Are You Talking To a Snake?

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Adam and Eve have not been the only ones who listened to bad advice.

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Jeroboam listens to the wrong crowd

I Kings 12

Israel requests mercy and fairness from new King

Then Jeroboam and the whole assembly of Israel came and spoke to Rehoboam, saying,

4 “Your father made our yoke [a]heavy; now therefore, lighten the burdensome service of your father, and his heavy yoke which he put on us, and we will serve you.”

5 So he said to them, “Depart for three days, then come back to me.” And the people departed.

Jeroboam seeks advice from wise elders

6 Then King Rehoboam consulted the elders who stood before his father Solomon while he still lived, and he said, “How do you advise me to answer these people?”

7 And they spoke to him, saying, “If you will be a servant to these people today, and serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be your servants forever.”

Jeroboam rejects advice from wise elders and consults with young friends (snakes) who have no compassion

8 But he rejected the advice which the elders had given him, and consulted the young men who had grown up with him, who stood before him.

9 And he said to them, “What advice do you give? How should we answer this people who have spoken to me, saying, ‘Lighten the yoke which your father put on us’?”

10 Then the young men who had grown up with him spoke to him, saying, “Thus you should speak to this people who have spoken to you, saying, ‘Your father made our yoke heavy, but you make it lighter on us’—thus you shall say to them: ‘My little finger shall be thicker than my father’s waist!

11 And now, whereas my father put a heavy yoke on you, I will add to your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with [b]scourges!’ ”

12 So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king had directed, saying, “Come back to me the third day.”

Jeroboam is rough and shows no compassion on Israel

13 Then the king answered the people [c]roughly, and rejected the advice which the elders had given him;

14 and he spoke to them according to the advice of the young men, saying, “My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with [d]scourges!”

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The bad decision divides the kingdom

16 Now when all Israel saw that the king did not listen to them, the people answered the king, saying:

“What share have we in David?
We have no inheritance in the son of Jesse.
To your tents, O Israel!
Now, see to your own house, O David!”

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Snakes divide and split the Kingdom of Yahweh God

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I knew of a church long ago that was not what it seemed.

On the surface, there sermons were positive, about grace, prosperity, blessings of God, and power of God. People got saved in meetings.

Underneath, there was control, deceit, gossip, lies, dishonesty in general.

And it included the pastor, the “man of God” that everyone admired.

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Families were splitting up, marriages broken.

Children rebelled against parents, being encouraged to do so by the pastor, since the “spirituality” of the children “exceeded” their parents. The pastor got the loyalty, not the parents.

Tithes were preached as an obligation of the members, but the pastor did not pay his own tithe obligation to the church headquarters, which was for funding missionaries overseas.

He kept all the tithes for his own salary.

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When the bishop/overseer came in to investigate after a complaint was filed, the pastor later lied about the content of the meeting, to stir up strife in the church against the bishop and the church organization.

The result was that 90-95% of the church members left to be with the pastor, angry over the lies they believed.

Many years later, I see the rebellious children, now adults, with the spirit of the pastor.

They are all entitled, religious snobs who are obsessed with prosperity and power displays.

These clones are now instructing the next generation of young people.

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I heard one preach lately, thanks to internet, who said he had a very bad problem once (I knew he was referring to his family issues), but he consulted his pastor who told him what to do.

Thanks to the advice of his pastor, he broke away from his family, and especially treated his mother in a condescending and rejecting way.

His mother died of a broken heart.

He is a pastor now, a spiritual clone of his own pastor, and the mindset continues.

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Thoughts

Respect the office of minister, as the 5 fold ministries are established by Yahweh God, but examine the person in it.

Just because someone holds a title does not mean they deserve it.

There are good and bad people in the church.

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Look at the spiritual fruit and be fair.

“Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, for the tree is known by its fruit Matt 12:33

John 7:24 Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment. The Bible says when we judge ourselves and our neighbors our judgment must be in righteousness. Not what I heard from someone else about that person or what I think, but rather moral truth.

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Much may seem good, but are there subtle problems?

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Look for

truth vs deception,

generosity vs selfishness,

compassion vs uncaring attitude,

and

forgiveness vs holding grudges.

15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Matt 7:15

Examine the hearts- what is in them?

Do the hearts contain good or evil or a mix?

Jeremiah 17:9 declares firmly, “The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick, who can understand it?” So we read and jump to the conclusion that our heart is an obstacle to be overcome and an enemy to be defeated

Mark 7:21-23. 21 For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,

22 Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness:

23 All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.

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Look also for

True humility vs entitlement thinking, false humility, pride and need for recognition

True holiness vs worldliness in values

Peace and power of God which changes you for the better vs sensationalism which is temporary.

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Examine YOURSELF as well.

Make sure you have the word of God in your heart, and you can properly interpret scripture. Do not leave it to others to do your thinking for you.

Judge your own heart first, before you judge the hearts of others.

Otherwise, you will be deceived with your own ignorance and itching ears, to believe lies that sound good and satisfy your flesh and harm your spirit, eventually harming others as well.

Make sure you are not a snake yourself.

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