The Man of God had a heart for the lost (1 Kings 13:6). The Man of God did not hold a personal grudge against Jeroboam, though Jeroboam had just threatened him. How easy would it have been to flee Jeroboam in his withered state, or to curse him and say “you sought to arrest me, O king! Your immobilized hand is the least you deserve!” Instead, the Man of God, beyond what was necessary, remained and prayed for the now submissive king. Preaching demands selflessness (1 Corinthians 9:27). When one preaches, he opens himself to insults, assault, and very rarely does he get desired results. However, any man of God will adjust and confront whatever he must, in order to further instruct the soul that is lost. Among the things that preachers can do for the lost, they can pray for the lost, and listen to the lost as a friend would converse with a friend, which also the Man of God was privy to do (1 Timothy 2:1-4; James 1:19).
The Man of God preferred obedience above honor and sustenance (1 Kings 13:7-9). How tempting it must have been to accept the king’s dinner invitation? This is the king! To share a meal with him in his halls would be an honor to any man! Yet, preaching often does not offer honor among men, nor should it. As Paul said, “For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ.” (Galatians 1:10). Those who seek honor among men may receive such, but seeking first God’s honor through obedience is the practice of any faithful preacher. Such was the practice of the Man of God —at least at his first recorded temptation. Not only did the Man of God prefer obedience to honor, but he also preferred obedience to sustenance. Disobedience often looks better than obedience (Hebrews 11:25). To illustrate, put yourself in the shoes of the Man of God. Which sounded more appealing, the finest food of the land with the king of Israel or returning home by a strange route with an empty stomach? Of course the food with the king sounded better! But the Lord had said, “You shall not eat bread, nor drink water, nor return by the same way you came.” (1 Kings 13:9). It is a godly man indeed who delays gratification to first fulfill his ministry.
The Man of God’s sermon was heard beyond the pulpit (1 Kings 13:11). Even Paul’s chains rattled across the kingdom, emboldening most Christians to speak without fear (Philippians 1:12-14). For better or worse, the sermons you preach, either in the pulpit or in casual conversation, echo through the mouths of others. No sermon ever stays inside. Our influence as preachers, for better or worse, is extensive beyond comprehension.
The Man of God forgot that temptations come in three’s (1 Kings 13:15, 18-19). Three times the Lord Jesus was tempted in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-11). Three times Peter was tempted to deny Jesus (Mark 14:66-72). Three times Paul prayed to remove his temptation, the thorn in the flesh (2 Corinthians 12:8-9). Temptations don’t actually come in three’s, one can have just one temptation or one-hundred temptations, but the point is this: NEVER let your guard down. The Man of God was tempted first y Jeroboam (1 Kings 13:7), then by the Prophet of Bethel (1 Kings 13:15). These first two temptations the Man of God endured, but the by the third, he was ensnared (1 Kings 13:18-19). Do not let your guard down for any temptation, neither the first, nor second, nor third, nor one-hundredth. Temptations are never “one and done,” so remain on
guard (1 Peter 5:8).