“As Solomon grew old, his wives
turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the
LORD his God, as the heart of David his father had been.”
- 1 Kings 11:4
There was a certain military leader in the Revolutionary War
who impressed General Washington so much that he nicknamed him the “fighting
general.” George Washington’s fighting general successfully attacked and
captured Fort Ticonderoga Lake Champlain
region. And his greatest victory was at Saratoga
in 1777, which led to the French coming into the war as America
What was this hero’s name? Benedict Arnold. Yes, Benedict
Arnold was a brilliant general during the early years of the Revolutionary War,
but on September 25, 1780, he defected to the British side. And ever since that
day Benedict Arnold’s name has been synonymous with being a traitor. Although
Benedict Arnold did some marvelous things for our country, they will always be
overshadowed by his treachery. Sadly, Benedict Arnold ended his military career
very, very poorly. Simply put: He didn’t finish well.
The same could be said of King Solomon. The first ten
chapters of 1 Kings are, for the most part, very encouraging. Solomon was a man
blessed by God with incredible wisdom and wealth. He was a gifted leader, an
impressive orator, and—most importantly—a faithful follower of God. But as he
came down the homestretch of his life, he failed miserably. Although he had the
IQ of two Einsteins, the riches of four Donald Trumps and the wisdom of ten Zig
Ziglars, 1 Kings 11 reveals that Solomon finished his life very poorly. In the
words of Bible commentator Dale Ralph Davis: “Chapter 11 is the dull thud after
the high hopes of chapters 1-10.”
Instead of ending on a high note, Solomon’s life ended with a
“dull thud.” And the biggest reason for this was his divided loyalty. You see,
Solomon’s forty-year reign began and ended with love. Unfortunately, during
those forty years his love shifted. At the start of his reign we read these
encouraging words: “Solomon showed his love for the LORD by walking according
to the statutes of his father David” (1 Kings 3:3).
Yet by the time we get to the end of Solomon’s reign, we read
that Solomon “loved many foreign women besides Pharaoh’s daughter—Moabites,
Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians and Hittites. They were from nations about which
the LORD had told the Israelites, ‘You must not intermarry with them, because
they will surely turn your hearts after their gods’” (1 Kings 11:1-2). We are
then told in verse 3 that Solomon had 700 foreign wives in addition to his 300
concubines, and they pulled his heart away
from the Lord and toward their pagan
gods.
Solomon still loved God with part of his heart. But tragically, he divvied up the rest of his
heart into 700 pieces that he distributed among his idol-worshiping wives.
According to Jesus, the greatest command in the Old Testament is: “Love the
LORD your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength.” Without a doubt,
as time passed Solomon drifted from his first love. He no longer loved God with
“all” his heart, “all” his soul, “all” his mind or “all” his strength.
In our melting pot culture, some might ask, “What’s the big
deal?” Well, consider this. We read in 1 Kings 11 that on a hill east of Jerusalem (most likely the Mount of
Olives ) Solomon set up worship centers to Ashtoreth, Molech and
Chemosh. Ashtoreth worship traditionally involved orgies with male and female
prostitutes. Molech worship involved child sacrifice, and Chemosh worship also
involved forms of human sacrifice. Although Solomon probably didn’t participate
in these more heinous “worship” activities, they were an integral part of the
religion back in his wives’ homeland. And regardless of what labels we affix to
ritual prostitution and child sacrifice, they are, at their heart, demonic.
On the very same hill east of Jerusalem where Jesus would one
day sweat drops of blood and pray, “Not my will but yours be done,” Solomon was
building shrines to bloodthirsty demons. On the same hill where Jesus would
receive a kiss of betrayal from one of his friends, King Solomon himself was
betraying his first love. On the same hill where Jesus would be bound and led
away to sacrifice his own life for you and me, Solomon was worshiping murderous
demons who required parents to sacrifice their own innocent children in a
sacrificial fire. Was Solomon’s idol worship a big deal? You better believe it
was!
And even though God rebuked Solomon and warned him that
judgment was coming, Solomon didn’t respond with humility, sorrow or
repentance. There is no indication that Solomon ever repented from his idol
worship or tore down the pagan altars. He finished his life surrounded by
hundreds of beautiful women, untold riches and every type of pleasure that a
person could ever desire. But he died a shell of man—empty, hopeless and full
of regret. Like Benedict Arnold, although he was a man of great potential who
started his adult years so well, Solomon finished his life so poorly. When our
loved ones look back on our final years here on earth, will they say the same
of you and me? I hope not. Let’s finish well!
Dane Davis is the Lead Pastor of
First Christian Church in Victorville. For more information,
visit www.fccvv.com and join us for our
worship service Sundays at 10 a.m.
No comments:
Post a Comment