Key Lesson: Beware! The Devil often attacks after a victory. The Evening of Victory Day That afternoon, Elijah had won the victory, or rather God had. God had sent fire from heaven that devoured Elijah’s sacrifice, the wood, the altar and the water. The people returned their loyalty to Jehovah. They killed the 450 prophets […]
Jeroboam was the first king of the northern tribes of Israel. He made a good start, but quickly turned away from God. Transition As we look at Jeroboam’s reign as king over Israel, I find three lessons for us that will keep us from failing as he failed. The first lesson for us is to […]
Have you ever thought, “If I just had more ___ that would really satisfy me.” It may be more money, more friends, more popularity, more clothes, more pleasures or anything else you desire. The reality is that having more only leads to wanting more. It does not satisfy the soul. Solomon learned this lesson by […]
Rehoboam became the fourth king of Israel when he was 41 years old (1Ki 14:21). He reigned 17 years. He was the son of Solomon and Naamah who was an Ammonitess. Yes, his mother was one of Solomon’s strange wives. The Ammonites were enemies of Israel. Solomon’s marriage to Naamah must have been about two […]
King Jehoshaphat received news that a huge army was preparing to attack Jerusalem (2Ch 20:1-2). When he received the news, he did three things to prepare. As we face the coming coronavirus, we would be wise to do just what Jehoshaphat did when facing an enemy far too strong for him (2Ch 20:1-30) Transition I […]
Key Lesson: Faith is believing what God said He would do. Ahab is Unmoved Evidently unmoved by God sending fire from heaven, wicked King Ahab showed no sign or personal repentance. Instead of joining his people in shouting, “the LORD He is the God”, he was just a silent bystander. Even when Elijah and the […]
Solomon, whose name means, peace, became the third king of Israel when he was just 18 or 20 years old. Though he had several older brothers, both God and his father David chose Solomon to be the third king (1Ki 1:33-36). Because Solomon loved the Lord, at his request, God gave him more wisdom than […]
Last week, we learned that Solomon probably wrote the book of Ecclesiastes to a young philosopher. In it, he gives frustrating examples of how life under the sun (earthly life) does not make sense. It is vanity or empty. These frustrating examples or disturbing reflections act as goads that poke us to get us to […]
Key Lesson: God desires to show Himself strong! The Reason for the Contest Backsliding: The people had turned their hearts away from Jehovah and were worshipping Baal. They could not see Jehovah, but they could see Baal. Jehovah required that they live pure and righteous lives. Baal worship included impurity as part of the worship. […]
David was the second king of Israel. He was the son of Jesse. He ascended the throne when he was 30 years old. He reigned as king of Israel for 40 years. Though he was a good king, he was far from perfect. He committed both adultery and murder. At the same time, we read […]