Alternates - awareness of Jeroboam and Rehoboam

In 1 Kings 12-14, Jeroboam made the following critical errors; these are telltale throughout 1 Kings; trusting your own wisdom, following your own rational, and ignoring the statues and charges from God.

Rehoboam at first listened to bad advice, but later on he listens to the prophetic advice and avoids wars.  His concern shifted to the people, where as it was not with the people in the initial transfer of kingship from Solomon.

Jeroboam set up alternates in fear of losing the people, so he instituted idols (two golden calves), alternate worship sites, alternate festival, and alternate priests.  This is an allusion to Aaron 'thinking to himself,' and not trusting that God was in control.  A fear and panic set in, people then believed Moses would not come down off the mountain.  Jeroboam, much like Aaron, received some very bad advice, and then he acted out on that advice.  His spoken rational was that of a person seeking to win the people, or in other word, he wanted to be liked by the people.  I can imagine Aaron acting with the same motives.  The result was the dividing of worship from the true place of worship, instituting objects of worship, and appointing some not so holy priests.  This had deviating results.  In the end he ignored the prophetic warning on multiple occasion, along with all that he been given in scripture as commands.

Substitutes may win the people, but in the end you lose much more than you gain

A Kingdom Proclamation

Imagine the whole of Scripture as a 780,000 word grand marriage proposal, complete with the details of the wedding, the groom's character, and the background of his family (historical lineage and seeming 'across the ocean' distance). This proposal gives accounts of why he is good, why you have hope with him, and what he wants you to do during the betrothal period.

He lets you know of the feud taking place that is causing tension in the land and will reach its climax right before the ceremony. He explains that there will be a grand conflict between the groom's side of the wedding party and those principalities who oppose his family, partly because of the land deal involved, and partly because they reject the rule and authority of the groom's royal family.

Other principalities will try to talk you out of it, attempt to slander you, and sometimes persecute you. Later attempts may be made to cloud your perception of your value to the groom and his family, often suggesting he could not really love you. But the groom is patient, forgiving mistake after mistake, even though you may still have an occasional moment of doubt, anxiousness, or anxiety continuing up to the wedding day. However, he will persistently comfort and reassure you – even offer you rest in the interim.

Meanwhile, if you accept his grand proposal, he will give you a task in preparation for the upcoming wedding feast. Like a bride-to-be, your role will be to proclaim the good news of your beloved’s first coming and his coronation as king which will take place upon his second coming. You would also share with others about the goodness of your new family and frequently welcome others to join your family, even as you commune with your beloved while you await your anticipated marriage ceremony. These are no small tasks, so the groom has sent you one of his closest companions to serve as your counselor and to console you as you persevere until the groom himself can be with you.

Recently I've been interested in Biblical Theology, and as I get back into posting this should explain the direction of many of my thoughts. 

Please allow me to try to explain my interest in the Bible and theology. At times, as I seek to find God’s will for my life, these interests have become near obsessions taking on many forms and many questions: (1) What makes a good hymn and what constitutes good worship music? (2) What was wrong with the form of Christianity I was taught as a child such that it did not cause me to find Christ? (3) What is Christianity? (4) How do I understand my story? (5) How are we supposed to live as Christians today? [I always come back to this question.] (6) How do I communicate this to others in an understandable context?

Communication has proven to be the key. In some ways, I feel closer to God in Biblical studies than I do in the music/worship realm. Recently, I have felt close to God by becoming a servant to others by communicating Him to others. In this, I have found the answer to an earlier question about how to be closer to God outside of the worship service, church, and the whole of the institution. It's amazing how God shows up in one-on-one conservations, group discussions, Bible study groups, and other situations when the focus is not on our own selves. The Bible is not a self-help book, but it's a very long story about God's love for us. When I can communicate this properly, not as anthropocentric but as God-centered, away from soterian reductionism, then the whole of the Gospel comes to life. In some ways, we all have a dysfunctional quilt of inappropriately categorized and grouped Scripture, woven together by value appraisal, but largely disconnected from the narrative.