1 Kings 13 and others

As I was trying to piece together what God wanted me to write about this week, I was  led to a thought about who is saying what,  what people are saying about who was saying what and how they felt about what was being said, in regards to everything spiritual.  Everyone is talking about someone and reading something someone has written and passing it on. Then a new conversation is struck saying have you read this.  Even I am wanting you to read what I am saying  but, I am trying to convince you to listen to God above all else..

As this message was building  in me I saw my wife reading the quote below and I asked her to forward it to me. The next morning I read 1 Kings 13 and I was floored at God’s awesome wonder.  So let me tell you what God is saying to me through his Word.  I know some may say this is old school,  because many today in our Christian circles  are clamoring for something fresh. However, fresh should not replace Truth.  When in doubt pull the Bible out, because for me, the Word is becoming more alive each passing day.  There are a lot of us that still haven’t grasped what is in Bible  and are looking for fresh spiritual insight and knowledge  which might lead to something sour or unbiblical..

God never commanded you to trust people. God commanded you to love people and trust Him. Know the difference. Your joy and victory depend on it.  Mike Murdock

You see how the truth just sits there and  doesn’t need to be pondered.  It is the truth and that is it. We don’t need a conference to discuss it, we only need to trust in Him.  There are many of us  that want to believe in something more and are searching endlessly for it.  I hear speakers tell us we should  petition God to reveal more to us and many are only too happy to get on that band wagon instead of listening for  God.   We listen to people who say they have heard from God and  pay good money  hoping the next word is for them, so they can be enlightened by the knowledge passed down to us lower  folk.  In 1 Kings 13, we are told that a man of God was instructed by God to prophecy over an unholy altar and deliver a sign to Bethel. (Something I am doing here)

 2 Then he cried out against the altar by the word of the Lord, and said, “O altar, altar! Thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, a child, Josiah by name, shall be born to the house of David; and on you he shall sacrifice the priests of the high places who burn incense on you, and men’s bones shall be burned on you.’” 3 And he gave a sign the same day, saying, “This is the sign which the Lord has spoken: Surely the altar shall split apart, and the ashes on it shall be poured out.”

 Now the king was very upset about this. He yelled out to have that man arrested. As he was pointing him out in the crowd his hand withered. Wouldn’t you know that the altar split in half too.  Here is a perfect case of where signs and wonders confirm the Word of God, by instituting a Fear of the Lord.

 ” 6 Then the king answered and said to the man of God, “Please entreat the favor of the Lord your God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored to me.”

 The man of God prayed and the hand was restored. The king then asked if the man of God would  join him for dinner but the man of God said that he was not allowed to eat, drink with anyone or even go back the way he came per the instruction of the Lord.  So he left Bethel with only his message.

If this story ended here you could say what a good story about obedience, but good is the enemy of best. That isn’t even the message hidden in these verses.  In today’s world we usually only hear parts of a scripture to aid the orator’s goal of his message and most of the time you never hear the full context, where the fruit usually lies. I promise if you hang with me on this, you will not be disappointed.

Now it continues that an old prophet in Bethel heard about this sign and wonder.  Since this happened in his territory the old prophet wanted to see what all the fuss was about.

 14 and went after the man of God, and found him sitting under an oak. Then he said to him, “Are you the man of God who came from Judah?”  And he said, “I am.”15 Then he said to him, “Come home with me and eat bread.”16 And he said, “I cannot return with you nor go in with you; neither can I eat bread nor drink water with you in this place. 17 For I have been told by the word of the Lord, ‘You shall not eat bread nor drink water there, nor return by going the way you came’”

 18 He said to him, “I too am a prophet as you are, and an angel spoke to me by the word of the Lord, saying, ‘Bring him back with you to your house, that he may eat bread and drink water.’” (He was lying to him.)  19 So he went back with him, and ate bread in his house, and drank water.

See how easy it was for the man of God to be fooled.  All it took to get him off his path was someone to say, Hey, I am a prophet too, an angel of the Lord told me told me you should eat with me.  He was older, wiser and he obviously conveyed the sense that he had authority in matters like this.  (Sound familiar).  There are many people today saying they are having regular visions and visitations.  I can neither confirm nor deny this but I can say this,  if you read Ezekiel 13, God will condemn the false prophets who say they are hearing from Him who are not actually.  Here is just verses 8-9.

 8 Therefore thus says the Lord God: “Because you have spoken nonsense and envisioned lies, therefore I am indeed against you,” says the Lord God. 9 “My hand will be against the prophets who envision futility and who divine lies; they shall not be in the assembly of My people, nor be written in the record of the house of Israel, nor shall they enter into the land of Israel. Then you shall know that I am the Lord God.

 I think it is interesting that the old prophet did not say he heard from the Lord but an angel.  I would bet that he certainly did hear something.   Whatever it was, he manipulated the situation to serve his own end not God’s.

20 Now it happened, as they sat at the table, that the word of the Lord came to the prophet who had brought him back; 21 and he cried out to the man of God who came from Judah, saying, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Because you have disobeyed the word of the Lord, and have not kept the commandment which the Lord your God commanded you, 22 but you came back, ate bread, and drank water in the place of which the Lord said to you, “Eat no bread and drink no water,” your corpse shall not come to the tomb of your fathers.’”

God still used the old prophet to issue a prophecy over the man of God, even though he lied. As the story continues the man of God is killed by  a marauding lion and then the lion stood guard over the man of God until the old prophet collected the body.

 23 So it was, after he had eaten bread and after he had drunk, that he saddled the donkey for him, the prophet whom he had brought back. 24 When he was gone, a lion met him on the road and killed him. And his corpse was thrown on the road, and the donkey stood by it. The lion also stood by the corpse. 25 And there, men passed by and saw the corpse thrown on the road, and the lion standing by the corpse. Then they went and told it in the city where the old prophet dwelt.

 Now this is where revelation from God’s word enlightened me.  The man of God disobeyed God and lost his destiny on earth and his inheritance.  This is a common theme throughout the Bible. Moses could not enter into the promised land for striking the rock instead of speaking to it, Saul lost his reign for not waiting for Samuel before offering a sacrifice as commanded and David could not build the temple due to his affair with Bathsheba. All  lost through disobedience.  Same here, God did not let the man of God be buried in the tomb of his fathers, but still honored him in death until he was retrieved by the old prophet.

  28 Then he went and found his corpse thrown on the road, and the donkey and the lion standing by the corpse. The lion had not eaten the corpse nor torn the donkey.29 And the prophet took up the corpse of the man of God, laid it on the donkey, and brought it back. So the old prophet came to the city to mourn, and to bury him. 30 Then he laid the corpse in his own tomb; and they mourned over him, saying, “Alas, my brother!” 31 So it was, after he had buried him, that he spoke to his sons, saying, “When I am dead, then bury me in the tomb where the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones. 32 For the saying which he cried out by the word of the Lord against the altar in Bethel, and against all the shrines on the high places which are in the cities of Samaria, will surely come to pass.”

I believe the characters in this chapter represents all of us at one point in our lives.  We all have a destiny and an inheritance. Will we obey God and obtain it or disobey God and lose it prematurely.  Satan always wants to engage in conversation and steal what is rightfully ours. How many old prophets are out their trying to recapture their days of old through what ever means necessary.  They were all at one time a man of God, very charismatic, but now an old prophet.  They may already completed their assigned Word to deliver but are yet seeking another.  However, that can lead them to pushing “new revelation” and preach  unbiblical principles wrapped in half truths to entice new converts.  (They are preaching right under our noses and not in some faraway land).

We have a responsibility to ask God if what we are listening to is of Him. This is something the man of God did not do.

From their fruit you shall know them!!!!  Today our so called church leaders  from known denominations and independent circles hide when Christian business’ are attacked for standing  on God’s Word and divine creation. They stay silent as Christians are being slaughtered around the world. They do not put their faith into practice by the promises and sure mercies of God. They stand boldly for messages of love  and inclusion with arms wide open. They would prefer to chase signs and wonders to attract and focus more on heavenly realms but refuse to put that love into action and stand firm on the Word right here and now.  We have a group of leaders that tell us they have been ordained by God to lead His flock and that we need their guidance to bring us into the last days. What we really need is for them is to stop talking about it, come forward and speak out publically against those that would silence the Word of God, but we hear only crickets.

(I am pausing so you can hear them for yourself)

Are they are afraid of what they might lose?  Is their earthly kingdom more precious to them than the Word.  Where is their faith in God they preach we should walk out?   While they awe everyone with cute phrases and provoking one liners they forget to tell their audience that only a few will be allowed to stay in Heaven, while they entertain them. The message should be; we are all invited, there is a dress code, RSVP is required and we need to confirm our reservations prior to check in.

In the parable of the wedding feast those who did not change their clothes where thrown out. Many were invited, some wanted to  crash the wedding, but did not show the respect needed by changing their clothes.  A lot of churches today  say come as you are and “hope” their attendees will change from their sinful  attire. However they refuse to tell them their clothes are out of style or confront the real social issues of the day and preach the whole message of Christ.  Please note the wedding didn’t go to the town, the town had to go to the wedding.

I say to you; your altar will split unless you preach the Word,  God gave you!!! Walk in your faith and confront the evil that faces you and your followers.  We are called to restrain evil.  Jesus and the disciples did that wherever they ventured. In Luke 13:32.  Jesus informed Herod what he would do.

 32 And He said to them, “Go, tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.’

 There are certain leaders who profess there is no more judgement from God while Satan  torments us, they turn a blind eye here on earth where their feet should be firmly planted.  Which is it?  They tell people they have the authority to take kingdom ground, but abandon those who actually stand their ground for God.  We don’t see them in the news defending  such saints, do you?  They could very easily start.  How many times, did Jesus command us to not to harm His children and WOE to those who do. Not getting involved when that time comes, harms  God’s children. Jesus said a house divided against itself  will not stand and today we are not demonstrating unity against evil.  THAT IS THE TRUTH!!!!   Why are they afraid to defend the ones that stand for God in the world?  I will tell you, fear of man over God and of what they could lose.

As Jesus said those who prayed in public, “You  have received your reward!!” ( emphasis mine)

Woe to all who talk a good talk but have no backbone; fail to call on Holy Spirit to answer the call; who talk about establishing  Christ’s Kingdom, but will not confront the cultural challenges Satan is using to silence God’s true prophets.   Throughout the bible all the land that was given to God’s people had to be taken from those who occupied it, it was their faith that expanded the kingdom. They didn’t wait for the squatters  to move out or ask them nicely.  They had to take the land in the face of opposition.

If you believe it is your destiny to  take dominion over the seven pillars of society through a Seven Mountain Prophecy or Dominion Theology, stand up, confront the pillars.  Show us your beliefs in action,  if you are God’s soldier take up your sword and call on the Lord to stand with you on His Word.  There are plenty of biblical examples where God stood for those who held to His ways,  read 2 Chronicles 13.  Will you shake the dust off shoes and utter the curse Jesus directed His disciples to speak to those who rejected His Word?  Will you call on God, to confirm His Word through miracles, signs and wonders that will truly change the hearts of unbelievers? Probably not, you wouldn’t want to offend anyone or bring  notice to your nice church, that covers everyone with hugs and kisses and refuses to challenge its followers.

What some profess i,s that we should influence the influential in times like these.  Who are you kidding, in my experience when that moment comes, you should be listening to what God wants you to do not what you think you should do.  The moment you try to reason with evil, the battle is lost.  Truth is the sword that separates the righteous from the unrighteous.

The ironic part of this story is that the old prophet, had to prophecy  the death of the person he manipulated.  His lie caused a person to die, lose his inheritance and  deny his destiny.

And evil continued to flourish, because of his death.

 33 After this event Jeroboam did not turn from his evil way, but again he made priests from every class of people for the high places; whoever wished, he consecrated him, and he became one of the priests of the high places. 34 And this thing was the sin of the house of Jeroboam, so as to exterminate and destroy it from the face of the earth.

The old prophet lied  and a  man of God died!!!  How many people are dying spiritually and physically listening to old prophets claiming they have a new word of God in today’s biggest churches following a path that does not lead  to joy or victory.  Following men who are following their own footsteps.

 Ezekiel 13:3 Thus says the Lord God: “Woe to the foolish prophets, who follow their own spirit and have seen nothing! 4 O Israel, your prophets are like foxes in the deserts. 5 You have not gone up into the gaps to build a wall for the house of Israel to stand in battle on the day of the Lord.

 What I offer you today is the truth in God’s Word.  We need a prophet who will put God’s storeroom and priests back in their rightful order, read Nehemiah 13.

For all those church leaders, who enjoy the sexy parts of this walk in  the comfort of their rectory or pastoral residence,  it would behoove you to read about Mordeci Hamm, John Welsey,  David Wilkerson, Leonard Ravenhill, Jonathon Edwards, George Fox, George Whitfield and finally Girolamo Savonarola who was placed on the racks by order of the Pope himself for not bowing down to the political doctrine of the day.  These men went out into the world everyday and spoke the truth at whatever cost. If  you want to learn how to stand on the Word, ask God to show you and let your heart be filled with FIRE AND FURY once again!!!!

So why and I am  laying this out there like this, because everything that happened in this chapter happened under the watchful nose of the old prophet who stayed silent.  The man of God’s fate was sealed when the old prophet remained silent the first time God’s law and Word was perverted, long before this incident happened.  Did you get that, the old prophet’s silence prophesized the man of God’s death without one word being spoken.  His lack of action caused God to instruct another  man of God from Judah to go into Bethel and prophecy over the king since the old prophet wouldn’t do it. His lack of righteous action allowed evil flourish and his selfish act of lying to the man of God caused his death.

You see his selfish attitude diminished the power of the restored hand and the fear of the Lord that was instilled in Jeroboam.  Jeroboam after seeing the man of God dead continued to pervert the priesthood and pervert the land once he saw what he believed to be the power of God’s word lay dead on the side of the road for all to see.

As I was thinking about the punchline for this article, I asked Jesus for it and He did not disappoint me.  I  was shown what silence can do. I saw it in the Old Testament and I see it in today’s world.

Will your silence today  cause a brother or sister to fall tomorrow?  Does God really have to ask you to stand on His Word?  Do you have a faith that will be obedient in the face of rejection?  Do you pray for Jesus’ judicial hand to intervene in matters where his sons and daughters are being killed to save them.  The early church did it to Herod and David did it against his own sons to stop evil in its tracks if they refused to turn towards God.

If you love Him will all your mind and all your heart there should be no discussion on these matters. You count on Christ  and He should be able to count of you.

Finally who are you listening to?  Are you allowing that person to manage your destiny or is it in the hands of your Heavenly Father?

Only you know and I would suggest you choose wisely.

If you want to know how to pray judiciously please read this blog from Word at Work Ministries.

https://www.wordatwork.org/2015/04/word-at-work-april-9-2015/

God Loves you and so do I and there isn’t a thing you can do about it.

I love you Father