Jeroboam
Spiritual Adultery is introduced to the Northern Kingdom part 1
When Solomon dies, his son Rehoboam is made king. Now Solomon had caused great prosperity to come to Israel. He expanded the kingdom, built the Temple along with other magnificent buildings, explored deep into Africa, traded around the known world, put in roads and was wealthy beyond compare. But the people were tired of all the taxes and all the work even though they too had prospered.
So when his son decides to raise the taxes even more there is rebellion in the land. That is when Jeroboam is picked by the discontented to lead them. The land is then divided between Northern and Southern kingdoms. This is when things go from bad to worse. In order to keep his subjects from visiting Jerusalem every year to offer sacrifices to the Lord, Jeroboam decides he will make two holy sites in his kingdom.
For today I want you to read the Scripture that deals with this crossroads in Israel’s history. And then I want us to use our imaginations and flesh out the characters.
Read: 1 Kings 11:26-12:33 and if you have time, the mirroring passage, 2 Chronicles 10.
Wow, talk about political intrigue, fighting for a cause, listening to bad advice and religious servitude all rolled into one.
I am going to tell you how I see Jeroboam and then I want you to take a turn at making him flesh and blood.
My name is Jeroboam and I am from the tribe of Ephraim. We are a proud lot, having been home to the Ark of the Covenant up until the time that King David took it to Jerusalem. And of course we know what a fiasco that was at first, what with a man dieing because they do not know how to move the Ark correctly. But eventually, King Solomon builds the Temple in Jerusalem and the Ark is there to stay.
Now I know King Solomon personally. I am strong and intelligent so I had been chosen by him to lead in a building project. Of course, with my natural talents at leadership, it is no wonder that Solomon begins to fear my popularity. What can I say, even as a youth, people have been drawn to me and are always asking me what should be done. It’s a curse to be so popular.
And then to make matters even trickier with the King, the old prophet comes to tell me that I have been chosen by God. You may well wonder what I had been chosen to do. With my talents it could have been anything, lead an army, become top advisor to the wisest king ever, become a mighty man of God. But I was even blown away when he tore his new clothes and told me to take 10 of the 12 pieces. I waited for him to explain as he told me I was to be king over 10 parts of Israel. Me! Even I could not have wished so highly. I could not wait to tell everyone what I had been promised. Maybe I should have kept it quiet, because King Solomon did not like the news nearly as much as I did.
That is why I went to Egypt for awhile. I sure like Egypt. What a wild life I had there and what friends I made while waiting until the King was dead and his son had started to rule. I was called back by the men that had served under me. They were so happy to see me and anxious about what the new king would do. So, as the leader I am, we set off to Shechem to meet with King Rehoboam. Being wise, I tell the king if he is fair with me and my followers we will serve him. And being not one to rush things I allow him to take 3 days to think it over.
Well I can tell you, King Rehoboam listened to the wrong people. The young guys he grew up with liked the rich and easy life, so they talked him into raising our taxes and making life even harder on us. Of course, I could not stand for that, so we are separating ourselves from Judah and forming our own kingdom. And who do you think is king of this kingdom? You are right…it is me! The prophet’s words are coming true.
But now I have my own decisions to make. I do not want us to be so intertwined with Judah. How do I keep my followers from going back to Jerusalem and following Rehoboam? If only the Temple were not there! As an Israelite we must worship God, but if I could change a couple of the rules, I would have more control of the people.
Now it is your turn. Write it any way you like. A list of attributes, a list of decisions made, compare Jeroboam to people you have known in leadership. Have fun!
Some questions to ponder and answer:
Who called Jeroboam to lead the 10 tribes?
Why was God angry with Solomon?
Why did Rehoboam not listen to his father’s advisors?
What is so enticing about listening to his peers instead?
God had said he would bless Jeroboam, if he followed His ways, why do you think Jeroboam set up his own form of worship?
Could time in Egypt (world) have led to some of the decisions that Jeroboam made?
Why were the people willing to follow Jeroboam even after he started the false worship?
Now we have the background to why there were 2 kingdoms in the time of Hosea. Not a very good start for either the Northern or Southern Kingdom. But God still has a plan to work out through these two separate kingdoms.
Solomon started out good, for that matter Jeroboam started out good and Rehoboam had a chance to start out good but they all failed to follow the Lord with their whole heart.
Any decisions you need to make today….Let’s lay them out before the Lord and seek His guidance in all things. Let’s end well!!!
Showing posts with label idolatry. Show all posts
Showing posts with label idolatry. Show all posts
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
My Reason for doing this study
What I am thinking about the Book of Hosea
We are called to love the Lord God with all our heart, soul, mind, body and spirit. So why do I feel like I need to be digging into this idea of spiritual adultery to present at retreat? Why is my emphasis on not turning, looking, going back? If we simply love the Lord the way we are supposed to, won’t we avoid any of the pitfalls I am studying about?
What is being impressed on me is that we are unable to do the things that we should or even want to because of our nature. We do not remember from moment to moment, let alone from day to day, what the Lord does for us. We may be thanking God one minute for healing us, but then the next we are trying to figure out how we are going to put food on the table. What had happened to our realization that everything comes for the Lord. That even our ability to work was a gift from Him.
And then there is the problem of sin and idolatry. We cannot go very long without falling into one or the other. We either say something that should not have been said. Think about something that should be avoided or we allow something to come between us and our love for Jesus, usually ourselves. We need constant reminders to get our eyes back on Jesus.
And now we add spiritual adultery into the mix. At first it seemed to me to be the same thing as idolatry and even though there are similarities, I am finding that there are subtle differences. They go hand in hand, but there is an attitude that is different. This is part of what we will be studying.
But again, why do I feel like this is necessary to study in such detail? What are the practical implications of this study and others we have or will do for our retreats? I am feeling that God has called us to get into the details, the minutia, and then share that with others so that they will have a foundation to work out their everyday living; that there will be an understanding for them as they try to love the Lord each and every day but fail. That God’s unfailing love will manifest in their lives and they will know that this is a lifelong process that can only be lived one day, one moment, at a time. There are no quick fixes, only eternal security in the one who created us.
Everything is the way it is in order for God’s glory to shine in every situation. We need Him constantly throughout the day to do and work in us. And when that happens, we and others see His glory. When we fail, we see His glory in His love for us. When we repent we see His glory in His forgiveness. When we are delivered we see His glory in His victory. When we go through difficulties we see His glory in His steadfastness and promises.
God created the world and humanity in such a way that things have to be the way they are; there is no way around it. There can never be a human utopia and we can never reach perfection while we live on this earth. It is completely and utterly impossible. That is why Jesus’ life is soooo unique. He lived a sinless life! We cannot even live a sinless day, unless of course, we are in a coma with no brain activity, but not much gets accomplished that way.
So I am feeling that some of us are called to get into the details and then share them with others. They then take a quick look, in comparison, and then can live their life more effectively for the Lord. Just as the Prophets were called to speak out the truth, the people had the choice then to believe and change or continue doing what they had been doing.
Our ministry is then similar to that of the prophets. To find the truth, to speak it out and pray for the results. We can do no more, and certainly we can do no less. This is a solemn responsibility, to be taken very seriously.
We are called to love the Lord God with all our heart, soul, mind, body and spirit. So why do I feel like I need to be digging into this idea of spiritual adultery to present at retreat? Why is my emphasis on not turning, looking, going back? If we simply love the Lord the way we are supposed to, won’t we avoid any of the pitfalls I am studying about?
What is being impressed on me is that we are unable to do the things that we should or even want to because of our nature. We do not remember from moment to moment, let alone from day to day, what the Lord does for us. We may be thanking God one minute for healing us, but then the next we are trying to figure out how we are going to put food on the table. What had happened to our realization that everything comes for the Lord. That even our ability to work was a gift from Him.
And then there is the problem of sin and idolatry. We cannot go very long without falling into one or the other. We either say something that should not have been said. Think about something that should be avoided or we allow something to come between us and our love for Jesus, usually ourselves. We need constant reminders to get our eyes back on Jesus.
And now we add spiritual adultery into the mix. At first it seemed to me to be the same thing as idolatry and even though there are similarities, I am finding that there are subtle differences. They go hand in hand, but there is an attitude that is different. This is part of what we will be studying.
But again, why do I feel like this is necessary to study in such detail? What are the practical implications of this study and others we have or will do for our retreats? I am feeling that God has called us to get into the details, the minutia, and then share that with others so that they will have a foundation to work out their everyday living; that there will be an understanding for them as they try to love the Lord each and every day but fail. That God’s unfailing love will manifest in their lives and they will know that this is a lifelong process that can only be lived one day, one moment, at a time. There are no quick fixes, only eternal security in the one who created us.
Everything is the way it is in order for God’s glory to shine in every situation. We need Him constantly throughout the day to do and work in us. And when that happens, we and others see His glory. When we fail, we see His glory in His love for us. When we repent we see His glory in His forgiveness. When we are delivered we see His glory in His victory. When we go through difficulties we see His glory in His steadfastness and promises.
God created the world and humanity in such a way that things have to be the way they are; there is no way around it. There can never be a human utopia and we can never reach perfection while we live on this earth. It is completely and utterly impossible. That is why Jesus’ life is soooo unique. He lived a sinless life! We cannot even live a sinless day, unless of course, we are in a coma with no brain activity, but not much gets accomplished that way.
So I am feeling that some of us are called to get into the details and then share them with others. They then take a quick look, in comparison, and then can live their life more effectively for the Lord. Just as the Prophets were called to speak out the truth, the people had the choice then to believe and change or continue doing what they had been doing.
Our ministry is then similar to that of the prophets. To find the truth, to speak it out and pray for the results. We can do no more, and certainly we can do no less. This is a solemn responsibility, to be taken very seriously.
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Hosea...Week 1....Day 2 Obedience
Hosea
Week 1 Day 2 Obedience
2 When the LORD began to speak by Hosea, the LORD said to Hosea:
“ Go, take yourself a wife of harlotry
And children of harlotry,
For the land has committed great harlotry
By departing from the LORD.”
3 So he went and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son.The next few days we are going to take a look at obedience. The one thing that really stands out to me about Hosea is his instant obedience. God told him to marry a harlot and the next verse we see Hosea carrying out the command. In Hosea’s case we do not see any arguing with the Lord, we do not see any hesitation in the timing. What we do see is instant obedience. How refreshing! But how not like the way I normally react. How about you?
I want to learn how to be obedient like Hosea so we are going to spend some time looking at what the Lord has to say about obedience.
Hosea 6:5-7
5 Therefore I have hewn them by the prophets,
I have slain them by the words of My mouth;
And your judgments are like light that goes forth.
6 For I desire mercy and not sacrifice,
And the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.
7 “ But like men they transgressed the covenant;
There they dealt treacherously with Me.
Here in Hosea, God tells us what about obedience?
Let’s compare some words to get a clearer picture of what is being said:
Mercy_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Sacrifice_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Knowledge______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Burnt offerings___________________________________________________________
Transgressed____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Dealt treacherously________________________________________________________
Looking at these words, what are you beginning to understand a little more clearly about obedience?
The argument had been throughout the prophets by the people of Israel was that they had made sacrifices and offerings but still they were having major problems. They could not understand why the Lord would punish them or fail to bless them, when they were going through the motions. Let’s take a look and see some of their behavior problems.
King Saul was the very first king of Israel. He was chosen by God to be their king because he looked the part. He was tall, handsome, physically fit and could carry himself in a kingly manner. At first, Saul was very humbled by being chosen. We even have a report that he was filled by the Spirit and able to prophesy just like the prophets but being king soon changed the way he felt about himself and his relationship with the Lord. He made the mistake of thinking much too highly of himself and treating the Lord casually, almost as an equal.
Read the story in 1Samuel 15 about King Saul and his failure to completely follow the Lord’s commands.
Thinking about obedience, why do you think this story is so important?
Is there anything in this story that you see as being unfair? (After all Saul did say he was sorry for doing things his own way. Do you think he was really sorry, or just sorry he got caught?)
What were the long term ramifications of Saul not obeying God completely?
Let’s look at Samuel’s response to Saul’s words of trying to justify his actions:
1 Samuel 15
22 So Samuel said:
“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.
23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft,
And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry.
Because you have rejected the word of the LORD,
He also has rejected you from being king.”
What are some of the things that Samuel is accusing Saul of doing?
Today is word day, so look up:
Rebellion________________________________________________________________
Witchcraft_______________________________________________________________
Stubbornness_____________________________________________________________
Iniquity_________________________________________________________________
Idolatry_________________________________________________________________
Rejected_________________________________________________________________
The next time you justify your actions to God for not completely obeying what it is you know you should be doing, think back to Saul.
BTW a descendant of King Agag is the Haman in the Book of Esther that was so determined to destroy all the Jews in Persia. So remember, there are always consequences to our disobedience, we may not be around to see them, but none the less, they are still there.
Tomorrow we will take a look at what Jesus had to say about obedience.
But for today, take time to write out how obedience is important in your walk with the Lord. Also, be real with yourself and write down some of the reasons that you have a hard time being obedient every time.
Week 1 Day 2 Obedience
2 When the LORD began to speak by Hosea, the LORD said to Hosea:
“ Go, take yourself a wife of harlotry
And children of harlotry,
For the land has committed great harlotry
By departing from the LORD.”
3 So he went and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son.The next few days we are going to take a look at obedience. The one thing that really stands out to me about Hosea is his instant obedience. God told him to marry a harlot and the next verse we see Hosea carrying out the command. In Hosea’s case we do not see any arguing with the Lord, we do not see any hesitation in the timing. What we do see is instant obedience. How refreshing! But how not like the way I normally react. How about you?
I want to learn how to be obedient like Hosea so we are going to spend some time looking at what the Lord has to say about obedience.
Hosea 6:5-7
5 Therefore I have hewn them by the prophets,
I have slain them by the words of My mouth;
And your judgments are like light that goes forth.
6 For I desire mercy and not sacrifice,
And the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.
7 “ But like men they transgressed the covenant;
There they dealt treacherously with Me.
Here in Hosea, God tells us what about obedience?
Let’s compare some words to get a clearer picture of what is being said:
Mercy_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Sacrifice_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Knowledge______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Burnt offerings___________________________________________________________
Transgressed____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Dealt treacherously________________________________________________________
Looking at these words, what are you beginning to understand a little more clearly about obedience?
The argument had been throughout the prophets by the people of Israel was that they had made sacrifices and offerings but still they were having major problems. They could not understand why the Lord would punish them or fail to bless them, when they were going through the motions. Let’s take a look and see some of their behavior problems.
King Saul was the very first king of Israel. He was chosen by God to be their king because he looked the part. He was tall, handsome, physically fit and could carry himself in a kingly manner. At first, Saul was very humbled by being chosen. We even have a report that he was filled by the Spirit and able to prophesy just like the prophets but being king soon changed the way he felt about himself and his relationship with the Lord. He made the mistake of thinking much too highly of himself and treating the Lord casually, almost as an equal.
Read the story in 1Samuel 15 about King Saul and his failure to completely follow the Lord’s commands.
Thinking about obedience, why do you think this story is so important?
Is there anything in this story that you see as being unfair? (After all Saul did say he was sorry for doing things his own way. Do you think he was really sorry, or just sorry he got caught?)
What were the long term ramifications of Saul not obeying God completely?
Let’s look at Samuel’s response to Saul’s words of trying to justify his actions:
1 Samuel 15
22 So Samuel said:
“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.
23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft,
And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry.
Because you have rejected the word of the LORD,
He also has rejected you from being king.”
What are some of the things that Samuel is accusing Saul of doing?
Today is word day, so look up:
Rebellion________________________________________________________________
Witchcraft_______________________________________________________________
Stubbornness_____________________________________________________________
Iniquity_________________________________________________________________
Idolatry_________________________________________________________________
Rejected_________________________________________________________________
The next time you justify your actions to God for not completely obeying what it is you know you should be doing, think back to Saul.
BTW a descendant of King Agag is the Haman in the Book of Esther that was so determined to destroy all the Jews in Persia. So remember, there are always consequences to our disobedience, we may not be around to see them, but none the less, they are still there.
Tomorrow we will take a look at what Jesus had to say about obedience.
But for today, take time to write out how obedience is important in your walk with the Lord. Also, be real with yourself and write down some of the reasons that you have a hard time being obedient every time.
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Hosea and Gomer--just wondering
After Hosea took Gomer to be his wife, it reads like boom, boom, boom, she had three babies; one right after the other. One would get weaned and then another would be on its way. Can you just imagine her, like so many women; all of a sudden her whole life is consumed with motherhood. She was young and desirable one minute and the next she is up to her eyeballs in diapers. Not the glamorous life she had thought marriage would be.
Let’s make Gomer human and think about her without finger pointing.
• Did Gomer know why Hosea had picked her to be his wife
• Did she want to get married or was she even part of the transaction
• Was motherhood difficult for her or what she had always wanted
• Did the stress of three babies prove to be too much for her
• Did she desire to feel beautiful again
• Was being desired by men more important than fulfilling the desires of her children
• Was she searching for her youth or fleeing from feeling old
• Did she ever see the error of her ways and come to her senses
• When she was bought back by Hosea, what then was her attitude to husband and children
• Did she finally find love and fulfillment with Hosea
In Gomer then, we see a woman not too different from many young ladies around us, even ourselves at times. Our society values youth and beauty over just about everything. The only thing that is close is wealth, but that carries a double edged sword. Wealth from being young and beautiful is OK, but wealth from hard work is not fair to those that did not get the chance.
We all know that in order to sell products, advertisers go out of their way to make the product look like it will be fun, exciting and cause us to be youthful and beautiful and exciting as well. Sex sells and keeping us young sells. Millions are spent to entice us into buying products and services that will give us that edge. How often do we compare ourselves to the models and feel like a failure because there is no way we can ever be that beautiful or young or thin or wealthy or whatever…..
I was thinking the other day about modern day whoredoms in the church. For the most part, churches themselves do not have sexual orgies although members may be involved in sex sins. But what the church has recently sold them over to is the prosperity religion. The name it and claim it crowd has brought their brand of religion into the church and sold its members a bill of goods that has caused many to stumble.
We have made God our Genie who will bring us the money we need as long as we make our wish properly. Just like Israel, we expect God to take care of us financially and keep us healthy when we call out to Him, because, after all, we are called by His name.
If idolatry is putting anything or anyone before God and spiritual adultery is giving credit to someone or something for what God has done, how does that affect us in our daily walk with God? Is it even necessary to know the difference or to understand this concept?
God says over and over in His Word, “Let those that have eyes to see, see and ears to hear, hear”. So I feel that I am here to bring some of these things to light so that they can be seen and dealt with; that the truth can be heard, so that the lie no longer has any power. Is it necessary to know the difference? Not really. What is important is that we realize that there is something holding us back and the only way to have victory is with the power of the Holy Spirit. We can never let anything be more important in our life than Jesus. We must always realize that it is God that is in control and all things come under His command. That is what this study will strive to teach.
• God is God
• There is none like God
• God is in control
• We are not God
• We will never be God
• Only God can satisfy
• All is for the glory of God
• God will do whatever it takes
• God’s goal is to show His glory
Let’s make Gomer human and think about her without finger pointing.
• Did Gomer know why Hosea had picked her to be his wife
• Did she want to get married or was she even part of the transaction
• Was motherhood difficult for her or what she had always wanted
• Did the stress of three babies prove to be too much for her
• Did she desire to feel beautiful again
• Was being desired by men more important than fulfilling the desires of her children
• Was she searching for her youth or fleeing from feeling old
• Did she ever see the error of her ways and come to her senses
• When she was bought back by Hosea, what then was her attitude to husband and children
• Did she finally find love and fulfillment with Hosea
In Gomer then, we see a woman not too different from many young ladies around us, even ourselves at times. Our society values youth and beauty over just about everything. The only thing that is close is wealth, but that carries a double edged sword. Wealth from being young and beautiful is OK, but wealth from hard work is not fair to those that did not get the chance.
We all know that in order to sell products, advertisers go out of their way to make the product look like it will be fun, exciting and cause us to be youthful and beautiful and exciting as well. Sex sells and keeping us young sells. Millions are spent to entice us into buying products and services that will give us that edge. How often do we compare ourselves to the models and feel like a failure because there is no way we can ever be that beautiful or young or thin or wealthy or whatever…..
I was thinking the other day about modern day whoredoms in the church. For the most part, churches themselves do not have sexual orgies although members may be involved in sex sins. But what the church has recently sold them over to is the prosperity religion. The name it and claim it crowd has brought their brand of religion into the church and sold its members a bill of goods that has caused many to stumble.
We have made God our Genie who will bring us the money we need as long as we make our wish properly. Just like Israel, we expect God to take care of us financially and keep us healthy when we call out to Him, because, after all, we are called by His name.
If idolatry is putting anything or anyone before God and spiritual adultery is giving credit to someone or something for what God has done, how does that affect us in our daily walk with God? Is it even necessary to know the difference or to understand this concept?
God says over and over in His Word, “Let those that have eyes to see, see and ears to hear, hear”. So I feel that I am here to bring some of these things to light so that they can be seen and dealt with; that the truth can be heard, so that the lie no longer has any power. Is it necessary to know the difference? Not really. What is important is that we realize that there is something holding us back and the only way to have victory is with the power of the Holy Spirit. We can never let anything be more important in our life than Jesus. We must always realize that it is God that is in control and all things come under His command. That is what this study will strive to teach.
• God is God
• There is none like God
• God is in control
• We are not God
• We will never be God
• Only God can satisfy
• All is for the glory of God
• God will do whatever it takes
• God’s goal is to show His glory
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