What Becomes of Division
In 1 Kings 16 we have seen Israel (the Northern Kingdom) degenerate from one king to another, through betrayal and coups. Now we see even the northern kingdom which first divided from the Southern kingdom of Judah further divides into two factions:
1 Kings 16:21–22 (ESV) Then the people of Israel were divided into two parts. Half of the people followed Tibni the son of Ginath, to make him king, and half followed Omri. 22 But the people who followed Omri overcame the people who followed Tibni the son of Ginath. So Tibni died, and Omri became king.
It's interesting to see how sin affects an entire nation. We tend to think that sin is a personal issue alone. "Don't judge me!" we like to say to others who may dare to question what we want to do in the privacy of our lives. But Scripture is clear page after page, sin is a communal infection that destroys the fellowship we are made to have both with God and one another. What does the exploitation of the poor do to a community? It makes them slaves of the rich. What does sexual immorality do to a community? It spreads disease and depression, infecting emotional tribulation in countless lives - especially children. Your sins are not your own personal issues, they are issues that affect you and those in relation to you.
The Northern Kingdom of Israel's consistent slide into immorality, worshipping and serving the gods of the nations Israel was supposed to drive out reveals that sin doesn't just bring guilt and shame, it destroys the mutual support we should share with one another. Now six kings into their history we have Omri who will overwhelm those who follow Tibni. Then he will lead the nation further into immorality:
1 Kings 16:25–26 (ESV) Omri did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, and did more evil than all who were before him. 26 For he walked in all the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and in the sins that he made Israel to sin, provoking the LORD, the God of Israel, to anger by their idols.
1 Kings 16:21–22 (ESV) Then the people of Israel were divided into two parts. Half of the people followed Tibni the son of Ginath, to make him king, and half followed Omri. 22 But the people who followed Omri overcame the people who followed Tibni the son of Ginath. So Tibni died, and Omri became king.
It's interesting to see how sin affects an entire nation. We tend to think that sin is a personal issue alone. "Don't judge me!" we like to say to others who may dare to question what we want to do in the privacy of our lives. But Scripture is clear page after page, sin is a communal infection that destroys the fellowship we are made to have both with God and one another. What does the exploitation of the poor do to a community? It makes them slaves of the rich. What does sexual immorality do to a community? It spreads disease and depression, infecting emotional tribulation in countless lives - especially children. Your sins are not your own personal issues, they are issues that affect you and those in relation to you.
The Northern Kingdom of Israel's consistent slide into immorality, worshipping and serving the gods of the nations Israel was supposed to drive out reveals that sin doesn't just bring guilt and shame, it destroys the mutual support we should share with one another. Now six kings into their history we have Omri who will overwhelm those who follow Tibni. Then he will lead the nation further into immorality:
1 Kings 16:25–26 (ESV) Omri did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, and did more evil than all who were before him. 26 For he walked in all the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and in the sins that he made Israel to sin, provoking the LORD, the God of Israel, to anger by their idols.
It is interesting that the next king is the chief of them all in turning from God and he stands at #7, king Ahab.
1 Kings 16:29–31 (ESV) In the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah, Ahab the son of Omri began to reign over Israel, and Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria twenty-two years. 30 And Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the LORD, more than all who were before him. 31 And as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, he took for his wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and went and served Baal and worshiped him.
Sin left unchecked in a society destroys that society. I hear this from people about our nation all the time. They wonder where the moral compass has gone. We have deceived ourselves to think that Scripture is outdated and nations before or around us have some secret wisdom we need. Instead of turning to the Lord of life, we follow the prince of darkness into regressive attitudes and actions. What we see becoming of America is nothing new. It was written centuries ago in 1 Kings. This is what happens when we divorce our great King Jesus. It is not freedom to run from God, it is encroaching slavery. It is toxic self-destruction as Israel can attest to hundreds of years earlier.
Israel (Northern Kingdom) divorced itself from the lineage of David and found itself a little later at odds with itself. Thus the kind of life satan desires for you, separated from Christ and at odds with everyone around you. But the good news is God is gracious even still. For when Israel gets this bad, God sends them Elijah to challenge their hearts. The question for Israel (and for us) is, will we listen?
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