Divine Intervention: Understanding the Lord's Discipline in Our Lives
1 Kings 11:14a
And the Lord stirred up an adversary unto Solomon…
Be careful what you blame the devil for, because it just could be the hand of the Lord! Proverbs 20:24 says, “Man’s goings are of the Lord; how can a man then understand his own way?”
It is difficult to think that the Lord could initiate strife in our lives, isn’t it? However, before we question His judgment, we must first consider His reasoning. King Solomon had begun to worship false gods and take unto himself strange wives, even after the Lord God appeared to him twice, specifically warning him not to do so. We then conclude that it was Solomon’s own choosing to initiate strife in his life. It is the principle of reaping and sowing, for no seed shall be sown which will not produce a harvest after its own kind. In this case, The Lord had spoken that Solomon’s kingdom would be taken from his son, and so to ensure that His Word came to pass, He began the process of stirring up the enemies of Solomon.
I wish to draw a couple of truths from this text. First, we need to notice that even though Solomon had more wisdom than anyone else in the earth, yet he fell for some of the most common pitfalls of man due to the subtlety of sin and temptation. Even though Solomon knew better, yet he was caught up in the moment, and allowed his wisdom to take a back seat just long enough to have devastating consequences for generations to come.
Let this be a lesson to all of us that no matter where we are in our walk with the Lord, we will always have the capability of making bad choices, and should therefore always keep our guards up! The second truth I wish to draw is simply that it didn’t have to go this way! Solomon had a good thing going because of his initial zeal for the Lord coupled with the Lord’s favor on his life.
The same thing it took for Solomon to get to where he was is all it would have taken for him to be sustained at that level of blessings and favor. No matter what level we’re at in our walk with the Lord, there are basically three things that should never change, and that will always enable us to maintain what God has blessed us with: trust, obedience, and humility! When we falter in either of these areas, we threaten our own “kingdom”. Therefore, we must keep the faith, stay humble, and always obey the Lord!
~ Pastor Gary Caudill
And the Lord stirred up an adversary unto Solomon…
Be careful what you blame the devil for, because it just could be the hand of the Lord! Proverbs 20:24 says, “Man’s goings are of the Lord; how can a man then understand his own way?”
It is difficult to think that the Lord could initiate strife in our lives, isn’t it? However, before we question His judgment, we must first consider His reasoning. King Solomon had begun to worship false gods and take unto himself strange wives, even after the Lord God appeared to him twice, specifically warning him not to do so. We then conclude that it was Solomon’s own choosing to initiate strife in his life. It is the principle of reaping and sowing, for no seed shall be sown which will not produce a harvest after its own kind. In this case, The Lord had spoken that Solomon’s kingdom would be taken from his son, and so to ensure that His Word came to pass, He began the process of stirring up the enemies of Solomon.
I wish to draw a couple of truths from this text. First, we need to notice that even though Solomon had more wisdom than anyone else in the earth, yet he fell for some of the most common pitfalls of man due to the subtlety of sin and temptation. Even though Solomon knew better, yet he was caught up in the moment, and allowed his wisdom to take a back seat just long enough to have devastating consequences for generations to come.
Let this be a lesson to all of us that no matter where we are in our walk with the Lord, we will always have the capability of making bad choices, and should therefore always keep our guards up! The second truth I wish to draw is simply that it didn’t have to go this way! Solomon had a good thing going because of his initial zeal for the Lord coupled with the Lord’s favor on his life.
The same thing it took for Solomon to get to where he was is all it would have taken for him to be sustained at that level of blessings and favor. No matter what level we’re at in our walk with the Lord, there are basically three things that should never change, and that will always enable us to maintain what God has blessed us with: trust, obedience, and humility! When we falter in either of these areas, we threaten our own “kingdom”. Therefore, we must keep the faith, stay humble, and always obey the Lord!
~ Pastor Gary Caudill