Sermons by Bob Vincent and Others

This message focuses on the events of Holy Week, looking at them from different perspectives. In the purely natural realm, Jesus was crucified because he offended virtually everyone: the wealthy class of the Sadducees who profited from the Temple, the party of the Pharisees whom he told were deserving of hell, and his own followers who were disappointed because he did not drive out the Romans and because he was too radical for them. In the realm of ancient conflict between the LORD and Satan, the activity of Satan is clear in entering Judas and stirring people to call down curses on themselves and their children. It was a week from hell. However, all of these things were ordained by God before the foundation of the world and fell out exactly according to his divine plan. It was a week from heaven.

I. What's in a name? King David's great grandson's name was changed to "My Father is Yahweh" (ʾabiyyāh/ʾabiyāhû, אֲבִיָּה/אֲבִיָהוּ) in 2 Chronicles 13:1 from "My Father is Yam" (ʾabiyyām, אֲבִיָּם) in 1 Kings 15:1. II. We must not underestimate the impact of King Solomon's apostasy on his son Rehoboam and grandson Abijam (1 Kings 11:1-11). III. Yam was the mythical sea-god known from Ugaritic literature, as can be illustrated from Psalm 74:13-14: "It was you who split open the sea (yām, יָם) by your power; you broke the heads of the monster (tanniyn, תַּנּין) in the waters. It was you who crushed the heads of Leviathan (liwyātān, לִוְיָתָן) and gave him as food to the creatures of the desert." III. We do not know whether Abijam truly changed in his heart, but he does take a stand for the LORD (2 Chronicles 13:10-12), and God delivered his enemies into his hand against overwhelming odds "because they relied upon the LORD God of their fathers" (2 Chronicles 13:18). IV. God may use people to serve him, and even perform miracles, but that is not proof that the LORD knows that person (Matthew 7:21-23). Does the LORD know you? You can answer this question with another: Do you know the LORD?

Rehoboam enjoyed prosperity for three years (2 Chronicles 11:13-17). Then he and all Israel with him abandoned the law of the LORD (2 Chronicles 12:1). Because they had been unfaithful to the LORD, he authorized Shishak king of Egypt to attack Jerusalem in the fifth year of King Rehoboam (2 Chronicles 12:2). And God stated, "You have abandoned me; therefore, I now abandon you to Shishak."' (2 Chronicles 12:5) The leaders of Israel and the king humbled themselves and said, 'The LORD is just' (2 Chronicles 12:6). That is the beginning of getting things right. However, the Lord wanted them to learn the difference between serving him and serving the kings of other lands (2 Chronicles 12:7-8). Because the LORD was to be Israel's King, asking for a worldly king was rejecting the LORD (1 Samuel 8:7-9). After Shishak took the gold shields, Rehoboam replaced them with bronze (2 Chronicles 12:10-11), maintaining the appearance of prosperity for most people. Do you know about the Coinage Act of 1965, or what happened when President Nixon disconnected the dollar from the price of gold in 1971, when gold was valued at $35 an ounce and the American dollar was the world's reserve currency? Consider how denominations that once were solidly committed to the gospel and the Bible have traded their gold for brass. Is there any area in your life where you are maintaining an appearance of spiritual prosperity, but your gold has been replaced with brass?

Ahijah was a blind man who could see (1 Kings 14:4-5). Only the good die young (1 Kings 14:13). Why does God himself use crude language, and why do modern translations attempt to wash out God's mouth? (1 Kings 14:10; Cf. 1 Samuel 25:22, 34; 1 Kings 16:11; 21:21; 2 Kings 9:8). Jeroboam's wife is given a horrible burden (1 Kings 14:12). Ahijah announces the curse sanctions of God's covenant with Israel in 1 Kings 14:11 (Deuteronomy 28:26). How does God visit our iniquity on our children? (Exodus 20:4-6) Can we stop such a curse? (Proverbs 26:2; Galatians 3:13-14; 1 John 1:8-10)

Today's message, Journey into Apostasy, focuses on five kings of Judah: David (1010 to 970), Solomon (970 to 931), Rehoboam (931 to 913), Abijam (or, Abijah) (913 to 911), and Asa (911-870). Asa did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, as his father David had done (1 Kings 15:11). In other words, three kings did evil: Solomon, Rehoboam, and Abijah. Solomon did evil in the eyes of the LORD; he did not follow the LORD completely, as David his father had done (1 Kings 11:6). The godly King Asa forgot what the LORD had done for him and trusted in his wealth and a foreign alliance (2 Chronicles 16:1-3, 7-9). When he is rebuked (2 Chronicles 16:9), he turns his back on the LORD and on his prophet (2 Chronicles 16:10). When the LORD chastens him in order to get him to repent, he hardens his heart (2 Chronicles 16:11-14). Are you being tortured today (Matthew 18:34)? Turn to the Lord Jesus and beg him for the grace to deal with what is blocking you from getting relief.

King Rehoboam foolishly rejects the counsel of the old men who served his father and follows the advice of the young men who had grown up with him ((1 Kings 12:5-11). This results in a political division in 931 BC, and while King Jeroboam I had divine authority to secede from the House of David (1 Kings 11:29-36), he did not have authority to start his own religion (1 Kings 12:26-29). The result was that the priests and Levites and people who sought the LORD left Israel for Judah (2 Chronicles 11:13, 16-17). God sends a prophet from Judah to warn Jeroboam of his sin and predict the coming of King Josiah some three centuries later who would burn bones on Jeroboam's altar (1 Kings 13:2-6). The LORD had warned the Man of God from Judah explicitly not to eat or drink until he had returned home (1 Kings 13:7-10), and he obeyed. But then an old prophet finds him, and tells him an angel had revealed that he could eat with him (1 Kings 13:11-19; Galatians 1:8-9). As soon as he does so, the old prophet responds with a true word from the LORD that he was going to die, then he meets a lion on the way who kills him (1 Kings 13:20-26). What are the strengths and weaknesses of youth and old age?

When King Jehoshaphat was confronted by Jehu the prophet, he repented and demonstrated that repentance in changes he made as king of Judah (2 Chronicles 19:1-3). So that the nation would not relapse in his absence again, he educated the people in God's word and appointed judges who would rule in "the fear of the LORD" (2 Chronicles 19:4-7). Today we looked at the division he made in the administration of justice (2 Chronicles 19:8-11). He appointed Amariah the High Priest over matters pertaining to the LORD, and Zebadiah in matters pertaining to the king (2 Chronicles 19:11). In its context, it is clear that both men are to rule under the LORD himself (2 Chronicles 19:9-10), with Amariah the High Priest overseeing the Temple and its worship, and Zebadiah overseeing matters not related to worship, i.e. civil law (2 Chronicles 19:11; cf. Exodus 18:26, 19; Deuteronomy 17:8–13). The foundation of the United States of America reflects a similar structure where the civil government is under God (see the handout). Many people misunderstand what our Lord Jesus Christ taught in Matthew 22:15-22; Mark 12:13-17; Luke 20:20-26. He is in no way stating that civil government should be atheistic. He is simply stepping out of the net, these flatterers had spread for him (Proverbs 29:5). In asking for the Roman coin with which one paid the Roman poll tax, he was asking for something with the image of Caesar and these words: "TI CAESAR DIVI AUG F AUGUSTUS" (Tiberius Caesar, son of the divine Augustus). This coin led many Jews, particularly those living in the Galilee, to refuse to pay the Roman tax, contrary to the supporters of the dynasty of Herod the Great.

Jehu the prophet showed great boldness in confronting King Jehoshaphat as he returned from joining with King Ahab of Israel (2 Chronicles 19:1-2). Jehu has the boldness of Nathan who declared, "You are the man!" to David in response to David's rage against a rich man who stole and slaughtered a poor man's lamb that "was like a daughter to him" (2 Samuel 12:1-7). As with David who repented (Psalm 32:1-7; Psalm 51:10-12), so King Jehoshaphat demonstrates true repentance as he sets his heart on seeking God (2 Chronicles 19:3). Jehoshaphat not only repents, but he moved among the people and "turned them back to the God of their fathers" (2 Chronicles 19:4). He appoints godly judges, admonishing them to "let the fear of the LORD be upon you" (2 Chronicles 19:5-6). In the Gospel of Luke, the Lord Jesus cites an example of an unjust judge who "neither feared God nor cared (entrépō; ἐντρέπω: "Have regard for, respect") about men" (Luke 18:2). But this cynical and calloused politician responded to a poor widow who kept harassing him (Luke 18:3-5).

As I worked on my manuscript, I caught a couple of mistakes, so I would encourage you to read the transcript. As we continue our message from two weeks ago, we see that the book of Revelation is not only a book on worship; it is a book about worship as warfare. As we sing the New Song that names the name of the Lord Jesus explicitly (Revelation 5:9-10, 11-14), the heavenly hosts wage war on our behalf (Revelation 8:6ff.). Numbers 10:1-10 describes the purpose of the silver trumpets, and the walls of Jericho fell down with the blowing of the ram's horns and the shout of praise (Joshua 6:16-20; Hebrews 11:30). The battles of King Jehoshaphat (872-848 BC) illustrate the principles of praise and warfare. When he allies himself with the wicked King Ahab of Israel, he almost loses his life in 853 BC (2 Chronicles 18:28-34). When Jehoshaphat joins in an alliance with Ahab's son, King Jehoram of Israel, and the king of Edom, he is defeated by King Mesha of Moab after he sacrifices his son to Chemosh, the demonic god of Moab (2 Kings 3:6-27). But when Jehoshaphat has no one to depend on but the LORD, he acknowledges he doesn't know what to do, but he puts his eyes on Yahweh (2 Chronicles 20:12). He follows the LORD's instructions through his prophet and arranges for loud praise to God. "As they began to sing and praise, the LORD set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated." (2 Chronicles 20:22)

First of all, as always, I made a couple of mistakes, such as referring to the first century of the Christian Era as Before Christ, and I also got a couple of dates wrong: 1690 instead of 1688. And I failed to acknowledge that Queen Mary who was married to William of Orange was the daughter of King James II. People misread the Book of Revelation and can come up with some absurd ideas. But we need to remember that Revelation was written for people living in the first century of the Christian Era, even though the prophecies recapitulate into our own time. Also, Revelation is a book of worship, as we can see in the handout in this morning's bulletin. Consider all those words that point us back to the Tabernacle and the Temple, with their music and offerings. That's because the True Tabernacle and Temple are in heaven, as is the True Jerusalem. One day that Dwelling Place of God will come to earth (Revelation 21-22). Who are the 144,000? What does it mean that they are virgins? Why is the Tribe of Dan missing from the list? What is the Mark of the Beast and how is it related to the Mark on Believers? How do we sing a new song?

As we examine Revelation 14:8-12, we discover an immediate fulfillment in the first century of the Christian Era, when the Romans burned the city of Jerusalem and destroyed the Second Temple with fire on the 9th day of the Jewish month Ab, 656 years after the Babylonians had destroyed the First Temple on that same day in 586 Before the Christian Era. The Jewish commander of the armies of the Galilee became convinced that continuing the war against the Romans was futile and suicidal. Suicide is always a sinful act, but it does not keep a believer out of heaven. Josephus' writings give us the only comprehensive and accurate account of what took place in the wake of the Jewish war with the Romans. However, as we have seen throughout these studies, prophecies recapitulate, and so the ultimate fulfillment of verses 8-13 is found in the Lake of Fire, where all those whose names are not in the Lamb's Book of Life will suffer eternally (Revelation 20:11-15). As we reflect on the theme of Fire for 2024, we must consider 1 Peter 1:6-9. What is more precious than gold? It is that wonderful gift of God, faith (Ephesians 2:8-9). As gold is refined by fire, so our faith is purified in the fiery trials that are coming (1 Peter 4:12-14). That is why we can be joyful as we enter 2024. Our blessed Lord is going to purge out of us things that detract from our witness. That purging will result in praise, glory, and honor at his return--indeed, joy unspeakable (1 Peter 1:7-8). I want more and more to be a sweet aroma of the Lord Jesus Christ in 2024 (2 Corinthians 2:14-16). Don't you? That sweat aroma comes as we endure the trials of life without bitterness.

Jesus' parables about the hidden treasure and the pearl of great price (Matthew 13:44-46), echo some of what people experience in the modern American Christmas. You are the hidden treasure and the pearl of great price: The Lord Jesus Christ left the glory of heaven (Philippians 2:5-8; John 17, especially verses 5-6, 9, 20-24; 2 Corinthians 8:9) because he valued you above his own comfort and pleasure. Salvation is a free gift. We are saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone (Romans 3:21-5:21; Ephesians 2:8-9). But true faith is never alone (Ephesians 2:10). We must surrender everything at the feet of Jesus, because he is the hidden treasure and the pearl of great price (Matthew 13:44-46; Luke 14:25-27). Without laying everything at his feet, we can NEVER be happy, because material things, even other people, cannot satisfy our deepest longings, only God can. Happiness is a choice, as can be seen in Deuteronomy 28:47-48). Why do people get so depressed during holidays? Why do so many people commit suicide during Christmas?

The Star of Bethlehem was a supernatural phenomenon, and it is of no use in dating the birth of Christ. The death of Herod the Great in 4 Before the Christian Era is very valuable, along with the time frame of his murdering the male children in the area around Bethlehem before his death. That means that the Lord Jesus was born five or six years Before the Christian Era. No one brought Jesus gifts the night he was born. The Wise Men made preparations and set out for Jerusalem shortly after they observed the Star of Bethlehem. By the time they worshipped the Lord Jesus and gave him gifts, his family was back in Nazareth and it was probably five years Before the Christian Era. Santa Claus is Saint Nicholas, the Bishop of Myra (270-343 Christian Era). He was famous for giving gifts to the poor and for slapping Arius, a heretic who denied that the Lord Jesus is God, at the time of the Council of Nicaea. We need to follow the example of Martha's sister Mary (Luke 10:38-42), and focus on sitting at the feet of the Lord Jesus, instead of getting in a frenzy of debt and business at Christmas.