September 1927
580
T h e
K i n g ’ s
B u s i n e s s
Elijah’s Message to a Wicked King 1 Kings 21:5-10, 16-20. Memory VerSe ■: “Depart from evil, and do good.” Psa. 34:14. Approach : How many of you boys and girls know what this is I hold in my hand ? What is it used for ? It is a mag nifying glass and makes objects look
V. 9. These letters she wrote, proclaim ing a fast and giving orders that Naboth should be set on high among the people. When a fast was proclaimed everyone ceased work, and those who could at tended the public meeting. This fast and meeting implied that some great crime affecting the nation had been committed, that the nation should humble itself in real penitence before God, and that jus tice should be meted out to the guilty culprit. Naboth was singled out as the one guilty by the fact that he was placed upon the platform. V. 10. At that time the trial by jury, where the case is discussed pro and con, and a decision is rendered according to the law and the evidence, was Unknown; but the custom in vogue at that time simply involved the testimony of two or three witnesses considered competent. Since there was no real case against Na both, Jezebel had to bribe base, un scrupulous men to bear false testimony against him. Two such false witnesses came forward with the charge that they had heard Naboth curse God and the King. The poor, unfortunate man was condemned to die and was carried out and stoned. This base transaction imme diately reminds us of the trial of the Lord Jesus Christ, against whom false witnesses were brought, who swore false ly and whose testimony caused him to be crucified as a malefactor. Though these false witnesses were the immediate cause of the deaths of both Naboth and Jesus, they really were caused by the hate of Satan, who is a spirit who works in the sons of disobedience, and stirs them up to do every conceivable crime (Eph. 2:1-3). V. 16. “Ahab takes possession of the vineyard.’’ Upon learning of the death of Naboth, Ahab, seemingly without any, compunction of conscience, went down and took possession of the dead man’s estate. V. 17. "The word of Jehovah came to Elijah.” The word of Jehovah is the thought, plan and purpose of God ex pressed in human terms; the thought be ing given to the prophets and the words and thoughts being selected by the Holy Spirit. V. 18. In obedience to the command of God, Elijah once more confronted King Ahab, who at this time was dwelling in Samaria. The vineyard, however, was in close proximity to-the summer home of Ahab in the plain of Jezreel, and it was there that Elijah met the wicked King as he went down to take possession of the seized estate. V. 19. “Elijah’s Message." Elijah was instructed to inform Ahab that God had spoken concerning his case.. “Hast thou found me, O mine enemy?" “Hast thou killed and. also taken possession?" Ahab had not himself done; the killing, but he was an accomplice to it, and was respons ible,for the murder, in that he was King. He was guilty of the murder in that he gave Bis wife the authority to bring the evil, transaction to a successful end. Hence, Elijah was correct in charging him with the murder of Naboth. Further more, he was to inform Ahab that “in the place where dogs licked the blood of Na both, shall dogs lick thy blood, even thine." The universal law, stated by Paul, ob
Sick of Mere Opinionsl tSb dsb dsb YWESLEY was naturally a ’ ’ keen controversialist, and had marvelous skill in attack and. defehse, but as he grew older his pleasure in it died away. He says: “We may die without the knowledge of many' truths and yet be carried into Abraham’s bosom; but if we die without love, what will knowledge avail ? Just as it avails the devil and his angels? I will not quarrel with you about any opinion; only see. that your heart be right towards ,. God, that you will know and love the Lord Jesus Christ, that you love y o u r neighbor, that you walk as your Master walked, and I desire no more. I am sick qf opi ni ons I am weary to hear them; my soul loathes this frothy food. Give me solid and substantial religion'^! give me an humble and gentle lover of God and man; a man full of mercy and good faith, without partiality, and without hypocrisy; a man laying himself out in the work of faith, the patience of hope, the labor of love.”'
much l a r g e r than t h e y really are. E d i t h , you come here a mome n t . Now you See the back of E d i t h ’s hand looks nice and smooth. Now let us look at Edith’s hand through t h e glass. My, what a coarse,
rough-looking hand 1 You know, boys and girls, many things in this world look very nice to -ris, but God sees them through Plis pure, sinless eyes, and they show up all the wrong and sin. We Can deceive peo ple, but we can never deceive God. Prayer. Lesson Story., (Review,'showing how God remembers and helps His people in trouble.) I . wonder if boys and ¿¡iris ever want things they should not have? You know there, are a grèat many peo ple in the world who never seem con tented no matter how much money they have, or nice homes, or automobiles. The Bible tells us we should be content with such things as we have)vi Today our story is about King Ahab and the wicked queen Jezebel, but they were not content even though they lived in a palace and had money and servants and everything they desired. We know why they were not happy or contented, because they did not obey-God, They worshipped Baal. There was a good man by the name of Naboth, who lived neighbor to King Ahab. Naboth had a vineyard, and King Ahab went to Naboth and wanted to buy his vineyard from him, or give him an other vineyard for it. But Naboth did not want to sell his vineyard, as it had belonged to his father, who, when he died, left it tó him; therefore it was Na both’s inheritance. When King Ahab heard this, he came home to his palace sàd and displeased. He lay down upon his bed, and turned away his face, and would not eat. He was like some boys and girls, when he could not have hjs own way. Then his wife, the wicked queen, came to him and told him not to feel sad, but to sit up and eat and be merry, for she would give him thè vine yard he wanted. Then she wrote let ters and signed them with King Ahab’s name and sealed them with the king’s seal. In the letters she commanded to find sòme wicked men who would tell lies about Naboth, and say that they had heard him speak evil of God and the king. They found two men who bore false witness, saying: “Naboth did blaspheme, and speak evil of God and the" king.” Now, as we have read, the Lord had com manded that whoever blasphemed His name should be stoned. So they took Na both ,out of the city and stoned him to death. When Queen Jezebel heard that Naboth was dead, she told King Ahab to arise and take the vineyard for his own. Ahab was king and had great power, but God has all power and He had seen the awful sin of Jezebel, and Ahab want ing what was not right for him to have. Again God calls upon Elijah to go to the king and tell him of his great sin.
tained in the case of Ahab. “Be not de ceived, God is not mocked, for whatso ever a man sowcth that shall he also reap.” God, whose counsel and plan stands fast (Psa. 33:1), in righteousness decreed that the blood of the covetous King should be licked by the dogs in that place, and this was literally fulfilled, as seen in chapter 22:38. V. 20. Ahab, upon seeing Elijah, cried, “Hast thou found me, O mine enemy?” It was not difficult for Elijah to find him, because the omniscient God was the One inspiring and leading the prophet. Elijah was hot his enemy, but was simply a true servant of God, who condemned the wickedness of the King and had been mis understood by the King to be his enemy. Compare Herod’s attitude toward John the Baptist (Lk. 3:18-20). Elijah an swered, “I have found thee because thou hast sold thyself to do evil in . the sight of God." This statement simply means that the prophet was not meddling into affairs which did not belong to him, but being a servant of God, he knew the weaknesses of the King : that for the sake of money and the indulgence of the appetites qf the flesh, he had abandoned himself to every kind of evil, and that there was no limit to the lengths that he would go to gratify his base desires. The message delivered by the prophet of God in the power of the Holy Spirit, carried conviction to the heart of the wicked King, who now humbled himself before God. This humbling of himself caused God to delay the blotting out of the dynasty to which he belonged. Re pentance and humiliation ' pushed the stroke of judgment into thé future in this case as in the case of the people of Nineveh (see the Book of Jonah).
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