Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Ahab/Jeroboam Complex

Christians get worked up about the Jezebel spirit, but before there can be a Jezebel there must be an Ahab.

Ahab brought Jezebel to Israel.
The church must understand this.
There were a set of behaviours that were repeated again and again in Israel. It was these behaviours opened the way for the Spirit of Jezebel
They started with Jeroboam
House of Jeroboam
1 Kings 13:34
1 Kings 14:10
They reached a climax in Ahab.
The House of Ahab
2 Chron 22:8
2 Kings 10:30
Not a Wimp
Ahab has been totally misunderstood by Christians. We think of him as a wimp, but this is wrong. His father Omri was the commander of the army, and you only got that job in those days, if you were physically tough and totally ruthless. Omri killed off all the opposition to become king. Ahab was Omri’s son, so he would have been brought up tough (1 Kings 16:16).

Kings did not last long in those times, so Ahab’s twenty-two year reign was a record (1Kings 16:22). He built palaces and a fortified city (1 Kings 22:39). He was a very successful warrior-king at time when war was fought hand-to-hand. Ahab was mean, tough and strong, and had killed his share of men. He was a bully, not a wimp.
Ahab married Jezebel for political convenience. He needed a peace treaty with her father and their marriage was part of the deal.

Ahab was a hard, tough, mean political and military operator, who expected to get his own way. When he asked for something, people would jump to get it. This is why was sulking over the Naboth incident.

Genealogy
Jeroboam
↓ Nadab
→ Baasha
↓ Elah
→ Zimri
→ Omri
↓ Ahab
The Jezebel spirit cannot hold in church, unless an Ahab spirit already exists among the leadership opens the way.

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