Latest / Bible in a Year with Jack Graham / Solomon's Fall from God - The Books of 1 Kings & 2 Chronicles

Transcript

Solomon's Fall from God - The Books of 1 Kings & 2 Chronicles · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Let us pray. Wherefore the Lord said unto Solomon, Forasmuch
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: as this is done of thee, and thou hast not
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: kept my covenant and my statutes which I have commanded thee,
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will
• 0:16
  Speaker 1: give it to thy servant. 1 Kings 11.11 Heavenly Father,
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: with every new breath that I take, and as I
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: watch you bring goodness and increase into my life, Help
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: me not to forget that apart from you and your presence,
• 0:34
  Speaker 1: there is no true life. I will not forget that
• 0:39
  Speaker 1: it is in you that I live, I breathe, and
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: I have my being. So when temptations and the pleasures
• 0:48
  Speaker 1: of this world try to lure me from your path
• 0:50
  Speaker 1: of godliness, I will hold fast and combat the lie
• 0:55
  Speaker 1: that life is better without you. I will reject the
• 0:59
  Speaker 1: many idols that will try to divide me from your
• 1:01
  Speaker 1: divinity like Solomon in his latter years. I will speak
• 1:06
  Speaker 1: to my mind and heart and command it to remember
• 1:10
  Speaker 1: the God of your youth, the God who has always
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: been there guiding, loving, protecting me on the way to
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: my designed destiny. I confess that my future is secure
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: as long as I secure myself in your ways, God.
• 1:28
  Speaker 1: Thank you for preserving me and protecting me and drifting
• 1:32
  Speaker 1: away from my spiritual foundation. You, Lord. In Jesus' name. Amen.
• 1:42
  Speaker 1: Listening to these daily prayers strengthens your relationship with God.
• 1:46
  Speaker 1: Continue hearing from the Lord by listening to today's Bible
• 1:50
  Speaker 1: in a Year. Brought to you by BibleInAYear.com.
• 2:05
  Speaker 2: Solomon's Fall from God In our last story, the temple
• 2:10
  Speaker 2: of God was finally built. David's dream to see God's
• 2:14
  Speaker 2: home amongst the people of Israel had finally been fulfilled
• 2:18
  Speaker 2: through his son Solomon. King Solomon dedicated the temple to God,
• 2:24
  Speaker 2: and a new age of peace fell upon the Hebrews
• 2:27
  Speaker 2: for the first time in their history. In this story,
• 2:31
  Speaker 2: Solomon meets the Queen of Sheba and slowly begins to
• 2:35
  Speaker 2: fall from God. Solomon will seek to fill a hole
• 2:39
  Speaker 2: in his heart with women as his final years bring
• 2:43
  Speaker 2: war to the land of Israel, inspired by the books
• 2:47
  Speaker 2: of 1 Kings and 2 Chronicles.
• 2:53
  Speaker 3: Hi, this is Pastor Jack Graham with today's episode of
• 2:56
  Speaker 3: the Bible in a Year podcast. In our last episode,
• 3:00
  Speaker 3: we heard how Solomon built the temple for the Lord,
• 3:02
  Speaker 3: a glorious temple. Israel was in a time of unprecedented
• 3:08
  Speaker 3: prosperity and peace. And the people gathered to worship God
• 3:12
  Speaker 3: in this magnificent temple that Solomon had built, the place
• 3:15
  Speaker 3: where God's presence would dwell among them. But as we
• 3:19
  Speaker 3: will hear today, as Solomon's fame grew, bringing wise men
• 3:23
  Speaker 3: and royals from far and wide to seek his counsel,
• 3:26
  Speaker 3: he became distracted by things other than God. It would
• 3:30
  Speaker 3: spell the end of peace for Israel and mar his
• 3:33
  Speaker 3: legacy forever. So let's listen now to today's reading from
• 3:37
  Speaker 3: God's Word.
• 3:40
  Speaker 2: Under the rule of Solomon, Israel became the crown jewel
• 3:44
  Speaker 2: of the Eastern world. Kings and queens of all nations
• 3:48
  Speaker 2: would visit Israel to marvel at Solomon's temple, libraries, architecture, gardens,
• 3:54
  Speaker 2: and fields. Solomon's fame spread across the deserts, forests, and
• 3:59
  Speaker 2: mountain ranges. Wise men and women would travel far and
• 4:04
  Speaker 2: wide to seek his counsel. He was the heralded philosopher king,
• 4:09
  Speaker 2: and all adored his kind and wise nature. One day,
• 4:14
  Speaker 2: a caravan emerged from the south. A sea of camels, jewels, spices,
• 4:19
  Speaker 2: and gold paraded into the city streets. At the top
• 4:23
  Speaker 2: of her carriage, pulled by prized camels, The queen of
• 4:27
  Speaker 2: Sheba sat lounging in the mild Israeli sun. She had
• 4:31
  Speaker 2: heard of Solomon's great wisdom and sought to ask him
• 4:35
  Speaker 2: questions of ethics, politics, philosophy, and theology. Solomon watched as
• 4:40
  Speaker 2: the queen's caravan filled Jerusalem like a golden river. He
• 4:45
  Speaker 2: beckoned her into his palace, and the two spoke of
• 4:48
  Speaker 2: deep things among his gardens. The queen had profound questions
• 4:52
  Speaker 2: and challenging problems that needed solving. However, nothing was too
• 4:57
  Speaker 2: hard for the king. Gently and kindly, Solomon walked the
• 5:01
  Speaker 2: queen through every issue. She was amazed at his wisdom.
• 5:05
  Speaker 2: She had not realized just how knowledgeable the king truly was.
• 5:09
  Speaker 2: Nor did she expect the riches of Israel to be
• 5:12
  Speaker 2: so vast and immaculate. She watched the way Solomon's servants
• 5:16
  Speaker 2: worked diligently and with joy. She awed at the worship
• 5:20
  Speaker 2: in the temple, and she could not understand the depth
• 5:23
  Speaker 2: of Solomon's kindness. 'despite his riches.' I had heard much
• 5:28
  Speaker 2: about your country and its achievements,'' the queen said.' However,
• 5:32
  Speaker 2: it has exceeded my wildest dreams.'' A smile came across
• 5:36
  Speaker 2: her face.' How happy your people must be to live here,'
• 5:39
  Speaker 2: and how happy your officials must be to learn under you.'
• 5:42
  Speaker 2: Praise your God for what has happened here.'' Then she
• 5:47
  Speaker 2: gave Solomon a gift of nine thousand pounds of gold,'
• 5:50
  Speaker 2: along with spices and precious jewels.' After saying goodbyes, the
• 5:55
  Speaker 2: queen departed, determined to bring similar wisdom and joy to
• 5:59
  Speaker 2: her land. Solomon was gifted with great wisdom and riches,
• 6:04
  Speaker 2: yet even his intellect and wealth could not protect him
• 6:07
  Speaker 2: from the darkness within his own heart. Solomon slowly began
• 6:11
  Speaker 2: to search for meaning in things other than God. His
• 6:15
  Speaker 2: heart often wandered aimlessly, seeking satisfaction in carnal activities. Solomon
• 6:21
  Speaker 2: had a love for foreign women. What started as marriages
• 6:24
  Speaker 2: to form alliances quickly turned into a sick addition to
• 6:28
  Speaker 2: new women and new pleasures. Besides his first wife from Egypt,
• 6:33
  Speaker 2: Solomon married women from Moab, Amman, Edom, Sidon, and Hittite.
• 6:39
  Speaker 2: He immersed himself in the strange sexual practices of other cultures.
• 6:44
  Speaker 2: Soon his mind began to wander into the dark recesses
• 6:47
  Speaker 2: of other religions. This is why the Lord had strictly
• 6:51
  Speaker 2: warned the people of Israel to not marry those with
• 6:54
  Speaker 2: other gods. Solomon was reaping the terrible consequences of his actions.
• 6:59
  Speaker 2: Solomon amassed a harem of 700 wives and 300 concubines,
• 7:05
  Speaker 2: continually wanting to satisfy himself with new women. He began
• 7:09
  Speaker 2: to forget what it meant to love faithfully. Solomon's heart
• 7:13
  Speaker 2: began to fall from God. Solomon had built the temple
• 7:17
  Speaker 2: of God, For this, he would be remembered forever for
• 7:20
  Speaker 2: his faithfulness. However, his union with many different cultures and
• 7:23
  Speaker 2: nations also led him to build shrines and altars to
• 7:27
  Speaker 2: false gods. With each passing year, Solomon would give a
• 7:31
  Speaker 2: piece of his soul over to a new god. This
• 7:34
  Speaker 2: caused a deep anger in God. He had gently warned
• 7:38
  Speaker 2: Solomon many times. However, his heart was corrupted just as
• 7:42
  Speaker 2: his ancestors in the wilderness. God's wrath burned against Solomon,
• 7:47
  Speaker 2: and he decided to divide his kingdom among his descendants.
• 7:51
  Speaker 2: As Solomon engaged in his sexual idol worship, rebels and
• 7:55
  Speaker 2: adversaries began to emerge from the depths of Israel, giving
• 7:59
  Speaker 2: Solomon his first taste of war. Rebellion from the east
• 8:04
  Speaker 2: and south began to emerge, and Solomon was finally called
• 8:08
  Speaker 2: to war. His era of peace had been interrupted by doubt, bloodshed,
• 8:13
  Speaker 2: and conflict. This was a representation of Solomon's heart. For
• 8:17
  Speaker 2: the last years of Solomon's life, he warred against rebellion
• 8:21
  Speaker 2: and felt no peace. For 40 years, Solomon ruled over Israel.
• 8:27
  Speaker 2: He brought the nation into an unprecedented era of peace.
• 8:31
  Speaker 2: His heart to worship God reflected his father's, and his
• 8:34
  Speaker 2: wisdom gave him more riches than he could ever have imagined. However,
• 8:38
  Speaker 2: the last few years of his rule was marked with woe.
• 8:42
  Speaker 2: Towards the end of his life, Solomon's writings became contemplative
• 8:46
  Speaker 2: and sorrowful. He reflected on the meaningless pursuit of knowledge, riches,
• 8:51
  Speaker 2: and success. As his eyes began to dim and his
• 8:54
  Speaker 2: bones grew brittle, Solomon finally came to the understanding that
• 8:59
  Speaker 2: there is no meaning in life apart from God's presence.
• 9:03
  Speaker 2: With his dying breath, he praised God, and his son, Rehoboam,
• 9:08
  Speaker 2: took his place as king.
• 9:13
  Speaker 3: As we begin today's passage, Solomon has become a man
• 9:16
  Speaker 3: of great renown, not only in Israel, but all around
• 9:19
  Speaker 3: the world. Word of his wisdom and kindness spread far
• 9:23
  Speaker 3: and wide to kings and queens and sages from distant lands.
• 9:27
  Speaker 3: Just as God had promised him, Solomon's wisdom was matched
• 9:30
  Speaker 3: by no one. But his wealth and prosperity was also
• 9:35
  Speaker 3: without equal. It was an opportunity for Israel to be
• 9:38
  Speaker 3: a shining witness to the rest of the world. as
• 9:41
  Speaker 3: when the queen of Sheba came to see Solomon. She
• 9:44
  Speaker 3: was impressed by his great mind and by the wealth
• 9:47
  Speaker 3: that she saw in his country. She even seemed to
• 9:50
  Speaker 3: praise God for what he had done for Israel. But
• 9:53
  Speaker 3: in reality, she wasn't interested as much in the giver
• 9:56
  Speaker 3: of blessings as she was in the blessings and all
• 9:59
  Speaker 3: the blessings of God. benefits themselves. Though she had a
• 10:02
  Speaker 3: chance to turn to God, the one true God, and
• 10:05
  Speaker 3: honor him, what she really wanted, in the end, were
• 10:08
  Speaker 3: the riches. Unfortunately, it wasn't just the Queen of Sheba
• 10:12
  Speaker 3: who missed the point of things. As his fame and
• 10:15
  Speaker 3: influence grew, Solomon's attentions turned away from God And then
• 10:20
  Speaker 3: came the gratifying of the flesh. Like so many before him,
• 10:25
  Speaker 3: Solomon's appetite for sexual pleasure clouded his vision. And being
• 10:30
  Speaker 3: a man of such power and influence, he was able
• 10:33
  Speaker 3: to take many wives for himself. As he would later
• 10:36
  Speaker 3: write in Ecclesiastes, Solomon denied himself nothing he desired. That
• 10:43
  Speaker 3: is a recipe for disaster. He married women from many
• 10:47
  Speaker 3: different countries. women who worshiped other gods. Taking wives from
• 10:52
  Speaker 3: other nations was against God's will, and in 1 Kings 11,
• 10:55
  Speaker 3: verse 2, we hear why. You shall not enter into
• 10:59
  Speaker 3: marriage with them, neither shall they with you, for surely
• 11:04
  Speaker 3: they will turn away your heart after their gods. But Solomon,
• 11:09
  Speaker 3: for all of his wisdom, ignored God's command, and sure enough,
• 11:12
  Speaker 3: his heart became divided. He took more than 700 wives
• 11:16
  Speaker 3: and 300 concubines, and each of these unions chipped away
• 11:21
  Speaker 3: at his relationship with the Lord and his ability to lead.
• 11:26
  Speaker 3: Despite multiple warnings from God, Solomon allowed himself to be
• 11:30
  Speaker 3: corrupted by lust, and eventually God's anger could be held
• 11:35
  Speaker 3: back no more. The peace that Israel had experienced was
• 11:38
  Speaker 3: shattered as wars broke out once more. Not only that,
• 11:43
  Speaker 3: but Solomon's own peace was destroyed and sorrow filled his
• 11:46
  Speaker 3: heart for much of his latter years. Because of his
• 11:50
  Speaker 3: persistent sin, God would split the kingdom in two. But
• 11:54
  Speaker 3: this would not happen until his son Rehoboam became king.
• 11:59
  Speaker 3: It is the tragic result of sin and unfaithfulness, and
• 12:02
  Speaker 3: it is a powerful reminder that what Israel needed, what
• 12:06
  Speaker 3: we all need, is a king that was not just wise,
• 12:10
  Speaker 3: but one who is perfectly good and pure. And there
• 12:13
  Speaker 3: is only one king who is above all kings. He
• 12:17
  Speaker 3: would one day rise from the house of David as
• 12:20
  Speaker 3: Savior and Lord and give us the power to defeat sin.
• 12:24
  Speaker 3: Jesus is the King of kings and the Lord of lords.
• 12:29
  Speaker 3: Solomon came to understand at the end of his life
• 12:32
  Speaker 3: what his father knew, that there is nothing that compares
• 12:35
  Speaker 3: to being in God's presence. Solomon repented and praised God
• 12:39
  Speaker 3: once more before he went to his final rest and
• 12:42
  Speaker 3: the kingdom passed into the hands of his son, Rehoboam.
• 12:46
  Speaker 3: Would the new king model the wisdom of his father,
• 12:49
  Speaker 3: or was Israel headed for more pain? We'll find out
• 12:53
  Speaker 3: the next time. Dear God, we remember the words of
• 12:57
  Speaker 3: the hymn which says, Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it.
• 13:02
  Speaker 3: Prone to leave the God I love. We are all
• 13:06
  Speaker 3: prone to leave the God that we love. Just like Solomon,
• 13:10
  Speaker 3: we want to wander. But God, we ask you to
• 13:14
  Speaker 3: move in our hearts. to sanctify and purify us, and
• 13:18
  Speaker 3: by your grace and because of your forgiveness, that we
• 13:21
  Speaker 3: would live holy and godly lives. Help us to keep
• 13:26
  Speaker 3: our eyes on you and to worship you and you only.
• 13:30
  Speaker 3: May you be our King and our Lord forever and ever. Amen.
• 13:35
  Speaker 3: Thank you for listening to today's Bible in a Year podcast.
• 13:38
  Speaker 3: I'm Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas. Download the Pray.com app
• 13:42
  Speaker 3: and make sure that prayer and Bible reading is a
• 13:45
  Speaker 3: priority in your life. If you enjoyed this podcast, let
• 13:49
  Speaker 3: someone else know. Share it with someone you love and
• 13:52
  Speaker 3: let's get the Word of God out to many, many people.
• 13:56
  Speaker 3: And if you want more resources as to how you
• 13:59
  Speaker 3: can learn and live the Christian life, be sure to
• 14:03
  Speaker 3: visit jackgraham.org. That's jackgraham.org.