Chester ARP Devotional Podcast

Rehoboam refused to listen to the counsel of older and wiser men when he became king of ancient Israel. It was a disastrous decision. We can learn what not to do from him.

Solomon is a cautionary tale for anyone who fancies himself or herself to be a faithful follower of God. We are all in the same danger as Solomon for wondering away and chasing the gods of the nations around us. May we learn from him to guard our hearts and minds in faith and repentance.

Solomon allowed intimate partners to lead him away from his God. He and the people of Israel paid the consequences for his failure to pursue God above all others.

Solomon received the blessing of God's grace freely. Once he entered into a covenant with God, he was responsible for obeying his God's commands. We must do the same.

Solomon and the people of God offered an abundance of sacrifices to the Lord for His good provision for them in the buidling of the Temple. We should be as grateful for his care over us.

Solomon pronounced a benediction over the people at the conclusion of his prayer of dedication on the day it was dedicated to the Lord. This good word reminded the people of God's faithfulness and challenged them to live lives of holiness and obedience so that God would be glorified.

Solomon's prayer of dedication at the Temple was realistic. It acknowleded the faithfulness of God, the realities of a fallen world, and God's grace for his people. May we learn to pray similar prayers through the ministry of the Holy Spiirt.

God always fulfills his promises. Solomon recognized that God had used him to build the Temple in Jerusalem. We must realize that God uses us to fulfill his promises too.

The Temple signigfied God's permanent presence among His people in the Pomised Land. Up to the point of the Temple's conclusion, God had moved with his people. But, now He was settling them in a specific location and dweeling amongst them. Permanence is good.

Solomon built his Temple to reflect the glroy of God. There was no question that it had to be the most majestic building in all the land becaue it was the place where the Hebrews would meet with their glorious God. We can learn from them about giving our best to God.

God graciously provided peace, security, and wealth for Solomon and the people of Isarel so that they could refelect His glory and establish His worship in Jerusalem through the building of the Temple. He often does the same for His Chruch.

Solomon received wisdom from God and promptly put it to use when he had to judge between two women and a living baby. We can learn perspective from this story as well as see evidence of God's Spirit on Solomon.

Solomon had the opportunity to pray for anything he wanted. God would grant his request. What did he pray for? Wisdom to discern the will of God. That's what he needed, and that's what God gave him along with all the weath and honor that he could imagine. We should prayer similarly.

Solomon executed the Lord's will justly and swiftly. There is much for us to learn in these 10 verses.

Solomon had to take decisive action to clean house after being crowned king following his father David's death. He killed Adonijah and Joab while banishing Abiathar, the priest. These men were threats to the advancement of the Lord's will. We must be willing to be decisive as well.

David gave his son Solomon final instructions before he died. He told Solomon to act like a man, follow the Lord, and deal with the problems in the kingdom in order to establish himself as king and to have a long, healthy reign. We should follow his advice as well.

King David picked his successor to be his son Solomon. He did it because Solomon was the best choice of Israel and for the glory of God. We should make similar decisions.

David failed to discipline his sons at home and it came back to bite him with Absalom and Adonijah. Thankfully, Nathan and Bathsheba had the best of Israel's future in mind as they conspired to put Solomon on the throne.

It is always far better to place your life in the hands of our loving God than it it to place it in the hands of other men. May we learn that God will always be merciful to us even if He has to discipline us for our rebellion.

David completed a census of the prople under his rule at the end of his reign. He did it because he wanted to know the number of fighting men in his kingdom. However, he was specifically told not to do that by God. He didn't trust the Lord's strength and saught to rely upon his own.

David's final words as recorded in 2 Samuel 23 are most appropriate. In them, he speaks of the blessing that just rulers bring onto their followers and of the curses that unjust rulers bring. The unjust will be destroyed. These words are most apropos for us today.

David responded to God's good and gracious providence in his life by praising his.name. Will we do the same?

Joab rebuked King David for spending too much time mourning the death of Absalom and not being concerend about the people who actually were loyal to him and stayed with him after Absalom rebelled. We must stop worrying about those who don't want anything to do with us.

Absalom rebelled against David and conspired to overthrow his reign, but he was never too far from his father's love. David desired reconcilliation with his son. However, he never got it. God pursues us the same way.

God is just and His justice will be served. Thankfully, Jesus paid the ultimate price for our sins with his death, but that does not mean we don't face the reality of God's justice in our lives.