Don’t sell out.
1 Kings 21:1-3
1-3 And it came to pass after these things, that Naboth, the Jezreelite had a vineyard, which was in Jezreel, hard by the palace of Ahab, king of Samaria. And Ahab spoke unto Naboth, saying, give me your vineyard, that I may have it for a garden of herbs, because it is near unto my house, and I will give thee for it a better vineyard than it, or if it seem good to thee, I will give thee the worth of it in money. And Naboth said to Ahab, the Lord forbid it me, that I should give the inheritance of my fathers unto thee.
Ahab was known as the most wicked king to ever exist. Jeroboam, the first king of the 10 tribes, was said that he laid the foundation of sin for all of the people. And as the time progressed, the Kings just grew all the worse.
Not only was Ahab evil, but his wife Jezebel, was also a very wicked person. Ahab had the prime choice of all of the land throughout the kingdom, yet they were not satisfied with what they had.
There is almost a tell of two tales as we read deeper into the text. One of giving up, and another of greed.
All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine……
Everything in the word of God is for us today. Of every story, there is a deeper story. Of every physical application, there is a spiritual application. For every problem that we could possibly have in life today, there is a solution for us, and it is in the word of God.
Naboth refused to sell his vineyard for any price, even to serve the political machine of king Ahab. He could have gotten better lands, or perhaps lived in financial security for the rest of his life, but this was no ordinary piece of real estate. This was the inheritence of his father. This was his spiritual connection to the blessings of Abraham. God forbid that he sell out his inheritance in God for any price or any reason.
Naboth could not be bought, so he was killed. Jezebel had him murdered, so that her husband could have a new piece of property. Of all of the despicable acts of Ahab, this one received special recognition from God. The wrath of God was kindled when Ahab crossed the line of generational blessing, and stole Naboths inheritence in the Lord.
Don’t sell out.
Daniel in the first chapter would not give in.- He refused to eat at the kings table, in saying that it would defile him.
When it came time for the king to make a decree, that no one was to pray, Daniel did not give in. He still prayed to his God, no matter what the king told him to do.
Daniels friends, shadrach, meshack, and abendigo, likewise did not give in, when the king commanded them to bow down and worship the golden image.
Don’t sell out.
If you remain faithful to God, he will remain faithful to you. In the case of Naboth, we see that the end result of his life, was dying for what he believed was right. And in a sense what happens when we answer the call of the Lord on our lives, is we begin to die out to things that used to be appealing to us.
Because the bible tells me, that it is no longer I that liveth, but Christ who liveth in me. We can see that, what we have is worth dying for.
When the situation of temptation arises, and it will, I’ve got to tell you, don’t sell out.
There is something to be said for someone who stands up for what they believe. 3 Hebrew children were given the choice, bow, or burn. The bible says in 3:24 the king spoke up and said, didn’t we throw 3 men bound up into the midst of the fire? He said lo, I see 4 men loose, and walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt, and the form of the 4th is like the son of God.
They stood up for what they knew was right, and The Son of God showed up, just like he will in your situation. There are some here tonight who are about to be faced with a temptation, where you are going to have to look like a fool for Christ, or go with the flow and do what everyone else is doing.
If you will only stand up for what is right, God will give the reward. By the 3 standing up for what they knew was right, The king of the land promoted them, and made a new law, that no one in the land was to speak a word against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abendego.
I heard this saying one time, anything that you have to comprimise your integrity to gain, you will eventually lose.
It is God that gives promotion, not your boss. It is God that has your back, not your friends. Who are you trying to impress?
DON”T SELL OUT !!!
Jesus told his disciples, he that endureth until the end, the same shall be saved. Yes you might fall down along the way, yes you will make mistakes, but if you can just pick yourself up, and dust yourself off, you can be saved.
In this race of life, God does not have time for quitters. You don’t have time to even think about quitting. Your inheritance is too great.
The vineyard that Naboth had, was given to him by his father. It was obviously a beautiful piece of ground, because even the king wanted it, and he could have had his choice of any piece of property in the country.
Naboth refused to sell his inheritence, because it was a divine law given from God himself to the children of Israel. Numbers 36: 7 “Thus no inheritance of the sons of Israel shall be transferred from tribe to tribe, for the sons of Israel shall each hold to the inheritance of the tribe of his fathers.
If a man under the old covenant, knew better than to sell out what his father had given him, how much more should we, being under the grace, and mercy of the shed blood of a risen savior, hold on to what we have been given.
Our father has left us things that money can not buy. For the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. Its in my fathers will, that we should live and not die.
The inheritence that we have, is something that the rest of the world is literally dying for. The inheritance that we have, is peace in the middle of the storm. Its comfort in the midst of our wars, It’s the promise that though weeping may endure for a night, joy comes in the morning.
The inheritance that we have is that we are the head and not the tail, above only, and not beneath, that we are blessed in the city, and blessed in the field, blessed when we come, and when we go. That we are more than conquerors through him who loves us. The inheritance that we have, is that we are who God says we are, we can have what God says we can have, and we can do what God says we can do.
The inheritance that we have is that no weapon that is formed against us shall be able to prosper, and that God will never leave us nor forsake us. The inheritance that we have is that we are Sons of God, and joint heirs with Jesus Christ, and that all power in heaven and in earth belong to us.
That we have the right that whatsoever we bind on earth, shall be bound in heaven, and whatsoever we loose on earth, shall be loosed in heaven, and whatsoever we ask in Jesus name, shall be given to us.
The inheritance that is promised to us, is that we would never be left comfortless, that he would be our very present help in our time of trouble. Our inheritance is not just temporary things, like money, gold, or a little house, no, no, no, our inheritance through the sacrificial life of Jesus Christ, is an eternal home in heaven, and not just a house, but Jesus said I go to prepare a place for you, that where I am, there you may be also, that in his fathers house are many mansions.
Don’t sell out !!!
That our eternal home, will be a place where God shall wipe away all the tears from our eyes, that there will be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain, because the former things are passed away.
Our inheritance is not just a mansion, but a city, the new Jerusalem coming down from heaven. The gold and pearls, and things that are so highly saught after in this life, will be nothing more than pavement under our feet in our inheritance. But there are conditions.
When a person is born in this country, no matter where their parents are from, they have what is known as citizenship. As long as they are born in the 50 states, they are automatically citizens, and residents of the United States of America.
Jesus told Nicodemus, unless a man be born again, he can not see the kingdom of God. The only way that we can inherit the promises of God, is if we are born again.
