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Day 113, or April 23. Be careful what you do and say. Our thoughts today are rooted

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in two chronicles, chapter 10, verse 19. So Israel has been in rebellion against the house

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of David to this day.

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First, the big picture surrounding this verse. The stability of the United Kingdom under

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David and Solomon quickly deteriorated after Solomon died. The chronicler reminds his readers

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of the North-South split, which produced the divided kingdom when some tribes rebelled

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against the family of David and declared independence. The children of Israel were in danger of becoming

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just another nation rather than God's special people. However, God had other ideas, and

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he protected his people in ways that they hardly deserved. The chronicler looks back

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to how it all started when Solomon died. It must have filled his heart with sadness and

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a fresh resolve to be more faithful to the God who never gave up on them.

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And now today's action step.

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Upon the death of Solomon, his son Rehoboam succeeded him, but he was not popular. The

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northern tribes rejected his authority and declared that they would not follow the house of David.

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David's line was rejected not because of something he did or said, but because of someone

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else who followed him. This jolted me as I thought of the number of folk who have rejected

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Christ not because of something he said or did, but because of something done or said

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by one of his followers. I remember a man being counselled who, as a new believer, was

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advised to attend a good lively church in his town. He laughed and said, I knew there

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was a catch. I have to go to church. His image of the church, which had been formed by some

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errant attenders, was so distorted that Christ's gospel was being rejected.

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Take this as a warning. We must be careful every moment of every day that we do not cause

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any to stumble because of our actions. Don't ever become the excuse for someone not taking

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Jesus seriously.