#EasyDoesIt

He was in a perplexing situation and sought counsel. He knew his power was at stake and the citizens could, very easily, reject his authority and follow the other leader. The suggestion was made for him to capture the people's loyalty by telling them that he had heard them and understood and had a plan that would make it easy for them. He really had their best interests at heart, he told them. Instead of taking the long, hard and dangerous trip to the temple in Jerusalem to worship, he would build shrines closer by. So, he did. He built two shrines and placed golden calves inside.

The people believed him. They had no Biblical world-view. They had just been concerned about their jobs and families and working hard to take care of all their needs. They had not taken the time or effort to read the Word of God and had no foundation to base an ideology on. It seemed so logical and caring for their leader to be concerned about them that they believed him. He had accomplished what he set out to do. He had been afraid that by their trips to Jerusalem they would be influenced to turn away from him and he found a way to keep them in the fold.

You can read the story of  Rehoboam in 1 Kings chapters 12 through 15. After reading, perhaps you will see how easy it is to believe a lie when you have no truth in your head to compare it to. Perhaps you can see that politics is still the same today, with men and women promising to make it easy for you. Perhaps you can see that just because candidates say they have your best interests at heart may be because they want to keep you in their fold.

Sometimes 'easy' is a dangerous place to be.

Caution: A sure way to not be misled is to regularly read the Bible asking the Writer to help you understand what He wrote and to help you apply it to your life.