"Precious Stones"

 "Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savour: so doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honour." (Ecclesiastes 10:1 KJV)

  "But when Peter came to Antioch, I had to oppose him to his face, for what he did was very wrong. When he first arrived, he ate with the Gentile Christians, who were not circumcised. But afterward, when some friends of James came, Peter wouldn't eat with the Gentiles anymore. He was afraid of criticism from these people who insisted on the necessity of circumcision. As a result, other Jewish Christians followed Peter's hypocrisy, and even Barnabas was led away by their hypocrisy." (Galatians 2:11-14 NLT)

 For the moment, just pretend that this is something that has to deal with a person's testimony and the special life that they have been given, having been blessed with great wealth, wisdom and honor. Who do you see filling in the picture of that situation? There is one particular person that I had in mind, as it fits Solomon's life, to a tee. 

 There are so many, men of God, that I have listened to over these last 40plus years, who make the prediction that they will not be seeing Solomon in Heaven. Every time I hear that declaration I have to wonder where they have been schooled and what Bible they are reading out of, because this might have been a man of great illustration of what happens when good men get corrupted by the world's pleasures, but, then have a U-turn back to God!   

 Besides that, there is nobody that has lived a perfect life, except Jesus Christ! We all sin and behave as if we are spoiled children; judging one other as if we don't do anything wrong, ourselves. Most of the time we don't even see the bad things we do, because we are looking for the bad in others, which makes us think we are better than we really are, compared to them. 

 Well, sad to say this, but even that is sinful and unloving, something which can cause you to be judged, just as you would for unforgiveness; and where do you think that will go with the Lord? The way I see it, we see a man that blessed thousands of people, never set out to harm anyone, and always judged others rightly. Yet, because of his reputation of having too many wives and horses and chariots; having been swayed by the exceptional riches and pleasures of this world, he has caused a stink over much of what he had done that was right. 

 That said, God did judge him, at least by the powers and conditions of this world; but in Heaven, this man, Solomon, is a precious stone...

"So get rid of all evil behavior. Be done with all deceit, hypocrisy, jealousy, and all unkind speech. Like newborn babies, you must crave pure spiritual milk so that you will grow into a full experience of salvation. Cry out for this nourishment, now that you have had a taste of the Lord's kindness. You are coming to Christ, who is the living cornerstone of God's temple. He was rejected by people, but he was chosen by God for great honor. And you are living stones that God is building into his spiritual temple. What's more, you are his holy priests. Through the mediation of Jesus Christ, you offer spiritual sacrifices that please God. As the Scriptures say, "I am placing a cornerstone in Jerusalem, chosen for great honor, and anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced."" (1 Peter 2:1-6 NLT)