Quarrels within a family over trivial matters lead to sins of division that can tear the family apart if there is no intervention to bring peace. Satan, our real enemy, (not each other), tempts us to demand our own way which leads to division.  When we fall for this temptation to turn our hearts from following the example of Christ who put others’ interests ahead of His own, it affects everyone.

“A house divided cannot stand” means division can happen to family or to any group or entity suffering from internal conflict, disagreements, with lack of unity with purpose among its members and will eventually fail or fall apart. While the phrase was famously used by Abraham Lincoln to describe the sectional divisions over slavery in the United States, its origin is from the Bible. Appearing in the synoptic gospels, we read Jesus telling the Pharisees and other religious leaders what this means for God’s people.  In Matthew 12:25 Jesus teaches; “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand”. Jesus is responding to the Pharisees who accused him of casting out demons by the power of Beelzebul.  Read all of Matthew 12 for context to get the full picture of Jesus’ explanation to his accusers who declare Jesus is of the devil.  Jesus uses the analogy to show that if Satan’s kingdom were divided, it couldn’t stand, thus disproving their accusation.

“But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them: “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand. If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they shall be your judges. But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.” –Jesus, Matthew 12:25-28

The kingdom of Israel is divided between two kings: Jeroboam, (Israel) and Rehoboam, (Judah).  This division will be costly to God’s people from top to bottom, inside out, and outside in.

1 Kings 14

Ahijah’s Prophecy Against Jeroboam

At that time Abijah son of Jeroboam became ill, ² and Jeroboam said to his wife, “Go, disguise yourself, so you won’t be recognized as the wife of Jeroboam. Then go to Shiloh. Ahijah the prophet is there—the one who told me I would be king over this people. ³ Take ten loaves of bread with you, some cakes and a jar of honey, and go to him. He will tell you what will happen to the boy.” ⁴ So Jeroboam’s wife did what he said and went to Ahijah’s house in Shiloh.

Now Ahijah could not see; his sight was gone because of his age. ⁵ But the Lord had told Ahijah, “Jeroboam’s wife is coming to ask you about her son, for he is ill, and you are to give her such and such an answer. When she arrives, she will pretend to be someone else.”

⁶ So when Ahijah heard the sound of her footsteps at the door, he said, “Come in, wife of Jeroboam. Why this pretense? I have been sent to you with bad news. ⁷ Go, tell Jeroboam that this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I raised you up from among the people and appointed you ruler over my people Israel. ⁸ I tore the kingdom away from the house of David and gave it to you, but you have not been like my servant David, who kept my commands and followed me with all his heart, doing only what was right in my eyes. ⁹ You have done more evil than all who lived before you. You have made for yourself other gods, idols made of metal; you have aroused my anger and turned your back on me.

¹⁰ “‘Because of this, I am going to bring disaster on the house of Jeroboam. I will cut off from Jeroboam every last male in Israel—slave or free. I will burn up the house of Jeroboam as one burns dung, until it is all gone. ¹¹ Dogs will eat those belonging to Jeroboam who die in the city, and the birds will feed on those who die in the country. The Lord has spoken!’

¹² “As for you, go back home. When you set foot in your city, the boy will die. ¹³ All Israel will mourn for him and bury him. He is the only one belonging to Jeroboam who will be buried, because he is the only one in the house of Jeroboam in whom the Lord, the God of Israel, has found anything good.

¹⁴ “The Lord will raise up for himself a king over Israel who will cut off the family of Jeroboam. Even now this is beginning to happen. ¹⁵ And the Lord will strike Israel, so that it will be like a reed swaying in the water. He will uproot Israel from this good land that he gave to their ancestors and scatter them beyond the Euphrates River, because they aroused the Lord’s anger by making Asherah poles. ¹⁶ And he will give Israel up because of the sins Jeroboam has committed and has caused Israel to commit.”

¹⁷ Then Jeroboam’s wife got up and left and went to Tirzah. As soon as she stepped over the threshold of the house, the boy died. ¹⁸ They buried him, and all Israel mourned for him, as the Lord had said through his servant the prophet Ahijah.

¹⁹ The other events of Jeroboam’s reign, his wars and how he ruled, are written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel. ²⁰ He reigned for twenty-two years and then rested with his ancestors. And Nadab his son succeeded him as king.

Rehoboam King of Judah

²¹ Rehoboam son of Solomon was king in Judah. He was forty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city the Lord had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel in which to put his Name. His mother’s name was Naamah; she was an Ammonite.

²² Judah did evil in the eyes of the Lord. By the sins they committed they stirred up his jealous anger more than those who were before them had done. ²³ They also set up for themselves high places, sacred stones and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every spreading tree. ²⁴ There were even male shrine prostitutes in the land; the people engaged in all the detestable practices of the nations the Lord had driven out before the Israelites.

²⁵ In the fifth year of King Rehoboam, Shishak king of Egypt attacked Jerusalem. ²⁶ He carried off the treasures of the temple of the Lord and the treasures of the royal palace. He took everything, including all the gold shields Solomon had made. ²⁷ So King Rehoboam made bronze shields to replace them and assigned these to the commanders of the guard on duty at the entrance to the royal palace. ²⁸ Whenever the king went to the Lord’s temple, the guards bore the shields, and afterward they returned them to the guardroom.

²⁹ As for the other events of Rehoboam’s reign, and all he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Judah? ³⁰ There was continual warfare between Rehoboam and Jeroboam. ³¹ And Rehoboam rested with his ancestors and was buried with them in the City of David. His mother’s name was Naamah; she was an Ammonite. And Abijah his son succeeded him as king.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

God knows our hearts from the inside out.  God created us, “in the image of God, he created us.” (Genesis 2) Jeroboam sent his wife to Shiloh to find a priest to prophecy the fate of his son who was ill. Covering herself so she would not be recognized was foolish and fruitless. We wonder why the king told his wife, who probably would have preferred to stay with her son, to do this?  But then, if we are honest, we also carry our sins with coverings hoping God will not notice.  We may fool those around us for a while; but God sees our hearts and wants to bring us back to him.  God loves us.  How faithful and longsuffering is our God who for centuries dealt with His people who tried to cover up, rationalize, while resisting to repent of their sins!  But we are them, too. 

“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” Romans 3:23 After centuries of looking over world, seeking those whose hearts were fully committed to God but finding more and more selfishness which made hearts evil; God, at just the right time, sent His Son to bring unity to His divided house of all humans.  “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” John 3:16-17

A house of unity are members with a shared goal.  Jesus is our goal.  Becoming more and more like Jesus is our goal.  Jesus brings us together as part of Himself. As members of His family we discover that the closer we come to Jesus; the closer we relate lovingly to each other! Jesus reconciles us to God.  God is our Father in heaven; we are His children.  As children we are joint heirs with Jesus, His Son. Yes, Jesus changes everything!  We are the Body of Christ, called church, (not a building but a people of purpose), and Jesus is the Head of the Body.  Paul explains unity in Christ;

“The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.

Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation— if you continue in your faith, established and firm, and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.” Colossians 1:15-23

“To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Colossians 1:27

CHRIST IS US provides what we need to have unity with God and each other! Unity lies with Christ, our eternal hope and current purpose for living.  God’s Holy Spirit who guide us to all that is truth; leads us to unity with God and each other.

Behaviors that divide versus actions that lead to unity in Christ are provided by Paul in His letters to The Body of Christ. Ephesians 4 is a great teacher of what it means to grow and mature in unity with Jesus and His Body.  Philippians 2 reminds us that Christ laid aside his glory, putting others’ interests ahead of His own, to save us.

“You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body. “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold. Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need. Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Ephesians 4:22-32

“He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.” Ephesians 4:16 He is Jesus!

Want to be more like Jesus?

“Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? ² Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose. Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.

You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.

Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to.
Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being.
When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.

Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Philippians 2:1-11

We don’t read in Scripture that Jeroboam sought God’s will, prayed for spiritual discernment, or asked the Lord to make him a godly man. Like many of us today, the only time Jeroboam wanted help from God’s servant was when he was in trouble.

“There was continual warfare between Rehoboam and Jeroboam.” The House remained divided; however, God’s covenant remained intact.  (Leviticus 26; Deuteronomy 28–30). God does not give up on His people. They will suffer because of their turning from Him, not listening to Him, trusting, or obeying Him, but His love never changes for them—His love becomes greater still and will be demonstrated in the life of His Son, Jesus—the Promise and Fulfillment.

Lord,

There are so many thoughts given to us this morning to meditate on all day long. Lead  us to truth, your purpose and will, with your agenda for us today. 

In Jesus Name, Amen