Don't Waste Your Heritage

1 Kings 21:1-3 KJV And it came to pass after these things, that Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard, which was in Jezreel, hard by the palace of Ahab king of Samaria. [2] And Ahab spake unto Naboth, saying, Give me thy vineyard, that I may have it for a garden of herbs, because it is near unto my house: and I will give thee for it a better vineyard than it; or, if it seem good to thee, I will give thee the worth of it in money. [3] And Naboth said to Ahab, The LORD forbid it me, that I should give the inheritance of my fathers unto thee.

I. INTRODUCTION—HERITAGE

-A heritage is something that is very valuable. It is powerful because it helps us to stay in contact with the past while we move into the future. Perhaps one of the reasons that America is losing her way currently is because she has lost sight of the history or her heritage.

-That same thing could be also said of the apostolic church in our day. We are losing our way because we are losing our heritage.

-It is important to understand that life can only really be successful when it is motivated by priorities. There really aren’t a whole lot of things that you have to know to be able to make a lasting difference in the world.

-But the things that you do choose to let master you will ultimately be the crowning or the downfall of your life. Seek to master the one great thing in life and it will make all the difference in the world.

-The church is a force that has to be tethered to a heritage that comes from its past. That past has a Cross in it. In 1 Corinthians 2:2, Paul said that his life and ministry were compelled by the fact that he did not want to know anything except Christ and him crucified.

-The apostle John affirmed that he was a companion in our tribulation and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ (Rev. 1:9). Your spiritual heritage comes from a powerful and deep conversion. It also comes with the matter of hardship, there is a cost involved in your walk with the Lord. Furthermore there will not be any shortcuts available to you.

-Take your hardship and make it work for you! There has to be a very fixed attitude when we have to bear some heavy weight or pressure that comes into our path. Don’t yield and don’t be crushed by it. Work and press on. Serving God means just taking the next step! That is where heritage comes from.

-You acquaint yourself with the struggles and challenges that those before you have had to endure and it will challenge you to do your part to carry on.

II. 1 KINGS 21—NABOTH’S VINEYARD

A. The Dirty Deal

-It would seem to even a casual reader of this little episode that there was nothing wrong with Ahab’s desire to have Naboth’s vineyard. He only wanted to have it for a little spot to plant a garden, maybe a few tomatoes here and a few squash there. Over here a few pepper plants and finish it out with a few stalks of okra and corn.

-No harm, no foul and Ahab was even willing to give a fair market price or even exchange the vineyard for a better vineyard somewhere a few miles away. But the problem settled in when the deal fell through with Naboth’s refusal to sell the property.

-No amount of money could buy the vineyard that Naboth had because it was more than just a piece of property to him.

• There was a high principle involved in this vineyard that could not be purchased by money.

• This vineyard was an object of Naboth’s affection and what a man loves he will not part from.

• Another substitute would have been much less than the current one.

-Naboth had a good reason not to sell his vineyard. The sale of that vineyard would have been in violation of religious and statutory laws in Israel. The law stipulated that inherited land should remain in the tribe where it was first owned.

-Because of that requirement and young lady could not get married outside of her own tribe because the property would take on the name of the husband. If he were outside of her tribe the priority would be violated.

-It is probably certain that Ahab was already well aware of this particular detail in his proposed transactions with Naboth.

-But now we begin to gain some insight into the whole scope of Ahab’s rebellion against God.

• A marriage that was foreign to God because of an unholy alliance.

• He had adopted the idolatry of Baal.