Do Not Forsake Wisdom

"For it was so, when Solomon was old, that...his heart turned after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the LORD his God, as was the heart of his father David."  I Kings 11:4

King Solomon began well in his position as king.  He sought to do the will of God without compromise. It was King Solomon who built the beautiful Temple from the plans thereof that God had given to his father David.  It was King Solomon who also built the lavish mansion of the forest for a special wife.

It was King Solomon who prayed to God to be led by him so that he would lead his people aright.  God answered his powerful and humble prayer by granting his request, and giving to King Solomon more than he had asked.

King Solomon began well in his position as king.  His wisdom was legendary in the ancient near east.  No comparison could be made regarding his God-given perspicacity (to see deeply) and sagacious (keen insight) ability.

When the Queen of Sheba came to visit King Solomon she was taken aback by the beauty, wealth, and organizational magnitude of Solomon's kingdom.  The times of David and Solomon are rightly called the Golden Age of Israel.

This majestic time, however, was to be short-lived.  For behind the wealth and majesty were the seeds of decay.  The seeds of decay would germinate into oppression of the people in order to support the lavish life-style of Solomon.

I am sure that Solomon's initial prayer to the LORD was real and sincere.  But the LORD knew Solomon's heart.  He knew the weakness of the king as he knows the weaknesses of all people.  For a while the fervor of Solomon's heart was toward the LORD.  But it came to pass that his heart slowly departed from the LORD.  And as Solomon's heart departed from the LORD he oppressed his people.

Solomon enlarged the taxable districts of his kingdom so as to collect more tax revenue.  Then because of his injustice he had to deal with terrible inflation.  God was not in all of his thoughts.  Solomon's soul-drifting was set. Upon that injustice he had allowed himself to be seduced by the gods of his wives.  Here was a great man who was now tied up by sinful behavior.  Money and corrupt worship had infiltrated his life.

His soul was polluted.  His famous and enviable wisdom was drowned out by the twin pollutions of money and corrupt worship.  He was a willing participant in the destruction of his own soul.  He finally left God.  He did not do so outwardly but the "leaving of God" happened inwardly.  Solomon became a practical atheist through practical corruption.  He forsook the wisdom of God for the seductive worship of illusions and sex cults.  Solomon practiced evil before the LORD.  His inward corruption manifested itself outwardly by burning incense and sacrificing to foreign gods.

It is not easy to serve the living God.  There are many competing gods today as there were in Solomon's day.  The heart can be easily led astray by the gods who promise to satisfy but alas do not.

Solomon's life is there recorded in the ancient Scriptures so that we may learn to understand the power of seduction.  To be seduce by a "god" does not relieve one of responsibility.  We are not to pass sentence upon Solomon but to learn from his example.  I must ask myself :  "What is my inherent weakness, and who am I willing to lead me astray from my faith-walk with God?"

Solomon lost much by self-betrayal.  He lost his relationship with the LORD, himself, and he lost his kingdom.  Solomon deceived his own mind.  He turned his own mind into a formidable weapon against himself.  His soul was split rendering all of his action self-defeating and ineffective. He wrote a dismal conclusion to a life that began well but ended lacking in every way.

We all have the power to decide our unique destinies.  Do you desire to live a life well-pleasing to God?  Then it will require a radical and singular commitment on your part.  A real spiritual life requires one to follow the Iesous daily.  The desire of the flesh must be crucified daily or you will be defeated in life, and you will be enslaved to shallow and dismal actions.

Come to the Iesou and he will give you the power to live a superabundant life.  A huge part of his work as Savior is to save us from ourselves.  God Bless.

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