1 Kings: The Deception Of False Religion

KJB Daily Devotion – Following Jesus Through Every Chapter
Date: Monday, April 11, 2016
Chapters: 1 Kings 10-12
Message: 1 Kings: The Deception Of False Religion

Hello My Friend,

There is a similar pattern among false religion that mimics Christianity, they all worship a supreme being, they all require a sacrifice, and they all have a law book they follow. Do you know the best way to deceive people into believing they are worshiping God? Mirror Him. There is only one way to know that the religion you follow is true, salvation comes only by believing that Christ became the sacrifice to redeem your soul, and He alone is the only way to God. “But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” - Ephesians 2:4-9.

False religion focuses on working your way to heaven or a heavenly place, and if you were to do research on all religions you would find that most mimic the Jewish religion in some way. That is because they want to get you to believe that they are worshiping the same God. The truth is this, the world knows there is only one God, and they will spot Him right away. King Solomon was the most powerful and prosperous kings of all time, he not only possessed great wisdom and wealth, he was looked highly upon by the rest of the world as the king who was led by the only living God. Solomon had kings and queens from all over the world coming to see if the God they only heard about was true. We learn this through the queen of Sheba, upon observing and asking Solomon many questions, she discovered the stories did not compare to what she saw.

“And when the queen of Sheba had seen all Solomon's wisdom, and the house that he had built, And the meat of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel, and his cupbearers, and his ascent by which he went up unto the house of the LORD; there was no more spirit in her. And she said to the king, It was a true report that I heard in mine own land of thy acts and of thy wisdom. Howbeit I believed not the words, until I came, and mine eyes had seen it: and, behold, the half was not told me: thy wisdom and prosperity exceedeth the fame which I heard. Happy are thy men, happy are these thy servants, which stand continually before thee, and that hear thy wisdom. Blessed be the LORD thy God, which delighted in thee, to set thee on the throne of Israel: because the LORD loved Israel for ever, therefore made he thee king, to do judgment and justice.” - 1 Kings 10:4-9.

“and mine eyes had seen it:” Sheba knew that there was only one LORD, and she saw Him in the actions of Solomon. The world should be able to see Christ in the believer. While it is true that our works have nothing to do with our salvation, they do have to do with being blessed by God. We ought to be a reflection of Christ, and if we are not than we ought to rethink our actions. “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands; That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.” - Ephesians 2:10-13.

No matter how strong our faith in the LORD, we cannot take our eyes off Him for one second because that is all it takes for us to go from loving and worshiping only God to turning to false gods. Solomon, was strong in his faith, but things began to change when he started marrying strange women, women of different faiths. The result, he started worshiping their gods to please his wives. Needless to say, God was not happy with Solomon.

“And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the LORD God of Israel, which had appeared unto him twice, And had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods: but he kept not that which the LORD commanded. Wherefore the LORD said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant. Notwithstanding in thy days I will not do it for David thy father's sake: but I will rend it out of the hand of thy son. Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will give one tribe to thy son for David my servant's sake, and for Jerusalem's sake which I have chosen. And unto his son will I give one tribe, that David my servant may have a light alway before me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen me to put my name there. And Solomon slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David his father: and Rehoboam his son reigned in his stead.” - 1 Kings 11:9-13,36,43.

“but he kept not that which the LORD commanded.” Forget the fact that he had a thousand wives, which makes one question his morals and wisdom. However, getting around the wrong people can cloud our judgment, which is why Solomon fell. Solomon’s experience led him to write several proverbs in regards to a woman’s influence on a man. Growing up I remember being taught that when you marry you were to marry someone within your race. The truth is, we ought to marry within our faith, which is why God tells us not no be yoked or joined with people of different religions. You need to be with someone who believes the same as you do.

“Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.” - 2 Corinthians 6:14-18.

Every day you hear about a great man of faith denouncing his faith in God and turning to false religion, or even worse, becoming an atheist. Walking away from God does not happen overnight, it becomes gradual as the need for God becomes less and less. After Solomon died, God followed through with His judgment, He split the kingdom leaving only Solomon’s seed to reign under one tribe, Judah. After the nation split, Jeroboam, a rebellious servant of Solomon, became king in moved to the north and Rehoboam, Solomon’s son, remained in the south, out of fear that the people would return to Rehoboam going there to worship God, Jeroboam made his own gods, he had two golden calves built, one on each edge of town.

“Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. And he set the one in Bethel, and the other put he in Dan. And this thing became a sin: for the people went to worship before the one, even unto Dan. And he made an house of high places, and made priests of the lowest of the people, which were not of the sons of Levi. And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like unto the feast that is in Judah, and he offered upon the altar. So did he in Bethel, sacrificing unto the calves that he had made: and he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places which he had made. So he offered upon the altar which he had made in Bethel the fifteenth day of the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised of his own heart; and ordained a feast unto the children of Israel: and he offered upon the altar, and burnt incense.” - 1 Kings 12:28-33.

“And this thing became a sin:” Many people truly want God to be part of their lives, they pray and worship Him, but the truth is, it is not God they are talking to, it is a false god. God is not someone that can be made up and worshiped on our terms, there is only one way to worship Him and that is through the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus is the only way to God, and unless we know Him, we do not worship the LORD God Almighty. “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.” - John 14:6,13,14.

Jesus Christ Revealed: Today Jesus is revealed through David who had a heart for God and lived to please the Him. Jesus praying to the Father said, “O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.” - Matthew 26:39.

Today's Prayer: God, You want to be a part of our lives, and we truly want that too, but we often let our desires determine how we serve You. I know I can get so caught up in the things I do that I forget to even acknowledge that You are the reason for everything I have and even am. Lord, I do not want my heart to turn away from you because of some person or thing. Give me Your power to keep looking to You, let me not turn to the right or the left, give me Your strength to remain in obedience to Your commands, even when my flesh desires something else, and give me a heart that only seeks to follow You in all that I do. In Jesus' name. Amen.

God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina

Are You 100% Sure You Are Going To Heaven?: http://godsprice.com/
Receive The KJB Daily Devotions In Your Email: http://eepurl.com/2WMzT
Missed A Message: http://imfollowingjesus.com/Biblestudy/
Visit I'm Following Jesus: http://imfollowingjesus.com/index.html
Like I'm Following Jesus On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/byhisstrength
Copyright © 2016 I'm Following Jesus, All rights reserved.