Trying to Fool People
When King Rehoboam took over the throne from his father, Solomon, he dreamed of being as rich and powerful as his father. However, that did not work out at all. He gave the wrong response to the leaders of the 10 northern tribes, and they made Jeroboam their king, splitting the kingdom. Then, Shishak, king of Egypt, attacked Jerusalem, taking all of the valuables from the treasuries of the temple and the royal palace. He even took the gold shields Solomon had made for his guards. Therefore, Rehoboam made cheap, bronze shields to replace them in an effort to fool people. (I Kings 14:26,27) Very rarely are we successful when we try to fool people by presenting a lesser alternative to the real thing.
Gold is very expensive. Bronze is very inexpensive. Yes, they look similar from a distance, but up close anyone can tell the difference. If we try to fool people to think that we are spiritually strong and pure like the gold shields by trying to outwardly appear like Christians on Sundays, we will fail. They will see that we are just bronze by how we talk and how we live. Our impurities will show through. However, if we are the real thing, they will see that, too. Only God can make our hearts pure and make us strong in the Spirit. We have to pay the price of daily commitment to Him and fully trusting in Him to make us like Jesus. Once we do that, others will see the genuine nature of our faith and our walk with God. That is why I say, we should never try to fool people. Bronze shields are nothing compared pure gold shields, and people see the difference very quickly, if we try to hide the truth.
Tomorrow, I intend to read I Kings 15-17.
Gold is very expensive. Bronze is very inexpensive. Yes, they look similar from a distance, but up close anyone can tell the difference. If we try to fool people to think that we are spiritually strong and pure like the gold shields by trying to outwardly appear like Christians on Sundays, we will fail. They will see that we are just bronze by how we talk and how we live. Our impurities will show through. However, if we are the real thing, they will see that, too. Only God can make our hearts pure and make us strong in the Spirit. We have to pay the price of daily commitment to Him and fully trusting in Him to make us like Jesus. Once we do that, others will see the genuine nature of our faith and our walk with God. That is why I say, we should never try to fool people. Bronze shields are nothing compared pure gold shields, and people see the difference very quickly, if we try to hide the truth.
Tomorrow, I intend to read I Kings 15-17.