You may be familiar with the story in 1 Kings 21. Ahab is one of the worst kings in the history of Israel. His lusts knows no bounds. One day he decides that he wants to take the vineyard that belonged to a man named Naboth. He offered to give him another patch of land or even to buy it from him. However, Naboth resisted: ‘”The LORD forbid that I should give you the inheritance of my fathers.” (1Ki 21.3)
Naboth refused because the land was part of his inheritance. We might think that this is dripping with the sentimentality of family. And it may. But more than that, it represents the Hebrew mindset that the land is a gift from God. Naboth can’t just “give it up and take something else.” The land is not like a pair of sneakers or upgrading a phone.
As we read on we see that Ahab’s wife, the notorious Jezebel, does his dirty work. She gets a couple of worthless guys together to accuse Naboth of something he did not do in order to put him to death. This she does successfully. The innocent Naboth is killed outside the city because of a false accusation of blasphemy.
The gospel is jumping off this page. Like a fresh glass of wine the gospel aroma is assertive upon our senses.
Jesus was himself innocent and a victim of a devilish plot. He was accused of blasphemy and insurrection against the king. He was offered to let go of his inheritance by Satan himself in order to gain his glory. But our beloved Jesus refused. He would not forget God’s covenant with him. He would not forgo his promise to do all that the Father has commanded him. And ultimately our beloved Jesus was dragged outside the camp and murdered by blood thirsty, lustful jackals. And just like Ahab, Jezebel and the worthless men, these guys (Pilate, chief priests, Pharisees, etc) thought they were getting victory and freedom, but they were in fact sealing their fate. There is a God who loves justice and hates iniquity.
The bottom line is that the seed of the serpent is warring against the seed of the woman (Gen. 3.15). Satan is behind Jezebel as much as Pilate. He is aiming to destroy God’s inheritance. However, Jesus, the faithful and true seed of the woman, refuses to be defeated. Instead he does what he came to do. He destroyed the work of the devil (1 Jn. 3.8).
Let that gospel wine breathe and refresh your soul.
