1 00:00:29,939 --> 00:00:32,979 First Kings, chapter number 12.First Kings, chapter number 12. 2 00:00:32,979 --> 00:00:39,699 This evening we're going to look at this Old Testament narrative. 3 00:00:39,699 --> 00:00:42,699 So we're going to read just a couple verses to open up with, and 4 00:00:42,699 --> 00:00:48,499 then we'll pray and we'll jump into this story tonight. But first 5 00:00:48,499 --> 00:00:58,389 kings, chapter 12, we're going to start in verse number one. The 6 00:00:58,389 --> 00:01:03,149 Bible says, and Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel were come 7 00:01:03,149 --> 00:01:07,429 to Shechem to make him king. And it came to pass when Jeroboam 8 00:01:07,429 --> 00:01:12,229 the son of Nebat, who was yet in Egypt, heard of it, for he was 9 00:01:12,229 --> 00:01:16,829 fled from the presence of King Solomon and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt. 10 00:01:19,389 --> 00:01:21,869 We're going to pray and then we're going to jump right into this 11 00:01:21,869 --> 00:01:25,369 passage tonight. Let's pray. Dear Lord, thank you for the opportunity 12 00:01:25,369 --> 00:01:27,649 to be here tonight. Lord, I pray that you'd be with pastor as 13 00:01:27,649 --> 00:01:30,329 he's with the church in Nakona. Lord, I pray that you would 14 00:01:31,449 --> 00:01:33,929 be with that church. Lord, I pray you'd be with pastors. They 15 00:01:34,329 --> 00:01:36,809 have service tonight. Lord, I pray that you'd be with the service 16 00:01:36,809 --> 00:01:38,969 here. Lord, I pray that you would hide behind the cross. Lord, 17 00:01:38,969 --> 00:01:41,249 I pray that you would allow me to say only the words that you want 18 00:01:41,249 --> 00:01:44,329 me to say. And God, I pray that you would help me to say something 19 00:01:44,489 --> 00:01:47,449 that was of help to someone tonight, Lord. In Jesus name I pray. 20 00:01:47,929 --> 00:01:53,569 Amen. Men, every decision we make is shaped by the voices that 21 00:01:53,569 --> 00:01:57,849 we allow to speak into our lives. I've seen this over and over 22 00:01:57,849 --> 00:02:02,569 again as a young man myself, the people that I allow to influence 23 00:02:02,569 --> 00:02:06,809 me, change my thoughts and change my opinions because I allow 24 00:02:06,809 --> 00:02:11,169 them to have influence in my life. Tonight I've entitled the message, 25 00:02:11,169 --> 00:02:17,049 who are you listening to? Who are you listening to? You see, everybody 26 00:02:17,049 --> 00:02:21,129 has voices that we allow in our lives, influences that we allow 27 00:02:22,089 --> 00:02:26,609 people that we allow to maybe even sometimes unnecessarily have 28 00:02:26,609 --> 00:02:30,289 influence in our life. You see, godly counsel will build up 29 00:02:30,289 --> 00:02:36,969 our futures, but foolish counsel will break it apart. My grandpa 30 00:02:36,969 --> 00:02:42,419 is an avid. Was an avid gun enthusiast. He had probably the biggest 31 00:02:42,419 --> 00:02:47,219 collection of guns out of anybody that I know. And I know some 32 00:02:47,219 --> 00:02:50,019 of you in here have a lot of guns. So, like, that's a bold claim. 33 00:02:50,899 --> 00:02:53,939 But he had a lot of guns. And he took me out shooting from a very, 34 00:02:53,939 --> 00:02:57,899 very young age. And I was pretty comfortable with guns. By 35 00:02:57,899 --> 00:03:02,219 the time I was six or seven, I was around the shooting range. My 36 00:03:02,219 --> 00:03:06,699 grandpa shot cowboy shooting competitions. And you have two revolvers 37 00:03:06,699 --> 00:03:10,409 and you have a rifle and what you would do is you would shoot six, 38 00:03:10,569 --> 00:03:13,929 shoot the rifle and then shoot six. It was a timed accuracy speed 39 00:03:13,929 --> 00:03:17,489 competition. And so he would go and compete in that, and I would 40 00:03:17,489 --> 00:03:20,929 sit by and watch. And that was one of my favorite pastimes, was 41 00:03:20,929 --> 00:03:23,529 going to the gun range with grandpa, watching him shoot. Right. 42 00:03:24,009 --> 00:03:27,329 But many times he allowed me to shoot and kind of taught me the 43 00:03:27,329 --> 00:03:30,809 basics of how to hold a rifle and how to shoot a handgun. I'm not 44 00:03:30,809 --> 00:03:34,339 a good shot, but it's something that I enjoy doing. Well, 45 00:03:35,459 --> 00:03:40,179 when my grandma died, I was probably 8 or 9 years old, my grandpa 46 00:03:40,179 --> 00:03:45,619 decided to sell everything, buy an rv, buy an atv, buy more guns, 47 00:03:46,099 --> 00:03:51,059 and start snowboarding. Snow. What's called snowbirding. Snowbirding, 48 00:03:51,459 --> 00:03:54,819 not snowboarding. He was a little old for that. Snowbirding. 49 00:03:55,219 --> 00:03:59,099 For the seasons. He would go up north in Utah, way up north for 50 00:03:59,099 --> 00:04:01,829 the summer months where it was nice and cool. And then he would 51 00:04:01,829 --> 00:04:05,549 head south into Arizona, just north of the Grand Canyon, for the 52 00:04:05,549 --> 00:04:09,549 winters where it was still relatively nice and warm. Well, as 53 00:04:09,549 --> 00:04:12,629 you may guess, that happened for, I don't know, maybe three, four 54 00:04:12,629 --> 00:04:16,829 seasons. It wasn't long before the RV broke down. The ATV became 55 00:04:16,829 --> 00:04:21,469 too much to load up. You know, all the usual suspects. So my grandpa 56 00:04:21,469 --> 00:04:23,709 kind of landed there in northern Arizona for the remainder 57 00:04:23,709 --> 00:04:28,749 of his life. And I visited him many times in that area. He had just 58 00:04:28,749 --> 00:04:31,549 had an rv, so it wasn't like the most fun thing in the world. 59 00:04:31,949 --> 00:04:35,229 But some of my favorite memories of my grandpa are in the 60 00:04:35,229 --> 00:04:38,109 last few years of his life, going to visit him, and we would 61 00:04:38,109 --> 00:04:40,789 go out and we would go shooting. And so there's a lot of 62 00:04:40,789 --> 00:04:44,189 BLM land up there, government owned land, and that is all free 63 00:04:44,189 --> 00:04:48,549 game to go and shoot. You just find a spot and shoot. There's Nothing 64 00:04:48,549 --> 00:04:51,389 in like 1,000 miles any direction, so you're just good to 65 00:04:51,389 --> 00:04:56,229 go for it. Well, this one particular time, and the more I thought 66 00:04:56,229 --> 00:04:59,649 about it and I thought about the story for tonight, I. I don't 67 00:04:59,649 --> 00:05:04,529 know exactly how old I was. I think I was a little bit older. I 68 00:05:04,529 --> 00:05:07,649 may have been like 13 or 14, but it's a little embarrassing, so 69 00:05:07,649 --> 00:05:12,049 I'm gonna say I was like 10 or 11. All right. Well, my grandpa decided 70 00:05:12,049 --> 00:05:15,689 I was finally big enough to shoot some of his bigger guns. And 71 00:05:15,689 --> 00:05:21,729 I was excited for this. He had a.44 Dirty Harry edition revolver 72 00:05:21,729 --> 00:05:24,979 that was really cool and I thought that was awesome. He had 73 00:05:24,979 --> 00:05:28,099 some big rifles and stuff like that. And I was like, man, this is 74 00:05:28,099 --> 00:05:31,579 awesome. He's gonna let Me shoot the big dogs today. And so 75 00:05:31,579 --> 00:05:34,179 we got in his truck and we drove out into the BLM land and we 76 00:05:34,179 --> 00:05:37,579 found some like, old bottles and pieces of wood and stuff. We 77 00:05:37,579 --> 00:05:40,219 were gonna shoot, or he was gonna shoot, I was gonna shoot at. 78 00:05:41,739 --> 00:05:44,899 And I shot a few of the bigger handguns and a few of the bigger 79 00:05:44,899 --> 00:05:48,659 rifles and we were having a fun time. And then my grandpa goes 80 00:05:48,659 --> 00:05:52,309 to his truck. He pulls out something from under the seat that 81 00:05:52,309 --> 00:05:57,029 he didn't let me see, he put in there. And he had an M1 Garand, 82 00:05:57,749 --> 00:06:02,909 standard issue from World War II, big gun. And he's like, do you 83 00:06:02,909 --> 00:06:08,869 want to shoot this? Yeah. So he got up and he loaded it and cleaned 84 00:06:08,869 --> 00:06:11,509 it, made sure it was all good. And he, you know, he shot a few rounds 85 00:06:11,509 --> 00:06:17,679 and hit everything and he's like, your turn. Yes, sir. And at 86 00:06:17,679 --> 00:06:20,959 this point, I'm fairly familiar with how to shoot a rifle. 87 00:06:21,039 --> 00:06:25,519 I'm not a novice in that. So I grab the rifle and I stand up and 88 00:06:25,519 --> 00:06:29,319 I have it right up against my shoulder here and I'm like, alright, 89 00:06:29,319 --> 00:06:34,159 I'm ready to go. And I lean in and I start to get the motion to 90 00:06:34,159 --> 00:06:36,879 pull the trigger. And grandpa leans in and he starts talking to 91 00:06:36,879 --> 00:06:40,439 me about, hey, this is a bigger gun. There's going to be a 92 00:06:40,439 --> 00:06:43,399 significant kick compared to what you're used to. You need to 93 00:06:43,399 --> 00:06:46,599 be aware of it. Here's how to. And I remember. I remember clear 94 00:06:46,599 --> 00:06:51,319 as day. Grandpa, I'm good. I got this. So about as soon as I pulled 95 00:06:51,319 --> 00:06:56,479 the trigger, I'm staring at the sky and he leans over and in 96 00:06:56,479 --> 00:07:00,159 the most grandfatherly way you can, he goes, should have listened, 97 00:07:00,159 --> 00:07:05,679 huh? Yeah. I can't help but think about that passage when I think 98 00:07:05,679 --> 00:07:09,929 about this story here with Rehoboam and think about how often 99 00:07:09,929 --> 00:07:15,689 in our lives we brush off godly counsel, we brush off good 100 00:07:15,689 --> 00:07:19,249 counsel, or even sometimes just plain old good advice in lieu 101 00:07:19,249 --> 00:07:24,969 of. Nah, I got this. You see, Rehoboam here was the grandson of 102 00:07:24,969 --> 00:07:30,169 David, son of Solomon. If you are savvy with your Bible, you're 103 00:07:30,169 --> 00:07:33,569 probably aware that Solomon is known as the wisest man to have ever 104 00:07:33,569 --> 00:07:39,539 lived. You see, Rehoboam had all the wisdom in the world at his 105 00:07:39,539 --> 00:07:43,899 fingertips, didn't he? Just across the hall. Got to go talk to 106 00:07:43,899 --> 00:07:47,739 dad. He's the wisest man who ever lived. And yet here in this 107 00:07:47,739 --> 00:07:52,979 passage, Solomon has died. And this is the first real test of Rehoboam's 108 00:07:52,979 --> 00:07:58,899 leadership and his character in his life. You see, the reality 109 00:07:58,899 --> 00:08:02,239 is this is a Tragic story. And tonight we're going to look at a 110 00:08:02,239 --> 00:08:06,079 four part tragic progression through the life of Rehoboam. How 111 00:08:06,079 --> 00:08:11,839 he failed his first test. I would like you for notice first of 112 00:08:11,839 --> 00:08:15,079 all tonight, the request of the people. Look at verse number 113 00:08:15,079 --> 00:08:20,799 three that they sent and called him and Jeroboam and all the 114 00:08:20,799 --> 00:08:24,119 congregation of Israel came and spake unto Rehoboam, saying, 115 00:08:24,599 --> 00:08:30,409 thy father made our yoke grievous. Now therefore, make thou 116 00:08:30,409 --> 00:08:34,809 the grievous service of thy father and his heavy yoke which he 117 00:08:34,809 --> 00:08:39,769 put on us lighter, and we will serve thee. And he said unto them, 118 00:08:39,769 --> 00:08:44,489 depart yet for three days and then come again to me. And the people 119 00:08:45,049 --> 00:08:49,249 departed. You see, this people came to him and they came with a 120 00:08:49,249 --> 00:08:51,369 request. And I want you to notice about this request. It was 121 00:08:51,369 --> 00:08:56,499 a reasonable request. This wasn't something that was crazy or 122 00:08:57,059 --> 00:09:00,539 even rebellious, but this was a reasonable request well within 123 00:09:00,539 --> 00:09:06,499 the bounds of people to ask of their new king. They said, hey, Rehoboam, 124 00:09:06,659 --> 00:09:11,459 your dad Solomon was really hard on us. The taxation and the 125 00:09:11,459 --> 00:09:15,299 labor, it really has worn us down. But if you take it and you 126 00:09:15,299 --> 00:09:19,379 ease up on it, if you go lighter on us, we will serve you. 127 00:09:20,159 --> 00:09:23,559 It's a reasonable request. When you start thinking about all 128 00:09:23,559 --> 00:09:27,879 that Solomon did in his kingdom, in his time as king, of 129 00:09:27,879 --> 00:09:32,199 course, we think of King David as the war maker, right? He's the 130 00:09:32,199 --> 00:09:35,519 one. He kind of drove out the remainder and he kind of solidified 131 00:09:35,519 --> 00:09:40,239 the kingdom and the borders. Well, Solomon built on that. He expanded 132 00:09:40,239 --> 00:09:43,319 it. In fact, under Solomon, you have the greatest extent of the 133 00:09:43,319 --> 00:09:46,279 Hebrew nation. I almost called it an empire. It's certainly not 134 00:09:46,279 --> 00:09:48,939 an empire, but you have the greatest extent of the Hebrew nation 135 00:09:48,939 --> 00:09:52,459 there under King Solomon. And at the same time, Solomon's building 136 00:09:52,459 --> 00:09:56,499 the temple, Solomon's Temple was known as one of the ancient wonders 137 00:09:56,499 --> 00:10:02,019 of the world. If you do some research into the temple, people 138 00:10:02,579 --> 00:10:05,899 over in Israel, forget what they're called, but if you get, if 139 00:10:05,899 --> 00:10:08,459 you do some research into them, they think they can build the 140 00:10:08,459 --> 00:10:14,069 temple in about three and a half or four years using modern methods 141 00:10:14,069 --> 00:10:20,269 and modern tools and modern workers. So think about how much 142 00:10:20,349 --> 00:10:26,349 manual labor it must have been without excavators and cranes and 143 00:10:26,349 --> 00:10:29,469 everything else. You know, sometimes I think we forget about 144 00:10:29,469 --> 00:10:32,549 all the labor that goes into a building. And then like you look 145 00:10:32,549 --> 00:10:35,349 at this giant pad of dirt out front and you're like, can you imagine 146 00:10:35,349 --> 00:10:41,189 doing that with shovels? That's actually not all that far 147 00:10:41,189 --> 00:10:44,349 off from the size of the temple. I mean, it's a little Bit 148 00:10:44,349 --> 00:10:48,789 over, but like, it's a lot of work. And all these demands were 149 00:10:48,789 --> 00:10:52,309 on the people of Israel under King Solomon. And so when King Solomon 150 00:10:52,309 --> 00:10:55,069 dies, they come to Rehoboam and they say, hey, this was really 151 00:10:55,069 --> 00:10:58,829 heavy. If you go lighter on us, we will serve you. We're going 152 00:10:58,829 --> 00:11:01,949 to give our hearts to you. This was a reasonable plea, but secondly, 153 00:11:01,949 --> 00:11:05,919 it was a revealing test. You see, this was a test placed early 154 00:11:05,919 --> 00:11:09,599 on the leadership of King Rehoboam to see how are you going 155 00:11:09,599 --> 00:11:14,039 to react and how are you going to respond to your people. Are you 156 00:11:14,039 --> 00:11:16,479 going to be a servant leader or are you going to just be a prideful 157 00:11:16,479 --> 00:11:21,679 leader? I find it interesting that many times in the Bible, when 158 00:11:21,679 --> 00:11:24,359 you see these stories, when you see these people rise to power, 159 00:11:24,519 --> 00:11:28,599 it seems like there's almost defining moments or defining stories 160 00:11:28,599 --> 00:11:32,889 or decisions to be made almost immediately in the rain, right? It's 161 00:11:32,889 --> 00:11:36,329 like Rehoboam took the throne. And the very next verse, he had the 162 00:11:36,329 --> 00:11:41,209 defining decision of his entire reign immediately. It's a 163 00:11:41,209 --> 00:11:45,049 revealing test of his character. As I was thinking about 164 00:11:45,049 --> 00:11:50,649 character, I was reminded of a time in Bible college when a very 165 00:11:50,649 --> 00:11:53,809 irresponsible dorm soup left us alone for Thanksgiving break. 166 00:11:55,009 --> 00:12:02,709 And I was sleeping at Friday night at 9 o' clock, because that's 167 00:12:02,709 --> 00:12:06,509 what happens if you leave Bible college students alone. I went 168 00:12:06,509 --> 00:12:09,549 to bed at 9 o' clock. There was no lights out. That doesn't mean 169 00:12:09,549 --> 00:12:14,109 I stay up. That means I go to bed early. And this kid comes up 170 00:12:14,109 --> 00:12:18,269 to me, he worked in solar. And he woke me up one by turning off 171 00:12:18,269 --> 00:12:21,269 my fan. I had a little clip on fan. He turned it off, very rude. 172 00:12:21,829 --> 00:12:25,649 And he turned off and he woke me up at 9:00 at night. And at that 173 00:12:25,649 --> 00:12:28,169 time it was called the solar boom there in Southern California. 174 00:12:28,329 --> 00:12:32,409 And these kids had way too much money. Like, there was Bible 175 00:12:32,409 --> 00:12:35,689 college kids who worked four and five hours a day making six figures. 176 00:12:36,169 --> 00:12:41,609 And he had a gas card that was given to him by his company that 177 00:12:41,609 --> 00:12:46,889 they didn't check. And he had $500 put on it every single month, 178 00:12:47,849 --> 00:12:52,419 every single month. If he didn't use it, he lost it. Just refreshed 179 00:12:52,419 --> 00:12:55,339 every month. And so he comes and wakes me up, it's like November 180 00:12:55,339 --> 00:13:00,299 28th, and he's like, Hey, I still have $400 on this. You want 181 00:13:00,299 --> 00:13:07,339 to go to Vegas, huh? You know what? He's like, yeah, I'll pay for 182 00:13:07,339 --> 00:13:10,019 everything. He's like, we'll go to the buffets. He's like, it's 183 00:13:10,019 --> 00:13:13,579 going to be awesome. He's like, we'll just go. We'll go right? 184 00:13:16,779 --> 00:13:21,939 No, turn my fan back on. Right in the moment. I was thinking with 185 00:13:21,939 --> 00:13:27,099 my head. But little moments like that test your character throughout 186 00:13:27,099 --> 00:13:30,139 your life. What kind of decisions are you going to make? 187 00:13:30,699 --> 00:13:34,419 You see this plea that the people had for Rehoboam. It was reasonable. 188 00:13:34,419 --> 00:13:37,899 Proverbs 15:1 says, A soft answer turneth away wrath, but grievous 189 00:13:38,139 --> 00:13:41,579 words stir up anger. And then we see this revealing test. Proverbs 190 00:13:41,579 --> 00:13:45,579 29:2 says, when the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice. 191 00:13:46,329 --> 00:13:50,209 But when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn. You see, 192 00:13:50,209 --> 00:13:54,369 there is these revealing tests given to King Rehoboam. And so we 193 00:13:54,369 --> 00:13:57,489 see the first part of this progression was the request of the 194 00:13:57,489 --> 00:14:00,489 people. But the second part here is the response of the counselors. 195 00:14:00,489 --> 00:14:05,409 Look at verse number six. And King Rehoboam consulted with the 196 00:14:05,409 --> 00:14:10,409 old men that stood before Solomon his father, while he yet 197 00:14:10,409 --> 00:14:14,419 lived, and said, how do ye advise that I may answer the people? 198 00:14:15,699 --> 00:14:18,579 And they spake unto him, saying, if thou wilt be a servant 199 00:14:18,579 --> 00:14:22,659 unto this people this day, and wilt serve them, and answer them, 200 00:14:22,659 --> 00:14:27,059 and speak good words unto them, they will be thy servants forever. 201 00:14:28,179 --> 00:14:31,819 But he forsook the counsel of the old men which they had given 202 00:14:31,819 --> 00:14:35,019 him, and consulted with the young men which were grown up with 203 00:14:35,019 --> 00:14:38,829 him, and which stood before him. And he said unto them, what 204 00:14:38,829 --> 00:14:41,389 counsel give ye that we may answer this? The people who have 205 00:14:41,389 --> 00:14:44,229 spoken to me saying, make the yoke which thy father did put upon 206 00:14:44,229 --> 00:14:47,109 his lighter. And the young men which were grown up with him spake 207 00:14:47,109 --> 00:14:50,869 unto him, saying, thou shalt speak unto this people that spake 208 00:14:50,869 --> 00:14:53,749 unto thee, saying, thy father made our yoke heavy, but make it 209 00:14:53,749 --> 00:14:57,389 thou lighter unto us. Thus shalt thou say unto them, my little 210 00:14:57,469 --> 00:15:01,469 finger shall be thicker than my father's loins. And now, whereas 211 00:15:01,469 --> 00:15:05,139 my father did lade you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke. 212 00:15:05,139 --> 00:15:10,299 My father hath chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you 213 00:15:10,299 --> 00:15:15,099 with scorpions. Time out. This is one of those, like, times in the 214 00:15:15,099 --> 00:15:16,859 Bible where you're like. You're reading it and you're like, 215 00:15:16,859 --> 00:15:20,579 wait, what? Like, there's no way this guy actually said this out 216 00:15:20,579 --> 00:15:26,419 loud and thought this was a good idea. Right? Is that just me? 217 00:15:28,019 --> 00:15:30,739 Yeah, you know, he chastised you with whips. But, buddy, you better 218 00:15:30,739 --> 00:15:34,429 watch out, because the scorpions are coming. What do you 219 00:15:34,429 --> 00:15:37,469 mean? What do you mean the scorpions are coming? Is that actually 220 00:15:37,469 --> 00:15:43,829 a thing like Is that actually a thing that we do to people? It's 221 00:15:43,829 --> 00:15:46,909 crazy. So we see the response of the counselors. I want you to 222 00:15:46,909 --> 00:15:51,269 notice the wisdom of the old men. The wisdom of the old men. You 223 00:15:51,269 --> 00:15:54,829 see these old men here in this passage, they had served Solomon. 224 00:15:54,909 --> 00:15:58,029 They were alive. They had seen the transition. They knew the yoke 225 00:15:58,029 --> 00:16:01,109 of the people under King Solomon, and they were aware of the 226 00:16:01,109 --> 00:16:05,709 situations of the people and how they had lived. And yet they 227 00:16:05,709 --> 00:16:08,789 had seen the cost of harsh leadership. And their advice that 228 00:16:08,789 --> 00:16:15,709 they gave King Rehoboam was stabilizing, balanced, if you would. 229 00:16:16,749 --> 00:16:20,509 It was, hey, yeah, you know what? Solomon was awfully harsh. 230 00:16:20,909 --> 00:16:23,989 Hey, you know what? If you do what, what the people are requesting, 231 00:16:23,989 --> 00:16:26,389 they're going to give you their hearts and they're going to 232 00:16:26,389 --> 00:16:31,419 serve you forever. Good advice. Proverbs 11:1 says, where 233 00:16:31,419 --> 00:16:35,219 no counsel is, the people fall. But in the multitude of counselors, 234 00:16:35,939 --> 00:16:40,499 there is safety. What I find so interesting about this passage 235 00:16:40,819 --> 00:16:45,139 is when you read it down narrative style, like we have here, 236 00:16:46,579 --> 00:16:51,859 King Rehoboam goes to the old men for advice, and he goes, hey, 237 00:16:51,859 --> 00:16:54,179 what do you think I should do? And they say, oh, thanks for asking. 238 00:16:54,179 --> 00:16:59,179 I think you should do this. And he literally goes, cool. Hey, 239 00:16:59,179 --> 00:17:04,979 young men, so what do you think I should do? Like, and there's 240 00:17:04,979 --> 00:17:08,059 no doubt in my mind. He probably in his mind was like, well, 241 00:17:08,059 --> 00:17:10,459 there's safety in a multitude of counselors, so I should go to 242 00:17:10,459 --> 00:17:13,779 everybody, right? But he didn't even wait to hear both opinions. 243 00:17:13,859 --> 00:17:17,339 The Bible says he completely disregarded the old men before he 244 00:17:17,339 --> 00:17:21,019 even heard the opinion of the young men. It's funny, because he 245 00:17:21,019 --> 00:17:25,759 had already made his decision before he even sought out advice. 246 00:17:27,039 --> 00:17:33,759 He wasn't looking for advice. He was looking for validation. And 247 00:17:33,759 --> 00:17:39,558 many times when we seek out advice, we're not really looking 248 00:17:39,558 --> 00:17:44,799 for advice, are we? We're looking for validation. We're looking 249 00:17:44,799 --> 00:17:48,719 for someone to look at me and tell me that I'm right, because I 250 00:17:48,719 --> 00:17:54,509 like being right. I don't know about you. When me and my wife, we 251 00:17:54,509 --> 00:17:57,429 do have arguments, by the way, but when we, me and my wife argue, 252 00:17:57,429 --> 00:18:10,349 I like being the one that's right. Right is right. All right, 253 00:18:10,349 --> 00:18:12,989 we'll stop there. So we see the wisdom of the old men, but then 254 00:18:12,989 --> 00:18:17,209 we see the arrogance of the young men. The arrogance of the young 255 00:18:17,209 --> 00:18:26,289 men. Rehoboam's peers appealed to his ego, not wisdom. They encouraged 256 00:18:26,289 --> 00:18:32,129 him to prove his power, not capture the people's hearts. And 257 00:18:32,129 --> 00:18:36,809 what I find so interesting about this is in a moment of transparency, 258 00:18:36,809 --> 00:18:43,729 with you guys. You know what? Men like power. I like to be in charge. 259 00:18:45,409 --> 00:18:48,489 The best conversation about a decision is one where I say what 260 00:18:48,489 --> 00:18:52,009 the decision is and then we're done. Unless it's where we're going 261 00:18:52,009 --> 00:18:54,969 to eat, which case, I don't want anything to do with it. You 262 00:18:54,969 --> 00:18:59,569 tell me where we're going, right? But men like to be in charge. 263 00:19:00,129 --> 00:19:03,809 It's an ego thing, right? We like to be the rah, rah, rah. We're 264 00:19:03,809 --> 00:19:08,419 the men, we're in charge. We're the rulers. And I can only 265 00:19:08,419 --> 00:19:12,139 imagine how many times King Rehoboam sat there, maybe in the 266 00:19:12,139 --> 00:19:15,139 courtroom of his father Solomon. And Solomon would make a 267 00:19:15,139 --> 00:19:18,899 decision. Wisest man on earth, by the way, gifted knowledge from 268 00:19:18,899 --> 00:19:22,139 God. And Rehoboam would sit there and be like, well, when I'm 269 00:19:22,139 --> 00:19:25,659 king, let me tell you what, right? And then I just can't wait 270 00:19:25,659 --> 00:19:27,899 to be keen from Lion King started playing and it was like a 271 00:19:27,899 --> 00:19:35,389 whole thing. We laugh, but I think that's probably the attitude 272 00:19:35,389 --> 00:19:40,989 he had, right? No one's saying, do this. No one's saying, 273 00:19:40,989 --> 00:19:45,109 see here? No one's saying, stop that. I know the whole song, 274 00:19:45,109 --> 00:19:48,229 but we won't go the whole thing. You see, the arrogance of 275 00:19:48,229 --> 00:19:53,669 the young man. Proverbs 13:10 says, Only by pride cometh contention, 276 00:19:56,549 --> 00:20:02,139 but with the well advised is wisdom. Who are you listening to? 277 00:20:03,259 --> 00:20:09,059 Who are the voices that you allow to speak into your life? Young 278 00:20:09,059 --> 00:20:19,139 people, not so, younger people. Who are you allowing to speak 279 00:20:19,139 --> 00:20:24,419 into your life? In what ways do you allow them to have influence 280 00:20:24,419 --> 00:20:28,899 over you? You see, the first part of this progression was a reasonable 281 00:20:28,899 --> 00:20:34,659 request, really reasonable. And then we see a response from the 282 00:20:34,659 --> 00:20:37,059 counselors. But I want you to notice thirdly tonight, the results 283 00:20:37,059 --> 00:20:42,499 of his pride. Look at verse number 12. The Bible says, so Jeroboam. 284 00:20:43,379 --> 00:20:47,379 This is an important little side note. Just mark that name. Jeroboam. 285 00:20:47,699 --> 00:20:54,599 So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day as 286 00:20:54,599 --> 00:20:57,239 the king had appointed, saying, come to me again the third 287 00:20:57,239 --> 00:21:02,119 day. And the king answered the people roughly and forsook the old 288 00:21:02,119 --> 00:21:05,079 men's counsel that they gave him, and spake to them after the 289 00:21:05,079 --> 00:21:07,599 counsel of the young men, saying, my father hath made your 290 00:21:07,599 --> 00:21:12,679 yoke heavy, and I will add to your yoke. My father also chastise 291 00:21:12,679 --> 00:21:14,919 you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions. There 292 00:21:14,919 --> 00:21:17,319 it is. The guy thought about it and then actually said it to people. 293 00:21:18,839 --> 00:21:21,559 Wherefore the king hearkened unto me in verse 15 unto the people. 294 00:21:21,559 --> 00:21:24,679 For the cause was from the Lord that he might perform his saying, 295 00:21:24,679 --> 00:21:29,159 which the Lord spake by Ahagi the Shilonite, unto Jeroboam, the 296 00:21:29,159 --> 00:21:33,438 son of Nebat. You see, the result of his pride was letter A 297 00:21:33,438 --> 00:21:37,639 that Rehoboam rejected their counsel. He just completely rejected 298 00:21:37,639 --> 00:21:40,599 the wise, godly counsel that he had been given. He didn't even 299 00:21:40,599 --> 00:21:43,679 weigh both options. He just completely disregarded the elder's 300 00:21:43,679 --> 00:21:49,229 advice, and his pride made the decision before his mind did, before 301 00:21:49,229 --> 00:21:52,869 he ever had a chance to sit down and think about it. His pride 302 00:21:52,869 --> 00:21:58,229 and his ego made the decision for him. Proverbs 1:7 says that the 303 00:21:58,229 --> 00:22:03,229 fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools 304 00:22:03,229 --> 00:22:07,869 despise wisdom and instruction. Do you ever make quick 305 00:22:07,869 --> 00:22:12,759 decisions just to prove a point? Instead of seeking God first? 306 00:22:15,079 --> 00:22:18,519 I could literally fill the rest of our time, every Sunday night, 307 00:22:18,519 --> 00:22:21,519 forever, with times I've made quick decisions just to move, just 308 00:22:21,519 --> 00:22:25,998 to prove a point, just because I'm right. And that's all there is 309 00:22:25,998 --> 00:22:31,239 to say about it, only to find out later on that I was very much 310 00:22:31,239 --> 00:22:39,049 so. Certainly not right. But Rehoboam rejected the counsel, and 311 00:22:39,049 --> 00:22:46,729 as a result, rebellion was the consequence. Look at verse. Look 312 00:22:46,729 --> 00:22:52,529 at verse number 16. So when all Israel saw that the king hearkened 313 00:22:52,529 --> 00:22:56,529 not unto them, the people answered the king, saying, what portion 314 00:22:56,529 --> 00:23:00,849 have we in David? Neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse. 315 00:23:01,499 --> 00:23:05,579 To your tents, O Israel. Now see to thine own house, David. So 316 00:23:05,579 --> 00:23:10,539 Israel departed unto their tents. But as for the children of 317 00:23:10,539 --> 00:23:14,299 Israel which dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned 318 00:23:14,299 --> 00:23:18,979 over them. I think often when we look at these stories, the period 319 00:23:18,979 --> 00:23:23,019 of the Israelite kings is not super well known after, like, Saul, 320 00:23:23,179 --> 00:23:27,499 Keenan or Saul, David and Solomon, because that's really easy 321 00:23:27,499 --> 00:23:31,769 to remember. And then once it splits up, it's like a bunch of really 322 00:23:31,769 --> 00:23:34,409 difficult names that no one really bothers to learn. And it all 323 00:23:34,409 --> 00:23:37,649 kind of overlaps. And for some reason, Jeroboam was so popular that 324 00:23:37,649 --> 00:23:43,889 they named every king ever after him pretty much. But I think 325 00:23:43,889 --> 00:23:47,329 whenever we hear this story in Sunday school, or sometimes when 326 00:23:47,329 --> 00:23:52,209 we at least think back on it, at least me, we think of King Jeroboam 327 00:23:52,209 --> 00:23:57,019 as the bad guy, a relatively young guy. We think of him as the 328 00:23:57,019 --> 00:24:00,379 bad guy in the story. But if there is a bad guy in the story, 329 00:24:00,379 --> 00:24:06,059 it's King Rehoboam. You see, King Rehoboam, he forsook the godly 330 00:24:06,059 --> 00:24:09,579 counsel he was given. He spoke after his pride instead of seeking 331 00:24:09,579 --> 00:24:14,099 the people's hearts. And all while throughout the story, you see 332 00:24:14,099 --> 00:24:18,659 that King Jeroboam had the hearts of the people. I marked it 333 00:24:18,659 --> 00:24:22,109 out in verse number, verse number 12, but it says it a few more 334 00:24:22,109 --> 00:24:24,709 times in the passage before we even get there. It says, Jeroboam 335 00:24:24,709 --> 00:24:29,509 and all the people. Jeroboam and all the people. Jeroboam and 336 00:24:29,509 --> 00:24:34,149 all the people. He already had the hearts of the people. We're talking 337 00:24:34,149 --> 00:24:39,669 about two men who are similarly aged. But one of them hearkened 338 00:24:39,669 --> 00:24:44,469 unto counsel, one of them understood, it's more important that 339 00:24:44,469 --> 00:24:48,679 the people are behind me. Then I be right. It's more important. 340 00:24:52,359 --> 00:24:59,959 It's more important. Matthew. Henry says pride is the armor of 341 00:24:59,959 --> 00:25:05,519 the wicked. It protects him from repentance. He said, we build 342 00:25:05,519 --> 00:25:09,559 up these walls and we use pride as a shelter from all of it. 343 00:25:10,839 --> 00:25:15,549 And King Rehoboam's pride was his downfall. Proverbs 16:18 says, 344 00:25:15,549 --> 00:25:19,389 Pride goeth before destruction and a haughty spirit before the fall. 345 00:25:20,109 --> 00:25:24,269 You see, we see a reasonable request. We see the counselor's response. 346 00:25:25,389 --> 00:25:28,949 We see the results of the pride. But I want you to notice lastly 347 00:25:28,949 --> 00:25:33,949 tonight, the ripple of Rehoboam's reign. This one decision 348 00:25:34,109 --> 00:25:37,269 is not something that just affected the next five, ten years 349 00:25:37,269 --> 00:25:41,879 in Israel. It's something that they never recovered from, ever. 350 00:25:44,359 --> 00:25:50,759 But not just the nation. Turn over a few pages to 1st Kings 15. 351 00:25:58,919 --> 00:26:02,519 This is another really interesting passage. 1st Kings 15. 352 00:26:02,519 --> 00:26:08,229 Look at verse number one. Now. In the 18th year of King Jeroboam, 353 00:26:08,229 --> 00:26:12,229 the son of Nebat, Jeroboam's been ruling up north without any 354 00:26:12,229 --> 00:26:19,869 problems. For 18 years reigned Abijim over Judah. Three years reigned 355 00:26:19,869 --> 00:26:24,269 he in Jerusalem, and his mother name was, and the daughter. 356 00:26:24,989 --> 00:26:28,269 And he walked in all the sins of his father, Verse three, which 357 00:26:28,269 --> 00:26:33,799 he had done before him. And his heart was not perfect. With the 358 00:26:33,799 --> 00:26:37,999 Lord his God, as the heart of David, as the father heart, as the 359 00:26:37,999 --> 00:26:41,999 heart of David his father. Nevertheless, for David's sake, did 360 00:26:41,999 --> 00:26:46,039 the Lord his God give him a lamp in Jerusalem, to set up his 361 00:26:46,039 --> 00:26:50,799 son after him and to establish in Jerusalem? Because David did that 362 00:26:50,799 --> 00:26:53,639 which was right in the eyes of the Lord, and turned not aside from 363 00:26:53,639 --> 00:26:55,839 anything which he had commanded all the days of his life, 364 00:26:56,399 --> 00:27:02,359 save only the matter of Uriah the Hittite. And there was war between 365 00:27:02,439 --> 00:27:07,319 Rehoboam and Jeroboam all the days of his life. Now the acts of 366 00:27:07,399 --> 00:27:09,879 Abijim and all that he did, are they not written in the book 367 00:27:09,879 --> 00:27:13,919 of the chronicles of the king in Judah? And Abijim verse 8 slept 368 00:27:13,919 --> 00:27:16,159 with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David. 369 00:27:16,159 --> 00:27:21,519 And Asa, his son, ruled in Hesed. Verse 9. And in the 20th year 370 00:27:21,519 --> 00:27:27,399 of Jeroboam, king of Israel, reigned Asa over Judah. And 40 and 371 00:27:27,399 --> 00:27:31,679 1 years he reigned he in Jerusalem. Verse 11. And Asa did 372 00:27:31,679 --> 00:27:36,439 that which was right in the eyes of the Lord, as did David, his 373 00:27:36,599 --> 00:27:40,439 father. You see, the ripple of King Rehoboam's rule was not just 374 00:27:40,439 --> 00:27:44,919 him. It wasn't just his kingdom split forever, never to be 375 00:27:44,919 --> 00:27:50,799 rejoined, never to be reconnected. But his sin moved on 376 00:27:50,799 --> 00:27:57,729 to the next generation. His son was a mess. His son allowed all 377 00:27:57,729 --> 00:28:03,129 sorts of sin and everything in his life. His son followed his compromise. 378 00:28:04,249 --> 00:28:08,329 Now, in 2 Chronicles 13, he did have one high point in his life. 379 00:28:10,569 --> 00:28:13,729 But he learned real quickly that one battle doesn't fix a broken 380 00:28:13,729 --> 00:28:21,779 pattern. This pattern of pride and arrogance continued on in the 381 00:28:21,779 --> 00:28:28,339 kings of Judah. Compromised legacy reproduces itself over and 382 00:28:28,419 --> 00:28:34,299 over and over again. See, now nowadays they call it generational 383 00:28:34,299 --> 00:28:39,219 curses, right? The things that fathers do, the things that mothers 384 00:28:39,219 --> 00:28:42,419 and fathers do that the kids tend to pick up on and go for it. 385 00:28:43,469 --> 00:28:45,829 The Bible says that the sins of the father go to the third and 386 00:28:45,829 --> 00:28:54,949 to the fourth generation. And here we see Rehoboam completely wrecking 387 00:28:54,949 --> 00:29:01,669 his family's legacy over pride. Over pride. The choices that 388 00:29:01,669 --> 00:29:06,669 we make, they don't just affect our life. They affect everyone's 389 00:29:06,669 --> 00:29:12,519 life around us. According to 2 Chronicles 12:14, Rehoboam prepared 390 00:29:12,679 --> 00:29:18,839 not his heart to seek the Lord. His son saw that and decided, 391 00:29:18,839 --> 00:29:22,279 I'm going to be just like dad. I'm going to do the same thing he 392 00:29:22,279 --> 00:29:30,839 did. It's been said that what one generation allows, the next generation 393 00:29:30,919 --> 00:29:37,609 embraces. You see, David had his low point with Uriah the Hittite 394 00:29:37,609 --> 00:29:41,049 in that whole situation. So much so it even got a shout out here 395 00:29:41,049 --> 00:29:46,089 in this, this passage. And what he allowed there with that whole 396 00:29:46,089 --> 00:29:50,889 situation with Bathsheba and Uriah, Solomon took it a way step 397 00:29:50,889 --> 00:29:55,369 further, didn't he, Mr. A Thousand Wives. He took it way beyond 398 00:29:55,369 --> 00:30:02,439 further. And Solomon in all of his wisdom, was a prideful man. And 399 00:30:02,439 --> 00:30:06,999 what he had kin. Rehoboam was like, cool, I'm gonna go all in on 400 00:30:06,999 --> 00:30:13,759 this pride and ego thing. Bring out the scorpions. And all 401 00:30:13,759 --> 00:30:17,399 of a sudden, Abidjin was looking at this. I don't know how 402 00:30:17,399 --> 00:30:20,359 you say his name. Just gotta say it confidently. Abidjin was watching 403 00:30:20,359 --> 00:30:24,119 dad and Grandpa and going, hmm, well, it's working out pretty 404 00:30:24,119 --> 00:30:26,719 well for them. Solomon was the rich grandpa. Solomon was the Richest 405 00:30:26,719 --> 00:30:30,519 man who ever lived works well for me. So what I'm going to do. 406 00:30:32,839 --> 00:30:36,759 And then all the way down, then you have Kinesa. Kinesa wasn't 407 00:30:36,759 --> 00:30:40,159 perfect, by the way. But the nation did see revival under him. 408 00:30:40,159 --> 00:30:45,759 And he was the start of seeing some good kings in Judah again. But 409 00:30:45,759 --> 00:30:51,879 he allowed the Lord to use him because of it. You may have noticed 410 00:30:52,599 --> 00:30:56,429 something I've done on purpose here is that all the passages I've 411 00:30:56,429 --> 00:31:00,829 read tonight are from the book of Proverbs. The book of Proverbs 412 00:31:00,829 --> 00:31:08,309 is written from Solomon to Rehoboam. Rehoboam had all of this 413 00:31:08,309 --> 00:31:14,629 wisdom at his fingertips and he chose to ignore it. Some commentators 414 00:31:14,629 --> 00:31:19,109 think he even memorized it. But it's interesting when we think 415 00:31:19,109 --> 00:31:21,509 about this, because when we see the request of the people, we 416 00:31:21,509 --> 00:31:24,189 see that it was a reasonable plea. And we see in Proverbs 15 that 417 00:31:24,769 --> 00:31:29,009 soft answer turneth away wrath. If only he had hearkened, 418 00:31:29,809 --> 00:31:32,089 we see the test of his character. He could have known from 419 00:31:32,089 --> 00:31:34,689 Proverbs 29 that when the righteous are in authority, the people 420 00:31:34,689 --> 00:31:40,449 rejoice, but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn. When 421 00:31:40,449 --> 00:31:45,809 he saw the wisdom of the old men, he could have looked at Proverbs 422 00:31:45,809 --> 00:31:49,369 11:14 and said, in the multitude of counselors there is 423 00:31:49,369 --> 00:31:53,009 safety. When he saw the arrogance of the young men, he could 424 00:31:53,009 --> 00:31:56,169 have looked at Proverbs 13 and said, Only pride cometh by pretension, 425 00:31:56,809 --> 00:32:03,289 but with the well advised is wisdom. When he rejected their counsel 426 00:32:03,289 --> 00:32:06,289 and gave into the pride, he could have known from Proverbs 1:7 427 00:32:06,289 --> 00:32:10,249 that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. But fools 428 00:32:10,249 --> 00:32:15,729 despise wisdom and instruction. When he saw the rebellion 429 00:32:15,729 --> 00:32:17,809 and all the consequences of his sin, he could have known that 430 00:32:17,809 --> 00:32:21,259 pride goeth before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall. 431 00:32:24,139 --> 00:32:28,979 All of this wisdom at his fingertips, the instructions on how 432 00:32:28,979 --> 00:32:34,459 to live life, how to rule the kingdom. Some people think he memorized 433 00:32:34,459 --> 00:32:42,379 it. Had the book of Proverbs memorized yet. Zero application, 434 00:32:44,219 --> 00:32:56,039 zero thought about it. The problem isn't access, it's attitude. 435 00:32:58,119 --> 00:33:01,079 You see, we have access as modern day Christians. We have access 436 00:33:01,079 --> 00:33:07,759 to every word of God recorded for us. The problem isn't that we 437 00:33:07,759 --> 00:33:12,409 can't know the answer to our problems. The problem isn't that 438 00:33:12,409 --> 00:33:18,409 it's a giant mystery that's unfigureoutable to us. It's that 439 00:33:18,409 --> 00:33:26,609 we don't care to look. So I ask you again, who are you listening 440 00:33:26,609 --> 00:33:32,049 to? What voices do you allow in your life? Are you disregarding 441 00:33:32,049 --> 00:33:39,289 the old men? Are you listening to the young arrogant egomaniacs 442 00:33:39,689 --> 00:33:44,369 telling you to give into your pride and your ego? Are you looking 443 00:33:44,369 --> 00:33:48,369 in the book, the book of wisdom that our heavenly Father hath 444 00:33:48,369 --> 00:33:52,729 given us with every head bow and every eye closed. As musicians 445 00:33:52,729 --> 00:33:57,089 make their way to the front. I have just a couple questions for 446 00:33:57,089 --> 00:34:04,009 you after we pray. Dear Lord, thank you for this day. And Lord, 447 00:34:04,009 --> 00:34:07,459 thank you for this passage. Lord, thank you for this story. Lord, 448 00:34:07,459 --> 00:34:13,139 thank you for this lesson from King Rehoboam. Lord, I can't imagine 449 00:34:13,139 --> 00:34:15,499 that this was something that he enjoyed living through, but I'm 450 00:34:15,499 --> 00:34:18,219 thankful that we have this lesson, this warning for us today. 451 00:34:19,579 --> 00:34:23,659 Lord, I pray that you would help me curb my own pride. Lord, 452 00:34:23,659 --> 00:34:26,739 I pray that you would help me to hearken to the wisdom that you 453 00:34:26,739 --> 00:34:30,699 have given us in this book. Lord, I pray that if there's someone 454 00:34:30,699 --> 00:34:36,189 here tonight, Lord, who is hiding behind the armor of their 455 00:34:36,189 --> 00:34:39,789 pride, Lord, I pray that they would give it up today. Lord, I pray 456 00:34:39,789 --> 00:34:42,949 that they would repent. Lord, I pray that we would begin to seek 457 00:34:42,949 --> 00:34:46,269 the wisdom that you've given us in the book. In Jesus name I pray. 458 00:34:46,429 --> 00:34:48,189 Amen. As the musicians begin playing.