Will we see Solomon in heaven?

I am sure this may have been discussed before, but i was just reading through 1 Kings and the life of Solomon again, and of course the question always comes to mind, 'will we see him in heaven?'

I know tradition says he returned to the Lord at the end of His life and wrote Ecclesiastes, do we know if there is any foundation for that?

I think its interesting how it says that from his birth (or actually before) the Lord loved Him, if this is the saving love toward the elect, then despite his apostacy and dreadful last years of wickedness he was the Lord's and the Lord made sure He came back, right? What do you think?

I don't know.

I remember asking this very same question. It troubled me that Solomon may have slipped through God's fingers. So I asked God, "Lord, What happened to Solomon?". Then my eyes were opened and I was directed to Ecclesiastes. That's him! He was a prodigal son. He was lost, but then he was found. Yes, he did return to the Lord, and amazing lessons come from that little book.

After meditating on the book of Ecclesiastes I wrote out my insights: [url=http://www.thewayback.net/articles/becominghuman.htm]Learning to be Fully Human [/url]

Yes, sin is sin no matter how small we think it is, BUT, what type of sin did King Solomon commit?
\t“Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon”
\t“And likewise did he for all his strange wives, which burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods.” 1 kings 11:7-8
King Solomon great sin is leading his people to apostasy. Every time Solomon worshipped a foreign god , he was telling his people it was ok to do the same .. every time Solomon sacrificed or let one of his children be sacrificed to molech, Solomon was telling the people he was leading , that this was acceptable behavior. Imagine the children who grew up in this environment, being exposed to the actions of the king of Israel.
“But whoso shall offend (causes to sin) one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea.”Matthew18:6
Was Solomon saved? I hope so.. .. but look at the destruction he left in his wake,Solomon's sin did not only affect just himself but the nation of GOD.. this should also be a warning to Pastors
Love
andy

To me it is one of the authenticating features of the Bible record that so many stories are left unfinished. If human beings had written these accounts all these issues would have been 'tidied up'. But real life is not so easily 'tidied up'and these are real life accounts. As some of the old Quakers used to say 'we have no desire to be wiser than what has been written'.

In the truest sense of sin, sin is simply being that which is not what God created one to be. Man / woman was created in the image of God. We are to be a reflection of His glory, an expression of His infinite self. It has always been a trap to catagorize certain trangressions or trespasses and hold some to be worse than others, however it would seem that certain acts seem to recieve a much swifter judgement.

From Ecclesiastes"
"The words of the Teacher, son of David, king of Jerusalem" 1:1

"I, the teacher was king over Isreal in Jerusalem. I devoted myself to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under heaven." 1:12

Was there another son of David who could have fit this description? (never mind all the other references about his life)

Why would Solomon's final confession be generally viewed with uncertainty - as to his eternal destiny?

Why is the book of Ecclesiastes rarely used as it's intended purpose: to warn people not to make the same mistakes.

Why don't we hear more heart-stirring sermons arising from this literature?

Diane

Diane wrote:

Why don't we hear more heart-stirring sermons arising from this literature?

I cannot speak for all preachers, but I have heard too many say it is such a negative book! When I tell them I just love the book, they look at me rather strange, like they cannot believe a woman would think so. I love the book because it talks about life and what is important. Oh dear, I better quit - I love the book so much that once I get started I find it hard to stop talking about it!

ginnyrose

I'm perplexed when I hear people (believers) say they are looking forward to talking to this or that saint, or seeing a loved one again in heaven, mainly because I don't find this held out as being any part of our hope for salvation.

?

More perplexed at that statement ...

Where do you find in the New Testament, any idea that after we are asleep in Christ, or, after we have been given a resurrection body, we will be focusing on other saints, rather than the Lord?

Well, that is an even stranger comment ... Where did this idea come from? Who said anything about [i]focus[/i]? Not to belabor anything here and perhaps I missed something that brought this out earlier ...

Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?
1 Cor 6:2-3 (KJV)

Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord:
Eph 2:19-21 (KJV)

And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him. Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias.
Matt 17:3-4 (KJV)

Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad.
John 8:56 (KJV)

Ginnyrose said,

I have heard too many say it is such a negative book!

I too have found amazingly rich truths leap from the book of Ecclesiastes. In fact, I can see an entire sermon series taken from it aimed at our youth. Let’s face it, our youth can often see realities about “everything under the sin” better that the older ones who have stopped noticing. Our youth know about the word “meaningless”. I suspect that they know about unfairness, the “weariness” of life, madness and folly, injustice, about dust to dust, etc, and many are willing to talk about it – even if in crude ways.

Solomon was blatantly open and honest about life without God. And he speaks from a wide base of experiences. The journey that Solomon took in order to find meaning is one that most people are on today, but don’t realize it – even Christians. They have yet to come to the end of themselves, like Solomon did. Maybe that’s another reason why the book isn’t such a big deal to many (yet - that is).

Ecclesiastes has its place. But, I guess, a life that is working well is not that place. It’s just too raw and honest. And that may be too negative for all who still prefer their rose-coloured glasses - which, to some degree may be all of us. Don't most of us hold even a tiny fragment of hope for something meaningful "under the sun"?

Diane

Linn & Mike,

I read your exchange with some interest and had some thoughts I'd like to pass along. The first thought that came to me is that in heaven we will be completely without sin or in other words we will be righteous in every way. Here on earth this [i]total and complete[/i] righteousness is imputed and positional. Now my understanding of righteousness is that it is primarily an atribute of how we relate to others. Every passage in the new testament that I'm aware of that teaches us how to go about living life has to do with our relational skills, either with God or with each other. Somehow I do find it a strange idea that we would have righteousness in heaven without relationships.

The second thought that came to mind came from these scriptures:

[color=000066]Isaiah 65:17 "For behold, I create [b]new heavens and a new earth;[/b]
And the former shall not be remembered or come to mind.

Isaiah 66:22 "For as the [b]new heavens and the new earth[/b]
Which I will make shall remain before Me," says the LORD,
"So shall your descendants and your name remain.

2Peter 3:10-13 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, [b]in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.[/b] 11 Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, 12 looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which [b]the heavens will be dissolved[/b], being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? 13 Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for [b]new heavens and a new earth[/b] in which [b]righteousness dwells.[/b][/color]

What catches my attention, at least in regard to this discussion, is that He will create [i]both[/i] a new heaven [i]and[/i] a new earth. If all we do in heaven is stand before the throne of God worshipping, I have a difficult time understanding why a new earth is necessary.

In the same way that fellowship with God can occur anywhere we happen to be, and indeed there is no where we could hide from God (if we wanted to-see Ps 139), I don't see any reason that this will be any different in eternity. The only difference being that we will always have that fellowship, as opposed to now where we are not constantly aware of His presence.

One of the aspects of God that consistently boggles my mind is His [i]creativity[/i]. The earth itself glorifies God. I somehow have this notion of eternity being a never ending discovery of God's creative process. I see us traveling from place to place thoroughly enjoying the wonders of this new creation. I can't envision doing this without being in fellowship with others. And remember, this is eternity we're discussing.

Strange ideas? Well, perhaps. I certainly wouldn't build a sermon around them. Sometimes I just like to dream. What I do know is that:

[color=009900]"Eye has not seen, nor ear heard,
Nor have entered into the heart of man
The things which God has prepared for those who love Him."
[/color]1 Corinthians 2:9

Blessings in Christ,

Doug