Divided Kingdom: Rehoboam and Jeroboam

Lesson 2

Passage: 1 Kings 11-14; 2 Chronicles 10-12

Big Idea: Sin’s Consequences

Doctrine: Sin: It’s Character and Universality

Aim:

Strategic Framework:

INTRODUCTION

1: Division Within (internal division led to external division) (Solomon) 1 Kings 11-

a

b. 1 Kings 11:1-8: Compromising heart/Conforming heart

Leaves sin unchecked (History; 1 Kings 3/Deut. 17)

w/ wives…1 Kings 11:1-3

other gods…1 Kings 11:1-5

Results in divided heart 1 Kings 11:9

DOCTRINE: Sin

c. 1 Kings 11:11- 43: has Consequences

11:9-13: of Divided Kingdom

11:14-43: of Adversaries (Hadad, Rezon, Jeroboam)

God’s sovereignty (11:14, 23)

Principle: When we become tolerant of sin in culture our hearts turn away from God.

Continuous dismissing of sin can lead to painful longterm consequences.

Application:

DIVISION 2 Resistance-> Stubborn Heart (Rehoboam) 1 Kings 12:1-24; 2 Chronicles 12-14

a. I Kings 12: 1-24: Rejects Wisdom

Listened to friends over wisdom

Fulfills God’s plan: God’s sovereignty in choices

vs. 15, 24

2 Chronicles 12 Abandons God’s law

Has opportunity to Repentant:

Repentance

consequences remain

Principle: God invites repentance to all, but the consequences of sin remain.

Are you willing to

DIVISION 3: God’s Invitation back to him (Jeroboam) 1 Kings 12:26-14

a. 1 Kings 12:25-33: Invitation through need for security—> Jeroboam instead chose to sin instead of going to God

b. 1 Kings 13:1-34 Invitation Through warnings

b.1 Kings 14:1-20 Invitation Through painful consequences

c. Security—>Self Reliant Heart 1 Kings 12:25-33

Leading other into sin (idol worship)

b. Control/Rebellion 1 Kings 13:1-10

J refuses to listen to the Word Of the Lord (I know better)

Prophet:

b. 1 Kings 14:1-20: Results in painful consequences

14:1-20: Jeroboam/Israel’s Consequences

14:21-31: Rehoboam/Judah’s Consequences

Principle: Refusal to follow God results in painful consequences.

Application:

Where are you blatantly refusing to follow God

CONCLUSION

I. Introduction 2 minutes

II. Division 1: The Division- 1 Kings 11 (SOLOMON) 9 minutes

a. Background 2

Last week we talked about the Davidic Covenant—> made with King David...where he promised that a King will forever sit on the throne of David.

So our scripture picks up this week with the end of King Solomon’s reign- and Solomon was David’s son.

In 1 Kings 3, God appears to Solomon and tells him that he can ask for whatever he wants...

So, Solomon asks God....for wisdom....

and God grant’s it, and in 1 Kings 4, we learn that Solomon was in fact the wisest man to ever live. It tells us that he had a breadth of understanding as measureless as the sand on the seashore

along with wisdom- 1 Kings 4 also tells us that Solomon’s reign was a time of peace- the people of God were flourishing in the land, growing in numbers; they ate, they drank and they were happy.

in 1 Kings 10, right before we pick up our scripture today- it tells us of Solomon’s splendor-

we learn he drank from golden vessels

he acquired horses

and riches and wealth

As we move into our scripture this week, we see a major flaw in Solomon’s kingdom…vs 1…King Solomon, however....

however…that word however should cause us to pause.

from an earthly perspective- Solomon had it all- wisdom, wealth, security…what else could you need.

it goes on.... “King Solomon however, loved many foreign women besides Pharaohs daughter- Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites. They were from nations about which the Lord had told the Israelites- YOU MUST NOT INTERMARRY WITH THEM, BECAUSE THEY WILL TURN YOUR HEARTS AFTER OTHER GODS.

Back in 1 Kings 3, after Solomon becomes king the 1st thing he does is go to Egypt and take a wife from Pharoah.

it goes on....vs 2...

NEVERTHELESS…in other words…Solomon new…and yet, he continued...

skip to verse 4 w/ me: As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord his God....

What we don’t get to see here is the times that Solomon did follow God- in many ways he was a great King and did truly love the Lord. However, this chapter is pointing out that...

not even the wisest man to ever live was exempt from sin.

We also talked last week about the Mosaic Covenant- this was the law given to Israel by God.

The law is long and detailed, but if you flip to Deuteronomy 17 there is a whole section on Kings and things they were to specifically follow in addition to the other laws.

Here are some of the stipulations God laid out- all of which Solomon did during his reign:

Do not:

multiply gold or silver

multiply horses

take many wives

All of these actions would give him security and good standing with these other nations- again, having him put his trust and security in the surrounding nations rather than in God alone

To the surrounding Kings and nations, Solomon’s actions would have made complete sense.

From a strategic standpoint you wanted to multiply gold and silver, get more horses, and take many wives from many nations…all of those things would have brought security to your nation

however....all of those actions were in direct violation of God’s law…because all of those actions pulled you farther and farther away from him-

listen to God’s wording in Deut. 17:17- Do not take many wives…or your heart will be led astray....

it’s not an accident that you see those exact words here in 1 Kings 11- God warned the Kings that their heart would be led astray....

Where are you compromising on God’s law?

DOCTRINE

Solomon here knew God’s law…he knew the warning...

He compromised on God’s law, because the culture and the world would have told Him what he was doing was perfectly fine, or even…wise...

but…Solomon was the wisest man to ever live..HE KNEW it was not wise to disobey God’s law…and yet, he CHOSE not to follow it.

What Solomon did- was sin…and sin is anything that we do, say, or think that goes against God and His word.

Sin separates us from God…and last week we learned that only when we live as we were created- as God- our creator intended- will we truly flourish and have purpose and meaning in this life.

Adam and Eve chose to sin in the garden- they thought God was holding out on them and their choice led to fallen humanity.

All of us have a sin nature. Romans 3:23 says that “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”

Today, sin still permeates our thoughts, motives, and actions

Sin separates us from God. ALL sin…do not make compromises with God and his wrod becuase

God wants your heart. The word “heart” is used over and over in the 1st few verses of chp. 11- God wants your heart…your full devotion…because only when we are living as we were created can we truly flourish and live with our highest purpose.

If you missed last weeks lecture, you need to go back and listen to it because everything from last week builds upon this week. Where might your heart be being led astray?

That is why it is so important to know God’s word- if Satan could lead the wisest man who ever lived away, then he can certainly lead you astray. None of us our immune.

This might feel basic. Some of you are sitting there like- yea, yea. I know this scripture- but ladies- sin is deadly. It separates us from God and leads to consequences.

In 11:9-43 we see the consequences of Solomon’s choice to sin.

God tells Solomon that because of his choice to compromise- to continue in sin- that the Kingdom will be torn into pieces, splitting 10 tribes away from Solomon and leaving just 1 tribe left in his kingdom..

It goes on to start to show us how this was going to happen as we see God raises up adversaries against Solomon towards the end of his reign

Hadad, Rezon and then Jeroboam

Do not miss God’s hand in this situation....

vs 14 says: the Lord raised up…and it says it again in vs 23....

If you didn’t highlight that this week- now is the time- that phrase is important because that shows God’s sovereignty over what is happening in the Kingdom. We will come back to more of this later, but

In this 1 chapter, we see the culmination of Solomon’s choices over the years to compromise and ignore God’s law which result in devastating consequences for the people.

that brings us to our 1st takeaway:

e. Principle: Unchecked sin can lead to a heart turned away from God.

Application:

If God was writing this chapter about your life…what would it say...

This chapter started with “King Solomon....however....”

Put yourself into this chapter…Megan Hutchinson…however...

It’s interesting that this is the grand finale to Solomon’s life.

Usually after someone passes, people want to remember all the good things about their loved one.

At the end we don’t see a ....however…and then a list of all the bad choices they made as well as how their choices had long-term consequences for those around them.

- Where are you compromising?

Is there a sin you are telling yourself isn’t that big of a deal…it’s not really hurting anyone...

You choices matter.

Your decisions matter.

Your obedience matters.

Those compromises that you make, that you think aren’t that big of a deal, or aren’t effecting anyone else- matter.

God wants your heart- and he wants all of is.

III. Division 2: The Choice 1 Kings 12:1-24; 2 Chron. 10-12 (REHOBOAM) 10 minutes

a. To Reject Wisdom: 1 Kings 12:1-24; 2 Chron. 10 1

b. To follow God: 2 Chronicles 11 1

c. To Abandons God’s Law: 2 Chronicles 12:1-4 1

d. To repent: 2 Chronicles 12:5-15 3

e. To conform: 1 Kings 14:21-31 1

f. And resulting consequences (summary) 1

g. Principle/Application 2

IV. Division 3: The Invitation 1 Kings 12:25-14 (JERABOAM) 7 minutes

a. Through need- 1 Kings 12:25-33 1

b. Through warnings- 1 Kings 13:1-34 2

c. Through consequences- 1 Kings 14:1-20 2

d. Principle/Application 2

V. Conclusion 2 minutes