“But King Solomon loved many foreign women, as well as the daughter of Pharaoh: women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites— from the nations of whom the Lord had said to the children of Israel, “You shall not intermarry with them, nor they with you. Surely they will turn away your hearts after their gods.” Solomon clung to these in love. And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart. For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the Lord his God, as was the heart of his father David.”
I Kings 11:1-4 NKJV
But…
King Solomon was the epitome of a mere man abundantly blessed by God, for the Lord had spared nothing and had given him everything one can imagine. He was one who had been marvelously endowed with great wisdom.
Very often in these modern times, it is the desire of some who profess to be followers of Jesus to desire the blessings that the Lord can provide, but they lack the true heart for God. They find themselves drawn to things and people who are not of God, who are actually in opposition.
Many seek to be one with the world, to seek those things that are not holy, desiring fleshly satisfaction rather the joy of living for Christ.
Though Solomon had it all, at the height of his fame, wealth and power, his heart was turned, to follow after other gods, for he had violated the command of the Lord and intermarried with the nations that surrounded Israel.
As a result the kingdom was eventually divided, and glory that was Israel was no more.
The modern day Christian can take much from this story, for we are the spiritual heirs of the children of Israel, and though we are not surrounded by physical enemies, we are surrounded in a world where the vast majority do not know the Lord.
We are bombarded by the values that are foreign to us and at odds with the Scriptures given us from on high. Because of this, many of us have had our own hearts turned, for the faith that saved us and transformed us has become secondary. We become open to other ideas and practices that ultimately draw us away.
“For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and did not fully follow the Lord, as did his father David. Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, on the hill that is east of Jerusalem, and for Molech the abomination of the people of Ammon. And he did likewise for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods.”
I Kings 11:5-8 NKJV
Satan has used many subtleties to draw the Christian away from the Lord, for many of those temptations are things that appeal to the natural man, but are a corruption that can lead the wanderer astray. Solomon was drawn by natural desires, amplified into sin, causing him to go after women in excess.
The Christian must use care in choosing who he or she seeks fellowship with, for if chosen unwisely, we too can find ourselves going astray, disobeying God, and blowing the testimony that the Lord has helped us to build.
“Do not be deceived: “Evil company corrupts good habits.””
I Corinthians 15:33 NKJV
Paul was scolding a Corinthian church that had become caught up with people who denied the resurrection, and had begun to stray into carnality. Because we have a faith in a God we cannot see, we too can be vulnerable if exposed to false teachers. We must walk by faith, reading the word of God and using discernment provided by the Holy Spirit.
Brothers and sisters, it is time for those of us who are the born again followers of Jesus to become all the more focused on the word of God, and in using that spiritual discernment in determining who we follow. Let us be like the Bereans, poring over the Scriptures to test all that we hear.
“Then the brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea. When they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews. These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so.”
Acts 17:10-11 NKJV
Let us also use care in the people to which we expose ourselves, for not everyone who professes to be of God is who they say they are. We are nearing the time when false Christs will abound, and indeed, we may already be there. There are many who no longer desire to hear the convicting word of God, but desire soft messages that massage the ego and give a false sense of imputed holiness. We are in the time that Paul talked about, as he warned Timothy.
Let us be fruit inspectors, looking for proof of God’s presence in them.
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.”
Galatians 5:22-25 NKJV
Let us also be faithful to share the truth of God’s word, for it is what searches the soul and reveals the true nature of people.
“I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.”
II Timothy 4:1-5 NKJV
I tell you the truth, preaching word will be subject to much attack in the near future. I also tell you that there will be far greater pressures on Christians to conform, for the world, led by the devil, is after our children. He will use anything to ensnare them, and like Solomon, ensnare us because of our love.
Let us remain focused on our one true love, for only Jesus has laid down His life for us, and may we be faithful, looking forward to that great day when one bride will be united with her One Bridegroom, at that great wedding feast on the new earth. The Lord is preparing her even now.
Let us not be drawn away by the false suitors of this world.
“Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.”
Revelation 21:2-3 NKJV
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Amen amen amen! Love the title on this one Bernie. Thank you my friend
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