Podcasts about Jeroboam

Institutions confuse their own survival with the work of God. Dr. James Spencer and Dr. Ashish Varma close the diagnostic arc of this series with transaction, meaning the trade a person or an organization makes when preserving the platform becomes more important than the faithfulness the platform was built for. The anchor text is Jeroboam, who sets up worship at Dan and Bethel not to introduce a different god but to keep his people from traveling south. Varma's reading sharpens it: the question is whether Israel gathers around the presence of God or whether God is expected to gather around Israel. The conversation turns on how easily success gets read as approval. Spencer flags the language of institutions insisting that God needs them to be what they are now more than ever. Varma answers with Habakkuk, where God raises up Babylon in response to injustice and Babylon is still judged for how it behaves, and extends the point to a mission history in which the gospel genuinely spread through colonial expansion that was itself blessed by churches and was still indefensible. Being used is not the same as being approved. Spencer adds Nebuchadnezzar, named as God's servant and punished seventy years later, and the distinction holds: the exile was deserved, the brutality was not. What follows is uncomfortable for anyone who works in one of these places. Institutions may end because their course is run, or because they failed, or in spite of their faithfulness, and outcomes do not tell you which. Spencer, who consults with seminaries and Christian colleges, describes leaders trapped by buildings, accreditation, and systems, protecting a vehicle rather than the thing the vehicle was for. Nobody pursues a doctorate in order to preserve an institution. The question both men land on is whether the model has quietly been substituted for the mission. Resources The diagnosis guide: https://www.thinkingchristian.org/about/framework Thinking, Fast and Slow, Daniel Kahneman- amazon.com Norman Wirzba on creation and nature- amazon.com Passages referenced: Genesis 6 and 11 and 15, Deuteronomy 8, 1 Kings 12 and 17, Jeremiah, Habakkuk, John 12 Follow and subscribe Subscribe to Thinking Christian: https://episodes.thinkingchristian.org Website: https://www.thinkingchristian.org Chapters 0:00 What transaction means 2:24 Jeroboam and the shortcut 3:10 Not a different god 7:18 Why it looked legitimate 10:42 Institutional inertia 13:44 In defense of the word lucky 15:36 Habakkuk and Babylon 19:52 Spread and consequence 20:19 Kahneman on luck 22:43 Nebuchadnezzar as servant 26:50 Two theological problems 31:34 Babel and human capability 33:50 The patience of God 35:51 Institutions that simply end 39:35 Ideology defines the questions 41:34 What higher ed is protecting 43:16 Substituting the vehicle 45:38 Faithful in the moment 47:56 Repentance and repudiation 50:15 Walking beside someone bigger 53:19 What comes next in the series Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

You Got Advice—So Why Was It Still a Bad Decision? Can you seek advice and still make a terrible decision? Absolutely. In 1 Kings 12, two new kings—Rehoboam and Jeroboam—face some of the biggest decisions of their lives. Both seek advice. Both listen to advisors. And both make disastrous choices that affect generations. The problem wasn't simply whether they asked for advice. The deeper question was: What were they looking for when they asked? Wisdom—or approval? God's direction—or validation for something they had already decided? In this episode of the Rob Skinner Podcast, Rob explores the stories of Rehoboam and Jeroboam and shares five practical principles for making better decisions at the major crossroads of life. Rehoboam received wise counsel from experienced leaders who encouraged him to serve the people. But when he didn't like their answer, he found younger advisors who told him what he wanted to hear. One pride-driven decision helped split the kingdom of Israel. Jeroboam made a different mistake. God had already promised to establish his kingdom if he remained faithful. But fear took over. Instead of asking whether his plan honored God, he sought advice about how to execute a decision he had already made—leading to the golden calves at Bethel and Dan and generations of idolatry. One of the most important lessons is simple: Something can work and still be wrong. Effectiveness is not the same thing as faithfulness. In this episode, you'll learn: Why asking for advice is only the beginning How Rehoboam confused advice with approval Why the advice you don't want to hear may be the advice you need How Jeroboam used good strategy to accomplish the wrong goal Why fear can disguise itself as wisdom How greed can sound like "good stewardship" Why your heart cannot always be trusted How a small number of major decisions determine much of your life Why you should seek several perspectives on important decisions How to choose advisors whose lives you actually respect Why, when both choices are good, choosing growth can be a helpful principle How Rob and Pam chose church planting in Tucson over financial opportunity in Oregon Why it's never too late to admit you were wrong and change direction Rob closes with five principles for better decisions: Seek advice. Ask more than one person. Ask people whose lives you respect and would want to imitate. When both choices are good, consider choosing the path that produces greater spiritual growth. Don't be afraid or embarrassed to change your mind. Before your next major decision, ask yourself: Am I really looking for wisdom—or am I looking for permission? Sometimes the advice you least want to hear is exactly the advice you need. Learn more about Rob's books and the podcast at RobSkinner.com. You can also support the program here.

Our reading today examines the lives of two descendants of David who each reigned as king over Israel. First: Abijah, who reigned for only 3 years, but who made an impassioned speech against Israel's king Jeroboam, warning him that he should not wage war against the Lord and those who serve Him. Abijah's son Asa takes the throne after him, and Asa devotes himself to the Lord for most of his life. The Lord rewards Asa's faithfulness by blessing the nation of Judah with a long period of peace. When the threat of war finally becomes immanent, Asa fails to consult the Lord, and instead turns towards another king for help. 2 Chronicles 13 - 1:13 .  2 Chronicles 14 - 5:59 .  2 Chronicles 15 - 10:10 .  2 Chronicles 16 - 13:29 .  2 Chronicles 17 - 16:34 .  Isaiah 5 - 19:52 .  :::Christian Standard Bible translation.All music written and produced by John Burgess Ross.Co-produced by Bobby Brown, Katelyn Pridgen, Eric Williamson & the Christian Standard Biblefacebook.com/commuterbibleinstagram.com/commuter_bibletwitter.com/CommuterPodpatreon.com/commuterbibleadmin@commuterbible.org

What does it actually take to become the UK Sommelier of the Year? And how do the world's best sommeliers blind taste wine under pressure? In this episode of Eat Sleep Wine Repeat, Janina sits down with Emma Denney, the newly crowned UK Sommelier of the Year 2026 and Director of Wine at Claridge's, to go behind the scenes of elite sommelier competition, blind tasting and fine wine service. Emma takes us inside the competition - from identifying grape varieties, regions and vintages in a blind tasting, to recognising wine faults by aroma alone, tackling food and wine pairing and serving Champagne under pressure. She also explains how professional sommeliers build their tasting knowledge, read the clues in a glass and develop the confidence to make decisions quickly. But this isn't just an episode about becoming a sommelier. Emma is a brilliant guide to some of the wine world's most fascinating regions and producers. We dive into Champagne and grower Champagne, Northern Rhône Syrah and Hermitage, Jumilla Monastrell, Ningxia Riesling, Margaret River and New Zealand Pinot Grigio, with plenty of bottles and wine travel ideas to add to your list. You'll also learn what RM and NM mean on Champagne labels, why Champagne's chalk soils matter, what Coteaux Champenois is, how lees ageing and late disgorgement affect Champagne, how to recognise common wine faults such as Brett, cork taint and oxidation, and why some of the world's most exciting wines are coming from places you might not expect. So whether you're already deep into wine, studying for a qualification, improving your blind tasting or simply looking for your next bottle, region or wine trip to explore, this episode is packed with things to taste, learn and investigate.   Shownotes 02:30 – What does it take to become UK Sommelier of the Year? Emma reflects on winning the competition and the preparation behind it.  05:03 – The Champagne that started it all — how one bottle sparked Emma's passion for wine and hospitality.  07:06 – Best value wine at Claridge's — Emma's recommendation: Casa Castillo Monastrell from Jumilla.  08:41 – Why Jumilla deserves more attention — modern Monastrell, old vines and one of Spain's most exciting wine regions. 09:27 – Unexpected wines at Claridge's — why Emma champions Canaan Riesling from Ningxia, China. 12:42 – Worth every penny — Emma highlights Northern Rhône legends René Rostaing and Jean-Louis Chave, explaining why mature Syrah can rival the world's finest wines. 14:12 – If money were no object — why Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage remains Emma's dream bottle. 15:52 – A must-visit wine destination — why every wine lover should experience Hermitage and the Northern Rhône. 19:23 – The best part of being a sommelier — introducing guests to new wines and sharing unforgettable wine experiences. 20:54 – Inside the theory exam — the extraordinary breadth of knowledge required to become UK Sommelier of the Year. 22:45 – Lessons from Vincenzo Arnese — how one piece of advice about listening carefully became Emma's biggest competitive advantage during the competition. 23:36 – Blind tasting without tasting — identifying wine faults using aroma alone during the competition semi-final. 25:30 – Recognising common wine faults — Brett, cork taint, oxidation, volatile acidity and how sommeliers train their senses. 27:53 – Train your nose like a sommelier — Emma discusses common wine faults, while Janina recommends Le Nez du Vin aroma and fault kits for improving your tasting skills.  30:26 – Spotting mistakes on a wine list — how sommeliers identify incorrect vintages, appellations and producer details under pressure. 31:13 – How to start a blind tasting — Emma explains the first clues sommeliers look for.  32:03 – Reading the clues in the glass — alcohol, oak, climate and terroir cues that help identify grape varieties and wine origins. 34:34 – Food and wine pairing under pressure — how Emma approached one of the competition's toughest practical service challenges. 37:05 – The visual challenge — recognising legendary winemakers, vineyards and wine tools from a single image. 38:12 – Caroline Frey's Swiss wines — Emma discusses the acclaimed winemaker's latest project beyond Bordeaux and the Rhône. 40:31 – The Champagne pouring challenge — one Jeroboam, twenty-four glasses and one of the competition's most nerve-racking tasks. 43:15 – Why Krug is so revered — barrel ageing, reserve wines and the philosophy behind one of Champagne's greatest houses. 44:46 – Champagne producers to discover — Emma recommends Eric Rodez and explains why grower Champagne deserves more attention. 48:07 – The Champagne riots of 1911 — how protests helped shape today's appellation system. 48:54 – What is sur pointe? — understanding long lees ageing and late disgorgement in Champagne. 50:01 – RM vs NM Champagne: What do the letters on Champagne labels mean?  51:32 – Why does Champagne have chalk soils? Understanding drainage, roots and Champagne's terroir.  52:26 – Who invented sparkling wine? — Christopher Merret and the origins of traditional method sparkling wine. 53:50 – Coteaux Champenois explained — discovering the still wines of Champagne and why they deserve more attention. 54:55 – Egly-Ouriet's still wines — the renowned Cuvée des Grands Côtés  55:14 – Pre-phylloxera Champagne — why Bollinger Vieilles Vignes Françaises remains one of the world's rarest wines. 56:17 – Margaret River — why this remote Australian wine region belongs on every wine lover's travel bucket list. 58:46 – Pinot Grigio deserves a second chance — why New Zealand is producing some of the world's most exciting examples - such as Greywacke Pinot Gris.

Text: 1 Kings chapters 15-16; 2 Chronicles 14-17 Supplemental Text: The Fourth Thousand Years chapter 12 BYU Lecture 34: After 922 BC, Israel history becomes complicated to read and study without understanding the proper labels used in the Old Testament. The nation is now divided into 2 nations; the nation to the north, comprising 10 tribes is referred to as “Israel” while the nation to the south, comprising of Judah and Levi (assigned to serve in the temple at Jerusalem). The king of Judah is Rehoboam and the king of Israel is Jeroboam. Judah: Rehoboam continues in wickedness and idolatry, as does his son Abijah. However, Abijah's son Asa tries to reform Judah by removing the idols and groves of prostitution. As a result, those in the northern 10 tribes who were still faithful to God migrate from Israel to Jerusalem and Judah enjoys a period of unity and peace. His son Jehosophat follows in righteous kingship and Judah prospers. Israel: Jeroboam is concerned over his people migrating back to his enemy Judah. So he builds counterfeit temples, sells the “priesthood rights” to whomever makes sufficient treasury contributions, fills the land with pagan idols and groves of prostitution and rules with horrid wickedness. Murders, assassinations and mutinies follow his reign until Omri comes to power. King Omri introduces more Phoenician paganism into Israel's culture. The son of Omri and the daughter of the Phoenician king unite the nations in marriage, and King Ahab and Queen Jezebel now begin their wicked reign over Israel. In these dark days of Israel, God calls a great prophet to intercede – Elijah.  

Title: 1-2 Thessalonians: Finale Text: The Books of 1 and 2 Thessalonians FCF: Prop: The Books of 1 and 2 Thessalonians is about God's people, saved, growing, and enduring until Jesus returns. Sermon Intro: [Slide 1] Turn in your bible to the books of 1 and 2 Thessalonians. For the last 9 months over the course of 34 sermons, we have covered all 136 verses of the canonical letters of Paul to the church in Thessalonica. Though they are two distinct letters, having been written only months apart and having several common themes, they could be observed as two chapters of one book. Today will be a different kind of message. Instead of looking at a particular text, we are instead going to assume the role of systematic theologians. Rather than sitting back and allowing one thought to pour over us from the text – we will instead fit together all we have learned into categories of truth. Although Paul doesn't outline for us what the main or primary purpose of each letter is – it is not difficult to gather the themes of each and come to a synopsis of what exactly Paul wanted to get through to the Thessalonians. I have printed an outline for each book. Some of them are available in the back still, but if you need a copy of either, let me know and I'll be happy to provide them. It is also worth noting that every sermon from this series is available in audio format on our website and almost all of them are available in video format on our YouTube channel. So, if you ever want to go back and review, or listen along with your own personal study, that is available for you. And that goes for every series I have preached here since I preached through Galatians, which was, believe it or not, 10 years and 2 days ago. We will begin this finale study by looking over the general timeline of the two books' composition and what each book touches on broadly. Then we will analyze the two books together for major themes and look for how those themes lace together with the rest of the scriptures and how they continue to be applicable for us today. Then we will put all those themes together to form a single yet dense sentence of the main theme of these two books. But first let me pray to get us started this morning. [Slide 2] The Timeline: · Paul, Silas and Timothy teach for a few months in Thessalonica · Paul is chased out of Thessalonica by the Jews · Paul goes to Corinth · Paul sends Timothy to check on them [Slide 3] The Reason · Timothy has reported back · They are being shunned by unbelievers in Thessalonica · They are confused on eschatology. They don't want any in the church to miss it, living or dead. · They have some lingering areas which need growth, including sexual immorality, love of one another, and working to provide for themselves. There are some unruly busy bodies causing some issues too. [Slide 4] The Content of Letter 1 · Thanksgiving for what God did in their hearts · Encouraging growth in faith, love, and hope. · Correction of eschatology · Hope in identity in Christ · Labor in love, work out faith · Need for peace from God [Slide 5] The Timeline: · Paul sends the first letter with Timothy · Paul continues work in Corinth with increasing persecution · Paul anxiously awaits Timothy's report · Paul sends second letter [Slide 6] The Reason · Timothy has reported back · Now being persecuted · Now deceived on eschatology thinking it has already come because some preachers and a letter that said it was from Paul said so. · The unruly are still a problem [Slide 7] The Content of Letter 2 · Thanksgiving for what God continues to do in their hearts · Encouragement for persecution · Correction of Eschatology · Hope in being chosen by God · Correcting the unruly · Need for peace and grace Transition: [Slide 8 (blank)] So now that you can remember at least broadly what Paul has written, let's synthesize all that information into some major themes across both 1 and 2 Thessalonians. I have narrowed it down to 7 major themes that all feed into the primary theme which we will dissect last of all. So, let's get started. I.) [Slide 9] Discipleship = Imitation a. Paul mentions imitation in both letters. b. Paul talks about the Thessalonians successfully imitating his example. He also talks about he and his companions' example being one worth imitation. c. And by extension, Paul indicates that because the Thessalonians have imitated him and his companions, they themselves are worthy of imitation. d. In this we see that in Paul's mind the heart of discipleship is one person following Jesus and encouraging others to follow them as they follow Jesus. e. In that sense if we simply follow the person who is closer to Christ than we are, we will always be following Christ. f. [Slide 10] So how does this theme relate to the rest of the New Testament? Well Paul addresses this in the Pastoral epistles where he tells Titus to have the older men teach the younger men and the older women teach the younger women. He doesn't just say teach them Christ's commands, although that is certainly part of it. He tells them to teach by example and produce those who imitate them. Peter lifts himself up as an Elder as an example to other Elders. In Acts the church first devotes themselves to the apostles' teaching. That is interesting. They were contemporaries of Christ, yet the apostles were the ones they were imitating. Why? Because the apostles were imitating Christ. g. [Slide 11] How does this theme work itself out in the whole counsel of scripture? As we look to the Old Testament, God continually raised up men who served as examples. The Patriarchs in general were examples to Israel. When a King was a godly King, he was said to follow in the footsteps of David. When he was ungodly, he was said to follow in the footsteps of Jeroboam. Here we see that godliness is taught and demonstrated through imitation. And so is ungodliness. Proving the axiom that more is caught than taught. h. [Slide 12] What impact does this concept have on us today? There are literally thousands of curriculums, courses, books, seminars, and philosophies surrounding the idea of discipleship. Some churches have pastors of discipleship. My point is not to say that these are foolish or a waste of time, necessarily. But the long and the short of it is, if you think of discipleship as a 12-week course to graduate from and not imitating those who are godly around you – you might have missed it. Imitation is much simpler and much more accessible. We might not be able to attend a 12-week course, but anyone can observe someone they know loves Jesus and is a godly person and endeavor to live like they live. This doesn't eliminate the need for intentional discipleship. But even when we intentionally disciple we must be someone who is worthy of imitation. All the while we continue to point ourselves toward imitating Christ. [Slide 13 (blank)] Transition: What is another piece of puzzle helping us form the primary theme of these books? II.) [Slide 14] True believers have nothing to fear regarding the Day of the Lord a. In both letters Paul addresses some fear or anxiety concerning the Day of the Lord. b. Have those who died missed it? c. Will it be so subtle we'll miss it? d. Are you sure because we have heard preaching saying we missed it? e. Paul not only informs them that they can't possibly miss the Day of the Lord – but he also, in both books, assures them that those who are truly God's people, have nothing to fear about the Day of the Lord. f. They might experience hardship and difficulty – but they won't be judged with the wicked. And they won't miss out on the kingdom. It doesn't work that way. God saved them FOR this Kingdom… and nothing can change that. g. [Slide 15] How does this theme present itself in the New Testament? In every entry of the New Testament concerning the end times and the Day of the Lord they serve both as a warning to those who are wicked and a comfort to those who are righteous. Those who have been made righteous in Christ should be comforted, not frightened, concerning the Day of the Lord. And those who are wicked should be warned. A third group exists as well. Those who claim to be righteous but are bearing no fruit, are warned that unless they do bear fruit, they will be swept away with the unrighteous. Not because they didn't bear fruit… but because they were never actually righteous. h. [Slide 16] Do we see this theme in the Old Testament as well. Perhaps even more so. The Prophets especially speak often of the Day of the Lord. And in those texts we also have three groups of people addressed. The wicked are warned of their judgment, the righteous are promised their coming reward, and those who live disobediently but claim to be God's people, are warned to obey lest they be swept away with the wicked too. i. [Slide 17] What does this theme mean for us? There is a lot of variety when it comes to eschatology. There are many different views and most of them are quite valid from the scriptures. But a view of eschatology that does not give comfort to God's true people, is a view that must be denied. Any view that denies the eternal punishment of the wicked, must be denied. Any view that allows you to live however you want, unchanged, and inherit God's Kingdom still, must be denied. And unfortunately, that eliminates several false teachings that are running rampant today. Be wise and understand that only the righteous will enter that Kingdom and only the righteous have nothing to fear on the Day of the Lord. [Slide 18 (blank)] Transition: That's two themes down. What is the next piece of the puzzle? III.) [Slide 19] True believers stand firm in and hold fast to the Christian Tradition a. We defined Christian tradition as the doctrines and lifestyles that Christ gave to His apostles to give to the church as it grew and expanded. b. In this, we see the first theme overlap a bit into this one. c. Since discipleship is imitation, true disciples of Christ should be imitators of Him and all who imitate Him. d. In that they will continue to hold fast to the doctrines Christ taught through His apostles and they will continue to stand firm in the lifestyles that Christ and his apostles taught and demonstrated. e. This is why when professing believers stop confessing truths or stop living in ways that conform to Christ, we begin to doubt or lose confidence in their profession of faith. f. [Slide 20] This concept is found in the rest of the New Testament as well. When we studied 1 and 2 Peter, James, Jude, 1-3 John, Galatians, Acts, and Matthew we saw this theme on repeat. True believers, true followers of Christ… follow Christ. They conform to what the master taught and lived. That is the nature of following Him. Meaning that any who don't… have lost all assurances that they are indeed His follower. g. [Slide 21] How does this theme present itself in the whole counsel of God? In the Old Testament God kept pointing back to what He had done. He kept pointing back to positive and negative examples of people following Him and being blessed and not following Him and being cursed. It becomes clear that those who are truly His remnant are those who consistently obey what He tells them to do. They consistently worship Him exclusively and live uprightly. The ones who are God's are those who conform to His standard and not to the nations around them. h. [Slide 22] How does this theme impact us today? We cannot love the world and God at the same time. If we love the world the love of the Father is not in us. It is so easy to let values of this world creep in. It is easy to let lifestyles of this world overtake us. But we must constantly be comparing our beliefs and lifestyles to the examples of Christ and his apostles through the Word of God. We who are true children of God must and ultimately will stand firm in and hold fast to the Christian Tradition. [Slide 23 (blank)] Transition: Three down four to go. IV.) [Slide 24] True believers grow in faith, love, and hope. a. This is a theme that Paul overtly developed in his first letter, but certainly was present in the second letter. b. In many ways it is part of their keeping the Christian traditions in that these three cardinal Christian graces are only possibly to true believers who are in Christ and following Him. c. They are called graces because each of these are given by God to His people as gifts. d. Faith speaks to not only what we believe but how firmly we hold to it. Love speaks to not only our love for God but for one another. And hope is rooted in the promises and atoning work of Jesus Christ. e. [Slide 25] Analyzing this theme in relation to the rest of the New Testament we observe that, they are called Cardinal graces because throughout the New Testament we see these graces mentioned most among all the gifts we should seek from God in increasing ways. Nearly every New Testament writer mentions these graces as gifts of God to His people to help them walk in His ways. f. [Slide 26] In the Old Testament we see these graces too although less explicitly stated. Certainly, faith in what God says, love for Him and others, and hope in His promises are included in everything taught and commanded of the children of Israel. g. [Slide 27] What does this mean for us? Since they are graces, we cannot work them up or conjure these on our own. We must seek the Lord for a steady and increasing supply of these as we endeavor to live for him in a fallen world. Of course, because our God is faithful and good, He continues to supply His grace to us in these ways through various means. [Slide 28 (blank)] Transition: More than half way there. V.) [Slide 29] True believers will endure great suffering before the Lord returns. a. Well, this one is a little less encouraging, isn't it? b. Paul mentions this overtly in both letters. He tells them that as believers in Jesus Christ they have been “appointed for affliction.” c. And he warns them of the coming apostasy and man of lawlessness who will bring great persecution upon the church. d. There is really no way to get around it, if we are followers of Christ, and the world crucified Christ, we shouldn't expect to be friends of the world. e. [Slide 30] Throughout the New Testament we see this theme expounded. Indeed, several letters in the New Testament are written to Christians who are suffering for the sake of Christ. Jesus addresses this and not only says that His followers will have trouble in the world, but also that suffering for His name is a blessing. And John affirms that the persecution of the man of lawlessness upon the saints in the last days will be quite successful. He says that the man of lawlessness will be granted power over them. f. [Slide 31] But the people of God in the Old Testament were exactly the same. Able was killed out of jealousy because he was righteous and Cain wasn't. Noah was despised though he spoke the message of truth and judgement. The children of Israel were enslaved to the Egyptians for 400 years. The Assyrians abused them, the Babylonians tried to assimilate them. God's prophets were hunted and killed, many times by the Israelites themselves. Even David, a man after God's own heart, was usurped by his own son. Following God and obeying Him has never been a safe path. It has always guaranteed trouble. g. [Slide 32] What does this mean for us? We are still enjoying relative freedoms in this country to worship God the way He tells us to. But the tide is turning. The voices of a godless or anti-Christian cause are rising up. And no amount “getting out the vote” is going to stop them. People have long rejected the bible and the God of the bible… it is only a matter of time before they reject the people of the God of the bible. Let's not get too attached to our comfort Christians. Very soon, it will cost you something valuable to follow Christ. You will have to give up freedoms, possessions, and even family to follow Christ. Are you ready? [Slide 33 (blank)] Transition: Only a couple more themes now. VI.) [Slide 34] True believers should be excellent in labor and giving. a. In both letters Paul desired them to work with their own hands, quietly, and earn a living for themselves. b. If they aren't willing to work, then they shouldn't be allowed to eat. c. Meaning no one should give them food if they just don't want to do anything. d. Furthermore, they should be doing good with their wealth by supplying the needs of those who are truly destitute. e. [Slide 35] This theme is repeated in the New Testament both by outright command in some of Paul's other letters and by example in the gospels and Acts. James describes the destitute as those who truly are unable to provide for themselves like widows and orphans. But even some widows are not truly destitute since they can remarry or be sustained by their family members. f. [Slide 36] In the Old Testament we see God putting in His law the care of those who are destitute, even reaching beyond the children of Israel to the stranger and foreigner among them. Not the fact that they are foreigners alone but that they are unable to provide for themselves. God's heart is near to those who are truly destitute. And therefore, He expects His people, if they are able, to work hard and earn enough to provide for their own family and a little extra to help others. g. [Slide 37] What does this mean for us? My friends, Christians should be the example every employer holds up as a hard worker. Christians should provide enough to care for their family's needs (not wants) but needs. And Christians should be known for their compassionate and joyful giving to alleviate real need first from their fellow believers and then to those outside the household of faith. This is a particularly difficult thing for younger believers to hear, since some generations coming into the workforce right now, are notoriously entitled and think they should be handed a paycheck that provides all their needs and wants for little to no work. To that, you must heed the teaching of Paul. Work hard and have enough to provide your needs and a little extra to provide for others who cannot provide for themselves. [Slide 38 (blank)] Transition: One final major theme of these books remains, and we needed to see all we just did for it to make sense. VII.) [Slide 39] The church is made of true believers a. After spending all this time discussing what true believers look like, we recognize that Paul spends a good deal of time defining what the church looks like. b. He also indicates that those who do not look like this should be marked out for disassociation. c. Meaning they shouldn't be treated as part of the community any longer. d. That is because the true church only consists of true believers and true believers do all that we've been talking about all morning. e. [Slide 40] As we look at the whole of the New Testament generally, we find this to be the message of the apostles to the churches they write to. There is an ontological change, a change in the core of your being when you come to Christ. It is not merely a change of mind; it is a change of nature. You become a new creation. You can change your mind about whether or not you like to fly… but you can't decide to grow wings and fly away. But when we are converted, we are given the Holy Spirit and we are changed from the inside out. This means that conformity to Christ is not only required… it is assured of all those who are truly saved. When someone professes to be of Christ but falters on conforming to Him, that is when the New Testament speaks of disassociation and excommunication from the church. f. [Slide 41] While we certainly can't see the church in the Old Testament, there was a covenant community of Israel and there were strict rules, moral, ceremonial, and civil that guarded entry into and purity within that covenant community. There were certain things that if you did them, you would be removed forever. Cut off. There were others that if you made a practice of them, you'd be cut off. g. [Slide 42] What does this mean for us? There has always been a safeguarding of God's people. Within the covenants that God establishes He sets the rules for who are within and without the covenant community. He also gives us paradigms to determine whether someone needs to be confronted or even removed from that community, even if it is only for a time. Yet the law of God's love permeates the New Covenant in that we continue to warn people disassociated from us, expected them to eventually repent and return. Why? Because they have confessed Christ. And we have hope that they will repent if they truly are believers. Transition: [Slide 43 (blank)] So what is the primary theme in these two books? What theme do all these themes feed into? Conclusion: [Slide 44] God has chosen from the beginning a people whom He will save from sin and death, whom He is continually conforming to His Son, whom the world will hate, who will endure until Jesus returns to save them to His Kingdom, forever! Let's break this down line by line. 1.) [Slide 45] First, God is the one doing this. a. As with all things, God is the primary mover in all things. b. As creator, He is always acting so that His creation can respond. 2.) [Slide 46] God has chosen from the beginning. a. This is, essentially, the sovereignty of God. b. God is not responding to things in real time as if He has just come to know them now. c. That would necessarily mean that there were things that God did not know which directly contradicts scripture. d. And because mankind is so lost, it requires God to act first to save them. e. We are told in Scripture and in II Thessalonians directly, that God chose before time began. From the beginning God chose to act. f. But what did He choose? 3.) [Slide 47] a people He will save from sin a. This is the doctrine of predestination. b. God chose, according to the counsel of His own will, who He would elect and redeem before time began. c. He chose because without choosing none would be saved. d. He chose not based on what those He was choosing would be or do, but according to His own desires. e. God chose a people, individuals from every tribe and nation, to save from sin through Christ's death and resurrection. f. Saving them from sin not only includes sin's penalty but even sin's power over them and eventually even sin's presence in their lives. 4.) [Slide 48] and death a. Of course, what good is it to be saved from sin if you still die with no hope of being raised? b. So, God chose not only to save from sin but also to deliver this chosen people from death and into eternal life. c. Christ is the firstborn of many brothers who die but will be raised again. 5.) [Slide 49] whom He is continually conforming a. But after saving them from sin and before they are rescued through death, God has also chosen to continually mold this people. b. He will not simply save them but will change them. He will conform them… to what? 6.) [Slide 50] To His Son a. It is in Christ that God has ever said He was well-pleased. b. Christ obeyed the whole law and pleased the Father perfectly. c. And so, God has chosen a people to continually conform to the perfect human, our new representative, Jesus Christ. 7.) [Slide 51] Whom the world will hate a. Of course, in conforming them to His Son, it will mean they inherit all that Jesus inherited, including the hatred of the world b. If we are chosen in Christ, we will be a new creation and opposed to the world which is allied against God. c. We too will be hated like Christ was d. And the more we look like Him, the more that hatred will grow. 8.) [Slide 52] Who will endure a. Even though we are appointed to be afflicted for Christ's sake, we are equally appointed to endure to the end. b. Our faith, if it is genuinely given by God, will endure to the end. c. Our obedience and love to God will also endure. d. Until when? 9.) [Slide 53] Until Jesus returns to save them a. Although we are saved from our sin upon conversion, we are not saved fully until the Lord Jesus returns. b. When He does, our enduring will come to an end and our eternal rest will begin. c. But how will we rest? What are we saved to? 10.) [Slide 54] To His Kingdom forever! a. We will be given new bodies to dwell in a New Kingdom where all will be made whole and complete. b. He will bring order and peace. He will bring us into perfect rest. c. And we will never have to be separated from Him ever again. d. God has chosen a people to obtain the glory of Christ. [Slide 55 (end)] Why are the books of 1 and 2 Thessalonians so uplifting to true believers? Because this is the primary theme. God has chosen us for marvelous things. Wonderful and glorious things. So, hold fast and stand firm. Endure to the end. And then, you will know true rest in Him. Let me pray and thank the Lord for His Word. Until we meet again – Grace and Peace to you.

Okay, we all know vanilla has been trending for ages now, but WHY does it proveso popular? We think half the reason is the sheer diversity of vanillas available,and the incredibly high-quality materials perfumers are able to use these days.Plus the fact that vanilla continues to be one of the most universally adoredscents. Love them or loathe them, we feel sure there's truly something for everytaste (and maybe some that will surprise or even shock you) in this week'sepisode...Now, obviously, we mean five favourites *each*, we couldn't possibly containthem all to only five vanillas when there are SO many excellent varieties ofvanilla fragrances around these days. We have to say, though, f you're a vanillanaysayer, please don't shy away from this episode, as we've versions that seguefrom the just-launched and fabulously tobacco-filled, the sweetly tempting andaddictive you might expect, to the mind-blowingly modern and unlike any vanillayou've ever smelled.Encompassing hip-swivelling seduction, a stunning body butter, hugely powerfulfragrant talismans, and summery every-day wearability, there's also a trulyaffordable modern classic vanilla – created by a Master Perfumer who trained atChanel, created scents for Frederic Malle, Guerlain, Gucci, Amouage andAtkinsons, but THIS one can be snapped up for under £30!While some of our top vanillas crossed over, we also surprised each other withsome of our choices. Now then, which have YOU tried or want to go and smellafter listening...?We discuss:D'Orsay Vanilla Affair ExtraitBy Nathalie Lorson‘Immerse yourself in the captivating mystique of D'ORSAY, with Vanilla Affairextrait de parfum transforming your everyday allure into one of intriguingelegance.Its scent – reminiscent of forbidden encounters and fierce passion – is infusedwith riveting notes of tobacco and tonka bean, deepened with a vanilla duo, andgrounded with a smoky base of white musks and patchouli. No matter theoccasion, its aromatic blend of exhilarating notes will elevate your essence withease.'The Body Shop Vanilla Body Butter‘This indulgent cream melts in beautifully, delivering up to 96 hours of hydrationwithout greasiness. Skin feels instantly softer, smoother and cared for. Thefragrance opens with juicy nashi pear and fresh coconut water, lifted by moodorchid. At its heart, rich Madagascar vanilla tincture blends with upcycled vanillinex rice, creamy milk and heliotrope for a smooth, enveloping warmth. It settlesinto a sensual base of vanilla absolute, sandalwood and second skin musk for along lasting, skin hugging finish. Every application is a warm, comforting routine.'Jovoy Fire at Will‘This perfume's sweet promises echo around your like languorous kisses.Crafted by independent perfumer Vanina Murraciole, Fire at Will eau de parfumfrom JOVOY explores the duality of vanilla and mimosa – at once intense yetsubtle, seductive yet enchanting. The opening reveals an unexpected vanilla: airyand ethereal, lifted by honeyed, powdery mimosa. As it evolves, the vanillabecomes more gourmand and fruity, evoking the delicacy of real vanilla icecream while lingering with the allure of whispered promises.'Top Notes: Mimosa Absolut, Vanilla AbsolutMiddle Notes: Vanilla Sugar, Brown SugarBase Notes: White Musks, Amber VetiverMaison Louis Marie No.15 Vanille Infinie‘Vanille Infinie, a luxurious and sweet gourmand, is a celebration of hope andrenewal. No.15 Vanille Infinie unfolds as a warm, luminous composition, soft vanillalayered with citron, sugared amber and cashmere oud for gentle resinous warmth.The Eau de Parfum evolves naturally on skin, shifting with your body heat to reveala smooth, enveloping trail that feels both intimate and enduring.'Jeroboam Insulo‘For François Hénin, the founder of Jeroboam, vanilla has always been theabsolute weapon of seductive souls. The ingredient is recognized throughout theworld as an irresistible enticement to be devoured. Insulo (meaning ‘island' inEsperanto) is used in this case as a code name for Madagascar, the island whichproduces perhaps the highest quality and most famous vanilla in the world.The olfactive pyramid of Insulo is incredibly simple with vanilla at the top, jasmineat the heart and the signature blend of enigmatic musks at the base. These fewnotes combine to produce a luxurious and irresistible.'AKRO Bake‘Bake is our addictive cupcake fragrance.Everyone has their own favourite sweet treat, and for Akro, it's the small, butperfectly delicious lemon cupcake—an item we just can't resist any time we walkpast a good bakery. To honour our favourite cupcakes, we created BAKE, agourmand fragrance made up of Tart Lemon notes, followed by sweet Vanilla andrich, nutty Praline. BAKE is so good, you might not need that second cupcakeafter all.TOP: Lemon peelMIDDLE: Chantilly cream, PralineBASE: Brown sugar, Vanilla.'Matiere Premiere Vanilla Powder‘A sophisticated take on vanilla, diffusing like a bright, soft cloud. I contrasteddark vanilla absolute with an overdose of modern white perfumer powders — asif the vanilla bean had been painted white.Palo Santo Oil Ecuador brings structure and verticality. The addictive character ofVanilla is reinforced by Coconut powder. White Musks envelop the Vanilla andpowders for a contemporary, luminous perfume.' - Aurélien GuichardRochas TocadeOne of THE best vanillas if you're on a budget. Or even if you're not, come tothat!‘Originally launched in 1994, and composed by Maurice Roucel, Rochas Tocadeopens with a vibrant burst of bergamot and green notes, setting the stage for aheart that blooms with the rich aromas of rose, geranium, and magnolia. Thesefloral elements are beautifully balanced by the warmth of vanilla and amber,creating a harmonious blend that is both sensual and inviting. The base notes ofmusk and cedarwood add depth and longevity, ensuring that this enchantingfragrance lingers on your skin throughout the day.'

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/tmb-ehv/03-0804db.mp3 Listen to Bible reading Through My Bible Yr 03 – August 04 Hosea 1 – 2 Hosea's Wife and Children Hosea 1 1 The word of the Lord that came to Hosea son of Be'eri, [1] in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, the kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam son of Joash, the king of Israel. 2 When the Lord first spoke through Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea, “Go. Take for yourself an immoral wife and children produced by sexual immorality, [2] because the land has been committing flagrant immorality, turning away from the Lord.” 3 So he went and took Gomer daughter of Diblaim. She conceived and gave birth to a son for him. 4 The Lord said to him, “Name him Jezre'el, [3] because in a little while I will inflict punishment on the house of Jehu for the blood of Jezre'el. I will destroy the ruling power of the house of Israel. 5 In that day I will break the bow of Israel in the Valley of Jezre'el.” 6 She conceived again and gave birth to a daughter. The Lord said to him, “Name her Lo Ruhamah, [4] because I will no longer have compassion on the house of Israel. Indeed, I will certainly not forgive them. 7 But I will have compassion on the house of Judah. I will save them by the Lord their God. I will not save them by bow, sword, battle, horses, or horsemen.” [5] 8 Gomer weaned Lo Ruhamah. Then she conceived and gave birth to a son. 9 The Lord said, “Name him Lo Ammi, [6] because you are not my people, and I will not be the Lord for you.” [7] A Promise of Future Blessing 10 Nevertheless, the number of the people of Israel will be like the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or counted. Then, in the place where they were told, “You are not my people,” they will be told, “You are children of the living God.” 11 The people of Judah and the people of Israel will be gathered together. They will appoint one head for themselves, and they will go up from the land, for the day of Jezre'el will be great. [8] Hosea 2 1 Say to your brothers, “My people,” [9] and to your sisters, “She has been shown mercy.” [10] Israel Rebuked, Punished, and Restored 2 Plead with [11] your mother!     Plead with her, because she is not my wife,     and I am not her husband.     Let her put away her sexual immorality from her presence     and her acts of adultery from between her breasts. 3 Otherwise, I will strip her naked     and expose her as she was on the day she was born.     I will make her like a wilderness.     I will cause her to be like a dry land.     I will cause her to die of thirst. 4 I will have no compassion on her children,     because they are children of promiscuity, 5 because their mother has been promiscuous. [12]     She who conceived them has acted shamefully.     She said, “I will chase after my lovers,         the ones who give me my food and my water,         my wool and my flax, my olive oil and my drinks.” 6 Therefore, this is what I will do:     I will block your [13] way with thorns.     I will build a wall against her,     so that she cannot find her paths. 7 She will chase after her lovers,     but she will not reach them.     She will seek them,     but she will not find them.     She will say, “I will go back to my first husband,     because then it was better for me than it is now.” 8 But she would not acknowledge that I gave her the grain, the new wine, and the fresh oil.     I gave her large amounts of silver and gold—her people used it for Baal! 9 That is why I will take back my grain during harvest time,     and my new wine in its season.     I will also take away my wool and my flax that were given to cover her nakedness. 10 Then I will expose her shameful nakedness in the sight of her lovers.     No one will deliver her from my hand. 11 I will put an end to all her celebration:     her pilgrimage festivals, [14] her monthly new moons, and her weekly Sabbaths—     all her appointed festivals. 12 I will devastate her vines and her fig trees,     about which she said, “These are the payment [15] that my lovers gave me.”     I will make them into a scrub forest,     and the wild animals will eat the crops. 13 I will punish her for the days with the Baals, on which she repeatedly offered incense to them.     She adorned herself with her rings [16] and her jewelry,     and then she chased after her lovers,     and she forgot me, declares the Lord. 14 But watch! I am going to court her.     I will bring her into the wilderness.     I will speak tenderly to her. 15 There I will give her vineyards back to her.     The Valley of Achor [17] will be a door of hope.     She will respond there as in the days of her youth,     as in the day she came up from the land of Egypt. 16 In that day, declares the Lord, this is what will take place:     You will call me “my husband.”     You will no longer call me “my master.” [18] 17 For I will remove the names of the Baals from her mouth.     She will no longer call them by their names. [19] 18 In that day I will make a covenant for the Israelites with the wild animals, with the birds of the sky and the things that creep on the ground.     I will break the bow and the sword.     I will abolish war from the land.     I will allow the people to lie down safely. [20] 19 I will pledge you to myself in marriage forever.     I will pledge you to myself in marriage—     with righteousness, justice, mercy, and compassion. 20 In faithfulness I will pledge you to myself in marriage,     and you will know the Lord. 21 In that day this is what will happen:     I will respond, declares the Lord.     I will respond to the heavens,     and they will respond to the earth. 22 The earth will respond to the grain, the new wine, and the fresh oil.     They will respond to Jezre'el. 23 I will sow her for myself in the land.     I will have compassion for Lo Ruhamah, [21]     and I will tell Lo Ammi, [22] “You are my people,”     and he will say, “You are my God!” Footnotes Hosea 1:1 The stop mark ′ indicates that Be'er – should be pronounced as two syllables. Hosea 1:2 Or prostitution. The Hebrew term includes paid prostitution, but it also includes promiscuous sexual immorality which is not done for money. It also includes sexual misconduct by perpetrators who pay their lovers instead of the other way around. Hosea 1:4 Jezre'el means God sows, and it is the name of both a valley and a city in Israel. Ahab and Jezebel murdered Naboth at the city of Jezre'e l, and Jehu destroyed the dynasty of Ahab there. Hosea 1:6 The Hebrew name Lo Ruhamah means no compassion or no pity. Hosea 1:7 Or charioteers Hosea 1:9 The Hebrew name Lo Ammi means not my people. Hosea 1:9 The Hebrew reads I am not I am for you, an allusion to the Lord's gracious name, I am. Hosea 1:11 English verses 1:10-11 are verses 2:1-2 in the Hebrew text. All the subsequent verse numbers in chapter 2 are two numbers lower in English than they are in Hebrew. Hosea 2:1 Hebrew Ammi Hosea 2:1 Hebrew Ruhamah Hosea 2:2 Or bring charges against. Also in the next line. Hosea 2:5 Or been a prostitute or acted like a prostitute Hosea 2:6 Your is the reading of the Hebrew. The Greek and Syriac read her. Hosea 2:11 That is, Passover, Pentecost, and Shelters Hosea 2:12 Or gifts Hosea 2:13 Either earrings or nose rings Hosea 2:15 Valley of Achor means Valley of Trouble. It refers to the location of the incident caused by Achan in Joshua 7. Hosea 2:16 Hebrew my baal Hosea 2:17 Or call on their names Hosea 2:18 Or securely Hosea 2:23 The Hebrew name Lo Ruhamah means no compassion. Hosea 2:23 The Hebrew name Lo Ammi means not my people. The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.

Today's Scripture passages are 1 Kings 12:21 - 13 | 2 Chronicles 11 | Mark 13:1-23.Read by Ekemini Uwan.Get in The Word with Truth's Table is a production of InterVarsity Press. For 75 years, IVP has published and created thoughtful Christian books for the university, church, and the world. Our Bible reading plan is adapted from Bible Study Together, and the Bible version is the New English Translation, used by permission.SPECIAL OFFER | As a listener of this podcast, use the code IVPWORD40 for 40% off and free shipping on any IVP resource mentioned in this episode at ivpress.com.Additional Credits:Song production: Seaux ChillSong lyrics written by: Seaux Chill, Ekemini Uwan, and Christina EdmondsonPodcast art: Kate LillardPhotography: Shelly EveBible consultant: JM SmithSound engineering: Podastery StudiosCreative producers: Ekemini Uwan and Christina EdmondsonAssistant producer: Christine Pelliccio MeloExecutive producer: Helen LeeTo reach the IVP podcast team, please use this form.Disclaimer: The comments, views, and opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the host and/or the guests featured on the podcast and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of InterVarsity Press or InterVarsity Christian Fellowship.

What happens when you build your life on someone else's vision instead of God's calling for you?In this episode of When the Scriptures Become Real, we dive into 1 Kings 12 and the story of Jeroboam, a man who borrowed the fears, strategies, and dreams of others instead of trusting God's promises. We'll explore how chasing someone else's definition of success can lead to compromise, anxiety, and spiritual failure.If you've ever compared your life to others, felt pressured to copy someone else's path, or wondered if you're pursuing God's dream or someone else's, this episode is for you.

Text: 1 Kings 9-15; 2 Chronicles 7-11 Supplemental Text: The Fourth Thousand Years chapters 10-11 BYU Lecture 33: As the temple was being constructed, Solomon fortified his lands and conquered countries, expanding his kingdom into one of the great powers of the region, along with Egypt and Assyria. The tributes, tariffs and taxes brought tremendous wealth into his kingdom. Even Queen of Sheeba, from 1,400 miles to the south, made the long journey just to see if the news and rumors of Solomon's greatness were exaggerated. By the time she left, she exclaimed “the half was not told me: thy wisdom and prosperity exceedeth the fame which I heard!” Solomon's reign was 40 years, most of which was spent in peace and prosperity. At the age of 49, Solomon has a vision of the Lord and is commended for his righteousness. But he is also warned to endure to the end, for if he turns from God and forsakes his covenants, all these great accomplishments will be lost. Sadly, due to his political mass marriages, his challenges with old age and finally his introduction of idolatry into Israel, all would soon be taken.   After Solomon's death, his son Rehoboam succeeds him as King. However, the prophet Ahijah promises Jeroboam, another leader of Israel, future kingship of 10 of the tribes. After Rehoboam is anointed king, the leaders of the other tribes meet to sustain him, but first ask an important question. Will he reduce the tax burdens Solomon had enforced on them? Rehoboam seeks counsel from the elders, who suggest a reduction, and he then seeks counsel from his peers – probably other aristocratic friends who enjoyed the rich life – who convinces him to increase the taxes. When told this, Jeroboam rebels against Judah and leads the other 10 tribes into secession. Thus in 920 B.C. Israel is split into 2 nations, “Israel” to the north and Judah to the south. Jeroboam is made king of Israel (northern 10 tribes) and he wickedly defies the Lord and leads the people into apostasy with false temples, golden calves and desecrated sacrifices.

#top .av-special-heading.av-gs9o3p-b7bacb104569e82b29c3fcd17770c2bc{ padding-bottom:10px; } body .av-special-heading.av-gs9o3p-b7bacb104569e82b29c3fcd17770c2bc .av-special-heading-tag .heading-char{ font-size:25px; } .av-special-heading.av-gs9o3p-b7bacb104569e82b29c3fcd17770c2bc .av-subheading{ font-size:15px; } Through My Bible Yr 03 – August 02Amos 7:1 – 8:3 LISTEN HERE Through My Bible – August 02 Amos 7:1 – 8:3 (EHV) https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/tmb-ehv/03-0802db.mp3 See series: Through My Bible The First Vision: The Locusts Amos 7 1 This is what the Lord God showed me: I saw that he was forming a locust swarm at the time when the late crops [1] were beginning to sprout—the crops that were planted after the cuttings of hay for the king. 2 When the swarm had finished consuming the vegetation of the land, I said, “Lord God, please forgive! How can Jacob stand? Look, he is so small!” 3 The Lord changed his decree about this. “It will not happen,” said the Lord. The Second Vision: The Fire 4 This is what the Lord God showed me: I saw the Lord God calling for a trial by fire, which devoured the great deep and started to consume the land. 5 I said, “Lord God, please stop! How can Jacob stand? Look, he is so small!” 6 The Lord changed his decree about this. “This will not happen,” said the Lord God. The Third Vision: The Plumb Line 7 This is what he showed me: I saw the Lord standing by a wall that had been constructed with a plumb line. He had a plumb line in his hand. 8 The Lord said to me, “What do you see, Amos?” I said, “A plumb line.” Then the Lord said:     Look, I am about to set up a plumb line next to my people Israel.     I will no longer overlook their sin. 9 The high places of Isaac will be desolate,     and the sanctuaries of Israel will be ruined.     I will rise up against the house of Jeroboam with the sword. Amos and Amaziah 10 Then Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, sent a message to Jeroboam king of Israel: [2] Amos has conspired against you in the midst of the house of Israel. The land is not able to endure all of his words. 11 This is what Amos says: “Jeroboam will die by the sword, and Israel will certainly go into exile away from its own soil.” 12 Then Amaziah said to Amos, “You seer, get out of here! Flee to the land of Judah. You may eat food and prophesy there. 13 But you must never again prophesy at Bethel, for it is the sanctuary of the king and the national temple.” 14 Then Amos responded to Amaziah: I was not a prophet, nor was I a son of a prophet. Rather, I was a sheep breeder and I took care of sycamore fig trees. 15 But the Lord took me from tending flocks, and the Lord said to me, “Go, prophesy to my people Israel.” 16 But now, hear the word of the Lord, you who are saying, “Do not prophesy against Israel” and “Do not preach [3] against the house of Isaac.” 17 This is what the Lord says: “Your wife will be a prostitute in the city, and your sons and your daughters will fall by the sword. Your land will be parceled out with a measuring line, and as for you, you will die upon unclean soil. And Israel will certainly go into exile far away from its own soil.” The Fourth Vision: The Basket of Summer Fruit Amos 8 1 This is what the Lord God showed me: I saw a basket of ripe summer fruit. 2 Then he asked, “What do you see, Amos?” I said, “A basket of ripe summer fruit.” Then the Lord said to me, “The end is coming upon my people Israel. [4] I will no longer overlook their sin. 3 The singing women of the palace [5] will wail on that day, declares the Lord God. Many corpses—all over! Silence!” Footnotes Amos 7:1 The late crops are the crops that grow at the time of the last spring rain, as the rainy season is coming to an end. Since the king has already collected all the taxes for the whole year from the first cuttings, if the spring rain fails, it is the people who will come up short. Amos 7:10 Jeroboam II ruled from about 793 to 753 bc. This encounter was probably near the end of his reign. Amos 7:16 Literally drip Amos 8:2 The Hebrew words for summer fruit and end sound alike. Just as the summer fruit is ripe, Israel is ripe for judgment. Amos 8:3 Or the songs of the temple #top .hr.hr-invisible.av-aocsdx-89cb4ca21532423cf697fc393b6fcee0{ height:10px; } The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved. #top .hr.hr-invisible.av-4vzadh-3f04b370105df1fd314a2a9d83e55b26{ height:50px; } Share this entryShare on FacebookShare on LinkedInShare by MailLink to FlickrLink to InstagramLink to Vimeo

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/tmb-ehv/03-0729db.mp3 Listen to Bible reading Through My Bible Yr 03 – July 29 Amos 1 – 2 Amos 1 1 The words of Amos, who was among the sheep breeders [1] from Tekoa. He saw a vision concerning Israel during the days of Uzziah king of Judah and during the days of Jeroboam son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake. 2 He said:     The Lord roars from Zion.     From Jerusalem he sends out his voice.     The pastures of the shepherds dry up, [2]     and the top of Mount Carmel withers. Judgment Against Aram 3 This is what the Lord says:     Because of three sins [3] of Damascus,     because of four, I will not hold back judgment,     because they cut up Gilead with iron threshing boards. [4] 4 So I will send fire against the house of Hazael,     and it will consume the fortresses of Ben Hadad. 5 I will break the bars of the gates of Damascus,     and I will cut off the one seated in the Valley of Aven,     and the one who holds a scepter in Beth Eden. [5]     So the people of Aram will go into exile toward Kir. [6]     The Lord has spoken. Judgment Against Philistia 6 This is what the Lord says:     Because of three sins of Gaza,     because of four, I will not hold back judgment,     because they sold an entire population into exile,     handing them over to Edom. 7 So I will send fire against the city wall of Gaza,     and it will consume her citadels. 8 I will cut off the one seated in Ashdod,     and the one who holds a scepter in Ashkelon.     I will also turn my hand against Ekron,     and what is left of the Philistines will perish.     The Lord God has spoken. Judgment Against Canaan 9 This is what the Lord says:     Because of three sins of Tyre,     because of four, I will not hold back judgment,     because they delivered over an entire population and exiled them to Edom,     and they did not remember a treaty of brotherhood. 10 So I will send fire against the city wall of Tyre,     and it will consume her citadels. Judgment Against Edom 11 This is what the Lord says:     Because of three sins of Edom,     because of four, I will not hold back judgment,     because he [7] pursued his brother with a sword,     and he had no compassion. [8]     His anger kept tearing Israel apart,     and his fury raged without stopping. 12 So I will send fire against Teman,     and it will consume the citadels of Bozrah. Judgment Against Ammon 13 This is what the Lord says:     Because of three sins of the Ammonites,     because of four, I will not hold back judgment,     because they ripped open the pregnant women of Gilead in order to enlarge their own territory. 14 So I will ignite a fire against the city wall of Rabbah,     and it will consume her citadels         with a battle cry on the day of war,         with a strong wind on the day of the storm. 15 Then their king will go into exile,     he and his officials together.     The Lord has spoken. Judgment Against Moab Amos 2 1 This is what the Lord says: Because of three sins of Moab,     because of four, I will not hold back judgment,     because they burned the bones of the king of Edom to make lime. 2 So I will send fire against Moab,     and it will consume the citadels of Kerioth.     Moab will die in an uproar,     with a battle cry, with a blast of a ram's horn. 3 I will cut off the judge [9] from her midst,     and I will kill all her officials with him.     The Lord has spoken. Judgment Against Judah 4 This is what the Lord says:     Because of three sins of Judah,     because of four, I will not hold back judgment,     because they rejected the law of the Lord,     and they did not keep his statutes.     Their lying idols led them astray,     the idols that their fathers followed. 5 So I will send fire against Judah,     and it will consume the citadels of Jerusalem. Judgment Against Israel 6 This is what the Lord says:     Because of three sins of Israel,     because of four, I will not hold back judgment,     because they sell the righteous for silver     and the needy for a pair of sandals. 7 They trample the heads of the poor into the dust of the earth,     and they turn aside the claims of the oppressed.     A man and his father go to the same young woman.     In this way they profane my holy name. 8 They stretch themselves out beside every altar         on pieces of clothing they seized as collateral.     In the temple of their gods they drink wine obtained through fines. 9 I was the one who destroyed the Amorites in front of them,     the Amorites, who were as tall as cedars,     who were as strong as oaks.     I destroyed their fruit above and their roots below. 10 I myself brought you up from the land of Egypt,     and I led you in the wilderness for forty years,         so that you would take possession of the land of the Amorites. 11 I raised up some of your sons to be prophets,     and some of your best young men to be Nazirites.     Is this not so, you people of Israel? declares the Lord. 12 But you made the Nazirites drink wine,     and you commanded the prophets, “You must not prophesy!” 13 Look, I am weighed down under you,     just as a cart is weighed down when it is loaded with sheaves of grain. [10] 14 There will be no escape for the swift runner.     The powerful man will not be able to exert his strength,     and the strong warrior will not be able to save his own life. 15 The archer will not stand his ground.     The swift runner will not save himself,     and the horseman will not save his own life. 16 The most courageous among the warriors will flee naked on that day,     declares the Lord. Footnotes Amos 1:1 Or ranchers Amos 1:2 Or mourn Amos 1:3 Or crimes Amos 1:3 A threshing board or threshing sledge is similar to a toboggan, but it has iron teeth protruding from the bottom. It is dragged over piles of grain to cut up the straw and release the kernels of grain. Amos 1:5 Valley of Aven and Beth Eden mean Valley of Wickedness and House of Pleasure. They may be figurative names for the region around Damascus. Amos 1:5 The location of Kir is unknown. It probably lies far to the north or east. Amos 1:11 Edom is referred to by the singular he because it is also a name of Jacob's brother Esau. Amos 1:11 Or he destroyed pregnant women Amos 2:3 Or ruler Amos 2:13 The meaning of the verse is uncertain. It may mean I will weigh you down as a cart is weighed down. The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.

Telling the Story: Part 3 Acts 7:35-53 by William Klock “Made by hand.”  When we see that, it usually means something good, doesn't it?  Someone careful hand crafted this thing.  Carefully stitched it together.  Put care into baking it.  You can probably trust it, because it was well made.  And, of course, it was made with love. But if we went all the way back to ancient Israel, “Made by hand” had a very different meaning and connotation.  For us it (usually) signals something good; for them it signalled idolatry.  “Made by hand” said that this thing was not made by God or that God had not commanded it to be made, but wicked humans made it anyway.  And when it came to things involved in worship, it meant idolatry. This idea has come into our language too.  You'll sometimes hear Christians—usually on the Puritan end of the spectrum—talk about this or that thing in worship or this or that doctrine being “man-made”.  The Puritans called it the “Regulative Principle” and the idea was that everything Christians do in worship should either be something God explicitly commanded (like reading the Bible or singing or preaching) or something that good and necessary consequence demands. We Anglicans follow what's called the “Normative Principle”, which means that we have freedom in our worship, as long as what we do is not forbidden by scripture or goes against biblical principles.  But you'll often hear folks who follow the Regulative Principle say things like, “Your liturgy or your hymns are ‘man-made'” or “Your traditions of using musical instruments or observing Easter, Christmas, and other holy days are ‘man-made'” and by that they mean that they're unbiblical and wrong.  Some would go so far as to call these things “idolatry”. The “RP” isn't our tradition, I think more than anything else in Protestantism it has led to sinful, ungodly, and unwarranted schisms, but I do respect the fact that it grew out of a commitment to take worship very seriously.  People who follow it understand that how we worship God is serious business, not something frivolous.  I think most Christians today err in taking zero care in how they worship God.  But you can't read the New Testament and you certainly can't read the Old Testament without realising that how we worship is serious business.  God takes it seriously and so should we.  I'll come back to this, but keep it in the back of your mind as we work through the end of Stephen's speech. I want to pick up where we left off in Acts 7.  We've been making our way through Stephen's speech before the Sanhedrin—the body of Jewish elders.  He's been accused of blasphemy and of speaking against torah and the temple and Moses.  And instead of defending himself, what he's done is to tell the story of Israel and Israel's God.  He's telling it in a such way that they should—hopefully—see that he's not speaking against any of those things that defined them as Jews.  He's telling the story in such a way that they'll see—hopefully—that the gospel is not a departure from Israel's story, but rather the very culmination of it—the very thing that torah and temple and Moses were pointing toward all along.  And so he began with Abraham and the call of Israel, and then Joseph, and then Moses.  And as he's telling not just the story, but their story, he's highlighting its themes of forgiveness and grace and also that when God acts, when God does new things, it's almost never what anyone expected—but afterward you can always see that, in fact, the signposts had always been pointing to that new thing.  Like I said last week, the figure of Moses towers over the story of Israel and Stephen knew that.  But he also knew, as Moses towered over the story, he did so like a signpost, with his arm outstretched, pointing the people straight to Jesus.  He knew, you can't use Moses to argue against the gospel. So let's pick up at Acts 7:35 where we left off. [Page 1087 in the pew Bibles, way down in the very bottom right corner of the page.] “So,” Stephen continued, “this same Moses—the one they rejected, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler or judge?'—this is the man God sent as ruler and redeemer, by the hand of the angel who had appeared to him in the bush.  He did signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, and led them out, through the Red Sea and for forty years in the wilderness.  This is the Moses who said to the sons of Israel, ‘God will raise up a prophet like me from among your brothers.'  And this is the one who was in the assembly in the desert with the angel who had spoken to him on Mount Sinai, and with our ancestors; and he received living words to give to us.” Stephen's continuing the story of Moses he began in last week's text.  Moses was rejected by his own people—at least at first.  And there was nothing controversial in telling this part of the story.  And there's nothing controversial in his reminding the Sanhedrin that despite that early rejection, Moses was indeed the ruler and redeemer the Lord had sent to his people.  Moses did signs and wonders in both Egypt and in the wilderness.  He's the one who parted the Red Sea.  He's the one who met God on the mountain and came down with God's living words, with the torah and with the instructions for the tabernacle.  And—Stephen makes a really important point here—Moses was also the one who told the Israelites that he was not the end-all-be-all of rulers, redeemers, or messiahs, because one day the Lord would raise up a “prophet” from amongst them—a prophet in comparison to whom Moses would pale. The Sanhedrin knew he was talking about Jesus.  The people had already suspect that Jesus was this greater prophet whom Moses had prophesied.  More than once he was asked, “Are you the prophet who is to come?”  So Stephen's making it clear, just as Moses had been rejected by the Israelites of his day, so Jesus was rejected by the Israelites of his.  We've touched on this last week. But now Stephen takes it a step further.  Look at verse 39.  It's not just that Moses was rejected by his people in the days before he was actually called by God.  The more embarrassing thing for Israel was that they'd rejected Moses after he'd been called, after they'd been through the Red Sea, after they'd seen the signs and wonders and had the torah and the tabernacle.  Stephen goes on: “This is the one whom our fathers had not wanted to obey, but instead rejected him and turned back in their hearts to Egypt, by saying to Aaron, ‘Make us gods who will go before us; for this Moses, who brought us out of the land of Egypt—we don't know what has become of him!'  They made a calf in those days, and offered sacrifice to an idol. They celebrated things their own hands had made.” Remember what happened in Exodus?  Moses went up the mountain to meet God.  And he was up there for forty days and nights receiving the law.  And the people became afraid.  They thought that Moses surely must have died on the mountain, so they gave Aaron their gold and implored him to make a golden calf, an idol, so that they could have a god who would protect them.  It was a shameful moment for Israel.  They'd just received the Ten Commandments.  They'd just been told by God: You shall have no other gods.  You shall not make a carved image.  And Moses had asked them, “Will you do all these things?  Will you give yourself to the worship and service of the God of your fathers, the God who has saved you from Egypt?  The God who has decalared, ‘I will be your God and you will be my people?”  And the people had enthusiastically declared, “We will!  All this we will do!”  And just days later, they didn't. As eating the forbidden fruit was the primal sin of the human race, idolatry was the primal sin of Israel: worshipping something as if it were God when it wasn't.  Aaron had tried to explain to Moses that he'd merely thrown the gold into the fire and that the calf had formed and jumped out of its own accord, but everyone knew that's not how it works.  Idols are made by human hands and the prophets drove that point home over and over down through Israel's history.  To worship an idol was absurd.  The pagans were fools for doing so.  First, you create a god with your own hands and then you worship it.  “How stupid is that?” the prophets asked.  And yet the golden calf wasn't the last time Israel would worship an idol.  That primal sin came back over and over and over.  When Jeroboam rebelled and led ten of the tribes of Israel to form their own nation, he set up two golden calves, one at Bethel and one at Dan to discourage his people from going to the temple in Jerusalem.  No matter how devoutly Israel worshipped the Lord, idolatry was never far off.   Look at verse 42: “Then God turned and handed them over to worship the host of heaven, as it stands written in the book of the prophets: ‘Did you bring sacrifices and offerings to me in those forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?  You took up the tent of Moloch, and the star of your god Rhephan, the carved images you made to worship! I will remove you beyond Babylon!'” Stephen quotes Amos 5.  Even during Israel's honeymoon period with the Lord, Amos condemned them.  Even then, while they brought their sacrifices to the Lord, they were worshiping pagan gods like Moloch and Rhephan and all the “host of heaven”. So the Jewish priests and rulers have charged Stephen with blasphemy and now he turns the tables.  He never actually defends himself.  Instead, he retells the story of Israel from the beginning and shows how it leads straight to Jesus and now, again, he turns the tables on them.  He accuses them of the very thing they've charged him with.  Just as Israel had rejected Moses, so Israel's priests and rulers have rejected Jesus.  And—since their most significant charge seems to have been that he was speaking against the temple—and that was precisely the same charge on which Jesus was arrested and crucified—Stephen makes his second point or his second charge against them.  Verse 44: “Our ancestors had the ‘tent of meeting' in the desert. [That's another name for the tabernacle.] God had commanded Moses to make it according to the pattern which he had seen.  Our ancestors in their turn brought it in when, with Joshua, [meaning they brought it with them into Canaan, the promised land] they dispossessed the nations whom God drove out before our ancestors, and it was there until the time of David.  David found favour with God, and requested permission to establish a Tabernacle for the house of Jacob.  But it was Solomon who built him a house. [Stephen is referring to the permanent temple in Jerusalem.]  Now his key point: “The Most High, however, does not live in shrines made by human hands. The prophet put it like this: ‘Heaven is my throne, and earth my footstool! What sort of house will you build me, says the Lord, Or what place will you give me to rest in?  My own hand made all these, did it not?' Yes, David planned the temple.  Solomon built it with the Lord's blessing.  But Stephen quotes Isaiah 66.  The Prophet Isaiah had rebuked the people using the very words that Solomon had prayed at the dedication of the temple.  It is God who has made all things.  The idea that human beings can make anything—even the temple—that can contain God, well, that's the real blasphemy.  Solomon knew that with this glorious temple on the mountain top, that with God's presence manifest in a cloud of glory, that Israel—always prone to idolatry—would start to think that they had God in a box—to put as we might put it.  Solomon warned them.  Isaiah warned them.  And now Stephen is pointing his finger at the Sanhedrin and is saying, “When Jesus said he'd tear this building down and rebuild it in three days, he wasn't blaspheming it.  When I said that this is precisely what Jesus has done and when I say that Jesus has, indeed, built a new temple by purifying a new people and filling them with God's own Spirit, I'm not the one blaspheming the temple.  No!  You're the one's blaspheming God!  You think you've got God in a box.  You're thinking like the pagans.  You've gone back to our people's primal sin!  Heaven is God's throne and earth his footstool.  The entire cosmos he's made cannot contain him.  What fools you are to think your puny temple can contain him!  The temple was the signpost pointing the way to what God's done in Jesus and the Spirit.  It was the signpost telling us all along that God's plan was one day to enter this world as one of us, as the Righteous One, so that he could rescue us—from sin, from death, from the idolatry that has plagued us from the beginning—by filling us with his Spirit and turning our hearts of stone into hearts of flesh.  By filling his people, not so we can guard it a box of stone, but so we can carry his presence to the ends of the earth.  But just like our ancestors, you refused God's redeemer because you couldn't let go of your building, your box made by hands.” You can almost imagine Stephen standing there in front of the Sanhedrin and with him stand Moses and Isaiah and Amos and all the other prophets nodding at his words.  He closes his speech in verses 51-53: “You stiff-necked people! Your hearts and ears are uncircumcised! You always resist the holy spirit, just as your ancestors did before you!  Which of the prophets did your ancestors not persecute? And you killed those who announced in advance the coming of the Righteous One—and now you have betrayed him and murdered him.  You received the law at the command of angels, but you didn't keep it!” They were the people God had chosen to steward his glory.  They were the keepers of the great story of God and his redemptive plan.  They, of all people, should have known better, but when the story came to its climax, they refused to listen.  They'd stried to slam the book shut.  It's not just that they rejected the Messiah and handed him over to the pagan Romans to be crucified.  Stephen's point is that they were doing what idolatrous Isreal had always done.  Even though the kind of obvious idolatry that had got them exiled to Babylon had been rooted out since their return to Judaea, they were still at heart idolators.  As Stephen recounts the story of Israel, what we find is that it's not just a story of redemption.  It's also a story of rebellion that reminds us how desperately humanity needs God's redemption.  Even the people with the law and the temple, even the people with Moses and the Prophets suffered from the same rebellious attitude that infects the human race.  As Calvin once put it, the rebellious human heart is a factory of idols.  We can take even the good things of God and turn them into idols as the Jews had done. Stephen takes the high ground.  He stands with Abraham and  Moses, with Solomon and David, with Isaiah and Amos.  The Sanhedrin, for all their moral posturing and charges of blasphemy, Stephen opens the book they'd slammed shut and shows that in reality they stand with Joseph's wicked brothers, with the Israelites who rejected Moses, with the Israelites who had given their gold to Aaron to cast a golden calf, with Jeroboam and all the others who had set up idols throughout the land.  The temple was good, but it was made with hands.  God had promised through the Prophets that one day he would make another, a better temple—and it would be better precisely because it wasn't made by human hands. Brothers and Sisters, that's us.  And as I was thinking and meditating on this over the last few weeks, I was wondering what this means for us.  I think the biggest takeaway from Stephen's speech—at least this part of it—is simply to hear him proclaim the glory of the God who has become present with us in Jesus, the Righteous One.  Jesus has, like a greater Moses, delivered us from our bondage to sin and death.  I don't think it's likely that we're going to end up like the Sanhedrin, rejecting Jesus and the Spirit in favour of the temple and the torah. But, I do think there's a warning here, even if it's a little oblique.  Brothers and Sisters, it can be very easy for us to make idols out of otherwise good—and even essential—things.  In an age of apostasy—and especially for those of us who came out of the battles for orthodoxy within Anglicanism, it can be very easy to make an idol of our theology and of our orthodoxy.  We can make idols of the traditional Prayer Book, of the old hymnals, of our classical Protestant worship.  Good things.  Orthodoxy—right doctrine, right theology, right understanding of God and of ourselves—is absolutely essential.  But Brothers and Sisters, none of these things stand in place of Jesus; none of them stands in the place of the Spirit; none of them stands in place of the Triune God.  None of them ought to undermine the unity that Jesus and the Spirit have given us with other believers.  Bp. Cummins understood this and it's why the Reformed Episcopal Church exists: because Bp. Cummins knew that Christian unity is rooted not in bishops or in sacraments, but in Jesus the Messiah.  It's good to be right in our doctrine and practise.  We should take theology and worship seriously, but we should also be humble about them.  We should acknowledge that despite our best efforts, none of us will ever—at least not this side of eternity—have a perfect theology or perfect worship.  And we ought always to guard against pride, because being proud in our imperfect theologies and imperfect worship inevitably causes us to treat them as idols.  We lose our focus on Jesus.  And no matter how right we may be, we lose our witness and cease to give glory to God. So let Stephen be a reminder to us to keep Jesus at the centre of our being and of our life together, at the centre of our church.  Let our good doctrine and our good worship be the things that keep him there.  But let him always be our God, let him always be the one we worship and glorify.  And, I think, if are faithful in that, we will be faithful in giving glory, not to ourselves, not to our theology, not to our Prayer Book, not to anything made with hands, but to the God of glory. Let's pray: God of glory, as we hear your word, as we learn the story of redemption, teach us to see and to keep Jesus, the Righteous One, always at its centre.  Give us the grace and wisdom necessary for sound doctrine and worship, not that we be “right”, but that we might always keep Jesus at the centre of our life together, that we might worship you and faithfully make your glory known to the ends of the earth.  Amen.

Continuing the mini-series, "History Lessons, Pastor Steve preaches on 1 Kings. He offers us some warnings about spiritual decline. Israel began strong under Solomon, but his divided heart led him away from God, and the kingdom eventually split and spiraled into idolatry.In Solomon (the wisest king ever!), we see that no one is immune to spiritual decline; even he, with such great wisdom and blessing, turned from the Lord. We see how leaders carry extra responsibility for those God entrusts into their care; Rehoboam and Jeroboam led the people deeper into sin. And we see what a slippery slope sin is. Israel's kings rapidly went from bad to worse, especially under Ahab.Yet even Ahab's story shows that God responds to repentance with mercy, leaving us looking forward to the only perfect King, Jesus, whose kingdom will never fall!

Every life is represented by a tiny dash between two dates on a gravestone, but the influence of that dash can last for generations. The lives of Solomon, Rehoboam, Jeroboam, and David remind us that our choices never affect only us. Compromise leaves behind a legacy of brokenness, while faithfulness leaves behind a legacy of blessing. The good news is that through Jesus—the true and faithful King—we are no longer bound to repeat the failures of those who came before us.

This week is a truly madcap sniffathon HOPEFULLY encompassing [*takes adeep breath*] wild seascapes, fragrant ghosts and a notorious rake; a spicysummer scent to set your senses tingling; a fruity treat based on a perfumer'sfavourite breakfast; a splendiferous peacock strutting its scented stuff; a stunningsueded rose; perfumes pulled straight from the vegetable patch; Harrodsexclusives to swoon over; a seriously affordable new niche house; a mesmerisingmyrrh, and Alice du Parcq's book pre-order discount code…AND if all that wasn't enough, we're also answering a #listenerprescription for ajasmine fragrance to remind her of a dance while wearing jasmine garlands.Phew!Can we possibly fit it all in without going off-topic? Listen along and find out!BeauFort London continued: Following on from last week's fascinating interviewwith founder Leo Crabtree, Nicola tries a trio of intriguing scents:Cape Wrath‘Cape Wrath Eau De Parfum. Named after the rugged area of coastline on themost North Westerly tip of Britain, Cape Wrath pulls inspiration from this wild,treacherous seascape. The remote landmark - named after the old Norse wordfor ‘turning point' has for centuries been used by sailors to safely navigate thecoast of Britain, yet its treacherous waters have claimed countless vessels.Character: Powerful; wild; windswept

 THE WEARING EXPERIENCETop Notes: Pink Pepper, Elemi, Galbanum, Angelica Root
Opens with a blast ofbracing ocean air.Heart Notes: Frankincense, Mastic, Geranium
Resinous smoke and geraniumadd both warmth and austerity.Base Notes: Ambergris, Vetiver, Ambrette, Seaweed, OakmossAbsolute
Mossy oceanic base which powerfully lingers.Perfumer: Euan McCallAbsent Presence‘‘O absent presence, Stella is not here'The fifth and final instalment of the Revenants collection draws inspiration fromthe Elizabethan poet Sir Philip Sidney. In his Sonnet sequence ‘Astrophel andStella' Sidney develops and captures the essence of a haunting… the presenceof one that is always felt but never seen.‘Now I, wit-beaten long by hardest fate,So dull am, that I cannot look intoThe ground of this fierce love and lovely hate,Then some good body tell me how I do,Whose presence absence, absent presence is;Blesst in my curse, and cursed in my bliss.'Comprising the highest level of natural ingredients of any BeauFort fragrance,Absent Presence explores its themes with typically ‘overdosed' concentrations ofviolet leaf absolute, vetiver bourbon oil, smoky leather and black pepper oil. Aswith all the Revenants family, Absent Presence is presented as 30% Eau DeParfum.Character: Dark; enveloping; waves.THE WEARING EXPERIENCETop Notes: Bergamot, Galbanum, Pepper
Fresh, green, and fleeting felt but outof reach.Heart Notes: Jasmine, Violet
 Jasmine and violet bloom with intensity.Base Notes: Leather, Sandalwood, Musk, Amber, Cedarwood 
Warm leather,woods, amber and musk linger like a ghost on the skin, the violet heart returningin waves.Perfumer: Julie Dunkley.'Rake & Ruin‘Rake & Ruin Eau De Parfum is inspired by the works of satirist William Hogarth,this fragrance summons his characters from a gin soaked 18th century London.This debauched Eau De Parfum incorporates the botanical ingredients of gin;dark woods, civet, musks and amber bringing to life 'all manner of Vice andWickedness.'

THE WEARING EXPERIENCETop Notes: Angelica, Liquorice, Juniper, Coriander, Szechuan Pepper, PinkPepper, Orange, Lemon
Opens with a sharp, gin-like freshness, spiced andeffervescent.Heart Notes: Cypress, Pine Needles, Castoreum, Labdanum, Cade Oil, Costus,Violet Orris
Bowing to a heart of smoky woods, animalic tones and powderedflorals.Base Notes: Dark Woods, Ambrarome, Sandalwood, Musk
Dark woods, muskand animalic. Ambrarome complete the seductive yet slightly sinister finish.'Alice du Parcq's book: The Philosophy of PerfumePre-order at Waterstones for £10 (25% off with code SUMMER26)https://tinyurl.com/AliceWaterstones‘The Philosophy of Perfume is a fun, warm, thoughtful and practical book allabout fragrance, which looks at its origins and how it's made, how we smell andhow best to shop for perfume. It is an adventure into the facts, folklore andfantasies surrounding perfume, delving into how it has evolved through the erasand decades as an artform, reflecting our cultural patterns through history. In thebook, you'll meet perfumers who share insights into their fascinating creativeprocess; you'll learn the science behind how we smell and the wild emotionalvoyage from smell to soul! There are tales of scented superstitions, and theliterary and historical figures who inspire perfume, plus the ways in which AI isimpacting the future of fragrance and a helpful guide on how to shop for perfumeand find The One(s!). It was so important to me that this book was not for perfume experts, but forfragrance lovers of all ages who want a moment of enchantment laced withinteresting facts, a sprinkle of science and some practical guidance when on theirnext scent shopping safari.'AKRO Heat‘HEAT is our addictive chili fragrance.Chili is not just a spice. It is a rush. A burn you think you can handle. The firsttime you smell it, it hits, it wakes you up. Then it warms you. Then you want itagain.The best chili doesn't just flavour. It ignites. It makes your skin tingle. Yourtemperature rise. Your pulse quicken. Your senses sharpen.HEAT is that moment when warmth turns into craving. When your body asks formore. A vibrant indulgence. A dopamine shot you keep coming back to.HEAT is a scent that sets you on fire and makes you love the burn.TOP: CORIANDER SEED, LEMON, RED CHILIMIDDLE: CARDAMOM, GINGER, JUNIPERBASE: CEDARWOOD, AMBROX, MUSK.'Jeroboam Oud MorningBy Vanina Muracciole‘Oud Morning from Jeroboam is the perfect balance of brightness and depth.Opening with an unexpected burst of blueberry, saffron and resins, thecomposition moves into a heart of Indian oud, softened with leather and agedwoods. Sandalwood, ambroxan and white musk anchor it into a smooth, sensualbase, finishing the creation on an intimate note.Top Notes: Blueberry, Gurjum Balsam, SaffronMiddle Notes: Indian Oudh, Leather, Dry Wood, VioletBase Notes: Sugar, Sandalwood, Cedarwood, White Musks.'Alexandre J Royal Peacock (Harrods Exclusive)‘At the turn of the 20th century, Art Nouveau reshaped the decorative arts.Mucha, Gallé, Tiffany, Lalique, all drew on nature to invent a new grammar ofcurves, stylised plants and extraordinary birds. Among them,the peacock reigned supreme: its iridescent eyes and regal bearing embodiedthe movement's core belief in beauty for beauty's sake.The opening evokes an Italian espresso served with Viennese pastry. Roastedcoffee dialogues with hazelnut in a frankly gourmand accord, before maplesyrup brings its unmistakable amber roundness, sweet without cloying, almostwoody. Caramel amplifies the indulgence, while violet casts a powdery floral veilthat keeps the composition from tipping into excess. The vanilla-almond basesettles into a lasting, addictive warmth.'Ormonde Jayne Suede Silhouette‘Bathed in crimson and violet, Suede Silhouette reflects the warmth of saffron,the richness of raspberry and the quiet confidence of suede. Exclusively atSelfridges.'Jo Malone London Veggies collection:Celine Roux says: ‘We just loved that people, even in the middle of cities likeLondon, can grow their own carrots and herbs – the fact that everyone wants tohave a grasp on nature from wherever they are. 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Pastor Jared teaches through 1 Kings 14–15, the story of Jeroboam, the first king of the divided northern kingdom of Israel. Jeroboam had a clear promise from God, but fear over losing the people's loyalty led him to build a counterfeit system of worship instead of trusting what God had already said. That choice cost him everything he was trying to protect. The passage also follows Judah's king Rehoboam, who fell into the same patterns as those around him, and young King Asa, who trusted God over his own logic even when doing right meant standing against his own family.

The line of kings in Israel began with Jeroboam who built golden calves for a more convenient worship experience. After him came Nadab, Baasha, Elah, Zimri, and Omri, all of whom were evil in the Lord's sight. This brings us to King Ahab, who should be worshipping the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God who brought Israel out of Egypt, but instead he marries a Baal worshiper, turns to serve Baal himself, then builds a temple to Baal in Samaria. Elijah boldly confronts the king in the name of the Lord of Armies. God works wonders through Elijah, and by God's strength, Elijah performs miraculous signs. 1 Kings 17 - 1:06 .  1 Kings 18 - 10:18 .  Psalm 119:33 - 17:12 .  :::Christian Standard Bible translation.All music written and produced by John Burgess Ross.Co-produced by the Christian Standard Bible.facebook.com/commuterbibleinstagram.com/commuter_bibletwitter.com/CommuterPodpatreon.com/commuterbibleadmin@commuterbible.org

In our last reading, we left off with two kings, King Baasha, who has just become king over Israel, and king Asa, who has ruled over Judah for three years at the time of Baasha's ascension to the throne. Baasha became king by force, killing Jeroboam's son Nadab as well as the rest of Jeroboam's family. Take note of the rotating door of kings who rule over Israel, leading up to King Ahab, who is incredibly wicked. Not only that, you'll also notice how long Asa rules in faithfulness to the Lord while Israel's kings come and go. Later in 2 Chronicles, we'll hear the account of Baasha declaring war against Asa, who fails to trust in the Lord, and calls upon the king of Aram instead. 1 Kings 16 - 1:07 .  2 Chronicles 16 - 8:13 .   2 Chronicles 17 - 11:13 .  Psalm 119:17 - 14:36 .  :::Christian Standard Bible translation.All music written and produced by John Burgess Ross.Co-produced by the Christian Standard Bible.facebook.com/commuterbibleinstagram.com/commuter_bibletwitter.com/CommuterPodpatreon.com/commuterbibleadmin@commuterbible.org

"The word of the Lord that came unto Hosea, the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel. The beginning of the word of the Lord by Hosea. And the Lord said to Hosea, Go, take unto thee a wife of whoredoms and children of whoredoms: for the land hath committed great whoredom, departing from the Lord. So he went and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim; which conceived, and bare him a son. And the Lord said unto him, Call his name Jezreel; for yet a little while, and I will avenge the blood of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu, and will cause to cease the kingdom of the house of Israel. And it shall come to pass at that day, that I will break the bow of Israel, in the valley of Jezreel. And she conceived again, and bare a daughter. And God said unto him, Call her name Loruhamah: for I will no more have mercy upon the house of Israel; but I will utterly take them away. But I will have mercy upon the house of Judah, and will save them by the Lord their God, and will not save them by bow, nor by sword, nor by battle, by horses, nor by horsemen. Now when she had weaned Loruhamah, she conceived, and bare a son. Then said God, Call his name Loammi: for ye are not my people, and I will not be your God. Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered; and it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people, there it shall be said unto them, Ye are the sons of the living God. Then shall the children of Judah and the children of Israel be gathered together, and appoint themselves one head, and they shall come up out of the land: for great shall be the day of Jezreel." Hosea 1-3

Our readings today examine the lives of two descendants of David who each reigned as king over Israel. First, there's Abijah (or Abijam), who reigned for only 3 years, but who makes an impassioned speech against Israel's king Jeroboam, warning him that he should not wage war against the Lord and those who serve Him. Abijah's son Asa takes the throne after him, and Asa devotes himself to the Lord for most of his life. The Lord rewards Asa's faithfulness by blessing the nation of Judah with a long period of peace. In 2 Chronicles we'll also read about two of Israel's kings: King Nadab is the son of Jeroboam, but he and the rest of Jeroboam's lineage are cut down and destroyed in accordance with God's judgment. Baasha becomes king after killing Nadab, and reign for 24 years. 1 Kings 15 - 1:07 .  2 Chronicles 13 - 7:28 .  2 Chronicles 14 - 13:03 .  2 Chronicles 15 - 16:15 .  Psalm 119:1 - 20:03 .  :::Christian Standard Bible translation.All music written and produced by John Burgess Ross.Co-produced by the Christian Standard Bible.facebook.com/commuterbibleinstagram.com/commuter_bibletwitter.com/CommuterPodpatreon.com/commuterbibleadmin@commuterbible.org

Our episode begins with a retelling of the insulting manner in which Rehoboam addresses Jeroboam, only this time the account is from 2 Chronicles rather than 1 Kings. Recall that it was the prophet Ahijah who tore a new robe into 12 pieces and gave 10 pieces to Jeroboam, symbolizing the number of tribes he would rule over. After Jeroboam leads a revolt, he became king over those 10 tribes. Despite the Lord's kindness to Jeroboam, he also turned away from God and immediately set up two sanctuaries, each with a golden calf. As we read from 1 Kings 14, the same prophet who once declared God's favor now declares God's wrath upon the house of Jeroboam, for the king has acted wickedly. 2 Chronicles 10 - 1:08 .  2 Chronicles 11 - 5:04 .  2 Chronicles 12 - 9:21 .  1 Kings 14 - 13:01 .  Psalm 118 - 20:04 .  :::Christian Standard Bible translation.All music written and produced by John Burgess Ross.Co-produced by the Christian Standard Bible.facebook.com/commuterbibleinstagram.com/commuter_bibletwitter.com/CommuterPodpatreon.com/commuterbibleadmin@commuterbible.org

The sermon explores the theme of divine strength prevailing over human weakness through the biblical account of King Abijah. It contrasts the vanity of earthly wealth and legacy with the enduring power of faith in God. The preacher highlights how Abijah, despite being outnumbered and outmatched by Jeroboam, relied on the gospel rather than military might. This narrative serves as an encouragement for believers to trust in spiritual resources when facing overwhelming odds. Ultimately, the message asserts that embracing the seemingly foolishness of the gospel is the true source of victory and salvation.

In marrying wives from surrounding nations, he has disobeyed the direct command of the Lord and fallen into idolatry. As such is the case, the Lord vowed to take the kingdom away from Solomon's family after he is gone. Sadly, the wisdom that Solomon had passed on to his sons doesn't take root, and the foolishness of his son Rehoboam causes a revolt and a division in the nation of Israel. Today, we'll be introduced to Jeroboam, a man who Ahijah prophesies will rule over ten tribes of Israel. If Jeroboam walks in the ways of the Lord, God promises that he will be with him and build a lasting dynasty for him. Sadly, Jeroboam attempts to establish a center for worship outside of Jerusalem that is not ordained by God. 1 Kings 11:26 - 1:10 .  1 Kings 12 - 5:05 .  1 Kings 13 - 13:04 .  Psalm 116 - 20:36 .  Psalm 117 - 22:51 .  :::Christian Standard Bible translation.All music written and produced by John Burgess Ross.Co-produced by the Christian Standard Bible.facebook.com/commuterbibleinstagram.com/commuter_bibletwitter.com/CommuterPodpatreon.com/commuterbibleadmin@commuterbible.org

Daily Dose of Hope July 14, 2026   Scripture: 2 Kings 10   Prayer:  Holy God, You are a God of order and a God of purpose.  The world may seem chaotic, but you are not.  You have ordered your world with perfection.  Help us trust you.  Lord, fill us with your perfect peace.  In Your Name, Amen.   Welcome back to the Daily Dose of Hope, the devotional and podcast that complements the New Hope daily Bible reading plan.  This summer, we have been working our way through 1 & 2 Kings.  Today, we read 2 Kings 10.   In today's chapter, Jehu is now king of Israel.  He is truly bold and full of zeal.  He doesn't waste any time carrying out judgement against the house of Ahab.  He then takes it upon himself to kill the rest of Ahab's family, as was prophesied by Elijah.  There really wasn't any opposition.  All who had worked for or were related to Ahab seemed to know that their fate was assured.   Then, we find Jehu cleansing the land of Baal worship.  He gathers all the priests and servants of Baal together, saying they were going to honor the false god.  As we know, this was a very effective ruse which allowed the king and his men to kill all of the Baal prophets and worshipers at once.  It must have been horrifically violent and bloody.  What remained of the Baal temple became a public toilet.  Fitting, I guess.   But what I found interesting was Jehu's half-way obedience.  He got rid of Baal worship but he still allowed people to worship golden calves in Bethel and Dan.  What?  Getting rid of Ahab and the Baal lovers apparently benefitted Jehu financially and politically.  But he didn't go the extra mile to do the right thing if it didn't directly benefit him.    Thus, the reign of Jehu was both good and bad: ·      Jehu carried out God's will, but he went too far and executed more people than God intended. ·      Jehu carried out God's will, but he did it for personal glory and out of pride. ·      Jehu carried out God's will, but he only did it partially. He stopped the idolatry of Baal, but he continued the sinful idolatry of Jeroboam.    Jehu was only half committed to God.  He hated one sin but loved another.  He was obedient but too self-focused.  While we aren't as violent as Jehu, how many of us fall into these categories as well?   Blessings, Pastor Vicki  

In this episode of Fed by the Fruit, host KB continues her July Bible deep-dive with the cautionary story of two bad kings—Rehoboam and Jeroboam—whose pride and disobedience split Israel into a northern and southern kingdom. Learn how Rehoboam's harsh, foolish leadership drove ten tribes to rebel, how Jeroboam traded God's promise of an enduring dynasty for golden calves and idolatry, and how the prophet Ahijah's warning ultimately came true. Through their downfall, KB unpacks timeless lessons on consistent devotion, the danger of seeking God only in seasons of trouble, and the sobering truth of Galatians 6:7—“God cannot be mocked; a man reaps what he sows.” Anchored in July's memory verse, Romans 12:12, this episode challenges you to seek the Lord wholeheartedly and build your life on a firm foundation of faith.Reach out to KB on Instagram and share your thoughts.

First Kings 13 stands up and says obedience is not optional. Jeroboam lifts his hand at a pagan altar, and God sends a man from Judah with a laser‑specific word, naming Josiah three centuries early. The altar splits, the ashes pour out, the king's arm withers and then is healed at prayer. The sign and the mercy both land. Then God's terms land too: do not eat, do not drink, do not go back the same way. The young prophet honors that word… until he doesn't. An old prophet rides out, looks credible, sounds spiritual, and lies. “An angel spoke to me,” he says. The young prophet trades the word he heard for the word he was told. He eats, he drinks, and the very mouth that deceived him pronounces judgment. On the road home a lion meets him. The lion does not eat him. The donkey is not touched. Lion, body, donkey just stand there like a billboard. That scene isn't a random attack. It is a sign. In a world of liars and lions, only the word of God can be trusted. Obedience speaks like this: God's commands are not suggestions, partial obedience is still disobedience, and no later “revelation” ever overwrites what God already said. Confirmation can come through people, but revelation comes from God. The church loves performers who can hit the script, but God asks for sons and daughters who submit. Gygas' ring shows why performance fools people. Give a man invisibility and the hidden self steps out. Social constraints make people look good. Only obedience makes people true. Awakening begins where the foundations of sin get broken and a new beginning of obedience takes root. That call lands on the church first. Behind every lie sits a lion, and disobedience still carries consequences. Grace spares a life, but disobedience can still kill a calling, a dream, a future. God means what he says and says what he means. So where does a life of obedience come from? Not from hyped passion. Passion flows from a sightline. Moses prays, “Please show me Your glory.” Isaiah sees the Lord high and lifted up, the fire touches his lips, and only then does “Here am I, send me” come out of his mouth. The Greeks ask for one thing, “Sir, we would see Jesus.” Mary sits at his feet and hears his word. People cannot obey whom they do not know. See him, and obedience stops being performance. Do it in the secret place, and the Father will reward openly.

Every life is represented by a tiny dash between two dates on a gravestone, but the influence of that dash can last for generations. The lives of Solomon, Rehoboam, Jeroboam, and David remind us that our choices never affect only us. Compromise leaves behind a legacy of brokenness, while faithfulness leaves behind a legacy of blessing. The good news is that through Jesus—the true and faithful King—we are no longer bound to repeat the failures of those who came before us. In Christ, we can begin

Every life is represented by a tiny dash between two dates on a gravestone, but the influence of that dash can last for generations. The lives of Solomon, Rehoboam, Jeroboam, and David remind us that our choices never affect only us. Compromise leaves behind a legacy of brokenness, while faithfulness leaves behind a legacy of blessing. The good news is that through Jesus—the true and faithful King—we are no longer bound to repeat the failures of those who came before us. In Christ, we can begin

Every life is represented by a tiny dash between two dates on a gravestone, but the influence of that dash can last for generations. The lives of Solomon, Rehoboam, Jeroboam, and David remind us that our choices never affect only us. Compromise leaves behind a legacy of brokenness, while faithfulness leaves behind a legacy of blessing. The good news is that through Jesus—the true and faithful King—we are no longer bound to repeat the failures of those who came before us. In Christ, we can begin.

Every life is represented by a tiny dash between two dates on a gravestone, but the influence of that dash can last for generations. The lives of Solomon, Rehoboam, Jeroboam, and David remind us that our choices never affect only us. Compromise leaves behind a legacy of brokenness, while faithfulness leaves behind a legacy of blessing. The good news is that through Jesus—the true and faithful King—we are no longer bound to repeat the failures of those who came before us. In Christ, we can begin.

In 1 Kings 12 and 13, Pastor Gerrit looks at the story of Rehoboam and Jeroboam, the two kings who split Israel after Solomon's death. Rehoboam ignores wise counsel and rules harshly, losing ten tribes in the process. Jeroboam, ruled by fear rather than faith, sets up false worship sites so the people won't return to Jerusalem. Even after a clear warning from God, he refuses to turn back. Together their choices show how ignoring godly counsel and letting fear win out can slowly harden a heart against repentance.

Are you running the race to finish it, or are you going to get disqualified right at the end?In today's episode of Word Time, Coach Shaw dives deep into 2 Kings chapter 9 and 10 to break down the tragic story of King Jehu. On paper, Jehu looks like a true patriot and a total hero of the faith. He was anointed by Elisha to carry out God's direct judgment on the wicked dynasty of Ahab and Jezebel, and he absolutely handled business. He wiped out Baal worship, eliminated the false prophets, and even turned the temple of Baal into a public toilet.But verse 31 drops a terrifying warning: “But Jehu did not obey the law of the Lord, the God of Israel, with all his heart.”We look at how Jehu's partial obedience directly connects to the modern-day American church, the deception of the "once saved, always saved" doctrine, and the reality of what it means to guard your inheritance so you don't hear those dread words from Jesus: "Depart from me, I never knew you."Video Chapters:0:00 — Introduction: 2 Kings 9 & The Story of Jehu1:03 — Elisha's Anointing & The Judgment on Ahab's House1:42 — Naboth's Vineyard & The Spirit of Jezebel Today2:16 — The Hour of Justice: Spiritual Warfare in Modern America2:55 — Revelation, the Fall of America, and End-Times Delusions4:12 — Exposing the Pre-Tribulation Rapture Myth5:16 — Country vs. Faith: The Narrow Path for Patriots6:26 — Jehu Wipes Out the Kings (Joram & Ahaziah)7:28 — Jezebel's Final Moments & The Modern "Spider-Man Meme" Inversion8:28 — Eliminating Ahab's 70 Sons: Going Beyond a 95% Mandate9:19 — The Bait: Jehu's Plan to Trap the Priests of Baal10:13 — Turning the Temple of Baal into a Public Toilet10:58 — The Golden Calves: The Kicker in Verse 3112:09 — "Depart From Me": Why Your Works Won't Save You14:23 — The Scholarship & The Inheritance: Losing What Is Reserved16:21 — Decadence, July 4th, and the Reality of American Privilege17:40 — The Best Person in Hell: Striving Daily for Total Surrender18:38 — Closing Prayer: Thanking God for Grace, Mercy, and JesusKey Takeaways From This Message:The 95% Trap: Jehu did exactly what God asked him to do when it came to destroying Ahab's house and tearing down Baal. He went all in on 95% of the mandate. But he left the 5%—the golden calves of Jeroboam—untouched. We cannot claim to walk with God while keeping our favorite little cultural idols intact.The Illusion of Patriotism: Right now, there is a massive alignment between American patriots and the Christian faith. But when the end-times pressure cooker forces a choice between country and Christ, many who love America more than they love the Word will fold. The path is narrow for a reason.Salvation is an Inheritance, Not a Possession Yet: The Bible consistently notes that our salvation is an inheritance reserved in heaven, untouched by rust or moths. Just like a college scholarship or a family will, you can break the rules, walk away, and forfeit what was waiting for you.Don't Be the Best Person in Hell: Jehu accomplished monumental things for the Kingdom, yet failed to give God his whole heart. You can be opposite to the world, hated by society, and incredibly productive in ministry, but if you don't finish the race in full obedience, it means nothing.Scriptures Referenced in This Episode:2 Kings 9 & 10 — The rise, conquests, and internal failure of King Jehu.Matthew 7:21-23 — "Depart from me, I never knew you."Colossians 1 & 1 Peter 1:4 — An inheritance incorruptible, undefiled, reserved in heaven.Revelation (General) — The final trials of the elect and the global shakeup before Christ's return.Let's stop playing games with our faith, check our hearts daily, and thank God for the grace found only in Jesus Christ. Have a blessed weekend!#WordTime #CoachForChrist #KingJehu #BiblicalTruth #EndTimes #WholeHeartedObedience #NoCompromise

When Elijah stood on Mount Carmel, he challenged an entire nation: "How long halt ye between two opinions?" In a world pulling us in a thousand different directions, are we trying to keep one foot in Zion and the other in Babylon, or are we ready to let God prevail? Summary: In this episode, we explore the dramatic events of 1 Kings 12-22 . We transition from the massive building projects of Solomon to the fractured, divided kingdoms of Israel and Judah, uncovering the crucial role of the prophets in calling a drifting people back to their covenants. The Division of the Kingdom: We analyze the critical leadership mistakes of Rehoboam, who rejected the wise counsel of the elders to double down on burdens, and Jeroboam, who created a convenient, counterfeit religion to keep his people from the Temple. The Test of Exact Obedience: We study the sobering and tragic story of the unnamed younger man of God in 1 Kings 13, discovering why resisting temptation once doesn't mean the trial is over. The Widow of Zarephath: We look closely at Elijah's interactions with a starving widow in Zidon, learning how her willingness to put God's prophet first turned a final, meager meal into a continuous source of life. The Fire on Mount Carmel: We break down Elijah's epic confrontation with the 450 prophets of Baal, analyzing how Jehovah systematically dismantled and discredited the Canaanite pantheon. The Still Small Voice: After the fire, wind, and earthquake, Elijah finds God not in the spectacular displays, but in the quiet, inner whisper. We talk about the loneliness of leadership and how the Lord reminds us that we are never as alone as we think. Call-to-Action: Elijah repaired the broken altar of the Lord before he called down the fire. What is one "broken altar" or spiritual habit in your life that needs to be repaired this week? Share your thoughts in the comments below! If you are ready to stop halting between two opinions and build an "Unshaken" faith, please like, subscribe, and share this video! Chapter Timestamps: 0:00 Introduction 2:54 Rehoboam's Lack of Wisdom 25:10 Jeroboam's Lack of Faith 1:02:06 Visions of a Blind Seer 1:23:10 Elijah and the Widow of Zarephath 2:03:08 Elijah and the Priests of Baal 2:44:02 Hearing the Still, Small Voice 3:06:27 Ahab and Jezebel 3:24:00 Conclusion

Set Apart - Pt 2 - Break the Cycle - We've all seen cycles of hurt, poor decision-making, or brokenness passed down through families, organizations, or cultures. Breaking those cycles is incredibly hard work—but it's entirely possible when we choose a different path. In this message, we are diving deep into 1 Kings 12–14 to look at a tragic turning point in ancient history. Two newly crowned kings, Rehoboam and Jeroboam, both stood at a massive crossroads. Both inherited a fragile kingdom, and both had a golden opportunity to break the destructive cycles of the past, humble themselves, and lead their people toward true healing through repentance. Instead? Both completely missed their moment. Join us as we unpack the heavy, centuries-long impact their pride had on two entire nations, and explore what their stories teach us today about our own blind spots. We'll discuss the liberating power of personal repentance and how choosing humility can alter the trajectory of your life, your family, and your legacy for generations to come. Grab your Bible, open up to 1 Kings, and let's dive into the Word together!

Jason Seville, Pastor of Del Ray Baptist Church

By Paul Moody - Solomon didn't fail because of lack of knowledge, but because he failed to remain faithful. The kingdom split, and Rehoboam and Jeroboam likewise failed to trust God but instead relied on self and had fear instead of faith. Both, actually, were given good starts but ended in failure. Through it all

→ Watch on YouTube → Detailed Show Notes(00:00) An overview of these chapters. The kingdom of Israel divides when Solomon's son Rehoboam refuses to reduce the burden on the northern tribes.(06:55) A brief history of the Lost Ten Tribes in the north and Judah in the south.(10:48) Jeroboam, worried that his people will turn their hearts towards the leaders in the south when they go to the temple in Jerusalem, decides to build rival sanctuaries in Dan and Bethel.(13:25) Do not take counsel from your fears or be fooled by an imitation.(19:18) A man of God warns Jeroboam against false worship, prophesying of a future day when Josiah will destroy it.(22:17) What happened to the Ark of the Covenant? Could Shishak of Egypt have taken this treasure from the Jerusalem temple?(29:13) Elijah, an embodiment of great power, is a type of many prophets. All prophets are types of Christ. (31:49) Elijah seals the heavens and is fed by a raven. He goes to Zarephath and asks a widow woman for her barrel flour and jar of oil, promising they will never become empty during the famine.(40:30) Elijah raises the widow's son from the dead. Jesus duplicates the miracles of Elijah.(43:28) Obadiah, part of Ahab's court, saves 100 prophets from Queen Jezebel and also helps Elijah.(47:29) Obadiah and Elijah's “50” can be seen as part of a bigger picture, as members of a choral arrangement that were connected to the temple and the sacred drama in many ancient cultures.(52:37) Elijah challenges the prophets of Baal to call down fire from heaven. They fail.(57:14) At times the Lord will manifest miracles to show his might and prove that he is God. The Book of Mormon is that proof for us today.(1:03:40) The famine ends and Queen Jezebel seeks the life of Elijah. In his loneliness, Elijah experiences deep sadness, believing that the prophets are dead. At times, we may feel as Elijah did. Being with the Saints and remembering the truth of the gospel message can bolster our resilience.(1:11:44) Elijah's experience with the still small voice of the Lord.(1:18:17) Ahab, king of Israel, is attacked by the Syrian army. A prophet tells Ahab that Israel will win. Ahab later desires the vineyard of Naboth, who refuses to sell his land. Jezebel, Ahab’s wife, orchestrates a conspiracy to frame Naboth for blasphemy, and Ahab acquires the land through deceit. Elijah comes to inform Ahab that Ahab’s line will cease, that Jezebel will be eaten by dogs, and that Ahab’s blood will be licked up by dogs in the very spot where Naboth was killed. Time vindicates the prophets. → For more of Bryce Dunford’s podcast classes, click here. → Enroll in Institute → YouTube → Apple Podcasts → Spotify → Amazon Music → Facebook The post Ep 378 | 1 Kings 12-22, Come Follow Me 2026 (June 29-July 5) appeared first on LDS Scripture Teachings.

Join Lynne Hilton Wilson as she explores the powerful and complex stories of the Old Testament women in 1 Kings 12–22, including the wife of Jeroboam, the infamous Queen Jezebel, and the faithful widow of Zarephath. In this study, we examine how these women influenced kings, confronted prophets, and revealed themes of faith, idolatry, power, and God's provision during one of Israel's most divided eras. Join us as we uncover the lessons and spiritual insights hidden within these remarkable Old Testament accounts.

In this episode of Don't Miss This, Dave Butler and Grace Freeman study 1 Kings 12-13; 17-22 and explore the divided kingdom of Israel, the ministry of Elijah, and the many ways God shows up in our lives. Through stories of kings, prophets, miracles, and personal struggles, these chapters remind us that faith is not about choosing the easiest path, but about trusting God enough to keep moving forward even when we cannot see the outcome. As the kingdom divides under Rehoboam and Jeroboam, the discussion highlights the danger of choosing convenience over covenant commitment. The temptation to make discipleship easier often comes at the cost of sacrifice, growth, and devotion. Dave and Grace reflect on how spiritual strength is built through consistent faithfulness, reminding us that some of the deepest blessings come not from avoiding difficulty, but from remaining dedicated when the journey requires effort. The heart of the episode follows Elijah's remarkable experiences during a time of drought and uncertainty. Whether being fed by ravens, helping a widow whose oil never fails, or witnessing God's power on Mount Carmel, Elijah learns again and again that the Lord provides exactly what is needed. These stories invite us to get off the bench and step into faith, trusting that God can work through unlikely circumstances, unexpected people, and miracles that often begin with simple acts of obedience. The episode concludes with Elijah's moments of exhaustion, discouragement, and renewal. Under a juniper tree and later on a mountain, he discovers that God does not always appear through dramatic displays of power. Sometimes He comes through a meal, a moment of rest, a small cloud on the horizon, or a still small voice. Together, these chapters testify of a God who is both powerful and personal, who keeps His promises, strengthens His people, and remains present through every season of the journey. Chapters: 00:00 INTRO 04:01 Jeroboam's Prophecy and Kingdom Split 06:45 The king's misguided counsel 10:52 Types of athletes and mindsets 15:45 Introduction to Elijah's Stories 18:10 Unexpected ways God provides 22:35 Fetching water and asking for bread 26:06 Elijah's promise and the sick son 27:08 Faith before evidence 30:54 Biblical story and themes discussion 36:03 Elijah's Sacrifice and Miracle 36:59 Miraculous biblical fire story 40:39 Holding onto faith through doubt 45:40 Discussing Biblical Verse Interpretation 48:16 Elijah's time in the cave 51:15 God's appearances in scripture 53:50 Social media handles and sign-off Sign up for the Don't Miss This newsletter at www.dontmissthisstudy.com #dontmissthis #comefollowme NEWSLETTER LINK: The Don't Miss This video, the prayer poster, and tip-ins for kids, teens, couples and individuals can all be found in this week's newsletter. Sign-up link in bio if you haven't had a chance yet!! www.dontmissthisstudy.com Instagram: @dontmissthisstudy Podcast: Don't Miss This Study Facebook: Don't Miss This Study Follow Grace Instagram @thisweeksgrace Follow David Instagram: @mrdavebutler Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mrdavebutler/ Subscribe to the Don't Miss This App https://www.dontmissthisstudy.com/app

In this Bible Story, we learn about the downward spiral of Judah and Israel. Their kings, Rehoboam and Jeroboam, lead their people into an era of idol-worship, war, and cynicism. The past glory of David and Solomon seems like a distant memory, and the people of Israel grow accustomed to sin and shame. This story is inspired by 1 Kings 14, 15:33-34 & 2 Chronicles 12. Go to BibleinaYear.com and learn the Bible in a Year.Today's Bible verse is 2 Chronicles 12:6 from the King James Version.Episode 120: King Jeroboam's son Abijah was sick, and as he sat at the boy's bedside, he called for his wife to disguise herself and seek out the prophet Ahijah. When she arrived, his message for her was not one of hope but of judgment and of recompense for her husband's sins. And as she rode home in heartbreak, her son Abijah died.Hear the Bible come to life as Pastor Jack Graham leads you through the official BibleinaYear.com podcast. This Biblical Audio Experience will help you master wisdom from the world's greatest book. In each episode, you will learn to apply Biblical principles to everyday life. Now understanding the Bible is easier than ever before; enjoy a cinematic audio experience full of inspirational storytelling, orchestral music, and profound commentary from world-renowned Pastor Jack Graham.Also, you can download the Pray.com app for more Christian content, including, Daily Prayers, Inspirational Testimonies, and Bedtime Bible Stories.Visit JackGraham.org for more resources on how to tap into God's power for successful Christian living.Pray.com is the digital destination of faith. With over 5,000 daily prayers, meditations, bedtime stories, and cinematic stories inspired by the Bible, the Pray.com app has everything you need to keep your focus on the Lord. Make Prayer a priority and download the #1 App for Prayer and Sleep today in the Apple app store or Google Play store.Executive Producers: Steve Gatena & Max BardProducer: Ben GammonHosted by: Pastor Jack GrahamMusic by: Andrew Morgan SmithBible Story narration by: Todd Haberkorn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this Bible Story, we learn about the man of God's disobedience towards the Lord. He's tricked into eating among the wicked city, and ultimately devoured by a lion. Meanwhile, the country of Israel descends into wickedness under the leadership of Jeroboam. This story is inspired by 1 Kings 13:11-32. Go to BibleinaYear.com and learn the Bible in a Year.Today's Bible verse is 1 Kings 13:18 from the King James Version.Episode 119: God had told the mysterious prophet, whom he sent to warn king Jeroboam, not to eat or drink anything in the city and not to return by the same way he came. So he refused the king's offer to go back to the palace and have a meal. Hearing what signs the mysterious prophet had done, an old prophet in the city left to go find the man of God. When he found him, he lied to him and brought him back into the city to enjoy a meal. But during the meal, God made his message clear that this meal would be his last because of his disobedience.Hear the Bible come to life as Pastor Jack Graham leads you through the official BibleinaYear.com podcast. This Biblical Audio Experience will help you master wisdom from the world's greatest book. In each episode, you will learn to apply Biblical principles to everyday life. Now understanding the Bible is easier than ever before; enjoy a cinematic audio experience full of inspirational storytelling, orchestral music, and profound commentary from world-renowned Pastor Jack Graham.Also, you can download the Pray.com app for more Christian content, including, Daily Prayers, Inspirational Testimonies, and Bedtime Bible Stories.Visit JackGraham.org for more resources on how to tap into God's power for successful Christian living.This episode is sponsored by Medi-Share, an innovative health care solution for Christians to save money without sacrificing quality.Pray.com is the digital destination of faith. With over 5,000 daily prayers, meditations, bedtime stories, and cinematic stories inspired by the Bible, the Pray.com app has everything you need to keep your focus on the Lord. Make Prayer a priority and download the #1 App for Prayer and Sleep today in the Apple app store or Google Play store.Executive Producers: Steve Gatena & Max BardProducer: Ben GammonHosted by: Pastor Jack GrahamMusic by: Andrew Morgan SmithBible Story narration by: Todd Haberkorn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this Bible Story, we watch the fragile kingdom of Jeroboam descend into idolatry and pride. Jeroboam erects altars of golden calves and establishes pagan priests. The Lord sends a man from Judah to rebuke him, but his disobedience does not cease. This story is inspired by 1 Kings 12:25-13:8 & 13:33-34. Go to BibleinaYear.com and learn the Bible in a Year.Today's Bible verse is 1 Kings 12:28 from the King James Version.Episode 118: Jeroboam, Israel's new king, built a new capital in Shechem to separate themselves from Judah. However, because the temple of God was in Judah, people would still travel from his kingdom to worship in Judah. Jeroboam feared this would lead to the loss of his kingdom and his life. So he, like Aaron so many years before, made two golden calves and introduced them as Israel's new gods. Slowly Jeroboam added more and more idols into Israel's public worship. God would not stand for the corruption of His people and sent a prophet to let him know what would become of his idolatrous altar.Hear the Bible come to life as Pastor Jack Graham leads you through the official BibleinaYear.com podcast. This Biblical Audio Experience will help you master wisdom from the world's greatest book. In each episode, you will learn to apply Biblical principles to everyday life. Now understanding the Bible is easier than ever before; enjoy a cinematic audio experience full of inspirational storytelling, orchestral music, and profound commentary from world-renowned Pastor Jack Graham.Also, you can download the Pray.com app for more Christian content, including, Daily Prayers, Inspirational Testimonies, and Bedtime Bible Stories.Visit JackGraham.org for more resources on how to tap into God's power for successful Christian living.Pray.com is the digital destination of faith. With over 5,000 daily prayers, meditations, bedtime stories, and cinematic stories inspired by the Bible, the Pray.com app has everything you need to keep your focus on the Lord. Make Prayer a priority and download the #1 App for Prayer and Sleep today in the Apple app store or Google Play store.Executive Producers: Steve Gatena & Max BardProducer: Ben GammonHosted by: Pastor Jack GrahamMusic by: Andrew Morgan SmithBible Story narration by: Todd Haberkorn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this Bible Story, we witness the splitting of Israel. Solomon's sin causes God to strip him of his legacy. Rehoboam, Solomon's son, uses the throne as an opportunity to be cruel. Jeroboam is named king in place of Rehoboam. So Rehoboam ruled over Judah, while Jeroboam ruled over the other ten tribes of Israel. This story is inspired by 1 Kings 11:26-12:24 & 2 Chronicles 10-11:1-4. Go to BibleinaYear.com and learn the Bible in a Year.Today's Bible verse is 1 Kings 11:34 from the King James Version.Episode 117: Solomon's lust for foreign women eventually led him to foreign worship as well. This idolatry not only tore apart his relationship with God but would tear the kingdom from his hands as well. During the reign of his son Rehoboam, Jeroboam, one of his servants who had fled from him, returned. He came to confront the new king about the injustices of his father, hoping he would change. However, when Rehoboam refused the wise counsel of his elders and gave a harsh message to the people, the ten tribes of the north left him and followed Jeroboam instead.Hear the Bible come to life as Pastor Jack Graham leads you through the official BibleinaYear.com podcast. This Biblical Audio Experience will help you master wisdom from the world's greatest book. In each episode, you will learn to apply Biblical principles to everyday life. Now understanding the Bible is easier than ever before; enjoy a cinematic audio experience full of inspirational storytelling, orchestral music, and profound commentary from world-renowned Pastor Jack Graham.Also, you can download the Pray.com app for more Christian content, including, Daily Prayers, Inspirational Testimonies, and Bedtime Bible Stories.Visit JackGraham.org for more resources on how to tap into God's power for successful Christian living.Pray.com is the digital destination of faith. With over 5,000 daily prayers, meditations, bedtime stories, and cinematic stories inspired by the Bible, the Pray.com app has everything you need to keep your focus on the Lord. Make Prayer a priority and download the #1 App for Prayer and Sleep today in the Apple app store or Google Play store.Executive Producers: Steve Gatena & Max BardProducer: Ben GammonHosted by: Pastor Jack GrahamMusic by: Andrew Morgan SmithBible Story narration by: Todd Haberkorn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Now that King Solomon has died, the prophecies of God spoken through his prophet Ahijah have come to fruition. In our last episode, Ahijah tore a new robe into 12 pieces and gave 10 pieces to Jeroboam, symbolizing the number of tribes he would rule over. Remember that Solomon's son Rehoboam insults Jeroboam, who formerly worked under Solomon as a supervisor over forced labor. After Jeroboam led a revolt, he became king over those 10 tribes. Despite the Lord's kindness to Jeroboam, he also turned away from God and immediately set up two sanctuaries, each with a golden calf. Today, God's wrath and impending destruction are announced by an unnamed prophet. 1 Kings 13 – 1:09 .  1 Kings 14 – 9:06 .  1 Kings 15 – 16:06 .  Psalm 91 – 22:20 . :::Christian Standard Bible translation.All music written and produced by John Burgess Ross.Co-produced by Bobby Brown, Katelyn Pridgen, Eric Williamson & the Christian Standard Biblefacebook.com/commuterbibleinstagram.com/commuter_bibletwitter.com/CommuterPodpatreon.com/commuterbibleadmin@commuterbible.org

Welcome to Day 2876 of Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me. This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom – Progressive Christianity and the Northern Kingdom: A Repeated Rebellion. Wisdom-Trek Podcast Script - Day 2876 Welcome to Wisdom-Trek with Gramps!   I am Guthrie Chamberlain, and we are on Day 2876 of our Trek.   The Purpose of Wisdom-Trek is to create a legacy of wisdom, to seek out discernment and insights, and to boldly grow where few have chosen to grow before. Our current series of Theology Thursday lessons is written by theologian and teacher John Daniels. I have found that his lessons are short, easy to understand, doctrinally sound, and applicable to all who desire to learn more of God's Word. John's lessons can be found on his website   theologyinfive.com.   Today's lesson is titled:  Progressive Christianity and the Northern Kingdom: A Repeated Rebellion. After the division of Israel, Jeroboam feared losing his kingdom if the people continued worshiping in Jerusalem. Rather than abolish religion, he reshaped it. He placed golden calves at Dan and Bethel and declared, “Here are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt” (First Kings 12, verse twenty-eight). He kept the name of Yahweh but changed the worship to fit political and cultural needs. Progressive Christianity walks the same path. It keeps the language of faith while redefining the terms. Jesus becomes a moral teacher rather than the risen Lord. Sin becomes injustice rather than rebellion. Salvation becomes social healing rather than spiritual redemption. Just like the Northern Kingdom, modern progressives offer a god who is familiar in name but foreign in nature. The First Segment is: “Open-Minded” Idolatry The people of Israel did not see themselves as rejecting Yahweh. They simply wanted to be open to other spiritual options. Baal was worshiped for rain, Asherah for fertility, and Molech for prosperity. The land was filled with high places, groves, and alternate shrines. In their minds, it was not apostasy. It was balance. It was maturity. Progressive Christianity mirrors this impulse. Its leaders are often proud to affirm all religions as valid paths to the divine. Jesus is presented as one example among many. Interfaith services blend Scripture with mantras, chakras, and meditation. This “open-mindedness” is not new. It is the same spiritual adultery that the prophets condemned as whoredom. God does not share His throne. The second Segment is: Pagan Intrusion in Sacred Clothing The Israelites introduced forbidden elements into their worship. They practiced divination, consulted mediums, and used cultic rituals they learned from their Canaanite neighbors. They may have justified these things as “spiritual tools,” but the prophets saw clearly what was happening. Paganism was creeping into the house of God. Today, angel cards, energy healing, astrology, aura readings, and manifesting are all being imported into churches, especially those influenced by progressive and New Apostolic Reformation theology. These practices are often wrapped in Christian language. They speak of light, Spirit, and destiny. But they are no different from the forbidden rituals of ancient days. Their power does not come from the Holy Spirit. It comes from the same deceiving spirits that always wait behind the idols. The Third Segment is: The Rise of Prophetic Theater In the Northern Kingdom, the prophets became professional performers. They declared victory and blessing without requiring repentance. They contradicted the true prophets, promising peace while ignoring rebellion. Jeremiah lamented, “They say continually to those who despise the word of the Lord, ‘It shall be well with you'” (Jeremiah 23, verse seventeen). Today's “prophecy schools,” such as Bethel's School of Supernatural Ministry, follow a disturbingly similar pattern. They claim to train individuals to “activate” prophetic gifts, to decree and declare realities into being, and to access heaven's secrets at will. But true prophecy in Scripture was never a skill to be mastered or a sensation to be invoked. It was a calling given by God to speak His Word with fear and trembling. At Bethel and similar movements, prophecy becomes performance. It centers on personal revelation, emotional experience, and “manifesting” outcomes rather than repentance, obedience, and holiness. Like the prophets of the Northern Kingdom, these teachers proclaim peace where there is no peace and glory without the cross. The emphasis on “prophetic activation” closely mirrors the divination condemned by Moses, where the divine is manipulated for human ends rather than received with reverent submission. The Fourth Segment is: Cultural Syncretism Rebranded as Revival Ancient Israel thought it could have both Yahweh and Baal. It thought it could use Canaanite worship styles to honor the God of Abraham. But Yahweh had already spoken at Sinai. His worship was not negotiable. Israel's attempt to blend cultures resulted in divine rejection. Progressive Christianity makes the same mistake. It borrows the language of self-help, the values of humanism, and the practices of mysticism. It attempts to wrap them in Christian terms, calling it “revival” or “awakening.” But Yahweh does not share His glory. He is not worshiped on the high places. He is not accessed through emotion, technique, or personal preference. He demands covenant faithfulness. The fifth segment is: The Prophets Were Never Popular In the Northern Kingdom, the true prophets were persecuted. Elijah was hunted. Amos was silenced. Hosea was scorned. They did not tell people what they wanted to hear. They told them what God said. The people preferred the false prophets who promised peace, affirmation, and national greatness. Today, biblical voices that warn against false spirituality are called judgmental. They are told they are stifling the Spirit. They are accused of division and fear-mongering. But their words match the prophets of old. God does not change, and neither does the nature of rebellion. The sixth segment is: The Consequence of Compromise The Northern Kingdom fell. Assyria crushed it, and its people were scattered. The fall was not just political. It was spiritual. The gods they welcomed could not save them. The prophets they trusted led them into ruin. God gave them over to what they had chosen. Progressive Christianity is on the same path. It trades revelation for reinvention. It welcomes what God forbids. It builds golden calves and calls them Jesus. Its trajectory is not renewal but collapse. A house built on sand will fall. In Conclusion The Northern Kingdom did not fall because it rejected religion. It fell because it redefined it. It kept the name of God while reshaping everything else. It embraced the gods of the age and called it progress. Progressive Christianity is repeating this rebellion. It is time to choose whom we will serve. For further study, consider these Discussion Questions Why do you think Jeroboam chose to redefine Israel's worship rather than abolish it outright? How does this reflect the way progressive Christianity reshapes faith today? What are the dangers of being “open-minded” about spiritual truth? At what point does openness become compromise, and how can we recognize the difference? How do modern practices like angel cards, manifesting, and prophetic activation parallel ancient forbidden rituals? Can these practices ever be redeemed or are they inherently incompatible with biblical faith? Why were the true prophets in Israel often unpopular and rejected? How does this help us evaluate popular spiritual leaders today? If the Northern Kingdom's downfall was theological more than political, what does that suggest about the long-term consequences of doctrinal compromise in the Church today? Join us next Theology Thursday to learn The Bible as a Polemic: Confronting the Powers that Rebelled Kingdom:. If you found this podcast insightful, please subscribe and leave us a review, then encourage your friends and family to join us and come along tomorrow for another day of  ‘Wisdom-Trek,  Creating a Legacy.'                          Thank you so much for allowing me to be your guide, mentor, and, most importantly,   I am your friend as I serve you through this Wisdom-Trek podcast and journal. As we take this Trek of life together, let us always: