Life in Decline
1 Kings 3:1-15; 1 Kings 11:1-13
Jordan Byrd
Niagara Falls is such a staple here in Western New York. We expect it to be there—just the same—every time we visit. But here’s the thing: gallon after gallon after gallon of water pours over the falls every single second. And all that water? It’s slowly eroding the rock beneath it. From what I found, the falls can erode several inches a year—with the potential of nearly a foot eroding. That’s a little unsettling to think about, right? What might happen to such a natural wonder if the erosion keeps going for years and years? But that reality brings clarity too: It highlights the reality that: Massive impact can happen a little at a time. Kind of like the visual of the water from a spray bottle hitting a sand castle. It’s won’t topple the whole thing over, but little, but little, it will erode it away.
And as we encounter in 1 Kings 3 and 11, the same is true for our hearts. The life of King Solomon shows us: that divided devotion to the Lord can lead to destructive consequences to us, and those around us. Today, God’s Word in 1 Kings 3 and 11 points us to good news; and that good news is clarity of what’s true and what’s false. A clarity our moment desperately needs to hear. 1 Kings 3 and 11 clarifies that: Anything less than full devotion to the Lord will slowly erode our faith and confidence in God. These chapters show us clearly: A divided heart erodes your faith in the Lord—one false belief, one compromise at a time. And these chapters prompt us to answer the question: What currently tempts my heart away from full devotion to the Lord? A divided heart erodes your faith in the Lord—one false belief, one compromise at a time.
While your baptism into Jesus unites your faith to Him your beliefs and choices shape how fully you stay devoted to the Lord. We live in a world that constantly tempts us to live with divided devotion. And most of the time the drift doesn’t happen all at once. It starts with a belief that seems small and a compromise that seems harmless.
Like this: Someone giving into the belief that “God is distant or inactive.” That belief doesn’t push God out of their life—but it opens the door for other “gods” to slip in. And slowly, their heart drifts.
Or someone giving in to dating someone who isn’t devoted to Jesus may not seem like a big deal—but over time, it draws their heart toward their ungodly beliefs, values, and lifestyle. That’s a compromise. And it erodes devotion.
Or someone repetitively giving in to skipping worship gatherings for weekend trips, sports, or just more rest. All those reasons may seem justified. But when it becomes a pattern, that person starts believing that Jesus’ Church is optional—and convenience becomes their compass. That’s a slow shift in devotion.
Or when someone gives into politics becoming their lens for truth or hope. Even if their politics are values-based, they can slowly replace the gospel as their deepest allegiance. That’s not just a preference—it shapes their heart to be divided in allegiance.
Or someone giving into the belief that “As long as it’s private, it’s not hurting anyone.” That’s the kind of belief that justifies porn. But porn always erodes. It reshapes how a person sees, relates with, and desires others. It’s a compromise that wears down a person’s soul—away from God’s sexual design.
Or when someone gives in to giving sports more of their time, money, and energy than the Kingdom of God. That’s not just being a fan—it’s a form of worship. Enjoying sports doesn’t have to be sinful—but if someone can’t say no to it, then they’ve already said yes to something else first. That’s a divided heart.
Massive impact doesn’t show up right away but each false belief, each compromise away from the Lord, slowly erodes a person’s devotion and allegiance to Him.
The erosion of devotion we face in our personal lives mirrors what we’re seeing in our culture as a whole. It’s no secret—we all feel it. There’s a shift happening around us—a drift away from devotion to God. We live in a culture that feels like it’s in decline: a decline from a shared sense of right and wrong, a decline from faith in the values of Scripture, a decline from a version of life that once seemed more blessed by God. And in times like that, we ask: What guidance do we have? Where can we turn? What does God’s Word offer for people who still believe His way is best? What does Scripture say to those of us who still trust that devotion to the Lord God, revealed most fully in Jesus—is the path to life?
Thankfully—or maybe painfully—we’re not the first to face a time like this. There’s a moment in the story of Scripture when God’s people lived through a time of cultural decline: the downfall, division, and eventual exile of the nation of Israel. And it all begins in the later years of King Solomon’s reign.
Solomon, though king, was also the example the nation of Israel was watching. And just like us today, Solomon was tempted toward a divided heart—a heart that still claimed devotion to the Lord, but little by little through false beliefs and one compromise after another, his devotion eroded. Eventually, he gave his worship, his attention, and his desires to false gods—gods that promised something but could never deliver like the one true God. Solomon’s story—and God’s response to him in 1 Kings 3 and 11—offers us a gift: the blessing of clarity. Clarity about the truth. Clarity about what happens when something—or someone—other than the Lord starts to capture our heart. Solomon’s life stands as a warning: A divided heart erodes faith in the Lord—one false belief, one compromise at a time. How a divided heart will erode your faith in the Lord—one false belief, one compromise at a time. What currently tempts your heart away from full devotion to the Lord? Will we bring them before the Lord—confess them, surrender them—and allow the Lord to begin reversing the erosion of your faithfulness to God in your life?
We enter Solomon’s story as he steps into leadership over Israel. 1 Kings 3 captures the early days of his reign. Just for context—Solomon was the son of David and Bathsheba. Bathsheba was the woman David had an affair with, and later married after having her husband killed in battle. So Solomon is born in the wake of one of his father’s sexual temptations, but also at the height of Israel’s national strength. He follows David’s great reign, and he’s the one through whom God promised a permanent temple would be built—a place for God’s presence to dwell among His people. This is where we step into Solomon’s life, starting in 1 Kings 3:2.
When I was younger, every once in a while my siblings and I were told to clean out the toy closet in my parents’ basement. Now, this usually meant pulling everything out of the closet—which we did very quickly and very chaotically. Before long, the entire basement floor would be covered in toys. Getting the toys out was easy. Putting them back? Not so much. We were supposed to be cleaning—but more often than not, we’d end up playing instead. And honestly, the playing wasn’t bad—at least we weren’t sitting around complaining that we were bored. But still we were playing when there was a more important task we were supposed to be doing.
The context of 1 Kings 3 shows us something similar about Solomon’s early days. He’s worshiping the Lord and offering sacrifices—but he’s doing so at high places throughout Israel. Now, just a quick note: High places were usually old Canaanite worship sites, up on hills or mountains. When God gave Israel the land, He told them to tear down these altars. But over time, the Israelites repurposed some of them—to offer sacrifices to the one true God. One of those places was Gibeon. This is where the tabernacle—the tent of worship the Israelites used in the wilderness—had been set up after Israel entered the land. 1 Kings 3:4 says Solomon went there to offer sacrifices to the Lord. Another key location was Jerusalem, where Solomon offered sacrifices near the ark of the covenant—at a shrine his Father, David, had built for it. That ark represented God’s presence and held a copy of God’s law. So yes—Solomon is worshiping the Lord. But there’s a tension in the story. 1 Kings 3:3 tells us, “Solomon showed his love for the Lord by walking according to the instructions given him by his father David, EXCEPT THAT he offered sacrifices and burned incense on the high places.” (1 Kings 3:3)
Just like my siblings and me playing in the middle of a mess of toys—which, in itself, wasn’t bad—Solomon was doing something good: he was worshiping the Lord. But also like us he was neglecting the more important thing he was called to do. Solomon wasn’t worshiping in the fullest way God had instructed. He had been called to build a permanent temple—a set-apart place for God’s people to worship the Lord.
Like Solomon, we can pursue good things, while also neglecting even greater things.
Like Solomon, we too can find ourselves pursuing good things, but also while neglecting the even greater things that God calls us to do. And yet, in 1 Kings 3, we see the gracious character of God shine through: God meets Solomon where he is (1 Kings 3:4-5). In 1 Kings 3:4-5, we encounter God coming to Solomon while he’s offering sacrifices at a high place. God doesn’t wait to interact with Solomon when he gets his act together. No. God takes graciously takes initiative toward Solomon to lead him in a better direction.We see that God preemptively works to keep Solomon’s heart from being divided—to not allow Solomon to think a lesser form of worship is good enough. God wants Solomon’s heart to be fully captured by worship of the one true God. God knows that A divided heart would erode Solomon’s faith in the Lord—one false belief, one compromise at a time. The same is true for us: A divided heart erodes our faith in the Lord—one false belief, one compromise at a time. Solomon is faced with the choice: Will he compromise his devotion, and settle for the status quo? Or will he obey the revelation of God that he’d been given—and do what God’s commanding?
If you were given a million dollars, what would you do with it?
We’ve probably all been asked the question before: If you were given a million dollars, what would you do with it? In a sense, that’s the kind of question God asks Solomon in 1 Kings 3:5: “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.” (1 Kings 3:5)
Solomon is faced with a choice—a moment that reveals what’s truly in his heart. Will he ask for wealth? For comfort? For a long and successful life? Instead Solomon asks for wisdom—a discerning heart to lead Israel well and to know right from wrong. At this point in his life, Solomon’s heart is devoted to the Lord. And that continued faithfulness keeps his focus on God’s desires—not on lesser things. He could’ve chosen differently. He could’ve believed something false, compromised, and taken a step toward eroding his devotion to God. But in this moment he doesn’t.
Whether we’re packing sand into a bucket for a sandcastle, pressing playdough into a mold, or cutting out cookies with a cookie cutter—we know that whatever shape we use is what the sand or dough will become. The mold determines the form. We encounter the same dynamic with our hearts—the seat of our desires—when it comes to what we worship. And we see this dynamic play out clearly in Solomon’s life. When Solomon’s heart is pressed toward the Lord, his faith is shaped by the Lord—and it reflects God’s desires. But in 1 Kings 11, we see a shift. Solomon begins to press his heart toward his sexual desires, and those desires pull him toward false beliefs and false gods—introduced through the ungodly wives and partners he brings into his life. 1 Kings 11:2–3 tells us that God had warned Israel—and Solomon—not to intermarry with people from Moab, Ammon, Edom, Sidon, and the Hittites, “...because they will surely turn your hearts after their gods.” Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to them in love. He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines, and his wives led him astray.” (1 Kings 11:2-3)
Then in verse 10, we hear the outcome: “Although [God] had forbidden Solomon to follow other gods, Solomon did not keep the LORD’s command.” (1 Kings 11:10) Solomon’s devotion didn’t disappear all at once. It eroded—one compromise at a time. Each woman he compromised with may not have seemed like a big deal in the moment. But one compromise became ten then a hundred then a thousand. And over time, his heart was so divided, so worn down, that it became hard to give God his full attention at all. A divided heart erodes your faith in the Lord—one false belief, one compromise at a time.
Over a year ago, I was in my backyard helping my son hit a plastic golf ball. I swing left-handed and he swings right-handed. So when I got him all set up to take a swing, I didn’t think about where I was standing. In my mind, I was at a safe distance, and I assumed the club would swing in the opposite direction. But because he’s right-handed, the club came around exactly where I didn’t expect—and nailed me right in the face just next to my eye. And I had a not so fun evening getting stitches in the ER. For me, standing in the wrong place while helping my son swing a golf club led to a painful reminder—I got hit in the face, and it scared him half to death. He didn’t mean to—but the impact still happened. And it affected both of us. In 1 Kings 11:11–13, we’re reminded that our devotion—or our divided devotion to the Lord—has consequences that reach beyond our own lives.
In Solomon’s story, we see that faithfulness to the Lord isn’t just personal—it’s generational. Even though Solomon allowed his heart to become divided, God delayed judgment during Solomon’s reign—because of his Father, David’s, faith with the Lord.
Your faith can either bless or bring disaster to others.
Each person is ultimately responsible for their own devotion to the Lord. But Solomon’s life shows us this truth: Your faith can bless someone else—even someone who is struggling or unfaithful. The faith of a parent, grandparent, or even a friend can be a channel of God's grace into someone else’s life. But the reverse is also true. Solomon’s unfaithfulness brought consequences to his son—who inherited a kingdom that was divided, weakened, and far from the strength it once had. Solomon’s compromises didn’t just affect him. They affected others. And the same is true for us. Our compromises with the Lord won’t just shape our lives—they’ll shape the lives of our kids, our grandkids, our neighbors, our community. It’s the consequence of divided devotion to the Lord—the reality of living in a time of decline—and we see that play out in our lives today. A divided heart can erode your faith in the Lord, and the faith of others—one false belief, one compromise at a time.
We often overlook the impact of the small movements we make—toward certain beliefs, or compromises in our morality and ethics. But from what we see in the life of Solomon—and even more clearly in Jesus, who fully reveals the heart of God—we’re reminded that those movements matter. Like Solomon, we’ve been given multiple access points to God’s revelation: God’s standard revealed in Jesus, His truth in the Scriptures, and the example of faithful followers of Christ. God graciously makes His good and life-giving way known to us. The question is: Will we obey God? Or will we ignore the slow erosion happening in our hearts? One false belief at a time, one compromise, one shortcut, one excuse, one “just this once”? Like Solomon, those small movements—if left unchecked—can add up to a life pulled away from the Lord. A divided heart erodes your faith in the Lord—one false belief, one compromise at a time.
What is capturing the devotion of your heart? (confess, repent, express faith in baptism)
Is it the Lord God—revealed most fully in Jesus? If it’s not, I invite you to confess to the Lord that you’ve been chasing after false and lesser gods. Repent—turn from those pursuits, and surrender in faith to the Lord, under the water of baptism. Please find me or another follower of Jesus you trust, and we’d be glad to help you take those steps of faith.
What false beliefs or quiet compromises are eroding your devotion to the Lord? (confess them to the Lord)
But if you’ve already surrendered your life to the Lord in baptism, take time to consider this: What false beliefs or quiet compromises are eroding your devotion to the Lord? Unlike Solomon—who gave in again and again, and let his heart be divided and drawn away from the Lord—you can choose differently. You can recognize the temptation. You can name the waywardness. You can confess it—bringing it into the light of God’s mercy—and let Him guide you back into His abundant life. A divided heart will erode your faith in the Lord—one false belief, one compromise at a time.