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In Christ, Mark
In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
Young people will insult their
elders; no one will show respect to those who deserve it.
Isaiah 3:5b
(CEV)
This ends this
reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
What are the signs of God’s
judgment coming on a city or nation or even a community?
We have been looking at the third
chapter of Isaiah for some of the answers.
What we have
learned so far is that sometimes the signs are obvious like the removal of
supply and support Jerusalem and Judah suffered at the hands of the invading,
plundering destroyers from Babylon. Still other signs are a little more subtle
like young experienced leaders rising to positions of power and neighbors
violating neighbors in some fashion.
Today, we’ll
look at a fourth sign found in the second half of the fifth verse in this
chapter. For when judgment is coming upon God’s people, there will be
disrespect for elders by the young.
I remember many
things that my parents taught me when I was growing up and at the top of that
list was respecting my elders. That started with honoring them the way the
Bible commanded me to and if there was any of famous Ten Commandments I knew,
it was:
“Honor your father and your mother, so that
you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.” Exodus 20:12
This directive from God applied
when I was younger and it still applies today at age 54. We are always required
to honor our parents in the way we treat them but also in the way we live our
lives once we become adults. For anything done that is dishonorable often
reflects back onto the parents who raised someone into adulthood. We are always
accountable to God when it comes to honoring Dad and Mom in the way we treat
them as well as the way we live.
As an offshoot of applying this
command to my life, my parents also taught me the importance of respecting my
elders and that meant anyone older than me. These elders who had lived life for
awhile and through that living had attained a great deal of experience and
wisdom, particularly in they had spiritual connections to the Lord and His
word. I was taught from a very early age to look up to people who had lived
awhile and show them special regard for the many years God had blessed them
with and the veteran insight and astuteness they possessed.
So where could disrespecting your
elders be connected to the process of God’s judgment?
We’re going to go backwards in the
Old Testament from Isaiah and see how a young, inexperienced person rising into
power decided to turn his back on his elders, disrespecting their wisdom and
setting Israel down the path of first, division, and second, disintegration.
Turn in your bibles to 1 Kings, Chapter 12 and look at this passage:
Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had gone there to make him
king. When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard this (he was still in Egypt, where he
had fled from King Solomon), he returned from Egypt. So they sent for Jeroboam,
and he and the whole assembly of 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, “Go away for three days and then come back to me.”
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 today you will be a servant to these people and serve
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, “These 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 the
people harshly. Rejecting the advice given him by 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 the Lord, 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 the Israelites went home. But as for the Israelites who were living
in the towns of Judah, Rehoboam still ruled over them. 1 Kings 12:1-17
After Solomon’s death, his young
son Rehoboam ascended to the throne of Israel. Immediately, we see the people
he was blessed by God to lead approaching him for relief from oppressive
policies his father had put in place. This oppression came in the way of hard
labor that became a heavy yoke for the people to bear. They hoped this new
leader would bring a fresh attitude to the throne, one that would bring a
better life for them.
After hearing their petition,
Rehoboam asked for the people to return in three days, a decree that probably
gave the people some sense of hope. At least the new king had not immediately
rejected their request and would take it under consideration.
We read where Rehoboam went before
his elders and asked for their counsel, a wise move for the new king to make
and one that at least at the start seemed to indicate he was on the right
track. The elders advised Rehoboam to make changes and relieve the pressure on
the people, a choice that would result in the people favoring the king and
turning into his willing servants. Discord could be cast aside for peace and
happiness among the Israelites who would assuredly give thanks to God for the
man on the throne. Rehoboam could have got his reign off on the ultimate right
foot and find the love of the people he ruled.
All he had to do was respect his
elders.
But as we know, that isn’t what
happened. For Rehoboam chose to reject the counsel of his elders and instead
seek and follow the advice of young men who he had grown up with, men who
lacked experience and wisdom, men who ultimately gave Rehoboam the wrong
advice.
For we read where the young men
essentially told Rehoboam to turn up the heat even more on the people, telling
them that if they thought his father was hard on them, they hadn’t seen
anything yet. Things wouldn’t get easier, only more difficult to include scourging
for those who would choose to be insubordinate to the king’s demands.
Well, as you know, the people did
not receive Rehoboam’s foolish and imprudent decision very well. For ten of the
twelve tribes chose to break away from Judah, leaving Rehoboam now in power
over only two tribes. The kingdom had been divided, separated with each kingdom
moving down their own path of annihilation and devastation, the north at the
hands of the Assyrians, the south at the hands of the Babylonians.
When God’s judgment is in progress,
the normal social order of things will be turned upside down. Elders who were always
respected by their juniors will find themselves suddenly mistreated and
disregarded. And the outcome of that change in behavior will undoubtedly lead
any people today down the same path of ruin that happened more than 2,000 years
ago.
As I have said before, history can
(and will) repeat itself if we don’t learn from the mistakes of the past.
Respecting our elders will show we have learned something. We have learned to
be obedient to God and His commands, something that will always move us from
His consequences to His favor.
Amen.
In
Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
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