“And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart” (1 Kings 11:3).
TEXT — 1 Kings 11:1-12
Message
From the magazine, Christianity Today, this quote is found: “The man or woman who does not know God demands an infinite satisfaction from other human beings which they cannot give, and in the case of the man, he becomes tyrannical and cruel. It springs from this one thing, the human heart must have satisfaction, but there is only one Being who can satisfy the last abyss of the human heart, and that is the Lord Jesus Christ.”
King Solomon, in our passage, started well early in life. He listened to the counsel of his father, David, relied on God’s wisdom, but later deviated. Over time, Solomon forgot his own counsel and the wisdom of Scripture. God had given clear instructions for anyone who would be king in Israel not to amass horses, engage in the multiplying of wives and accumulate silver and gold. Thus, Solomon’s taking of many wives and concubines directly violated God’s word. And just as God had predicted, his heathen wives turned his heart away from God, and God’s favour departed from him.
In search of satisfaction, Solomon went on a wild goose chase. His lust drove him to marry many wives and acquire even more numerous concubines. He later testified in Ecclesiastes that the pleasure he derived from wine, women and wealth, was all vanity and vexation of spirit.
The story of Solomon’s excesses is popular. He used his God-given wisdom to amass wealth and get all that his heart desired. Like him, many spend their days in a mad rush to get wealth. Their search for satisfaction and joy outside God, invariably, yields no result. They eventually end up not deriving the satisfaction they crave. Only Jesus Christ can fill the emptiness in man’s hearts.
Thought for the day
When you run to the world’s end without God, you’ll find no fulfilment.
Listed among “500 most powerful people on the planet” by the Foreign Policy magazine in 2013, Pastor (Dr.) William F. Kumuyi is the founder and General Superintendent of the Deeper Christian Life Ministry (DCLM) headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria. DCLM started in 1973 as a 15-member Bible study group right in Kumuyi’s apartment at University of Lagos where he was a lecturer. His revolutionary Bible teaching on personal holiness and commitment to evangelism soon gained so much traction and resulted in a widespread revival.
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