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Bibleline Bibleline, here God’s Word on Bibleline, everywhere, every time. Here God’s truth on Bibleline. Welcome to Bibleline with Dr. Ralph Yankee Arnold, pastor of Calvary Community Church in Tampa, Florida. Clearly declaring the Gospel of Jesus Christ through the radio and the internet. Your regular prayers and monthly support make it possible for Bibleline to continue on the air. You can reach us toll free at 1-800-576-3771. Online donations may be made by clicking on the donations link on the BibleLineMinistries.org homepage.

We pray that you will enjoy our commitment to the clear gospel of Jesus Christ and that today’s concluding message of this teaching will be a blessing to you and your family. Solomon was a wise man. He used his wisdom to accomplish all kind of things, write all kind of things, encourage people to do the right thing, made awesome decisions. But toward the end of his life, boy, you really messed up. You know what usually happens, that people get lifted up and pride.

And he says in verse 3, and he had 700 wives, princes, and 300 Porcupines. What did he get stuck? And his wives get this, you know, the underlying is his wives turned away his heart. See, God already knew this. Anytime God tells you not to do something, because God knows that’s going to hurt you. All the do’s and don’ts in the scriptures is because God wants you to be happy. And he’s telling me that if you do this, happy are ye, if you do them.

And if you don’t do what God says to, you’re not going to be happy. God designed life. And though you may not see how it’s going to work, it will work. The law of the harvest is true. But some people never mature. They never grow up. You know, you take a little 10-year-old brat. When they’re 30 and 40, they’re still brats. Most people never learn, never mature. Now get what he says. So he says here in verse four and it came to pass when Solomon was oh Well, he was what oh he was old His wives turned away his heart after other gods This is what God had told them that they should not do in marrying outside of their race.

They weren’t supposed to do that But they did it anyway Look in verse eight and likewise did he for all his strange wives? He built all kinds of things to honor them and they’re gods So now you see when you marry a woman, you got to please that woman. Oh It’s hard enough for a man to please one woman. What if you had 700 wives and I thought he was smart He said no wonder look how many counselors he had Can you imagine all those women telling him what to do?

He must have been one confused man toward the end of his life. He probably couldn’t handle it anymore. So look in verse 9. 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, For as much as this is done of thee, and thou have not kept my covenant in my statutes, which I have commanded thee, you ought to underline this.

I will surely rent the kingdom from thee and will give it to thy servant, notwithstanding in thy days I will not do it, for David thy father say, but I will rent it out of the hands of thy son. So there is a price to pay. And you’ll notice there in verse 14, and the Lord stirred up an adversary on the Solomon. And in verse 23, the Lord stirred up an adversary. Verse 25, and he was an adversary to Israel and on down through here, you see, it’s God that can cause people to turn against you.

You say, let me know that. You hide bitterness and hatred in your heart and you’re rebellious in your heart and you may never know Because you don’t study the Scriptures, that sometimes those bad things that are always happening to you is because something that you’re not pure within your life and God knows it. And instead of you enjoying life, you’re tortured. You see, the Bible talks about fear, produces torture. Because it torments the soul. And it robs you of the joy, but you don’t have the joy because you don’t have the peace.

And the fear causes you because you know you’re not right with the Lord. So you can hide it from other people. You can hide it from your husband, from your wife, from your kids. You can hide it. But God knows, and He’s the one that can make the difference. So there’s one person you should never try to deceive. That’s the Lord. Because if you think for a moment you can deceive God and that this stuff doesn’t matter, You are deceived and God is going to lower the bone and you’re not going to like the way that it works.

So he says that he’s going to do these things. Look in verse 42. Verse 42, and the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was 40 years and Solomon slept with his fathers and was buried in the city of David, his father. So see, did he get away with all those women that he had? Did he get away from him? I mean, did he have a price to pay? Was there consequences? People say, well, look in the Bible, Solomon had 700 wives.

Yeah, but God also had to nail him and he didn’t get away with it. You and I don’t know how long he would have lived and how much in more enjoyment he would have had, but because of his sin, because of sin. Take your Bible and turn to the book of Nehemiah. Nehemiah, Esther, Job, right in there, Nehemiah, and look there in Nehemiah Chapter 13, Chapter 13, last chapter in the book of Nehemiah. And this is on page 556.

But there’s something here that you need to see. She just because people had two wives, four wives, all that. That doesn’t mean that was it with God’s approval. People do things because they did it, but there’s a price to pay. You don’t disobey God and get away with it. He’s priced to pay. In Nehemiah chapter 13, look in verse 23, now they had gone back from captivity and was building the walls, and Nehemiah had a great ministry, and pardon that.

And but the people didn’t come back clean. Here they had been living 70 years in Babylon. So they had done some things that they shouldn’t have done. Now they’re coming back because, hey, we’re Israel, but now they were bringing back their strange wives with them. So in verse 23 he said, in those days also saw I Jews that had married wives of Ashdad, of Ammon, Moab, and their children spake half in the speech of Ashdad. Some could not even speak in the Jews language, but according to the language of each people, and I contended with them and cursed them and smote certain, Arsenalarij A piece of paper I probably would have signed it.

But look what he says. And I contended with them and cursed them and smote certain of them plucked off their hair. What if you had a pastor like that? WARNppelin BelichickWER haha TheNitrome take their daughters unto your sons or for yourselves.” In verse 26, look what he said, “…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 that outlandish women caused the sin. Shall we then, hearken unto you, to do all this great evil, to transgress against our God and Marian strange wise? So did Solomon get away with it? Bible says he did. Was it our bad testimony? God says it was. And others become, well, if Solomon can do it, I can do it. And a lot of people think that, they’re getting away with it so why can’t I? We live at a time where there’s not many people that really have much character to them.

There’s no integrity left. And so it’s a shame. Take your Bible and turn to the book of 2nd, verse 26. 2nd Chronicles in chapter 26. Chapter 26, look in verse 1. Now you’re going to study the book of the book of the year that you study. That this is the same individual. Verse 1, then all the people of Judah took Josiah, who was 16 years old, made him king in the rumors of his father, and Josiah, who built Eloth and restored it to Judah after that the king slept with his father.

16 years old was Josiah when he began to reign, and he reigned 50 and two years. in Jerusalem. His mother’s name also was Jechaliah of Jerusalem. And get verse 4, and he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord. According to all that his father did, he did too. Look in verse 5, and he sought God in the days of Zechariah who had understanding in the visions of God. And as long as he sought the Lord, you see those words as long as you ought to underline those three little words.

As long as he sought the Lord, you ought to underline the last part of that verse. God caused him to prosper. God. You see, there’s a God that works behind the scenes and he watches and knows everything that’s going on. And God knows when you’re obedient and when you’re not, he knows how your heart is. He knows if you’re just, you know, and I don’t care, Christian, or if you really love the Lord. And so he makes a statement that God made him to prosper.

Now I want you to look at another portion of the scripture here, look in verse 16, looking in verse 16. In verse 16 it says, but when he was strong, his heart was lifted up to his, what? Destruction. You see, he didn’t stay strong. He didn’t stay with the Lord. See right now, you may love the Lord and you’re walking with the Lord, and yes, a lot of things will happen, But you know it’s not because of your disobedience.

It’s because God is using things that can happen in life. He can use your sickness, illnesses, problems, finances, all these things to draw you closer to Him and to purify you and make you even stronger. But when your heart’s not right, those same things that can happen is a chastening upon you. It all depends on where you are spiritually, whether it becomes a something that’s a strong test, the draws you closer to the Lord or chasening because of your sin and hard heart.

So he says in verse 16, but when he was strong, his heart was lifted up to his destruction, for he transgressed against the Lord is God and went into the temple of God to burn incense upon the altar of incense. You say, what’s wrong with that? He wasn’t a high priest. The king doesn’t have that authority. There were priests and that’s their job of the tribe of Levi, the sons of Aaron. He was not of them. So he says in verse 7, and as areiah, the priest went in after him and with him four-score priests.

That’s 80 priests of the Lord that were valiant men, and they would stood, Yuziah the king. Because he now, he’s the king and time has gone on and he thinks he’s somebody, he can just do whatever he wants to do. But no, he can’t, not get away with it. So look what happened to him. It says, and they would sort him, it pertained it not unto thee, Yuziah, to burn incense unto the Lord and to the high priest, the sons of Aaron.

They’re the the only ones that are consecrated to burn in sense go out of the sanctuary, for thou has transgressed, neither shall it be for thine honor from the Lord God. God didn’t give you the right to do what you’re doing.” in verse 19. Did King Uzziah say, oh, no, you’re right. I’m wrong. I’m sorry. That was a big mistake. He says in verse 9, then Uzziah was raw. That’s the same as being mad. And had a censer in his hand to burn incense, and while he was wrought with the priest, the leprosy even rose up in his forehead before the priest in the house of the Lord from beside the incense altar.

and as a riot the chief priests and all the priests looked upon him and behold he was lepros in his forehead and they thrust him out from there. Yea, himself, hasted also to go out. He said, maybe I need to get out of here. Because the Lord has smitten him. You see, at the beginning the Bible says that he did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord. And he did those things that his Father had done.

He sought God in the days of Zechariah. And as long as he sought the Lord, he prospered. But now he didn’t got too big for his britches. He realized God will not tolerate pride. And God’s the one that knows whether you are filled with pride or not? God knows. He knows whether you’re humble or not. Do you think that you get to do all that you are? I mean, do you know who I am? I mean, I’m somebody. It’d be like me telling God, God, there’s preachers out there that’s got four and five and six thousand, ten thousand people in their church.

Lord, I mean, I deserve that. And I can begin to get lifted up and turned against God and try to exalt myself. And knowing these stories in the Bible scares me to death because I believe this book. And I know I better be thankful for whatever I’ve got wherever I am and just please the Lord. If God wants to give you more, praise the Lord. If he doesn’t, praise the Lord. God opens up doors, go through them. If he closes doors, shut up.

Be content. But look what he says. And, um, 2nd Chronicles here, he says in chapter 26. In verse 21, And Yuziah the king was a leper unto the day of his death, and dwelt in a individual house or a separated house. Being a leper for he was cut off from the house of the Lord, and Jotham his son was over the king’s house, judging the people of the land.” Verse 22, Now the rest of the acts of Isaiah first and last did Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amos, right?

So, Isaiah slept with his fathers and they buried him with his fathers in the field of the burial which belonged to the kings, for they said he is a leper. He is a leper. Now, well that was always in the plan of God and that’s how God wanted it. No, it’s not. That was because of rebellion. It didn’t have to be this way. It was this way because you never know just because God did that to that person doesn’t mean he’s going to do you that way.

God may bless somebody else’s obedience one way and bless you another way. All you and I are supposed to do is just to be found faithful to the Lord. And when we get to heaven, God is going to give every individual all the praise, honor, and glory that’s coming to them. You’re not going to miss out on anything. You are not going to lose serving God. Down here, people may not appreciate you. It doesn’t matter. You know God does.

And if everybody in the world loves you, it doesn’t mean zero if God’s got a problem with you. and he just liable to have a few things to say to you. Let’s look at one other one. Second Chronicles chapter 32, where you’re right here, chapter 32. And look there in verse 24, verse 24. Everybody’s heard of Hezekiah because you ought to ask people, take your Bible and turn to the book of Hezekiah. Well really there was a book of Hezekiah.

We don’t have it but there was book of Hezekiah. But Hezekiah was told that, hey, you’re going to die. And you know, Hezekiah, he didn’t want to die. So he prayed to the Lord. He prayed to God. God, he didn’t want to die. God gave him 15 more years to live. Now, to me, that is called an extension of time. We’ve also read about some who had, well, their time was cut shorter. Do you want to live as long as God wants you to live and accomplish what God wants you to accomplish with your life?

Wouldn’t it be a shame to get there having you find out, God says, God says, you know, I had 50 more years for you to let you. He says, what? What am I doing here? Because of your big mouth. You didn’t praise me. You just complained all the time and you murmured all the time. And God says, because of your bad testimony, I had to take you on home. Well, you probably think, well, it won’t cost me anything. And God says, over here, by the way, this is that room that has your, see your name on it up there?

This is what I was going to give you. But you’re not going to get that because you wouldn’t believe me. You say that something’s going to happen because it’s going to be true. God’s going to reward you when you get to heaven for your obedience. And there’s a price to pay for disobedience. And yes, in this life, we’re all going to die. But why will you die the way you die? You see, God wants us to maybe have a ripe old age.

You know one of the promises that God made to children? Children obey your parents and the Lord for this is right that your days may be long upon the earth. But here in 2 Chronicles these are interesting scriptures. This is in verse 24 and those days Hezekiah was sick to the death, prayed unto the Lord and he spake unto him and he gave him a sign. But Hezekiah rendered not again according to the benefit done unto him. Now, when you and I would take the Psalms and we look at 103rd Psalm and talks about how the Lord hath loaded us with many benefits.

You see, one of the benefits that God gave to Hezekiah was his life. Do you consider your life a benefit? What could you do without it? Now, do you understand? being able to live is a benefit from God. Now, God wants you to benefit from the benefit, but he says, I gave him 15 more years. But look what he says. He rendered not again, according to the benefit done unto him. But look what is it? For his heart was lifted up.

Therefore, there was wrath upon him and upon Judah and upon Jerusalem. God gave him 15 more years and he didn’t take advantage of it. Now if God knows that about him, does God know that about you? Let’s say God allows all kinds of things to happen to you. It could be losing a job, losing your health, all kinds of things can happen. Do you get bitter toward God? And then will serve the Lord isn’t worth it. And yet But you’re still alive by a miracle of God, but have you rendered back to God something for the benefit of living?

God has given us this wonderful life to live. Hey, it’ll be over soon enough. You don’t have to hurry it, but try to get all you can out of it, why you can. with all yards. Look at the last part of verse 26. So that the wrath of the Lord came not upon them in the days of Hezekiah because God had kind of made a promise. And it was after this is why the Babylonians came in because you see they had sent some ambassadors and they came in Hezekiah to let them see everything they had.

He showed them the treasures that he had. So they thank you, You thank you, thank you, and they went back and came back and got it. Duh! But he says, as long as it doesn’t happen to me, it’s okay. That’s what he says. As long as it doesn’t bother me. I’ll get the next guy. He’ll get my kids. He’ll get all of them. But as long as it doesn’t bother me. Some people are not concerned about anybody else except themselves.

And this is what was going on. So why will you die? It could be because of plain rebellion. God wants us to love Him. But we do need to have a holy, reverential fear, respect toward him. Look up here. If you’re here tonight, the most important thing you can ever do, and remember, God does work in our lives. You may not think so. These guys may not have thought God was paying attention to what they’re doing. But did you know God is paying attention to everything you do?

He knows how you think. He even talked about every idle word, every idle word. That ought to make you think before you speak. But this hand represents you and me. The wallet represents sin. We all have sin on us. It means that we have all done things wrong. And because of all the sins that we’ve done, even if you’ve only committed one sin or a whole bunch, the wages of sin is death. You’re still gonna die. And the pay for sin is eternal separation from God in hell.

But God loves us and wants us to go to heaven. They go to heaven, you have to be perfect, no sin. But because of sin, see we can’t get in. But heaven’s a perfect place. So God says your good works will never pay for your sin because God says your good works aren’t good. He says your good works are bad. The best work I could ever do is still sin in God’s eyes because it’s not perfect. Because I’m not a perfect person.

You and I can’t do anything perfectly. So the Bible says, we need a Savior. This hand represents Jesus Christ, He’s the Lord God in the flesh. He came into the world. Now He didn’t have any sin, so He didn’t have to die. But because He loves us and He hates our sin because it separates us from Him. Christ took all the sin of all the world, paid for it on the cross and came back from the dead. And he said that if you and I, if we would believe he did this for us, he would put this payment to our account and we would get to go to heaven on what Jesus Christ did for us.

No tricks to it, no gimmicks. It’s a gift. If you trust Christ right now as your Savior, God will save you right now and give you the free gift of eternal life and you can know that you’re going to heaven whenever you die. Best news in all the world. Let’s pray, shall we? You have to believe that when Christ died, He died for you, that He did it for you. That means if you believe He did it for you, then you don’t have one sin to pay for.

He paid for it all. That is the grace of God. By grace are you saved through faith that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God not of works lest any man should boast. So God wants to get our attention. He wants us to listen. If you’ve never trusted Christ as your Savior, would you trust Him right now? So right now in the quietness of this moment, if you’ve never trusted Lord, would you do it? Say, I don’t understand it all, but I believe Christ died, paid for my sins, and I’m going to trust Him right now to take me to heaven.

So friend, if you will believe that, God will save you right now. Father, we thank you so much for all you’ve done for us, for the privilege we have of knowing is our Savior. Lord, we pray for wisdom to understand that you are moving and working and are very greatly concerned in the lives of all of your people, every one of us. And we just pray, Lord, that we would do what’s right. We would seek to walk with you and to please you.

And the older we get, Lord, I pray that we’d be more obedient. Help us not to get lifted up with pride by showing us the weakness of our ways. Help us to do right in Christ and we pray, Amen. You’ve been listening to Bibleline, a teaching ministry of Calvary Community Church in Tampa, Florida with Dr. Ralph Arnold. We pray that you are blessed by today’s message. If you have enjoyed our commitment to the clear gospel of Jesus Christ, you can reach Bibleline and pledge your support to keep us on the air in your area by dialing tool free, 1-800-576-3771.

That’s 1-800-576-3771. To listen to today’s message again or to obtain a free download of any of our Bible line programs, just go to our homepage at BibleLineMinistries.org and click on the radio broadcast link. If you are in the area, we welcome you to visit us. The address for Calvary Community Church is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634. Our Sunday morning services begin at 10.30 and at 6 o’clock on Sunday evening. Live broadcast of our services may be seen by clicking on the Calvary Community Church link at BibleLineMinistries.org.

Thanks for joining us on Bibleline, and now a closing thought from Pastor Arnold. Friend, one day it will happen. The trumpet will sound and we will be changed. Caught up to meet the Lord in the air. So live today and every day. Believing that the Lord is coming soon and just keep looking up.