When God says that something is going to happen, it’s going to happen, and there’s nothing we can do to stop it from happening. Such were my thoughts today when I read these verses from 1 Kings.

By the word of the Lord he cried out against the altar: “Altar, altar! This is what the Lord says: ‘A son named Josiah will be born to the house of David. On you he will sacrifice the priests of the high places who make offerings here, and human bones will be burned on you.’”

1 Kings 13:2 (NIV)

“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.”

1 Kings 14:14 (NIV)

King Jeroboam, the first king of Israel after God tore it out of Rehoboam’s hands, was the king that all the kings after him were compared. However, unlike David, who was described as being a man after God’s own heart. A man worthy of emulation, Jeroboam was known as the king who had done more evil than those who have come before him and caused Israel to sin through idol worship.

In 1 Kings 13:2, a man of God prophecies that the altars and priests of the high places will eventually be eliminated by someone from the house of David. King Josiah. What’s interesting about this is that it happens about 291 years later in 2 Kings 23:16-17.

And as Josiah turned, he saw the tombs there on the hillside, and he sent someone to take the bones out of the tombs, and he burned them on the altar to defile it, according to the word of the Lord proclaimed by the man of God who had foretold these things. Then the king asked, “What is this monument I see?” And the men of the city replied, “It is the tomb of the man of God who came from Judah and pronounced these things that you have done to the altar of Bethel.”

2 Kings 23:16-17 (NIV)

In 1 Kings 14:14, Jeroboam has sent his wife to ask the Lord about their sick son. Instead of getting a good report from the prophet of the Lord, Ahijah tells him that the house of Jeroboam would be destroyed. Unlike the prophecy in 1 Kings 13:2, which takes 291 years or so to come to pass, the house of Jeroboam is destroyed shortly after Jeroboam’s reign ends, during the reign of his evil son, Nadab in 1 Kings 15:29.

As soon as he began to reign, he killed Jeroboam’s whole family. He did not leave Jeroboam anyone that breathed, but destroyed them all, according to the word of the Lord given through his servant Ahijah the Shilonite.

1 Kings 15:29 (NIV)

In these two instances of God’s justice, we see that sometimes what God says will happen, happens right away, and other times, it might take some time for it to happen, but it always happens. In our lives, we must lean on God and his word. We must believe that the promises of God always come to pass in his perfect timing.

Do you know God? God knows you, and he loves you. He sees you as significant because you are. No one is insignificant to Him. He’s with you today, and he wants you to know him. Jesus died for your sins and mine so we could be free of guilt, freed from death, and live eternally with him. Eternal salvation is just a prayer away.

Pray this prayer with me to accept the gift of salvation today:

Lord Jesus, forgive me for all my sins. I repent from my ways. Wash me in your blood and cleanse me from all unrighteousness. I believe that you died on the cross, were buried, and on the third day, God the Father raised you from the dead. Right now, Lord Jesus, I open the door to my heart and receive you into my heart as my Lord and personal Savior. Amen.

If you prayed that prayer, then congratulations! You are on the first step of a brand new life. Allow me to be the first to welcome you to my family, the family of God. There are abundant resources available online for new Christians. You can visit here for more information on what to do next. You can also leave me a comment, and I’ll do my best to help you on the next step of this incredible journey.

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