Bad Counsel

 

1 Kings 12:12-15

 

May 29, 2021

 

So, Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king said, “Come to me again the third day.”   And the king answered the people harshly and forsaking the counsel that the old men had given him, he spoke to them according to the counsel of the young men, saying, “My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke. My father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions.”   So, the king did not listen to the people, for it was a turn of affairs brought about by the Lord that he might fulfill his word, which the Lord spoke by Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat.

 

It is easy for a smart person to be stupid, and Rehoboam did not acquire his father’s wisdom.  But God, one of my favorite statements, “but God,” was all over this and the new king listens to the council of his peers and not the older men who had been with his dad.

When God has spoken, it will happen, not in your timeline or mine, but according to His desired will.  The Church, not Baptist, nor Catholic nor any of the other man-made groups are the Church, all of them have members of the Church in them.  Could it be agreed that membership in the Body of Christ is placing one’s faith in Christ alone, and if you are not in agreement with that, you are not a part of the Church of the Living God?  Jesus made clear to all in Matthew 16:15-18, that it was Peter’s confession of Jesus, that is the Rock Jesus is building His Church own.

“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”

Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven.   And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock, I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.

When Jesus tells us; “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.”  That is not a suggestion, it is the only way it is going to take place in one’s life.  It will require discipline, in reading God’s word and seeking His will in your life.  

 

Shall we agree that the Bible is true, and a follower of Christ will not only study it but do what it directs them to do?  Shall we finish with 1 John 2:15-17, ^“Do not love the world or anything in the world?  If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them.   For everything in the world-the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world.   The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.”  Nothing has changed at all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.  But I’ve changed and it's all because of Jesus Christ, I do not desire the worldly desire of my youth, I’m still learning and seeking the will of my Father, and I need Jesus more today so I can finish my race and get the prize.

 

From the Back Porch,

 

Bob Rice