The Problem With Kings (1 Kings 1; Deuteronomy 17:14-20)

1 Kings 1; Deuteronomy 17:14-20

Have you ever wanted to shout, "This is not what it's supposed to be like!"

Maybe it's when a friend gave up on your favorite show after 10 minutes without giving it a real chance.

Or maybe someone has told you that they tried sushi but said, "Oh, that tastes awful," simply because they tried it from a gas station.

"This isn't what it's supposed to be like!"

This week at Grace we're beginning a new series on King Solomon from the book of 1 Kings. Solomon represents the best points and worst points of the kings of Israel. He is famously wise, powerful, and experienced God's blessing in amazing ways. And yet Solomon's tantalizing potential as a king still leaves us wondering, "Is this the best it can be? Is the best king always going to be at least a bit self-centered, exploitive, and eventually wayward?"

I'm eager to go into this study of Solomon with you in order to understand why we long for a King, how Solomon's story is a warning to each of us, and why we can hope in the Kingdom of God.

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"King David said, "And let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet there anoint (Solomon) king over Israel. Then blow the trumpet and say, ‘Long live King Solomon!’ You shall then come up after him, and he shall come and sit on my throne, for he shall be king in my place. And I have appointed him to be ruler over Israel and over Judah.” And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king, “Amen! May the LORD, the God of my lord the king, say so. As the LORD has been with my lord the king, even so may he be with Solomon, and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord King David.” 

-Deuteronomy 17:14-20; 1 Kings 1:34–37