Day 167 – 1 Kings 9, 2 Chronicles 8

Talking Points

• God appears to Solomon a second time. This time, there is a personal call for Solomon’s obedience, in addition to the nation remaining faithful to the LORD. God’s chosen leaders are not only to call others to obey, they are to walk in a way that honors God. To lead in God’s system, you must walk as He commands. There is no such thing as “do as I say, not as I do.”
• There is no substitute for trusting God and walking in obedience — not an act, not a speech, not the most elaborate temple.
• God warns that should Solomon lead Israel to turn away from Him and follow after other gods, this impressive temple would be impressive in its ruin.

Thoughts

The chronicler records something interesting in 2 Chronicles 8:11: Solomon builds a separate house in a separate city for his Egyptian wife. Having taken the Pharaoh’s daughter in a sinful political move, Solomon knows it would not be right for her to dwell where the ark of the covenant had been. In fact, he doesn’t think God would be pleased to have her in Jerusalem at all. No matter his reasoning for marrying this woman, Solomon did know it was wrong and that it didn’t honor God.

And, so, Solomon did what many of us do when we know we are wrong. He made accommodations for his sin. He wanted to receive God’s favor and he wanted to enjoy the temporary benefits of his sin. That will never work! It may seem ever so slight, but this exact issue will be Solomon’s downfall.

The lesson to be learned here: We cannot accommodate sin in our lives. It always grows. Spreads. Bears its ugly fruit.