God is faithful and good. God is sovereign. God is our redeemer.
How did this king rebel?
Act Three: REbellion, Week 11
We have spent many weeks looking at the rebellious ways of God's people. It is easy for us, with a 21st century western mindset, to hold a microscope over the nation of Israel, the priests, judges, and kings. It is easy to look at these people as storybook characters instead of real people with real sin and a real struggle to obey the Lord their God. Yes, the people were stiff-necked, set in their ways, and unwilling to do what was commanded. They did what was right in their own eyes, and what they wanted was not always what God wanted. They looked to the right and the left at every nation around them, even though God told them not to. They were jealous for what they did not have, but God remained faithful and jealous for them. Israel wanted what they could see (a king) because they didn't believe that God was enough.
This week, we looked at Solomon, asking how this king rebelled, and I humbly realized that Solomon is more like me than I ever saw before. He, like the nation of Israel, Eli the priest, and Gideon the judge, started out well. I also have every intention of honoring and loving the Lord with all my heart. I want to "be strong, and show myself a man" (or woman), as Solomon's father, David, charged him. I really want to desire a deep relationship with my Creator and King. I want to live out my story in light of His own. But, do I heed the warning of God's Word and godly council?
David, as a parent and godly council, told Solomon to do ALL that is written in the law of Moses. Solomon started off with a soft and good heart. He desired to live out the faith of his fathers with integrity. 1 Kings 3:3 tells us that Solomon loved the Lord and was walking in the statues as he was told. He humbled himself as a little child and asked the Lord for wisdom and a discerning mind (which we can do as well—see James 1:5 and Matthew 7:7-8). Solomon's original focus was not on the things of this world but on the love of God (see 1 John 2:15). The Lord was pleased with Solomon and gave him riches and blessings beyond what was asked (way beyond measure). However, with many blessings comes much responsibility. Solomon acknowledged this truth publicly in 1 Kings 8:55–61, asking that the Lord would not leave or forsake Israel, begging that He would incline their hearts to His so that they might follow and walk in His ways.
I have prayed and asked these very same things for us as women at CrossWay. I have desired for every one of us to know that the Lord is God and there is no other—no other "thing" that we desire. I have asked Him to reveal to us the ways we have grieved Him.
The Lord knows the deepest heart of man and the temptation to rebel. And it is by grace that the Lord appeared to Solomon again and reminded him of this truth (1 Kings 9:1-9). Once the temple was completed and the house of God consecrated, Solomon and Israel ought to have walked with integrity of heart and according to all that was commanded. But he (and they) did not. The generational sin was strong, the people were set in their ways, and even though Solomon loved the Lord, he also loved other "things"—particularly women. Starting with the Egyptian princess, his many foreign wives turned away his heart from God (1 Kings 11:4). Instead of holding fast to the law of Moses and to his Lord, Solomon held fast to the love of women and he would not let go. The very reason God warned the Israelites not to intermarry played out with the king they asked for, whose heart was turned to other gods and other nations—what they could see.
God intended for Israel to be set apart, a holy nation, under His rule and reign. But when a king chooses the course of action, the people follow. Solomon and the nation of Israel chose to worship other gods, which is an abomination to the Lord and evil in His sight. Solomon did not represent the Lord well and He built not just the one temple to the Lord, but many other temples to many women and to many gods. And though the Lord appeared to Solomon twice (the Word of God), and even though Solomon was warned by his father, David (godly council), he did not do what the Lord commanded and instead did evil in the sight of the Lord.
When God sees, He acts. There are consequences to our rebellious ways. God is faithful in who He is. He is just and very good. He will follow through with what He promises—the good and the bad. Because of Solomon's sin, Israel was torn—the kingdom divided—and the temple became a "heap of ruins." Disaster came upon God's people, as it was promised.
Today, we are God's holy people, representing Him and pointing others to the One True God. We have spiritual blessings in abundance and the same responsibility that Solomon did: to be set apart for the Lord. I am more like Solomon than I realized. Do I represent the Lord well? Have I obeyed His commandments and kept my eyes fixed on Him, not turning to the right or the left? Have I held fast to the Lord, my Creator, and my King? As I write this, humbly, I fall down before Him, Jesus, my King AND my Savior, and thank Him for dying on the cross for me, for us. For, like Solomon, I am not able to keep the charge of the Lord our God, walking in His ways and keeping His statutes, His commandments, His rules, and His testimonies as it is written in the Law of Moses. Only Jesus can. He is the one true God. Without Him, I am a disaster.
♥️ Meghan
Up next: Act Three, Week 12 — How did this prophet rebel?
Don't forget to grab the Act 4: Rescue card from the women's board in the hallway.
