Promises and Warnings Part 2

1 Kings 11:4–12 NKJV

4 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. 5 For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. 6 Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and did not fully follow the Lord, as did his father David. 7 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. 8 And he did likewise for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods. 9 So the Lord became angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned from the Lord God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice, 10 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. 11 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. 12 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.

This morning is the second part of a 2 part series. Last week we looked at how God had given Solomon a special privilege. The Holy Spirit had not been given to all people yet. God appeared to Solomon twice in a dream. He promised great blessing if he followed the Lord with his whole heart. The nation of Israel reaped the benefits of serving God.

1 Kings 4:25 NKJV

25 And Judah and Israel dwelt safely, each man under his vine and his fig tree, from Dan as far as Beersheba, all the days of Solomon.

2 Chronicles 1:15 NKJV

15 Also the king made silver and gold as common in Jerusalem as stones, and he made cedars as abundant as the sycamores which are in the lowland.

Wow. Imagine that. No famine. No homelessness. Everyone could live off the land. There was security. No fear of war. I can not even imagine living at a time like that. To see silver and gold so numerous, it must of seemed like heaven.

The lowest unemployment rate in this country was 3.5% in 2019. That still represented 5.4 million people unemployed. Imagine 5.4 million people not on welfare and not collecting an unemployment check and not needing food stamps. WOW, it is incomprehensible because it is what we live with. And on top of that, no fear of war or terrorists. If you set aside all the wonderful blessings of a relationship with the Lord, heaven, streets of God, sound mind, healing, and many numerous other things, and just think of economics. In 2011, the United States Senate Budget for 80+ federal welfare programs was $1.03 trillion. Imagine what we could do with that money if every single person would accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and their Saviour and really mean it and we were able to enjoy the blessings that Israel enjoyed during the reign of Solomon. I don’t know, maybe apply it to our $22.6 trillion debt.

But Solomon turned his heart away from God and went after other gods. The prosperity left, the peace left, and the self-sufficiency left. Sin carries a very heavy price.

Ashtoreth - goddess of love and war. This seems to be self explanatory. In a world full violence and the sanctity of marriage is not respected or encouraged. The family is the cornerstone of a society. If the family is destroyed, then the society is destroyed. Once again, we can look to Israel to see the disaster.

Chemosh - the destroyer. There is not a lot known about this god. He was something that did not have rules. Worship him but you did not know if you appeased him or not. But if worse came to worse, human sacrifice was a good option. In 2 Kings 3, the Moabite king sacrificed his only son on the wall because the Israelites were defeating him. If we compared this to anything in our time, it would be humanism. Today, this god might be called a humanist. He is meaningful to people who believe that man’s destiny is not involved with the God of the Bible. Man becomes the maker and breaker of his own life. He becomes his own Chemosh. To the humanist mindset, man must provide for himself. Man himself is worshipped…..in his own being and identity. Evolving from some lower life forms and pulling himself up through evolutionary life forms, our humanist Chemosh, demands only that man himself is deified. He is the god of his own universe. The acquisition of knowledge through man’s own intellect is the source of man’s power. The humanist refuse to accept that the laws of logic, uniformity and morality come from the foundation of knowledge given to man through one holy God. Who Was Chemosh? - GEWatkins.net

Molech/Milcom - burning of the children. This is still going on in our civilized country under the name of abortion. Politically correct may say it is the woman’s right to choose or for the sake of convenience. But we are no different than Solomon towards the end of his life, just like the blessings left, the blessings will leave unless we turn our whole hearts back to God.

Conclusion:

We see the effects today of a country who has turned their backs on God just like Solomon did. Sin has a very heavy price and Jesus was willing to pay it. Would everyone bow their heads and close their eyes? Where are you at? The choice is for you today. Have you compromised with the world as Solomon did? Have you worshipped at any of these alters? Our world makes it seem so easy. “Truth is not absolute. It is what you make it.” Then what happens when it all comes crashing down? What happens when it is time to pay the piper? Who will be there to pick you up? To put the pieces back together?

Isaiah 61:3 NKJV

3 To console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.”

Jesus the Christ, the Lover of you soul will be there. Let us not make the same bad choices as Solomon. Let us commit anew today to serve the Lord with our whole heart and honor his sacrifice. Let us be thankful and sing Hallelujah.

Video

Rusty Nails

7eventh Time Down

Rusty nails In tender skin In calloused hands of man Penning all that is so good Onto pieces of wood

It was blood that came pouring down From a holy crown Blood that was shed for me

Hallelujah The heavens will ring Hallelujah Creation will sing Praise to the king Hallelujah

Rusty nails In tender skin In calloused hands of man Penning all that is so good

Hallelujah The heavens will ring Hallelujah Creation will sing Praise to the king

Hallelujah In every town Hallelujah Salvation has come From the glorious one Hallelujah

Empty grave Where our king was laid Forever our world was changed So let your children sing

Hallelujah The heavens will ring Hallelujah Creation will sing Praise to the king

Hallelujah In every town Hallelujah Salvation has come From the glorious one Hallelujah

Hallelujah