Contrasting Worship

 A Contrast of Worship

 Book of 1 Kings Chapters 12, 14, 15

 What is worship? Worship is homage rendered to Jehovah which is idolatry to render to any created being.

 Exo 34:14 For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God:

 Isa 2:8 Their land also is full of idols; “they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made”:

 It is sin to worship any created being!

 It is sin to worship an angel, who is also created beings!

 We are to worship only the Living God!

 Jer_10:10 But the LORD is the true God, he is the living God, and an everlasting king: at his wrath the earth shall tremble, and the nations shall not be able to abide his indignation.

 We know that Israel was now a divided nation. Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, was king of Judah, which included the tribe of Benjamin.

 Jeroboam was now the King Israel which included only the ten tribes now called Ephraim.

 From this point forward the Books of 1 and 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles will record the histories of the different kings of the divided nation of Israel.

 What is idolatry?

 Idolatry is image worship or divine honor paid to a created object, including mankind and angels.

 Rom 1:21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

Rom 1:22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,

Rom 1:23 And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.

Rom 1:24 Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:

Rom 1:25 Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.

 How can we best describe those who are lost, keeping in mind that we were once lost?

 Rom 1:28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;

Rom 1:29 Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,

Rom 1:30 Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,

Rom 1:31 Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:

Rom 1:32 Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.

 The forms of idolatry are,

(1.) Fetishism, or the worship of trees, rivers, hills, stones, etc.(created objects on earth)

(2.) Nature worship, the worship of the sun, moon, and stars, as the supposed powers of nature.(created objects in the heavens)

(3.) Hero worship, the worship of deceased ancestors, or heroes.(all created objects)

 Idolatry in Christian doctrine is anything that interferes between the soul and our Creator is idolatrous and is to be shunned!

 1Jn 5:19 And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness.

1Jn 5:20 And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.

1Jn 5:21 Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen.

 Jeroboam turned the northern tribes of Israel to idolatry.

 Idolatry is the religion of Satan! Remember Lucifer was just an angel created by Jehovah.

 *****1Ki 12:26 And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David:

1Ki 12:27 If this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they shall kill me, and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah.

1Ki 12:28 Whereupon the king took counsel, 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.

 Jeroboam was face to face with the greatest opportunity of his life.

 Should he have determined to serve the Lord he might have easily been the mightiest monarch in the history of Israel.

 God would have certainly been with him.

 But if he disregarded the Word of God his kingdom would have come to nothing which it did.

 It was a Prophet of God Ahijah that had told him of these things.

 The only safe path of any ruler is the right path!

 We could ask ourselves does God truly have any rulers on His side?

 We know that the heart is the center of mankind's personal activities.

 Gen 6:5 And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

 The world created by God before the flood was destroyed because of idolatry which led to wickedness!

 Gen 8:21 And the LORD smelled a sweet savour; and the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake; "for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth"; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done.

 We get a firsthand look at how false religions get started. They are conceived in the mind of some man or some woman!

 Jehovah had already told Jeroboam how to get His blessings.

 Jehovah has told us all how to get His blessings!

 1Ki 11:38 And it shall be, if thou wilt hearken unto all that I command thee, and wilt walk in my ways, and do that is right in my sight, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as David my servant did; that I will be with thee, and build thee a sure house, as I built for David, and will give Israel unto thee.

 Jeroboam made Shechem his capital city and then Jeroboam does something very foolish.

 The apostasy of Jeroboam was willful, it was designed, and it was done deliberately!

 He consulted with himself instead of consulting with Jehovah who had made him King of Israel.

 The Lord Jesus Christ makes this thing simple to understand.

 Luk 6:45 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.

 Our hearts must be fixed upon the Lord!

 Psa 112:7 He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: his heart is fixed, trusting in the LORD.

 The fact of the divided kingdom did not mean that the Northern Tribes were exempt from their covenant obligations to Jehovah!

 They were still to observe the Books of Moses as much as the Southern Tribes.

 All the tribes of Israel had the same Book of Moses!

 These things caused stress upon Jeroboam, and he even became afraid for his life.

 Jeroboam forgot the promises of God!

 We tend to look at the world and forget the promises of God when we know that God has proven to us that He will never break a promise.

 We do not need advice on how to do evil, we are born that way!

 Jeroboam wanted advice on how to do a bad thing in the best way. He did not consult with God and God would not have answered such a request!

 So many churchgoers today go to a place of worship that is convenient rather than seek a "Bible Believing" House of worship.

 It is a fact that we will take the easy way out when it is available!

 Just as a certain political party did in the days of Covid 19 when it made it a law to abandon the Church for fear of catching the disease forgetting the power of God.

 Jeroboam shaped a new religion for his own purpose.

 This is the way of radical Islam and other such religions. They rewrite their literature to adapt to changes they see in the world.

 The Holy Scriptures never have to change because they were written by Jehovah and are perfect in any age!

 Jeroboam even framed his words by the Word of God during the Exodus.

 Exo 32:4 And he received them at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf: and they said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.

Exo 32:5 And when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation, and said, To morrow is a feast to the LORD.

Exo 32:6 And they rose up early on the morrow, and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play.

 Jeroboam proposed a perversion of the proper worship of Jehovah God.

 “Calf is not a good translation of the Hebrew egel. A young bull in his first strength is meant: for instance, the word can describe a three-year-old animal.

 Gen 15:9 And he said unto him, Take me an heifer “of three years old”, and a she goat of three years old, and a ram of three years old, and a turtledove, and a young pigeon.

 A three-year-old bull would be a bull closer to his prime than a calf.

 Jeroboam placed these idols of Baal in two separate locations.

 *****1Ki 12:29 And he set the one in Bethel, and the other put he in Dan.

1Ki 12:30 And this thing became a sin: for the people went to worship before the one, even unto Dan.

 The name Bethel means "house of God" and this city was ten miles from Jerusalem.

 This is the same place where Jacob had his vision of the angels of God ascending and descending on a ladder whose top reached into Heaven.

 Gen 28:12 And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it.

Gen 28:13 And, behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, I am the LORD God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed;

Gen 28:14 And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.

 Gen 28:20 And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on,

Gen 28:21 So that I come again to my father's house in peace; then shall the LORD be my God:

 Dan, which means (a judge) on the other hand is located at the foot of Mount Hermon.

 This is the same place where the Danites stole the shrine of Micah and set up false worship.

 Jdg 18:29 And they called the name of the city Dan, after the name of Dan their father, who was born unto Israel: howbeit the name of the city was Laish at the first.

Jdg 18:30 And the children of Dan set up the graven image: and Jonathan, the son of Gershom, the son of Manasseh, he and his sons were priests to the tribe of Dan until the day of the captivity of the land.

Jdg 18:31 And they set them up Micah's graven image, which he made, all the time that the house of God was in Shiloh.

 Jeroboam took advantage of this situation as he felt they would have no problem accepting his idols of Baal.

 Jeroboam then installed false priests and false worship.

 *****1Ki 12:31 And he made an house of high places, and made priests of the lowest of the people, which were not of the sons of Levi.

1Ki 12:32 And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like unto the feast that is in Judah, and he offered upon the altar. So did he in Bethel, sacrificing unto the calves that he had made: and he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places which he had made.

1Ki 12:33 So he offered upon the altar which he had made in Bethel the fifteenth day of the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised of his own heart; and ordained a feast unto the children of Israel: and he offered upon the altar, and burnt incense.

 We should be very clear. Once we are aware of our Creator, we then must worship Him!

 This is why the Bible begins with the Book of Genesis.

 This is why the world clings to the lies of evolution.

 Evolution has proven to be wrong so many times it is pathetic that the world clings to it because they have no other theory except now where they use the word aliens so often.

 We have only one duty as created beings!

 Ecc_12:13 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.

 Jeroboam decided that his idols would also need temples as a place to worship and priests.

 He was not about to use priests from the tribe of Levi because they might teach the truth of God.

 Deu_10:8 At that time the LORD separated the tribe of Levi, to bear the ark of the covenant of the LORD, to stand before the LORD to minister unto him, and to bless in his name, unto this day.

 Jeroboam chose priests from every tribe but the Levites, going against the Word of God in any way that he could think of.

 This is the way of almost all false man-made religions. They always will change the rules if people start leaving for the truth.

 There are a few false religions that have some truth in them, but Christianity is all or nothing and based upon the truth of Jesus Christ and the true Word of God.

 Jeroboam chose the eighth month and the fifteenth day to be as close to The Feast of the Tabernacles as he thought would work.

 The Feast of the Tabernacles was on the fifteenth day of the seventh month.

 Jeroboam did not consult with anyone else to create this false religion!

 The people already understood that Jeroboam was chosen by God to lead this new nation, and Jeroboam kept it that way.

 The Prophet Amos had confronted one of Jeroboam's false priests with the truth:

 Amo 7:10 Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, Amos hath conspired against thee in the midst of the house of Israel: the land is not able to bear all his words.

Amo 7:11 For thus Amos saith, Jeroboam shall die by the sword, and Israel shall surely be led away captive out of their own land.

Amo 7:12 Also Amaziah said unto Amos, O thou seer, go, flee thee away into the land of Judah, and there eat bread, and prophesy there:

Amo 7:13 But prophesy not again any more at Bethel: for it is the king's chapel, and it is the king's court.

Amo 7:14 Then answered Amos, and said to Amaziah, I was no prophet, neither was I a prophet's son; but I was an herdman, and a gatherer of sycomore fruit:

Amo 7:15 And the LORD took me as I followed the flock, and the LORD said unto me, Go, prophesy unto my people Israel.

 It may have been the king's chapel and the king's court but he was the wrong king.

 Our Lord Jesus had some things to say about man-made religion:

 Mat 15:7 Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying,

Mat 15:8 This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.

Mat 15:9 But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.

 The Holy Spirit says: Heb 3:12 Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.

 Those who serve false religion have to understand the judgment of God will come upon them.

 *****1Ki 14:15 For the LORD shall smite Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water, and he shall root up Israel out of this good land, which he gave to their fathers, and shall scatter them beyond the river, because they have made their groves, provoking the LORD to anger.

1Ki 14:16 And he shall give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, who did sin, and who made Israel to sin.

 Jehovah had placed Jeroboam on the throne of Ephraim, but it was Jeroboam who had turned against Him.

 Jeroboam could have been a mighty king of Israel, but he rebelled against the truth of God.

 Jeroboam is still suffering the judgment of God today and he will throughout eternity!

 Now comes judgment upon the people who knew better.

 Moses had warned these people:

 Deu 4:27 And the LORD shall scatter you among the nations, and ye shall be left few in number among the heathen, whither the LORD shall lead you.

Deu 4:28 And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men's hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell.

Deu 4:29 But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.

 Now judgment would come to Israel, and they would be scattered on the other side of the Euphrates River.

 Politics had caused the people of God to sin!

 During Covid 19 many of God's people were directed to sin by our government and many of those who left the Church have never returned.

 The Holy Spirit has also warned the Church of the coming judgment of God:

 Rom 1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;

Rom 1:19 Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them.

Rom 1:20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:

Rom 1:21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

 There will be no more warnings and judgment could come at any time because the "Rapture of the Church is the next thing on God's timetable.

 Once the Church is removed this world will rely on wickedness and idolatry just as those before the flood.

 King Rehoboam and his son had also turned against Jehovah and God began his judgment upon Judah beginning with the King of Egypt.

 1Ki 14:23 For they also built them high places, and images, and groves, on every high hill, and under every green tree.

1Ki 14:24 And there were also sodomites in the land: and they did according to all the abominations of the nations which the LORD cast out before the children of Israel.

1Ki 14:25 And it came to pass in the fifth year of king Rehoboam, that Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem:

 No doubt that Jeroboam had stirred up this king against Judah, and Shishak broke his peace agreement with King Solomon.

 1Ki 14:26 And he took away the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king's house; he even took away all: and he took away all the shields of gold which Solomon had made.

 We know that King David had placed all his treasures in the Temple and so had many others.

 We know that those golden shields would be valued at over thirty-three million dollars today.

 There is a record of these events in Egypt.

 With Judah humbled at the hand of this Egyptian King, Jeroboam had free reign to attack Judah at any time and he did so.

 It was in the time of King Asa that change came to Judah.

 *****1Ki 15:9 And in the twentieth year of Jeroboam king of Israel reigned Asa over Judah.

1Ki 15:10 And forty and one years reigned he in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Maachah, the daughter of Abishalom.

1Ki 15:11 And Asa did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD, as did David his father.

1Ki 15:12 And he took away the sodomites out of the land, and removed all the idols that his fathers had made.

1Ki 15:13 And also Maachah his mother, even her he removed from being queen, because she had made an idol in a grove; and Asa destroyed her idol, and burnt it by the brook Kidron.

 Finally, a king who was faithful to the Lord.

 We should notice that Jehovah is still keeping his promises to King David and He will continue because the prophecy of Kings of Judah will last until King Jesus sits upon the throne of David.

 King Asa reigned for forty-one years, and we can see that he had not been influenced by his grandmother Maacah's false worship.

 This Maacah was the daughter of Tamar the daughter of Absolom.

 Asa removed his father's idols.

Asa removed his wicked mother as Queen and her idols burning them in the Brook Kidron.

Asa removed the Sodomites from the land of Judah.

Asa did not remove all the high places of worship, and we do not have an explanation, but we can imagine politics were still involved.

 Asa gave his treasures to the House of the Lord.

 Amen

Pride and Arrogance

 Bad Counsel Caused Division

 Book of 1 Kings Chapter 12

 We have a new president, and we hope those he chooses as councilors will help lead him to make our nation great again.

 The best advice that any should give him is to return our nation to the Lord our God.

 We can be assured that he was chosen to lead the United States of America by God Himself and God has His reasons, and it is His will.

 Our lesson today covers one of the most important times in the history of Israel.

 The division of the tribes of Israel caused many bad feelings that have not been overcome even in our day.

 These were also important times for the Church because as Christians we need to understand the history of Israel to understand the prophets and prophecy.

 Israel will divide into a Northern Kingdom and a Southern Kingdom.

 We will also see that God loves the Gentiles who the people of Israel considered to be heathen.

 These things were not done in secret. God had warned Solomon just as He warns us all today.

 Now, God does not cause these things to happen, He allows them to happen.

 God has given us free will to choose between right and wrong and He guides us to show us the right way.

 God cannot be blamed for the wrong that is done in our world because He will not force us to do right nor will He force us to do wrong. He just tells us the truth!

 As King Solomon died at the young age of around sixty the turmoil began with his son Rehoboam.

 *****1Ki 12:1  And Rehoboam went to Shechem: for all Israel were come to Shechem to make him king. 

 We know that King David had ruled as a conqueror.

 King Solomon ruled as a man of peace but high taxation.

 The people of Israel had no benefits from the rule of King Solomon except they lived in peace.

 After King Solomon, the people wanted to modify the character of the next government.

 Arrogance is a terrible evil. Arrogance puts people down and then pushes them away, treating them as inferior.

Here in America, we understand this very well.

 We have seen this in our last few Democratic governments so we can relate to the people of Israel during the time of King Solomon.

 This arrogance was passed down to Solomon's son Rehoboam.

 Rehoboam possessed none of the traits of his father other than arrogance.

 Rehoboam possessed none of the traits of his grandfather David.

 Rehoboam was recognized as heir to the throne of his father.

 The coronation of Rehoboam was to take place at Shechem.

 It was at Shechem that Abraham built his first altar in the Promised Land and received the promise of Jehovah.

 It was at Shechem where Jacob bought a parcel of land from the children Hamor and settled with his household and where he buried the idols of his wives under a tree named "the oak of the sorcerer".

 It was at Shechem where Jacob dug a well where the Lord Jesus would meet a Samaritan woman.

 It was at Shechem where Joshua gave his parting address and made a covenant with the people.

 Jos 24:15  And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD. 

 Shechem was a special place of the promises of God!

 It will be at Shechem where Rehoboam will show his arrogance and cause Israel to become a divided nation.

 It was at Shechem where Jeroboam took up his residence for a while.

 It is Shechem that is said to be the most beautiful place in all of Palestine.

 *****1Ki 12:2  And it came to pass, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who was yet in Egypt, heard of it, (for he was fled from the presence of king Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt;) 

1Ki 12:3  That they sent and called him. And Jeroboam and all the congregation of Israel came, and spake unto Rehoboam, saying, 

1Ki 12:4  Thy father made our yoke grievous: now therefore make thou the grievous service of thy father, and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, lighter, and we will serve thee. 

 Jeroboam, who King Solomon had run out of town was now back and was taking the lead voice of the opposition to the kingdom under Solomon.

 1Ki 11:40  Solomon sought therefore to kill Jeroboam. And Jeroboam arose, and fled into Egypt, unto Shishak king of Egypt, and was in Egypt until the death of Solomon.

 We could ask ourselves why.

 1Ki 11:28  And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valour: and Solomon seeing the young man that he was industrious, he made him ruler over all the charge of the house of Joseph. 

1Ki 11:29  And it came to pass at that time when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the way; and he had clad himself with a new garment; and they two were alone in the field: 

1Ki 11:30  And Ahijah caught the new garment that was on him, and rent it in twelve pieces: 

1Ki 11:31  And he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces: for thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee: 

1Ki 11:32  (But he shall have one tribe for my servant David's sake, and for Jerusalem's sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel:) 

1Ki 11:33  Because that they have forsaken me, and have worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the children of Ammon, and have not walked in my ways, to do that which is right in mine eyes, and to keep my statutes and my judgments, as did David his father.

 The name Joseph denotes the two tribes Ephraim and Manasseh and Ephraim denotes the Kingdom of Israel and then the whole covenant people of Israel.

 From Ezekiel, we see this thing:

 Eze 37:16  Moreover, thou son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions: then take another stick, and write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel his companions: 

Eze 37:17  And join them one to another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand. 

Eze 37:18  And when the children of thy people shall speak unto thee, saying, Wilt thou not shew us what thou meanest by these? 

Eze 37:19  Say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in mine hand.

This is taking place today.

 We can now see the other side of the rule of King Solomon.

 There were heavy taxes under Solomon.

Tyrants oppressed their subjects with grievous impositions.

 This tax and impositions were not only for the people which would have been ok, but for the expenses of Solomon's court.

 This tax supported all the wives and concubines of King Solomon and any whim he took part in which did not set well with the people.

 This tax-supported all the festivities of Solomon's lavish lifestyle.

 We should keep in mind that King Solomon was the richest person to have ever lived, but he kept those riches to himself when he could have paid all the taxes and still been rich.

 When Solomon forsakes the Lord and worshipped idols then the people surely had enough of him and were glad to see him go.

 To the average Israelite, being under the burden of such high taxes was like a yoke laid upon beasts of burden and seemed more like servant work rather than living in peace.

 As long as King Solomon walked with the Lord, he was important as the Holy Spirit guided this author, but as soon as he forsake the Lord God Jehovah he became insignificant, not just to the people but also to Jehovah.

 In a sense Solomon destroyed himself and it was not helping his son Rehoboam.

 Millo was a new fortification that protected Jerusalem from an attack from the north. It is also called the Citadel.

 Solomon also repaired any weak places in the walls of Jerusalem.

 Solomon began to fear the loss of his kingdom which was impossible because of God's promise to King David.

 All King Solomon had to do was to remain faithful to Jehovah.

 Solomon took his eyes off the Lord and fell into the trap of lust.

 1Jn_2:16  For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

 Let us see this history of Israel develop.

 *****1Ki 12:5  And he said unto them, Depart yet for three days, then come again to me. And the people departed. 

1Ki 12:6  And king Rehoboam consulted with the old men, that stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, and said, How do ye advise that I may answer this people? 

1Ki 12:7  And they spake unto him, saying, If thou wilt be a servant unto this people this day, and wilt serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be thy servants for ever.

 Now the Son of Solomon, Rehoboam was facing some angry people, especially those of Ephraim who were being led by an angry Jeroboam.

 We already know that Jeroboam was a mighty man of valor.

 1Ki 11:28  And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valour: and Solomon seeing the young man that he was industrious, he made him ruler over all the charge of the house of Joseph. 

 Solomon had determined to kill Jeroboam for what God's prophet had said to him.

 We all know that we cannot change what God has said will take place!

 Rehoboam was at least wise enough to seek counsel before responding to the people of Ephraim.

 Shechem was a twelve hour walk from Jerusalem, and it would take some time for the councilors of Rehoboam to reach Shechem and to meet with Rehoboam.

 Rehoboam had sent for the councilors of his father Solomon and his friends who he had been raised with.

 These were a bunch of rich spoiled kids who had no worries growing up and knew nothing of ruling government.

 Solomon had caused every Israelite to serve one month in government service and then two months at home until all his building project had been completed and many more of them were drafted into the military, but not these young men who had rich parents.

 Solomon required heavy taxes upon the people and the rich just got richer and the poor got poorer, and the poor were seeking some much-needed relief.

 All the building projects were complete and such taxes were certainly no longer needed.

 Rehoboam had inherited the riches of his father, and he certainly did not need more riches.

 For years the people had been complaining about the harshness of King Solomon, but nothing changed.

 Rehoboam first consulted with the elders who had counselled his father, Solomon.

 There was wisdom in the council of the elders, good for every government.

 A government that serves the people will be a lasting government.

 A government that listens to its people and takes action to help them will be a lasting government.

 The government that does these things will find people who will willingly serve the government.

 This is the principle behind the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

 The Lord Jesus came to serve!

 Rev 5:9  And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; 

Rev 5:10  And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

 Jesus taught us that whoever would be great must begin by being a servant.

 The proud and lofty in this world are served enough without taking the needs of the poor.

 Rehoboam was already forty-one years of age, he should have known better, but his mother was a pagan, and he had witnessed his father worship a pagan god.

 1Ki 14:21  And Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was forty and one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which the LORD did choose out of all the tribes of Israel, to put his name there. And his mother's name was Naamah an Ammonitess. 

 Rehoboam next turned to his friends who were not so young being his age but certainly younger than those elders.

 Rehoboam forsook the council of the elders and turned to his rich friends.

 *****1Ki 12:8  But he forsook the counsel of the old men, which they had given him, and consulted with the young men that were grown up with him, and which stood before him: 

1Ki 12:9  And he said unto them, What counsel give ye that we may answer this people, who have spoken to me, saying, Make the yoke which thy father did put upon us lighter? 

1Ki 12:10  And the young men that were grown up with him spake unto him, saying, Thus shalt thou speak unto this people that spake unto thee, saying, Thy father made our yoke heavy, but make thou it lighter unto us; thus shalt thou say unto them, My little finger shall be thicker than my father's loins. 

1Ki 12:11  And now whereas my father did lade you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke: my father hath chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions. 

 Now we should not think of these young men as in their twenties or their thirties.

 Rehoboam was forty-one years old when he succeeded his father on the throne, and we should expect those men that he grew up with to be about his age but they were still spoiled rich kids.

 Rehoboam was even more arrogant and prideful than his father Solomon.

 He would tax these tribes even more than his father and increase their workload.

 He even mentioned scourging.

 If we do nothing else in our lifetime we need to guard against arrogance and pride!

 These things do not suit the Christian who is following in the ways of our Lord Jesus Christ who gave us the example of humility.

 These younger men had grown up living in luxury and wealth and they knew nothing of an honest day’s work.

 They knew nothing of responsibility!

 These were pampered men with childish ways.

 They had no respect for the people of Israel!

 Sounds a whole lot like the America we have been living in where our government had no respect for the taxpayer, and we hope these things change with our new government.

 We as the children of God are not better than anyone else in this world though we may be better off because our names are written down in the Lamb's Book of Life.

 None of us are to be slaves to arrogant governments or anyone else!

 In many places, God speaks against these things.

 Psa_10:2  The wicked in his pride doth persecute the poor: let them be taken in the devices that they have imagined.

Psa_10:4  The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God: God is not in all his thoughts.

 Pro_8:13  The fear of the LORD is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate.

 Pro_16:18  Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.

 Rehoboam claimed that his power would far exceed that of his Father King Solomon.

 Pro 10:14  Wise men lay up knowledge: but the mouth of the foolish is near destruction. 

Pro 10:15  The rich man's wealth is his strong city: the destruction of the poor is their poverty.

 What happens eventually in such cases? People rebel.

 Jeroboam knew exactly how the people of Israel had suffered under King Solomon, and he now had the respect of ten of the tribes of Israel.

 Jeroboam now clearly understood what the Prophet Ahijah had told him.

 1Ki 11:29  And it came to pass at that time when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the way; and he had clad himself with a new garment; and they two were alone in the field:

1Ki 11:30  And Ahijah caught the new garment that was on him, and rent it in twelve pieces: 

1Ki 11:31  And he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces: for thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee:

 God keeps His reason for doing this very simple.

 1Ki 11:33  Because that they have forsaken me, and have worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the children of Ammon, and have not walked in my ways, to do that which is right in mine eyes, and to keep my statutes and my judgments, as did David his father. 

 We talk many times about God keeping His promises and we can be sure He will also keep those promises of forsaking Him.

 In the end, Jeroboam was not so much different from Rehoboam, but he would still rule Ephraim which included ten of the tribes of Israel for twenty-two years.

 *****1Ki 12:16  So when all Israel saw that the king hearkened not unto them, the people answered the king, saying, What portion have we in David? neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse: to your tents, O Israel: now see to thine own house, David. So Israel departed unto their tents. 

1Ki 12:17  But as for the children of Israel which dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them. 

 The United Kingdom of Israel was dissolved before Rehoboam was crowned as King of Judah.

 Rehoboam was a weak and wicked man!

 There is an old saying that says "he who would rule others must first rule himself".

 We should understand by now that God gives opportunities to individuals and nations even though they will not improve them.

 It was the divine plan of God to give Jeroboam control of the ten tribes of Israel even though God knew that Jeroboam would also forsake Him.

 We may not understand this, but Jehovah has a much greater plan in motion.

 Now this does not mean that Jehovah caused Jeroboam to act the way he did because he was allowed to do good and he failed to do so as he too became arrogant and prideful.

 We must also understand that Jehovah is not sitting in Heaven waiting to see what rulers will do and he is not ever caught off guard.

 God gives everyone a chance to do good when opportunities are given to them.

 It is that sinful nature that gets us in so much trouble.

 Rehoboam would rule Judah and Benjamin.

 Rehoboam tried one more thing to insert his authority over those who rebelled.

 *****1Ki 12:18  Then king Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the tribute; and all Israel stoned him with stones, that he died. Therefore king Rehoboam made speed to get him up to his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem. 

 Adoram (or Adoniram) was the man over the taxes or tribute for King Solomon and now for King Rehoboam to either collect the taxes or make a compromise with the tribes of the north, but he was stoned to death and Rehoboam left for the safety of Jerusalem.

 Adoram was the wrong man to send for he was famous for his harsh policies of forced labor.

 From this point in the history of Israel, the name Israel referred to the ten Northern Tribes and the name Judah referred to the Southern Tribes of Judah and Benjamin.

 *****1Ki 12:19  So Israel rebelled against the house of David unto this day. 

1Ki 12:20  And it came to pass, when all Israel heard that Jeroboam was come again, that they sent and called him unto the congregation, and made him king over all Israel: there was none that followed the house of David, but the tribe of Judah only. 

 Jeroboam becomes the king of the Northern Tribes of Israel.

 We should understand that Ephraim had always felt the most important since the time of Joseph, but Jehovah does not see it that way and God made sure promises to the House of David still recognized as Israel's greatest king.

 Again, we must understand that Jehovah has guided the nation of Israel with a special purpose, but He guides the history of all the world in the same way.

God gave mankind free will to follow Him or not to follow Him.

We must also understand that nothing in this universe is outside the scope of Jehovah's sovereign rule!

Eph 1:11  In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will: 

Eph 1:12  That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ. 

The will of God is made known in real-time.

It is each believer in the Lord Jesus Christ that is chosen by Jehovah and He made this decision before He created any part of this world.

Eph 1:3  Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: 

Eph 1:4  According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: 

Eph 1:5  Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, 

Eph 1:6  To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved. 

There is no one alive today, no one who lived in the past or who will live in the future that Jehovah will not offer an opportunity to be adopted into the family of God, and it all centers around the Lord Jesus Christ.

2Ti 1:9  Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began, 

2Ti 1:10  But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel:

Our purpose is not here on this earth even though we will be given opportunities while we are alive.

Even the death of the Lord Jesus Christ was determined before the foundation of the world was laid.

1Pe 1:20  Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, 

1Pe 1:21  Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.

Our God has this amazing plan for every believer, and we could look at our world as the place God has chosen to separate the believer from those who reject Him.

Rom 11:32  For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all. 

Rom 11:33  O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! 

Rom 11:34  For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor? 

Rom 11:35  Or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? 

Rom 11:36  For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen. 

We simply cannot comprehend the wisdom and the knowledge of our Divine Savior.

He does not have to consult with anyone, and no one has advised Him.

It is because God knows all things before, they happen, and He controls and guides all events for His Own Glory and For Our own Good.

Psa 104:24  O LORD, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches. 

Pro 3:19  The LORD by wisdom hath founded the earth; by understanding hath he established the heavens. 

God does not ever have to adjust His plan according to the things that happen here on earth, He simply knows all things!

Amen

From Fame to Shame

 Solomon's Fame Was Reduced to Shame

 Book 1 Kings 10:1-7, 24-27, 11: 4-13

 

What is fame? Fame is a favorable report of good or great actions that exalt character.

News of the knowledge of Solomon and his wisdom was spreading around the known world of that day.

 What is shame? Those things that bring reproach and degrade a person in the estimation of others. Dishonor, disgrace.

 Solomon was living on the achievements and the reputation of his father who caused security and peace to come to Israel.

 Under Solomon, Israel became a great power ranking almost as great as Egypt which is why Egypt made a bond with Solomon and Pharoh's daughter became the wife of Solomon.

 Israel ranked even as great as Assyria at that time.

 After Solomon Israel has never reached those same boundaries.

 These things were credited to Solomon's wisdom.

 Solomon turned Israel from a military people to a people of commerce and slaves to taxation.

 In reality, Solomon turned a people made free by King David into slaves and concentrated the wealth of the whole nation in the capital Jerusalem and most of Israel suffered.

 As God would say, Israel did not reap the fruits of its government.

 The downfall of Solomon began when he listened to his pagan wives and his wisdom left him.

 Solomon was by nature a man of peace, yet he maintained a large military scattered in various places to help bring peace.

 No nation had defeated his father David, but Solomon had no desire to extend the boundaries of Isreal, and it was possible for him to do so.

 Solomon's chief ally was Hiram, the king of Tyre which is Phoenicia.

 The Temple of Solomon was built in seven years, but Solomon spent thirteen years building his own palace which was called the House of the Forest of Lebanon.

 It is these things that made Solomon famous throughout the world.

 Solomon had many foreign visitors seeking his wisdom.

 One of those was the Queen of Sheba.

 *****1Ki 10:1  And when the queen of Sheba, heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the LORD, she came to prove him with hard questions. 

 Sheba was a land in Arabia, which is modern Yemen today, rather than Ethiopia.

 Yemen was the chief spice country in that area at that time.

 Sheba was about fifteen hundred miles from Jerusalem so this Queen had traveled a great distance requiring a lot of time.

 The Temple had been built in the name of the Lord God of Israel.

 We can be sure when questions arose about the temple there would be questions about the God of that Temple.

 No one else has such a God who is alive!

 Much of the world believed that the wisdom of Solomon had come from his God, and they would be correct.

 This Queen of Sheba did not make this connection, she came to prove him with hard questions.

 Some say these were questions she could not trust anyone else to answer.

 Many of the questions could have been hard riddles as some believe.

 It does not seem to me that this Queen showed much interest in Jehovah God to her downfall.

 Mat 12:42  The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the uttermost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here.

 Could Solomon have answered, what is the purpose of life? We have all asked this question in our lifetime.

 Could he have said, "Where do we truly come from?”

 There are billions of people out there today who would like to know, "what is the purpose of it all"?

The truth is in Jehovah God!

 *****1Ki 10:2  And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels that bare spices, and very much gold, and precious stones: and when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart. 

 We can believe that this Queen was also seeking a trade agreement.

 She brought a large quantity of spices, gold, and precious jewels.

 We can be sure that she traveled with military protection, but it is not mentioned, and they would have been stopped and not allowed to enter Jerusalem maybe even the border of Israel.

 To travel for fifteen hundred miles meant she was serious about meeting King Solomon.

 It seems that this Queen was not the wife of a King but the actual ruler of these people.

 She was serious about seeking the answers to great questions of life so she could be a better ruler.

 King Solomon answered all her questions!

 *****1Ki 10:3  And Solomon told her all her questions: there was not any thing hid from the king, which he told her not. 

1Ki 10:4  And when the queen of Sheba had seen all Solomon's wisdom, and the house that he had built, 

1Ki 10:5  And the meat of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel, and his cupbearers, and his ascent by which he went up unto the house of the LORD; there was no more spirit in her. 

 Solomon's kingdom was famous not only for its material prosperity but also for his great wisdom.

 King Solomon got so caught up in his wisdom that today we would use the phrase, "he got the big head" and we will soon see how these things affected him.

 King Solomon had spent seven years building the Temple, but he spent thirteen years building his own mansion. After this, he rebuilt many cities most of which belonged to Israel, but he rebuilt some cities that did not belong to Israel.

 This Queen of Sheba was more impressed with Solomon's house than she was with the Temple of God.

 She was another pagan who had her own false gods.

 Solomon answered all of her questions, and this Queen was overwhelmed with the wisdom of Solomon. I do not read anywhere where Solomon gave the credit for his wisdom to His God and our God Jehovah.

 No doubt this Queen had all types of questions with some riddles but also diplomatic and ethical questions.

 This truth would make Solomon a trustworthy business partner and a possible ally, though her nation was fifteen hundred miles away from Israel.

 Today Yemen can fire rockets and drones fifteen hundred miles into Israel and are mortal enemies of Israel.

 Of course, Israel can do the same and are still under the power of God.

 These servants were the officers and distinguished people who were privileged to sit at the king’s table and were arranged according to rank and were in large numbers at royal banquets.

 These ministers were those who stood to serve the guests doubt they were dressed in a way to distinguish them from the guests but were fit to serve royalty.

 2Ch 9:4  And the meat of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel; his cupbearers also, and their apparel; and his ascent by which he went up into the house of the LORD; there was no more spirit in her. 

 The wisdom and prosperity of King Solomon and his achievements had reached the uttermost parts of the world, and this Queen admitted that these reports had been true.

 It does not matter so much what this Queen thought of these things, it matters more of what God thought of these things.

 Luk 12:27  Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 

Luk 12:28  If then God so clothe the grass, which is to day in the field, and to morrow is cast into the oven; how much more will he clothe you, O ye of little faith? 

Luk 12:29  And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind. 

Luk 12:30  For all these things do the nations of the world seek after: and your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things. 

Luk 12:31  But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you. 

 As a pagan Gentile, this Queen could not go into the Temple though she may have seen a secret way that the king could get into the Temple.

 *****1Ki 10:6  And she said to the king, It was a true report that I heard in mine own land of thy acts and of thy wisdom. 

1Ki 10:7  Howbeit I believed not the words, until I came, and mine eyes had seen it: and, behold, the half was not told me: thy wisdom and prosperity exceedeth the fame which I heard. 

 We must understand the mission of Israel in the time of Solomon and now the mission of the Church is to point all nations to God.

Israel has failed so far, will the Church also fail?

 Israel was not to compete with our nations for riches or even military power. Jehovah God is the power of Israel!

 Jehovah is the power of the Church. 

We are not in some competition with religions!

 We have the truth of Christianity!

 The Church is to be a bright and shining light in this world.

 It was the same for Israel in the days of King Solomon.

 The Queen came to Solomon tortured by questions, and it does not seem she got all the answers she needed.

 Certainly, the things she said about Solomon were true.

 He was the wisest man upon the earth but not as wise as Jesus Christ,

 He was the richest man on the earth, but no earthy riches can compare to the Glory of Heaven!

 *****1Ki 10:8  Happy are thy men, happy are these thy servants, which stand continually before thee, and that hear thy wisdom. 

1Ki 10:9  Blessed be the LORD thy God, which delighted in thee, to set thee on the throne of Israel: because the LORD loved Israel for ever, therefore made he thee king, to do judgment and justice. 

1Ki 10:10  And she gave the king an hundred and twenty talents of gold, and of spices very great store, and precious stones: there came no more such abundance of spices as these which the queen of Sheba gave to king Solomon

 This queen brought the best spices of Yemen, many of them used in perfumes of that day.

She brought a lot of gold and precious stones.

She brought sweet, scented wood.

 This wood Solomon was used in his palace.

 2Ch 9:11  And the king made of the algum trees terraces to the house of the LORD, and to the king's palace, and harps and psalteries for singers: and there were none such seen before in the land of Judah. 

2Ch 9:12  And king Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatsoever she asked, beside that which she had brought unto the king. So she turned, and went away to her own land, she and her servants. 

 As the Queen was about to leave she made a great speech to those servants of Solomon.

 She said from what her eyes had seen and now had heard not even half of the truth of King Solomon was told.

 She also took a moment to praise Jehovah that out of His eternal love to His people Israel, he had given them a king to do justice and righteousness.

 Some say this Queen was converted to Judaism, but this is not true.

 Like many who praised the God of Israel, they observed Him as just another god in the world of many gods just as many think today.

 God had His reasons for putting Solomon on the throne of Israel.

 1) It fulfilled a promise to David who was a man after God's own heart.

2) Solomon who was chosen to build the Temple of God.

 After this Solomon transgressed against the Lord.

 God had written the qualifications for the kings of Israel.

 Deu 17:14  When thou art come unto the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, and shalt possess it, and shalt dwell therein, and shalt say, I will set a king over me, like as all the nations that are about me; 

Deu 17:15  Thou shalt in any wise set him king over thee, whom the LORD thy God shall choose: one from among thy brethren shalt thou set king over thee: thou mayest not set a stranger over thee, which is not thy brother. 

Deu 17:16  But he shall not multiply horses to himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt, to the end that he should multiply horses: forasmuch as the LORD hath said unto you, Ye shall henceforth return no more that way. 

Deu 17:17  Neither shall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away: neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold. 

Deu 17:18  And it shall be, when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book out of that which is before the priests the Levites: 

Deu 17:19  And it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life: that he may learn to fear the LORD his God, to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them: 

Deu 17:20  That his heart be not lifted up above his brethren, and that he turn not aside from the commandment, to the right hand, or to the left: to the end that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he, and his children, in the midst of Israel. 

 King Solomon disobeyed in every area!

 1) He had too much gold.

2) He owned thousands of horses.

3) He gathered hundreds of wives and concubines.

 All the earth sought the wisdom of Solomon.

 *****1Ki 10:24  And all the earth sought to Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. 

1Ki 10:25  And they brought every man his present, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and garments, and armour, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year. 

1Ki 10:26  And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen: and he had a thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he bestowed in the cities for chariots, and with the king at Jerusalem. 

1Ki 10:27  And the king made silver to be in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars made he to be as the sycomore trees that are in the vale, for abundance. 

 Solomon was not greater than anyone else and neither was this God's intent.

 Solomon became greater because all the world sought him out for his wisdom.

 They brought him gold that he wasted on shields and other foolish things when he could have helped the cause of God, and he could have removed the strain of taxation upon his own people, but he did not.

 Solomon made two hundred large shields and three hundred shields of gold that made beautiful displays but were useless in battle.

They were too heavy and too soft to make effective shields.

 Each of those shields would be valued at over a quarter million dollars today and the smaller shields at over sixty thousand dollars or about thirty-three million dollars.

 They were eventually taken by a foreign king.

 Solomon made silver to be worthless which did not help the economies of the world of that day.

 In the end, it was women who truly brought King Solomon down to shame.

 *****1Ki 11:1  But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites; 

1Ki 11:2  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 their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love. 

1Ki 11:3  And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart. 

1Ki 11:4  For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father.

 Over half of Solomon's reign was over by the time the Temple, his own palace, and other buildings were completed.

 These things took up much of his personal time.

 We could add that during this time Solomon had negotiated peace agreements between Israel and many nations, and those agreements were sealed by the marriage of that ruler's daughter.

 As Solomon began to spend more time with the many wives he had, he was influenced by them.

 One man wrote that the home of Solomon was afflicted with the curse of his polygamy and his kingdom with the curse of his despotism, which means he had absolute power, authority unlimited, and uncontrolled power over the people.

 Most all alliances Israel had with other rulers ended with the death of Solomon even the long relationship of Solomon with Hiram.

 As we looked at last week, no one knew where the Book of Moses(the Pentateuch) was located. Solomon certainly was not obedient to the Word of God concerning the kings of Israel.

 Many believe that the prophet Jeremiah wrote this book of First Kings, and he simply says that Solomon loved many strange women.

 it is these women who caused the decline of King Solomon!

 These things describe a heart that is wandering away from God!

 Solomon had seven hundred women who were considered to be his wives.

Solomon had three hundred women with the title concubines.

 These were the women who were in Solomon's harem while he was King of Israel.

 Son 6:8  There are threescore queens, fourscore concubines, and virgins without number. 

 This verse tells us of those women who were in Solomon's court at one time.

 This would be sixty queens, eighty concubines, and virgins without number.

 King Solomon like his father went against the institution of Jehovah.

What is the marriage institution of Jehovah God?

 Gen 2:21  And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; 

Gen 2:22  And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. 

Gen 2:23  And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. 

Gen 2:24  Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. 

 When God gave Adam his wife. God did not do this by forming Eve out of the dust of the earth just like Adam. Then she would be independent of Adam. 

God formed Eve from Adam. He does not do this out of his head, for she is not his superior. Nor does he make her out of his feet, for she is not his slave. He forms her from his side. 

She is therefore someone of equal value, standing beside him.

 Solomon took wives from many nations, also going against the Word of God about strange wives.

 Deu 7:3  Neither shalt thou make marriages with them; thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou take unto thy son. 

Deu 7:4  For they will turn away thy son from following me, that they may serve other gods: so will the anger of the LORD be kindled against you, and destroy thee suddenly.

 Solomon not only took these many women into his house, but he also took their gods.

 We should understand that someone who knows the Word of God and deviates from it often makes it worse than someone who has never known Jehovah.

 When a child of God falls into corruption it is the worst corruption!

 The lesson for us who are up in years is, that we may think the dangers of life no longer threaten us but we are wrong.

 Satan will do his best to ruin our testimony at any age!

 *****1Ki 11:5  For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. 

1Ki 11:6  And Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and went not fully after the LORD, as did David his father. 

1Ki 11:7  Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon. 

1Ki 11:8  And likewise did he for all his strange wives, which burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods. 

 Ashtoreth(Ishtar, Astarte, queen of heaven)) was the Moon goddess of the Zidonians usually associated with Baal(Baalim, Baalism) the Sun god.

Throughout the world, we see temples and pyramids built to honor the Sun god and the Moon god

 Milcom(Molech, Chemosh) is the national god of Ammon, God said he was an abomination!

 It is this god to whom children were sacrificed. This is the god of the abortionists in my opinion.

 Solomon was not seeking God's own heart as did his father David.

 Solomon had temples built for the worship of these false goods and he joined them in their worship of them.

 He did the same for all his strange wives!

 The word strange means all his wives who were not of Israel, we could say wives from foreign nations.

 Certainly, Jehovah was angry with Solomon.

 *****1Ki 11:9  And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the LORD God of Israel, which had appeared unto him twice, 

1Ki 11:10  And had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods: but he kept not that which the LORD commanded. 

1Ki 11:11  Wherefore the LORD said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant. 

 Do you want to make Jehovah angry? Go against His Word.

 Do you want to really get Jehovah riled up? Go against Him after He has warned you!

 This is why we have the Holy Spirit living inside us!

 Joh 16:13  Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. 

Joh 16:14  He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.

 What had God told Solomon?

 1Ki 9:3  And the LORD said unto him, I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication, that thou hast made before me: I have hallowed this house, which thou hast built, to put my name there for ever; and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually. 

1Ki 9:4  And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments: 

1Ki 9:5  Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever, as I promised to David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel. 

1Ki 9:6  But if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or your children, and will not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods, and worship them: 

1Ki 9:7  Then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them; and this house, which I have hallowed for my name, will I cast out of my sight; and Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all people: 

1Ki 9:8  And at this house, which is high, every one that passeth by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss; and they shall say, Why hath the LORD done thus unto this land, and to this house?

 Today we have the Word of if we have a proper translation and we are to do our best to be obedient to it.

 As for King Solomon he met with God face to face and he was told the consequences of failing to acknowledge the Word of God.

 We know that God will do exactly what he says he will do.

 1Ki 11:26  And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephrathite of Zereda, “Solomon's servant”, whose mother's name was Zeruah, a widow woman, even he lifted up his hand against the king. 

1Ki 11:27  And this was the cause that he lifted up his hand against the king: Solomon built Millo, and repaired the breaches of the city of David his father. 

1Ki 11:28  And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valour: and Solomon seeing the young man that he was industrious, he made him ruler over all the charge of the house of Joseph. 

1Ki 11:29  And it came to pass at that time when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the way; and he had clad himself with a new garment; and they two were alone in the field: 

1Ki 11:30  And Ahijah caught the new garment that was on him, and rent it in twelve pieces: 

1Ki 11:31  And he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces: for thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee: 

1Ki 11:32  (But he shall have one tribe for my servant David's sake, and for Jerusalem's sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel:) 

1Ki 11:33  Because that they have forsaken me, and have worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the children of Ammon, and have not walked in my ways, to do that which is right in mine eyes, and to keep my statutes and my judgments, as did David his father.

But God will never break a promise he has made!

 *****1Ki 11:12  Notwithstanding in thy days I will not do it for David thy father's sake: but I will rend it out of the hand of thy son. 

1Ki 11:13  Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will give one tribe to thy son for David my servant's sake, and for Jerusalem's sake which I have chosen. 

1Ki 11:14  And the LORD stirred up an adversary unto Solomon, Hadad the Edomite: he was of the king's seed in Edom. 

Solomon had forfeited the promise made to him from Jehovah.

God would allow the line of David to continue through a son of Solomon because David had chosen Jerusalem and not some other city.

This is a sign of God's "grace"!

2Sa 7:15  But my mercy shall not depart away from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away before thee. 

2Sa 7:16  And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever. 

2Sa 7:17  According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David. 

This promise from God will ultimately be fulfilled through the Messiah the Lord Jesus Christ.

You see the Lord Jesus Christ did appear Himself to begin the New Testament and the Law of Grace and through His disciples, this word had spread around the world and only those who accept the Work of Jesus Christ, the "Gospel" will be allowed into God's New Jerusalem and God's New Heaven where King Jesus will rule forever.

Amen

Solomon's Temple

 Solomon Built the Temple

 Book of 1 Kings 5 and 6

 One of the most important things we need to complete any building project successfully is to be committed to it.

 We can accept the fact that King Solomon had little if any construction skills, but he now had great wisdom in all things.

 What Solomon had was a humble spirit and he sought the Lord for His help.

 The next thing that is needed is preparation.

 Site preparation must be properly taken care of, and it begins with following the Word of God.

Then you must own the property you are building upon.

David first bought the threshing floor of Araunah:

2Sa_24:18  And Gad came that day to David, and said unto him, Go up, rear an altar unto the LORD in the threshingfloor of Araunah the Jebusite.

2Sa_24:21  And Araunah said, Wherefore is my lord the king come to his servant? And David said, To buy the threshingfloor of thee, to build an altar unto the LORD, that the plague may be stayed from the people.

2Sa_24:24  And the king said unto Araunah, Nay; but I will surely buy it of thee at a price: neither will I offer burnt offerings unto the LORD my God of that which doth cost me nothing. So David bought the threshingfloor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.

Then David bought the entire area around the threshing floor.

1Ch 21:24  And king David said to Ornan, Nay; but I will verily buy it for the full price: for I will not take that which is thine for the LORD, nor offer burnt offerings without cost. 

1Ch 21:25  So David gave to Ornan for the place six hundred shekels of gold by weight. 

There should be no doubt who the Temple Mount belongs to.

 Remember it was God who gave the dimensions and the details of this Temple to David mphasizing a solid foundation.

 Luk 6:46 And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?

Luk 6:47 Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like:

Luk 6:48 He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock.

Luk 6:49 But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great.

 King Solomon needed to be obedient to the Lord just as we all should be today!

 This new Temple was to be a House of the Lord for the Lord's people to worship Him.

 This had been a dream of his father David for many years, and Solomon was committed to seeing it succeed.

 Solomon's most important task was to seek the Lord!

 *****1Ki 5:2 And Solomon sent to Hiram, saying,

1Ki 5:3 Thou knowest how that David my father could not build an house unto the name of the LORD his God for the wars which were about him on every side, until the LORD put them under the soles of his feet.

1Ki 5:4 But now the LORD my God hath given me rest on every side, so that there is neither adversary nor evil occurrent.

 King Hiram and King David had been great friends, and his son Huram wanted the same relationship with King Solomon.

In fact, this King Hiram had told his own son about the great God of Israel even though he was pagan and worshipped his own gods.

 We should understand that God would not allow David to build this Temple of Worship because it would have sent the wrong message.

 It would be like religions such as the Muslim who are forced to seek Mohammed and can never leave that religion with the threat of death if they do.

 There is no personal relationship because there is no Allah.

 Just as important, because David was protecting the cause of Israel in great battles with the enemies that surrounded Israel and he certainly did not have time to make such a commitment as Solomon was saying to Huram.

 Israel was at peace all the time of King Solomon and he maintained a strong military presence in the regions.

 To David God said: 22:8 But the word of the LORD came to me, saying, Thou hast shed blood abundantly, and hast made great wars: thou shalt not build an house unto my name, because thou hast shed much blood upon the earth in my sight.

 This king of Tyre understood these things Solomon was saying.

 When the Lord forbids us to do something He is serious about it!

 King David had made this entire area to be at peace because of his conquest.

 We could say that Israel was the honcho nation during the time of King Solomon.

 Solomon said he had no adversaries nor was there any occurrence of rebellion to his rule.

 In fact, the nation of Israel was very prosperous in the days of King Solomon.

 We know that David spent time training Solomon.

 It was Solomon who wrote the Book of Proverbs so we can see what he wrote about his father.

 Pro 4:1 Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding.

Pro 4:2 For I give you good doctrine, forsake ye not my law.

Pro 4:3 For I was my father's son, tender and only beloved in the sight of my mother.

Pro 4:4 He taught me also, and said unto me, Let thine heart retain my words: keep my commandments, and live.

Pro 4:5 Get wisdom, get understanding: forget it not; neither decline from the words of my mouth.

Pro 4:6 Forsake her not, and she shall preserve thee: love her, and she shall keep thee.

Pro 4:7 Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.

 David did everything in his power to smooth the way of Solomon.

 David drew up the plans for the Temple according to the plans God had given to him:

 1Ch 28:11 Then David gave to Solomon his son the pattern of the porch, and of the houses thereof, and of the treasuries thereof, and of the upper chambers thereof, and of the inner parlours thereof, and of the place of the mercy seat,

1Ch 28:12 And the pattern of all that he had by the spirit, of the courts of the house of the LORD, and of all the chambers round about, of the treasuries of the house of God, and of the treasuries of the dedicated things:

 David gave Solomon the funds to build the Temple:

 1Ch 28:14 He gave of gold by weight for things of gold, for all instruments of all manner of service; silver also for all instruments of silver by weight, for all instruments of every kind of service:

 David told Solomon that the plans for the Temple came from Jehovah:

 1Ch 28:19 All this, said David, the LORD made me understand in writing by his hand upon me, even all the works of this pattern.

 And again, David encouraged his son:

 1Ch 28:20 And David said to Solomon his son, Be strong and of good courage, and do it: fear not, nor be dismayed: for the LORD God, even my God, will be with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee, until thou hast finished all the work for the service of the house of the LORD.

 We can see that Solomon was a good student!

 Solomon began to understand what his father was saying.

 *****1Ki 5:5 And, behold, I purpose to build an house unto the name of the LORD my God, as the LORD spake unto David my father, saying, Thy son, whom I will set upon thy throne in thy room, he shall build an house unto my name.

1Ki 5:6 Now therefore command thou that they hew me cedar trees out of Lebanon; and my servants shall be with thy servants: and unto thee will I give hire for thy servants according to all that thou shalt appoint: for thou knowest that there is not among us any that can skill to hew timber like unto the Sidonians.

 Solomon was committed to building the Temple his father David desired.

 Solomon sought to honor the Lord by building a house of worship for the people of Israel.

 If we do not learn anything else, we need to know that there needs to be a place to worship the Lord!

 There needs to be set times so we can all gather together to encourage one another.

 We will need to deal with this lost world.

 Solomon renewed the relationship between Israel and Tyre which was Phoenicia and Solomon sought to establish a trade agreement between the two nations, and he did.

 Solomon sought workers with skills that Israel did not know at this time.

 Notice Solomon did not open the borders of Israel to just anybody, but Israel had a need for skilled laborers.

 This should be a lesson for our nation.

 Solomon knew he had no excuse to delay this work for the Lord and Israel.

 When God calls us for a task it is time to say yes and get busy!

 We need to yield to the call of God without hesitation.

 The Bible explains this request to Huram from Solomon better in Second Chronicles:

 2Ch 2:4 Behold, I build an house to the name of the LORD my God, to dedicate it to him, and to burn before him sweet incense, and for the continual shewbread, and for the burnt offerings morning and evening, on the sabbaths, and on the new moons, and on the solemn feasts of the LORD our God. This is an ordinance for ever to Israel.

2Ch 2:5 And the house which I build is great: for great is our God above all gods.

2Ch 2:6 But who is able to build him an house, seeing the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain him? who am I then, that I should build him an house, save only to burn sacrifice before him?

2Ch 2:7 Send me now therefore a man cunning to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, and in iron, and in purple, and crimson, and blue, and that can skill to grave with the cunning men that are with me in Judah and in Jerusalem, whom David my father did provide.

2Ch 2:8 Send me also cedar trees, fir trees, and algum trees, out of Lebanon: for I know that thy servants can skill to cut timber in Lebanon; and, behold, my servants shall be with thy servants,

2Ch 2:9 Even to prepare me timber in abundance: for the house which I am about to build shall be wonderful great.

2Ch 2:10 And, behold, I will give to thy servants, the hewers that cut timber, twenty thousand measures of beaten wheat, and twenty thousand measures of barley, and twenty thousand baths of wine, and twenty thousand baths of oil.

2Ch 2:11 Then Huram the king of Tyre answered in writing, which he sent to Solomon, Because the LORD hath loved his people, he hath made thee king over them.

 We must realize that God cannot be contained in any nation but that God is bigger than our little world but He is also small enough to come into our hearts.

 God has a purpose for each of us and God is still building upon His Church!

 King Hiram agreed with Solomon and a pact was made between the two nations.

 *****1Ki 5:10 So Hiram gave Solomon cedar trees and fir trees according to all his desire.

1Ki 5:11 And Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand measures of wheat for food to his household, and twenty measures of pure oil: thus gave Solomon to Hiram year by year.

 We see that Hiram gave this timber to Solomon and Solomon provided the food to feed these men while the work was taking place.

 We can better understand that Solomon asked for cedar trees, fir trees which means cypress, and other timber that was long-lasting.

 Solomon also needed an architect.

 Hiram was glad to provide the things that Solomon requested.

 We should not be confused the Phoenicians were Pagans.

 These cities existed before Israel came into the Promised Land in most cases they worshipped Baal.

 Baal means lord but he is identified with the false god Molech where children were sacrificed on his blazing arms.

 Baal was also known as the Sun god and there are Pyramids and High places all around the world where Baal the Sun god was worshipped along with the Moon god, and they are still worshipped today under different names.

 This is the reason most of these nations no longer exist today.

 Hiram’s servants would cut the timber from the forest in Lebanon. Transport it to the Mediterranean Sea, form it into rafts, and guide it through the waters to the Sea Port of Joppa.

 Tyre was over fifty miles from Joppa and Joppa was around thirty miles from Jerusalem.

 This was no easy task we know because we have the problems our own military had in the Mediterranian Sea.

The Phoenicians were the masters of the sea in that day.

 2Ch 2:8 Send me also cedar trees, fir trees, and algum trees, out of Lebanon: for I know that thy servants can skill to cut timber in Lebanon; and, behold, my servants shall be with thy servants,

2Ch 2:9 Even to prepare me timber in abundance: for the house which I am about to build shall be wonderful great.

2Ch 2:10 And, behold, I will give to thy servants, the hewers that cut timber, twenty thousand measures of beaten wheat, and twenty thousand measures of barley, and twenty thousand baths of wine, and twenty thousand baths of oil.

 Both men kept their agreements, and Solomon paid the wages of all these workers to make it worth their while.

 Our lesson here is that we must do everything we can to seek peace and preserve peace throughout society without compromising the Word of God.

 We need to make peace in our homes.

We need to make peace in our schools.

We need to make peace in our workplaces.

We need to treat everyone fair as we know our Lord Jesus did.

We should have peace in our Churches, we have the same Word of God. We do not need opinions, likes, dislikes, complaints, or murmurers among our members. Again, we have the same Word of God.

We should have peace in our government whose goal should be to take care of its people and protect our nation.

 The word peace is used 429 times in the KJV Bible so peace is important to God, but may not always be possible.

 Rom_12:18 If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.

 There were also workers with stone at this same time.

 1Ki 5:18 And Solomon's builders and Hiram's builders did hew them, and the stonesquarers: so they prepared timber and stones to build the house.

 This stone cutting was started before the death of King David, and it was time consuming.

 David also began gathering many of the supplies needed for the Temple.

 1Ch 22:2 And David commanded to gather together the strangers that were in the land of Israel; and he set masons to hew wrought stones to build the house of God.

1Ch 22:3 And David prepared iron in abundance for the nails for the doors of the gates, and for the joinings; and brass in abundance without weight;

1Ch 22:4 Also cedar trees in abundance: for the Zidonians and they of Tyre brought much cedar wood to David.

1Ch 22:5 And David said, Solomon my son is young and tender, and the house that is to be builded for the LORD must be exceeding magnifical, of fame and of glory throughout all countries: I will therefore now make preparation for it. So David prepared abundantly before his death.

 The Splendor of what is called Solomon's Temple began to come to life.

 Work began in the fourth year of Solomon's reign.

 We can see this was a major undertaking with the tools that were available on that day.

 In fact, many of those large stones and the cutting of them is not really understood today how they were able to do such things with just manual labor.

 These stones were cut, squared, shaped, and dressed to fit together perfectly without mortar.

 Our lesson is no matter what we do for the Lord, do it right while also making a contribution to society.

  *****1Ki 6:12 Concerning this house which thou art in building, if thou wilt walk in my statutes, and execute my judgments, and keep all my commandments to walk in them; then will I perform my word with thee, which I spake unto David thy father:

1Ki 6:13 And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel.

1Ki 6:14 So Solomon built the house, and finished it.

 It had been four hundred and eighty years since a group of slaves led by Moses, had left Egypt searching for the land promised to Abraham.

 This would have been around 966 BC, so the Hebrews left Egypt around 1446 BC.

 All the materials were assembled in Jerusalem on the Temple Mount without the use of construction hand tools axes and hammers and such tool made of iron.

 1Ki 6:7 And the house, when it was in building, was built of stone made ready before it was brought thither: so that there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building.

 1Ki 6:9 So he built the house, and finished it; and covered the house with beams and boards of cedar.

 Then God gave Solomon a challenge and a promise.

 It appears to me as I read this that the stonework was first completed and then the Temple was covered with lumber and this lumber was gold plated.

 1Ki 6:22 And the whole house he overlaid with gold, until he had finished all the house: also the whole altar that was by the oracle he overlaid with gold.

 In the end, God said this was a worldly sanctuary and cannot compare to our Heavenly sanctuary.

 Heb 9:1 Then verily the first covenant had also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary.

 Heb 9:11 But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building;

 Any place of worship today simply means God is identifying with His people so it becomes a House of God.

 God is certainly "gracious" but this does not mean it is a light thing to come into the presence of the Lord.

 We should be reverent in the House of God and God will show up.

 Today the body of each believer becomes the House of God and we are to honor the name of the Lord who dwells within us at all times and not just while we are in His House of worship.

 Those large stones teach us of a solid foundation which is in Christ Jesus.

 If our lives are not built upon Jesus Christ we are doomed to destruction.

 Without Jesus Christ, we are separated from God and doomed!

 Without God, there is no hope, not in this world or the next!

 We should also understand that just being in a Church building is not enough. God only looks upon those with a pure heart as we saw in last week's lesson.

 A wicked person entering a church building is still a person with a wicked heart and will remain that way until they claim the Lord Jesus Christ and repent of their old life.

 Many today do not want to repent but maintain their sinful ways and sin is according to the Word of God and not public opinion.

 God created us to have fellowship with Him, but He cannot look upon sin and, in His wisdom, He sent the Lord Jesus to pay our sin debt and if we accept this fact then God will deal with us His own children!

 God gave us free will to decide this on our own!

 Amen

Elisha, Called of God

Elisha God's Prophet Of Miracles

1 Kings 19 – 2 Kings 2-6


Before we begin with Elisha we need to consider a few more things of Elijah.

Elijah had one main mission as he saw it.

The name Elijah means: "whose God is Jehovah" and as his name implied, Elijah felt it was his mission to bring Israel to confess that Jehovah, He is God.

Elijah had only partially fulfilled that mission on Mount Carmel and Elijah felt that he was a failure but Elijah also felt that he was the last of the true believers left in all of Israel.

Elijah felt that history would show that he had failed just as those prophets that had come before him had failed in bringing Israel to the point of repentance.

1Ki 19:4  But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough; now, O LORD, take away my life; "for I am not better than my fathers".

First: God informed Elijah that his thoughts were wrong:

1Ki 19:18  Yet I have left me seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him.

We must never feel that we are the only ones serving the true God!

We must never feel as though we are the only ones serving God as He wishes because all of us can do better, I know I can!

Second: God allowed Elijah to anoint his successor who was one of those 7000:

1Ki 19:16  And Jehu the son of Nimshi shalt thou anoint to be king over Israel: and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abelmeholah shalt thou anoint to be prophet in thy room.

The mission of Elisha would be according to his own name which means "my God is salvation"!

Actually our job is to be more like that of Elisha than that of Elijah but we are to learn from all God's prophets!

God continued to send other prophets to be such as Elijah was but none could replace him because his work was not complete and he will return himself one day before the Second Coming of Christ Jesus to complete the work God has for him.

Elijah had lived his life much as a nomad, but Elisha lived within the society of that time but was not a part of that society.

Elijah was a poor man but though Elisha may not have been rich by many standards, his family owned at least 12 yoke of oxen and enough land to keep that amount of animals working.

It is said that an "acre" is the amount of land that a yoke of oxen could plow in one day, and we can be sure that the family of Elisha had much more than 12 acres of land and would surely have had to market their products from so much land.

Elijah was God's prophet of "judgment" but Elisha was God's prophet of "salvation"!

Elisha and Elijah were totally opposites in most all ways but they did have one certain thing in common.

They both knew the true God of our universe!

They both trusted in the salvation of the Lord!

So God sent Elijah to meet his successor.

As we observe Elisha we will see that Elisha was content in serving the Lord and was complete in his willingness to humble himself and fulfill his duties as a man of God!

1Ti 6:6  But godliness with contentment is great gain.
1Ti 6:7  For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.
1Ti 6:8  And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.

Proper worship in spirit and truth is required of the Lord but so is being a servant to the work of the Lord!

Even the Lord Jesus came to us as a servant!

Mat 20:27  And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant:
Mat 20:28  Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.

Elisha was already such a servant of the Lord even before he met Elijah.

*****1Ki 19:19  So he departed thence, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he with the twelfth: and Elijah passed by him, and cast his mantle upon him.

We already know that to own 12 yoke of oxen and enough land for them to work, was a sign of wealth but the first thing we see is that Elisha was not to good work himself.

We can also be sure that the reputation of Elijah was well known because of what had happened on Mount Carmel and everyone would have known that Jezebel had put a price on the head of Elijah.

Elijah was a wanted man at this time, by his own government just because he served Jehovah and not the false god Baal as his government had demanded!

The mantle that Elijah wore was a sign of God's prophets in that day:

1Sa 28:14  And he said unto her, What form is he of? And she said, An old man cometh up; and "he is covered with a mantle". And Saul perceived that it was Samuel, and he stooped with his face to the ground, and bowed himself.

Samuel was known for the mantle that he wore and Elijah was also known for the mantle that he wore.

Elijah knew his days were numbered but Elijah also knew his death would not come by the hands of Jezebel!

We all know our days are numbered but a Christian knows his or her death will not come by the hands of Satan!

Elijah knowing his days on this earth were numbered, cast his mantle upon the shoulders of Elisha which signified the passing of prophetic responsibility and God's accompanying power to him.

Notice Elijah continued on his way.

What are some things that we see here, when God calls his ministers:

**First: They must always be ready to receive the call of God!

Notice another important thing.

Elisha was involved in his daily work routine and was not called while he was in any act of worship not even in the act of prayer.

The call of God can come at any time and anywhere and comes more often when we are doing normal things rather than in a worship service!

**Second: They are to remain busy until that call of God comes!

Then when God calls they must drop what they are doing and get busy for the Lord!

**Third: The work that God has for us requires some special training.

And God's servants will all be somewhat different from each other!

God knows our differences and takes advantage of our skills.

1Co 12:4  Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit.
1Co 12:5  And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord.
1Co 12:6  And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all.
1Co 12:7  But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.

**Fourth: God will make a use for our distinct individuality.

If we would look in our own Church we would see that if someone is going through certain things, God will have already placed someone else in position to help them who has gone through similar things and survived.

**Fifth: We must be determined!

Let's learn from Elisha.

*****1Ki 19:20  And he left the oxen, and ran after Elijah, and said, Let me, I pray thee, kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow thee. And he said unto him, Go back again: for what have I done to thee?

What is willingness?

Willingness is the free choice we must make to serve the Lord.

Some would say to be willing to serve the Lord and to answer a special calling takes a "leap of faith".

Elisha totally understood what had happened!

When Elijah dropped his mantle around Elisha it meant only one thing.

Elijah was saying "when I pass away you Elisha, must take my mantle and be my successor".

These things took place during that period when Elijah had informed Ahab that the drought would continue for 3 more years but Jezebel had already began to kill many of God's prophets.

Elisha made only one request.

Elisha requested just enough time to say good by to his parents.

Many will ask what was the difference in what Elisha requested and that certain one at the time of Jesus.

Luk 9:61  And another also said, Lord, I will follow thee; but let me first go bid them farewell, which are at home at my house.
Luk 9:62  And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.

Elisha already had his hand on the plow and already was a true believer.

Elisha was also to replace Elijah at his death, a special calling!

When Elisha went to see his parents, he was saying good bye forever for he knew not whether he would ever see them again this side of Heaven!

To follow the Lord Jesus Christ is to deny one's own self!

Elisha needed a moment in time to set his family affairs in order for he knew he might not never return to them because he would also be a wanted man.

The Lord Jesus looked into the heart of this man in His day and saw a man who only wanted to say goodbye thinking he could return at any time to his family.

Jesus also said these words to another rich man such as Elisha.

Mar 10:21  Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me.

This rich man in the time of Jesus could not give up his worldly riches.

Elisha had no problem giving up his family inheritance or his riches!

How did Elijah respond to this request?

Elijah said go ahead but remember it is not me that called you!

Elijah said to Elisha, "you are not accountable to me but you are accountable to God"!

You see when we allow the things of this world to come between us the Lord, we have in affect become idol worshipers and this was the same problem the nation of Israel was already having in the day of Elijah!

So Elisha took care of his family business.

*****1Ki 19:21  And he returned back from him, and took a yoke of oxen, and slew them, and boiled their flesh with the instruments of the oxen, and gave unto the people, and they did eat. Then he arose, and went after Elijah, and ministered unto him.

Elisha called all his family together to announce to them that God, not Elijah, had called him to a work so life fulfilling that he would have to give up his life that had been devoted to his family and totally devote himself to this higher calling of God!

Elisha burnt all his bridges behind him and stepped out on "faith" to minister to Elijah!

What is a minister?

A minister by the Word of God, is a servant to one higher than yourself!

We should also know that it is only God who knows who He will call to be a Pastor or a Preacher.

Being a preacher or a pastor is not just mama called and daddy sent!

Elisha was a farmer.

Amos was a fruit-picker.

Matthew was a tax collector.

Peter, James, and John and others were fishermen.

Luke was a doctor a physician.

What did the Apostle Paul say who was once a hated Pharisee.

Act 20:24  But none of these things move me, "neither count I my life dear unto myself", so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.

God had special plans for Elijah.

And God had special plans for Elisha!

And God has special plans for all those He calls!

We don't have time to cover all the things of Elisha and the miracles that he did in the power of God who by the way was second only to Jesus in the miracles of the Bible.

*****2Ki 2:11  And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.
2Ki 2:12  And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. And he saw him no more: and he took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in two pieces.

As Elisha was the minister to Elijah, then Elijah was also the spiritual father of Elisha.

We should be very clear God does not and never will have any spiritual grandchildren!

We only have one Master and He is not of this Earth!

Elijah was a prophet of God for at least 55 years but his time on this Earth had come to an end.

The false truth of the Atheists, is that we live our life on this Earth and then we die and live no more.

The real truth of the Bible is that our souls are immortal and this picture of Elijah's return to Heaven is proof of that fact!

Elijah was not the only one in the Bible who went to Heaven without dyeing.

The truth of Enoch is that we know one day Enoch was walking with the Lord and they just walked right on up into Heaven.

Gen 5:24  And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.

This happened because of his great faith!

Heb 11:5  By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.

We know that Enoch was also a prophet of God's choosing.

Jud 1:14  And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, "prophesied" of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints,

Enoch knew of the Coming of the Messiah even in his day!

BUT, this prophecy is yet to be fulfilled.

And Elijah, who was promised a death at the hands of Jezebel, God had also decided would not die at all, at least at this time for we are all appointed to a time of death.

Heb 9:27  And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:

Elijah had gone to Heaven by a whirlwind or some would say a tempest storm.

But the truth is that just as the Lord was taken up by Angels:

Luk 24:51  And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven.

Elijah was also carried up to Heaven in slightly a more dramatic way before only the eyes of Elisha because Elisha was an eyewitness to the rapture of Elijah.

If we study the Bible we will see that the ministry of Elijah was much like that of John the Baptist while the ministry of Elisha will be much more like that of the Lord Jesus Christ when He was in His physical body was up0n this Earth.

Elijah did not live in the public’s sight.

Elisha spent all his days in public life!

Elijah had ministry of "Judgment".

Elisha will have a ministry of "Mercy".

Thank goodness God has much more "mercy" than He has "judgment"!

Rom 5:20  Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound:
Rom 5:21  That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.

Most of the time we do not understand when our loved ones seem to leave here so early in life but there is one thing that is very seldom considered when a saint of God goes home to be with the Lord.

Most of the saints go home to be with the Lord if not all, it is God that has decided that we have seen enough of this evil world that drags us down so much!

Isa 57:1  The righteous perisheth, and no man layeth it to heart: and merciful men are taken away, "none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come".
Isa 57:2  He shall enter into peace: they shall rest in their beds, each one walking in his uprightness.

When Elisha rent his clothes it was not a sign of mourning for his brother Elijah, it was for the terrible loss of such a mighty man of God to this world.

Our world suffers a loss when any man of God goes home to be with the Lord!

Only then did Elisha know that it was his time.

*****2Ki 2:13  He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of Jordan;

Elijah had no more need for his mantle so it became Elisha's mantle.

Remember that mantle had been a sign to all that saw him, that Elijah was God's man.

It was Elisha who was now God's man!

Elisha had received a double portion of the same Spirit of God that Elijah had and it was now time to use it!

There are many in our world today that proclaim that receiving the Spiritual power of God will be immediately felt in our bodies but the truth is that the receiving of the Holy Spirit is mostly a quiet and a secret act and is known only to God and then to that saved soul!

When Elisha walked back to the River Jordan, he was not sure if he had received that double portion that he had been promised.

That mantle of Elijah was a sign to those who now saw Elisha, but the power of God was not in that mantle, the power of God was inside Elisha out of view to those that saw him now.

Elisha had one more thing to do.

During all the years that Elisha had been with Elijah it had been this mantle that had caught his eye.

But, the power of Elijah was not in his mantle, the power of Elijah was in his God!

Elisha had not requested any power of that mantle, Elisha had requested the power of the God of Elijah!

*****2Ki 2:14  And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and smote the waters, and said, Where is the LORD God of Elijah? and when he also had smitten the waters, they parted hither and thither: and Elisha went over.

Elisha wore the mantle of Elijah as a token of God's calling.

We know that Elisha had requested a double portion of the same Spirit that had energized Elijah and the Word of God said that it was granted to him.

The Bible records more miracles under the ministry of Elisha than it does of Elijah.

The fact remains that during days of Israel's darkest days of the apostasy, and of idol worship, God had given Israel two of His greatest prophets for some 85 years.

We can also be sure that in the darkest days of this world we live in, God will show His strength in ways that we have not yet seen but are prophesied, but most of the world will still continue on it's path to destruction.

When Elisha struck the waters of Jordan with the mantle of Elijah, he was just saying it's time to get started.

BUT, God also had another reason for this incident with that mantle of Elijah.

All the disciples of Elijah were watching Elisha to see if he was worthy to be followed.

Many people keep their eyes on Christians to see if they can find any faults.

SO, What is the lesson to the child of God?

Jesus said it best!

Joh 14:12  Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.
Joh 14:13  And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
Joh 14:14  If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.

*****2Ki 2:15  And when the sons of the prophets which were to view at Jericho saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him.

Now these were not the actual sons of the prophets to Israel but they were actually part of those 7000 who had refused to bow down to false gods.

There many schools of the prophets in those days located in the area of these ten tribes of Israel.

The Bible mentions one in Jericho, and one in Bethel and another one in Gilgal of Ephraim but there was also one on Mount Carmel after the victory of Elijah over those false prophets.

It could be said that these could be considered to be theological seminaries dedicated to the teaching of the Word of God!

Before Elijah left this earth he had taken Elisha to visit all these places and the greatest work of Elisha was not the miracles that he performed in the power of God, Elisha's greatest work was "in the teaching and the education of these disciples in the Word of God".

What is the greatest work of the Church?

To make disciples of all those that God calls to salvation!

What kind of men did God use in His work during this time of the divided kingdom of Israel?

Amo 2:11  And I raised up of your sons for prophets, and of your young men for Nazarites. Is it not even thus, O ye children of Israel? saith the LORD.

Notice these were not Nazarites who had made certain vows but men who would become Nazarites.

Nazarite's true meaning is to be separate from the world, and consecrated to the work of the Lord!

What does God say to the Church?

2Co 6:17  Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,
2Co 6:18  And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.

We should be able to see that the God of the Old Testament is the same God of the New Testament and just like Elisha we need to get busy in the things God has called us to do!

Let's look at some things that Elisha did.

*****2Ki 6:8  Then the king of Syria warred against Israel, and took counsel with his servants, saying, In such and such a place shall be my camp.

The Bible records some 11 miracles performed by Elisha even before we get to this Scripture.

The King of Syria was using guerrilla warfare tactics in order to weaken the defenses of Israel. These are some of the same tactics used by ISIS today.

Guerrilla warfare will cause any nation to spread it's military strength across it's entire region therefore making it suspect to a major assault when the proper time arrives.

These were the tactics of this king as he planned a future assault on Israel.

God was not going to allow this to happen at this time, so whenever the King of Syria had a new plan no matter how secret he tried to keep it, God informed Elisha of that plan who then would tell the King of Israel.

What is the truth of God?

Job 5:12  He disappointeth the devices of the crafty, so that their hands cannot perform their enterprise.
Job 5:13  He taketh the wise in their own craftiness: and the counsel of the froward is carried headlong.

There is absolutely nothing that goes on in this world that God is not aware of!

Things only happen because God has allowed them to happen!

God knows all things that exist.
God knows all the variables concerning those things.
God knows all future events.
AND, God's knowledge is immediate!

There is nothing that God has to wait on to see the outcome of or how it will work according to how certain events will transpire!

God already knows the end before the beginning and God intervenes whenever it is necessary for things to happen according to the Scriptures!

There is nothing that happens in this world we live in that is not according to the Word of God!

Even today as we live in this Age of the Church and this Age of God's Grace, this world we live in is moving along according to the Scriptures!

God will always adhere to the Words that He has already given to us, because God does not ever change and God does not never have too!

In fact, it is impossible for God to lie to any of us and God in no way will ever lead this world astray!

Heb 6:17  Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath:
Heb 6:18  That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us:

God must tell the truth or He would not be God!

A warning from God is a sure future happening!

*****2Ki 6:9  And the man of God sent unto the king of Israel, saying, Beware that thou pass not such a place; for thither the Syrians are come down.
2Ki 6:10  And the king of Israel sent to the place which the man of God told him and warned him of, and saved himself there, not once nor twice.

It is also obvious to us that the King of Syria was trying his best to assassinate the King of Israel which was King Jehoram at this time.

Even as we have learned from the past, the king of Syria of today, is seeing his once great nation destroyed because he placed himself above the Laws of God and his personal god Allah does not have it in his power to do anything about it because he simply is not real!

The traps and ambushes that were prepared for the King of Israel were known to God's prophet Elisha.

No matter what this king thought of, even in council with his spies, Elisha knew it by the time he had that thought!

King Jehoram had no respect for God's man Elisha so he still sent his own spies to see if the words of Elisha were true.

What he found to be the truth, was that it was only by Jehovah God that his life had been saved not once and not twice but every time, he had been able to escape the snares of this King of Syria because of the words of Elisha.

The lesson we can learn here is, that not only does God see everything that we do at any moment of time and hear every word that we say, but God also knows our thoughts even before we think them!

Psa 94:11  The LORD knoweth the thoughts of man, that they are vanity.

The first thing that the King of Syria did was to assume that he had a traitor in his own royal court.

*****2Ki 6:11  Therefore the heart of the king of Syria was sore troubled for this thing; and he called his servants, and said unto them, Will ye not shew me which of us is for the king of Israel?

As we can see, those who do not know God are blind to the truth of God!

What the world has the most trouble with, is when there are no worldly reasons for things that happen then they need to realize that God plays by His own rules and not by the rules of man!

Things that happen in our world, that cannot be explained by the worlds standards, can only be explained by the Word of God!

This King of Syria could only believe that there was a spy within his own servants and he set them against each other.

This created turmoil in the government of Syria!

The King of Syria also worshiped the false god Rimmon who was the Sun god of Syria and the god of the wind, the rain and the storm, but Rimmon was just like Baal and was powerless to help this king.

This king did not know Jehovah, but Jehovah had placed a man amongst these servants of this king who had the answer.

Jeremiah wrote these inspired words of God:

Jer 23:23  Am I a God at hand, saith the LORD, and not a God afar off?
Jer 23:24  Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the LORD. Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the LORD.

God is always the answer to any problem that arises!

*****2Ki 6:12  And one of his servants said, None, my lord, O king: but Elisha, the prophet that is in Israel, telleth the king of Israel the words that thou speakest in thy bedchamber.

Notice that of all the men of Syria, and of all the men of Israel, it was pointed out that it could only be Elisha the prophet of God who could have done such a thing.

The world may seek it's own answers but in the end the world will look toward those that know the true God!

Here again we also see that anytime there is a problem in this world, the world immediately blames it on the Christian!

The next thing we should clearly understand is that the little nation of Israel can never be attacked by a foreign government unless God allows it to happen and for His own reasons!

Zec 2:8  For thus saith the LORD of hosts; After the glory hath he sent me unto the nations which spoiled you: for he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye.

We are fools to not believe that God will not fulfill every promise He made to Israel and no foreign power has the ability to overcome the power of God.

The King of Syria needed to find the location of Elisha and he again sent out his own spies.

*****2Ki 6:13  And he said, Go and spy where he is, that I may send and fetch him. And it was told him, saying, Behold, he is in Dothan.

Elisha was not hiding from anyone because Elisha was at his home in Dothan and was very easy to find.

We first learned of the city of Dothan in the time of Joseph just before his brothers sold him into slavery.

Dothan was 12 miles from the capitol city of Samaria.

Here in this verse we see the foolishness of the world.

If Elisha was able to know all the thoughts of the King of Syria because of the Lord, then it would seem foolish of this King to believe he could just sneak up on Elisha and just fetch him away to do him harm.

Elisha knew these things before this King gave his instructions to those spies and Elisha remained at home unconcerned at what the world could do to him.

God teaches us these things:

Luk 12:4  And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do.
Luk 12:5  But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him.

We should also notice something else here.

When a foreign power can send it's army within 12 miles of a capitol city of any nation without being confronted, it shows the weakness of that nation.

The government of Israel was very weak militarily at this time!

It would be easy to compare these things to what is happening in Iraq today!

When ISIS can send it's troops so close to the major cities in Iraq and cause harm then Iraq is a very weak nation no matter what our own government says!

BUT, Elisha had no fear of the government of Israel nor the government of Syria at this time, and just went about doing the work God had given him to do!

*****2Ki 6:14  Therefore sent he thither horses, and chariots, and a great host: and they came by night, and compassed the city about.

This was no small army that surrounded the city of Dothan that day.

This was no small army that was sent to take possession of just one wise man of God.

Solomon lived a long time before the days of Elisha but Solomon could have been writing about Elisha when he wrote these words.

Ecc 9:13  This wisdom have I seen also under the sun, and it seemed great unto me:
Ecc 9:14  There was a little city, and few men within it; and there came a great king against it, and besieged it, and built great bulwarks against it:
Ecc 9:15  Now there was found in it a poor wise man, and he by his wisdom delivered the city; yet no man remembered that same poor man.
Ecc 9:16  Then said I, Wisdom is better than strength: nevertheless the poor man's wisdom is despised, and his words are not heard.
Ecc 9:17  The words of wise men are heard in quiet more than the cry of him that ruleth among fools.

God says that the "fear of the Lord, that is wisdom"!

Elisha was such a man this day!

*****2Ki 6:15  And when the servant of the man of God was risen early, and gone forth, behold, an host compassed the city both with horses and chariots. And his servant said unto him, Alas, my master! how shall we do?

Elisha was not caught off guard at the arrival of this army but his new servant did not understand the power of God nor the double portion of the Holy Spirit that made Elisha a true man of God.

When we show our lack of faith, this world we live in will overwhelm us!

When we show our lack of faith, we are suggesting that our Lord can be defeated!

When we show our lack of faith, we are rejecting the Word of God as the truth!

Rom 10:17  So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

It is the knowledge of the truth of God where our strength lies!

Php 4:13  I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

And there is a reason for everything that happens to us and these things can make us better but only if we learn from them!

Rom 8:28  And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

God can protect His people from any army if we open our eyes to the truth of the "Gospel"!

*****2Ki 6:16  And he answered, Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be with them.
2Ki 6:17  And Elisha prayed, and said, LORD, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha.

It is a fact that there are things of the spirit world going on around us that we cannot see.

We know that angels are ministering spirits:

Heb 1:14  Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?

AND, Part of the ministry of Angels is the physical protection of God's people!

Angels can protect God's people from physical harm!

Psa 91:11  For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.
Psa 91:12  They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.
Psa 91:13  Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.

Angels can frustrate the plans of the enemies of God's people!

Psa 35:4  Let them be confounded and put to shame that seek after my soul: let them be turned back and brought to confusion that devise my hurt.
Psa 35:5  Let them be as chaff before the wind: and let the angel of the LORD chase them.

We know that the Angels are innumerable so there are always more of them than there are mankind who can be numbered!

Heb 12:22  But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,

Those chariots of fire can take us home just as they did Elijah or they can simply be that wall of protection in our hour of greatest need!

These things are up to the Lord, as God will not allow this world to frustrate His plan of salvation at any time!

We should also pray for God to open our own eyes to the truth of His Word!

Psa 119:18  Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.

And once again we will see that "Prayer Changes Things"!

The Christian on his knees is still the most powerful force on this Earth!

*****2Ki 6:18  And when they came down to him, Elisha prayed unto the LORD, and said, Smite this people, I pray thee, with blindness. And he smote them with blindness according to the word of Elisha.

The truth is that the governments of this world are so afraid of the Christian that they will do everything in their power to stop the spread of the "Gospel of Jesus Christ"!

They will continue to send their armies to crush God's people but they will fail every time!

Elisha was just a man just as we all are, but at this point in Elisha's life, he had not completed the work God had given him to do and until God's says that work is complete and God takes us home there is no power on Earth that can stop that man of God!

We should know that it is not courage that drive evil men to do evil things!

It is blindness to the Word of God and in that blindness, evil men can be led to do terrible things that cause harm not only to the Christian, and not only to the world, but most of all to themselves!

We are not to fear what this world is trying to do to us, in fact to have this kind of fear is being disobedient to the Word of God!

2Ti 1:7  For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

As far as this army was concerned, they had been defeated by one man, God's man Elisha!

Elisha led this army right into the hands of the King of Israel and gave orders for them to sent back home with enough bread and water for them to get there.

That day, it was more important to show the government of Syria just how futile is was to defy God rather than allow for the government of Israel to claim some great military victory when Elisha had singlehandedly delivered this foreign army to them.

Our primary job is not to cause the death of our enemies!

Our enemies are sentencing themselves to death!

Our primary job is simply to share the "Gospel of Jesus Christ" with the world along with our testimony of what God has already done for us!

Questions?

Let's Pray because prayer still changes things!