Rehoboam – a man unprepared to serve the Lord
Text: 2 Chronicles 11 and 12
Notice Solomon’s concern for his son and the instruction he gave to him.
Proverbs 1:8 My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother:
Proverbs 1:10 My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not.
Proverbs 23:19 Hear thou, my son, and be wise, and guide thine heart in the way.

23 times Solomon gave wise counsel to his son, and unto all men under the leadership of God.
Children may receive instruction, but not always apply it to their lives.

We should all desire to be the best that we can be for God and to have the best that God has for us.
If you are a Christian today, your salvation is secure, you are “in Christ” :

Romans 8:1a “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus,…
John 3:16-18 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand. I and my Father are one. John 10:28-30

Yet, you may not be living for God, giving Him your best and because of this you have not been in the position to receive the blessings from God. Paul the Apostle was concerned about this in his own life and spoke of the care and the diligence he showed in giving his best to God.

1 Corinthians 9:27 But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.

He did not want to be set aside, not to be put on a shelf and only have memories of what he used to do, the blessings he used to have: he wanted to give his best and he wanted to receive the best from God.

Let me make a clarification here. The best we may receive from God is not fortune or power; or even good health and long life. God can give these things, but what we are speaking of is eternal, everlasting benefits. Not only eternal life, but fellowship with God and being used of God.
What did the Apostle Paul have of what people would count as valuable? Very little!
What did he have of what God counts as valuable? Much – he was faithful and usable. He was what he called a ‘vessel unto honour’ – one that God would be pleased to use. A vessel unto honour!

Let’s look this morning at a king in the Old Testament that ended up with less than the best from God. He started out knowing the truth, but how did he finish?

I. The blessings of faith. He obeyed the principles of God. 2 Chronicles 11:4-17
He wanted to reunite the kingdom by using force, but he repented and –

A. He submitted to God’s will. 2 Chronicles 11:4
B. He secured the land – the people dwelt in safety. 2 Chronicles 11:5-12 This is the purpose of the government.
C. He sought the Lord. 2 Chronicles 11:13-17

1. He welcomed those that sought the Lord.
2. He walked in the way of David and Solomon: worshipped the Lord.

God blessed them with peace and safety. In this time of blessing, living a comfortable life, he began to seek the pleasures of life (11:23.”…and he desired many wives.”) instead of obeying the principles of God.

II. The danger of prosperity. He obeyed the pride of life. 2 Chronicles 12:1
People get comfortable
A. He was secure in his position. He was the King.
B. He was secure in his protection. He had fortified the cities
C. He was satisfied and no longer needed to serve God.

1. He turned from following the Lord.
2. He opened up Judah to every form of sin.
1 Kings 14:22-24 And Judah did evil in the sight of the LORD, and they provoked him to jealousy with their sins which they had committed, above all that their fathers had done. For they also built them high places, and images, and groves, on every high hill, and under every green tree. And there were also sodomites in the land: and they did according to all the abominations of the nations which the LORD cast out before the children of Israel.
3. His example was followed by the people.

He wanted God to bless him and accepted the blessings of God in the name of God. Once he believed he had enough, he wanted God to leave him alone and let him do what he wanted to do. He did not realize how careful God is about His name.
Psalm 23 “he leadeth me in paths of righteousness for His names sake…”!

D. He was shaken by God’s judgment. 2 Chronicles12:2-4

Ezekiel 33:11 Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?

III. The results of repentance. 2 Chronicles12:5-12

A. Blessings from God. 2 Chronicles 12:5-7 God forgave them because of their repentence and turning to Him. This forgiveness resulted in –

1. Peace.
2. Protection.
But, it also resulted in a –

3. Price. There is a price to pay for sin. We all will end up –

B. Bearing the consequences. 2 Chronicles 12:8-12

1 John 2:28 And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming.

Rehoboam could have had the best that God had to give, but he did not follow the Lord with all of his heart. The Lord revealed to us Rehoboam’s problem.
Look in 2 Chronicles 12:14.
Rehoboam did not prepare his own heart to walk with the Lord. Last week we looked at the life of Ezra, a man that did prepare his heart to follow the Lord and we noted the blessings of God upon him. We have a choice –

A simple formula has been passed down for years in business to help people succeed. It is this – “Plan your work, and work your plan”. It means to prepare yourself for success. If you will be faithful to the Lord you must also prepare yourself. Determine to do God’s will.

1. Be saved.
2. Be baptized.
3. Be instructed.
4. Be serving, teaching others to be saved, be baptized, be instructed.
Matthew 28:18-20. Are you ready to meet the Lord or will you be ashamed if He comes today?