YOU NEED TO HEAR FROM GOD YOURSELF
1 Kings 13:1-32
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR
1. Why was the blonde staring at the orange juice container? Because it said, "concentrate."
2. How do you keep a blonde in suspense? (I'll tell you tomorrow.)
3. A blonde approached a pop machine and put in a dollar. Out came a cola. She put in another dollar. Out came a root beer. She kept doing this, becoming more and more excited with every can she purchased. Finally, a man came up behind her and asked if she would mind letting him buy a drink. The blonde responded, "Are you crazy? I'm not leaving this machine while I'm still winning!”
B. TEXT
1 By the word of the Lord a man of God came from Judah to Bethel. 2 He cried out against the altar: “Altar, altar! This is what the Lord says: ‘A son named Josiah will be born to the house of David. On you he will sacrifice the priests of the high places who make offerings here, and human bones will be burned on you.’” 4 When King Jeroboam heard what the man of God cried...he stretched out his hand...and said, “Seize him!” But the hand...shriveled up. 6 Then the king said to the man of God...“Pray for me that my hand may be restored.” So the man of God interceded...and the king’s hand was restored.... 7 The king said to the man of God, “Come home with me for a meal, and I will give you a gift.” 8 But the man of God answered the king...9 “I was commanded by the word of the Lord: ‘You must not eat bread or drink water or return by the way you came.’” 11 Now there was a certain old prophet living in Bethel [who heard of the prophecy]. 14 [He] rode after the man of God. 15 “Come home with me and eat.” 16 The man of God said, “I cannot....17 I have been told by the word of the Lord: ‘You must not eat bread or drink water...’” 18 The old prophet answered, “I too am a prophet...and an angel said to me... ‘Bring him back with you to your house so that he may eat bread and drink water.’” (But he was lying to him.) 19 So the man of God returned with him and ate and drank in his house. 20 The word of the Lord came to the old prophet...21 “This is what the Lord says: ‘You have defied the word of the Lord and have not kept the command the Lord your God gave you.... 22 Therefore your body will not be buried in the tomb of your ancestors.’” 24 As he went on his way, a lion...killed him...29 The [old] prophet picked up the body of the man of God...and buried him 30...in his own tomb. 31 He said to his sons, “When I die, bury me in the grave where the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones. 32 For the message he declared by the word of the Lord against the altar in Bethel...will certainly come true.” [abridged]
C. THESIS
1. The story of the prophet of Judah & the old lying prophet is one of the weirdest passages in Scripture, but it is filled with miracles and lessons for God’s people.
2. So we’re going to look at 4 amazing things in this story, see the main lesson “You need to hear from God yourself,” and look at the hidden symbolism that points us to Christ.
3. The title of this message is, “You Need to Hear From God Yourself!”
I. 4 AMAZING ASPECTS OF THIS STORY
A. AN AMAZING PROPHECY
1. The fact that the Living God knows the future and often declares it ahead of time is a proof that the Bible is really the authentic Book from God.
2. The prophecy in 1 Kings 13:2-3 was spoken in 920 B.C. It predicts events to occur nearly 300 years later and gives the name of the king to be born, Josiah, who will do them in 631 B.C. (2 Chron. 34:5).
3. This is not unheard of, the Prophet Isaiah prophesied in 700 B.C. that a king would come and conquer Babylon, releasing captive Israel. This occurred 160 years later in 539 B.C. The Persian King Cyrus is called by name in Isaiah 41:25; 44:28; 45:1-3.
B. SUPERNATURAL INTERVENTIONS BY GOD
1. There were at least two miracles that took place at the time the prophet of Judah was prophesying. One was the splitting apart of the altar to the golden calf at Bethel.
2. Evidently it was a large sheet or block of rock and after the prophet finished, God shattered it by His power, as a testimony that the prophet’s words were true and that Jeroboam’s sacrifice was unacceptable.
3. The second miracle was the shriveling of the King’s hand that was stretched out against the prophet. Not only is the king’s power against God stopped, but it’s punished. It was a warning to the king not to try to stand against God.
4 Other instances of immediate judgment are the leprosy on Miriam (Num. 12:10) and the blindness on Bar-Jesus (Acts 13:11), but such instances are still rare.
C. AMAZING GRACE: THE WICKED KING HEALED
1. The next miracle is quite unexpected: the king asks the prophet to intercede to God for his hand to be restored, and it was. Here is a man who devised a plot (the golden calves) that ended up damning the northern 10 tribes to destruction, and yet God was so gracious that He heard the prophet’s intercession and granted it for Jeroboam. It was amazing grace.
2. This also shows us the power of intercession. God probably would not have answered Jeroboam’s request, but He did hear and answer the request of His favored servant. God will answer your prayer when He might not answer someone else’s.
D. UNUSUAL JUDGMENT FOR DISOBEDIENCE
1. Now we get to the part of the story where God judged the young prophet by death, because the prophet disobeyed Him. Some would think that’s too harsh a punishment. They’re wrong. God sees what we can’t see. God has judged many sins seriously: Nadab & Abihu (Lev. 10:2), Korah’s followers (Num. 16:35), Uzzah (2 Sam. 6:7), Ananias & Sapphira (Acts 5:5ff), etc. God is serious about believers disobeying Him.
2. God will have a pure Church. 2 or 3 drops of chlorine purifies a gallon of water. Why? Because it’s so pure. God would rather have a small church that’s pure, than a big church which is watered-down. “If the salt loses its saltiness...it’s no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot” Matt. 5:13. Christianity without obedience is only fit to be thrown out! It’s tainted & worthless!
3. The stronger God manifests Himself, the more purity He requires in the people He uses. The closer you are to the Ark of His presence, the more dangerous, but also, the more miraculous. They go together. If you want one, you must accept the other.
II. MAIN LESSON: YOU NEED TO HEAR FROM GOD
A. HOW’S YOUR HEARING?
1. We’re all responsible to get close enough to God to hear His voice; “My sheep know My voice...and they follow Me” John 10:27. We learn about God and His ways mainly from the Bible.
2. God had given specific orders to the young prophet: where to go, how to travel, what to prophesy, and not to eat or drink while there. He was on the King’s business.
3. Once we know, from God, what He wants us to do, we shouldn’t vary from that. Whatever God tells us by His Spirit will always line-up with what’s written in the Bible. The Holy Spirit, who inspired God’s Word, won’t contradict Himself.
4. Prophetic utterances are only “prophesy in part” (1 Cor. 13:9); they’re only partial revelations of truth – they have to be judged because they may contain some error. But we have in the Bible a “more sure word of prophecy” (2 Pet. 1:19). The Bible is God’s complete and final revelation of truth. There will never be any new truth extraneous to the Bible. Paul said, “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let them be under God’s curse!” Gal. 1:8. Always take what the Bible says over everything else. Search out God’s Word to learn His will.
B. A SOLDIER’S DUTY
1. The old prophet was the source of temptation to disobey God’s orders. When the evil king tempted the young prophet to stay & eat, he had his guard up & easily refused the temptation. But when a fellow-prophet told him it was alright to eat & drink, he let down his guard & disobeyed. He didn’t inquire of the Lord himself, but trusted what someone else told him.
2. The lesson is, we should always follow God’s last directive to us until we hear otherwise from God Himself. No human or even an angel should come between us and the known will of God! Stick to your mission. God’s last order still stands!
III. SYMBOLISM OF THE STORY
A. WHAT’S THE REDEMPTIVE PURPOSE?
1. It seems to me that this story is not in the Bible by accident. Why didn’t God have the lion kill the old lying prophet since he was the agent of temptation and death of God’s prized servant? Why did God allow the old prophet to succeed in his plot to bury the young prophet in his grave, so that King Josiah would not dig up and burn his bones in fulfillment of the prophecy?
2. There are a number of things here which don’t seem to have a redemptive purpose. We later see why Naomi was allowed to lose her husband and sons; her line was inserted into the line of David. We see why Job suffered his loses; he set the example of faith in God despite contradictions. But what value is there in the old lying prophet escaping from disgrace?
3. I believe there is a deep symbolism in this story relating to the Lord Jesus Christ. I’m reminded of how Elisha died of a sickness, yet resurrection power was still so powerful in his bones that a dead man’s body, when thrown into his tomb, came to life again (2 Kgs. 13:21). That reminds me of Jesus!
4. Here we have this lying prophet who, according to the prophecy, would have his bones dug up and burned on the altar of the idol by Josiah. He deserved that to happen to him; he was a wicked person.
B. COMPARISONS
1. If we compared the young prophet of Judah to Jesus, & us sinners to the old prophet, who was doomed to be disgraced after death, we might say that being united with Christ in his death will save us from disgrace and burning after death.
2. The old prophet had a tombstone put on his grave that said “Here lies the body of the Prophet who prophesied judgment against the altar at Bethel,” 2Kgs. 23:17-18, (paraphrased). So the young prophet’s righteousness covered the old prophet’s unrighteousness. He escaped disgrace and burning, after death, because he was united with the godly prophet.
3. Paul said, “For if we have become united with [Christ] in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection” Rom. 6:5, ASV.
4. Aren’t you glad you’re united with Christ? Think of all the benefits you are made part of because of that association! Not least is that His righteousness is credited to us and in addition, we are made heirs of God and joint-heirs with Jesus God’s Son. Praise God for His marvelous grace!
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION
1. Greg is a pioneering pastor under all kinds of financial constraints. His vehicle was getting older, he has 5 kids & needed something better than what he had.
2. His mother, is a prayer warrior who hears from God; she was praying for Greg. One day she called and asked Greg what kind of a car he wanted. Greg didn’t take her seriously, but rattled off all the details he would want.
3. A few days later she called & said, “God has shown me the car you’re going to get. It’s a white van with a blue stripe; it’s got 7 seats & good paintwork, etc. And, it’s going to be a bargain buy!” As she was about to hang up, she said, “There’s one more thing; God has shown me it has some red dust in one of the corners.”
4. Greg thanked her & laughed to himself & didn’t think anything more about it. Greg knew he didn’t have the money to buy the kind of vehicle his mother has just described.
5. But not long after, Greg found out about a Mitsubishi van for sale. He thought, “It’s going to be way-too-much, but I can look at it!” When he arrived, the van was white w/ a blue stripe & good paintwork, it has 7 seats: it was everything his mother described to him a few days before.
6. As he glanced around the interior, his mother’s words were ringing in his ears! “Well you almost got it right, mom, but you missed it w/ the red dust!” Just then he lifted up the carpet in the back, and noticed, right there, a handful of red dust!
7. Not even the small details of our lives escape God’s attention! How good it is to hear from God! [John Perry]
B. THE CALL
1. We’re all a little “hard of hearing;” we live in a material world which drowns out God’s voice. But Jesus often healing the deaf. So we’re going to pray for that tonight – not so much physically, as spiritually.
2. Isaiah said, “Then will the eyes of the blind be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped” (35:5). How many want so hear God’s voice better?
3. How many want grace from God like the king got? How many will pledge to read their Bibles more diligently? Prayer.
