JEROBOAM: Obedience is not optional

Transcription

1 JEROBOAM: Obedience is not optional And so we have the prophetic word confirmed,which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation,for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. 2 Peter 1:19-21 Elijah the prophet came near and said, LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel and I am Your servant, and that I have done all these things at Your word. 1 Kings 18:36 This week s lesson emphasises the fact that when we profess to be followers of God, we must serve Him. It exposes the frailty of the human heart in that, no matter how gracious God is, we are quick to forget His goodness and fail to give Him glory for all He has done. Finally, it reveals to us both the justice and the grace of God; justice and judgement for our disobedience, but nevertheless, because of Calvary, mercy and grace if we come in repentance and humility of heart to God. The Reason God raises up Jeroboam. 1 Kings 11:1-13 But King Solomon loved many foreign women, as well as the daughter of Pharaoh: women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites from the nations of whom the LORD had said to the children of Israel, You shall not intermarry with them, nor they with you. Surely they will turn away your hearts after their gods. Solomon clung to these in love. And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart. For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the LORD his God, as was the heart of his father David. For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and did not fully follow the LORD, as did his father David. Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, on the hill that is east of Jerusalem, and for Molech the abomination of the people of Ammon. And he did likewise for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods. So the LORD became angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned from the LORD God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice, and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods; but he did not keep what the LORD had commanded. Therefore the LORD said to Solomon, Because you have done this, and have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant. Nevertheless I will not do it in your days, for the sake of your father David; I will tear it out of the hand of your son. However I will not tear away the whole kingdom; I will give one tribe to your son for the sake of My servant David, and for the sake of Jerusalem which I have chosen. OBEDIENCE IS NOT OPTIONAL! If you fear the LORD and serve Him and obey His voice, and do not rebel against the commandment of the LORD, then both you and the king who reigns over you will continue following the LORD your God. However, if you do not obey the voice of the LORD, but rebel against the commandment of

2 the LORD, then the hand of the LORD will be against you, as it was against your fathers. 1 Sam 12:14, 15 Both Moses (Deut 17) and Samuel had clearly laid down God s principles of leadership for Kings of Israel. Solomon had disregarded this as he grew older. The Call of Jeroboam 1 Kings 11:26-36 Then Solomon s servant, Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephraimite from Zereda, whose mother s name was Zeruah, a widow, also rebelled against the king. And this is what caused him to rebel against the king: Solomon had built the Millo and repaired the damages to the City of David his father. The man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valour; and Solomon, seeing that the young man was industrious, made him the officer over all the labour force of the house of Joseph. Now it happened at that time, when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite met him on the way; and he had clothed himself with a new garment, and the two were alone in the field. Then Ahijah took hold of the new garment that was on him, and tore it into twelve pieces. And he said to Jeroboam, Take for yourself ten pieces, for thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: Behold, I will tear the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon and will give ten tribes to you (but he shall have one tribe for the sake of My servant David, and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel), because they haveforsaken Me, and worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the people of Ammon, and have not walked in My ways to do what is right in My eyes and keep My statutes and My judgments, as did his father David. However I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand, because I have made him ruler all the days of his life for the sake of My servant David, whom I chose because he kept My commandments and My statutes. But I will take the kingdom out of his son s hand and give it to you ten tribes. And to his son I will give one tribe, that My servant David may always have a lamp before Me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen for Myself, to put My name there. OBEDIENCE IS NOT OPTIONAL! When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He (Solomon) shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be his Father, and he shall be My son. If he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men and with the blows of the sons of men. But My mercy shall not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I removed from before you. And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever. 2 Samuel 7:11-16 God brought judgment to Solomon because he had failed to be a true son of God. Therefore the kingdom was to be divided.

3 The Conditions of Jeroboam s success as the called-of-god. 1 Kings 11:37-40 So I will take you, and you shall reign over all your heart desires, and you shall be king over Israel. Then it shall be, if you heed all that I command you, walk in My ways, and do what is right in My sight, to keep My statutes and My commandments, as My servant David did, then I will be with you and build for you an enduring house, as I built for David, and will give Israel to you. And I will afflict the descendants of David because of this, but not forever. Solomon therefore sought to kill Jeroboam. But Jeroboam arose and fled to Egypt, to Shishak king of Egypt, and was in Egypt until the death of Solomon. OBEDIENCE IS NOT OPTIONAL; the promises of God to Jeroboam for the continuance of his house were conditional upon his faithfulness. The Request of the people to King Rehoboam on Solomon s death and the advice of the elders. 1 King 12:1-8 And Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had gone to Shechem to make him king. So it happened, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat heard it (he was still in Egypt, for he had fled from the presence of King Solomon and had been dwelling in Egypt), that they sent and called him. Then Jeroboam and the whole assembly of Israel came and spoke to Rehoboam, saying, 4 Your father made our yoke heavy; now therefore, lighten the burdensome service of your father, and his heavy yoke which he put on us, and we will serve you. So he said to them, Depart for three days, then come back to me. And the people departed. Then King Rehoboam consulted the elders who stood before his father Solomon while he still lived, and he said, How do you advise me to answer these people? And they spoke to him, saying, If you will be a servant to these people today, and serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be your servants forever. But he rejected the advice which the elders had given him, and consulted the young men who had grown up with him, who stood before him. OBEDIENCE IS NOT OPTIONAL! The principles of Kingship... Also it shall be, when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write for himself a copy of this law in a book, from the one before the priests, the Levites. And it shall be with him, and he shall read it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the LORD his God and be careful to observe all the words of this law and these statutes, that his heart may not be lifted above his brethren, that he may not turn aside from the commandment to the right hand or to the left, and that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he and his children in the midst of Israel. Deut 17:18-20 Rehoboam signally failed to follow God s requirements right at the beginning of his reign. The example of young King Solomon Now, O LORD my God, You have made Your servant king instead of my father David, but I am a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in. And Your servant is in the midst of Your people whom You have chosen, a great people, too numerous to be numbered or counted. Therefore give to Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people, that I may discern between good and evil.

4 For who is able to judge this great people of Yours? The speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing. 1 Kings 3:7-10 All the true leaders of God s people were servants of the people. Moses (Joshua 1:1), Joshua (Numbers 11:28, Joshua 1:1 and 5:14) and Jesus (Isaiah 42:1, 52:13) are the great examples of servant-leadership. The Revolt of the 10 Northern Tribes in response to Rehoboam s attitude. 1 Kings 12:12-16 So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king had directed, saying, Come back to me the third day. Then the king answered the people roughly, and rejected the advice which the elders had given him; and he spoke to them according to the advice of the young men, saying, My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scourges! So the king did not listen to the people; for the turn of events was from the LORD, that He might fulfil His word, which the LORD had spoken by Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat. Now when all Israel saw that the king did not listen to them, the people answered the king, saying: What share have we in David? We have no inheritance in the son of Jesse. To your tents, O Israel! Now, see to your own house, O David! So Israel departed to their tents. Jeroboam becomes King of Israel. 1 Kings 12:25 Then Jeroboam built Shechem in the mountains of Ephraim, and dwelt there. Also he went out from there and built Penuel. The Sin of Jeroboam 1 Kings 12:26-33 And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now the kingdom may return to the house of David: If these people go up to offer sacrifices in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then the heart of this people will turn back to their lord, Rehoboam king of Judah, and they will kill me and go back to Rehoboam king of Judah. Therefore the king asked advice, made two calves of gold, and said to the people, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, O Israel, which brought you up from the land of Egypt! And he set up one in Bethel, and the other he put in Dan. Now this thing became a sin, for the people went to worship before the one as far as Dan. He made shrineson the high places, and made priests from every class of people, who were not of the sons of Levi. Jeroboam ordained a feast on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, like the feast that was in Judah, and offered sacrifices on the altar. So he did at Bethel, sacrificing to the calves that he had made. And at Bethel he installed the priests of the high places which he had made. So he made offerings on the altar which he had made at Bethel on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, in the month which he had devised in his own heart. And he ordained a feast for the children of Israel, and offered sacrifices on the altar and burned incense. OBEDIENCE IS NOT OPTIONAL! I am the LORD, that is My name; and My glory I will not give to another, nor My praise to carved images. Isaiah 42:8

5 God is wise in heart and mighty in strength. Who has hardened himself against Him and prospered? Job 9:4 Was Jeroboam s sin great? Consider his ways: 1. He was chosen by God s grace to lead the Israelites, not because of any merit of his own. For promotion comes neither from the east nor from the west nor from the south. But God is the Judge: He puts down one, and exalts another. Psalm 75:6,7 2. He should have committed the Kingdom to God and trusted in Him to keep the Kingdom and himself as ruler. This was a failure of faith. So I will take you, and you shall reign over all your heart desires, and you shall be king over Israel. Then it shall be, if you heed all that I command you, walk in My ways, and do what is right in My sight, to keep My statutes and My commandments, as My servant David did, then I will be with you and build for you an enduring house, as I built for David, and will give Israel to you. 3. He should have enquired of the LORD, instead of following his heart and the advice of men. This was a failure of faith. 4. Instead of giving God the glory, he sought it for himself. This was a failure of faith. 5. Afraid that worship at Jerusalem would turn people back to the Kingdom of Judah, he made false gods and idols and persuaded the people to worship them. This was a failure of faith and outright disobedience to the Word and Law of God known to them from Sinai. (See the similarity between this story and that found in Exodus 32:1-10; how soon they forgot the God who had delivered them with mighty signs and wonders and gave glory to a creature). 6. He set up substitute places of worship. This was apostasy. God had clearly stated that Jerusalem was the place of His dwelling and worship Jehovah Shammah - the LORD is there. Jeroboam chose places that were important in Israel s history, but Divine institutions are never a substitute for the Divine presence. Today, God calls us to worship Him in spirit and in truth, in the presence of Jehovah. 7. He set up substitute forms of worship. He built altars and made idols of 2 calves and ascribed the glory of God to these creatures. This was apostasy. Instead of the glory of God manifested in the Lamb of God, he set up calves. In the ancient world, bulls were worshipped because of their strength and power. Lambs were meek and helpless. 8. He set up a substitute priesthood, and set himself up not only as king but as priest as well, offering sacrifices on the altars he had built. This too was apostasy. Though Solomon had also offered sacrifices at the dedication of the Temple at Jerusalem, he never took unto himself the service of the priesthood. 9. The substitute priesthood was not from the tribe of Levi, but from the lowest of the people, anyone who desired to be a priest. How different from the calling of a holy priesthood, a people who are chosen by God and devoted to Him.

6 10. He set up a feast that was not ordained by the LORD. The feast of tabernacles was on the 15 th day of the 7 th month, and Jeroboam organised one on the 15 th day of the 8 th month. The Bible record is scathing: he devised it in his own heart. What a tragedy in the life of this once mighty man of valour. He knew of the rebellion of Saul and the words of the prophet Samuel: Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. 1 Sam 15:22, 23. In addition, he himself had stood against King Solomon for the very same reason; the disobedience and apostasy of Solomon against God. He was chosen to lead God s people because of the idolatry of another king. And yet, how soon he fell into the same sin. He took the glory of God unto himself. How often this was repeated in the history of the Israelites. Indeed the words of Jeremiah Can an Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard his spots? So may you do good, who are accustomed to do evil. Jer 13:23 (or going back to the root of evil, he could have said So may you be humble, who are accustomed to be proud of heart ) are true not only of Jeroboam, but of all of us. This should be a warning to us to recognise the frailty and deception of our own hearts, and that we can only find safety in seeking to know God s will and to follow it and to give Him the glory for all that He accomplishes in our lives. And also, in never forgetting what God has done. Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the LORD weighs the hearts. Proverbs 21:2 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it? I, the LORD, search the heart; I test the mind, even to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings. Jeremiah 17:9, 10 He established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which He commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children; that the generation to come might know them, the children who would be born, that they may arise and declare them to their children, that they may set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep His commandments... Psalm 78:5-7 They did not remember the multitude of Your mercies...they soon forgot Your works...they forgot God their Saviour...they mingled with the Gentiles, learned their works and served their idols... Psalm 106:7, 13, 21 Paul, writing many centuries later, described the steps from refusing to glorify God to disobedience and idolatry. This was true of Jeroboam s life....they are without excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things. Rom 1:20-23

7 The Consequences and Judgement of Jeroboam s Sin. 1 Kings 13:1-6 And behold, a man of God went from Judah to Bethel by the word of the LORD, and Jeroboam stood by the altar to burn incense. Then he cried out against the altar by the word of the LORD, and said, O altar, altar! Thus says the LORD: Behold, a child, Josiah by name, shall be born to the house of David; and on you he shall sacrifice the priests of the high places who burn incense on you, and men s bones shall be burned on you. And he gave a sign the same day, saying, This is the sign which the LORD has spoken: Surely the altar shall split apart, and the ashes on it shall be poured out. So it came to pass when King Jeroboam heard the saying of the man of God, who cried out against the altar in Bethel, that he stretched out his hand from the altar, saying, Arrest him! Then his hand, which he stretched out toward him, withered, so that he could not pull it back to himself. The altar also was split apart, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign which the man of God had given by the word of the LORD. Then the king answered and said to the man of God, Please entreat the favour of the LORD your God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored to me. So the man of God entreated the LORD, and the king s hand was restored to him, and became as before. Be not deceived, God is not mocked; whatever a man sows, that shall he also reap. Gal 6:7 God declares His judgement on the false system Jeroboam has devised. Instead of fire from heaven, the altar was split apart and ashes poured forth. In a prophecy spanning 350 years, God told Jeroboam that the retribution He has promised for apostasy, I will destroy your high places, cut down your incense altars, and cast your carcasses on the lifeless forms of your idols; and My soul shall abhor you. Lev 26:30 would be fulfilled by King Josiah. This happened exactly as the prophet foretold: Moreover the altar that was at Bethel, and the high place which Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel sin, had made, both that altar and the high place he broke down; and he burned the high place and crushed it to powder, and burned the wooden image. As Josiah turned, he saw the tombs that were there on the mountain. And he sent and took the bones out of the tombs and burned them on the altar, and defiled it according to the word of the LORD which the man of God proclaimed, who proclaimed these words. 2 Kings 23:15, 16 They broke down the altars of the Baals in his presence, and the incense altars which were above them he cut down; and the wooden images, the carved images, and the moulded images he broke in pieces, and made dust of them and scattered it on the graves of those who had sacrificed to them. He also burned the bones of the priests on their altars, and cleansed Judah and Jerusalem. 2 Chronicles 34:4, 5 The Final Judgement of God on Jeroboam. 1 Kings 14:1-20 And so it was, when Ahijah heard the sound of her footsteps as she came through the door, he said, Come in, wife of Jeroboam. Why do you pretend to be another person? For I have been sent to you with bad news. Go, tell Jeroboam, Thus says the LORD God of Israel: Because I exalted you from among the people, and made you ruler over My people Israel, and tore the kingdom away from the house of David, and gave it to you; and yet you have not been as My servant David, who kept

8 My commandments and who followed Me with all his heart, to do only what was right in My eyes; but you have done more evil than all who were before you, for you have gone and made for yourself other gods and moulded images to provoke Me to anger, and have cast Me behind your back therefore behold! I will bring disaster on the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam every male in Israel, bond and free (verses 6-10)... Moreover the LORD will raise up for Himself a king over Israel who shall cut off the house of Jeroboam; this is the day. What? Even now! For the LORD will strike Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water. He will uproot Israel from this good land which He gave to their fathers, and will scatter them beyond the River,because they have made their wooden images,provoking the LORD to anger. And He will give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, who sinned and who made Israel sin. (verses14-16). The Defiant Response of Jeroboam to God s message. 1 Kings 13:33, 34 After this event Jeroboam did not turn from his evil way, but again he made priests from every class of people for the high places; whoever wished, he consecrated him, and he became one of the priests of the high places. And this thing was the sin of the house of Jeroboam, so as to exterminate and destroy it from the face of the earth. Surely God scorns the scornful, but gives grace to the humble. Proverbs 3:34 For thus says the High and Lofty One Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: I dwell in the high and holy place, with him who has a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones. Isaiah 57:15 The Contrast between King David and Jeroboam Until the end of his life, King David gave glory to God for all he had been given. Even though he had many accomplishments and was the mightiest man of valour, he never failed to give God the glory. Even when he gave of his personal wealth to God, he said, I am but giving to You what You have already given me... Even when he sinned, he knew where to go. Rather than being defiant, He went to the Lord in repentance, for he knew that the glory of God lies in His great mercy and love. Consider the following words of David: the first passage is midway through his reign, when God denies the building of the temple to him, but promises him a sure house. The second passage is at the end of his life, when he has gathered the people to present to them the plans for the building of the temple. This is the attitude we must always have in our relationship to God: Then King David went in and sat before the LORD; and he said: Who am I, O Lord GOD? And what is my house, that You have brought me this far? And yet this was a small thing in Your sight, O Lord GOD; and You have also spoken of Your servant s house for a great while to come. Is this the manner of man, O Lord GOD? Now what more can David say to You? For You, Lord GOD, know Your servant. For Your word s sake, and according to Your own heart, You have done all these great things, to make Your servant know them. Therefore You are great, O Lord GOD. For there is none like You, nor is there any God besides You, according to all that we have heard with our ears. And who is like Your people, like Israel, the one nation on the earth whom God went to redeem for Himself as a people, to make for Himself a name and to do for Yourself great and awesome deeds for Your land before Your people whom You redeemed for Yourself from Egypt, the nations, and

9 their gods? For You have made Your people Israel Your very own people forever; and You, LORD, have become their God. Now, O LORD God, the word which You have spoken concerning Your servant and concerning his house, establish it forever and do as You have said. So let Your name be magnified forever, saying, The LORD of hosts is the God over Israel. And let the house of Your servant David be established before You. 2 Sam 7:18-26 Therefore David blessed the LORD before all the assembly; and David said: Blessed are You, LORD God of Israel, our Father, forever and ever. Yours, O LORD, is the greatness, the power and the glory, the victory and the majesty; for all that is in heaven and in earth is Yours; Yours is the kingdom, O LORD, and You are exalted as head over all. Both riches and honor come from You, and You reign over all. In Your hand is power and might; in Your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all. Now therefore, our God, we thank You and praise Your glorious name. But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly as this? For all things come from You, and of Your own we have given You. For we are aliens and pilgrims before You, as were all our fathers; our days on earth are as a shadow, and without hope. O LORD our God, all this abundance that we have prepared to build You a house for Your holy name is from Your hand, and is all Your own. I know also, my God, that You test the heart and have pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of my heart I have willingly offered all these things; and now with joy I have seen Your people, who are present here to offer willingly to You. O LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, our fathers, keep this forever in the intent of the thoughts of the heart of Your people, and fix their heart toward You. 1 Chr 29:10-18 The contrast between the legacy of Jeroboam and David. And the LORD rejected all the descendants of Israel, afflicted them, and delivered them into the hand of plunderers, until He had cast them from His sight. For He tore Israel from the house of David, and they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king. Then Jeroboam drove Israel from following the LORD, and made them commit a great sin. For the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they did not depart from them, until the LORD removed Israel out of His sight, as He had said by all His servants the prophets. So Israel was carried away from their own land to Assyria, as it is to this day. 2 Kings 17:20-23 The history of the kingdom of Israel (the 10 tribes) is one of almost continual apostasy. Of every king who was unfaithful to God, the Biblical testimony reads thus:...he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam who made Israel to sin. 1 Kings 16:19, 26, 31; 22:52. 2 Kings 3:3;10:31; 31:2;13:11: 14:24; 15:9, 18, 24, 28. This is a warning to all who have been given responsibilities and leadership in the church of God. Our actions can have consequences (for eternal life or eternal death) upon those we are called to serve.

10 In contrast, here is the legacy of David: When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be his Father, and he shall be My son. 2 Samuel 7:12-14 Go, tell Jeroboam, Thus says the LORD God of Israel: Because I exalted you from among the people, and made you ruler over My people Israel, and tore the kingdom away from the house of David, and gave it to you; and yet you have not been as My servant David, who kept My commandments and who followed Me with all his heart, to do only what was right in My eyes; but you have done more evil than all who were before you, for you have gone and made for yourself other gods and molded images to provoke Me to anger, and have cast Me behind your back therefore behold! I will bring disaster on the house of Jeroboam... 1 Kings 14:7-10 He (the Messiah) shall be great and shall be called the Son of the Highest; and the LORD God will give unto Him the throne of His father David... Luke 1:32. IS OBEDIENCE OPTIONAL TODAY? The answer is very clear: it is not optional Many Christians today are uncomfortable with the word obedience (because of the possibility of being accused of legalism). They should not be. Obedience or serving God results from the following simple attitudes in the Christian s life: 1. Knowing what God has done for him and giving glory to Him for His grace. 2. Having a thankful heart for all that God has done, is doing, and will do for the Christian. 3. Never forgetting what God has accomplished in the Christian s life. This results in a heart of thankfulness and love and a desire to serve God and be a witness to His love. Legalism on the other hand, seeks to win God s favour through obedience. The purpose of the gospel is to bring many sons to glory; to manifest the love of God which is His glory. God makes this possible in sinful human beings by forgiving their sins, putting their life inherited through Adam to death and giving them new life, the very life of God in Christ Jesus. God the Holy Spirit, then in-dwells the life of the Christian and produces in his life the character of God. The Bible calls us to obey the gospel (Rom 10:16, 2 Thess 1:8, 1 Pet 4:17). Obedience is the fruit of faith (Rom 16:26). Those who have understood the gospel and accepted Christ as their Saviour from sin and the penalty of death, have also accepted Him as Lord of their lives, that His in-dwelling Spirit may produce in their lives the fruit of the Spirit. In thus doing so, they are obeying the gospel. All the saints of the Bible who served God faithfully are called God s servants; it is the greatest honour in the Kingdom of God to be His servant. Abraham (Gen 26:24), Moses (Num 12:7), Caleb (Num 14:24), Joshua (Num 11:28), David (2 Sam 3:18), Job (Job 1:8) and above all Christ (Isa 52:13), were the servants of God.

11 To those who are willing to be servants of God (the obedient), there are 2 wonderful promises in the Bible. One is temporal, for this life, but the other is eternal: If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. John 14:23 And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him...and reign with Him forever and ever. Rev 22:3, 5. May we always remember the deceitfulness and wickedness of our hearts and may the prayer of our hearts ever be: Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my anxieties; and see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. Psalm 139:23, Additional Note on the 2 prophets of 1 Kings 13 And behold, a man of God went from Judah to Bethel by the word of the LORD, and Jeroboam stood by the altar to burn incense (verse 1)... Then the king said to the man of God, Come home with me and refresh yourself, and I will give you a reward. But the man of God said to the king, If you were to give me half your house, I would not go in with you; nor would I eat bread nor drink water in this place. For so it was commanded me by the word of the LORD, saying, You shall not eat bread, nor drink water, nor return by the same way you came. So he went another way and did not return by the way he came to Bethel (verses 7-10). Note the following about the prophet: 1. He had received a specific word from the LORD about Jeroboam. 2. He had received a specific word from the LORD about himself. 3. He delivered the message faithfully. 4. He refused any reward, but declared his intention to fully follow the word of the LORD. He was obedient to the word of the LORD thus far. Now an old prophet dwelt in Bethel, and his sons came and told him all the works that the man of God had done that day in Bethel; they also told their father the words which he had spoken to the king. And their father said to them, Which way did he go? For his sons had seen which way the man of God went who came from Judah. Then he said to his sons, Saddle the donkey for me. So they saddled the donkey for him; and he rode on it, and went after the man of God, and found him sitting under an oak. Then he said to him, Are you the man of God who came from Judah? And he said, I am. Then he said to him, Come home with me and eat bread. And he said, I cannot return with you nor go in with you; neither can I eat bread nor drink water

12 with you in this place. For I have been told by the word of the LORD, You shall not eat bread nor drink water there, nor return by going the way you came. He said to him, I too am a prophet as you are, and an angel spoke to me by the word of the LORD, saying, Bring him back with you to your house, that he may eat bread and drink water. (He was lying to him.) verses Note the following about the 2 nd prophet: 1. He dwelt in Bethel, in the very place that Jeroboam had set up his false worship system. 2. He does not appear to have raised his voice against it; the Lord had to send a prophet from Judah. In this he reminds us of righteous Job who chose to live among the ungodly. 3. He lies to the Judean prophet. So he went back with him, and ate bread in his house, and drank water. Now it happened, as they sat at the table, that the word of the LORD came to the prophet who had brought him back; and he cried out to the man of God who came from Judah, saying, Thus says the LORD: Because you have disobeyed the word of the LORD, and have not kept the commandment which the LORD your God commanded you, but you came back, ate bread, and drank water in the place of which the LORD said to you, Eat no bread and drink no water, your corpse shall not come to the tomb of your fathers. So it was, after he had eaten bread and after he had drunk, that he saddled the donkey for him, the prophet whom he had brought back. When he was gone, a lion met him on the road and killed him. And his corpse was thrown on the road, and the donkey stood by it. The lion also stood by the corpse. And there, men passed by and saw the corpse thrown on the road, and the lion standing by the corpse. Then they went and told it in the city where the old prophet dwelt... (verses 19-25). 1. The Judean prophet is deceived into returning to Bethel. 2. God pronounced judgement upon the prophet for disobeying His specific message. 3. The prophet is killed by a lion on his way home. 4. To emphasise that this was the work of God, the lion does not kill the donkey and even more amazingly, stood by the donkey and the dead prophet. This is not the behaviour of lions! Why is God s judgement so severe? After all, wasn t the prophet deceived? Yes, but deception is no excuse. So also was Eve deceived, but she was declared a sinner. Below is a commentary on the story that brings out the lessons to be learned from this story: It is easy to see how serious was this disobedience to the word of God. First, in turning back to eat and drink with the old prophet at Bethel, the man of God put his sanction on an association which God's word condemned. Secondly, he put his sanction upon the unfaithfulness of the old prophet in living in such an association.

13 Thirdly, he nullified his own testimony by sanctioning the very evil against which he was sent to witness. What, we may ask, should have kept the man of God from falling into this snare? His own word gives the answer, for he confesses, "So was it charged me by the word of the LORD, saying, eat no bread, nor drink water, nor turn again by the same way that thou came." Evidently, then, his safe-guard against every effort to draw him into a false association was unswerving obedience to the word of God. In reference to this scene one has truly said, "Whenever God has made His will known to us, we are not to allow any after influence whatever to call it in question, even although the latter may take the form of the word of God... In every case our part is to obey what He has said." If the word of God charged him not to eat and drink at Bethel, in spite of the fact that a brother prophet was dwelling there, was the man of God to turn back and eat and drink because a brother prophet was at Bethel? If his eye had been single would he not have discerned why the word of God so strictly forbad him to associate with the old prophet? How was it that, when God was denouncing evil at Bethel, He has to send a prophet from Judah, seeing there was already a prophet at Bethel? Does not this action tell us that the old prophet at Bethel was not himself separate from evil, and therefore not a vessel fit and meet for the Master's use? Being in a false position the old prophet was ready to go to great lengths to get the man of God to sanction his unfaithfulness by associating with it. Alas! the man of God fell into the snare and destroyed his own testimony by associating with one who, while admitting the evil, yet bore with it. Thus, as it has been truly said, of this man of God, "He is proof against temptation when presented in the form of evil, and he falls when tempted by apparent good. The voice of a brother, his standing and reputation, are honoured above the word of God. He disobeys God and accredits a lie in his brother... He triumphed over the opposition of the world without, and is seduced into unfaithfulness by a brother within." By abstaining from eating and drinking with the king he took God's part against the evil: by returning to eat and drink with the old prophet he took his part in associating with it. The Response of the 2 nd Prophet Now when the prophet who had brought him back from the way heard it, he said, It is the man of God who was disobedient to the word of the LORD. Therefore the LORD has delivered him to the lion, which has torn him and killed him, according to the word of the LORD which He spoke to him. And he spoke to his sons, saying, Saddle the donkey for me. So they saddled it. Then he went and found his corpse thrown on the road, and the donkey and the lion standing by the corpse. The lion had not eaten the corpse nor torn the donkey. And the prophet took up the corpse of the man of God, laid it on the donkey, and brought it back. So the old prophet came to the city to mourn, and to bury him. Then he laid the corpse in his own tomb; and they mourned over him, saying, Alas, my brother! So it was, after he had buried him, that he spoke to his sons, saying, When I am dead, then bury me in the tomb where the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones. For the saying which he cried out by the word of the LORD against the altar in Bethel, and against all the shrineson the high places which are in the cities of Samaria, will surely come to pass. Verses The old prophet is punished by seeing what has happened to the Judean prophet because of his deceit. 2. He regrets what he has done and buries the prophet in his own tomb and mourns over him. 3. We serve a holy God; there is no shadow of turning with Him and He has to punish our unfaithfulness. 4. Nevertheless, though God chastens their unfaithfulness, He has not forgotten the work they have done for Him. They will not share in the judgement of the wicked.

14 As Josiah turned, he saw the tombs that were there on the mountain. And he sent and took the bones out of the tombs and burned them on the altar, and defiled it according to the word of the LORD which the man of God proclaimed, who proclaimed these words. Then he said, What gravestone is this that I see? So the men of the city told him, It is the tomb of the man of God who came from Judah and proclaimed these things which you have done against the altar of Bethel. And he said, Let him alone; let no one move his bones. So they let his bones alone, with the bones of the prophet who came from Samaria. 2 Kings 23:16-18 Lessons for us from this story: 1. God has a special message of grace for the world in our time; the message of the 3 angels to fear God and give Him alone the glory; to deny in our lives the spirit of Babylon which worships self above the Creator God. 2. We are a prophetic people called out to reprove the world of apostasy and judgement and call men and women back to the love of God and the good news of salvation. 3. For this special message, we ourselves must be the witnesses. That means that in our personal lives, we must live to the glory of God alone and be a faithful witness to our neighbours of His love and grace. 4. The Christian church today abounds with false gospels, false prophets and priests and false days and systems of worship. 5. If there is a denial of the gospel in the church, if God calls us to do so, we must be willing to stand up and declare the judgement of God upon any false gospel; neither rewards, food, drink or the friendship of brethren in the church must deter us. 6. We must examine our hearts: are we able to stand up against evil in the world, but compromise with sin in the church? 7. There must be a separation from the spirit of the world, the spirit of self-exaltation. The call to Come out of Babylon must first be true in our on hearts. 8. God is looking for a people of whom He can say, You have kept My word and not denied My Name Rev 3:8. There must be a revival in our hearts of the spirit of Elijah who said, LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel and I am Your servant, and that I have done all these things at Your word. 9. Though we may not be like defiant Jeroboam, we nevertheless may fail in our faithfulness to God. Though He has to chasten us for our good (Heb 12:10), nevertheless, He will not condemn us in the judgment, if we are found in Him, not having our own righteousness, but the righteousness which is from God, by faith... Phil 3: Satan will particularly seek to deceive God s last day people. They are deceived into thinking they are rich and wealthy and have need of nothing. God calls us each one to repent of our pride and invite Him into our hearts and lives that He may finish the work He has begun in us, so that when He appears, we shall be like Him

15