The Foolish King 2 Chronicles 10:1-15

Jimmy Donaldson, also known online as MrBeast, has become a benevolent YouTube star for his provocative brand of philanthropy. He’s given away homes, cars, a private island, and lots and lots of cash. Usually, it comes with a dark twist: Once, he offered a man $10,000 a day for each day he was willing to live in a grocery store without leaving. In his most popular video, “$456,000 Squid Game in Real Life!” 456 people competed in a game show inspired by the dystopian Netflix drama “Squid Game.” (In the Netflix show, down-and-out contestants play deadly versions of children’s games to win $38 million.)

In March of 2024 MrBeast announced “Beast Games,” and thousands of people jumped at the chance, posting on Reddit threads about the application process and waiting hopefully to be accepted. The prize: $5 million.

Familiar with MrBeast’s content and with the lengths to which those who appear in his videos must go in order to win, many expected outlandish and even potentially risky challenges.

During an intake process this year, several contestants told The New York Times that they had been asked whether they would be willing to be buried alive or travel to outer space. One contestant recalled being asked if she would be able to swim to shore if thrown overboard from a boat. “I understand that such activities may cause me death, illness, or serious bodily injury, including, but not limited to exhaustion, dehydration, overexertion, burns, and heat stroke,” read a line in a contract that applicants were required to sign. (Such language is commonplace in reality television contracts.)

In screenshots from a group chat, some of the contestants appeared unbothered by the experience. They had signed a contract that they were willing to die for this.

-The Lord invites His people to accept His wisdom with humility

I. Rehoboam Faces a Moment of Opportunity vv. 1-5

In our passage, Rehoboam, the son of Solomon has risen to the throne and all of the tribes of Israel are gathered together, essentially to find out what kind of king he will become

The people, with Jeroboam among them, have a request.

The presence of Jeroboam is critical here

The Lord has already prophesied that 10 of the tribes of Israel will one day be under his authority (See 1 Kings 11: 26-36)

They ask for Rehoboam to lighten the load that Solomon put on them

Solomon did great works, but they had a great price

The people were heavily taxed, they were forced to labor on behalf of the government, and the projects seemed to never end

While the Temple is the most well-known, most of these projects were for Solomon, his allies, or his wives, or to build more cities in lands that they had reclaimed

The people are fracturing and Rehoboam can either win their favor or he can lose them completely

A preacher was taking a group of Christians on a tour of the Holy Land. He had just read them the parable of the good shepherd and was explaining to them that, as they continued their tour, they would see shepherds on the hillsides just as in Jesus' day. He wanted to impress the group, so he told them what every good preacher tells his people about shepherds. He described how, in the Holy Land, shepherds always lead their sheep, always walking in front to face dangers, always protecting the sheep by going ahead of them.

He barely got the last word out when, sure enough, they rounded a corner and saw a man and his sheep on the hillside. There was only one problem: the man wasn't leading the sheep as the preacher had said. No, he was behind the sheep and seemed to be chasing them.

The preacher turned red. Flabbergasted, he ran over to the fence and said, "I always thought shepherds in this region led their sheep -- out in front. And I told my people that a good shepherd never chases his sheep."

The man replied, "That's absolutely true... you're absolutely right... but I'm not the shepherd, I'm the butcher!"

II. Rehoboam Receives Two Kinds of Wisdom vv. 6-11

Rehoboam turns his counselors, which is a good thing, but receives two very different sets of answers:

First, he speaks to his father’s counselors, wise men of an older generation.

They recommend that he listen to the people and provide relief

Be good to the people, give them a break

Speak kindly to them

If he does this, he will receive their love and service

Second, he speaks to his peers, and their wisdom is exactly the opposite

Speak harshly to them

Make your own greatness clear to them

Threaten them and make them fear you

For most of us, the stakes in our decision don’t look quite this extreme, but I think that we need to pay attention as believers in Jesus

Which of these looks like the wisdom of Jesus and which of these looks like the wisdom of the world?

What would Jesus do? Better yet, what did Jesus do?

Luke 22:24–27

[24] A dispute also arose among them, as to which of them was to be regarded as the greatest. [25] And he said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those in authority over them are called benefactors. [26] But not so with you. Rather, let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves. [27] For who is the greater, one who reclines at table or one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at table? But I am among you as the one who serves. (ESV)

III. Rehoboam Chooses and Loses vv. 12-15

Rehoboam listens to the wisdom of his young men:

It is his own wisdom, first and foremost. It is what he already wanted to do

He rejects the older wisdom, likewise, because he does not want to listen to anyone who disagrees with him

He is rejecting the wisdom of humility:

He will not change his course

He will not listen to those who he disagrees with

He will not choose a path of serving and loving the people of God

This is part of a pattern of rebellion:

David with Bathsheba

Solomon’s idolatry

Rehoboam’s arrogance

Rehoboam is making free choices, but he is continuing down a pathway that will cost him the kingdom

The Word of the Lord may feel a little contradictory here:

He is always trying to save the kingdom for the household of David

While at the same time, He has declared that a son of Solomon would lose the kingdom

I do not know what it would have looked like if Rehoboam had been wiser in this situation, but I know that it didn’t have to turn out the way that it did

Rehoboam could have chosen the wisdom of the humble and kept the kingdom, but he didn’t and it cost him the kingdom!

In many ways this week, we will face a similar kind of decision:

Will I try to be a servant or a master?

Will I listen and learn, or will I only speak to be heard?

Will I seek the good of others, or will I live with self-interest?

The way you answer that question will probably determine the quality of your trip, and it will certainly determine the character of your walk with Jesus

You have a moment right now. What will you do with it?

In the days before modern harbors, a ship had to wait for the flood tide before it could make it to port. The term for this situation in Latin was ob portu, that is, a ship standing over off a port, waiting for the moment when it could ride the turn of the tide to harbor.

The English word opportunity is derived from this original meaning. The captain and the crew were ready and waiting for that one moment for they knew that if they missed it, they would have to wait for another tide to come in.