After Rehoboam’s position as king was established and he had become strong, he and all Israel with him abandoned the law of the Lord. 2 Chronicles 12:1 NIV
None of us like to go through trials, but most of us will admit that it’s in those times we seek the Lord the most. You might say, that trials keep us on our knees. Rehoboam fell prey to human nature, in as much as he grew spiritually lazy when all was going well. We share the same nature as Rehoboam. It is our natural tendancy to abandon God when all is well. Okay, so maybe abandon is a strong word, but we certainly have a tendancy to forget Him when life is easy. Once we are established and strong, we begin to feel self sufficient and quickly forget that we are where we are by the grace of God. It’s His blessing on our lives that allows us to gain success of any kind. Yet, we begin to believe our hard work has gotten us where we are.
Rehoboam abandoned the law of the Lord. In other words, he was content to do things his own way, instead of following closely to the ways of God. What’s so bad about that? Galatians 6:7-8 (NIV) says, Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. That’s what happened to Rehoboam, and that’s what happens to us. When we stray from God’s laws we reap pain and heartache. Yes, He is loving and forgiving, but nevertheless, we bear the consequences of our sins and our bad choices. Making matters worse, since Rehoboam was the king, all Israel followed his example and they too abandoned the law of God.
So what is the answer? How do we avoid the same mistake Rehoboam made? We need to be intentional in our pursuit of God, not only when things are going bad, but even more so when life is going well! If your life is going well right now, be thankful and make a conscious effort to seek God just as much now as you do when everything is falling apart. Listen to the epitaph written about Rehoboam later in this chapter:
He did evil because he had not set his heart on seeking the Lord. 2 Chronicles 12:14 NIV
Herein lies the biggest mistake of Rehoboams lifetime: He did not seek the Lord with all his heart! He got comfortable with the position and strength the Lord had given him. Since all was going well, he didn’t need help with anything, so he no longer took the time to seek God. What happened to Rehoboam can easily happen to us, if we don’t take the time to evaluate ourselves and make sure our heart is set on pleasing God above all else. Jesus said, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:21 NIV What do you value? What do you spend the most time thinking about? Where do you spend your energy? That’s a good indication of what you treasure, and most likely what you have set your heart on. If your business, your hobbies, or even your family is the answer to these questions, instead of your relationship with God, be careful. Make the adjustments you need to make to be sure that your heart’s desires are wrapped up in your relationship with God.
Once your heart is set in the right place, you will think about the Lord just as much in the good times as in the bad. You will remain focused more on spiritual matters than everyday life. You’ll start to find that no matter how long you have to pray, it’s just not enough, and no matter how long you spend reading the Bible, it only makes you want to read more. You won’t have to force yourself to get involved at church, you will wish there were more opportunities to engage with the people of God. You will not abandon the ways of God but with all your heart desire to please Him. The best part is that you too will reap what you are sowing; peace, contentment and joy in the journey!