Descent into Sin
by Dr. Ken Matto
(Neh 13:26 KJV) Did not Solomon king of Israel sin by these things? yet among many nations was there no king like him, who was beloved of his God, and God made him king over all Israel: nevertheless even him did outlandish women cause to sin.
Whenever we read about Solomon, we normally think of the fact that he was David’s son and ascended the throne after him. We also think of the riches that God bestowed upon him as a result of him desiring wisdom instead of riches and power. We know that Solomon was sincere in his desire for wisdom to rule the people because if he was just saying he wanted wisdom and then in his heart he really wanted riches, he could not have fooled God because God reads the hearts of all.
(Rev 2:23 KJV) And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works.When we read of his degeneration into sin and pleasure, do we examine our own lives to see if there is a likelihood that we may be going the same way. God wrote the Bible through the human character not for the reason that we would only have stories to read, but as a warning to the redeemed people of God that we are to watch our ways and guard our hearts. Solomon had a strong start in his kingship which was evidenced by the great wisdom he possessed in adjudicating the affairs of the people. What made his fame spread was the case between the two women who both claimed one live baby was theirs. When he gave command for the child to be divided in two, he knew that the real mother would cry out and would rather see the child raised by another woman than see it killed.
So when we read a scenario like this and see such a man of great wisdom, who had the favor of God on him and then we ask how could such a man descend into the pits of worldliness? Solomon, like every one of God’s children, are consistently facing the possibility of descending into sin. Satan will never come along and tell a Christian that they can sin against God, instead he uses the tactic of a little at a time. I am sure when Solomon had been drawn away by his lust for women, he probably never envisioned that he would have 700 wives and 300 concubines. Basically, what happened with Solomon, was he was setting his sights on earthly pleasures and it became a lifestyle situation for him. By the end of his life, he had much riches but what did it avail?
When we look at what happened to the kingdom of Israel, Solomon’s legacy was one of division and not unity. Solomon’s pleasure seeking caused the kingdom of Israel to be split into two kingdoms, both of which sunk into idolatry and were carried away by God into captivity. The Northern kingdom was never heard from again as the people were assimilated into the world’s population. The southern kingdom was briefly brought back together since the Lord Jesus Christ was to come through the tribe of Judah, but once this happened, Judah, like the northern kingdom of Israel, was destroyed in 70 A.D., never again to rise among the nations.
Whenever we disregard our Christian walk and begin to start compromising with the world, there will always be some type of consequences. Remember, we saw that Jonah’s sin of rebellion almost cost the sailors on his ship their lives but it did cost all of the freight that was on board. Here we see that the long term effect of Solomon’s sin, had much wider consequences as it cost the lives of two nations. Solomon’s idolatry was passed down through his sons and caused much havoc in both kingdoms. It is like in a church assembly, if a person has a complaint against the elders or somebody else, they can begin polarizing the church by gathering allies for their side and this will eventually lead to open warfare which can destroy a church. We must never believe that a little sin does not hurt anyone, because it affects all. Remember, this principle, in 1909 the Wright Brothers flew for the first time, in 1945, we dropped the first atomic bomb by airplane, only 36 years after the first flight. We never consider future consequences for present sins, but we must. The ripple effect may not take place for one, five, or even ten years but it will come, that is why we must expunge all sin at the place it begins, the mind.
(Phil 2:5 KJV) Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: (9/5/03)