August 1927
519
T h e
K i n g ’ s
B u s i n e s s
came the beginning of its decline. Never again did Israel take its place among the great nations of the East. Starting out with great wisdom, Solomon later pre pared for the downfall of the kingdom by luxury and arrogance. He was the author and compiler of the richest maxims of wisdom in the world’s literature. But sad to say, Solomon so dissipated himself through sensual plea sure, that he sums up with the confes sion: “Vanity o f vanities—all is empti ness and vexation o f spirit.” Thus may very intellectual men come to nothing be cause they attempt to exercise their wis dom independently of God. Solomon’s great piece of work was the building of the Temple. Beyond that, there is little in his history to record besides the description of his magnificence and wealth. In Solomon, we see the utter power lessness of mere culture and intellectual- ism, even of the highest kind, when it is not vitally related to the love and rev erence of God. Dr. Plummer has well said : “The lesson of his life is to a large extent that of Samson’s and Saul’s com bined—miraculous powers neutralized by self-indulgence—great natural gifts rend ered baneful by desertion of God.” Solomon seems never to have known the bracing influences of difficulty and adversity, which largely made his father the man he was. He had been brought up in expectation of a glorious crown, and when it came to him, it swelled his head until his character could not stand the strain.
his sins and again lifted him up. That makes the story precious to every heart that knows its own plague. We may profit much from the fine traits of character seen in David, but let us be sure we do not miss the warnings to be derived from a close study of the causes of his sad fall. It was when he retired from the post of duty, and lay around at Jerusalem, that the enemy got the ad vantage over him. That is just when the darts of the en emy are most apt to hit us. Keep busy for God; keep nature under pressure. There is safety in it! Satan never fails to find mischief for idle hearts and hands. We have a watchful enemy. The mo ment We are unoccupied, Satan knows his hour. When we are up and doing for God, and maintaining communion with Him, we are in tfie attitude of positive hostility to the Devil. That is not his-op portunity to make us instruments for his own ends. When David failed in energy as the captain of the Lord’s hosts, he became the slave of lust; Likewise, we are either dominated by the energy of the Spirit or the energy of the flesh. “A t the time when kings go forth to battle,” David was at rest in his own house and Satan presented the fatal-bait before him. To what length will this nature of ours go when it is out of touch with God! Who would have thought that a man like David would first degrade his char acter to indulge nature and then, in order to maintain his reputation at all cost, put a man out of the way? No man becomes suddenly vile. White ants can pick a carcass clean sooner than a lion can. A long train of evil thoughts led David into all this. Our only safety is in watching the beginning of things and avoiding the first steps that lead down. Did David forget that the eyes of the Lord were upon him? God help us not to forget that He sees. Had David kept himself conscious of this, he would have faltered ere he added the sin of murder to adultery. God will maintain His holiness. He cannot be trifled with. If His child wan ders into sin, he is bound to be dealt with. So in David’s Case, much as God loved him, we find Him pronouncing most solemn judgments upon his house, because of sin. “We are chastened o f the L ord , that we should not be con demned with the world." — o — S olomon “A ll is vanity." The comparative scantiness of material concerning the life of Solomon, is sig nificant. The story of David occupies more than sixty chapters: that of Sol omon fills only eleven chapters of 1st Kings and 2nd Chronicles. No person occupies so important a space in sacred history of whom so few personal incidents are related. Solomon’s name hardly occurs after the close of his reign. The position to which Solomon became heir, was certainly unique. Large re sources, accumulated through many years, were at his disposal. The people were for the most part true to Jehovah. Knowledge, art, music and poetry had received a new impulse. There was a great outlook. Solomon’s reign marked the climax of the Hebrew monarchy. With Solomon
Saul was given to half-obedience, and that is something God counts as pure re bellion. If Saul was told to utterly wipe out the Amalekites for the good of the human race, he would wipe out what he wanted to and keep what spoils attracted him. Obeying God as far as it suits us, is trifling with God, and is bound to bring chastisement. Saul was full of excuses. He was clever at devising explanations when Samuel would face him with his failures. Someone else was always to blame. The man who will not confess himself guilty, is in no position to receive pardon and divine blessing. Saul would never put himself in that position. He was always putting a religious face on his sins. But someone will say, “Did not Saul many times say: ‘I have sinned’?” Yes, many—but under what circumstances? In every 'case, he was in a corner. The prophet had the goods on him. He did not want to lose the kingdom. - But where is there evidence of heart repent ance? Saul ended up a suspicious, peevish, childish man. The green-eyed monster, jealousy, wound itself around him. One who is a prey to envy, suffers the pangs of hell in this life. The once brave man ended up the plaything of evil fore bodings? There was no relief, for he had been too busy to learn how to pray. He turns to a witch for help. He asks his armor-bearer to kill him, and ends up by falling upon his own sword. How dif ferently the story might have ended, but “he played the fool." — o —- D avid “Against thee have I sinned.” If we are called to follow- the prom ising Saul into the valley of humiliation, what shall we say of that even more re markable character, David? -The Bible is written to show us the subtleties of Satan and the utter folly of sin. No char acter has been whitewashed. The faults of men who were greatly Used of God, are laid bare before us that we might, know how human and like ourselves they were. David is called in Scripture, “a man a fter God’s own heart,” not because he was sinless, but because he was a man of faith and when he sinned, confessed from the depth of his heart and took up his walk with God again. The history of even the most obscure believer, will be found to exhibit, al though perhaps on a smaller scale, the same inconsistencies as those seen in David. Who is there who has not at times been assailed by unbelief, like David when he fled for refuge to the king of Gath? What sincere Christian mother has not had mistaken notions about the Lord’s service, like David when he tried to build a house for the Lord before the time? What Christian has never been taken in by notions of self-complacency an4 pride, like David when he sought to number the people? Is there one who has never known, even in the thought life, the vile lustings of nature, like David in the matter of Uriah the Hittite ? It is all this that makes David pe culiarly interesting to us. But what dis couragement the picture would bring us except that the Scripture story also re veals the divine grace that met David in
TAURING this quarter we have studied ■ Israel’s history for the first one hun dred and twenty years of the Monarchy. In the first lesson we learned that Israel
made a fatal mistake in substituting her desires ' for the will of God. Oh, that she had realized wh a t Isaiah the prophet s a i d, l' o r m y thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,; saith Jehovah." Man’s
ways always lead to sadness and ruin. Al though Israel was fore-warned of the dangers intowhich she was plunging by asking for a king, she insisted upon hav ing her way. God frequently permits peo ple, when they insist upon it/ to have their way. In the second lesson appeared the fare well speech of Samuel, the prophet and statesman. It is extremely doubtful if many public officials, after a long period of ministration of the affairs of the na tions, could challenge people as Samuel did when he was laying down the active affairs of the nation. He called upon them to point out any injustices which he had at any time practised. With a mighty chorus they responded that noth ing could be brought against him. He had dealt so very perfectly, honestly, and conscientiously in the sight of God, that his decisions were manifestly that which they should be. Oh, that all of those who take the name of Christ might de part from their injustices and sin in every phase, and walk with God by faith, as did Enoch of old. At the conclusion of his address Samuel assured the people
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