12-1-13. 1 Kings 2:1-12.  FINAL WORDS- my devotional

1 Kings 2:1-12                                                                                                                                                Sunday, December 1, 2013

Key verse, 2:2-3                                                                                                                                           Kevin E. Jesmer

“I am about to go the way of all the earth. Be strong, and show yourself a man, 3 and keep the charge of the Lord your God, walking in his ways and keeping his statutes, his commandments, his rules, and his testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn,”

     Dear Lord Jesus Christ, I thank you that you are in control, There are so many things in this world threatening our security and our future, the faltering economy,  the confusion over healthcare, pollution, the war on terror, drug cartels, crimes, disease, spiritual darkness and the list goes on an on. But there is one solid rock that we can all stand on and that is the rock of Christ. Nothing can shake us when we place our faith, hope and trust in you. Not matter what this world and the devil may throw at us, not matter how we are burdened by our own sins and weaknesses, we know that there is always Christ, high and exalted. One day the storms will all pass and we shall be in your loving arms forever more. May this living hope and living faith permeate the hearts of the people of our nation and fill their hearts with hope and peace. I pray that you may teach me faith as I mediate on your word. I pray in the name of the Solid Rock, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Part 1: Act Like A Man (1-4).

Verses 1-4, “When David’s time to die drew near, he commanded Solomon his son, saying, 2 “I am about to go the way of all the earth. Be strong, and show yourself a man, 3 and keep the charge of the Lord your God, walking in his ways and keeping his statutes, his commandments, his rules, and his testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn, 4 that the Lord may establish his word that he spoke concerning me, saying, ‘If your sons pay close attention to their way, to walk before me in faithfulness with all their heart and with all their soul, you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel.’”

David knew that he was about to die. He knew that it was the time to give some last worlds of advice to his son, Solomon since he was officially succeeding David as king. Much could have been said but David focused on life direction. He told Solomon to be strong and to act like a man. Solomon had to put aside childishness, to be courageous, and to put the interests of his people above himself. Solomon was unable to do this on his own, so David told Solomon to walk in obedience to the Lord.

Becoming a true “man” or a “woman” for that matter, in the Lord, does not come naturally. Strength and leadership do not come from worldly wisdom or physical power but from loving and obeying God. I think that people need to now this. There is a trend today in society, called, extended adolescence. It is where children are extending the time of their adolescence. They are living at home longer, playing a lot and not committing to a spouse or one course of action in their lives. They are noncommittal and their greatest goal seems to be to recreate as many “Friends” episodes as they can, avoiding milestones in life. The problem is that life keeps moving forward and they keep getting older and society keeps moving, sometimes past them. This is extended adolescence. It is the slot in the life that millions of our young people are falling into. They need to step out of this trend and stand up and show themselves true men and women through faith in Christ and obedience to his words.

I agree that it is not easy to find out how to do this. Fear also stops us from being the person God wants us to be. The devil controls people by the fear of death. Fear of death is linked to our fear of suffering and sacrifice. In order to live up to God’s calling and leading in life, we must face our fears with faith. If we can not take a step forward then we cannot stand up and be a man. What about men who can’t stand up and be a father, or commit to the woman in their life and marry them? What about the man who can’t put himself out there and keep a job? These are just things in normal life, what about living a spiritual life? Do we have courage to lay down our lives to for the sake of others? Do we have the courage to go to places that are dangerous in order to preach the Gospel? Are we ready to cross cultural or language barriers to share the love of Jesus? Will we take time off of work to go on a mission trip, or two, or three? Fear stops us from being the person God has called us to be.

There are so many things in this world telling us what it means to be a person. Most people get their ideas about how to be a man from their own dads. What about boys who grow up with a single mom? They might have a male role model in a teacher or family friend. (Many potential male role models are afraid to step up lest they get accused of something nefarious.) Sadly people may get their ideas from movies and television. Maybe even from video games or from music singers. I think that many young people are lost. They do not know how to be a man or a woman from a godly perspective. They are in desperate need of examples and for instruction and encouragement.

Where does this instruction come from? Verses 3-4 read, “and keep the charge of the Lord your God, walking in his ways and keeping his statutes, his commandments, his rules, and his testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn, 4 that the Lord may establish his word that he spoke concerning me, saying, ‘If your sons pay close attention to their way, to walk before me in faithfulness with all their heart and with all their soul, you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel.’”  From these verses we can see that to be a man or woman of God we need to…

1. Walk in God’s ways 2. Keep his statutes, commands and rules and his testimonies. 3. Pay close attention to their way. 4. Walk before God in faithfulness with all of their heart and soul.

This is good direction. It involves much prayerful Bible study. It requires putting what we learn into practice. But it may be unattainable for many people. It may seem dry and legalistic. Even those who can muster enough inner strength to embrace all the “statutes, commands and rules and his testimonies” you will eventually loose strength and despair of your own inabilities to keep the law. That is where grace comes in. No, you can not ignore obedience to the word of God. No, you can not ignore putting the word of God into practice. But the important thing is remain in Jesus….remain in his love…remain in his word. John 15:5-11 reads, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. 9 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.” (NIV)

Then the spirit of God will faithfully work in your hearts to transform you, like a seed slowly growing in the dark soil. God will change you in his time and in his way. I like to write daily devotionals. I confess that sometimes they are not “daily” but it is my way of  remaining in Jesus. I can focus my heart on Christ and his word which reveals his grace and truth. I can pray. And do you know what? God works. I become more sanctified. In Christ, I can have hope to be a man of God, the kind of man God wants me to be. Anyone can have hope to grow in their inner person when they remain in Christ. I pray for the young people of our land to remain in the Christ and grow to be a man or a woman of God.

Part 2: Dealing With Others (5-12).

Verses 5-12, “Moreover, you also know what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, how he dealt with the two commanders of the armies of Israel, Abner the son of Ner, and Amasa the son of Jether, whom he killed, avenging in time of peace for blood that had been shed in war, and putting the blood of war on the belt around his waist and on the sandals on his feet. 6 Act therefore according to your wisdom, but do not let his gray head go down to Sheol in peace. 7 But deal loyally with the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them be among those who eat at your table, for with such loyalty they met me when I fled from Absalom your brother. 8 And there is also with you Shimei the son of Gera, the Benjaminite from Bahurim, who cursed me with a grievous curse on the day when I went to Mahanaim. But when he came down to meet me at the Jordan, I swore to him by the Lord, saying, ‘I will not put you to death with the sword.’ 9 Now therefore do not hold him guiltless, for you are a wise man. You will know what you ought to do to him, and you shall bring his gray head down with blood to Sheol.” 10 Then David slept with his fathers and was buried in the city of David. 11 And the time that David reigned over Israel was forty years. He reigned seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem. 12 So Solomon sat on the throne of David his father, and his kingdom was firmly established.” (ESV)

Before his death, David gave practical advice. He advised Solomon to be kind to Barzillai who had been kind to David during Absalom’s rebellion. However, Solomon needed wisdom and courage to deal with Joab and Shimei. Please note: Christians do not take revenge into their own hands.  Nevertheless, a leader must both remember the kindnesses of others and be resolute with enemies of Jesus. I agree we cannot be passive in our dealing with others. We must be decisive to love and serve others in Jesus’ name. We must be decisive to pray. We must be decisive to act in a Christian manner. Those who are decisive to act, inspired by faith, will be blessed by God.

How do I need to act decisively? I need to act by praying and studying the word without excuse. I must begin to make clear plans about spending time up in NW Ontario and growing to be a missionary. I must act decisively to live as a better Christian husband and father. I must decide to love others that God has put into my life. I need to be decisive, guided by the spirit of God and the wisdom of God, for that is what a man of God does. May all those, across our land who are sitting on the fence, spiritually, learn how to be decisive in ways that glorify God.

Those who were decisive were blessed by God. Look at verses 11-12 again, “And the time that David reigned over Israel was forty years. He reigned seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem. 12 So Solomon sat on the throne of David his father, and his kingdom was firmly established.”  King David was decisive and he was blessed. He had a long reign and he entered into eternal life with his Savior. Solomon was decisive and he was blessed. When Solomon obeyed God and kept his father’s advice, his throne was firmly established. It doesn’t take a rock scientist to discover the secret of being blessed and being a man of God. Remain in Christ. Remain in the word of God. Focus your eyes on Jesus the author and perfector of our faith. As we gaze upon Jesus, remaining his love and grace, we will be transformed and become the person that God wants us to be.

Prayer: “Lord, please raise up people to have faith to remain in you and accept your word and courage to set out to obey it”

One Word : Observe what the Lord requires…faith in Christ and to remain in him.