To whom does the glory of your life belong?
Series: Holy – Holy – Holy | Bible text: 1 Kings 11:1–4; 12:27–28; Romans 12:1–2
King Solomon took in 666 talents or 22 tons of gold alone annually, the equivalent of CH 1.27 billion per year. He was God’s chosen king of Israel, God’s people. He was the wisest man of all time. His incredible glory was a picture of the glory of God – as long as he trusted in God alone. But things turned out differently…
Every person, every one of us has a «glory». What governs your life and mine becomes visible in your life and mine. If God is Lord in my life, his «glory», his way of working and acting in my life, becomes visible through me. If I am Lord in my life, this also becomes visible.
When God calls us to live holy, He mainly means that we let HIM be Lord completely in our hearts, so that He can show His love in us, «glorify» Himself.
I would like to look at three of the first kings of Israel with you today in the first part, how the glory of God could or could not be shown in them.
First David: King David is said to be a man after God’s own heart. Even after his death, kings of Israel and Judah are always measured against David and his «undivided heart». What was the reason for this.
Of his exquisite transformation? Certainly not. David has screwed up extraordinarily:
- The story of Bathsheba, whom he impregnates. Then he has her husband killed and pretends to pity the grieving widow for another year in front of the people.
- The story when he makes his people count. 70,000 people die because of Davis» disobedience.
- Or David’s child-rearing – a string of disasters.
Yet God said about David: A man after my own heart.
The secret of David was that he never put his trust in anyone else but God, his Lord. Even when things got very difficult. He never sacrificed to another God. His heart remained faithful to God. When God looks back at David, all he ever sees is this holy faithfulness, despite the many transgressions and wrong decisions David made.
Then his successor Solomon: As we said at the beginning, Solomon’s glory at the beginning of his reign could not be surpassed. This glory fell fully on the source of his glory – the biblical God. Everyone in the world at that time knew the biblical God endowed Solomon with this glory. Solomon’s glory was God’s glory. Accordingly, the life and radiance of Solomon was testimony-strong.
However, this testimonial power quickly turns clear:
«King Solomon loved many foreign women. Besides Pharaoh’s daughter, he married women from Moab, Ammon, Edom, Sidon and the Hittites. These were the peoples of whom the LORD had clearly commanded his people, «Do not associate with them, for they would entice you to worship their gods.» Yet Solomon had a liking for them. He had 700 wives and 300 concubines, and they influenced his heart» (1 Kings 11:1–3 NLB).
When Solomon had grown old, his wives had brought him to the point of worshipping their gods. He no longer trusted in the LORD his God alone, as his father, King David, had done. And he was not the only one who had abandoned God as the only God. All Israel had devoted themselves to idolatry – even though they were God’s people.
What a tragedy: the whole, great glory of Solomon lost its testimony when Solomon gave place to the first idols in his life. What good was his wisdom, his gold, his wealth. Did it come from the gods of Egypt, from those of Moab, Amon or yet from the biblical God…?
(Example of water jug with syrup. Water is transparent. If you pour some syrup into the water, there is still the same amount of water in it. But what does the observer see: only the red of the syrup. That’s how it is when other gentlemen find space in my life. Even though I still see myself as a follower of God and am a child. If God does not remain my sole Lord, my testimony immediately deteriorates and becomes mixed).
In Solomon’s case it was the foreign women who found their way into Solomon’s heart and with them their idols. For us, this raises the question: With whom do I share my heart? What is allowed to shape my heart? Am I completely focused on doing what God wants or am I, like Solomon, divided?
Let us move on to the third king: Jeroboam.
Jeroboam was called by God to be king over Israel. His kingship was also a testimony to God’s action. But Jeroboam did not have an undivided heart either. When he encountered difficulties, he abandoned his trust and God and acted according to his own discretion:
«When the people go to Jerusalem to sacrifice in the house of the LORD, they will also submit again to their master, King Rehoboam of Judah. Then they will kill me and turn again to Rehoboam king of Judah.» So the king reasoned. Therefore, he had two golden calves made.…» (1 Kings 12:27–28 NLB)
Where Solomon made room for other things in his heart, Jeroboam exalts himself as Lord and builds idols of his own. He has completely lost trust in God and relies only on himself and his mind. But that is exactly what we are not to do as followers of God.
«Rely on the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your mind.»(Proverbs 3:5 NLB).
Do I really trust in the Lord in the difficult things in my life, or do I trust in my mind. Does my succession only work in the comfort zone?
David held on to God even in the greatest difficulties.
Part 2: How do I learn to trust God?
The Bible is full of examples of the struggle for our hearts. In this struggle, God courts our hearts. He shows his greatness, his love, his justice, his truth. He makes himself transparent and explains his thoughts and actions. Yet we are so quick to deviate from trusting in the Lord. This raises the question of how we can remain in this trust?
How do I learn to live a holy, living life. Because that is our task:
«Because God is so merciful, I now invite you, dear brothers, to commit your whole lives to God. It is to be a living and holy sacrifice – a sacrifice in which God delights. This is worship as it should be»(Romans 12:1 NLB).
A holy and living life requires a fundamental change in us – more concretely in our thinking:
«And do not be conformed to this world, but be changed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.»(Romans 12:2 NLB).
Some trust in idols (Solomon) or others in their own understanding (Jeroboam). But we are to align ourselves completely with God and his will, that is good. This requires a renewal of our thinking (English: transformation).
A transformation is more than just a small change. In a transformation, the whole form changes. Like, for example, the caterpillar changes into a butterfly. It is the same bio-mass – but a new creature. This transformation is what the Holy Spirit wants to bring about in us.
First, when God can take up residence in my heart through his Spirit. Then I become a new creature
«Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, new things have come into being.» (2 Corinthians 5:17 LUT).
The Holy Spirit wants to change us in our thoughts and actions by showing us the will of God. Then we have to make decisions to obey this will.
Let us obey God. If he is the only Lord in our lives, we live holy. If we live in an intense relationship with Christ, we are alive.
I wish for all of us this holy and living life in which God’s glory is displayed.
Possible questions for the small group
- Solomon had 700 wives and 300 concubines with whom he shared the heart. These women stole Solomon’s heart for their idols. Where do things steal our heart or occupy our heart – away from God?
- Jeroboam tries to make himself a god and built on his mind and made his reasoning an idol. Where are there things in our lives where we build less on our intellect and trust more in God?
- Romans 12:1,2 says that our lives should be a holy and living sacrifice because we are sending Christ’s mercy
- Let us see this mercy
- Are we ready to «sacrifice» our reign of life under the reign of God?
- How does the Holy Spirit want to change us, «transform» us?
