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After all, for suffering long seemed glorified in me, daily walks and talks with me. How can I be lonely when I'm Jesus only, to be my companion and unfailing guide? Why should I be weary, or my passing dreary, when He's walking by my side, I'll ask. In life's rosy morning, when the skies above are clear, in its clear-dried hours, let me hear the drums of fear. How can I be lonely when I'm Jesus only, to be my companion and unfailing guide? Why should I be weary, or my passing dreary, when He's walking by my side? How can I be lonely when I'm Jesus only, to be my companion and unfailing guide? Where is Mrs. Sarah Ventura? Not here, all right. So be sure to RSVP for that. Anybody's invited next Sunday. On the back, special services are planned for Tucson's two-year anniversary. So that's going to be September 3rd through 6th. On Thursday night, I'm going to be preaching at 7 o'clock. Pastor Mejia is going to be preaching from First Works Baptist Church in Los Angeles, California. On Friday at 7, there's going to be a breakfast on Saturday morning at 9 a.m. followed by two hours of soul winning, more fellowship, a lunch, and then two hours of soul winning in the afternoon. And then the normal Sunday services on Sunday with Brother Corbin Russell preaching. We will be providing a shuttle transportation down there for the Thursday and the Friday. You'd have to be here by 3.30 sharp, ready to roll. Sorry, I keep saying that. It's usually 3.30, but it's actually 5 o'clock that the shuttle's leaving on that Thursday and Friday. I believe there are sign up sheets over there where you can sign up to make sure that you get a spot because when those spots are gone, they're gone, gone, gone. So anyway, you want to make sure that you reserve a spot. And then below that, congratulations to the Cooper family on the birth of Priscilla Cynthia. Baby Priscilla was born on Friday, August 21st, 8 pounds, 1 ounce, and 20 inches long. Weekly events, every Tuesday night we have the preaching class. That's for participants only. No lurkers, no spectators, I guess would be a better word for that. And then the Tucson shuttle for the normal soul winning dinner and church service every Thursday is at 3.30 p.m. There's also a sign up for that. Just be aware you might not get back till like 11 o'clock at night. But you can ride with brother Corbin Ressl down to Tucson. You leave here at 3.30 sharp. He'll take you soul winning. He'll buy you dinner, go to church, and party till 11 p.m. down with the brethren in Tucson. This is, you know, for us it's a party. Amen. Those who love the Lord, you know, we love soul winning, fellowship, preaching. This is how we party. All right. And that's about it for announcements. Let's go ahead and count up the soul winning from the past few days going back to Thursday the 20th. Anything from Thursday the 20th? Gotcha. All right. Anything else from Thursday? Is that a one back there? All right. And then is that a five? Six. All right. Anything else from Thursday? All right. How about Friday the 21st? Gotcha. Okay. Five. Gotcha. All right. Anything else from Friday the 21st? How about Saturday? Yesterday. We got one in the back. All right. Is that a one? All right. I'm getting some light through that window. Sorry. Anything else from yesterday? Okay. How about today? Let's start with our main groups. Brother Scott. Eight. Eight for the main team. All right. We got two for Brother Madison. What else we got? Four for Tilson's team. We got one solo lone commando there. Is that what that was? All right. What else we got? Anything else? I thought I saw a hand. Maybe somebody just twitched or something. All right. Very good. Keep up the great work on soul winning. And with that, let's go ahead and sing our next song. Come lead us. All right. We're going to do a song of the week. How Great Thou Art Should Be in Your Hymnal. A little page in your hymnal. How Great Thou Art. How Great Thou Art. Oh Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder Consider all the world I can't have made I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder I count throughout the universe's way Then sings my soul, my savior God to thee How great thou art, how great thou art Then sings my soul, my savior God to thee How great thou art, how great thou art Then sings my soul, my savior God to thee How great thou art, how great thou art Then sings my soul, my savior God to thee How great thou art, how great thou art Then sings my soul, my savior God to thee How great thou art, how great thou art Then sings my soul, my savior God to thee How great thou art, how great thou art Then sings my soul, my savior God to thee How great thou art, how great thou art Then sings my soul, my savior God to thee How great thou art, how great thou art Then sings my soul, my savior God to thee How great thou art, how great thou art Then sings my soul, my savior God to thee How great thou art, how great thou art How great thou art, how great thou art When Christ shall come, with shout of admiration And take me home, what joy shall fill my heart Then I shall bow in humble adoration And there proclaim my God, how great thou art Then sings my soul, my savior God to thee How great thou art, how great thou art Then sings my soul, my savior God to thee How great thou art, how great thou art Song 113 Far away in the depths of my spirit tonight Roles of melody, speech, heard and sung In the last light of day, I'm facing the cause Of my soul, an infinite calm Peace, peace, wonderful peace Coming down from the father above Sweet of my spirit, forever I pray In fabulous flows of love What a treasure I have in this wonderful peace Hairy deep in the heart of my soul So secure that no power can mine in a way While the years of eternity roll Peace, peace, wonderful peace Coming down from the father above Sweet of my spirit, forever I pray In fabulous flows of love I rest tonight in this wonderful peace Rescuing me in Jesus' control Forget all danger by night and by day And his glory is flooding my soul Peace, peace, wonderful peace Coming down from the father above Sweet of my spirit, forever I pray In fabulous flows of love And it leads my mind to that city of peace Where the offer of peace I shall see That a stranger, the soul, there's the ransom we'll sing In that heavenly kingdom shall be Peace, peace, wonderful peace Coming down from the father above Sweet of my spirit, forever I pray In fabulous flows of love A soul you hear without comfort or rest Marching down the pathway of time May Jesus proclaim, ere the shadows roll dark All are said to speak, be so sublime Peace, peace, wonderful peace Coming down from the father above Sweet of my spirit, forever I pray In fabulous flows of love Alright, we have the Master Offering plates around As the plates go around, let's turn our Bibles to 1 Kings chapter number 1 The book of 1 Kings chapter number 1, as we always do, we'll read the entire chapter starting in verse number 1 Follow along silently with brother Nick as he reads 1 Kings chapter number 1 1 Kings chapter 1 Now King David was old and stricken in years And they covered him with clothes, but he got no heat Wherefore his servants said unto him, Let there be salt for my lord the king a young virgin And let her stand before the king, and let her cherish him And let her lie in thy bosom, that my lord the king may get heat So they sought for a fair damsel throughout all the coasts of Israel And found Abishag a Shunammite, and brought her to the king And the damsel was very fair, and cherished the king and ministered to him, but the king knew her not Then Adonijah the son of Hagith exalted himself, saying, I will be king And he prepared him chariots and horsemen and fifty men to run before him And his father had not displeased him at any time in saying, Why hast thou done so? And he also was a very goodly man, and his mother bare him after Absalom And he conferred with Joab the son of Jeruiah, and with Abiathar the priest, and Nath following Adonijah, helped him But Zadok the priest, and Vinaya the son of Jehoiada, and Nathan the prophet, and Shimei, and Reih And the mighty men which belonged to David were not with Adonijah And Adonijah slew sheep and oxen and fat cattle by the stone of Zohileth, which is by Enrogel And called all his brethren the king's sons, and all the men of Judah the king's servants But Nathan the prophet, and Vinaya, and the mighty men, and Solomon his brother he called not Wherefore Nathan spake unto Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, saying, Hast thou not heard that Adonijah the son of Hagith doth reign, and David our Lord knoweth it not? Now therefore come, let me, I pray thee, give thee counsel, that thou mayest save thine own life And the life of thy son Solomon. Go and get thee in unto king David, and say unto him, Didst not thou, my lord, O king, swear unto thine handmaid, saying, Assuredly, Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne? Why then doth Adonijah reign? Behold, while thou yet talk is there with the king, I also will come in after thee, and confirm thy words. And Bathsheba went in unto the king into the chamber, and the king was very old, and Abishag the Shunammite ministered unto the king. And Bathsheba bowed and did obeisance unto the king, and the king said, What wouldest thou? And she said unto him, My lord, thou swearst by the Lord thy God unto thine handmaid, saying, Assuredly, Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne. And now, behold, Adonijah reigneth, and now, my lord the king, thou knowest it not, and he hath slain oxen and fat cattle and sheep in abundance, and hath called all the sons of the king, and Abidor the priest, and Joab the captain of the host, but Solomon thy servant hath he not called. And thou, my lord, O king, the eyes of all Israel are upon thee, that thou shouldst tell them who shall sit on the throne of my lord the king after him. Otherwise it shall come to pass, when my lord the king shall sleep with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon shall be counted offenders. And lo, while she yet talked with the king, Nathan the prophet also came in, and they told the king, saying, Behold, Nathan the prophet. And when he was come in before the king, he bowed himself before the king with his face to the ground, and Nathan said, My lord, O king, hast thou said, Adonijah shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne, for he is gone down this day, and hath slain oxen and fat cattle and sheep in abundance, and hath called all the king's sons and the captains of the host, and Abidor the priest, and behold, they eat and drink before him, and say, God save king Adonijah. But me, even me thy servant, and Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and thy servant Solomon, hath he not called. Is this thing done by my lord the king, and thou hast not showed it unto thy servant, who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him? Then king David answered and said, Call me Bathsheba. And she came into the king's presence and stood before the king. And the king sware and said, As the lord liveth, that hath redeemed my soul out of all distress, even as I swear unto thee by the lord God of Israel, saying, Assuredly, Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne and my stead. Even so will I certainly do this day. Then Bathsheba bowed with her face to the earth, and did reverence to the king, and said, Let my lord king David live forever. And king David said, Call me Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada. And they came before the king. The king also said unto them, Take with you the servants of your lord, and call Solomon my son to ride upon mine own mule, and bring him down to Gihon. And let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anoint him their king over Israel, and blow ye with the trumpet, and say, God save king Solomon. And ye shall come up after him, that he may come and sit upon my throne, for he shall be king in my stead. And I have appointed him to be ruler over Israel and over Judah. And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king and said, Amen. The lord God of my lord the king say so too. As the lord hath been with my lord the king, even so be he with Solomon, and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord king David. So Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherithites and the Pelethites went down, and caused Solomon to ride upon king David's mule, and brought him to Gihon. And Zadok the priest took an horn of oil out of the tabernacle and anointed Solomon, and they blew the trumpet, and all the people said, God save king Solomon. And all the people came up after him, and the people piped with pipes and rejoiced with great joy, so that the earth rent with the sound of them. And Adonijah and all the guests that were with him heard it as they had made an end of eating. And when Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, Wherefore is this noise of the city being an uproar? And while he yet spake, behold, Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priest came, and Adonijah said unto him, Come in, for thou art a valiant man, and bring us good tidings. And Jonathan answered and said to Adonijah, Verily our lord king David hath made Solomon king. And the king hath sent with him Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherithites and the Pelethites, and they have caused him to ride upon the king's mule. And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king in Gihon, and they are come up from thence rejoicing, so that the city rang again. This is the noise that ye have heard. And also Solomon sitteth on the throne of the kingdom, and moreover the king's servants came to bless our lord king David, saying, God make the name of Solomon better than thy name, and make his throne greater than thy throne. And the king bowed himself upon the bed. And also thus said the king, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, which hath given one to sit on my throne this day, mine eyes even seeing it. And all the guests that were with Adonijah were afraid, and rose up, and went every man his way. And Adonijah feared because of Solomon, and arose, and went, and caught hold on the horns of the altar. And it was told Solomon, saying, Behold, Adonijah feareth king Solomon, for lo, he hath caught hold on the horns of the altar, saying, Let king Solomon swear unto me today, that he will not slay his servant with the sword. And Solomon said, If he will show himself a worthy man, there shall not an heir of him fall to the earth, but if wickedness shall be found in him, he shall die. So king Solomon sent, and they brought him down from the altar, and he came and bowed himself to king Solomon. And Solomon said unto him, Go to thine house. Father Brandon, will you pray for us? Dear Heavenly Father, I thank you for helping us all be gathered tonight for church. I pray that you anoint Pastor Anderson with the Holy Ghost, help him to preach your word boldly, and help us to learn some great truths tonight, and help us live better Christian lives that please you. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Man, the title of my sermon tonight is, Adonijah, Presumptuous and Self-Willed. If you start there in verse number 5, where you are in 1 Kings chapter 1, the Bible reads, Then Adonijah, the son of Hagith, exalted himself, saying, I will be king, and he prepared him chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him. So right there, our first introduction to this man is that he exalted himself. And that pretty much tells you everything that's going on in the Bible. And that pretty much tells you everything that you need to know about this guy. Jesus said, Whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased, but he that humbleth himself shall be exalted. What does it mean to exalt yourself? Basically, he's lifting himself up. This is the kind of guy who's prideful, arrogant, a boaster, a braggart, he's prideful, he's high-minded, and he exalted himself to be king. Now, in the New Testament, when the Bible talks about the qualifications for being a pastor, one of those qualifications is that he not be self-willed. And if you look up that word self-willed in the New Testament, it's used one other time over in 2 Peter chapter 2 verse 10 about false prophets and false teachers. Here's what it says about them. Presumptuous are they, and self-willed, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities. So we see that these two things are put side by side. Self-willed and presumptuous. These are two things that go together, and the Bible will put words together like that sometimes to help define them for you so you can get the picture of what God's saying. Now, what does the word presumptuous mean? Presumptuous comes from the word presume. And to presume is similar to assume, right? Except when you presume, it has the connotation that you're kind of assuming that, you know, you're going to be the boss, that you're going to be the leader, that you're going to get these accolades or whatever. So someone who is presumptuous is someone who is arrogant and prideful and thinks that they have everything coming to them and so forth. Now, you know, I'll give you an example of this. You know, one time there was a guy who came to our church and he, you know, had mentioned to me, hey, I'd like to be a pastor someday. You know, I want to be trained to be a pastor. And people say that to me all the time. I mean, I've had many, many people come to me and express that desire to me. And I'll typically give them a list of things to work on. Okay, you know, well, here's some things you can work on. You know, are you married? You know, there's a start, right? That's the big thing. You know, you've got to be married, have a few kids. I tell them to read their Bible. You know, you should read your Bible at least ten times cover to cover before you're a pastor, in my opinion. And that's our standard here. Nobody gets ordained if they haven't read the Bible at least ten times cover to cover. You've got to be married, have a couple kids. And then we also have a preaching class where you can come to the preaching class and get experience preaching, get tips, get pointers, learn how to do it. We've got books that we recommend and everything like that. So there's a lot that goes into that. But here's something that I want to make clear, and I've made this clear before, but I want to make it clear again, if you're looking for a sure-fire ordination, if you're looking for a sure thing, like you want to go into the ministry and you're looking for a guarantee, it's called Bible college. Right. Okay, because we will not just ordain anyone who goes through the program. That's not how it works around here, okay. Because, you know, yes, we have minimum requirements of you've got to be married, have at least two kids. You have to have read the Bible ten times. You have to show us that you have the ability to preach. You have to be faithful in our ministry here. But that's not just a guaranteed ordination because there's a whole list of biblical qualifications and you have to be approved of your brethren here and someone that we feel like is worthy of that title and worthy of that job and ready to take on that challenge, okay. Because it's not easy to be a pastor, especially if you're starting a church. I mean, it's just very challenging. So this isn't a Bible college. Don't confuse Faith Forward Baptist Church for a Bible college where everybody goes through the program and everybody gets a certificate. And it's just like a guaranteed participation trophy. You show up, you get a C minus, you get a degree and boom, you're in the ministry. That's not the way it works around here. You've got to get an A around here, okay. Going forward, that's, you know, we're very serious about that. We've had some bad experiences in the past, amen. So the point is that there was this guy and, you know, he went to the preaching class. He'd expressed the desire to pastor someday, okay, but then all of a sudden he just announced in another state, I'm starting a church here. He even started handing out literature about the church that he's starting without even talking to me, without even asking me, without even letting me know, without even saying, hey, I want to start a church in this place at this time. This is the date. So I had to hear it through the grapevine, you know, where people are coming and telling me, hey, I hear that you're sending so-and-so to start a church in this other state. I'm thinking like, I am? Really? Because this is the first time I'm hearing about it. Now, what is that? That's presumptuous. That's somebody just assuming, well, yeah, of course, you know, faithful word's going to ordain me. I mean, yeah. Well, guess what? He didn't get ordained. And I told him, I said, I'm not going to ordain you. You don't just take that upon yourself and assume that and presume that and just all of a sudden you just start announcing to everybody that you're going to be a pastor and you're starting a church and you didn't even bother telling me that, let alone, you know, asking me if you were up to snuff or if you have met the criteria or if you have met the requirements that the Bible puts forth. So, you know, that's just kind of an illustration of an attitude that's presumptuous. And I'm not saying that that guy is a horrible person or a bad guy or anything. I'm not saying that, you know, he won't someday be in the ministry and do something great for God. I'm not saying that at all. But I'm saying what he did there was presumptuous to just do that on his own and not, you know, get the blessing or talk to the leadership and talk to the church and let us know what he's doing. So it says in 1 Kings chapter 1 verse 5, Then Adonijah the son of Hagath exalted himself saying, I will be king. And he prepared him chariots and horsemen and fifty men to run before him. Now, here's one thing I want to point out right away about this guy. Adonijah, who exalts himself to be king. This guy is going to be the third king of Israel, right? Because you've got Saul and then you've got David and then Adonijah is the next guy, right? Let's go back and look at the reaction of Saul when he finds out that he's going to be king. Let's compare Adonijah with the ones that God chose because God did not choose Adonijah to be king. God handpicked Saul, God handpicked David, and God handpicked Solomon. The guy who's actually going to be king instead of Adonijah was God's choice. God chose King Solomon. So let's look at the three men that God chose and compare them to Adonijah. Go back, if you would, to 1 Samuel chapter 9. So 1 Kings, we have Adonijah, presumptuous, self-willed, I will be king. He exalts himself, he gets a fan club together, and he takes it upon himself. Let's compare this to Saul, David, and Solomon, who are the men that God actually chose. It says in 1 Samuel chapter 9 verse 21, And Saul answered and said, Am not I a Benjamite? We're in 1 Samuel 9 21. Of the smallest of the tribes of Israel, and my family the least, of all the families of the tribe of Benjamin, wherefore then speakest thou so to me? What is he saying here? He's saying, like, why would you say this to me? Why would you approach me about being the king of Israel when I'm no great person, I'm from a humble background, I'm from a humble family. Now this is the exact opposite of presumption. And the Bible describes him at this time as being little in his own sight. Little in his own sight. He's not presumptuous like, Well yeah, it's about time somebody recognized me for what I am, and gave me the position that I've needed. Now jump over to chapter 10 verse 27, we're still talking about King Saul, the first king of Israel, and even though Saul ended up in a bad way, let's not forget that Saul started out as a great guy, and that he was hand-picked by God. To be the king of Israel. First Samuel chapter 10 verse 27, But the children of Belial said, this is when Saul is ordained king, But the children of Belial said, How shall this man save us? And they despised him and brought him no presence. But he held his peace. So you see him quietly, humbly, taking criticism, and not lashing out at those who are attacking him. Now look at chapter 11 verse 12, because you might say, Well maybe he was just shy to say anything, or maybe he just was afraid, or being a coward there when he held his peace at all the criticism. Well no, because look at chapter 11 verse 12, he has the same exact attitude, And the people said unto Samuel, Who is he that said, Saul shall reign over us? Bring them in that we may put them to death. So the sons of Belial, the bozos from chapter 10, now that they've been proved wrong in chapter 11, now that Saul has done a great work, they're saying, Hey, those guys who hated Saul and didn't want them to reign over us, bring them here and kill them. Put them to death. Saul's our guy. And Saul said in verse 13, There shall not a man be put to death this day, for today the Lord hath wrought salvation in Israel. So what do we see here? We see King Saul, he's not vindictive, and he's humble. He held his peace when they were reproaching him and attacking him, and then afterward he spares them. So we see that Saul is a humble man, he's little in his own sight, he's not presumptuous at all. Okay, now let's look at David. Flip over to chapter 18, 1 Samuel chapter 18. So we're comparing the ones that God chose. God chose Saul, God chose David, God chose Solomon. We're comparing that with the guy who chose himself, the guy who ordained himself, the guy who exalted himself, the guy who appointed himself. What's he like compared to the guys that God uses? Okay. It says in 1 Samuel chapter 18 verse 18, and this is David's reaction to marrying Saul's daughter. He has the opportunity to marry one of King Saul's daughters. Look what he says in verse 18. And David said unto Saul, Who am I? And what is my life, or my father's family in Israel, that I should be a son-in-law to the king? Look at verse 23. And Saul's servants spake those words in the ears of David. And David said, Seemeth it to you a light thing to be a king's son-in-law, seeing that I am a poor man and lightly esteemed? Keep in mind, David has already killed Goliath, he's already battled the Philistines, he's already showed himself to be a mighty man of war, he's already shown his musical prowess, he's already got a lot of accolades and a lot of achievements. And yet he says, Who am I? This is too much. I don't deserve this about being a king's son-in-law. Exact opposite of Adonijah, no achievements, no accolades, but just, you know, I'm going to be king, and just exalting himself. And what I want you to see about this, if you would flip over to 1 Kings chapter 3, and we'll look at Solomon. If you read the story of David, you'll notice David is not just hell-bent on being king. David isn't just like, I need to be the king. You can tell when you read the story that he would have been perfectly happy to keep on serving under King Saul. He was very happy to be a servant of Saul. And in fact, when he had opportunities to kill Saul, which would make him king sooner, you know, so he could replace Saul, he didn't take those opportunities. And in fact, when he hears a guy confess to murdering Saul, he has that guy put to death. And says, why were you not afraid to put forth your hand against the Lord's anointed? Your blood is on your own head because you touched the Lord's anointed. So we see him, he's not hell-bent on being the top dog. He was perfectly happy to serve under King Saul. And then when we look at Solomon, in 1 Kings chapter 3 verse 7, let's look at Solomon's reaction to being chosen to be king. Verse 7, And now, O Lord my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father. And I am but a little child, I know not how to go out or come in, and thy servant is in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen, a great people that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude, give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad, for who is able to judge this, thy so great a people? And the speech pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this thing. So what do these three men have in common? They're all humble, none of them is presumptuous, and they all have more achievements than Adonijah. But yet, they're humble, they're not presumptuous, God chooses them, the people ordain them, but they don't take anything upon themselves. And those are the kind of people that God uses. Look, if you want to be used by God, you've got to be a humble person, not an arrogant, self-willed person, or somebody who has to be the boss, somebody who has to be in charge, you have to be in the limelight, you have to be famous. And here's what you have to understand about kings. The office of kings started out as being a job of protecting the people. You're the one who's going to lead the people into battle. You're going to go out there and be on the front line as a warrior fighting for the people. That's what it started out as. And if you study the history during the Middle Ages, the time that we would call feudalism, that system, and if you study places like Great Britain and mainland Europe during that time, and you read about the nobility, what did that mean, initially, to be nobility? Because by the time you get to the French Revolution, you've got the nobility, and then you've got the common man, and the nobility is just wining and dining. They're a bunch of men in tights. They've got a powdered wig, and they're eating a bunch of Grey Poupon, and then you've got a bunch of people starving and paying a bunch of taxes so that all these nobility can live high on the hog. But is that how it started out? Because then a lot of people are looking at that in the 18th century and say, what's this nobility? What is this? Aren't we all human? Aren't we all the same? Aren't all men created equal? And that's where you get that kind of language in the Declaration of Independence that all men are created equal. That attitude is coming from looking at this class of people that's the nobility and saying, why do these people think that they're better than everyone else? They're living better, they get all these privileges, what did they do to deserve that? And here's the thing, they did nothing to deserve that, but what we have to understand is that their ancestors actually did something to deserve that. But it was handed to them. How that started is that in the olden days, you would have a king who was actually the guy who's keeping them safe. I mean, you know, he's the one leading them into battle against their enemies, and then great warriors and people that excelled in battle and did great deeds of daring and saved the countryside, those people would be given titles of nobility because of their great exploits, their bravery. So a guy like Saul, just to kind of tie it in with the Bible, would have a guy like David, for example, who's out killing the Philistines or David has guys like David's mighty men. So those 30 mighty men, if this were like the Middle Ages, they'd be knights, or they'd be getting titles of nobility. Does everybody understand what I'm saying? You know, the 30 mighty men would get these titles of nobility, but then the problem is the 30 mighty men, they get married and have kids, and they raise a bunch of spoiled brats that never did anything, but they still get that title of nobility, and then their kids are even more soft and weak, and pretty soon you're wondering where did these titles of nobility even come from? Pretty soon people are buying titles of nobility. I got an ad on Facebook the other day, it showed a picture of some guy in tights with a curly wig, and said this could be you for $49.99 you can purchase a title of nobility in Scotland or something. So I can be a Scottish lord for 50 bucks on Facebook. You know, I can buy like one square meter of land, and then that's my duchy or whatever, I don't know what the word would be for that, you know. That's going to be my realm. I'm the lord of this little realm or whatever, and I could be like Sir Lord Stephen Anderson of whatever the Loch Lomond or whatever. So the point is, though, that you know, what is the point? The point is that being a king started out as, hey, this guy is going to save us, because that's what I said about Saul, like can this guy save us? Saul rallies everybody, goes against the Philistines, wins the battle. What did David do? He leads them into battle, he fights for the people, but over time these positions like King or Duke or Earl or whatever, these things degenerate into being something that you don't do because you want to serve, but you do because you want the power and the prestige and the fame. Well, guess what, did you know that pastoring could be the exact same way? The Bible says he that desireth the office of a bishop desireth a good work. He that desireth the office of a bishop desireth a good work. So the right reason to pastor is why? Because you want to preach the word of God. You want to win souls. You want to evangelize. You want to minister to people. You want to be a blessing to people. You want to lead God's people into battle. In the spiritual fight that we're in today, that's what being a pastor means. But then there are people who just want to be a pastor because to them it just means my name on a shingle. Or my name in the tract. Or my face on the website. Or going to a conference and being the big conference speaker and everybody thinks you're great. That is a wicked reason to want to pastor because Jesus said the first shall be last and the last shall be first. Jesus said whosoever will be great among you let him be your minister. Let him be your servant. And so that's a wrong reason. And we see that Adonijah is a guy, he doesn't want to be king because he just really feels like he can be a great leader of the people and he just feels like he can battle the Philistines and he's going to also be a great spiritual leader and bring them close to the Lord. You don't see that in Adonijah at all. You see that in Solomon because what did Solomon say? Oh God give me wisdom so I can lead these people. I want to serve these people. I'm like a little child. I don't even know how to come out or go in. I don't know what I'm doing Lord. Give me wisdom. Help me to do a good job. And Solomon did an excellent job. Solomon led the nation of Israel into its greatest most prosperous period that they ever experienced. They had peace, prosperity, they're worshipping the Lord and of course he made some mistakes at the end also because you know what? Being a king goes to people's head and they end up doing dumb things. But in general, Solomon did a great job. God gave him the wisdom. He did well. Adonijah is a self-serving, presumptuous self-willed person who wants the title because he wants to have somebody feed him grapes and fan him with palm leaves. To him that's what it means to be the king. And you know when we were kids when we played king? That's what we played. You know when we were kids we'd take a beach towel and you know put it around us like some kind of a robe or a cape or we'd get some kind of a bathrobe and put that on and we'd put on a Burger King crown and we had some kind of a scepter and you know what? We would literally eat grapes and be fanned with palm leaves and that's what to us that's what it meant to be a king. But that's not what it was supposed to be to be a king. It should have been you're a leader, you're serving, you're working, you're doing a job, okay? Well that's the way it is with being a pastor or anything else. It's about service. And look, you say, well I'm not a pastor. I'm never going to be a pastor. Whatever you do in your life I don't care what position you're in. Husband, wife, mother, father, you know your secular job. I don't care if you're management or if you're at the bottom of the totem pole or you're the owner of the company. You know at the end of the day all of our lives are about service. We live a life of service. The Christian life is about service. It's about working, right? We as men live a life of work. Ladies, what do they do? They work. They work around the house. They serve their children. They serve their husband. They serve in the home. And look, by going out and working and paying the bills, I'm serving my family. And when I go to the company that I work for, I'm serving that company, right? And as a pastor of a church, I'm serving the church. I mean, we are living lives of service, not lives of hey everybody, can I tell you the title that I've achieved? But this guy is looking for a title. That's who Adonijah is. Saul, David and Solomon? Nope. And you know what? There's nothing worse than these guys who just have to pastor. They just have to pastor. What am I talking about? Well, let me give you some examples of guys that just have to pastor. How about the guy who commits adultery and he keeps pastoring? You're not qualified. You're not faithful. You know, what about the pastor who divorced his wife and marries a secretary, keeps pastoring. What in the world? But why would he do that when he's clearly in violation of the command to be the husband of one wife and to be blameless and so forth. You know, commit, and obviously, no pastor is going to be perfect. Pastors are going to sin and make mistakes and do wrong, myself included. Everybody's a sinner. There's not a just man upon the earth that do good and sin and not. But you know, when you're out committing things that are worthy of death, come on. You know, you're out committing adultery and doing other just horrible things and committing major sins and when you've got pastors who are doing things that would get you kicked out of the church, you know, like things like drunkenness or things like, you know, getting high on drugs or things like fornication. I mean, come on. Those should be like a no-brainer that you're not qualified to pastor. But yet you see them pastor anyway. Why? Because they just have to be a pastor. You know what? You don't have to be a pastor to serve God. You can serve God and earn just as many rewards and do just as many great works as a layman. Now obviously we need more pastors. I mean, you know, we are starving for leadership in this country. I mean, in 2020 America, we need more pastors. I would love to see some young men rise up and a generation of men rise up and become the pastors that we need. So hey, if you want to be a pastor, I think that's a great desire to have. He that desireth the office of a bishop desireth the good work. That is a great desire to have. But your motive should be if it's God's will, here am I, send me. The motive should be I want to evangelize and do a great work for God. Not just, man, it'd be great to be up there. You know, it'd be great to be the top dog. No, that's wicked. And it's not just the wrong motive, it's wicked. And the type of person who wants to go into the ministry, with that actually is a wicked person. And let me tell you something, the ministry can attract some great people and can attract some very rotten people. I mean, the worst kind of people are going to be found in the ministry. Because I don't think there's anybody sorrier or more rotten than a false prophet. There's nothing sorrier. It's super wicked. And so I want to make sure that if you want to go into the ministry, that you want to do it for the right reasons, that you're desiring to do a work for God, not to have position or accolades or fame or whatever. And you know, you can tell the guys who want to have the position and the fame and the accolades, I mean, because look, they trim the message, they preach what's popular, they live in millions and millions of dollars of homes and drive millions or not millions of dollars, but fancy cars, they drive fancy cars, they wear fancy suits, right, they live in fancy homes, and they're living like a rock and roll lifestyle while pastoring a New Testament church. You can tell right away what the motive of a guy like Joel Osteen is, or T.D. Jakes or Kenneth Copeland or these guys flying around in a private jet, they're multi-millionaires, they own several homes, okay, that's not a guy who's in it for the right reason. That's pretty obvious, isn't it? So, yes, it's good to desire being a pastor, but not to have this attitude of, I've just got to pastor. You know, if people are telling you you're not cut out for the ministry, or you're not qualified, you should be able to accept that and just say, okay, you know what, then I'll just humbly serve in whatever capacity. You know, I've had people come to me and ask me if they're qualified and I told them no. I don't believe that you should ever be a pastor because of something in your past, because there are certain things, and look, it doesn't mean that you're not forgiven, it doesn't mean that you can't live a great life for God, but there are certain things that permanently disqualify you from the ministry. Okay. And people come to me and they ask me and I tell them, look, you know, you're not qualified. You're never going to be a pastor, you're never going to be a deacon, but here's all the other ways you can serve God. And some people, they take that, and they accept it, and they humbly serve God, and they do great things for God, and then other people turn around and just get mad, and they get bitter, and then they hate me, they want to kill the messenger for telling them that they're not qualified. And by the way, even people who meet the qualifications on paper, it doesn't mean that they're necessarily cut out for the job. You know, for example, there was a guy that went to our church and, you know, he met all the qualifications on paper, I mean, on paper this guy checked all the boxes, but the guy was just too soft and too much of a weakling. Folks, that's not going to work. Being a pastor is a fight. You've got to be a warrior. Okay, what about being a king? I mean, what about being King Saul, King David? These guys had to be fighters. You know, you can't be a softy who can't tell people no. You've got to be a warrior, okay? And somebody who can't say no, isn't willing to fight, wants to get along with everybody is not cut out for pastoring, period. Because basically, you know who the biblical character is that that describes? Who is it? Aaron. Who said it? Yeah, Aaron. It's Aaron! The guy who can't tell people no. You know, Moses was able to lead and tell people no, but then as soon as Moses is gone, the people come to Aaron and they start telling him what to do. And he's just like, okay. And he, pretty soon they're all worshipping the golden calf. That wasn't Aaron's idea. Aaron wasn't a bad person. I think the Bible paints a picture that Aaron is a good guy. But he was weak. He was not a leader. Not everybody's cut out for leadership. And that's okay. Because like I said, I firmly, look, I'm the pastor of this church. I firmly believe that when we get to heaven, there will be a lot of people in front of me in line at the judgment seat of Christ that are not the pastor of this church. Guaranteed. I don't believe I, oh, well, pastor, oh, well, you get in the short line because you're a pastor. You know, many that are last shall be first and many that are first shall be last. And I don't believe that I'm some super Christian. I don't believe I'm some phenomenal Christian that's going to be at the front of that line, friend. I believe there are going to be a lot of people in front of me in that line. I believe there are going to be women in front of me at that line. There are going to be laymen in front of me at that line. There are going to be a lot of people who were a better Christian than me and did better works than me. Now look, I've got my job to do. I play a role. I have, I'm a part of this body and I have a function. You have a function. Other people have a function. We don't need to compare ourselves amongst ourselves, but I promise you that it's not just a guaranteed, well, a hundred bonus points for you because you're a pastor. In fact, you know, pastors are going to be judged more harshly. The Bible says, Brethren, be not many masters knowing that we shall receive the greater condemnation. And so being a pastor does not mean you're going to get just boku rewards and you're going to be on some lower package if you're a layman. Let me tell you something. There's nothing wrong with spending your life as a godly layman and doing great things for God. Do we need pastors? Yes! But we need pastors who are qualified. And we need pastors who are doing it for the right reason. And we need pastors who have the killer instinct to get up and fight the Lord's battles and not be a weakling coward who lets everybody walk all over them because you know what? We don't need another deacon-run church. We don't need another woman-run church where the women of the church run the pastor. We don't need it. It's out there. I'm a dozen. We need a man of God who can lead. And so, look, if you're qualified, great! Let's do it! But you know who decides if you're qualified? Other people. Not you. You don't just say, you know what? I'm qualified now. I'm starting a church. Here I am. So, other people around you are the judge of that. You serve in the local church and people observe. That's what always blows my mind when you see people that don't even go to church anywhere and then all of a sudden they're pastoring. You know, it's like that meme where the guy's like skipping a whole bunch of steps. You know what I'm talking about? Where the guy's like reaching his leg up and going up a whole bunch of steps at once. You know, it's like basically, you're not even in church and then you're like, that's it! I'm starting a church. I can't find a good church. I'm starting one. You need to get into a church, serve under some other pastor and you know what? Before honor comes humility. You know, you gotta be a great follower before you can be a great leader. Now look, I'm the leader in my home. I have a wife and eleven children. But you know what? Before I had a wife and eleven children I was a follower. You know who I followed? My parents. And I had to obey my parents, honor my parents, respect my parents. And I learned how to get along with my parents and do what they told me to do. And I had a good relationship with my parents. And I have a good relationship with my parents right now. Okay? And the thing is if you don't have a good relationship with your parents, then you're not gonna have a good marriage. You're not gonna be a good parent yourself. How can your kids obey you when you don't want to obey your parents? First you obey your parents and then you make your kids obey you. That's the way the world works. And you know, first you're a godly layman and then you become a pastor. You earn that respect by first being a follower and being a good church member. Okay. I kind of went off on a tangent there but it's important. So let's jump back into the story here quickly with Adonijah. Let's continue the story. So how does this end? Is this gonna end well for Adonijah, exalting himself? Well, look what the Bible says in 1 Kings chapter 1 verse 42. And while he yet spake, so you know, Adonijah is talking a big talk and he's partying with all the people that are following him. And while he yet spake, behold Jonathan, the son of Abiathar the priest, came and Adonijah said unto him, Come in for thou art a valiant man and bring us good tidings, said Shaggy. No, I'm just kidding. And Jonathan answered and said to Adonijah, verily our Lord king David hath made Solomon king. So he finds out that uh-oh, David made Solomon king and all the people have rallied to Solomon. So basically when they find this out, the big party with Adonijah where he's becoming the king, it kind of kills the mood at that party. And everybody just starts kind of slipping out the doors and just kind of getting out of there. Nobody wants to be seen with Adonijah because they can see which way this thing's going. They don't want to be on the wrong side of history. So Adonijah himself feared. And it says in verse number 51, and it was told Solomon saying, Behold, Adonijah feareth king Solomon. For lo, he hath caught hold on the horns of the altar, saying, Let king Solomon swear unto me today that he will not slay his servant with the sword. And Solomon said, If he will show himself a worthy man, there shall not a hair of him fall to the earth. But if wickedness shall be found in him, he shall die. So king Solomon sent, and they brought him down from the altar, and he came and bowed himself to king Solomon, and Solomon said to him, Go to thine house. So Solomon says, Look, if he turns out to be a worthy man, he's going to be fine. Now, Adonijah's character is revealed in chapter 2. Look at verse 13. Let's see if he's a good guy or not. Verse 13 of chapter 2, And Adonijah, the son of Haggoth, came to Bathsheba, the mother of Solomon, and she said, Comest thou peaceably? And he said, Peaceably. He said, Moreover, I have somewhat to say unto thee. And she said, Say on. And he said, Thou knowest that the kingdom was mine. Listen to this braggart. Just right out of the gate, just talking this big talk. This is the guy who's screaming or he's whining and peeing his pants saying, Don't kill me, Solomon, holding onto the horns of the altar, scared to death with his tail between his legs, right? And now all of a sudden, he's just like, Well, you know, I mean, the kingdom was mine. What a loser. The guy's lucky to be alive. I mean, he's only spared. Solomon could have easily just said, Off with his head. But Solomon gives him another chance. Now he comes in talking all big to Solomon's mom. He literally goes to Solomon's mom and starts talking this big talk. I mean, he's not talking this way to Solomon. He's going to his mom. Well, thou knowest that the kingdom was mine and that all Israel set their faces on me that I should be. Really? Because you know what? I think you'd be raining right now if that were true. If all Israel had set their faces on you to rain, you'd be raining right now. Albeit the kingdom has turned about and has become my brothers, for it was his from the Lord. Now on the surface you might look at this and say, Well, look, you know, this guy's spiritual and he's honoring the Lord or whatever. But you know what he's basically saying like, Well, you know, God's the only one that could have prevented me from being king. You know, that's actually what he's doing here. So it might seem spiritual on the surface, but that's what he's basically saying. He said if it wasn't for God, I'd be the king. If it was just based on me versus Solomon, you know, it's only that God gave it to Solomon. Because you know, that's pretty much the only force that could ever defeat me, the creator of the universe. So you can see just the pride, the arrogance, the presumption here already just dripping from every word. And it says here, It was his from the Lord, verse 16, And now I ask one petition of thee, Deny me not. And she said unto him, Say on. And he said, Speak, I pray thee unto Solomon the king, for he will not say thee, nay, that he give me Abishag the Shanimite to wife. What's his one request? He's like, just give me one consolation prize. I want Abishag the Shanimite to wife. Okay, now who's Abishag? Let's back up to chapter 1, verse 1. I'm going to go through this fast. Chapter 1, verse 1, Now king David was old and stricken in years, and they covered him with clothes, but he got no heat. Have you ever felt that way when you're sick? You just can't get warm. You know, I've been under like seven blankets, and I'm just freezing. I always say, man, I feel like king David right now in 1 Kings chapter 1. Whenever I feel that way, I always think of this verse. And so he can't get warm. So it says in verse 2, Wherefore his servants said unto him, Let there be sought for my Lord the king, a young virgin, and let her stand before the king, and let her cherish him, and let her lie in thy bosom, that my Lord the king may get heat. So they sought for a fair damsel through all the coasts of Israel, and found Abishag as Shanimite, and brought her to the king. And the damsel was very fair, and cherished the king, and ministered to him, but the king knew her not. So this is not David's concubine. When it says he knew her not, he's saying he didn't have intimacy with her. He did not have a physical relationship with her, okay? She's just kind of there as a heat pack apparently, okay? Or she's just there to serve him or whatever, okay? You know, hey, you're the king, so let's get this beautiful young woman to serve you and and wait on you. But he does not enter into a carnal relationship with this woman, okay? That's what the Bible tells us, right? Now, why is it that Adonijah wants this particular woman to be his wife? Now, first of all, if she had actually been with his dad, then this would be totally perverted, because the Bible teaches in many scriptures in both Old and New Testament that that's a perversion. You know, for a woman to be married to both, you know, to be with a man and his son is a perversion, okay? It's something that's an abomination to the Lord. But that's not the case, but why is it that he wants this wife? Now, I submit to you that he wants a trophy wife. He wants a trophy wife. Why, I mean, out of all the fish in the sea, all the women that are out there, why does he want this woman? Because he wants the woman where they sought through the whole land and found the most beautiful young woman, that's who he wants to be married to. I mean, does he happen to be in love with this woman? No. He wants her because he wants the trophy wife. He wants a wife that's basically going to give him position or power or fame or make him look good, like, well, hey, look, I've got the most beautiful wife ever. And not only that, okay, but he could use this somehow maybe for some future jockeying for power of, like, well, you know, I'm Solomon's older brother and, you know, this woman that was with David, you know, now she's with me and he's trying to marry this woman in order to exalt himself. It's just always exalting himself. Chapter one is exalting himself. Chapter two is exalting himself. He brags, he boasts and then he wants to have a trophy wife so that he can show off. He doesn't want that for himself. You say, well, maybe she was just that beautiful. Hey, there's a lot of beautiful women out there and I guarantee you that a guy like Adonijah who's rich and powerful and he's the king's son, I mean, look, even though he's not the king, he's still David's son. He still I'm sure has quite an inheritance and he could probably pretty much get almost any woman that he wants. And it's not going to be hard for him to find a beautiful wife. He wants this particular wife to be his trophy, his centerpiece, one that he can show off and puff himself up and I am married to Abishag the Shunammite. That's clearly the motive. And you know what? This is more proof that he's going in to the ministry for the wrong reason. He wants to be the king for the wrong reason. Because I guarantee you the same type of motivation of his marriage is the same type of motivation that he's going to bring into his ministry. And you know, we see this in politicians all the time. They're not marrying for love are they? They're not marrying for love. Politicians today, they marry someone who's going to advance their career. Or, like the candidate for vice president, they just sleep with some dude that's 30 years older than them to advance their career. And here, let's just have a little commercial break. Shall we? Here's a little commercial break from the Adonijah story. Okay. First of all, let me start out by saying this. I don't give a rip about this election. I don't give a rip about politics. I checked out of politics a long time ago. I quit voting many, many years ago. Many elections ago. I'm not voting. I don't care. It's the two wings of the same bird. False left right paradigm. Republicrats and Demakins. And I'm not falling for it anymore. I've woken up to the left right paradigm a long time ago. The false left right paradigm. Coke and Pepsi are the two choices. No thanks. I'll have a water. Okay. But here's the thing. Our country has sunken to such a moral low that today, we have the candidate for vice president of the United States of America as a literal whore. A literal whore! What's a literal whore? Is a literal whore somebody, a woman who sells their body and prostitutes their body and they give gifts to all whores? Isn't that what the Bible says? That's a Bible verse. I know you like Bible verses like Jesus wept and for God so loved the world. But here's another Bible verse. They give gifts to all whores. It's in Ezekiel chapter 16. That's the Bible too. And let me tell you something. She is a literal whore. You know how that woman, Kamala Harris, you know how she got started in politics? She got started in her late 20's sleeping with a married man who was 60 years old. And then he appointed her to political office. Let that sink in for a moment. Here you have a woman in her late 20's goes to bed with a 60 year old man. You think she's just really into 60 year olds? And then that 60 year old man, the mayor of San Francisco, Willie Brown just happened to appoint her to political office. That's how she got her start in politics. By being a literal whore. And this is not some wild conspiracy theory. This is in mainstream media. This is a fact. This is a known, open fact that this woman has committed a whoredom to get where she is today and the so called feminists of our nation are rejoicing. Folks, how is that? Can somebody explain to me how that elevates women? Hey little girls, you want to succeed and be a great person someday like Kamala Harris? Just find some 60 year old dirty old man to be your sugar daddy and you can be whatever you want. You could even be the President of the United States. And Folks, you know what? If she's the vice president, then that's one heart beat away from being the president. I mean, Joe Biden's got one foot in the grave. His brain's already there. Oh, and by the way, in honor of Kamala Harris, I wore this shirt today. So this shirt today is a black shirt. See this shirt? I'm not talking about my coat. I'm not talking about my tie. I'm saying this shirt is a black shirt. Are you color blind or what? This is a special shade of, I call this shade of black Kamala black. This particular shade of black is Kamala black. So I am wearing my Kamala black shirt today in honor of the literal whore Kamala Harris. Okay. I'm not talking about my coat now. She's not this color. She's this color. Alright. And if you want to know what an actual black person looks like, we have black people at our church. I can show you some people that are actually black because Kamala Harris's skin color is pretty similar to mine. You know, all I have to do is get a tan like twice, and I'm Kamala's color. You know, it's like oh, the first black vice president. What? It's like, do people just think that we're stupid? You know what? They think Americans are stupid and they're right. It's like, look everybody, this is a black woman. It's like, I mean, I'm trying to adjust my laptop. I thought my laptop was broken. I'm like going to tint, sharpness, contrast, hue. No matter what I did, she never was black. I turned all the dials. It's like, do not adjust your television. It's working properly. And it's like, hey look, this is a role model for little girls. She's a stinking, dirty whore. And it's like, you can't even make this stuff up, isn't it? It's like, everybody's mad at the police? Isn't she like a cop or something? It's like we're living in the twilight zone. It's so weird. Anyway, that had nothing to do with the sermon. I don't even know how I went off on that, but I'm glad I did. And I have no regrets. Alright, so I gotta hurry up and finish. You know, more proof that he's in the ministry for the wrong reasons. He wants a trophy wife. Oh yeah, these relationships that aren't about love, they're about advancing their political career. Oh, and by the way, one more thing. One more thing, okay. I'm not done yet. Okay, when Kamala Harris, when she got appointed to political office by Willie Brown, her sugar daddy, when she got appointed to political office, here's what she said. She said to Willie Brown, she said if you so much as jaywalk while I'm the police chief or police commissioner, I don't know what her whore, I don't know what she got appointed to as the whore, but whore in chief or whatever, but you know, it was something about, I think she was like a prosecutor or I don't know what it was. Was it attorney general? Something like that? Yeah, so when she's in that position, okay, she said if you so much as jaywalk I'll prosecute you. So here's what she's basically saying to Willie Brown. Hey, I'm not gonna do you any favors. And people are like, see, you know, she's being ethical. Folks, she's not gonna do him any favors because she already done did those favors. Hello, is anybody home? She did the favors, that's why she's even the attorney general. I'm not gonna show you any special treatment. That's right, because you already showed him special treatment. Come on, people are so stupid. Unbelievable. Alright, so let's move on. Beloved, let's go back to the word of God. Where were we, flock? Um, okay, let's look at verse 18. So what's Bathsheba's response to this this misguided request, this weird request of give me Abishag the Shunammite, this inappropriate request. You know, sometimes women can tend to give people the benefit of the doubt more than men, and sometimes women can tend to kind of, uh, be naive about things sometimes and so, you know, Bathsheba, she says, well, okay, you love Abishag? No problem, let me be a little matchmaker here. I will speak for thee unto the king. Bathsheba therefore, we're in verse 19 of 1 Kings chapter 2, Therefore went unto King Solomon to speak unto him for Adonijah, and the king rose up to meet her, and bowed himself unto her, and sat down on his throne and caused the seed to be set for the king's mother, and she sat on his right hand. So, you know, Solomon's very respectful of his mother, seeds her at his right hand, and then she said, I desire one small petition of thee, I pray thee, say me not nay. And the king said unto her, Ask on my mother, for I will not say thee nay. It's so funny, because Adonijah's like, he's not going to say you nay, and then she's like, don't say me nay, and Solomon's like, I'm not going to say you nay, and then it's like, nay. I've always thought that was so funny in this story. She said, Let Abishag the Shanimite be given to Adonijah thy brother to wife. And King Solomon answered and said unto his mother, Why dost thou ask Abishag the Shanimite for Adonijah? Ask for him the kingdom also, for he is my elder- See, Solomon had been given wisdom by God. I know where this is going. And this is even before he got the mega wisdom in chapter 3. This is just the basic package that he already had. And he said, you know, why don't you just ask the kingdom also? Why don't you just ask him to be the king while you're at it? What are you doing? Why don't you ask it for him and for Abiathar the priest, and and for Joab the son of Zeruiah he's talking about all the other coalition that was with Adonijah. What are they trying to pull? Is this Joab's idea? Is this Abiathar the priest? Hey, well maybe if you can get with Abishag you know that's going to be step 1 and then step 2 step 3, step 4. He's like, No. We're not going down this road. I already spared this guy's life. I gave him a chance to fly right and he's showing his true colors what a rotten person he is. He's telling the king Solomon swear by the Lord saying God do so to me and more also if Adonijah have not spoken this word against his own life. Now therefore is the Lord liveth which hath established me and set me on the throne of David my father and who hath made me an house as he promised Adonijah shall be put to death this day. So he nipped that in the butt. You know, these Old Testament stories are to teach us and illustrate spiritual truths unto us today. And you know what this is teaching us here is don't be like Adonijah because Adonijah is not going to be blessed by God and God is going to wipe him out. So don't be presumptuous. You know, what did Jesus say? He said, Look, when you're invited to a feast don't take the highest seat take the lowest seat. Let other people say to you, Friend go higher, come up hither. He said it's better for somebody to say to you come up hither than for them to say to you, Oh, excuse me that seat's reserved for somebody more important than you. You're going to the back of the bus, buddy. You don't want to be told that so it's better to take the humble seat out of the gate and let people advance you. Don't exalt yourself. What does the Bible say? Let another man praise thee and not thine own mouth. Strangers and not thine own lips. Don't be presumptuous, don't be arrogant don't boast, don't brag praise yourself, let other people advance you and let them compliment you but don't be one who exalts yourself don't be like an Adonijah and especially if you're one who wants to go into the ministry hey, praise the Lord that you want to go into the ministry but it better be for the right reason you know, because you want to serve because you want a good work not because you want to be like an Adonijah hey, look at me trophy wife, we're a power couple we got the vehicle we got the house we got the clothes we got the lifestyle hey, that is not a Christian lifestyle Christians live a moderate, humble life we live humble we live moderate we do not live in excess that's about enough words of prayer Father, we thank you so much for this story of Adonijah and how much we can learn from it Lord help us not to be an Adonijah, help us to be more like Saul in the early days or David in the early days or Solomon in the early days Lord men that you chose because Lord, we want you to use us as well and so Lord, help us to be good vessels for you to use, help us to be humble and help us not to be presumptuous or self-willed or arrogant, but rather to just be patient and let you put us into the ministry if you see fit but not to battle for these things or campaign for these things Lord, in Jesus' name we pray, Amen Amen Ok, let's do one more song in your songbook, song 1-0-9 Savior like a shepherd lead us Song 1-0-9 Savior like a shepherd lead us Song 2-0-9 Seek us when we go astray Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus Hear, O hear us when we pray Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus Hear, O hear us when we pray Thou hast promised to receive us Poor and sinful though we be Thou hast mercy to relieve us Praise to friends and proud to be Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus Hurry, let us turn to thee Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus Hurry, let us turn to thee Hurry, let us seek thy faith, our works Hurry, let us do thy will Blessed Lord, a holy Savior With thy love our blood's unskilled Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus Thou hast loved us, loved us still Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus Thou hast loved us, loved us still Thanks for watching!