The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

1 Kings 1:5-7, “Now Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, ‘I will be king.’ So he prepared for himself chariots and horsemen with fifty men to run before him.

6 His father had never crossed him at any time by asking, ‘Why have you done so?’ And he was also a very handsome man, and he was born after Absalom.

7 He had conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah and with Abiathar the priest; and following Adonijah they helped him.

8 But Zadok the priest, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, Nathan the prophet, Shimei, Rei, and the mighty men who belonged to David were not with Adonijah.

9 Adonijah sacrificed sheep and oxen and fatlings by the stone of Zoheleth, which is beside En-rogel; and he invited all his brothers, the king’s sons, and all the men of Judah, the king’s servants.

10 But he did not invite Nathan the prophet, Benaiah, the mighty men, and Solomon his brother.”

“Let’s play baseball! I’m first batter!” Ever hear words like these? If you read anything at all about Adonijah, you have! He was, of course, referring to being king. No one suggested he be king. It was his own idea. No one questioned whether or not he was qualified. He just announced that he was king – and that sealed the deal. Adonijah yelled first, so he got precisely what he wanted. There was only one “hitch” in his scheme: the LORD had not designated Adonijah to be king.

Being the leader does not always guarantee a following. It’s probable that this was not the first time that Adonijah had bullied himself into a position that would have been better filled by someone else. The Coach had not designated him to be the first batsman! Not to “push” the analogy too far, but it’s better that we wait for the decision of the Coach. Everyone who thinks he’s better than anyone else will do well to wait on the Coach.

Heartily in Christ,

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

United States of America

“We will never know that Christ is all we need, until He becomes all that we have.” –Corrie ten Boom