Day 174 – 1 Kings 12-14

Talking Points

• The tangled history of God’s people moves forward. It seems whatever mighty works God has done in their past are not enough to keep them from turning away from Him and living in neglect of His commands.
• Rehoboam shows a truth about leadership. He decides the best way to keep power is not by leading people with their respect, but ruling over them by fear. The people despise this type of leadership and respond in rebellion. A true leader will hold the hearts of his people.
• False worship of false gods marks the divided kingdom. Wickedness and vile acts stand in the face of the one true God. Imagine how things have changed from the time of David and the early reign of Solomon.

Thoughts

The story of the prophet from Judah is really unimaginable. God sends him to tell of His coming judgment through King Josiah. He faithfully delivers the message, even in the face of the king’s opposition. Evidently, he has also been told to neither eat nor drink until he returns from his journey. At first, he upholds this command, refusing to eat with the king. He intends to be obedient. However, later, another prophet lies, telling him an angel has said to eat with him. After dining with this prophet, the man of God is eaten by a lion – a judgment from God for his disobedience.

As harsh as it seems, the point is we are only to listen to the voice of God, and we are to obey His voice, alone. Men, no matter how reliable in the past, no matter their reputation, can lead us astray. Today, we are not to follow preachers, pastors, or any other speaker apart from the message of the Bible. Today, Satan has overrun us with people claiming “a word from God.” We must be diligent to hear and obey only the voice of God, found in His Word, the Bible.