May 19th | 1 Kings 1
My Way Or The Highway
1 Kings picks up at the end of King David’s life. As David is growing advanced in his years, people began to question, “Who will be the next king of Israel?” People might have thought that, but Adonijah declares that he will be the next king of Israel. Now, David’s son Absalom was the rightful heir to the throne, however, he was killed. With Absalom dead, Adonijah sees that the throne will be his once his father, David, dies. However, Adonijah doesn’t wait for his father’s death but declares himself king.
1 Kings 1:5, “5 Now Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, 'I will be king.” And he prepared for himself chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him.”
This verse could be said of all of us in our own lives, “He EXALTED himself.” Adonijah had no humility but sought to take the throne. This flies in the face of the ways of God. God throughout the Scriptures finds the low and humble to use for His purposes. Joseph was the youngest of his brother’s and God used him to save His people from famine. Moses was a stuttering murderer, and yet God used him to part the Red Sea and lead God’s people into freedom. And King David was the youngest and most unlikely candidate to defeat Goliath, yet God used him. God honors humility. Jesus demonstrated humility by coming from His throne in heaven to earth.
Matthew 23:12, “Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”
How often do I exalt myself before God? We choose to be the kings of our lives. God and His kingdom are often in second place. We might not come out and say it in these terms, but we declare it with our actions. Our time is spent not pondering God but pursuing our own interests. Our finances are spent building our own kingdom instead of God’s. Our hearts are often swayed and pulled from God to fulfill our own desires.
What we need is humility. Adonijah’s arrogance led to embarrassment because, eventually, David declared that Solomon would be king. Exalting oneself always leads to a certain fall to the bottom. However, if we humble ourselves before God, He will exalt us in His kingdom and use us for His plans. Would you humble yourself before God today?
