"The Best Advice of All" - Sermon for October 27, 2019

There's a saying: "Don't give advice. The wise don't need it, and the foolish won't heed it." Of course, humans almost always fall somewhere in between wise and foolish. So we need to seek out advice, and judge that advice apart from what our desires may want to be true. In today's sermon, Rev. Tom describes when the foolishness of a king split a nation into two. King Rehoboam of Israel unfortunately did not inherit the wisdom of his father Solomon, his grandfather David, or his great aunt Abigail. Instead, he dismissed the good advice of experience, and listened to the foolishness of the quick fix. Ten tribes of Israel rebelled against this decision, and chose Jeroboam to lead their revolt. Sadly, this king quickly listened to bad advice, too - setting up a sacrificial altar opposing God. Rev. Tom describes how such advice - both in the Bible and in our own lives - can ripple for years, even centuries. Through a story with a quick, simple reaction to unexpected misfortune, Rev. Tom shows how a person's character can be revealed not in decisions of nationwide consequence, but in small reactions of compassion. It is through this compassion that true wisdom is grown. (Bible reading - 1 Kings 11:42-43; 12:1-17, 25-29)