Theological Commentary: Click Here
Discipleship Focus: Character
- Character: Having the interior life that is necessary to support the work that God sets before a person. It is hearing from God and obeying. It is doing the right thing when nobody is looking.
Ahab is to
the northern kingdom as Lex Luther is to the people of Metropolis (Superman’s
home city). Here is a charismatic king
that is all about doing what he desires and letting the people live as they
want. Ahab is like what happens when we eat
too much sugar. It really tastes good
when you are eating it, but after a while you get the jitters and an upset
stomach and maybe a headache. On the
outside, Ahab looks like a fun guy. But
the reality is that the effect of his leadership is continued decline.
We know
is that the northern kingdom was in spiritual decline. There have been political coups leading up to
Ahab. The authors of the Bible repeat
again and again that the kings of the northern kingdom walked in the evil ways
of Jeroboam. While Asa, the king of
Judah to the south, is reforming his kingdom back to God, the northern kingdom
slides further and further away from God.
This leads
us to the character of Ahab. He wants
his own selfish desires. He does what is
right in his own eyes and encourages his people to do likewise. What does verse 33 tell us? Ahab did more to provoke the lord to anger
than any king before him.
As we
prepare for the next few chapters, keep this in mind. Character is what we do when faced with hard
decisions. Character is what we do when
nobody is looking. Character is hearing
from God and obeying. As Ahab becomes
king and as Elijah the prophet enters the life of the northern kingdom, watch
and learn from what the Bible has to say about Ahab and his character.
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