Not to beat a dead horse or anything, but King Jeroboam came up again in 2 Kings. This time in chapter 13. It’s at least the third time he’s used as a negative example. He’s like a first-ballot inductee into the Hall of Shame.
I’ve mentioned him before–he’s the guy who decides to make golden calves for the Israelites to worship. “Here are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.”
Doesn’t it seem like there are worse sins than that? How about murder? Adultery? Lying even? But those don’t seem to be the biggies.
Idol worship is.
What are the first two of the ten commandments God gave to Moses?
“I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. You shall have no other gods before Me. You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God…”
No other gods before Me. No idols. Jeroboam broke both, but not only that, He told the people that the golden calves had brought them out of Egypt. God leads off the ten commandments by reminding Moses and the Israelites that it was He who had done that and now Jeroboam is giving credit to the idols he’d made. God is rightly jealous.
Jeroboam is responsible for his actions, as I am for mine and you are for yours, but I can’t help thinking he watched how Solomon behaved and figured a couple idols couldn’t really hurt. Jeroboam was one of Solomon’s officials. As Solomon grew older, his heart turned away from the LORD toward other gods. (You can read about it in 1 Kings 11.) Was Jeroboam watching?
What Jeroboam may not have known was that God had told Solomon He was going to tear the kingdom from his hands because of his sin, but would not do it during his lifetime, but during the lifetime of his son. Consequences were coming, as they always do, they just weren’t seen yet.
My heart was made to worship God, but if I allow it to turn away from Him, it will seek out someone or something else to bow down to. That someone or that thing is my idol, my god.
Do you have an idol? A god? Is it money? Success? Pleasure? Television? The internet? Your job? Your family? Your intelligence? Your looks? Your talents and abilities?
Where are you looking for happiness? Significance? Purpose? Identity? What can you not do without? What do you think about most often? That’s your god.
Does this make you uncomfortable? It does me. I’m afraid I see a little too much of myself in guys like Jeroboam and Solomon.