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Growing Older and Wiser in the Faith
1 Kings 11 – 14 The Fall of King Solomon & the Reign of King Jeroboam
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Remaining Class Schedule
Main Scripture Temptation of Date Text Focus Older Saints 29 April 1 Kings 11: Morbidity 6 May 1 Kings 12: Feeling Abandoned 13 May 1 Kings 12: : Bitterness 20 May 1 Kings 13: Despair & Doubt 27 May 1 Kings 14: Losing Faith
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Temptations We Face as Older Believers
Selfishness Feeling Worthless Stinginess Giving Up Morbidity Feeling Abandoned Bitterness Despair Doubt Losing Faith Despair
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Despair Psychologist Erik Erikson* suggested that there are eight challenges people face through life … these are forks in the road where one could take the wrong or right “tine” (choice) He labeled his final fork for the aged as “Integrity vs. Despair” By “Integrity” he meant an old person who looks back over life and sees it as largely as worthwhile, e.g. “I made some mistakes but my life was worth living” The other tine (Despair) is when an old person reflects on life and regrets the way it turned out “Vanity of vanities …all of life is vanity” To Erikson the major task of old age was to reflect on your life and pronounce it satisfying and worthwhile on the whole * Identity and the Life Cycle
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Despair The temptation here is to reject one’s own life that has already been lived It is why older people turn to alcohol – to drown the vanity of their life It is also partly why the largest single age for suicides is old age, mostly among males These have asked, “What was it all for?” and answered, nothing They examined their life and found it wanting
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How do we resist this particular sin?
Despair This is sometimes why even in the church we see the “walking dead” in our hallways Unwilling to end it all by suicide they pronounce themselves dead while still walking about Succumbing to despair they even see their own impending death as an escape from a painful uselessness of life Plunging into despair is a besetting temptation of old age How do we resist this particular sin?
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Resisting the Temptation to Despair
Write your autobiography for your grandchildren or friends at church Buy a computer or write it out longhand Print it up as a book, copy it on a photocopier or post it on a web site, but do it one way or another Find the worthy things in your life and embrace them so you can pronounce your life worthwhile
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Resisting the Temptation to Despair
Urge other old people to do the same and read their story letting them read yours Find some young person willing to listen to your life story and tell it to them Start a Sunday school class where you tell life stories as “Testimonies to God’s grace” and listen to each other’s stories – affirm the worthiness of life and the faithfulness of God
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The Gospel of Hope Finally, cling to the Good News, the Gospel of Hope
Jesus told the disciples, “In this world you will have sorrow, but take heart I have overcome the world” (John 16:33) This life is not trouble free; Jesus did not sugarcoat what it means to follow Him … our life will be hard But our hope lies in what Christ has done: He overcame sin and death The gospel of Jesus Christ tells us that Jesus was a man of sorrows; He was not unfamiliar with the pain and suffering of this life He knew temptation, sorrow, fear, illness, and death; He experienced rejection, loss, poverty, loneliness, and abuse
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The Gospel of Hope There is not one tear we have shed that He does not understand Jesus took on all our sin, shame, and sorrow at the cross He bore the weight of our guilt and punishment He suffered the torment of separation from God that was rightfully ours Through faith in His complete work of redemption, we have the hope of eternal life forever in a place where there will be no more sorrow and tears And we have hope right now Because of what Jesus accomplished for us, we have been adopted into the family of God … He is our Father … We are co- heirs with Christ … All of God’s promises are for us
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Growing Older and Wiser in the Faith
1 Kings 11 – 14 The Fall of King Solomon & the Reign of King Jeroboam Week #11 – 1 Kings 13:4-34
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What is the judgment of God announced here?
1 Kings 13:1-3 1And behold, a man of God came out of Judah by the word of the Lord to Bethel. Jeroboam was standing by the altar to make offerings. 2And the man cried against the altar by the word of the Lord and said, "O altar, altar, thus says the Lord: 'Behold, a son shall be born to the house of David, Josiah by name, and he shall sacrifice on you the priests of the high places who make offerings on you, and human bones shall be burned on you. '" 3And he gave a sign the same day, saying, "This is the sign that the Lord has spoken: 'Behold, the altar shall be torn down, and the ashes that are on it shall be poured out. '" The very moment the king was dedicating the shrine of Bethel with a sacrifice, God told him that his ungodly altar would be desecrated and his unholy priests destroyed These devastating acts of judgment would be carried out by a king from the house of David, which meant that Jeroboam's dynasty would not endure The prophet prophesied the fall of the house of Jeroboam What is the judgment of God announced here?
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1 Kings 13:4-6 4And when the king heard the saying of the man of God, which he cried against the altar at Bethel, Jeroboam stretched out his hand from the altar, saying, "Seize him." And his hand, which he stretched out against him, dried up, so that he could not draw it back to himself. 5The altar also was torn down, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign that the man of God had given by the word of the Lord. 6And the king said to the man of God, "Entreat now the favor of the Lord your God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored to me." And the man of God entreated the Lord, and the king's hand was restored to him and became as it was before. Jeroboam did everything he could to prevent the predicted judgment of God He demanded his subjects to seize the prophet right then and there What is Jeroboam’s response to this prophet’s preaching against the altar?
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What is the result of Jeroboam’s reaction?
1 Kings 13:4-6 4And when the king heard the saying of the man of God, which he cried against the altar at Bethel, Jeroboam stretched out his hand from the altar, saying, "Seize him." And his hand, which he stretched out against him, dried up, so that he could not draw it back to himself. 5The altar also was torn down, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign that the man of God had given by the word of the Lord. 6And the king said to the man of God, "Entreat now the favor of the Lord your God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored to me." And the man of God entreated the Lord, and the king's hand was restored to him and became as it was before. Lifted Up His Hand The same hand that Jeroboam had lifted against the house of Solomon and the same hand that had grasped the northern kingdom as a gift from God was now useless and paralyzed What is the result of Jeroboam’s reaction?
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Jeroboam Sacrificing to Idols is an oil on canvas painting by Jean Honoré Fragonard
done in 1752
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What is the result of Jeroboam’s reaction?
1 Kings 13:4-6 4And when the king heard the saying of the man of God, which he cried against the altar at Bethel, Jeroboam stretched out his hand from the altar, saying, "Seize him." And his hand, which he stretched out against him, dried up, so that he could not draw it back to himself. 5The altar also was torn down, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign that the man of God had given by the word of the Lord. 6And the king said to the man of God, "Entreat now the favor of the Lord your God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored to me." And the man of God entreated the Lord, and the king's hand was restored to him and became as it was before. By a direct miracle, or a providential cataclysm, Jeroboam's altar was torn in two The ashes poured out, as the prophet had predicted – a clear and immediate sign that God had spoken the truth in judgment Jeroboam's gods failed, as false gods always do What is the result of Jeroboam’s reaction?
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1 Kings 13:4-6 4And when the king heard the saying of the man of God, which he cried against the altar at Bethel, Jeroboam stretched out his hand from the altar, saying, "Seize him." And his hand, which he stretched out against him, dried up, so that he could not draw it back to himself. 5The altar also was torn down, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign that the man of God had given by the word of the Lord. 6And the king said to the man of God, "Entreat now the favor of the Lord your God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored to me." And the man of God entreated the Lord, and the king's hand was restored to him and became as it was before. Jeroboam's heart had been exposed by the word of God At first he had refused to listen to God's word at all; he had gone his own way instead, worshiping idols of his own invention But then he was rebuked by the word that he had rejected Mercifully, God was giving him another opportunity to obey
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1 Kings 13:4-6 4And when the king heard the saying of the man of God, which he cried against the altar at Bethel, Jeroboam stretched out his hand from the altar, saying, "Seize him." And his hand, which he stretched out against him, dried up, so that he could not draw it back to himself. 5The altar also was torn down, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign that the man of God had given by the word of the Lord. 6And the king said to the man of God, "Entreat now the favor of the Lord your God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored to me." And the man of God entreated the Lord, and the king's hand was restored to him and became as it was before. So how should Jeroboam respond? And how should we respond when the Bible rebukes us for all the idols that we are tempted to worship, and when we begin to fear the judgment of God?
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Assess Rehoboam’s response
1 Kings 13:4-6 4And when the king heard the saying of the man of God, which he cried against the altar at Bethel, Jeroboam stretched out his hand from the altar, saying, "Seize him." And his hand, which he stretched out against him, dried up, so that he could not draw it back to himself. 5The altar also was torn down, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign that the man of God had given by the word of the Lord. 6And the king said to the man of God, "Entreat now the favor of the Lord your God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored to me." And the man of God entreated the Lord, and the king's hand was restored to him and became as it was before. Rather than getting angry with the man of God, Jeroboam asked for help, which seems commendable Notice that he did not plead his own merit, but asked for the favor of the Lord – a mercy he knew he did not deserve Yet Jeroboam's request was only partly commendable Why? Assess Rehoboam’s response
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Assess Rehoboam’s response
1 Kings 13:4-6 4And when the king heard the saying of the man of God, which he cried against the altar at Bethel, Jeroboam stretched out his hand from the altar, saying, "Seize him." And his hand, which he stretched out against him, dried up, so that he could not draw it back to himself. 5The altar also was torn down, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign that the man of God had given by the word of the Lord. 6And the king said to the man of God, "Entreat now the favor of the Lord your God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored to me." And the man of God entreated the Lord, and the king's hand was restored to him and became as it was before. Note that he did not pray to God himself, but depended on someone else to do it for him; this is because Jeroboam did not have a personal relationship with God When he talked about the Lord, it was "the Lord your God” not "the Lord our God” or even “the Lord my God” He never repented of his sin, but only wanted relief from its consequences – a dangerous temptation Assess Rehoboam’s response
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What does the man of God do?
1 Kings 13:4-6 4And when the king heard the saying of the man of God, which he cried against the altar at Bethel, Jeroboam stretched out his hand from the altar, saying, "Seize him." And his hand, which he stretched out against him, dried up, so that he could not draw it back to himself. 5The altar also was torn down, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign that the man of God had given by the word of the Lord. 6And the king said to the man of God, "Entreat now the favor of the Lord your God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored to me." And the man of God entreated the Lord, and the king's hand was restored to him and became as it was before. What does the man of God do? By the grace of God, the prophet's prayers were answered His intercession as a true man of God had the power to heal the king and his hand was restored as it was before
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After being healed by God, what does Rehoboam’s next action suggest?
1 Kings 13:7-10 7And the king said to the man of God, "Come home with me, and refresh yourself, and I will give you a reward." 8And the man of God said to the king, "If you give me half your house, I will not go in with you. And I will not eat bread or drink water in this place, 9for so was it commanded me by the word of the Lord, saying, 'You shall neither eat bread nor drink water nor return by the way that you came. '" 10So he went another way and did not return by the way that he came to Bethel. Eating together, in the ancient world as in the modern, is a sign of solidarity Jeroboam's invitation is an offer to join him in an expression of communion The king assumes that the healing of his arm has restored him wholly to God’s good graces Or, perhaps more likely, that the man of God's willingness to share fellowship with him will neutralize the divine rejection implicit in the oracle against the altar After being healed by God, what does Rehoboam’s next action suggest?
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After being healed by God, what does Rehoboam’s next action suggest?
1 Kings 13:7-10 7And the king said to the man of God, "Come home with me, and refresh yourself, and I will give you a reward." 8And the man of God said to the king, "If you give me half your house, I will not go in with you. And I will not eat bread or drink water in this place, 9for so was it commanded me by the word of the Lord, saying, 'You shall neither eat bread nor drink water nor return by the way that you came. '" 10So he went another way and did not return by the way that he came to Bethel. After being healed by God, what does Rehoboam’s next action suggest? Jeroboam was still thinking of religion as something he could manipulate for his own purposes, something he could buy and sell In effect, he was trying to bribe God's prophet By purchasing the man's loyalty, perhaps he could gain the power of his miraculous prayers
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How does the prophet respond to this bribe?
1 Kings 13:7-10 7And the king said to the man of God, "Come home with me, and refresh yourself, and I will give you a reward." 8And the man of God said to the king, "If you give me half your house, I will not go in with you. And I will not eat bread or drink water in this place, 9for so was it commanded me by the word of the Lord, saying, 'You shall neither eat bread nor drink water nor return by the way that you came. '" 10So he went another way and did not return by the way that he came to Bethel. How does the prophet respond to this bribe? The man of God tells the king he must follow the direct command of God given to him He successfully overcomes the temptation to break God's Word and remains faithful God requires complete obedience from His servants even when they do not understand His command
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Why do you think God give these strange instructions in v. 9?
1 Kings 13:7-10 7And the king said to the man of God, "Come home with me, and refresh yourself, and I will give you a reward." 8And the man of God said to the king, "If you give me half your house, I will not go in with you. And I will not eat bread or drink water in this place, 9for so was it commanded me by the word of the Lord, saying, 'You shall neither eat bread nor drink water nor return by the way that you came. '" 10So he went another way and did not return by the way that he came to Bethel. No reason is given for YHWH's prohibition of the man of God receiving hospitality It may be to prevent him from being under any obligation to the powerful Perhaps God gave this strict command not to socialize because he knew that Jeroboam would try to get the prophet to stay with him in Bethel Why do you think God give these strange instructions in v. 9?
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1 Kings 13:7-10 7And the king said to the man of God, "Come home with me, and refresh yourself, and I will give you a reward." 8And the man of God said to the king, "If you give me half your house, I will not go in with you. And I will not eat bread or drink water in this place, 9for so was it commanded me by the word of the Lord, saying, 'You shall neither eat bread nor drink water nor return by the way that you came. '" 10So he went another way and did not return by the way that he came to Bethel. The man of God remained faithful, but to the very end Jeroboam was trying to work the religious system, hoping to get something from God, when he should have repented instead It is sad to see what became of King Jeroboam In answer to prayer his body was healed, but for the neglect of repentance his soul was never saved
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Need For Integrity What will we do when the Word of God rebukes us? Will we continue to go our own way, or will we turn and be saved? In the fall of 1547, a member of England's royal court was sitting under the proclamation of the Word of God The preacher's name was Hugh Latimer, the famous Reformer The listener's name was John Bradford, and he was starting to feel very uncomfortable Like a reforming prophet, Latimer was preaching on integrity – especially the need for honesty and integrity in financial dealings
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Need For Integrity As he listened to the man of God, Bradford began to be convicted of his sin In his work as a paymaster in the army, he had colluded with Sir John Harrington to defraud the crown Now he realized that he had a choice to make Would he reject the rebuke of the Word of God, or would he repent of his sin and make restitution? One of Bradford's biographers tells us what he decided: "Master Latimer ... did earnestly speak of restitution to be made of things falsely gotten. This did so strike him to the heart that he could never be quiet till by the advice of the same Master Latimer a restitution was made.”
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Need For Integrity That restitution was very costly
It exposed Bradford to public shame and also made him some enemies in high places, men who did not want their own crimes to be exposed But John Bradford did what was right When the Word of God rebuked him, he did not keep going his own way, but made a full repentance The Word of God calls us away from idolatry to repentance, faith, and the glory of God Make whatever repentance is needed; do not reject God's Word Do not try to work religion to personal advantage Do not go your own way, but listen to the true Word of God
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It is one of the strangest stories in the Bible
A brave prophet obeys the command of the Lord, then turns right around and disobeys the very same command Another old prophet tells a tricky lie, only later to tell the truth A ferocious lion kills a prophet but refuses to eat him, tamely waiting for the man to be buried instead At the end of the story, a man asks to be buried with the bones of a man he destroyed with a lie
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The problem is not so much that the story is too bizarre, but that it raises too many questions that are hard to answer, including fundamental questions of fairness The story is also troubling because it is hard to tell who the "good guys" are (if indeed there are any) Even the "men of God" who tell the truth turn out to be liars and lawbreakers This story has been aptly labeled by biblical scholars as "one of the most daunting interpretative puzzles among the prose narratives of the Old Testament"
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Yet maybe this is where we can begin to see the connection to our own experience
Is it really surprising to see spiritual failure in the lives of religious leaders? We see this all the time, and sometimes it makes us wonder: if our teachers and preachers are also guilty of sin, what hope is there for God's work in the world? According to 1 Kings 13, our only hope is the true word of God and His saving power to raise the dead
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1 Kings 13:11-15 11Now an old prophet lived in Bethel. And his sons came and told him all that the man of God had done that day in Bethel. They also told to their father the words that he had spoken to the king. 12And their father said to them, "Which way did he go?" And his sons showed him the way that the man of God who came from Judah had gone. 13And he said to his sons, "Saddle the donkey for me." So they saddled the donkey for him and he mounted it. 14And he went after the man of God and found him sitting under an oak. And he said to him, "Are you the man of God who came from Judah?" And he said, "I am.“ 15Then he said to him, "Come home with me and eat bread." Like the man of God from Judah, he is unnamed suggesting they both may play an allegorical role He is “old” suggesting that his career has spanned the reigns of several kings Given the limited information we are provided here, what can we surmise about this prophet in Bethel?
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1 Kings 13:11-15 11Now an old prophet lived in Bethel. And his sons came and told him all that the man of God had done that day in Bethel. They also told to their father the words that he had spoken to the king. 12And their father said to them, "Which way did he go?" And his sons showed him the way that the man of God who came from Judah had gone. 13And he said to his sons, "Saddle the donkey for me." So they saddled the donkey for him and he mounted it. 14And he went after the man of God and found him sitting under an oak. And he said to him, "Are you the man of God who came from Judah?" And he said, "I am.“ 15Then he said to him, "Come home with me and eat bread." In addition, he has to be informed of recent events in Bethel by a third party – in this case his sons This strongly suggests he is not a significant player in Jeroboam's administration Given the limited information we are provided here, what can we surmise about this prophet in Bethel?
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1 Kings 13:11-15 11Now an old prophet lived in Bethel. And his sons came and told him all that the man of God had done that day in Bethel. They also told to their father the words that he had spoken to the king. 12And their father said to them, "Which way did he go?" And his sons showed him the way that the man of God who came from Judah had gone. 13And he said to his sons, "Saddle the donkey for me." So they saddled the donkey for him and he mounted it. 14And he went after the man of God and found him sitting under an oak. And he said to him, "Are you the man of God who came from Judah?" And he said, "I am.“ 15Then he said to him, "Come home with me and eat bread." What did the old prophet of Bethel do when he heard the report from his sons? He got on his donkey and pursued the "man of God" to persuade him to come to his home for rest and refreshment
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What do you think motivated his actions?
1 Kings 13:11-15 11Now an old prophet lived in Bethel. And his sons came and told him all that the man of God had done that day in Bethel. They also told to their father the words that he had spoken to the king. 12And their father said to them, "Which way did he go?" And his sons showed him the way that the man of God who came from Judah had gone. 13And he said to his sons, "Saddle the donkey for me." So they saddled the donkey for him and he mounted it. 14And he went after the man of God and found him sitting under an oak. And he said to him, "Are you the man of God who came from Judah?" And he said, "I am.“ 15Then he said to him, "Come home with me and eat bread." What do you think motivated his actions? Perhaps he was filled with shame for being a faithless prophet in the midst of faithlessness Perhaps he felt he would somehow benefit from an association with the courageous "man of God" Or did he see an opportunity to gain the king's favor by getting the "man of God" to contradict himself & impair his message?
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How did the man of God resist the temptation to sin?
1 Kings 13:16-19 16And he said, "I may not return with you, or go in with you, neither will I eat bread nor drink water with you in this place, 17for it was said to me by the word of the Lord, 'You shall neither eat bread nor drink water there, nor return by the way that you came. '" 18And he said to him, "I also am a prophet as you are, and an angel spoke to me by the word of the Lord, saying, 'Bring him back with you into your house that he may eat bread and drink water. '" But he lied to him. 19So he went back with him and ate bread in his house and drank water. He did it the same way that Jesus resisted all his temptations: by repeating the word of God This is one of the reasons it is so important for us to know our Bibles: so we can take our stand against temptation How did the man of God resist the temptation to sin?
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1 Kings 13:16-19 16And he said, "I may not return with you, or go in with you, neither will I eat bread nor drink water with you in this place, 17for it was said to me by the word of the Lord, 'You shall neither eat bread nor drink water there, nor return by the way that you came. '" 18And he said to him, "I also am a prophet as you are, and an angel spoke to me by the word of the Lord, saying, 'Bring him back with you into your house that he may eat bread and drink water. '" But he lied to him. 19So he went back with him and ate bread in his house and drank water. The old prophet wouldn’t take “no” for an answer What does he do? He did something very wicked He told the man of God from Judah that he had received fresh revelation – a new word from God
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1 Kings 13:16-19 16And he said, "I may not return with you, or go in with you, neither will I eat bread nor drink water with you in this place, 17for it was said to me by the word of the Lord, 'You shall neither eat bread nor drink water there, nor return by the way that you came. '" 18And he said to him, "I also am a prophet as you are, and an angel spoke to me by the word of the Lord, saying, 'Bring him back with you into your house that he may eat bread and drink water. '" But he lied to him. 19So he went back with him and ate bread in his house and drank water. Some people would be very impressed by this kind of claim If someone says he has received a word of knowledge, who are we to disagree? Shouldn’t we expect fresh light to break forth from the Spirit of God? Are we not commanded to obey His word, whatever it says, and whenever it is spoken?
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1 Kings 13:16-19 16And he said, "I may not return with you, or go in with you, neither will I eat bread nor drink water with you in this place, 17for it was said to me by the word of the Lord, 'You shall neither eat bread nor drink water there, nor return by the way that you came. '" 18And he said to him, "I also am a prophet as you are, and an angel spoke to me by the word of the Lord, saying, 'Bring him back with you into your house that he may eat bread and drink water. '" But he lied to him. 19So he went back with him and ate bread in his house and drank water. Here we encounter a rule for Christian scholarship, as well as Christian ministry and practice: No new word of God, or insight from God's Word, can contradict the same word of God we have already received
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1 Kings 13:16-19 16And he said, "I may not return with you, or go in with you, neither will I eat bread nor drink water with you in this place, 17for it was said to me by the word of the Lord, 'You shall neither eat bread nor drink water there, nor return by the way that you came. '" 18And he said to him, "I also am a prophet as you are, and an angel spoke to me by the word of the Lord, saying, 'Bring him back with you into your house that he may eat bread and drink water. '" But he lied to him. 19So he went back with him and ate bread in his house and drank water. What the old prophet said directly contradicted the command that God had already given In this particular case, the prophet of Bethel was lying; we know this because the Bible tells us so: "But he lied to him'‘ Yet even without this privileged info, why should the man from Judah not listen to this prophet?
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Resisting Temptations
Now the man of God had a decision to make What would he do this time: stay in Bethel or go home to Judah? Just because we resist a temptation once does not mean that we will resist it when it comes again The man from Judah had rejected Jeroboam, but this temptation was subtler and therefore stronger Now a false prophet was pressuring him to believe that sin itself was God's will for his life
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Resisting Temptations
We experience the same struggle The temptation to commit sins like anger, greed, lust, and gossip does not come just once, but again and again Often it comes from people who try to tell us that sin is the right thing to do Even sins of violence and perversion have been justified by appealing to the will of God Just because somebody says that something is God's will doesn’t mean that it is God's will We are called only to obey the will of God given in the Word of God
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1 Kings 13:15-19 15Then he said to him, "Come home with me and eat bread." 16And he said, "I may not return with you, or go in with you, neither will I eat bread nor drink water with you in this place, 17for it was said to me by the word of the Lord, 'You shall neither eat bread nor drink water there, nor return by the way that you came. '" 18And he said to him, "I also am a prophet as you are, and an angel spoke to me by the word of the Lord, saying, 'Bring him back with you into your house that he may eat bread and drink water. '" But he lied to him. 19So he went back with him and ate bread in his house and drank water. Rather than doing what he was told to do, "he went back with him and ate bread in his house and drank water“ The issue here is not simply disobedience, but failure to discern false prophecy How does the man of God fail the test?
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Test the Spirits During the 1915 baseball season the St. Louis Cardinals were playing Brooklyn in St. Louis Miller Huggins, the St. Louis manager, was directing his team from the third base coach's box It was the seventh inning, with two outs, the score tied, and one of Huggins' Cardinals on third base, ninety feet away from a score Huggins hollered at the Brooklyn pitcher Ed Appleton: “Hey, bub, let me see that ball!” Appleton was a 23-year-old rookie; with all due respect he tossed the ball to Huggins But the St. Louis manager had not called time out
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Test the Spirits So he simply stepped aside, let the ball roll past, and watched his Cardinal runner trot over home plate with (what proved to be) the winning run Maybe it was the tone of managerial authority in Huggins' demand In any case, Appleton complied …. and lost Baseball doesn't matter but faithfulness does But the problem both in the game and in our text is the same – knuckling under to the tone of authority without examining the word it speaks
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Disappointed and Worried
At this point in the story, we cannot help but feel a little disappointed Yes, the prophet of Bethel was a liar But we expected more from the man of Judah, especially given the way that he stood up to King Jeroboam He really should have known better than to disobey the word of God But even the best of men are only men at best, so sometimes we see sin in the lives of spiritual leaders That is certainly true in this story, where we meet two prophets who are both disobedient to the will of God Not only are we disappointed with these men, but we are also worried for them – worried that trouble will come as the result of their sin And trouble did come, through a prophecy of divine judgment …
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What is surprising about this prophecy?
1 Kings 13:20-23 20And as they sat at the table, the word of the Lord came to the prophet who had brought him back. 21And he cried to the man of God who came from Judah, "Thus says the Lord, 'Because you have disobeyed the word of the Lord and have not kept the command that the Lord your God commanded you, 22but have come back and have eaten bread and drunk water in the place of which he said to you, "Eat no bread and drink no water," your body shall not come to the tomb of your fathers. '" 23And after he had eaten bread and drunk, he saddled the donkey for the prophet whom he had brought back. This time the word spoken by the prophet from Bethel really did come from God Does this seem strange to you? It shouldn’t … we should remember that the word of God always comes through sinful men What is surprising about this prophecy?
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What divine judgment is promised?
1 Kings 13:20-23 20And as they sat at the table, the word of the Lord came to the prophet who had brought him back. 21And he cried to the man of God who came from Judah, "Thus says the Lord, 'Because you have disobeyed the word of the Lord and have not kept the command that the Lord your God commanded you, 22but have come back and have eaten bread and drunk water in the place of which he said to you, "Eat no bread and drink no water," your body shall not come to the tomb of your fathers. '" 23And after he had eaten bread and drunk, he saddled the donkey for the prophet whom he had brought back. What divine judgment is promised? This was not a declaration of final judgment, damning the man to perdition, yet it was a prophecy of dishonor The man of God wouldn’t make it back to Judah alive He would die away from home, suffering the further disgrace of not being buried with his own people
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1 Kings 13:24-25 24And as he went away a lion met him on the road and killed him. And his body was thrown in the road, and the donkey stood beside it; the lion also stood beside the body. 25And behold, men passed by and saw the body thrown in the road and the lion standing by the body. And they came and told it in the city where the old prophet lived. On his way down the road, the prophet meets a lion that kills him So the servant of God died for his disobedience For some strange reason, the lion seemed to have lost his appetite He did not devour his victim, as lions generally do Nor did he show any culinary interest in the tasty donkey that was standing nearby No, this lion was on God’s leash How was the prophecy fulfilled? What was unusual about it?
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What is shocking about the prophet of Bethel’s remarks?
1 Kings 13:26-30 26And when the prophet who had brought him back from the way heard of it, he said, "It is the man of God who disobeyed the word of the Lord; therefore the Lord has given him to the lion, which has torn him and killed him, according to the word that the Lord spoke to him." 27And he said to his sons, "Saddle the donkey for me." And they saddled it. 28And he went and found his body thrown in the road, and the donkey and the lion standing beside the body. The lion had not eaten the body or torn the donkey. 29And the prophet took up the body of the man of God and laid it on the donkey and brought it back to the city to mourn and to bury him. 30And he laid the body in his own grave. And they mourned over him, saying, "Alas, my brother!" This prophet seems to have a lot of chutzpah! Here he is accusing the other man of disobedience when he was the one who led him astray in the first place! What is shocking about the prophet of Bethel’s remarks?
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1 Kings 13:26-30 26And when the prophet who had brought him back from the way heard of it, he said, "It is the man of God who disobeyed the word of the Lord; therefore the Lord has given him to the lion, which has torn him and killed him, according to the word that the Lord spoke to him." 27And he said to his sons, "Saddle the donkey for me." And they saddled it. 28And he went and found his body thrown in the road, and the donkey and the lion standing beside the body. The lion had not eaten the body or torn the donkey. 29And the prophet took up the body of the man of God and laid it on the donkey and brought it back to the city to mourn and to bury him. 30And he laid the body in his own grave. And they mourned over him, saying, "Alas, my brother!" As he looked at the body of the fallen prophet, he was moved with compassion These men were spiritual brothers; for all their failings, they both served as prophets of God The old prophet of Bethel knew it was his duty to give his brother a decent burial What does the old prophet do when he finds the man of God? Why do you think he does this?
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1 Kings 13:31-34 31And after he had buried him, he said to his sons, "When I die, bury me in the grave in which the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones. 32For the saying that he called out by the word of the Lord against the altar in Bethel and against all the houses of the high places that are in the cities of Samaria shall surely come to pass." 33After this thing Jeroboam did not turn from his evil way, but made priests for the high places again from among all the people. Any who would, he ordained to be priests of the high places. 34And this thing became sin to the house of Jeroboam, so as to cut it off and to destroy it from the face of the earth. What is the final request of the old prophet of Bethel? What is his rationale? He asked to be buried in the same grave as the man of God from Judah He knew his prophecy would still come true Judgment was coming against King Jeroboam and all the false worship he had instituted in Israel
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1 Kings 13:31-34 31And after he had buried him, he said to his sons, "When I die, bury me in the grave in which the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones. 32For the saying that he called out by the word of the Lord against the altar in Bethel and against all the houses of the high places that are in the cities of Samaria shall surely come to pass." 33After this thing Jeroboam did not turn from his evil way, but made priests for the high places again from among all the people. Any who would, he ordained to be priests of the high places. 34And this thing became sin to the house of Jeroboam, so as to cut it off and to destroy it from the face of the earth. What is the final request of the old prophet of Bethel? What is his rationale? When judgment came, and Bethel was destroyed, its graves would be desecrated Human bones would be burned on its altar – the bones of the people who had worshiped Jeroboam's golden calf
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1 Kings 13:31-34 31And after he had buried him, he said to his sons, "When I die, bury me in the grave in which the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones. 32For the saying that he called out by the word of the Lord against the altar in Bethel and against all the houses of the high places that are in the cities of Samaria shall surely come to pass." 33After this thing Jeroboam did not turn from his evil way, but made priests for the high places again from among all the people. Any who would, he ordained to be priests of the high places. 34And this thing became sin to the house of Jeroboam, so as to cut it off and to destroy it from the face of the earth. What is the final request of the old prophet of Bethel? What is his rationale? The old prophet of Bethel believed this prophecy & wanted to make sure it would never happen to him He wanted to rest in peace, with the hope of eternal life; he asked to be buried in the same tomb as the true prophet and find safety with his bones
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Original Hearers Before we see what this story means for us today, it is important to see what it meant to its original hearers There are two prophets in the story, one from each kingdom Notice that they are not identified by name, but according to their geography, which gives them symbolic significance One prophet is called "the man of God from Judah,” the southern kingdom The other old prophet lives in Bethel, which was a major worship center in Israel, the northern kingdom The actions of these two prophets represent the history of their two nations
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A Tale of Two Kingdoms The man of God came from Judah to rebuke Jeroboam the king of Israel for his ungodly worship In the same way, the kingdom of Judah was a witness to Israel Judah was the tribe of David, the true and rightful king Judah's capital city was Jerusalem, which was the home of God's true temple, the proper place of atonement for sin Judah thus stood as a witness to Israel of the true way of salvation, and also as a rebuke to Israel for its false worship
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A Tale of Two Kingdoms For its part, Israel often enticed Judah to sin, which is exactly what the prophet of Bethel did In the same way the old prophet tempted the man of God by deceiving him, the kingdom of Israel would tempt Judah to practice false religion In the end, both prophets turned out to be sinners, and so did both kingdoms The two nations never reunited, but their people were brothers to the death, just like the prophets in this story – spiritual brothers who both stood under the word they proclaimed and were called to obey
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A Tale of Two Kingdoms The individuals mirror their kingdoms, and their tragedy portends the tragic destiny awaiting Israel and Judah Israel has become unfaithful Judah can speak the word that Israel needs to hear But if Judah, too, following Israel's lead, compromises its worship (as history shows it will do), then both are doomed to overcome their separation only in death Judah will be buried in an alien land, & Israel will be saved only so far as it is joined to Judah
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A Tale of Two Kingdoms Like many parables, this story was intended to serve as a warning To the people of Judah, it said, "Do not be deceived! Israel's worship is false, and if you turn away from God's calling, you will perish” To the people of Israel, the story said, "Listen to the saving word of God that comes through the tribe of Judah” What is the warning to the people of Judah? What is the warning to the people of Israel?
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Did Israel heed this warning (verses 33-34)?
1 Kings 13:31-34 31And after he had buried him, he said to his sons, "When I die, bury me in the grave in which the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones. 32For the saying that he called out by the word of the Lord against the altar in Bethel and against all the houses of the high places that are in the cities of Samaria shall surely come to pass." 33After this thing Jeroboam did not turn from his evil way, but made priests for the high places again from among all the people. Any who would, he ordained to be priests of the high places. 34And this thing became sin to the house of Jeroboam, so as to cut it off and to destroy it from the face of the earth. Did Israel heed this warning (verses 33-34)? As is clear from this epilogue, sadly Israel did not
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What do you think “after this thing” (v. 33) indicates?
1 Kings 13:31-34 31And after he had buried him, he said to his sons, "When I die, bury me in the grave in which the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones. 32For the saying that he called out by the word of the Lord against the altar in Bethel and against all the houses of the high places that are in the cities of Samaria shall surely come to pass." 33After this thing Jeroboam did not turn from his evil way, but made priests for the high places again from among all the people. Any who would, he ordained to be priests of the high places. 34And this thing became sin to the house of Jeroboam, so as to cut it off and to destroy it from the face of the earth. What do you think “after this thing” (v. 33) indicates? Both events – the prophecy that the man of God spoke against the altar and the lion attack that later killed him – should have served as a warning to King Jeroboam
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What do you think “after this thing” (v. 33) indicates?
1 Kings 13:31-34 31And after he had buried him, he said to his sons, "When I die, bury me in the grave in which the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones. 32For the saying that he called out by the word of the Lord against the altar in Bethel and against all the houses of the high places that are in the cities of Samaria shall surely come to pass." 33After this thing Jeroboam did not turn from his evil way, but made priests for the high places again from among all the people. Any who would, he ordained to be priests of the high places. 34And this thing became sin to the house of Jeroboam, so as to cut it off and to destroy it from the face of the earth. What do you think “after this thing” (v. 33) indicates? He had received the words of the prophet He had suffered the judgment of God in his own withered hand He had heard about the prophet's strange death on the road back to Judah
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What do you think “after this thing” (v. 33) indicates?
1 Kings 13:31-34 31And after he had buried him, he said to his sons, "When I die, bury me in the grave in which the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones. 32For the saying that he called out by the word of the Lord against the altar in Bethel and against all the houses of the high places that are in the cities of Samaria shall surely come to pass." 33After this thing Jeroboam did not turn from his evil way, but made priests for the high places again from among all the people. Any who would, he ordained to be priests of the high places. 34And this thing became sin to the house of Jeroboam, so as to cut it off and to destroy it from the face of the earth. What do you think “after this thing” (v. 33) indicates? Jeroboam heard words of judgment that were attested by miracles of power Yet in spite of all the warnings he received, he never abandoned the high places of false worship
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How did Jeroboam go from bad to worse?
1 Kings 13:31-34 31And after he had buried him, he said to his sons, "When I die, bury me in the grave in which the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones. 32For the saying that he called out by the word of the Lord against the altar in Bethel and against all the houses of the high places that are in the cities of Samaria shall surely come to pass." 33After this thing Jeroboam did not turn from his evil way, but made priests for the high places again from among all the people. Any who would, he ordained to be priests of the high places. 34And this thing became sin to the house of Jeroboam, so as to cut it off and to destroy it from the face of the earth. How did Jeroboam go from bad to worse? He did not repent of his sin, but returned to it He appointed false priests all over Israel, giving ministerial credentials to men without any calling from God or qualifications to serve
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What this Story Means to Us
These things were written for us, the people of God: As a warning against false worship As a call to repentance And as a testimony to the truth of God's saving word Judah and Israel were headed for spiritual failure, but God was giving both kingdoms a merciful opportunity to repent There was still hope for them, if only they would heed the warning signs of judgment and believe the word of God
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Let God Be True This entire episode is an illustration of something the apostle Paul once said: "Let God be true, but every man a liar" (Romans 3:4) In other words, even if everyone else fails to tell the truth, God will still be true to His word
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Let God Be True This is exactly what happens in 1 Kings 13 … in one way or another, every man proves false to the word of God Note how each man responded to God's word: The word of God was Jeroboam's mercy, yet he despised it by continuing the worship of false gods For the man of God from Judah, the word of God was his safety, yet he abandoned it by staying to eat and drink in Bethel For the old prophet of Bethel, the word of God was his profession, yet he abused it by claiming that his lie was the truth of God
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Let God Be True Every one of these men was false, but the word of God was still true, even when it came from the lips of a known liar This chapter is full of the word of God – of God speaking to people, saying and commanding and prophesying things, giving people His word In each and every case, His word comes true The altar of Bethel would be destroyed The man from Judah would never go home to his fathers Jeroboam's dynasty would end
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Let God Be True Never doubt the Word of God, which is true in:
Every historical fact it claims Every theological principle it espouses Every final judgment it threatens Every hopeful promise it offers to us in Jesus Christ In a culture of lies, the truth of God will stand Even when spiritual leaders fail, or prove false, like the men in this story, the Word of God still does its saving work Do not use the falsehood of men as an excuse for not believing or obeying the Bible
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Let God Be True Do not reject God's Word, as Jeroboam did
Do not leave it behind, as the man from Judah did Do not claim that your word is really God's word, as the old prophet of Bethel did Simply believe what God has said in the Bible, and you will rest in the peace of eternal life Even when everyone else turns out to be false, God is infinitely and eternally true
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