1 Kings 13:3-5 Invitation to Repentance!

 “And he gave a sign the same day, saying, “This is the sign which the Lord has spoken: Surely the altar shall split apart, and the ashes on it shall be poured out.” So it came to pass when King Jeroboam heard the saying of the man of God, who cried out against the altar in Bethel, that he stretched out his hand from the altar, saying, “Arrest him!” Then his hand, which he stretched out toward him, withered, so that he could not pull it back to himself. The altar also was split apart, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign which the man of God had given by the word of the Lord.” I Kings‬ ‭13‬:‭3‬-‭5‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. He gave a sign the same day: The prophecy of the man of God would not be fulfilled for hundreds of years, so an immediate sign was given to confirm the word to the present-day hearers.

b. Surely the altar shall split apart, and the ashes on it shall be poured out: This would be a convincing sign, and a direct rebuke to the idolatrous worship at that altar.

c. Arrest him: Jeroboam’s reaction was immediate – he sought to silence the messenger rather than respond to the message. The prophecy from the man of God was like most every message of coming judgment – an implicit invitation to repentance. Jeroboam obviously did not accept this invitation.

i. “If Jeroboam would not have Jehovah’s priests, God sends His prophet into his land.” (Knapp)

d. His hand, which he stretched out toward him, withered, so that he could not pull it back to himself: God confirmed His word of judgment in two ways. First, He judged the disobedient king at the precise point of his most glaring sin (the outstretched hand against the man of God). Second, He fulfilled the immediate word against the altar (the altar also was split apart).

i. “This God did, partly, to chastise Jeroboam for offering violence to the Lord’s prophet; partly, to secure the prophet against further violence; and partly, that in this example God might show how highly he resents the injuries done to his ministers in and for the faithful discharge of their office.” (Poole)

(Guzik)

Invitation to Repentance!

Sometimes our reaction is immediate just like Jeroboam’s and the Lord puts on our heart to repent and to forgive but our flesh doesn’t want to!

I am reminded of a quote I read in a devotional this morning, 

“Yet we’re still tempted to hold grudges, stay angry, to “forgive but not to forget.” D.L. Moody is said to have compared that idea to somebody who buries the hatchet but leaves the handle sticking out.” (Begg)

Lord, examine our hearts and show us the way You want us to go. Expose any handles that we left sticking out so that we can remove them with your guidance and please give us the heart of Jesus. In the name of Jesus I pray, amen.

Blessings 

1 Kings 13:1-2 Significantly used by God!

 “And behold, a man of God went from Judah to Bethel by the word of the Lord, and Jeroboam stood by the altar to burn incense. Then he cried out against the altar by the word of the Lord, and said, “O altar, altar! Thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, a child, Josiah by name, shall be born to the house of David; and on you he shall sacrifice the priests of the high places who burn incense on you, and men’s bones shall be burned on you.’ ””

‭‭I Kings‬ ‭13‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. A man of God went from Judah to Bethel: Apparently, there were no qualified messengers within the northern kingdom of Israel. This is a sad commentary on the spiritual state of Jeroboam’s kingdom.

i. This anonymous man of God was used in an important way. He demonstrates that one does not need to be famous to be significantly used by God.

b. Behold, a child, Josiah by name, shall be born to the house of David; and on you he shall sacrifice the priests of the high places who burn incense on you: This is a remarkable prophecy that would be precisely fulfilled 340 years later. 2 Kings 23:15 documents the fulfillment of this prophecy in the days of Josiah, King of Judah: Moreover the altar that was at Bethel, and the high place which Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel sin, had made, both that altar and the high place he broke down; and he burned the high place and crushed it to powder, and burned the wooden image.

i. This was more than a pronouncement of judgment against the altar; it also announced that the judgment would come through a ruler of Judah (the house of David). This was a special rebuke and source of concern to Jeroboam, who was always aware of the threat from his neighbor to the south (as in 1 Kings 12:27).

ii. We know that this didn’t happen for some 350 years, but Jeroboam didn’t know that in advance. He went to his grave worried about the fulfillment of this prophecy, which was a sort of immediate judgment on Jeroboam. (Guzik)

Significantly used by God!

After we became a Christian, we began to serve Jesus by proclaiming the good word to others. The Holy Spirit equips us with spiritual gifts to serve the kingdom of God, but He also uses the weak to confound the wise!

“And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ,”

‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭4‬:‭11‬-‭12‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Are you being significantly used by God? 

Blessings 

1 Kings 12:30-33 Sheilaism!

 “Now this thing became a sin, for the people went to worship before the one as far as Dan. He made shrines on the high places, and made priests from every class of people, who were not of the sons of Levi. Jeroboam ordained a feast on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, like the feast that was in Judah, and offered sacrifices on the altar. So he did at Bethel, sacrificing to the calves that he had made. And at Bethel he installed the priests of the high places which he had made. So he made offerings on the altar which he had made at Bethel on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, in the month which he had devised in his own heart. And he ordained a feast for the children of Israel, and offered sacrifices on the altar and burned incense.” I Kings‬ ‭12‬:‭30‬-‭33‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. Now this thing became a sin: It was a sin when Jeroboam suggested it, but it was more of a sin when the people followed it. The people were so attracted to the religion of Jeroboam that they went as far as Dan (at the far north of Israel) to worship at the shrine of the golden calf there.

b. He made shrines on the high places: Jeroboam made more places of worship than the main centers at Bethel and Dan. These high places were even more convenient for the people.

c. Made priests from every class of people, who were not of the sons of Levi: Jeroboam rejected the commandments of God regarding the priesthood of Israel, and established a priesthood of his own liking.

i. The legitimate priests and Levites who lived in the northern ten tribes did not like this. They, along with others who set their hearts to seek the LORD God of Israel, moved from the northern kingdom of Israel to the southern kingdom of Judah during this period (2 Chronicles 11:13-16). Spiritually speaking, Israel was struck twice – by the ungodly religion of Jeroboam and by the departure of the godly and faithful. There were few godly people left in the northern kingdom.

ii. “He felt he could afford to let priests and worshippers whose standards were higher abandon their possessions and go south to Judah (cf. 2 Chronicles 11:13ff.).” (Payne)

iii. “Viewed even as a stroke of policy, this ejection of the Lord’s priests and Levites was a blunder. They went over in a body, almost, to Jeroboam’s rival, and thereby ‘strengthened the kingdom of Judah.’” (Knapp)

d. In the month which he had devised in his own heart: This is a good summary of Jeroboam’s religion - it was devised in his own heart. Jeroboam is an example of those who create their own religion according to their own taste.

i. For the most part, the world embraces the religion of Jeroboam. Not necessarily his particular expression of golden calves and high places, but a religion created according to taste. In the book Habits of the Heart, Robert Bellah and his colleagues interviewed a young nurse named Sheila Larson, whom they described as representing many Americans’ experience and views on religion. Speaking about her own faith and how it operated in her life she said, “I believe in God. I’m not a religious fanatic. I can’t remember the last time I went to church. My faith has carried me a long way. It is ‘Sheilaism.’ Just my own little voice.” This “pick-and-choose-as-I-go-along-according-to-my-inner-voice” approach is the modern version of Jeroboam’s religion - and in opposition to the revealed religion of the Bible.

ii. Therefore, it was natural that Jeroboam served as his own priest (and offered sacrifices on the altar and burned incense). “Jeroboam probably performed the functions of high priest himself, that he might in his own person condense the civil and ecclesiastical power” (Clarke).

(Guzik)

Sheilaism

“Sheilaism is a shorthand term for an individual's system of religious belief which co-opts strands of multiple religions chosen by the individual usually without much theological consideration. The term derives from a woman named Sheila Larson, who is quoted by Robert N. Bellah et al. in their book Habits of the Heart as following her own "little voice" in a faith she calls "Sheilaism"

““The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it?” Jeremiah‬ ‭17‬:‭9‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Jeroboam and Sheila followed their own heart but as the scripture says “the heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked”…..

The Holy Spirit puts the draw on us to come and follow Jesus. If you feel Him tugging on heart don’t delay because we don’t know what tomorrow will bring.

Do you follow your own little voice or the Father, Son and Holy Spirit?

Blessings 

1 Kings 12:26-29 Foolish!

 “And Jeroboam said in his heart, “Now the kingdom may return to the house of David: If these people go up to offer sacrifices in the house of the Lord at Jerusalem, then the heart of this people will turn back to their Lord, Rehoboam king of Judah, and they will kill me and go back to Rehoboam king of Judah.” Therefore the king asked advice, made two calves of gold, and said to the people, “It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, O Israel, which brought you up from the land of Egypt!” And he set up one in Bethel, and the other he put in Dan.”

‭‭I Kings‬ ‭12‬:‭26‬-‭29‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. If these people go up to offer sacrifices in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then the heart of this people will turn back to their lord, Rehoboam: The fact of the divided kingdom did not mean that the northern tribes were exempt from their covenant obligations. They were under the Law of Moses as much as the southern tribes, but Jeroboam feared the political implications of yearly trips down to the capital city of the southern kingdom of Judah.

b. They will kill me and go back to Rehoboam king of Judah: Jeroboam seems to forget or ignore the promise God made to him through the prophet Ahijah recorded in 1 Kings 11. Jeroboam could best secure his throne by radical obedience to God, not by leading the ten northern tribes into idolatry.

c. Therefore the king asked advice: There was no point in asking advice for this evil purpose. Jeroboam wanted advice on how to do a bad thing in the best way.

i. Jeroboam was even more foolish than it first appears. “It literally says, ‘Therefore the king took counsel of himself’” (Dilday). “The phrase discovers the fountain of his error, that he did not consult with God, who had given him the kingdom; as in all reason, and justice, and gratitude he should have done” (Poole).

d. It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, O Israel, which brought you up from the land of Egypt: Jeroboam appealed to their natural desire for convenience. Men will usually take the easy way out when they can; therefore, it was thought to be good if an idol in Bethel or Dan could replace the trip all the way to Jerusalem.

i. Jeroboam became an example of a political leader who shapes religion for his own purpose. The issue of true religion was unimportant to Jeroboam; he was interested in useful religion.

ii. Here are your gods, O Israel: Jeroboam repeated the same words of Aaron about 500 years before his time (Exodus 32:4).

iii. It is possible – perhaps even likely – that Jeroboam intended the gold calves to represent the God of Israel. This wasn’t the introduction of a new god, but a perversion of the proper worship of the true God. “Men are willing to worship God if they are allowed to have a ritual and symbols which they have themselves devised” (Spurgeon).

(Guzik)

Foolish!

That was the first word that popped into my mind when read these verses! 

“Here are your gods, O Israel” what a fool!

“And all this because they traded the true God for a fake god, and worshiped the god they made instead of the God who made them - the God we bless, the God who blesses us. Oh, yes!” Romans 1:25 Message 

I prefer to worship the one true God, do you?

Blessings 

1 Kings 12:25 A Significant Promise from God!

 “Then Jeroboam built Shechem in the mountains of Ephraim, and dwelt there. Also he went out from there and built Penuel.” I Kings‬ ‭12‬:‭25‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. Then Jeroboam built Shechem in the mountains of Ephraim: Jeroboam needed a capital city because Jerusalem was in the territory of Judah and Benjamin. The city of Schechem became the capital city of the northern kingdom of Israel.

b. He went out from there and built Penuel: It seems that Jeroboam’s reign began with energy and opportunity. He had a significant promise from God through the prophet Ahijah: that if you heed all that I command you, walk in My ways, and do what is right in My sight, to keep My statutes and My commandments, as My servant David did, then I will be with you and build for you an enduring house, as I built for David, and will give Israel to you (1 Kings 11:38). (Guzik)

A Significant Promise from God!

Like Jeroboam we have received a significant promise from God!

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

‭‭John‬ ‭3‬:‭16‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

I’ve held on to that promise and believe, have you?

Blessings 

1 Kings 12:20-24 Why Should Men Mention Us?

 “Now it came to pass when all Israel heard that Jeroboam had come back, they sent for him and called him to the congregation, and made him king over all Israel. There was none who followed the house of David, but the tribe of Judah only. And when Rehoboam came to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah with the tribe of Benjamin, one hundred and eighty thousand chosen men who were warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, that he might restore the kingdom to Rehoboam the son of Solomon. But the word of God came to Shemaiah the man of God, saying, “Speak to Rehoboam the son of Solomon, king of Judah, to all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the rest of the people, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord: “You shall not go up nor fight against your brethren the children of Israel. Let every man return to his house, for this thing is from Me.” ’ ” Therefore they obeyed the word of the Lord, and turned back, according to the word of the Lord.” I Kings‬ ‭12‬:‭20‬-‭24‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. When all Israel heard that Jeroboam had come back, they sent for him and called him to the congregation, and made him king: Thus, the prophecy of Ahijah in 1 Kings 11:29-39 was fulfilled. At the time the prophecy was made, it seemed unlikely - but God’s word through His prophet was fulfilled.

i. This King Jeroboam is sometimes called Jeroboam I to distinguish him from a later king of Israel also named Jeroboam, usually known as Jeroboam II (2 Kings 14:23-29).

b. To fight against the house of Israel, that he might restore the kingdom to Rehoboam: Rehoboam intended to make war against the seceding tribes of Israel, but God spoke through a prophet and stopped him. To his credit – or perhaps due to a lack of courage – Rehoboam listened to God’s word through Shemaiah the man of God.

i. “Here is one Shemaiah, – some of you never heard of him before, perhaps you will never hear of him again; he appears once in this history, and then he vanishes; he comes, and he goes, – only fancy this one man constraining to peace a hundred and eighty thousand chosen men, warriors ready to fight against the house of Israel, by giving to them in very plain, unpolished words, the simple command of God… Why have we not such power? Peradventure, brethren, we do not always speak in the name of the Lord, or speak God’s Word as God’s Word. If we are simply tellers out of our own thoughts, why should men mind us?” (Spurgeon)

(Guzik)

Why Should Men Mention Us?

I suspect when I die and go to my heavenly father’s home that within fifty years my name will never be mentioned again. 

But look at Shemaiah, the man of God! “He appears once in this history, and then he vanishes; he comes, and he goes,”.

What an honor to be known as a man of God who did God’s will and to be forever recorded for all to read about in the Bible!

But if you are a child of God your name was recorded in a book too!

“Yes, and I ask you, my true companion, help these women since they have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life.”

‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4‬:‭3‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“The one who is victorious will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out the name of that person from the book of life, but will acknowledge that name before my Father and his angels.” Revelation‬ ‭3‬:‭5‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Do you work for the cause of the gospel?

Blessings 

1 Kings 12:16-19 Rebellion!

 “Now when all Israel saw that the king did not listen to them, the people answered the king, saying: “What share have we in David? We have no inheritance in the son of Jesse. To your tents, O Israel! Now, see to your own house, O David!” So Israel departed to their tents. But Rehoboam reigned over the children of Israel who dwelt in the cities of Judah. Then King Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was in charge of the revenue; but all Israel stoned him with stones, and he died. Therefore King Rehoboam mounted his chariot in haste to flee to Jerusalem. So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day.” ‭‭I Kings‬ ‭12‬:‭16‬-‭19‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. What share have we in David: Rehoboam’s foolishness made Israel reject not only Rehoboam, but also the entire dynasty of David. They rejected the descendants of Israel’s greatest king.

b. King Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was in charge of the revenue; but all Israel stoned him with stones: Apparently, Rehoboam did not take the rebellions seriously until this happened. When his chief tax collector was murdered, he knew that the ten tribes were serious about their rebellion.

i. Adoram was the wrong man for Rehoboam to send. He was famous for his harsh policy of forced labor (1 Kings 4:6and 5:14). Rehoboam probably sent Adoram because he wanted to make good on his promise to punish those who opposed him. His tough-guy policy didn’t work.

c. So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day: From this point on in the history of Israel, the name “Israel” referred to the ten northern tribes and the name “Judah” referred to the southern tribes of Benjamin and Judah.

i. There was a long-standing tension between the ten northern tribes and the combined group of Judah and Benjamin. There were two earlier rebellions along this line of potential division in the days after Absalom’s rebellion (2 Samuel 19:40-43), which developed into the rebellion of Sheba (2 Samuel 20:1-2).

ii. “Rehoboam ought to have been thankful that God’s love to David had left him even two tribes.” (Knapp)

(Guzik)

Rebellion!

Mankind has been in rebellion since the first Adam! Should this rebellion be a surprise? What actually surprises me is of “God’s love to David had left him even two tribes.”!

Rehoboam was a foolish man but God used him for His purpose!

Which shows me that there is hope for me! Even though I feel inadequate, God is using me to lead a Life Recovery Bible Group!

How is God using you?

Blessings