C.A.C SUNDAY SCHOOL LESSON FOR MAY 24, 2020 Unit Three: THROUGH THE KINGS, LESSON NINE : TOPIC – TOWARDS A DIVIDED KINGDOM
CHRIST APOSTOLIC CHURCH WORLDWIDE.
God in the Administration of Man.
Unit Three: THROUGH THE KINGS
LESSON TEN.
May 24, 2020.
TOPIC: TOWARDS A DIVIDED KINGDOM
Memory Scripture
And he said to Jeroboam, “Take for yourself ten pieces for thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ‘Behold, I will tear the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon and will give ten tribes to you”
(1 King 11:31).
Jeroboam had personal political reasons to erect the the golden image, create artificial worship centre and employ unqualified priests but there is no reason sufficient enough to take God’s people away from Him. Don’t be on the war path with God, in the name of securing your ’empire.’
BRIEF COMMENT
God decided to grant the request of His people when they asked for a monarchical system of government, by instructing Prophet Samuel to appoint and anoint for them, their first king, Saul (1 Sam. 10:1). However, Saul misbehaved later, and God replaced him with David (1 Sam. 16:1ff). Solomon took over from his father, David (1 Kgs. 1:28-35). Solomon started very brilliantly well with God, but did not end well. The idols of his foreign wives turned his heart away from the Lord (1 Kgs. 11:4). God decided to tear down Solomon’s kingdom, as foretold by Prophet Ahijah (1 Kgs. 11:29-31), promising yแป give ten tribes to Jeroboam and leaving Solomon with only two tribes, only to honour His covenant with the righteous David (1 Kgs. 11:34-36). But for that, probably the whole kingdom would have been taken away from Solomon. All these point to the beginning of the division of the kingdom as orchestrated by God Himself. This should serve as a lesson to us, today; God’s promises and covenants and sure, but He will not hesitate to chastise and discipline us (the chosen recipients/beneficiaries of such covenants), whenever we err (Prov. 3:12). We must also know and always remember that in God’s Kingdom, no man is indisputable.
Devotional Bible Readings For Week One
Mon. 18: Israel United under David’s Rulership (2 Sam. 5:1-3)
Tue. 19: Israel’s Unity Continue with Solomon (1 Kgs. 1:29-30)
Wed. 20: Israel’s Sin will tear it apart (1 Kgs. 11:9-11)
Thur. 21: Israel’s Division Predicted by Prophet Ahijah (1 Kgs 11:29-31)
Fri. 22: Jeroboam Will be given Tem Tribes (1 Kgs. 11:37)
Sat. 23: Jeroboam flees to Egypt (1 Kgs. 11:40).
DEVOTIONAL THOUGHTS
1. God is sovereign and unquestionably at every point of Israel’s administration. He still determines what transpires over all nations, today.
2. He is the unquestionable God (Psa. 115:3). He is sovereign in man’s administration (Psa. 22:28). Israel’s administration is not an exception, and indeed, any other administration anywhere. He is the sole determiner of what emerged anywhere.
3. Some people try to work against this fact. They are only following the path of their master, Satan. At the end of the day, they regrettably discover that their oppositions have resulted in the fulfillment of God’s very intent. For instance, Satan is eternally regretting that he pushed those people to crucify Jesus. Don’t try to work against God’s moves.
BACKGROUND SCRIPTURES: 1 Sam. 13:14; 16:1; 1 Kgs. 11:29-31; Acts 13:22
AIN AND OBJECTIVES
AIM: To show that God orchestrated both the unity and division of the kingdom of Israel for His own eternal redemptive purpose.
OBJECTIVES: At the end of this lesson every sincere and open-hearted reader should be able to:
i. defend the sovereignty and transcendence of God over Israel’s history and over all generations of the earth, till date and forever;
ii. show that God is the respecter of no man. He punishes His own, whenever they err, irrespective of who men think they are;
iii. explain how God’s punishment and discipline are not for destruction, but an extension of His love to restore man to Himself; and
iv. defend that God was, is, and will forever be the ultimate determiner of all that transpire over all nations.
INTRODUCTION
TEXTUAL SOURCE: 1 I SAMUEL 13:14; 16:1FF; 2 SAMUEL 5:1-3; 1 KINGS 1:1FF; 3:16-28; 11:1-40; 12:1-33; 13:1-10
All praises and honour be unto God alone for the efficient assimilation and impact of the last lesson, GOD BRINGS KINGS ON BOARD. We saw how the people agitated for a monarchical system of government, and how God granted their request by giving them Saul, to start with, with the attendance consequences. It is believed that the lessons in the series have been well assimilated for our spiritual and moral growth.
The current lesson takes off from where the last one stops. As God brought in the Era of Kings, it is also important to know how the monarchical system united the kingdom at some time, and how the kingdom was united under the reigns of King David and Solomon, his son, and how it became divided through Rehoboam’s error, as well as Jeroboam’s reign and stupidity.
We sincerely pray for God to illuminate our minds with the light of His Word and make the lessons have His intended purpose in our lives, for fulfillment, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
INTRODUCTION TO EACH DIVISION
This is a two-week lesson, and divided into I and II with each division further divided into A and B, respectively.
DIVISION I: ISRAEL AS A UNITED KINGDOM
This section talks about how God re-united Israel under the rulership of David, after Saul had failed Him. The unity of the nation also continued with Solomon at the helm of affairs. Every time God punishes His people whenever they misbehaved, He also always has a way of bringing them back to Himself, systematically. In fact, His discipline is for restoration, not to run down completely.
DIVISION II: DIVIDED
This section exposes how Israel, a nation God united by Himself, fell from grace and became divided, all by God’s doing, to fulfill His own purpose. The division of the nation was a result of God punishing the leaders for their sins of idolatry, self-will, stiff-neckedness, wickedness and ungodliness. Spanning from Solomon, Rehoboam, and then, Jeroboam, the leaders were punished for their sins. But the negative effects was on the whole nation and her citizens. Leaders must be careful with their dealings as they lead God’s people and related with Him.
LESSON OUTLINE
I. ISRAEL AS A UNITED KINGDOM
A. DAVID, MAN AFTER GOD’S HEART
B. SOLOMON, WISE BUT FOOLISH
II. ISRAEL DIVIDED
A. REHOBOAM’S ERROR
B. JEROBOAM’S ENTHRONEMENT AND ERROR
LESSON EXPOSITION
I. ISRAEL AS A UNITED KINGDOM (1 Samuel 13:14; 16:1ff; 2 Samuel 5:1-3; 1 Kings 1:1ff; 3:16-28; 11:1-40)
The word “unity” connotes oneness and it is very essential for any organisation, the body of Christ inclusive. It was important for Israel as a nation to be united, as a proof of God’s ultimate involvement and utmost interest in their affairs.
A. DAVID, MAN AFTER GOD’S HEART (1 Sam. 13:14; 16:1ff; 2 Sam. 5:1-3)
But now your kingdom shall not continue. The Lord has sought for Himself a man after His own heart, and the Lord has commanded him to be commander over His people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you (1 Sam. 13:14).
i. 1 Sam. 13:14: At the very point of condemning Saul’s foolishness, God made it clear that He had sought for Himself a man after His own heart, as …commander over His people (cf. Acts. 13:22). This, He reiterated in 16:1. God cannot be disappointed; He always has ready-made replacement for every leader. Don’t mess up!
ii. 16:1ff: God was actively directing the footsteps and mind of Samuel, to avoid any mistakes, until he got to the right man after Yahweh’s own heart — gave Samuel the stract (vv. 6-13). He wouldn’t allow a repeat of the earlier mistakes.
iii. v. 13: God endorsed the appointment of David as king with the special anointing of the Holy Spirit (cf. Acts 10:38). After all, He sent Samuel. No wonder his exploits (cf. 17:12ff), and the divine protection he enjoyed, all before and after his enthronement. You must desire His anointing.
iv. 2 Sam. 5:1-3: After the initial endorsement by God (1 Sam. 16:1), God moved David’s acceptance by the tribe of Judah (2 Sam. 2:4), and later by all the elders of Israel (5:3). That is God in administrative action. He worked through David to successfully unite the kingdom in 1000 BC, driving out the Hittites to establish Jerusalem as the capital (vv. 6ff), and the abode of the Ark, which was also a symbol of unity (6:1ff).
v. 1 Sam. 17:34-37: God was a way of preparing His chosen vessels for usefulness in His eternal purpose.
B. SOLOMON, WISE BUT FOOLISH (1 Kgs. 1:1ff; 3:16-28; 11:1-40)
And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart (11:3).
i. 1:1ff: See God, the great Administrator, in action, as He worked through the intrigues, processes and personalities to and made sure Solomon succeeded hsi father, David, and established the kingdom in his hands (2:46).
ii. 3:16-28: God made him highly respected for the great wisdom He gave him for successful administration (cf. 10:1-10). He also accorded him the honour of building a befitting temple of Him, which his father couldn’t accomplish (1 Kgs. 6:1-9; 7::40-51; 8:1-66). He was highly favoured by the Lord.
iii. 11:1-2: However, his foolishness started with his penchant for foreign women, with the political motive of solidifying his kingdom with alliance with foreign world powers of his day’s (cf. 3:1). No man can help the the man who abandons God for help from ‘abroad’. Hadn’t God warned against this (Deut. 17:17a)?
iv. vv. 3-8: Because God respects man’s freewill, He didn’t force Solomon not to plunge deeper into depravity. But He warned him. When a leader or any other person chooses to work against God, God would wait for his/her cup to be full. Don’t try Him!
v. vv. 9ff: God had tolerated Solomon’s foolishness enough. His justice prevailed. He sanctioned Solomon with kingdom division (vv. 11-13), and raised against him both external (vv. 14-25) and internal aggressions (vv. 26-40). Don’t exhaust God’s patience.
vi. 11:9-11: When man decided to use God’s blessings in his care against God, such man has signed an agreement for his own downfall. The wisest and wealthiest of men can be reduced to nothing, without God. Ask Nebuchadnezzar!
LESSONS DERIVED
1. God doesn’t want His people to be divided. He ensured that through His righteous servant, David. Don’t be an agent of division, anywhere.
2. God never takes the sins of leaders lightly; He punishes them appropriately, as and when due, most especially, when recalcitrance and complacency are involved.
WORK TO DO
David and Solomon were both God’s agents of Israel unity, but they both have their flaws and weaknesses, too. What is the attitude of God to their different flaws?
SUGGESTED ANSWER TO WORK TO DO
i. God frowned sternly at their flaws. This reminds us that God loves us but hates our sins.
ii. God punished both David and Solomon in the ways only Him deemed necessary. He did not pamper or pet them because of their past good deeds, and will never hesitate to correct the son He loves dearly (Prov. 3:12).
iii. The fact that both David and Solomon were God’s agents of Israel’s unity did not grant them automatic immunity from God’s discipline and judgment when they erred. When a chosen vessel sins, repents and is forgiven, the consequences of the sin are most tines, inevitable (cf. Prov. 16:5).
iv. God does not condole sin/iniquity. In fact, His chastisement and discipline are strong indicators of His love and care for His own. This, He portrayed with David and Solomon.
v. We must all know that no one is above God’s judgment and discipline. No matter who we are, God has the sizes of our disciplinary rod in His care and will not spare us as and when due