Irvin Wasswa
Tylertown Campus Pastor LHBC
1 Kings 21:1-3
Now Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard in Jezreel, beside the palace of Ahab king of Samaria. 2 And after this Ahab said to Naboth, “Give me your vineyard, that I may have it for a vegetable garden, because it is near my house, and I will give you a better vineyard for it; or, if it seems good to you, I will give you its value in money.” 3 But Naboth said to Ahab, “The Lord forbid that I should give you the inheritance of my fathers.
For me, growing up in Dallas, TX means that I am a huge Dallas-area sports teams fan. Dallas Mavericks (NBA), Dallas Cowboys (NFL), and Texas Rangers (MLB). Being a Dallas-Area fan is tough since they haven’t won much but in 2011, the Dallas Mavericks shocked the world by upsetting the big, bad Miami Heat (a team that we hated) and winning a championship!
A few years later, I had the opportunity to go to Miami on a mission trip with our BCM, and during our break, we had the chance to watch the Miami Heat play! After the game a few of my friends and I ran into a guy who was giving away Miami Heat jackets for those who subscripted to New York Times Magazine. Now mind you, I was not a Heat fan at all. My allegiance was to the Dallas Mavericks.. but the jackets were really cool, and the deal was too good to pass up. For $7.99, I decided to sell out my team and represent the Heat by wearing the jacket.
In 1 Kings 21 the character Naboth was in a similar position where he was faced with choosing to sell out the Lord. The wicked King Ahab offered Naboth a lot of money for his little vineyard that he had. However, according to the Law of Moses, it was forbidden for God’s people to sell land that they inherited from their descendants (Lev.25:10-24). In other words, if Naboth were to agree to sell his land to the king, he would be directly disobeying God. Though the offering price was tempting, Naboth declined the offer and chose to instead live in obedience to the Lord and His word.
Be careful not to fall into the temptation of selling out our Lord! Whatever the price tag being offered to you to sell out the Lord and your testimony IS NOT WORTH IT! It is not worth it! Our Lord Jesus Christ is worth much more than what this world offers and our flesh desires. He is worthy of our life and our obedience. Let me encourage you that in times of temptation choose to submit to Him. Let us choose to follow Naboth’s example and stand for the Lord. Don’t be a sellout; stand for Jesus today and every day!