Then Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself,
saying, I will be king: and he prepared him chariots and
horsemen, and fifty men to run before him.
1KING 1:5
The Kingdom of God arrived on earth since the day Jesus step on Planet earth and all the moves of God on earth since the time of John is to establish God’s kingdom in the hearts of men through the preaching of his word and the ministration of the spirit but the battle continue till today with the flesh seeking to forestall the establishment of the kingdom of God.
We must recall that the kingdom of God as stated in Romans 14:17 is evident by the following;
- Righteousness exceeding the righteousness of the Pharisees
- Peace that surpasses understanding
- Joy unspeakable full of glory
From the time a man is saved, the battle begins between the two kingdoms (light and darkness). This war is reflected in the struggle between the flesh and the spirit and the utmost purpose of God is for us to have total victory over the flesh. The flesh must die and the spirit must live. Our growing up in the spirit is foreshadowed in the ascension of King Solomon (spirit) to the throne and end of Adonijah (flesh).
What brought Adonijah, a goodly man down and eventually ended his life? Was it not self confidence or confidence in self outside God, Self exaltation, self scheming, self-advertisement, self-glorification, selfish wisdom, self boasting, selfish positive confession rooted in self and little regard for God who has the final say. It is not by human right but by election which is revealed through faith in him. His boasting “I will be king” is tantamount to the claim of the flesh (self) who seeks to rule and lust vehemently against the spirit. This is the foundation of the babylonish success whose end shall be as Adonijah, whose selfish ambition restlessly emerged out of our religious overcoat seeking to take over the King’s “beloved” in its self pursuit saying “Give me Abishag, the Shunammite for a wife” The Pentecostal movement, powerful as it is, has revealed a lot of leaven. We have seen over the years this “self” manifesting in various forms such as self-boasting, showmanship, self-praise, empire building, personality worship, just like Adonijah who employed fifty chariots proclaiming himself to be what he was not.
The challenge for us therefore, is to press beyond this fleshly realm of mixture to become a man after God’s heart; a heart that was found in David and even in Solomon until his women corrupted his heart.
Indeed, the Lord searches the reins and the hearts of men and manifest to everyman according to the condition of their hearts. The heavily anointed JOAB did unbelievable exploits but was destroyed by his vengeful spirit and his envious heart (all rooted in self). He was pushed by self to the point of murder and abuse of power. We will certainly not be approved by our anointing and exploits but by the perfectness of our hearts. Remember, the eye of the Lord move to and fro to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose hearts are perfect towards Him. Hence, we must desire and seek the true knowledge of Christ that will bring true deliverance from the corruption in our soul. This is because the Lord will eliminate from his kingdom all self in the form of unforgiveness, strife and envy, just as Solomon eliminated the likes of Joab from the kingdom.
These things as we are told happened to them for an example, that we may know that flesh and all its elements as represented by Shimei (lawlessness, resentment, cursing), Abiathar (insensitivity, indulgence, evil communication), Joab (vengeance and envy) are forbidden from the kingdom. The death of these fleshy elements opens up a kingdom realm of peace, prosperity, glory, communion and wonders to Solomon and to Israel describing the endless treasures available for us in Christ Jesus as we gain victory over the flesh through the spirit.
