Sat.’s Devo - The Altar at Bethel

Read: 1 Kings 12:20-13:34; Acts 9:26-43; Psalm 132:1-18; Proverbs 17:6 Rehoboam returned home with only Judah and Benjamin on his side. He began to mobilize an army to fight Israel but God sent the prophet, Shemaiah to tell him to not fight against his own relatives. What had happened was the Lord’s will. Rehoboam obeyed and returned home. *** Jeroboam made Shechem his capital and lived there. He was afraid that if his people went to Jerusalem to worship the Lord at the feasts, they might decide to align with Rehoboam and want to make him their king instead of him. To stop them from traveling to Jerusalem, he set up two golden calves - one in Dan and one in Bethel so the people could go to either of them to worship the Lord. He elected priests who were not Levites to serve at his pagan shrines all over the nation. And he ordained a new date to celebrate that was the counterfeit of the Feast of Tabernacle. It was on the same date only a month later. At the first celebration of this new feast, he went to burn incense on the altar he had set up at Bethel. *** God sent a prophet from Judah to meet him there. As Jeroboam was there about to offer his incense, the prophet shouted out about a child named Josiah who would be born into the dynasty of David. He would sacrifice the priests who came here to offer incense and he would burn human bones on this altar. As a sign that what he was saying was true, the altar would split apart and its ashes would be poured out on the ground. *** Jeroboam lifted his arm and pointed at him and ordered his men to seize the prophet. When he did, his arm was paralyzed. The altar cracked and its ashes poured out on the ground. The king begged the prophet to pray for his arm and he did. His arm was restored and the king asked him to come home with him and eat and he would give him a gift. He refused and told him God had told him not to eat or drink in this place, but return a different way than the one he came. *** There was an old prophet who lived there and his sons come home and told him what had happened. He chased the young prophet from Judah down and asked him to come eat with him. When he refused the old prophet told him that an angel had told him to bring him home to eat. This was a lie. The younger man listened to the older prophet and went home with him. While they were eating. The older prophet told him because he disobeyed the Lord, his body would not be buried in the grave of his ancestors. *** The young prophet left and was attacked by a lion and killed. The lion stood and protected his body until the older prophet could come and get it. He laid him in his own grave and asked to be buried beside him when he died. He knew that what the young prophet had prophesied would come true. *** Jeroboam didn’t repent after what happened and continued to appoint anyone who wanted to become a priest and let them preside over the pagan shrines. This led to Jeroboam’s dynasty being destroyed from the face of the earth. *** In this story, it is important to understand how sacred bones were in the Old Testament. When the young prophet prophesied that the bones of the priests who offered on the altar would be burned, this was the biggest curse that could be given. No one wanted their bones to be burnt, that would mean their lives were totally extinguished and they wouldn’t live on in the afterlife. The older prophet wanted the younger prophet to be buried in his grave and him beside him in the same grave so his own bones would be protected. *** Two hundred years later, Josiah came back to this place and had his men dig up the bones of the prophets who were buried around the altar. When they began to dig up the young prophet’s grave, Josiah had them leave it alone. So the older prophet was using the young prophet to save his bones. Little did that older prophet understand, God sees all and knows the intents of all hearts. He would be judged by his actions of deceit. *** In Acts, all the believers were scared to meet with Saul because of his reputation for killing Christians. Saul continued to travel with the apostles around Jerusalem teaching and preaching. Some of the Greek-speaking Jews tried to kill Saul for his beliefs and when the Christians heard this, they sent Paul away to Tarsus, his home town. *** The churches throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria grew in strength and numbers. Peter raised a man named Aeneas who had been paralyzed for eight years. It turned the whole population of Lydda and Sharon to the Lord. *** One of the much loved believers in Joppa died. Her name was Tabitha. People came from all around to mourn her death. Peter went in and raised her from the dead. This brought many others to believe. *** While they were in Joppa, Peter stayed at the home of Simon the tanner. *** Lord, we long to see the miracles of Acts manifested in abundance on the earth. May we be found worthy of manifesting your power.