Sermon
Solomon's Great Wisdom Part 1 - Frank Brancato
Publisher transcript
Transcript
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You remember when David was nearing the end of his life?
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The Bible doesn't picture a man, that pictures David in times far
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before that, as one of the four men that were handsome and
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built, well, The Bible pictures him not as a great physical
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specimen, any longer. But the Bible pictures him as a
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decrepit old man, that was failing in his frailties and
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about 70 years old. The Bible says, And David was
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failing so that he was unable to even regulate his own body
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temperature. So the Bible says that a fair
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Maiden was chosen. A beautiful young lady and she
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would stand before him and help him in this regard.
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And her name was abishag. The shunammite.
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Well, the Bible says though that and really the Bible kind of
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pictures that she would be a concubine of the king and yet at
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the same time, the scripture says but David He knew her not
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and so there wasn't a physical relationship between David King,
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David. At the end of his life and
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abishag the shunammite, but you remember that the eldest living
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son of King? David was a man named adonijah
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and he considered himself to be entitled to the throne.
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I mean, after all, he was the eldest living son, why should he
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not stand? Why should he not sit on the
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throne of David when his father is taken out of the way now?
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The Bible pictures, this very idea that app that that this man
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at an idea adonijah would go with all the Pomp and
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Circumstance and all the Pomp and pride among the people, he
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would go with great chariots and he would be riding in a chariot
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with horses pulling that Chariot.
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He would take a page out of the past.
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You remember of Absalom when Absalom tried to overthrow the
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Throne of King David in times, prior to this That he would take
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the example of his brother and he would have 50 men and those
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50 men would go on before him to Harold this coming.
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So it was loud. It was boisterous, it was
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powerful. It was a great spectacle.
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Here he comes. The son of the king that would
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sit on the throne. But you know this was a man that
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had a callous disregard for God and a callous disregard for his
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father's wishes as well. But you remember with the help
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of Nathan and Bathsheba David was persuaded to act quickly and
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install Solomon on the throne as king.
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And so adonijah has attempted coup failed.
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And so what he does is he flees to the altar, he realizes that
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the things that he had done, and the acts that he had committed
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were worthy of death, he had committed Didn't reason in the
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eyes of the kingdom. And the Bible says he flees to
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the altar. You know, when the Bible says
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that it's obvious that he knew he was wrong.
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He flees to the altar, you know, Wednesday night were talking
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about the heart a little bit. We've talked about the heart so
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many times and so many sermons over so many years about God,
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knowing the intentions of the heart.
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This was not just an idea that he thought was after all, I'm
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the eldest son. So, I'll be the king and
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Misunderstood? What God had instructed and what
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God had wanted for Solomon. That was not the case at all.
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There was nothing innocent at all, in the heart of this man.
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And the fact that he flees to the altar realizing that he's
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going to die. No doubt.
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He felt the guilt that he had done wrong, but, you know, he
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doesn't have a repentant heart. In fact, the Bible says, he
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grabs onto the horns of the altar.
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Remember what that was? They were those protrusions that
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stuck out at the Four Corners of the altar, that looked like,
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animal horns. And so, here he is, he's hanging
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onto the animal horns. Solomon knows where he is though
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and Solomon sends word. He Us, you summon him to come to
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me. But adonijah says, no, he says,
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I'm not going anywhere until Solomon.
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And this is this is a very important point to our narrative
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today. He says, I am not going to turn
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loose of the horns of this Altar and I am not going to go where
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Solomon is and I am not going to stand before the king until
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Solomon swears with an oath that I will not be executed for my
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crime. You know, Solomon never swears
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with an oath, he only promises he says this.
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Now, I think this is a wonderful picture of someone getting Mercy
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or having Mercy extended to them when they were not worthy, you
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know what Solomon said. Solomon said this he said you
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will not die and I promise you will as long as you're a loyal
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subject to me as the king, as I sit on the throne and another
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point and there's no new crime, no fresh crime, nothing. an else
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that you do against the throne, you will live and you will not
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die. You know, after the collapse of
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this attempted, coup adonijah pledged his allegiance to
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Solomon, and he bows down before Solomon.
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He bows down before his throne and he says he pledges
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allegiance to him as the king. But if we can only examine his
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heart, we would see that that was only an outward show.
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Isn't that a picture of people today?
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Bowing Before the Throne giving Allegiance on the outward or
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showing themselves to give Allegiance unto Christ and his
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kingdom sitting on his throne only to have it be only
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outwardly and not inwardly with the heart.
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We know that's exactly what happened with this young man
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because of his actions later and not long, after the death of
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Vedat an IG attempted to lay the groundwork for yet another coup
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attempt. And here it is.
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All of a sudden he's going to put together a subtle plan.
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Now before it wasn't the subtle plan, it was look at me, I'm the
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man. I'm the guy I'm going to sit on
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the throne and like like just like Absalom did regarding King,
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David in overthrowing his throne or his attempt to do.
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So now this is going to be different.
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He's going to be extremely smart here and he's going to figure
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out a son. Do plan in order that he might
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overtake the throne. Our, he knew that Solomon said,
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you're not going to die. You will not be executed as long
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as you don't do anything else. But the plan included abishag,
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the shunammite the X concubine of the King, David of the
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deceased King his own father. The Bible says that he calls, or
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he comes to see Bathsheba. And in this subtle plan, this he
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goes to see the most powerful woman in the land Bathsheba.
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The queen mother. You know, she was suspicious at
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first when adonijah came calling but his tactics disarmed, her
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and turned her into an ally. I want you to look at these
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things. These things are applicable
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today. When we do such things like this
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self-pity was the very first thing that he used.
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Self-pity. You know what he says to
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Bathsheba? He says, you know, the kingdom
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was mine. After all I come in peace, but
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the kingdom was mine, and then he gives a tremendous
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exaggeration here. He says, all of Israel was ready
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to install me and put me on the throne and recognize me as the
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King, which wasn't true, not all of Israel.
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But that's the exaggeration. He says, I was to be the man.
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I am the eldest son of the king. I think that now is dead of my
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father, it should have been me that sitting on the throne,
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here's the self-pity park. But then all of a sudden even
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though I should have been him. My younger brother Solomon, he
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was placed on the throne. You know, he's kind of painting.
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A picture of woe is me. Oh, I've been wounded.
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I've been affected in that. What we do, sometimes, I'll tell
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you when our heart is filled with self-pity.
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You can't see outside yourself. You really can't.
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If you have self pity, and that's all you're focusing in
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on. Is yourself.
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What you didn't? Get.
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It's all about me. How you were wronged.
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You cannot have the Christian spirit.
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And the Christian heart that Jesus taught when we need to
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look outside of our self and look to someone else can't do
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it, can't do it. You know why thinking about me,
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if Terry and I have a disagreement, I'm thinking about
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me, we're not fixing our problem by the way, because all I'm
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thinking about is me. How I was wronged?
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Oh, I was wrong. You know, somebody does not
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necessarily have to have an evil spirit, it conniving deceptive
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Heart Like adonijah had to be guilty of having self-pity.
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Let me give you an example. You know, the Bible pictures,
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you remember when the seven years of plenty had passed and
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now they were into the seven years of famine.
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You remember when Jacob goes to his remaining sons, and he tells
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his sons, I hear that there is grain in Egypt.
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Take your sacks and go there. And see if you can buy some
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grain. Lest we all die less, we starve
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to death. They went there.
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It's Joseph Joseph, recognizes his brothers.
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They don't recognize him, they get the grain.
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They accuse them of being spies. They says, no we're Shepherds.
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We got a father back home, we had a brother, that's Joseph, he
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is no more though, we have a younger brother too Benjamin,
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he's back at home and then when Joseph says all right, here's
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what you're going to do, I'm going to sell you the grain or
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else you're going to starve to death.
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But I'm going to sell you the Grain and when you go back you
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have to bring your youngest brother.
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Benjamin to me that I might look on him that I might see him and
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to make it that you're doing it in.
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Good faith, one of you has to stay behind Stay with me.
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And you remember even though Reuben was the eldest, it was
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Simeon. That was chosen.
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Simeon. Stayed said all that to say
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this. You remember when they came and
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stood back before? Jacob, they were standing before
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Jacob. And this is what he said, all
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they treated us bad. They called the spies.
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They were harsh to us. we told them about you, we told them
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about Benjamin, and he says, if we don't bring Benjamin back,
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Simeon has to stay. And Jacob falls apart.
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He never feels sorry for anyone else.
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He says these words, he never feel.
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Sorry that Simeon was left behind that Simeon.
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Now is the innocent party but he's left behind.
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He says this everything is against me.
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I've lost Rachel, I've lost Joseph.
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I've now lost Simeon. And I'm not about to lose
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Benjamin. Thinking only of the things that
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happen to him. When we think that way, it
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causes us to not be able to have the ability to see outside of
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our self and see that somebody else may have it worse than we
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have it. He was filled with self-pity but
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he used this as a tool to break down her defenses and gained her
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as an ally. Look how he builds on this.
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He starts with self-pity after all, I was supposed to be the
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man, I was supposed to sit on the throne.
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It was supposed to be me all the people.
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All of Israel were ready to install me as the king and
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recognize me as the king, but after all, the great Injustice
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happened to me, I was taken out of the way and my younger
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brother. Other now sits on the throne.
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Number two, hypocritical piety. He says this.
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He says, I was taken out of the way, but I know that the Lord
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had chosen Solomon. He didn't care about that.
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He just uses that. I know it was the Lord's will
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that that was going to happen. you know, when we pray, We pray,
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we ask in faith, believing the Bible says, we must we ask in
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faith believing okay and we're not tossed to and fro we ask in
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faith believing but we do. So, according to his will do, we
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say, if it be thy will or if it be your will do we say that just
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as words are do, we really mean it?
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It was the Lord's will that Solomon would be on the throne
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and he says, or he acts like it was, the Lord's will.
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So he is accepting of it. But he wasn't at all, and then
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he says to her. He says, I need your help.
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He says, do not deny me this one little thing.
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You know, if he would have come to her and requested what he
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wanted to request right off the bat.
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Maybe she would have had her defenses up, oh but this is a
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cunning crafty deceptive man, who's building his case and
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looking for allies. And guess what?
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Then flattery kicks in. And he says to her, he says
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Solomon, your son will never say no to you.
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You have the authority and you have the power to do something
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that no one else has. I am coming to you and appealing
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to you and I'm appealing to you as the Queen Mother.
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Shirley Solomon is not going to say no to you.
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Just grant me this one request and then all of a sudden he
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says, here's my request. And this is a falsehood to, he
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pretended, to be in love. He says, all I ask for all I ask
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for is that I would have the hand of abishag.
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The shunammite, that's all I want.
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After all look, it's all that happened to me.
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They took it all away. You can do this.
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You can go and speak to Solomon. You can make this happen and
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everything's going to be okay. All I want is the hand of
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abishag. Well, the Bible says that she
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goes and she speaks to Solomon, As she enters into the throne
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room, they exchanged courtesies. And you know what's, um, what's
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a beautiful picture to me? What seems to be a very
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beautiful picture is here is Solomon, he is the king and he
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is in the throne room, he is there on his throne, he is the
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king and in walks his mother. And the Bible says that he
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boughs before her in honor of his mother.
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And then he prepares a place of honor.
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You know, when the Bible talks about being at the right hand,
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it's a place of honor. Jesus.
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Right now is on the right hand of the Throne of God, in a place
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of honor on his throne, King Solomon for the Queen Mother
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prepares a place right next to him on his right hand and she
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sits there. And she begins to ask him for
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this request. She says this.
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She says, I would only ask you, but one little thing, one small
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thing. You know, I think that she was
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just basically. I think she was deceived.
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I don't think that for one minute.
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She thought that she was doing anything wrong.
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And I really believe when she said the words to Solomon, I
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only ask. But one small thing that she
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really believed, it was just a small thing.
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Not realizing the implications, she was deceived by someone who
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had plotted this whole thing out.
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She says, grant me but this one small thing and please don't say
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no, I'm going to tell you something.
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If your mother came to you and says I want to just ask you a
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favor. It's just a little thing.
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Would you do it? How many of us would say, no.
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Now, we might say, we might say, well what is it?
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Well, let me know what that is first.
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And then make our judgments based on what we're going to do
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when we hear what it is. Now, I would imagine that we
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would say that to just about anybody else.
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But I know, for example, I've walked up to Daryl, he had no
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idea what I was going to say. And I said Darryl, would you do
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me a favor? Will ya?
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What? Sure without hearing what it is.
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Because when you're close to somebody, you really care what
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it is, you're going to do whatever it is.
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If it's going to help that person, you love that person
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that's family, they're close to you.
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And if they are in need, you're going to ask.
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You're going to ask for it and they're going to do it.
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She says to Solomon, please don't say no.
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And he says, I will grant you this request.
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What is it? Little did he know that she was
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going to ask something that he could not Grant?
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she says, all I ask is at the former concubine of King David
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abishag, the shunammite be given to adonijah your brother.
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That's all You know, the Bible says that Solomon was Furious.
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Not only did he say, no, but he was Furious.
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And you know what? He says, he says, and his
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response. Why did you only ask for the
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hand of abishag? The shunammite, why didn't you
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just say, would you go ahead and give the entire Kingdom over to
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adonijah? You see here is the point.
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The point was, taking possession of a wife or a harem of a
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deceased King was equivalent to a claim to the throne.
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That's really the heart of a denied you, he didn't care about
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her, he won in love. He wanted a leg up.
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He wanted to now he had his big boisterous plan.
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Now, his subtle plan. If I could just do that, it's a
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leg up in the Kingdom. Solomon viewed, this petition of
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adonijah as conclusive proof that adonijah was involved in.
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Yet another conspiracy. Therefore he would be executed,
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you know, being lenient with his elder.
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Brother wants Solomon was in no mood to ignore the further
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threat that adonijah posed to his Rule.
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And so in the presence of all those that were in the throne
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room, he swore a solemn oath that adonijah would die that
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very day. He dispatched, Benaiah captain
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of the palace guard. His half-brother and the order
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was immediately carried out. Now notice the following for
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those that might be tempted to look on the execution of
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adonijah, his half-brother as a ruthless misuse of royal power,
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please Ponder the following points.
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Number one, Had a denied just first Rebellion, succeeded, both
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Solomon. And his mother would have been
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killed First Kings chapter 1 and verse 12.
1 Kings 1 chapter mention
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Number two by fleeing to the altar.
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Following the collapse of his conspiracy adonijah was
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admitting that he deserved the death of a traitor.
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Number 3, Solomon already displayed, great Mercy toward
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adonijah once and already instead of executing him, he
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placed him on probation, he Gave him every opportunity to behave
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himself and to be a good subject to the king.
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Number four, adonijah had been duly warned that if the
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wickedness were found in him that he would be killed.
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First Kings chapter 1 and verse 52 number 54 Solomon to ignore
1 Kings 1 chapter mention
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the second offense. Might suggest that the King was
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weak and such weakness would be an encouragement to sedition
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throughout the land. Therefore he would be executed.
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Remember joab General joab. Oh what a character that joab
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was he was the commander of all the Army.
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He was a man that stood valiantly and fought great
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battles. Fought great battles for King
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David but yet he had killed those that were innocent when
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joab, here's of the execution of adonijah and the expulsion of
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abiathar, he was a priest. He knew that he would be next.
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Joab had not supposed Absalom are hitting that followed or
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supported Absalom and his Rebellion, but he did support
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adonijah in his ill-fated conspiracy against Solomon.
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He realizes that treason treason was a capital crime and he does
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what adonijah had done previously.
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He runs to the house of God he goes to the throne He throws
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himself to The Altar and he grabs onto the same horns.
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Quote-unquote that adonijah grabbed onto hoping he would
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find Sanctuary there. His flight to the altar
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indicates that he had been involved in the abishag incident
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as well. Solomon regarded joab's flight
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to the author to the altar as proof of his continuing
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treasonous, intentions, he orders Benaiah to go and slay
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the old General, but joab won't let go.
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And Benaiah was afraid to go and slay him right there at the
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altar. He says, Solomon wants to see
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you you've been summoned by the king but he won't come and he
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won't let go and Benaiah goes back and talks to Solomon and
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ask Solomon. He says, what should I do?
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He says, you kill him right there.
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You slay him, right? Where he stands You know,
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Solomon spells out the reasons why he told Benaiah to do this
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number one, the altar provided no Sanctuary for murderers.
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Therefore the king ordered Benaiah to Slade joab at the
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altar. Only by the shedding of blood of
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this guilty man. Could the innocent blood of
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Abner and a Mesa be washed away from the house of David numbers,
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15 and 33 as Chief magistrate of the land Solomon, considered it
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his obligation to avenge the death of my Murder victims as if
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the execution though of joab needed any further
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justification, Solomon adds these words that the victims of
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joab Sword were better men than their SAS ins.
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You know, though? Many people no doubt suspected
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David of of criminal complicity in these murders.
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The Deeds were actually done without his knowledge and by
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avenging. The death of the innocent, the
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stain of blood, meaning the obligation to punish would be
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removed from the house of Even forever.
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And as a consequence, the descendants of David would
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Prosper. On the other hand, the children
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of joab would always have to live with the stigma that their
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father had been executed as a murderer.
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The Bible says that he was executed joab was killed and he
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was buried Solomon filled the vacant post of general of the
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army and high priest with his friends, Benaiah and zadok.
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But finally along this line, You remember who she met?
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I was shimei, I was the one that was no doubt, some distant
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relative of King Saul and when Absalom was going to overthrow,
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or trying to overthrow David, on the throne, and when David is
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walking along and David his weeping and David with his head
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bowed low and what a sorrowful time it was, this was the man
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that was standing there saying, the reason that all these things
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are happening to you is because what you've done, Done against
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King Saul and you're paying for it.
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This is the same man that started throwing rocks at David
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as he walked by. You know, nobody forgot those
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things. but, you know, even though she may, I had recently
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been with Solomon First Kings, chapter 1, and verse 8, his
1 Kings 1 chapter mention
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earlier Outburst against David made Solomon suspicious of him.
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Isn't that true? Isn't that true?
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That people look to us and people who either have
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confidence in us? Or they do not have confidence
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in US based upon our behavior in the past.
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Man, that's true. You can be forgiven of wrongs
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that you have committed. In fact, when the Bible talks
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about forgiveness, there is no number.
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It's an infinite number. And when my brother sins against
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me, I am to forgive him an infinite number of times.
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But like I have said before, if Ryan's stealing chickens after
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five or six of those guys, I'm a forgive him but I'm building a
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better fence. I'm going to keep the chickens
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in. You know why?
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Oh, I forgive him. I don't trust him Chimay, I
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wasn't trusted because his life was not such that he was trust
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worthy. I'll tell you something folks
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that happens to us. If we are not trustworthy, it's
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because we have not lived our life demonstrating the fact that
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we are worthy of such Trust. But, you know, there's Mercy
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extended that Solomon extends to him, Solomon doesn't say he
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doesn't come right out and say, you're going to be executed
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right now. He just doesn't trust him and he
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knew going back to the first chapter that, this man had at
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least verbally. He, at least came out verbally
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and said, I'm with you Solomon. I'm with you all the way I'm
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recognizing you as king. And all of that.
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So he doesn't execute him but he didn't trust him.
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He tells him to build a house in Jerusalem and he tells him this,
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you may never, ever, ever leave the capital.
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He said in the day that you leave in the day that you
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depart, you're going to be killed, get this for the crimes
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that you had committed against the throne.
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You know, that goes all the way back to David the crimes.
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He committed against David. So, in other words, these are
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crimes that are still there. In the memory bank, these are
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crimes that are still there, but you're not going to lose your
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life. You're going to be able to live.
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I'll leave you alone in that regard.
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I'm watching you though build a house in Jerusalem, you can
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never ever leave and if you do You would be killed.
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Three years go by. maybe Chimay eyes guard has now been let down
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Maybe he thought. I don't know if he premeditated
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this. I have no idea.
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We don't know. The Bible doesn't say But there
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were some actions that he was going to do, he was going to
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break the oath that he had made with Solomon and, you know, it
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was a serious matter, he broke the oath when he broke the oath
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to Solomon, he broke the oath to God.
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Bible says that two of his slaves to of the servants take
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off. They don't want to be in the
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house of shimei, I any longer and they take off and they go to
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gath and they go to seek Refuge of the king named achish member,
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a Kish with King. David Scholars say, this is
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probably his grandson in the land of the Philistines when
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David sought Refuge with a Koosh, a long time before that
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when he was trying to get away from Saul, who was out to To
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kill him. This is probably Scholars.
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Say this achish was probably that achish has grandson you
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know what he does without thinking.
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Maybe he did think, we don't know, but she may I decides he
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takes off and he wants to go get those slaves back.
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That sounds okay in it. I just want to get my guys back.
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I just want to get what's rightfully mine but in doing so
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he leaves and he breaks the vowel.
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He breaks the oath that he had was Solomon and to God and he
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basically is saying this, every single thing that you promised
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me were the conditions. I am not going to abide by that.
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Therefore, I am worthy of death and that's exactly what
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happened. You think Solomon forgot.
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You think Solomon, Let It Go. You think in the three years
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that had gone by that Solomon, just kind of thought it, maybe
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not that big of a deal. The Bible says that when he is
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summoned to the Palace, she may I stands before Solomon and
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Solomon lodged, a three-fold charge against him and here they
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are. He had profaned the name of God
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by violating a solemn oath taken in the name of God.
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Number two, he had violated the terms of his probation, thus
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disregarding the commands of the king and number three Chimay.
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I had cursed and blasphemed the Lord's anointed and that was
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David even In was brought before him.
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I'll tell you this. The Bible tells us.
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How to live? It came up in a question on
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Wednesday night about ananias and Sapphira his wife.
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And how they lied. And as the Bible says, you
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didn't lie to me and you lied to God, they kept back part of the
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price. They were deceptive, deceitful,
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liars, and God struck them both did.
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Right then and there and the question was, why did God strike
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them dead, right then and there, But not today.
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Why did he do it? Then and not now.
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You know, these are questions for God to answer in God's time
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before the word of God, though. Was revealed there were things
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like that or miraculous things like that.
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But I'll tell you this. You know, what's scary is if I'm
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not doing that which is right. Tomorrow, I'm probably going to
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wake up and I'm probably going to have a nice day and I'm going
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to have all kinds of activities. In the day, I'm either going to
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prosper or I am not but it'll be a day like any other day.
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And if I'm still not doing that which is right?
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The next day might come and then a week and then a month and then
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maybe a year, maybe many years. And now my heart no longer
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bothers me, my conscience, no longer bothers me by the life
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that I live and I'm just going right along.
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I'll tell you this if I lose my life.
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I've got no chance. When there's breath in me, I can
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change. I can do that.
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Which is right. What is Solomon say to this,
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man? He says, as long as you do,
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what's right, you're going to live.
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And as long as you don't do anything else in the future
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against the throne, you're going to live and as long as you do
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what I say, and stay there in Jerusalem, and don't leave the
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capital, you're going to live. Folks, the Bible says.
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Be not deceived. God is Not mocked for
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whatsoever. A man soweth that shall he?
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Also reap. There's a Payday someday,
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there's a Day of Reckoning, there's a day that I will pay
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for the things that I have done in this body in this life either
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rewarded or punished in eternity in a devil's.
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Hell for eternity based on what I have done.
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Three years past solemn. Didn't forget, and this man was
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executed for his crimes and so by swiftly eliminating for
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potential. Antagonists now adonijah Abaya
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Our joab and shimei. I Solomon firmly establishes
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himself as king but finally, now in this will be the remaining
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part of our sermon. There was a day when Solomon is
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going to have a time with God, and God asked Solomon.
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He says of all the things that I can grant thee, what is it that
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you want from me? And I think that there's a point
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here that we need not to just Brush by.
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I don't think that in this narrative, I don't think that in
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this particular instance, God was saying whatever you want.
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You can have, it doesn't say that it just says that God asked
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of him, what is it that I can do for you?
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God asks us. Solomon those words in a dream.
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In other words, God was speaking to him in this dream, literally
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And as he begins, you know what Solomon says.
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He says, first of all, he thanks God because God is allowing the
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son of David to sit on the throne.
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To keep the crown in the family. And to sit on the throne.
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He goes on to say to God. He says, I am but a little
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child. May I ask you something.
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If you were just now, exalted, by all the people, all Israel,
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and God, and you were God's anointed, and you were the son
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of the king, and you are a man with great wisdom.
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And you are a man that everybody respected and you now are
-
sitting on the throne. Would you look to yourself with
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humility like that? Solomon says, I am but a little
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child, he says, and your people are so great.
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Man, that's great. Your people are so great.
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How can I rule your people without your help?
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I feel inadequate in this regard. you know, the greatest
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man are people that have that kind of heart, you know, when
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you feel like it's like in sports when a kid or a player
-
gets to the point where he no longer feels like, he needs to
-
be coached and he no longer is coachable.
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He's gone. As far as he's going to go, I'm
-
going to say something. Solomon was a great man at this
-
point in time. He says to God, I'm but a little
-
child, I need your help. So he asks for this, he says,
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please grant me a Discerning heart.
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This word Discerning means literally a hearing heart.
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Why that I might judge or rule your people better and that in
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doing. So I would be able to discern or
-
determine what was true and what was false, what was right and
-
what was wrong? You know, why God granted his
-
request the Bible says, God granted his request because he
-
didn't ask for riches, he didn't ask for Honor, he didn't ask for
-
a long life, think about it, of all that solemn.
-
Could have asked for, he could have asked for Honor among his
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among his peers. He could have asked for praise
-
among the people. He could have asked for great
-
riches. He could have asked for, in this
-
what God said, you could have even asked that I would take
-
away all of your enemies and Grant you victory over every one
-
of them. But you didn't.
-
What you asked for was a tool. To better lead and rule the
-
people of God. That's a powerful thing.
-
And God says, because of that, I'm going to Grant this to you
-
and I'm going to give you wisdom that far, surpasses anyone that
-
has ever lived and anyone that will live in the future.
-
Save Jesus Christ. The only one, no other man ever
-
had the wisdom. That Solomon had no other man
-
but Solomon was able to do what Solomon did and make the
-
decisions that Solomon made. There's a lot of folks here
-
today that have gray hair. I don't have any gray hair but
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I'm getting older. Some folks lose their hair.
-
We get wrinkled. We get older. and with each
-
passing year that goes by Don't you?
-
Just look back on your life and think, man, if I would have
-
known, then what I know now. That's wisdom.
-
Wouldn't it be great to be a young man and have wisdom?
-
Oh, we know it all when were younger have virtually?
-
No wisdom. But through life by our own
-
challenges and by making it through the things that happen
-
to us by our own challenges, in our life, we learn wisdom.
-
We also learn wisdom by the experience of others and we gain
-
wisdom, when we ask it from God and it gives it liberally.
-
God never gave it any more liberally than he did to Solomon
-
a long time ago and he says you're going to have wisdom that
-
far surpasses anyone that's ever lived and anyone that has will
-
live in the future times But because you didn't ask for these
-
things, he says I'm going to give you riches to that far
-
surpassed everyone else. I'm going to give you honor as
-
well because you've never asked for these things.
-
But then he says I'm going to give you a long life where years
-
of life and you know, of all the things that he says, That was
-
the one thing that was conditional.
-
He says, I'm going to give you something that's conditional.
-
I'm going to give you a long life.
-
You're going to have a long life, only if you continue to
-
walk in the way of God and do, so all the days of your life
-
only then will your life be lengthened.
-
You know, this brings us to a close of these political
-
matters, his discourse with God, God's Great blessings down upon
-
him in the very next thing we learn is about two women and a
-
baby. He puts it into motion, this
-
wisdom that God said he was going to have.
-
I just wonder this of all the things we could ask God for, I
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mean, really of all things of all the choices and decisions
-
we've made in our life of all the things that We can look back
-
on and ask God. Wouldn't it be things like
-
honor? Maybe a better job.
-
No, tell him what we asked for. Solomon asked for the greatest
-
thing. He could have get this now, he
-
asked for something that would help him to better serve, God's
-
people. Oh man.
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That's it. And because of that he was
-
blessed far above and beyond anyone that had ever lived.
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We thank you for listening to our podcast, put on by the
-
Church of Christ at 22:15 plans. Road in Bakersfield, if you
-
would like any additional information, or you would like
-
to receive a free Bible correspondence, course by mail.
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Please email us at info at her Church of Christ
-
Bakersfield.com. Our service times are on Sundays
-
at 10:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. and Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m.
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Please make plans to join us. We would love for you to be our
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honored guest.