king. He acted wisely, dispersing some of his sons throughout the districts of Judah and Benjamin, and to all the fortified cities. He gave them abundant provisions and took many wives for them.

2 Chronicles 11

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

When Jesus walked the earth, He invested a large percentage of His time teaching His followers about living righteously. He didn’t leave any aspect of life uncovered even teaching us how to pray, sharing these words for us to speak to God, our Father in heaven:

“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name, Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.”

You may recognize these words as being the Lord’s Prayer, recited in many church services every Sunday. But do we really embrace the words of this prayer, particularly when it comes to the matter of God’s will.

In other words, we say Your will be done on earth but are we really ready to accept that will in our lives? Are we ready to surrender our own desires in exchange for His? And do we fully understand that God’s will is going to be done whether we want it to or not?

As we delve a little further into the scriptures for guidance on the will of God, we find this gem within Paul’s letter to the Romans:

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—His good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:1-2

Want to have the power to discern God’s will for your life?

You can only have it when you choose to fully surrender yourself to Him, to offer yourself as a living sacrifice, allowing Him to use you in whatever way He wishes to further His kingdom here on earth. Paul tells us that this is the true and proper worship we are to bring to God. He doesn’t want what we have. He wants us and longs to have a personal relationship with us. This will ensure that we do not conform ourselves to the world’s ways. Rather, God will shape and conform us to His image through His Spirit, and we will experience a transformation and renewing of our minds as our thoughts and words become the thoughts and words ordained and instituted by God.

Want to live in God’s favor? Want to experience true peace and contentment in your life? Want to make sure you are always living in a way that honors your Creator God?

Then seek and allow His will to be done in your life and all these things will define what your life is about.

As we look at our scripture passage today, we find how receiving and accepting God’s will can have positive results.

You’ll recall that Solomon’s son Rehoboam had single-handedly managed to divide the nation of Israel into two kingdoms by choosing to listen to the counsel of his younger peers over the advice of his elder advisors. The result was ten of the twelve tribes of Israel breaking away and forming their own kingdom, the kingdom of Israel.

But as we see in the opening verses of 2 Chronicles 11, there may have been more at work in the story than a young king making an apparently errant decision. Look at these verses:

When Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he mustered Judah and Benjamin—a hundred and eighty thousand able young men—to go to war against Israel and to regain the kingdom for Rehoboam.

But this word of the Lord came to Shemaiah the man of God: “Say to Rehoboam son of Solomon king of Judah and to all Israel in Judah and Benjamin, ‘This is what the Lord says: Do not go up to fight against your fellow Israelites. Go home, every one of you, for this is my doing.’” So they obeyed the words of the Lord and turned back from marching against Jeroboam.

After the rebellion of the ten tribes who rejected Rehoboam's rule and left Jerusalem to return home, Rehoboam decided to muster up the fighting men he had in his two tribes, Judah and Benjamin, and go to war against those who defied him. We read where he had 180,000 men at his disposal to use.

There was only one problem with this plan. It wasn’t God’s will.

We know this because God sent a message to Rehoboam via Shemaiah who was identified simply as a man of God. The guidance was simple: Don’t fight and go home. This was God’s will for Rehoboam and the men he had assembled for war and it would have been enough on its own without anything further. But God didn’t stop there, did He? No, He added these critical five words:

“For this is My doing.”

In other words, what was happening to the kingdom of Israel was God’s will and just the first step along the path of total exile for the Israelites. Any attempt by Rehoboam to try and forcefully regain the kingdom would prove to be a fruitless endeavor because God’s will was for things to be the way they were and no mere mortal earthly king, no matter how prominent and powerful, was going to change that.

Showing a wisdom not evident in his previous decision making, Rehoboam received and accepted the word of God from Shemaiah and returned to Jerusalem where he invested time in fortifying the cities in his two kingdoms of Judah and Benjamin. Scripture tells us Jeroboam, the established leader of the northern kingdom, had chosen to appoint his own priests for the high places and for the goat and calf idols he had made. The northern kingdom had already turned toward worshiping false gods.

This resulted in an exodus of priests and Levites from all districts throughout Israel as they abandoned their pasturelands and property and came to Judah and Jerusalem. They were joined by every tribe of Israel who set their hearts on seeking God and together they strengthened the kingdom of Judah and supported Rehoboam for three years, following the ways of David and Solomon during this time.

During this time, we read where Rehoboam also began to flourish as the leader of the Southern Kingdom of Judah. Scripture tells us that he acted wisely, dispersing some of his sons throughout the districts of Judah and Benjamin, and to all the fortified cities. God also blessed him with marriage and many children, 28 in all. One of them, Abijah was appointed crown prince, an action setting up a successor to Rehoboam after he left the throne.

Yes, life, at least for the time being, was good for Rehoboam and the people of Judah. And it all came as a result of Rehoboam receiving and accepting the will of God with obedience.

Friends, we need to learn from this word of God today. So often we have our hearts and minds set on what we want to do with life without even considering or consulting God as to what He wants? If we did, I think we would find that more times than not, our ways and desires are not His, unless we stay tuned into Him each and every day, surrendering our hearts and minds to Him while not just saying but living out the words:

“Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”

Today and every day, let’s commit ourselves to be living sacrifices and allow God to dictate every second of every minute of every hour of every day that He blesses us with. For there’s no better place to be than in the midst of His good, pleasing, and perfect will.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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FULFILLED PROMISES - PART 2

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In Christ, Mark

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Solomon brought Pharaoh’s daughter up from the City of David to the palace he had built for her, for he said, “My wife must not live in the palace of David king of Israel, because the places the ark of the Lord has entered are holy.”

Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had gone there to make him king. When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard this (he was in Egypt, where he had fled from King Solomon), he returned from Egypt. So they sent for Jeroboam, and he and all Israel went to Rehoboam and said to him: “Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but now lighten the harsh labor and the heavy yoke he put on us, and we will serve you.”

Rehoboam answered, “Come back to me in three days.” So the people went away.

Then King Rehoboam consulted the elders who had served his father Solomon during his lifetime. “How would you advise me to answer these people?” he asked.

They replied, “If you will be kind to these people and please them and give them a favorable answer, they will always be your servants.”

But Rehoboam rejected the advice the elders gave him and consulted the young men who had grown up with him and were serving him. He asked them, “What is your advice? How should we answer these people who say to me, ‘Lighten the yoke your father put on us’?”

The young men who had grown up with him replied, “The people have said to you, ‘Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but make our yoke lighter.’ Now tell them, ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s waist. My father laid on you a heavy yoke; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.’”

Three days later Jeroboam and all the people returned to Rehoboam, as the king had said, “Come back to me in three days.” The king answered them harshly. Rejecting the advice of the elders, he followed the advice of the young men and said, “My father made your yoke heavy; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.” So the king did not listen to the people, for this turn of events was from God, to fulfill the word the Lord had spoken to Jeroboam son of Nebat through Ahijah the Shilonite.

When all Israel saw that the king refused to listen to them, they answered the king:

“What share do we have in David, what part in Jesse’s son? To your tents, Israel! Look after your own house, David!”

So all the Israelites went home. But as for the Israelites who were living in the towns of Judah, Rehoboam still ruled over them.

King Rehoboam sent out Adoniram, who was in charge of forced labor, but the Israelites stoned him to death. King Rehoboam, however, managed to get into his chariot and escape to Jerusalem. So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day.

2 Chronicles 8:11 and Chapter 10

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

After the temple dedication, God spoke the following words to Solomon:

“If you turn away and forsake the decrees and commands I have given you and go off to serve other gods and worship them, then I will uproot Israel from my land, which I have given them, and will reject this temple I have consecrated for my Name. I will make it a byword and an object of ridicule among all peoples. This temple will become a heap of rubble. All who pass by will be appalled and say, ‘Why has the Lord done such a thing to this land and to this temple?’ People will answer, ‘Because they have forsaken the Lord, the God of their ancestors, who brought them out of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, worshiping and serving them—that is why he brought all this disaster on them.’” 2 Chronicles 7:19-22

God had provided Solomon an abundance of blessings, fulfilling a promise that He made to make Solomon great, not only in wisdom and knowledge, but also power and wealth. There was only one stipulation for the promise to stay in effect.

Solomon was to remain faithful to God and His decrees.

It seemed easy enough, right? Stay obedient to God’s word and way, and in return gain all you could ever ask for. God even made sure that Solomon knew that there would be negative consequences if the king chose to not honor Him and chase after false gods instead, just in case he was tempted.

Unfortunately, Solomon did not stay faithful to God and set in motion events that would result in God’s promise being fulfilled with Israel uprooted from their land and the temple rejected and destroyed. Look at what got Solomon in trouble:

Solomon brought Pharaoh’s daughter up from the City of David to the palace he had built for her, for he said, “My wife must not live in the palace of David king of Israel, because the places the ark of the Lord has entered are holy.” 2 Chronicles 8:11

King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women besides Pharaoh’s daughter—Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians and Hittites. They were from nations about which the Lord had told the Israelites, “You must not intermarry with them, because they will surely turn your hearts after their gods.” Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to them in love. He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines, and his wives led him astray. As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been. He followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molek the detestable god of the Ammonites. So Solomon did evil in the eyes of the Lord; he did not follow the Lord completely, as David his father had done.

On a hill east of Jerusalem, Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the detestable god of Moab, and for Molek the detestable god of the Ammonites. He did the same for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and offered sacrifices to their gods.

The Lord became angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice. Although he had forbidden Solomon to follow other gods, Solomon did not keep the Lord’s command. So the Lord said to Solomon, “Since this is your attitude and you have not kept my covenant and my decrees, which I commanded you, I will most certainly tear the kingdom away from you and give it to one of your subordinates. Nevertheless, for the sake of David your father, I will not do it during your lifetime. I will tear it out of the hand of your son. Yet I will not tear the whole kingdom from him, but will give him one tribe for the sake of David my servant and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen.” 1 Kings 11:1-13

From Solomon’s story, as well as the story of his son Rehoboam who succeeded him, we have to learn about the power of influence and how we can fall into sin easily when we don’t surround ourselves with the right people.

In Solomon’s case, he allowed the multitude of foreign wives he married to turn him from God to their gods. He not only recognized them but he worshiped them himself, even building high places so he and his wives could worship the false gods. It was little wonder why God had warned Israel not to associate with other nations and especially not intermarry. God had commanded that there would be no other gods before Him and consequences would be levied on anyone who chose to violate this commandment. In Solomon’s case, God promised to tear the kingdom, not from his hand but the hand of his son, leaving him with only Judah to rule. The rest of Israel would be under the rule of another as the kingdom divided.

It’s little wonder that Jesus later would say these words, “Any kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and a house divided against itself will fall” (Luke 11:17). Israel’s history bore proof to his words.

In Chapter 10, we see the pupal stages of Israel’s demise. We read that the people led by Jeroboam approached Rehoboam to discuss changes in the way the kingdom was run. We get an immediate sense that Solomon had oppressed his people during the latter stages of his rule, especially in the way of heavy labor. Rehoboam received their request and asked for three days to render a decision.

The young king then consulted with his elders, those with the experience and wisdom to advise him properly. When Rehoboam asked them as to what he should do, the elders suggested that Rehoboam should honor the request and ease the burden on the Israelites. They felt assured that if he did so, they would be faithful to him as servants.

But Rehoboam chose to reject the advice of his elders and instead went to his peers, the young men he had grown up. Their counsel was quite different from the elders. For they told Rehoboam to tell the people that he would oppress them even worse than his father had. And that’s what he did.

In turn, we know that the people of Israel rejected him as their king and went back to their homelands. Rehoboam thought he would assert himself on them, sending the leader of forced labor, Adoniram, after the Israelites but they stoned him to death. It was obvious that Rehoboam had lost power and control over most of the Israelite nation and he fled back to Jerusalem to save himself. The rest of the kingdom, ten tribes in total which would be known as Israel, would be placed under the leadership of Jeroboam, fulfilling yet another promise from God (1 Kings 11:34-35).

Friends, yesterday we explored how God fulfills His promises to watch over us, protect us, instruct us, comfort us, and ultimately save us. Today, we need to see that God also fulfills His promises to correct and discipline when we choose to sin, going against His word and will.

In the end, we have a choice to make and those choices will have an impact on our standing with the God who made us. My prayer is that we all will opt for obedience and seeking to always live a life that not only pleases God but also glorifies and magnifies His precious and holy name.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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