In Solomon’s old age, they turned his heart to worship other gods instead of being completely faithful to the LORD his God, as his father, David, had been. Solomon worshiped Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molech, the detestable god of the Ammonites. In this way, Solomon did what was evil in the LORD’s sight; he refused to follow the LORD completely, as his father, David, had done. [1 Kings 11.4-6]
Lest we think a little commitment to God will do, Solomon's account reveals God's opinion about commitment divided between Him and other gods.
God never has, nor ever will, share our devotion with anything or anyone else.
You must not have any other god but me. [Exodus 20.3]
What is a "god?" A god is anything that we trust in for anything.
Almighty God demands our undivided devotion - our undivided trust in Him alone for everything.
There is something to be said for simplicity here. It was in the multitude of wives that Solomon eventually 'crossed the line' and brought in women from countries God said to have nothing to do with because of their pagan ways and cultures. Oh, I am sure it seemed harmless enough at first... a little here, a little there, and before long Solomon's harem was a cesspool of pagan worship that, Solomon's 'dipping his toe in' eventually led to him being immersed in its filth.
As the One Year Chronological Bible would arrange it, this account of Solomon's demise immediately precedes Ecclesiastes that starts off with his emotionally depressed declaration:
“Everything is meaningless,” says the Teacher, “completely meaningless!” [Ecclesiastes 1.2]
Coincidence? Not a chance!
In the multiplicity of gods for us to trust in, reason and meaning lose their substance. In contrast, a simple and undivided allegiance and faith in God alone gives reason and meaning to everything. The ONLY way to see the reason and meaning in everything is to live by only one set of ideals - God's.
In the simplicity of trusting in God alone, curses have clear reason and meaning calling God's followers to repentance and faith in Christ (Who replaced the sacrifices of Old Testament Law). Death, theft, and destruction are ONLY the work of Satan. Life in all abundance then, is ONLY the work of Salvation by faith in Jesus Christ.
To seek help for curses from any source other than God and God alone is spiritual adultery.
Furthermore, God does NOT require the assistance of any other source in order to to meet our needs. This simplicity will render most "believers" today dead. In our "yeah, but..." version of "Christianity" it is no wonder we do not see the manifest power of God on any measurable scale at all. If we have good medicine, insurance, and a solid job, who needs God anyway? Confusing? It should be because faith in God mixed with faith in the world can bring nothing but confusion!
What do we do? We get rid of the foreign wives in our lives! We stop pagan practices! Like Joshua, we declare our undivided trust in and allegiance to God ALONE!
But if you refuse to serve the LORD, then choose today whom you will serve. Would you prefer the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates? Or will it be the gods of the Amorites in whose land you now live? But as for me and my family, we will serve the LORD.” [Joshua 24.15]
Nowhere is the zombie apocalypse more prevalent than in the modern Church (at least in the West). Churches today are full of the living dead - those who go through the motions of life but who in reality are dead to the core. Their sustenance is not from God, but instead from every provision of man's knowledge and the world. The Apostle Paul described it like this:
They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly. Stay away from people like that! [2 Timothy 3.5]
The more the knowledge and solutions of man increase in the Church, thus diluting faith in God alone, the more the Church finds herself in Solomon's same dilemma: “Everything is meaningless,” ...“completely meaningless!”
Call me a fool, but if I die trusting in God alone, it will be in simple and uncomplicated faith free from doubt about whether I have trusted in the foreign gods of the world's knowledge and reason! I wish to hear the words, "Well done good and FAITHFUL servant!"
The problem lies in the fact that the women who became Solomon's wives were most likely the most attractive women to be found... We should all think about this as the world offers us its best and most attractive solutions to things God said to trust Him alone for...
Father, I want to trust You alone. Help me to rid myself - to divorce myself - from the attractive things of this world that draw my trust to them pulling me away from trusting You alone.
1 comment:
Loved the word brother Greg. So very deep but only in Gods word, the reality is it’s only skin deep within the world. I thought it was well put in how the modern church is right along with the world in its religion and how in some ways the church is the one leading the way to straight up damnation. Yes our church leading us astray. Our church leaders allowing us to be completely lead off cue to what the word of God tells us. We have to continually be on guard to what we are taking in. Thx for your word brother. Lots to reflect on and meditate on even more. God bless you.
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