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Preaching: Rev. Dr. Stephen M. Fearing

Text: 1 Kings 12:1-17

A single bad listening decision can split a community, a workplace, even a nation. We open with 1 Kings 12 and the moment Rehoboam steps into power, hears a desperate plea to lighten the burden Solomon left behind, and chooses the advice that flatters him most. The result is as dramatic as it is familiar: harsh words, wounded trust, and a kingdom that breaks in two.

We zoom out to Solomon’s “high water mark” at the temple dedication and the slow drift from wisdom toward the god of gold. Forced labor, heavy taxes, and vanity projects prop up a shining public image while neighborliness fades. It’s an ancient story, but it reads like a modern case study in political leadership, economic inequality, and what happens when “success” is measured without asking whether the hungry are fed or the vulnerable are protected.

Then we bring it home with Lev Shomeah, the listening heart. A listening heart is powerful, but it is not automatically good; it becomes wise when we choose voices that stretch us, correct us, and tell the truth. We contrast Rehoboam’s yes-men with Abraham Lincoln’s team of rivals, and we name the hard work of discernment: not all voices are of God, and listening widely does not mean heeding blindly. As our nation approaches a major anniversary, we also ask what faithful Christian patriotism looks like when we examine who has been heard and who has been dismissed. If this stirred something in you, subscribe, share this with a friend, and leave a review, then tell us: which voices do you need to hear more clearly right now?

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