A Father's Legacy
Steve Hereford
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INTRODUCTION
This week I was reading from 1 Kings chapter two and was struck by what King David said to his son Solomon prior to his death and thought I would share that with you this morning with it being Father’s Day
All father’s have a legacy to leave to their children
As a father, my desire is to see all my kids saved and living in obedience to Jesus everyday of their life
The three desires that David had for Solomon is what all Christian men should desire for their children
David is about to die
He charges Solomon before his death
We are told in 1 Kings 2:1-4...
1 As David’s time to die drew near, he charged Solomon his son, saying,
2 “I am going the way of all the earth. Be strong, therefore, and show yourself a man.
3 “Keep the charge of the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, His commandments, His ordinances, and His testimonies, according to what is written in the Law of Moses, that you may succeed in all that you do and wherever you turn,
4 so that the Lord may carry out His promise which He spoke concerning me, saying, ‘If your sons are careful of their way, to walk before Me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel.’
Hebrews 9:27, “…it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment,”
Romans 5:12, “Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned—”
The world is as it is today because when Adam sinned all sinned, and ever since, sin and death have been universal and have come upon the whole of mankind. It is a mystery, it is an astounding fact.
Assurance, 212
Everyone of us will die
We will go “the way of the earth” as David says in verse 2
The reason is simple
It’s because of sin as Romans 5:12 says
Sin is the cause of sickness, diseases, and death
Romans 6:23 says, “For the wages of sin is death.”
1 Corinthians 15:22 says, “For as in Adam all die...”
But for a Christian, as Matthew Henry says, it is “a way; not only a period of this life, but a passage to a better. It is the way of all the earth, of all mankind who dwell on earth, and are themselves earth, and therefore must return to their earth. Even the sons and heirs of heaven must go the way of all the earth, they must needs die; but they walk with pleasure in this way, through the valley of the shadow of death, Ps. 23:4. Prophets, and even kings, must go this way to brighter light and honour than prophecy or sovereignty. David is going this way, and therefore gives Solomon directions what to do.” (Commentary on the Whole Bible).
But before His death, he followed the “spiritual precedent as well as the custom of the ancient Middle East by passing on instruction to his son” (The Nelson Study Bible)
What does he say?
We read it in verses 2-4 but let me read it again
1 Kings 2:2-3, “...Be strong, therefore, and show yourself a man. 3 “Keep the charge of the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, His commandments, His ordinances, and His testimonies, according to what is written in the Law of Moses, that you may succeed in all that you do and wherever you turn, 4 so that the Lord may carry out His promise which He spoke concerning me, saying, ‘If your sons are careful of their way, to walk before Me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel.’”
We can group verses 2-3 into 3 areas that David desired of his son Solomon:
First he says...
I. Be Strong (v.2)
“Be strong”
A similar charge was given by Moses in Deuteronomy 31:6 to Joshua and by God in Joshua 1:6-7
The strength that David is referring to here is the fortitude or strength of mind that was required to discharge the onerous (burdensome) functions of king (JFB)
It means to “be valiant” (K&D) and “fearless” (Cooper)
Solomon would need this kind of strength for what David tells him in vv.5-9:
Put Joab to death (vv.5-6)
Show kindness to the sons of Barzillai (v.7)
Put Shimei to death (vv.8-9)
Christians also need to be strong today
For the spiritual battles we face from the enemy - Ephesians 6:10, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might.”
For entrusting the Word of God to other faithful men - 2 Timothy 2:1, “You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.”
Father’s need to be an example of strength to their kids
By being responsible to carry out their duties
David was king and it required of him to carry out the functions of a king
Solomon needed to do the same now he was king
In other words, David was faithful, Solomon needed to be too
That means fathers need to instruct, correct, and demonstrate the right behavior
We see this with:
Noah found favor with God because he didn’t participate with the culture - Genesis 6:5-8, “5 Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 The Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. 7 The Lord said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky; for I am sorry that I have made them.” 8 But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.”
Abraham obeyed God even if he had to sacrifice his son - Genesis 22.
Sometimes we teach the wrong thing...
Jacob loved Joseph more than his other sons - Genesis 37:4, “His brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers; and so they hated him and could not speak to him on friendly terms.”
What kind of responsibilities does a father have?
Not exasperate their children - Ephesians 6:4, “Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.”
To provide for his household - 1 Timothy 5:8, “But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”
To discipline - Proverbs 13:24, “He who withholds his rod hates his son, But he who loves him disciplines him diligently.”
To instruct in wisdom and the fear of the Lord - Proverbs 1:7-8, “7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction. 8 Hear, my son, your father’s instruction And do not forsake your mother’s teaching;”
To obey - Ephesians 6:1, “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.”
About marriage
Genesis 2:24, “For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.”
1 Peter 3:7, “You husbands in the same way, live with your wives in an understanding way, as with someone weaker, since she is a woman; and show her honor as a fellow heir of the grace of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered.”
Colossians 3:19, “Husbands, love your wives and do not be embittered against them.”
Ephesians 5:22-25, “22 Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body. 24 But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything. 25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her,”
Hebrews 13:4, “Marriage is to be held in honor among all, and the marriage bed is to be undefiled; for fornicators and adulterers God will judge.”
About work - 2 Thessalonians 3:10, “For even when we were with you, we used to give you this order: if anyone is not willing to work, then he is not to eat, either.”
Where are father’s today? Kids are growing up without a father:
“Data from the United States Census Bureau shows that nearly 18.5 million children grow up without their fathers” (https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/america-crisis-fathers)
“Approximately 80% of single-parent homes are led by single mothers; therefore, leading to nearly 25% of our youth growing up without a father in the home” (https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/america-crisis-fathers)
“This staggering statistic has not only destroyed the nuclear family but has devastated communities across the nation. For example, 85% of children and teens with behavioral disorders come from fatherless homes, and over 70% of all adolescent patients in drug and alcohol treatment centers originate from homes without fathers” (https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/america-crisis-fathers)
Solomon also needed to...
II. Show Yourself a Man (v.2)
This is literally “be a man”
Some believe Solomon was 20-25 years old when he became king (https://worldeventsandthebible.com/old-solomon-became-king)
Solomon said of himself in 1 Kings 3:7, “Now, O Lord my God, You have made Your servant king in place of my father David, yet I am but a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in.”
Solomon wasn’t like his father David
David was rugged, a man of war and courage
Solomon had been brought up in the palaces (specifically the women’s palaces)
His life was sheltered and all he knew about was women
That’s why he had 1000 women around him (McGee)
J. Vernon McGee says, “Solomon was “a sissy if there ever was one. I don’t think he and David had much in common.”
But in making him king, David wanted Solomon to play the man
Paul gave a similar charge to the Corinthians in 1 Corinthians 16:13, “Be on the alert, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.”
“act like men” (andrizomai, pres.pass. or mid.imp) means to “be courageous, to be manly,” be mature with a “sense of control, confidence, and courage” (MacArthur)
“be strong” (krataioo) lit. “be strengthened” (passive). It’s used in the NT to denote “inner, spiritual growth” (MacArthur)
1 Chronicles 28:20, “Then David said to his son Solomon, “Be strong and courageous, and act; do not fear nor be dismayed, for the Lord God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you nor forsake you until all the work for the service of the house of the Lord is finished.”
Not only did David want Solomon to be strong and show yourself a man but most importantly he was to...
III. Keep God’s Charge (vv.3-4)
“Keep the charge of the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, His commandments, His ordinances, and His testimonies, according to what is written in the Law of Moses, that you may succeed in all that you do and wherever you turn”
“The written word is our rule. Solomon must himself do as was written in the law of Moses” (Henry)
In the words of James 1:22, “But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.”
“Keep the charge” is literally “watch the watch” or “serve the service” (Spence)
These words were used in the service of the Tabernacle [and] of the duties of the priests and Levites (Lev.8:35)
As it is used here, it is “the charge given to all the kings in Deuteronomy 17:18-20
18 “Now it shall come about when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, he shall write for himself a copy of this law on a scroll in the presence of the Levitical priests.
19 “It shall be with him and he shall read it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the Lord his God, by carefully observing all the words of this law and these statutes,
20 that his heart may not be lifted up above his countrymen and that he may not turn aside from the commandment, to the right or the left, so that he and his sons may continue long in his kingdom in the midst of Israel.
The “king of Israel was obliged to write a copy of, keep by him, and read it, and rule according to it” (Gill)
The terms “statutes, commandments, ordinances, and testimonies” “represent the law in its entirety” (Spence)
But before he speaks of the Law, he first calls Solomon...
To walk in His ways
Our “ways” are not “His ways”
We learn “His ways” from the Bible
If you want realism, come to the Bible.
Love so Amazing, 81
In verse 3 Moses gives two names for God: “the LORD your God”
“LORD” (YHWH; Greek equiv. fr. LXX: κύριος)
In Jewish practice since at least the first century, the four consonants that make up the divine name have been considered sacred and were never pronounced. To keep the reader from pronouncing and thus profaning the sacred name of God, the Masoretes put the vowel pointing for אֲדֹנָי (ʾădōnāy, “Lord”) under the consonants of the divine name יְהוָה (yhwh) to prompt the reader to pronounce אֲדֹנָי (ʾădōnāy) in place of the divine name wherever it appears in the text.
“God” (elohim, the plural suffix, im, means it’s plural and presents a singular God who is expressed as plurality; Gen.1:26; 3:22; 11:7)
The “ways” (Heb.derek) occurs 712 times in the OT translated “way, path, route, road, journey” but also used of “conduct” (Mounce) or “behavior” (BSL). It is translated “conduct” in Ezek.9:10.
What is God’s “conduct” or “behavior” or “His ways”? 1 Kings 2:4 says “truth” and the rest of verse 3 speaks of truth as seen in His “statutes, His commandments, His ordinances, and His testimonies”
This phrase is used in 1 Samuel 8:3 to describe the sons of Samuel who “did not walk in his (Samuel’s) ways, but turned aside after dishonest gain and took bribes and perverted justice.”
These are the “ways” of man but not the “ways” of God
“Walking in His (God’s) ways” means walking “in truth” (1 Kings 2:4)
“Walking in His ways” also means to “do no unrighteousness” - Ps.119:3, “They also do no unrighteousness; They walk in His ways.”
“Walking in His ways” also means to “fear the Lord” - Psalm 128:1, “How blessed is everyone who fears the Lord, Who walks in His ways.”
The rest of verse 3 is dedicated to the “Law of Moses” seen in its entirety by those 4 words: “statutes, commandments, ordinances, and testimonies”
ot only is Solomon to “walk in” God’s “ways” or “truth” but now David tells Solomon what truth is...
A.W. Tozer said, “…truth, to be understood, must be lived, that Bible doctrine is wholly ineffective until it has been digested and assimilated by the total life.”
Solomon was to “keep His statutes, His commandments, His ordinances, and His testimonies, according to what is written in the Law of Moses, that you may succeed in all that you do and wherever you turn, so that the LORD may carry out His promise which He spoke concerning me, saying, ‘If your sons are careful of their way, to walk before Me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel” (vv.3-4).
Solomon was to “walk in His ways” and second...
To keep His statutes
Statutes (Heb.huqqa) is used 104 times in the OT to speak of “decrees” and “regulations” (Mounce)
It is translated “due” in Lev.7:36, “ordinances” in Ex.13:10, and “laws” in Ezek.43:11.
It is used as a synonym for God’s “word” in Psalm 119:16, “I shall delight in Your statutes; I shall not forget Your word.”
It is used as a synonym for God’s word in Psalm 19:8 and “looks upon God’s Word as orders, charges, precepts, etc. They are viewed as the Governor’s governings” (MacArthur)
Solomon was also...
To keep His commandments
“commandments” (Heb.miswah) is used 184 times in the OT to speak of “commands, orders, instruction” (BWS)
It’s related to the verb “to command” or “order” and is perceived as Divine orders (MacArthur)
It is used in Numbers 15:31, synonymously for the “word” of the LORD: “‘Because he has despised the word of the Lord and has broken His commandment, that person shall be completely cut off; his guilt will be on him.’ ””
Solomon was to obey God’s statutes and commandments. He was also...
To keep His ordinances
“ordinances” (Heb.mispat) is used 425 times in the OT to speak of “judgment” or “determination” (BSL)
It is used as “a determination of right and wrong on legal matters” (BWS)
God is the only One who can determine what is judicially right or wrong
What is right and what is wrong is based on His decree, His Word
He has stated what is right and wrong in the Law of Moses
Last, Solomon was...
To keep His testimonies
“testimonies” (Heb.edut) is used 61 times in the OT
It comes from the root word which means “to bear witness”
It “bears witness to its Divine author” (MacArthur)
CONCLUSION
One year for Christmas, Hannah gave me a book to read to her called “Why a Daughter Needs a Dad” and one of the pages records a conversation of a dad to his daughter which says, “Remember that anything you choose to do will have an effect on the world around you. Before you take action, please think your way through and make thoughtful decisions, my girl.”
If only Solomon would remember that
That same is true for us
We must not forget God
We must follow Him with all our heart
When Solomon was old, he didn’t follow the Lord fully
His heart was turned away after other gods
1 Kings 11:9, “Now the Lord was angry with Solomon because his heart was turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice,”
When you turn away from following the LORD and from obeying His Word, you will follow after idols
1 Kings 11 tells what happened
1 Now King Solomon loved many foreign women along with the daughter of Pharaoh: Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian, and Hittite women,
2 from the nations concerning which the Lord had said to the sons of Israel, “You shall not associate with them, nor shall they associate with you, for they will surely turn your heart away after their gods.” Solomon held fast to these in love.
3 He had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines, and his wives turned his heart away.
4 For when Solomon was old, his wives turned his heart away after other gods; and his heart was not wholly devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been.
5 For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians and after Milcom the detestable idol of the Ammonites.
6 Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and did not follow the Lord fully, as David his father had done.
7 Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the detestable idol of Moab, on the mountain which is east of Jerusalem, and for Molech the detestable idol of the sons of Ammon.
8 Thus also he did for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods.
9 Now the Lord was angry with Solomon because his heart was turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice,
10 and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods; but he did not observe what the Lord had commanded.
11 So the Lord said to Solomon, “Because you have done this, and you have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom from you, and will give it to your servant.
12 “Nevertheless I will not do it in your days for the sake of your father David, but I will tear it out of the hand of your son.
13 “However, I will not tear away all the kingdom, but I will give one tribe to your son for the sake of My servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem which I have chosen.”
Fathers, we must constantly urge our kids to love the Lord God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength and to obey His Word or His judgment will fall on them
If they know the Lord, He will chasten them
If they don’t, He will condemn them in their sin
Therefore you must constantly give them the Gospel
The gospel includes the work of Christ for you AND in you
That’s the point of the Bible—to show you who God is, His ways, His work and what it means to live for Him and follow Him in truth
That’s the legacy you must leave to your children
Do you children know the gospel?
What about you?
You cannot give them what you have not received first
John Flavel said, “If you neglect to instruct them in the way of holiness, will the devil neglect to instruct them in the way of wickedness? No; if you will not teach them to pray, he will to curse, swear, and lie; if ground be uncultivated, weeds will spring.”
Let’s pray