Who’s in charge? 1 Kings 1v1-53

Isn't that a lot? And we're going to read it, but not all of it.

1 Kings, chapter 1, I think page 334. Is that right? 334, 1 Kings.

1 Kings 1 · chapter mention

So it starts with a character we've probably all heard of, David.

Amen.

So let's hear God's word together. 1 Kings, chapter 1, starting at verse 1.

1 Kings 1 · chapter mention

When King David was very old, he could not keep warm even when they put covers over him.

So his attendant said to him, let us look for a young virgin to serve the king and take care of him.

She can lie beside him so that our Lord the king may keep warm.

Then they searched throughout Israel for a beautiful young woman and found Abishag a Shunammite and brought her to the king.

The woman was very beautiful. She took care of the king and waited on him.

But the king had no sexual relations with her.

Now Adonijah, whose mother was Aga, put himself forward and said, I will be king.

So he got chariots and horses ready with fifty men to run ahead of him.

His father had never rebuked him by asking, why do you behave as you do?

He was also very handsome and was born next after Absalom.

Adonijah conferred with Joab, son of Zeruiah, and with Abiathar the priest, and they gave him their support.

But Zadok the priest, Baniah, son of Jehoiada, Nathan the prophet, Shimei and Ray, and David's special guard, did not join Adonijah.

Adonijah then sacrificed sheep, cattle, and fattened calves at the zone of Zahalath near Rogel.

He invited all his brothers, the king's son, and all the royal officials of Judah.

But he did not invite Nathan the prophet, or Benaiah, or the special guard, or his brother Solomon.

Then Nathan said to Bathsheba, Solomon's mother,

Have you not heard that Adonijah, the son of Agath, has become king, and our lord David knows nothing about it?

Now then, let me advise you how you can save your own life and the life of your son Solomon.

Go in to King David and say to him,

My lord the king, did you not swear to me, your servant,

Surely Solomon your son shall be king after me, and he will sit on my throne?

Why then has Adonijah become king?

While you are still talking to the king, I will come in and add my word to what you have said.

Now let's jump on to verse 28.

Then King David said,

Call in Bathsheba.

So she came into the king's presence and stood before him.

The king then took an oath,

As surely as the Lord lives, who has delivered me out of every trouble,

I will surely carry out this very day what I swore to you by the Lord, the God of Israel.

Solomon your son shall be king after me,

And he will sit on my throne in my place.

Verse 38

So Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet,

Baniah son of Jehoiada,

And the Kerethites and the Pelethites went down and put Solomon on King David's mule,

And they escorted him to Gihon.

Zadok the priest took the horn of oil from the sacred tent and anointed Solomon.

Then they sounded the trumpet and all the people shouted,

Long live King Solomon!

And all the people went up after him, playing pipes and rejoicing greatly,

So that the ground shook with the sound.

Verse 49

At this all Adonijah's guests rose in alarm and dispersed.

But Adonijah, in fear of Solomon, went and took hold of the horns of the altar.

Then Solomon was told,

Adonijah is afraid of King Solomon and is clinging to the horns of the altar.

He says,

Let King Solomon swear to me today that he will not put his servant to death with the sword.

Solomon replied,

If he shows himself to be worthy, not a hair of his head will fall to the ground.

But if evil is found in him, he will die.

Then King Solomon sent men and they brought him down from the altar.

And Adonijah came and bowed down to King Solomon.

And Solomon said,

Go to your home.

Well, there's a lot of people,

a lot of names,

a lot of kings,

and a lot happening.

And I don't know about you,

but when I started into kings,

I needed God's help and I still need God's help.

So we're going to pray

and ask for him to help us understand his word.

So let's pray.

Amen.

Father, thank you so much

that it has pleased you

to not only speak your word,

but to have your spoken word written down and recorded,

providing it in a language that we can understand.

before us that we can read and see and listen to.

And Father, we know because you've told us

that your word is powerful.

It is effective.

And when your word is taught and explained,

as the Holy Spirit takes that word,

it drives it deep into our hearts and into our minds.

And we pray for his help now,

that what we read in terms of history,

we will meet the living God

who changes lives,

who holds to his promise

and sees his kingdom prevail.

Teach us, Lord, we ask.

In your name we pray.

Amen.

The story of the Bible

is a wonderful promise from God

that he is going to establish his kingdom.

A kingdom of peace and justice,

prosperity and beauty.

This kingdom that God promises

would have one king.

A king with absolute power

and supreme authority.

And this king would not only rule over all people

and all nations,

but this king

was going to bring blessing

to all nations.

The blessing of forgiveness

and acceptance

and welcome.

The king

of God's kingdom

is, of course,

Jesus Christ.

And to be a member of that kingdom,

to experience the blessings of this kingdom,

we must turn in repentance

and look in faith

and submit to Jesus

as our king.

Jesus Christ himself

described

the kingdom of God

like this.

Jesus said,

the kingdom of God

is like a mustard seed

which is the smallest

of all the seeds in the earth.

Tiny, tiny, tiny.

Yet when planted,

it grows

and becomes

the largest

of all garden plants

with such big branches

that the birds

can perch

in its shade.

Jesus uses

it as a simple way

like a parable

to explain

how unstoppable

the kingdom was.

It appears small

but nothing

and no one

is going to stop it.

It will grow

and grow

and grow

as people

turn and submit

to Jesus Christ

as king.

But where is this kingdom?

You see,

God's promise

sounds great

but in reality

it appears

to be a very

different story.

I don't know

about you

but I don't see

the kingdom

making any headlines

in the paper.

It's not the new craze

on social media.

In fact,

it seems

Jesus is considered

irrelevant.

He's to be rejected

and ignored.

And where we do

see signs

of growth

of the kingdom,

there appears

to be great

opposition

and persecution.

It seems

that God's kingdom

is nothing more

than a grand idea

that has just

fallen

and failed.

Rather than

a big

great tree,

it appears

that it's still

like a tiny

little seed.

We can barely

see it.

God is in charge

and he will

ensure that

his kingdom

prevails.

That's what

we're looking at

this morning.

It might

appear weak,

it might appear

that it's all

failed,

but God

is in charge

and he will

ensure

that his

promised kingdom

prevails.

You see,

there was a time

when it looked

like God's

kingdom was

all over.

The kingdom

was under

David

and under

David it was

almost like

paradise.

Enemies had

been defeated,

borders were

secure,

the people lived

in a land

of plenty,

God's people

living in

God's place

under God's

rule and

blessing.

But things

were beginning

to change.

First,

God's kingdom

seems dangerously

fragile.

The kingdom

was under

serious threat

for two

reasons.

First,

there was

inside

failure.

Look at

verse 1.

When King

David was

very old,

he could

not keep

warm even

when they

put covers

over him.

Now we

remember David

as the great

hero,

don't we?

The courageous

shepherd who

fought off

bears and

lions.

He was the

great hero

who defeated

Goliath.

The warrior

soldier who

crushed his

enemies.

But now

look at him.

The passing

of time has

reduced him to

a frail,

cold,

old man.

But thankfully

he has good

people around

him.

So they

get on to

home help.

Verse 2.

His attendant

said to him,

let us look

for a young

virgin to

serve the

king and

take care

of him.

In fact,

it seems that

she was very

practical as

she doubled

up as a

hot water

bottle for

poor old

David.

Look at the

rest of

verse 2.

she can

lie beside

him so

that our

lord the

king may

keep warm.

And in

case we

think there

was some

sexual favor

in all of

this,

look down

at verse

4.

The woman

was very

beautiful.

She took

care of

the king

and waited

on him,

but the

king had

no sexual

relations

with her.

Now this

is not a

lesson about

how we

should be

caring for

those who

are advanced

in years,

as important

as that

is.

This is

the sad

and tragic

end to

David's

life.

David has

failed as

king.

He's forgotten

all about

the kingdom.

He's more

interested in

keeping his

toes warm

than appointing

a new

king.

Of course

he had the

great stories

to tell the

grandchildren,

fighting the

lions as a

shepherd,

knocking

Goliath's

head off,

battling the

Philistines.

What stories

of the

past?

But he

was failed

to do

what he

was meant

to do.

Prioritise

the kingdom

and appoint

a king.

So it

was under

threat,

from inside

and outside.

For David's

failure only

led to

rebellion.

Look at

verse 4,

5 sorry,

verse 5.

Now Adonijah,

whose mother

was Haggis,

put himself

forward and

said,

don't worry,

I will be

king.

Now it would

be a mistake

to think that

Adonijah is

helping his

poor father

out.

Kingship was

not his to

assume.

His I

will be

king is

an act of

rebellion.

And in

case we're

wondering how

he came to

be like this,

well it all

points back to

the failure of

David,

verse 6,

fathers,

listen up.

His father

had never

rebuked him

by asking,

why do you

behave as

you do?

He was

very handsome

and was

born next

after Absalom.

Adonijah was

the blue-eyed

boy who

could do

no wrong.

The kind

of kid

that ran

riot but

his father

could never

see it.

it seems

David couldn't

even manage

his family

never mind

the kingdom.

So rebellious

Adonijah plotted

to take over

the kingdom.

Verse 9,

the middle

of verse 9.

He invited

all his

brothers and

king's sons

and all the

royal officials

of Judah

but he was

careful.

He didn't

invite Nathan

the prophet

or Benaniah

or the special

guard or his

brother Solomon

because Solomon

was meant

to be

the king.

So it

appears that

the kingdom

is falling

apart.

Inside

failure as

David isn't

doing what

he's meant

to do.

Outside

rebellion as

Adonijah picks

up the charge.

The promised

kingdom is

dangerously

fragile.

Now it's

not unlike

the church

today is

it?

The church

which is a

visible

demonstration

of God's

kingdom on

earth is

dangerously

fragile.

Sadly we

fail far

too often.

Instead of

peace and

justice

well we

find fear

and abuse.

Instead of

repentance

there's

cover up.

leaders

have

affairs

members

fall out

with each

other

and we're

all too

busy seeking

home comforts

that we

forget to

prioritize the

kingdom.

But not

only is the

church and

her people

failing

there's

hostile

rebellion

against the

true king

Jesus Christ.

Churches

are being

wrecked.

Christians

are being

persecuted.

We don't

need Jesus.

Shut

him up.

Get rid

of him.

like

Adonijah

the world

cries

I will

be

king.

I will

live as I

please and

I will

do as

I want.

God's

kingdom

seems

dangerously

fragile.

Well

despite the

apparent

weakness and

failure of

the kingdom

God is

in charge

and he

will ensure

that his

kingdom

prevails.

Number

two

God's

kingdom

has

kingdom

loving

people.

Failure

and rebellion

may exist

but God

always has

his faithful

people.

He has

his faithful

servants.

You see

as people

rallied

around and

supported

Adonijah's

bid for

kingship

not everyone

did.

Look at

verse 8.

But

Zadok

the priest

Benaniah

son of

Jehoiada

Nathan

the prophet

Shimei

and Ray

and David

special

guard

they did

not join

Adonijah

in his

rebellion.

Here we

have a

bunch of

loyal faithful

servants

who knew

what was

right

and refused

to give

up.

They loved

the kingdom

they loved

God and

they knew

that something

must be

done.

So up

steps

Nathan

verse 11

then Nathan

asked

Bathsheba

Solomon's

mother

have you

not heard

that

Adonijah

the son

of Haggis

has become

king and

our lord

David knows

nothing about

it?

Now then

let me

advise you

how you

can save

your own

life and

the life of

your son

of Solomon

who was

to be the

king of

course.

Nathan

had to

take action

and fast.

Adonijah

would soon be

out to get

rid and kill

Solomon because

Solomon was

the true

heir to

the kingship.

But sensing

the danger

that was

going on

around him

Nathan

doesn't run

and hide

he makes

the kingdom

his priority.

He stood

against the

failure and

against the

rebellion.

Here was a

faithful servant

who loved

the kingdom.

Now this is

not the first

time we've

ever met

Nathan is it?

We're told

here he's

God's prophet.

That means

he's God's

representative.

He is to

speak God's

word to

the people.

Don't we

remember that

Nathan had to

speak to

David before?

Remember how

Nathan confronted

and rebuked

David over

his affair

with Bathsheba

and the

murder of

her husband?

And through

God's word

Nathan showed

David the

way of

repentance

and the

way back

through

grace.

Now once

more Nathan

is having

to intervene.

Ironically

speaking the

words of

God to

Bathsheba

herself and

to Solomon.

He intervenes

speaking to

rescue the

failure of

David.

His plan is

very simple.

Verse 13.

Nathan says

to Bathsheba

go in to

King David

and say to

him my

Lord the

king did

you not

swear to

me your

servant?

Surely

Solomon your

son shall

be king

after me

and he

will sit

on my

throne.

And then

Nathan after

she's gone

in and

spoken to

the king

Nathan

himself will

follow it

up and he

will confront

the king.

Down at

verse 24.

Nathan said

have you

my Lord the

king declared

that Adonijah

shall be king

after you and

that he will

sit on your

throne?

I mean this

can't be.

That's not

the promise.

Verse 27.

Is this

something my

Lord the

king has

done without

letting his

servants know

who should

sit on the

throne of my

Lord the

king after

him?

It's subtle

but as we

will see

David gets

the point.

Nathan speaks

the word of

God into

the situation

confronting the

failure and

rebellion because

God always has

his faithful

servants who

love the

kingdom and

speak the

word of

God to

the people.

And isn't

that what the

church needs

today?

Faithful,

loyal,

kingdom

loving people.

Servants of

God who

in their

sphere of

influence

don't run

and hide

but prioritize

the kingdom.

People like

Nathan who

refuse to

stay quiet

but gently

and humbly

remind people

of the

promises of

God and

speak God's

word into

the situation.

salvation.

You see

we should

never ever

underestimate

the power

of God's

rescuing

and restoring

word.

As you

if you're a

parent here

today as you

read your

Bible with

your children

you are

building the

kingdom.

kingdom.

As you

teach in

Sunday

school and

to think

now that

they've gone

through the

whole of

the Bible

in the

last three

years.

As the

word of

God is

taught at

the rock

and in

this new

group

rooted

you are

building

the kingdom.

As you

invest in

relationships

and talk

of Jesus

with your

friends and

colleagues you

are building

the kingdom.

But the

first place

to start

is always

with ourselves

with our

own hearts.

We are to

submit to

God's word

to sit

under it

let it

confront our

failures and

rebellions.

Let us

lead one

another in

repentance

and point

each other

back to

God's

grace.

never

underestimate

the power

of God's

word when

it is

spoken by

kingdom

loving

people.

You see

despite the

weakness and

failure of

the kingdom

God is in

charge and

he will

ensure that

his kingdom

prevails.

God has

his kingdom

loving people

people like

you

in your

family

in your

school

in your

college

where you

work

God has

his people

to bring

his word

to restore

his fallen

kingdom.

So it

seems

dangerously

fragile but

God has

kingdom

loving

people

and third

God's

kingdom is

faithfully

preserved.

You see

as Nathan

spoke into

the situation

and spoke

into David's

life the

word did

its work.

David might

still be

old and

cold but

now he

was on

fire for

the kingdom.

Look at

verse 29.

The king

then took

an oath

as surely

as the

Lord lives

who has

delivered me

out of

every trouble

and I

take that

to be

a looking

back on

his

forgetfulness

for not

prioritizing

the kingdom

having heard

what Nathan

said and

repented

and turned

back.

The God

who has

delivered him

out of

every trouble

verse 30

he says

I will

surely

carry out

this very

day

what I

swore to

you by

the Lord

the God

of Israel

Solomon

your son

shall be

king after

me and

he will

sit on

my throne

in my

place.

You see

David is

no longer

concerned about

home comforts

about his

cold toes

he's now

seeking

first

the kingdom

of God

he does

what he

should have

been doing

all along

arrangements

are quickly

made

instructions

are given

verse 34

there shall

Zadok

the priest

and Nathan

the prophet

anoint him

king over

Israel

blow the

trumpet

and shout

long live

king Solomon

then you are

to go up

with him

and he is

to come

and sit

on my

throne

and reign

in my

place

I have

appointed

him ruler

over

Israel

and Judah

what a

difference

the word

of God

makes

it shakes

a frail

old man

out of

his selfish

folly

and has

him using

his last

words and

energy

all for

the building

up of

God's

kingdom

the kingdom

that looked

weak and

fallen

is now

faithfully

preserved

the king

is installed

Solomon

heir to

the kingship

is installed

as king

the danger

has been

averted

and we

can all

now breathe

a sigh

of relief

but let's

not miss

the expectation

of what is

to come

look at

verse 36

Benaniah

son of

Jehoiada

answered the

king

amen

may the

lord

the god

of my

lord

the king

so declare

it

and then he

adds something

else he

says as

the lord

was with

my lord

the king

so may

he be

with Solomon

to make

his throne

even

greater

than the

throne of

my lord

king

David

you see

we will

short

change

ourselves

if we

stop

with

Solomon

yes

the kingdom

would

become

great

under

Solomon

as we

will see

but we

will also

discover

that Solomon

was actually

an even

greater

failure

than his

father

the kingdom

well it

would only

become

truly

great

when god

installed his

true and

faithful king

jesus christ

the true

king

who did

not fail

the king

who remained

faithful

the king

who came

to serve

and

prioritize

the kingdom

the king

who would

not hide

and bow

to pressure

and run

away

but one

who would

bow

before his

god

in the

garden

and say

not my

will

but your

will be

done

your

kingdom

the one

who would

come and

give of his

life

to rescue

us from

all our

failure

and all

our

rebellion

so that

we might

enter into

his kingdom

and enjoy

his favour

for all

eternity

you see

despite the

apparent

weakness

and failure

of the

kingdom

god

is in

charge

and he

will ensure

that his

promised

kingdom

prevails

he will

have his

king

installed

over his

kingdom

the kingdom

is faithfully

preserved

and so

number

four

god's

kingdom

will

gloriously

prevail

solomon

is installed

as king

but

there is

still that

rebellious

adonijah

it's rather

comedic

what's going

on

look at

verse 41

the last

time we

met

adonijah

he had

made the

great

proclamation

didn't

he

he says

i will

be king

now look

at verse

41

adonijah

and all

the guests

who were

with him

heard it

heard what

well they

they heard

the trumpets

blasting in

the distance

as they were

finishing their

feast

so we can

imagine the

scene

the party

is well

underway

another

glass of

champagne

is poured

a toast

to adonijah

the great

king

and then

the trumpets

they hear

what's

going on

what are

those trumpets

all about

look at the

rest of

verse 41

on hearing

the sound

of the

trumpet

joab asked

what's the

meaning of

all the

noise in

the city

even as

he was

speaking

jonathan

son of

abiatah

the priest

arrived

adonijah

said

come in

a worthy

man like

you must

be bringing

good news

the city

they must

be celebrating

my kingship

not at all

jonathan

answered

our lord

king david

has made

solomon

king

you see

rebels

they may

be

but god's

king

is still

on the

throne

the enemies

of the

king

may have

been

defeated

the

snooze

of

solomon's

kingship

is enough

to send

them running

and scattering

verse 49

at this

all

adonijah's

guests

arose in

alarm

and dispersed

once they're

having this

party

now they're

running for

fear of

their lives

adonijah was

a threat

to solomon

now he's

in fear

of solomon

verse 50

but adonijah

in fear

of solomon

went and

took hold

of the

horns

of the

altar

it's funny

isn't it

how boasting

rebels

turn all

religious

in a

crisis

the king

they hated

is now

their means

of mercy

verse 51

then solomon

was told

adonijah is

afraid of

king solomon

and he's

clinging to

the horns

of the

altar

he says

let king

solomon

swear to

me today

that he

will not

put his

servant to

death with

the sword

but i mean

that's what

should happen

to all those

who boastfully

declare

i will be

king

well they

need to be

put to

death

but yet

god has a

habit

doesn't he

of showing

mercy

to those

who seek

to destroy

the kingdom

verse 52

solomon

replied

if he

shows himself

to be

worthy

not a

hair of

his head

will fall

to the

ground

but if

evil is

found in

him

he will

die

then king

solomon

sent men

and they

brought him

down from

the altar

and adonijah

came and

bowed down

to king

solomon

and solomon

said

go to

your home

from

plotting

to kill

the king

he now

bows in

worship

to the

king

of course

adonijah

is still

very active

today

isn't he

he lurks

in our

hearts

as we

make our

grand

statements

i will

be king

he's

active

and busy

opposing

god's

church

and

persecuting

his

people

and as

we look

out it

appears

that god's

king

kingdom

is weak

and

dangerously

fragile

but surely

this reminds

us that

god's

king

will

always be

on the

throne

nothing

will deter

god's

plan

and so

today

jesus

christ

is still

on the

throne

the world

may boast

and party

but one

day we

will hear

the trumpets

again

and at

the sound

of the

trumpets

the world

will stop

in their

tracks

and the

risen lord

jesus

the king

of kings

and the

lord of

lords

will come

again

in awesome

power

and in

magnificent

glory

and at

the name

of jesus

every knee

should bow

in heaven

and on

earth

and under

the earth

and every

tongue

acknowledge

that jesus

christ

is lord

to the

glory of

god

the father

the kingdom

appears

weak and

fragile

it looks

like such

a tiny

seed

we sometimes

struggle to

see what

god is

doing

but let us

be encouraged

god is in

charge

and he

will ensure

that his

promised

kingdom

prevails

let's pray

together