A Study on King Solomon - Guard Against Snares

1 Kings 2:1, 3-4

Now the days of David draw night that he should die and he charged Solomon his son saying,

"Keep the charge of the LORD thy God, to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, and His commandments.

That the LORD may continue His word which He spake concerning me saying If thy children take heed to their way to walk before me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul there shall not fail thee (said he) a man on the throne of Israel.

The life of King Solomon is a great example for all of us to be vigilant about our walk with God. If the "wisest" man fell, there is no way we can be exempted. But because of it we should ever more strive to be better. And we can, through the help of Jesus Christ who gave Himself for us and is ever sitting at the throne of God making intercession on our behalf.

Perhaps the easiest way to keep in line with God is to study what King David told Solomon to do in 1 Kings 2:4. God told David, "If thy children take heed to their way....to walk before me in truth....with all their heart and with all their soul...."

First, we must take heed to our ways.

Many of us know our weaknesses. Some of us can even pin point to that weakness. We know exactly what will cause God's Spirit to be quenched and turn "silent" from our lives. Whether it's the internet, movie-TV watching, talking on the phone too much especially about people, being angry too easily, reading books that's not convenient, etc. They might not be drugs, alcohol, or anything blatant that we can be easily ashamed of. But we know what they are. The Bible states, "Take heed."

So guard against whatever you know is going to cause you to fall. Remember our adversary the Devil he walks about seeking whom he may devour. If king Solomon fell, you may guarantee yourself you will. Devil walking around even make things complicated. So, take heed. Take note of your actions and the thoughts of your heart. The enemy of our soul is very subtle. He's not looking for blatant sinners.

Second thing, walk before Him in truth.

We should always be open and honest in our relationship with the Lord. King David was. When he fell with Bathsheba and when he counted the people in Israel he told the Lord, "I have sinned before you. Take my sins away."

Third and last, the Lord wants us to walk before Him with all our hearts and with all our souls.

I think the thing to be vigilant about is the way our hearts are. If we feel it going and wandering away from the Lord it's time to bring it back in line with him. I think if we do this we'd be all right. Having our everyday communion with Him is key. The Lord Jesus said unless we abide in Him and His words abide in us, we on our own can do nothing. The key to being perfect and upright before the Lord is the constant abiding with Him - reading His word daily, everyday, the same place, the same time. Make it a habit. And then talking to Him...opening our hearts to Him for any sins and desires and letting our hearts align back to His word...back to the Holy Spirit.

Snares in our times are everywhere. We don't need the Devil to come up with it in our minds. In a second you can have the world in your home, whether through TV or internet or your phone. We don't need to search for it in our neighborhood. A press of a button and we're snared. But with the help of the Lord and the study of God's word we should be able to overcome.