"KING AHAB"

>>>Some of the kings in the Bible, regardless of how they start, end up committing terrible sins before God.

*They step outside of the purpose God has for them.

>>>This message is about that progression and atrocity of sin.

>>>What starts out “small” can quickly become something unbelievable.

SIN LOOKS GOOD.

>>>There is a natural tendency for us to drift towards sin because of its appeal.

*Looks good because it just looks good (Eve/Solomon)

*Easy to do (wide and narrow way)

*What everyone else does (Adam/Israel wanting king/worshipping gods of other nations)

*Gets us what we want (Cain/Gen 6/greed/Rom 1-trading what’s natural)

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>>>After Solomon, Rehoboam began to reign. But there was also Jeroboam who rebelled, splitting the kingdom of Israel (Israel/Judah).

>>>Jeroboam thought that if his kingdom went to Judah to worship God, they would join back as a nation, and he would be put to death.

>>>His response was building two golden calves, claiming they were the gods who freed Israel from Egypt.

*This misled Israel into idolatry and continued on.

>>>1 Kings 16 is nothing but sin, idolatry, and chaos. Omri was only king for 6 months before being overthrown. Next in line was King Ahab.

1 Kings 16:29–33 “Now Ahab the son of Omri became king over Israel in the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah, and Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria for twenty-two years. Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the Lord more than all who were before him. And as though it had been a trivial thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, he married Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and went and served Baal, and worshiped him. So he erected an altar for Baal at the house of Baal, which he built in Samaria. Ahab also made the Asherah. So Ahab did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him.”

>>>(v.30) The first description of Ahab was that he did more evil in God’s sight than the kings before-exactly what was said about his father.

HE TOOK SIN FURTHER.

>>>When God is pushed out of the picture, there is no limit to sin. Death is the stopping point.

>>>What started as a king’s sinful thought (Jeroboam) became a culture of sinful actions.

>>>Sin has enough to give and plenty to take. It is attractive enough to get us on board but will eventually bring about consequences that are far more costly.

*Once we allow sin to take hold of our lives, especially outside of a relationship with God, there is no limit to what we will do.

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>>>(v.31) As if it was “trivial” for Ahab to walk in the sins of Jeroboam...

*“trivial” means “insignificant”.

*Ahab walked (followed) in the idolatrous way of Jeroboam as if it wasn’t a big deal.

*Ahab was a major follower. He followed in the wrongs of others.

>>>In his treating his wickedness as “trivial”, Ahab married Jezebel and began to fully adopt her religion of worshipping Baal.

*Jezebel’s dad was Ethbaal (“Baal is with him).

*Ahab was actively and progressively participating in sin.

SIN WAS TREATED AS TRIVIAL.

>>>(vss.32-33) Ahab set up altars to Baal and the Asherim (in Samaria-the capital).

>>>Ahab was the one who brought heavy foreign worship to the kingdom of Israel, literally doing more than the kings before him.

>>>Some people are just not bothered by sin. Sin looks good in some way to them, so they pursue it as if it’s just a mundane part of their lives.

>>>What is your attitude toward sin? Do you see what’s wrong as insignificant?

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>>>(v.33) Ahab did more than any king before him to make God angry (provoke).

>>>Ahab’s kingdom was full of perverse worship of false gods.

SIN MAKES GOD ANGRY.

>>>The word “provoke” meaning “to make angry” also carries the meaning of “agitate”-like how siblings always agitate each other.

>>>Ahab led his kingdom to agitating God to anger. They totally forsook Him and His commandments.

*He followed in the sins of everyone else, living his own life of sin as well.

*He was the one held repsonsible.

>>>Our sin makes God angry. God is a God of love, but He is also a God of wrath.

John 3:36 “The one who believes in the Son has eternal life; but the one who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.””

>>>The only way to have eternally life is through believing on Jesus. People who do not believe on Jesus will continue to live in disobedience to Him, and His wrath remains on him.

*People living unrepentant in sin are sitting under the anger of God.

*Have you ever thought of God’s ultimate showing of love is through Jesus? Outside of that is wrath and judgment.

>>>To some people Sin looks better than God’s love. God’s anger is worth a sinful life.

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>>>How do you view the sin in your life? Do you see it as something deserving of hell? Or is it something good to you?

>>>Think about how sin has affected your life (divorce/drugs/alcohol/bad influences/consequences). Yet people will continue in it.

*All from one sinful decision

>>>The only way out of a life of sin/God’s wrath is through repenting of that sin and trusting Jesus with your life.

*Sin looks good, but does Jesus look better?