A close look through many of the lives of people recorded in the Holy Bible points us to the efficacy of prophecies. One of the famous and most popular prophecies told would be that of our dear Jesus. Amazing how His birth, circumstances surrounding His birth, and life were foretold so many years before it played out here on earth. Aside from this prophecy, there are so many prophecies within scriptures that point us to the power of God and other dimensions of our Lord. Today I am sharing about prophecy because it stood out for me through Rehoboam’s life on earth. Unknown to him, Rehoboam literally lived out God’s prophecy over his father’s life, Solomon. As I pondered and meditated on this bible portion, I tried to picture and grasp what a prophecy could look like to a layman. The image that came to mind is that of strings and wires puppeteers use to manipulate or control their puppets. The puppets have little or no control over themselves, they go, act and say exactly what the puppeteer wants them to. This is the same way prophecies work, God’s words through or to his children. They are so powerful, that there usually is no stopping of God’s word from coming to pass. This reminds me of a statement I have heard Apostle Joshua Selman say and I paraphrase- He said that once God’s word goes forth, the creative spirit of God goes around to grasp men or women, objects to ensure that God’s word comes to pass. And through Rehoboam’s life, I see how Apostle Joshua’s statement plays out
To have a clear understanding of what I am saying, I recommend you read I Kings chapters 11 and 12. While you catch up on those readings, I would share a little brief here. So Rehoboam was King Solomon’s son but sadly had to suffer for the sins of his father. King Solomon who was King David’s son had a great start in his kingship career. God’s hand and blessings were evidently upon him, so perhaps that got into his head thus his drift away from God. A man who had started and even wrote about reverencing God ended up marrying about 700 wives and 300 concubines who completely turned him away from God’s presence- I Kings 12:3. God was obviously unhappy with him and hence pronounced justice upon him– God said to him, “Because you have not kept my covenant and statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant– I Kings 11:11.But the Lord showed Solomon some mercy because of his father, David. God said to him that he would not take the kingdom from him just yet but it would be taken from his son. Although this was a sad word from the Lord, this is what a prophecy looks or sounds like. A prophecy is a foretelling of things that will happen in the future by the power of God. Most of the time, God does this through his prophets here on earth or He communicates with His child who the prophecy concerns.
The mere sound of it or thought of it sounds bizarre; for a servant to take over the throne of a king. This isn’t something that happens on a regular day in a king’s palace. But it did happen in the life and time of King Rehoboam. As I read how it all played out; in my opinion, if there was no higher power like a prophecy hanging over his life – he could have avoided the coup. Some members of the Israel Clan approached him with so much courtesy to request that the taxes levied on them be reduced reasonably- I Kings 12:3-4. Rehoboam did a wise thing; he consulted the elders in Israel who all gave him great advice. But then he went to consult his clique of friends who were just as young as he was. They advised him to make things even harder for the Israelites as regards the taxes. One would think that he would take the great advice of elders who had worked with his father but that wasn’t the case. Seeing that Rehoboam was bent on showing great wickedness towards the Israelites, they rebelled against him and made Jeroboam who had served King Solomon King over them. This event basically fulfilled the prophecy spoken to Jeroboam way before in I Kings 11:31
And he said to Jeroboam, “Take for yourself ten pieces, for thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: “Behold, I will tear the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon and will give ten tribes to you”.
I Kings 11:31
So as a bad prophecy went forth to the house of Solomon, so did a good one go forth to Jeroboam. Jeroboam became king over ten tribes in Israel versus the house of Solomon who only seats upon the throne in only one tribe in Israel to date. – I Kings 12:19
What are the take homes for us as regards prophecies?
- We should definitely not despise prophecies we should take them with all forms of seriousness especially the ones from God.
- Determine the effects the prophecy may have on our lives and act appropriately. For example, King Hezekiah who had received the prophecy that he would die begged God for mercy. And his life span was elongated by 15 more years – II Kings 20:1-7
- As much as possible, we should endeavor to be in great standing with the Lord by the power of the Holy ghost lest we provoke God to justice.
- And lastly, all the great prophecies that have been spoken over lives by God through His prophets or you, believe them! Though they may tarry, it is for an appointed time. Just like Jesus was born, died, and resurrected so shall all of God’s great prophecies over our lives come to pass in Jesus’ name, Amen.