Young People’s Blog

“And he [Moses] cried unto the Lord; and the Lord shewed him a tree, which when he had cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet” (Exodus 15:25).

When there was no suitable water to drink, we notice that God did not supply different water for them. No, He showed Moses a tree, and when the tree was thrown into the water, it became sweet. What can we learn from this?

The tree is a picture of the cross of Christ. But how could it turn the bitter water into sweet water? When we walk through this world, we find that it is bitterness to us as Christians, for this world has rejected Christ. However, when we go back to the cross, we find that our blessed Savior has also gone through all the suffering from this world. He was rejected and crucified, and He can say, “In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).

Walking in fellowship with a rejected Christ gives us more joy than if we found this world a pleasant place. It is His cross that has separated us from this world, and that same cross turns the bitterness of this world into joy for us, as we enjoy His company.

“And they [the children of Israel] went three days in the wilderness, and found no water…and when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter…and the people murmured against Moses” (Exodus 15:22-24).

The Israelites had just had a wonderful deliverance from Egypt, and from the oppression of Pharaoh. No longer were they slaves in Egypt! They had seen all their enemies destroyed in the Red Sea, and now they were on their way to the land of Canaan. This is a picture to us of our being saved, and how happy we are at first! Perhaps we sing, just as the children of Israel sang earlier in this chapter.

But then, after three days, things began to get difficult. There was no water to drink, and when they did find some water, it was bitter. Was this what the Lord had brought them to? Would He bring them out of Egypt, and then give them only bitter water to drink?

Often we have to find this out in the Christian life. It is a great thing to know our sins forgiven, and to have assurance that we are on our way to heaven. But then we find that the Christian pathway is not always pleasant. We experience the difficulties of the way, and find that there is nothing in the wilderness to quench our spiritual thirst. What is the answer? We will see tomorrow.

“Buy the truth, and sell it not; also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding” (Proverbs 23:23).

“Sanctify them through Thy truth: Thy word is truth” (John 17:17).

If we want to know the truth about any moral and spiritual subject, we must go to the Bible, the Word of God. Today, many are denying that there is any absolute truth, and are trying to say that everything is relative. That is, they are saying that it all depends on the circumstances, and that what is right in one situation may not be right in another situation.

But we can depend on God’s Word for the whole truth, and in our second verse today we read that the truth sanctifies us, or sets us apart, from this world. However, there is a price tag attached to the truth. It will cost us time and effort to read, meditate upon, and live in the good of, the truth of God. It takes time to read the Bible, and when we put it into practice in our lives, we will face opposition from this world.

However, it is well worth the price, for having the truth of God enables us to walk through this world with confidence that in the pathway of the truth, all God’s power is behind us. We are able to look at every situation in this world through the eyes of God’s Word. We can understand what God is doing, and this will give us peace in a very troubled world.

“And now the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: every tree therefore which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire” (Luke 3:9).

I grew up on a fruit farm, and we were very much aware of a tree that did not bear good fruit. If it did not bear good fruit for one year, we might wait a year, to see if the next year was better. But if it did not bear good fruit for two years, we cut it down, and planted a new tree.

The nation of Israel was like a tree that did not bear good fruit, and John the Baptist told them that unless there was repentance, God was going to cut it down. That is, He was going to disown that nation, at least for a time.

But we must realize that none of us, whether Jews or Gentiles, can bring forth good fruit for the Lord in our natural state. All of us were like a tree that was useless, and needed to be cut down. There is only one way we can bring forth good fruit for the Lord, and that is when we have a new life in Christ. Those who repented in Israel waited for the Lord Jesus to come, and He was going to offer them new life in Him—a new life that could produce fruit for God. You and I can have that new life too, by accepting Him as our Savior.

“And Solomon offered a sacrifice of peace offerings, which he offered unto the Lord, two and twenty thousand oxen, and an hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the children of Israel dedicated the house of the Lord” (1 Kings 8:63).

“For by one offering He hath perfected forever them that are sanctified” (Hebrews 10:14).

As we know, Solomon spent many years building the temple, and it was a most magnificent building. When he and the people dedicated that temple, they sacrificed peace offerings, and the numbers are literally “mind boggling.” Can you imagine sacrificing 22,000 oxen, and 120,000 sheep? These were peace offerings, so that while some of the animal was burned on the altar, much of it was able to be used for food to feed the large number of people who came to the dedication of the temple.

All this was an indication of the largeness of Solomon’s heart, and his appreciation of all that the Lord had done for Israel, but we know that even this huge offering could never take away sin. It all spoke of Christ, and looked ahead to what we have in our second verse today—the “one offering” made by our Lord Jesus on the cross, that has forever put away the sins of every true believer. There never needs to be another sacrifice! We specially enjoy that thought on this, the Lord’s Day.

“But king Solomon loved many strange [foreign] women…women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites…For it came to . … pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods” (1 Kings 11:1,4).

Back a few days ago, we saw that Solomon “loved the Lord,” and walked “in the statutes of David his father.” This was good, but when he became wealthy and famous, it seems that he married many foreign women, who came from nations that worshiped idols. They brought these idols with them, and later in Solomon’s life, even he was turned away from the Lord.

Perhaps we can hardly imagine how this could happen, after the Lord had appeared to him twice. The Lord had appeared to him when he first became king (1 Kings 3:5-15), and then again after the temple was built (1 Kings 9:1-9). If you read this passage, you will see that God gave him a warning about what would happen if he were disobedient, and worshiped idols.

Back in 1 Kings 3:3, we read that “Solomon loved the Lord,” but now, in our verse today, we read that he “loved many strange women.” We may think that we would never do something as wrong as this, but we do not know our own hearts. The only safe path is to be obedient to God’s Word, and to follow the Lord.

“And if thou wilt walk in My ways, to keep My statutes and My commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days” (1 Kings 3:14).

We noticed yesterday that when the Lord asked Solomon what he wanted, he asked for wisdom to rule well. As a reward to Solomon for asking for this, the Lord promised him riches and honor as well. However, we see by our verse for today that He promised him something else, but there was a condition attached. If Solomon walked in obedience, the Lord would lengthen his days. That is, he could count on a long life. This was one of the blessings promised in the Old Testament, for obedience.

Did Solomon live a long life? Was he obedient to the Lord? It seems that he lived for the Lord during the first half of his reign, but later, as we will see tomorrow, he married many foreign women who turned his heart away from the Lord.

We saw yesterday that Solomon was probably not yet twenty years old when he became king. He reigned forty years, so that he died when he was not even sixty. David lived to be seventy, but sadly, Solomon’s days were not lengthened, because of his disobedience.

“The Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night: and God said, Ask what I shall give thee” (1 Kings 3:5).

“And Solomon said…Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people…for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?” (1 Kings 3:6,9).

How would you like to have the Lord ask you what you wanted? That would be a wonderful thing! Solomon could have asked the Lord for anything, and I believe the Lord would have given it to him. He could have asked Him for riches, or victory over his enemies, or honor, and the Lord would have given them to him. But as we see in our second verse, Solomon did not ask for any of those things. Rather, he asked for wisdom to be able to rule well, and to be able to judge the vast number of people over which he would reign.

Solomon was only a young man, probably not even yet twenty years old, so it is easy to see how he was a little frightened at having to be king, and to judge the people. The Lord granted his request, but because Solomon had asked for wisdom, the Lord gave him the other things he had not asked for—riches and honor, so that no other king would be like him.

All this reminds us of what the Lord Jesus said, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you” (Matthew 6:33). If we put the Lord first in our lives, He will make sure that we are supplied with everything else we need.

“And she [Bathsheba] bare a son, and he [David] called his name Solomon: and the Lord loved him” (2 Samuel 12:24).

“And Solomon loved the Lord, walking in all the statutes of David his father” (1 Kings 3:3).

“We love Him, because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19).

It is beautiful to see that the Lord speaks of His love to Solomon as soon as he was born. If you read the next verse in 2 Samuel 12, you will see that the Lord actually sent Nathan the prophet, who also called Solomon by another name—Jedidiah, which means “beloved of the Lord.” This does not mean that the Lord has special favorites among His people, but He did have His eye on Solomon, as the one who was to take the throne of Israel after David.

As a result, we see Solomon as a mature individual, having ascended the throne of Israel, spoken about as loving the Lord, and walking in obedience to the law that his father David had walked in. This is because he had enjoyed the Lord’s love for him, and then his own heart responded to the Lord’s love by loving the Lord in return.

An older brother used to remind us, “Never try to love the Lord more than you do! Just think of how much He loves you!” If we enjoy His love, our love will flow back to Him without any effort.

“But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. And immediately Jesus stretched forth His hand, and caught him” (Matthew 14:30-31).

We saw yesterday how Peter walked on the water to the Lord Jesus, with the Lord’s strength. But then he looked at the strong wind and waves and was afraid. As a result, he began to sink. But suppose the water had been perfectly calm, could he have walked on it? No, he could no more have walked on smooth water than rough water. Neither could you nor I, in our own strength! Again we learn an important lesson here.

We need the Lord’s help and His strength every day, even if things are going well for us. But when problems come and things get rough, we realize we need the Lord more. If we keep our eyes on Him, we can rise above all the difficulties. But we will sink if we start looking at the problems, just as Peter did in those waves and that wind.

Yet, when he did begin to sink and cried to the Lord, the Lord immediately held out His hand and caught him. He will do this for us too, even if we have not been trusting in Him. He never fails us, even if we forget to trust Him!