JIMMETS – SOLOMON AND JESUS

Time with Jesus - 22 Aug. 2013

Hi all,
There are three Jimmets this morning. The focus is on Solomon and Jesus. Solomon failed because of his 700 wives and 300 concubines. They led him astray. 

King Solomon

Jesus succeeded spectacularly. We look at this through the eyes of Isaiah and then of Paul to the Philippians. Why three Jimmets? Well, typically, a “normal” poem contains 36 lines in Ariel Narrow 10pt writing. In Ariel Narrow 9pt writing there are 42 lines. I’d forgotten this when considering writing 3 Jimmets. A Jimmet of 14 lines in iambic pentameter requires 42 lines. Unfortunately, I’d forgotten about the Title, signature and spacing. 

An added complication for me is that I don’t write directly into the space on the meditation. It gets done on a separate page. Then, when I’m happy with what’s written all that’s necessary is to copy and paste into the space in the devotional.

King of King
Lord of Lords

Talking about multiple wives, we came across this in Syria where, in terms of Islamic law, a man may have as many as four wives. Phyllida asked the ladies how they felt about this. They told her they hated it! 

Wealthy man with 4 Wives

We saw a man with two wives come into the Western hotel we sometimes visited for meals. All you could see of them were their shoes and eyes. They had dinner together. Their eyes were fixed constantly on him. They fed themselves by lifting the food to their mouths under their veils. Eating with your fingers is not unusual in many Arab states. Not once did we see them look anywhere other than at the face of their husband. It gave Phyllida and me the “creeps”. We thought they might be frightened to look elsewhere. He may have had two more wives at home? Perhaps they were looking after all their children!

Balaam and his Donkey

One of the “generic” warnings the Lord gave to his people, was that they should not marry foreigners. He didn’t want His people enticed away from Himself, particularly by foreign, idol worshipping women. In a society almost totally dominated by men, one of the few “weapons” a woman could use was her sexuality. Use it they most certainly did. If we look at Numbers, you will find that Balaam was unable to curse the Israelites. But he was able to lead many astray by bringing foreign women into the camp. Samson’s downfall was brought about at the hands of the beautiful Delilah. Jezebel was the one who arranged Naboth’s death by stoning.

Samson & Delilah

Queen Athaliah is thought to be one of the wickedest women in Biblical history. She was queen of Judah for six years. She was the daughter of King Ahab of Israel. Presumably, Jezebel was her mother. 

Jezebel

Athaliah married Jehoram son of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah. Jehoram reigned only eight years and was succeeded by his son Ahaziah, who died after reigning only one year. Desiring the throne for herself, Athaliah ruthlessly killed all her grandsons - except the infant Joash, who was hidden by his aunt. 

Wicked Queen Athaliah

Athaliah apparently inherited Jezebel's ruthlessness. She was a tyrant whose every whim had to be obeyed. As her mother had done in Israel, Athaliah introduced Baal worship in Judah and in so doing destroyed part of the Temple.

Mary and Jesus

At the same time, the pages of Biblical history are littered with wonderful, Godly women. In this regard it must be pointed out that it was a woman who gave birth to Jesus. She is the only woman in history who may claim that the Father of her Son was God Himself. No man can claim that he was Jesus’ father. 

Mary is the only woman who can claim she remained a virgin to the moment of Jesus’ birth. Perhaps this supreme action by God brings balance to the “gender conflict” we have all experienced since the fall.

Jesus of Nazareth

We must never forget that our Saviour had God for a Father and Mary as a mother. Herein is one of the greatest miracles this world will ever see. Jesus Christ was 100% God and 100% man. His manhood came from His mother; His Godhood from His Father. 

Jesus Christ - The Only Hope we Share

This is not theological gobbledygook intended to confuse us and keep us out of favour; not at all. Jesus had to be 100% man because nothing less than someone 100% man could “legally” triumph over Satan. He also had to be 100% God, because only someone who was like that could “legally” represent all of humanity. How does that work? If you can sort out and explain it, you would know something known only to God!

With wings as Eagles

Shalom,

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Our God and Our King

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – 22 August 2013			Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give
©	These devotionals are the intellectual property of Jim Strickland and copyright protected. You are welcome to copy and distribute them to anyone provided it is for non-commercial Christian purposes					©
	INTRODUCTION		DAILY LIGHT EVENING SCRIPTURES	JIMMETS – SOLOMON AND JESUS
Writing Jimmets is great fun. Today, all three are connected. The first is about King Solomon’s sad failure. The next two about King Jesus’ success. Whenever I think about King Solomon, I think about a man whom God blessed with wisdom, wealth and power. A man of whom it was said, that he was the wisest man who ever lived. There is no doubt that in the early days of His reign, this was true. And yet there is a most unusual statement in the first book of Kings: 1 Solomon made an alliance with Pharaoh king of Egypt and married his daughter. He brought her to the City of David until he finished building his palace and the temple of the LORD, and the wall around Jerusalem. 1 Kings 3:1 TNIV The strangest thing about this statement is that it took place before he had the dream in Gibeon in which God promised him wisdom, a long life and great prosperity. (1 Kings 3:5-14) We cannot say for certain that the two stories were consecutive. In other words, it may be that the marriage to Pharaoh’s daughter took place before or after his encounter with God.. But if we may rely on the sequence of the two Scriptural events, it seems that Solomon was in a great hurry to get married and cement an alliance with Egypt. It also introduces to us the great failing in his life. Women! We are told 3 He had 700 wives of royal birth and 300 concubines. And in fact, they did turn his heart away from the LORD. 1 Kings 11:3 NLT For what it’s worth, any man who has that many wives and concubines demonstrates a great lack of wisdom. If he saw only one wife/concubine per day, it would be 2.7 years before he had “done the rounds”. That’s not wisdom. That’s madness! Furthermore, how do you marry 700 wives? There must surely have been several “mass” weddings? The second Jimmet deals with Isaiah’s great prophecy of the coming Messiah. Notice the way this prophetic word is introduced. “For unto us a child is born. Unto us a Son is given. It seems clear that this is the same person. But let’s look at these words a little closer. “A child is born”. Here we see the humanity of the coming child. A baby will be born physically by his mother in the normal way. He would look 100% human. Indeed, it was essential that He be fully human. So we have a fully human baby boy. The next few words tell us something different. A Son would be given. Only a father can “give” a son. There is only one way this could “fit”. The “given Son” would have to be the Son of God! So here we see Jesus’ divinity. He was 100% Divine. In other words, Isaiah was telling the people that a child would be born who was 100% human and 100% divine. This accounts for the many titles we read in the rest of the verse. To me, “Wonderful Counsellor” speaks of a man with extraordinary ability. Someone who is fully man. But he is also, “The Mighty God”. In other words fully Divine and fully human at the same time. The description fits Jesus perfectly. I still wonder what was in Isaiah’s mind when this was prophesied. 2 Peter 1:21 describes the “process”. The final Jimmet speaks of Jesus’ life of obedience to His Father. How He put aside His Divinity so He could be our sacrificial offering on Calvary’s cross. To me this is one of the greatest of all the miracles. That God could come and give His life for me while I was still a sinner. That’s mind-blowing! Jim & Phyllida Strickland			29 God gave Solomon wisdom--the deepest of understanding and the largest of hearts. There was nothing beyond him, nothing he couldn't handle. 1 Kings 4:29 MSG	Solomon He could have asked for money or for fame.                  1 Kings 4:29 Instead, he asked for wisdom and to rule His people,. such that he would get a name, For fairness; not another wealthy fool. God was very pleased with his request. So He gave him wisdom, power and wealth. A promise that he always would be blessed. And kept in a fitting state of health! Solomon the king was soon well-known, For justice and for always being fair. God gave wisdom and a peaceful throne. Soon his fame was spread out everywhere. He destroyed it with too many wives; And the gods they served throughout their lives. ----------------------------------------- Isaiah Isaiah spoke about the coming King.                Isaiah 9:6 A Child who would be born for everyone. A Son be given to us Who would bring, That which man desires to look upon. A Wonderful Adviser from the Lord; The Mighty God, who lives forevermore. The Prince of Peace, who’d rule without a sword! For He is Whom the Father had in store. To think that mortal man could be this way. I wonder what was in Isaiah’s head. Did he know that Jesus Christ one day, Would fulfil the words which he had said? But two Peter one verse twenty-one Shows how Holy men were moved along. ------------------------------------ Jesus Jesus didn’t think equality        Philippians 2:6-8 With God, was that on which He had to cling. He gave up His pure Divinity, So that, to the people, He could bring,  Full salvation. As a humble slave, He appeared when taking human form. You would think that He would rather crave, Living with His Father.  That’s His norm. But, in His obedience to God, He would come and die upon the tree. We may look at this as something odd; But He did it for humanity. No one else could pay the cost of sin. Give His life so we may be with Him. Jim Strickland Written 21st August 2012
			42 The queen of Sheba will also stand up against this generation on judgment day and condemn it, for she came from a distant land to hear the wisdom of Solomon. Now someone greater than Solomon is here--but you refuse to listen. Matthew 12:42 NLT
			6 A child will be born to us. A son will be given to us. He will rule over us. And he will be called Wonderful Adviser and Mighty God. He will also be called Father Who Lives Forever and (The) Prince Who Brings Peace. Isaiah 9:6 NIrV
			7 Finding someone who would die for a godly person is rare. Maybe someone would have the courage to die for a good person. 8 Christ died for us while we were still sinners. This demonstrates God's love for us. Romans 5:7-8 GW
			6 Though He was God, He did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. 7 Instead, He gave up His divine privileges; He took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When He appeared in human form, 8 He humbled Himself in obedience to God and died a criminal's death on a cross. Philippians 2:6-8 NLT
			19 May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. Ephesians 3:19 NLT
			24 But to us who are personally called by God himself--both Jews and Greeks--Christ is God's ultimate miracle and wisdom all wrapped up in one. 1 Corinthians 1:24 MSG
			3 All the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden in him. Colossians 2:3 NIrV
			8 Though I am the least deserving of all God's people, He graciously gave me the privilege of telling the Gentiles about the endless treasures available to them in Christ. Ephesians 3:8 NLT
			30 It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God--that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. 1 Corinthians 1:30 TNIV