No One Wins With Sin
In 1st Kings 21a man by the name of Naboth was the owner of a certain vineyard which happened to be next to the palace of King Ahab. In V2 Ahab spoke to Naboth saying, “Give me your vineyard that I may have a vegetable garden, because it is near, next to my house; for it, I will give you a vineyard better than it. Or, if it seems good to you, I will give you its worth in money.” V3 But Naboth said to Ahab, “the Lord forbid that I should give the inheritance of my fathers to you!”Naboth’s decision to not part with his vineyard wasn’t merely because he wanted to keep it (even though he probably did)but he was being obedient to the law.Numbers 36:7 forbade a transaction such as this therefore Ahab had no right to even make this suggestion. Ahab responds in V4 by going to his house sullen and displeased… He lay down on his bed, turned away his face and would eat no food. As a result of not getting what he wanted,King Ahab began to wallow in self-pity. This quickly became evident to his evil wife Jezebel and she asks in V5 “Why is your spirit so sullen that you eat no food? Ahab reveals the exchange that took place between he and Naboth and after hearing what happened Jezebel says in V7 “You now exercise authority over Israel! Arise, eat food and let your heart be cheerful; I will give you the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.” Jezebelformulated a plan which centered on falsely accusing Naboth of blaspheming GOD and the king. This conspiracy ultimately led to his unjust stoning and saw Ahab take possession of his vineyard, 1st King 21:8-16. Ahab wanted something that he couldn’t have; it wasn’t something that he was entitled to, he wasn’t owed it nor had he earned it. Ahab simply felt sorry for himself and it cost someone their life. GOD sent Elijah to reveal the consequences for Ahab and Jezebel’s plot, murder and unlawful taking of Naboth’s vineyard. Ahab is told in V19 “In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth dogs shall lick your blood… V23 In regards to Jezebel, it’s said that “The dogs would eat her by the wall…” Selfishness, self-pity, pride, greed and dishonesty are all seen in the character of Ahab and Jezebel. The actions taken as a result of these characteristics bore grave consequences. Here, an innocent man who was simply obeying the law lost his vineyard and his life. Ahab and Jezebel would suffer untimely tragic deaths. Their physical bodies would experience a dishonorable end and their souls would beeternally lost. Let us be careful to not allow these characteristics to rear their ugly heads in our life. Let us never think that these traits cannot and will not lead us down the same path as Ahab and Jezebel; they will. No one wins with sin.Colossians 3:9-10 …Put off the old man with his deeds and put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him.
Jay Dixon
12/02/15