Who was Solomon from the Bible you might ask? Many know him to be wise beyond his years. It is true, he was king of Israel following his father David's reign - and also one of the wealthiest rulers of his time. It is also worthy of note that King Solomon reigned for forty years after his succession to the throne. He famously wrote the book of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes, as well as the Song of Songs. History records that he had seven-hundred wives and three-hundred concubines. He was a busy man.
There is something else about Solomon that people don't usually speak about however. That is the fact that Scripture records him as having an unusually divided heart. In fact, the Old Testament describes him as falling short in two distinct ways. The first way is the fact that he worked to furnish his own palace and make it luxurious first, allowing the temple church to sit unfurnished for years. Though it isn't expressly mentioned that this angered God, the reader will notice that he completed work on his palace long before the temple (and that his palace was twice the size). The second way that Scripture records Solomon's failing was the fact that his many foreign wives led him to worship false gods from their indigenous homeland. This included Baal, Ashtoreth, and Molek ... all referred to as "detestable" in Scripture.
As you may have noticed, both of these dilemmas involve what I like to call 'spiritual distraction.' The first comes by way of starting and stopping construction of God's Holy temple, and the second through a waning of dedication to the true God over time from outside influences. The end result is the same here; Solomon had compromised his obedience to God.
It is very difficult to love God in a halfhearted manner. Think how this applies to everything else in your life. Those things that you are fully dedicated to often grow and blossom, while the areas in your life that get ignored and put on the back burner tend to fade away. I suspect it is no different with our relationship to God the Father. A divided heart when it comes to worship is reflected in our behavior and level of obedience.
When we find ourselves straying from the righteous path, it becomes imperative to make our way back to the Lord as soon as possible. 1 Kings 8:57-58 says this, "May the Lord God be with us as he was with our ancestors; may He never leave us or forsake us. May He turn our hearts to him, to walk in obedience to him and keep the commands, decrees and laws he gave our ancestors."
It appears then, that we need God's help to make certain our hearts don't turn away. What an odd thing to think about - the idea that we must even ask God for help, such that we don't decide to wander. In the midst of the spiritual battle for our time and attention, the Bible seems to suggest that we had better be praying to the Lord so we don't become lukewarm. Pray so that the values of the secular world don't begin to creep in and distort what we think and feel.
So what are the symptoms of a divided heart? I think we can focus on just three things for the purposes of our lesson today. Idolatry, spiritual complacency, and lack of peace.
A divided heart shows itself well when it comes to idolatry. Remember this means placing something at a level over and above God. For example, when keeping up our home, our vehicles, or even managing money takes center stage in our lives instead of worship, our heart begins to stray from God's heart. This disconnect then leads to a plethora of smaller inconsistencies in our life that people around us can eventually notice.
Spiritual complacency sets in easily in situations like this as well. We may apply the following working definition to complacency: a lack of intentionality or drive to actively seek out and nurture a relationship with the creator. When this occurs, we begin to see a dropping off of church attendance and spending time in the Bible. The things around us begin to replace the thing that created us.
Finally, another symptom of a divided heart is lack of supernatural peace. Without nurturing the undercurrent of staying in tune with God's will, we can get tossed about in life like a small boat in a storm. Meandering here and there, never finding refuge in something greater than ourselves or our own selfish desires. In effect, we have no real or lasting peace.
Why not try something entirely different? Solomon was also billed as an individual who was loved by God in spite of his shortcomings. So are we. Matthew 6:33 says, "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."
Understanding this truth and applying it to your life has a cascade effect. It allows the concept that if you keep God first in your life (and reject the divided heart lifestyle), He will eventually deliver to you everything you could ever want anyway. The difference is that they will all be good and holy things, as opposed to the material things that the world can offer. It is the difference between life as you know it, and life as it could be.
Think about this for a moment - would you stay in a halfhearted relationship with someone? Have you ever been part of a one-way friendship for example, where all the effort comes from you? Not much fun, is it? Not quite what you had envisioned for yourself I would suspect. I think it works the same way with God. He wants all of us, not just a little part once in a while on Easter or Christmas. But rather our waking mind, body, and soul all the time. This is what the Christian symbol of the cross is really about. Jesus went to his crucifixion so that we could be one with the Father. If he thought it best to sacrifice everything so that we could spend eternity with him, then we may take it as important.
Seek after God first in all that you do, then step back and watch what happens in your life. You may just find that all of those things that took up so much of your time begin to fade into the background, and more important things begin to take the forefront. Things like peace, love, kindness, and patience. The types of things that a divided heart cannot provide.
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