In the midst of the quiet night my wife shot out of bed with a crying scream, “I am in so much pain”! Those who have experience a dry socket will immediately remember the excruciating pain it can cause. It was after my wife had finished getting a wisdom tooth pulled that she was released to go home and recover with the needed medication. Well, at the crack of dawn I was rushing her back to the dentist’s office because of the unbelievable pain she was in. It didn’t take long for the diagnosis of a dry socket to be made and dealt with.

Once the initial tooth distraction was done and the open wound began to heal on the surface, a small piece of chipped tooth was left and produced infection that quickly spread within the socket causing pressure and a throbbing pain that can bring

Too often people allow their hearts to be defiled and conceive a spiritual cancer that spreads throughout their lives.   (tweet)

a grown man to his knees. The solution is to open the wound and clean out the infection and apply medication down deep so that it can heal from inside to out, instead of healing just on the surface, leaving a festering infection on the inside.

In 1 Kings 11-13, we are introduced to Jeroboam who had a similar problem. We see that because of his giftings and abilities that he was one of King Solomon’s upcoming leaders. In verse 29-39, he is given a word through the prophet that God would start a new kingdom with him and make his family an enduring linage. His future looked so bright, yet instead of Jeroboam embracing the word of the Lord and being blessed he rebels from God.

In Prov 4:23 we are exhorted to, “keep your heart with all diligence, For out of it spring the issues of life”. Too often people allow their hearts to be defiled and conceive a spiritual cancer that spreads. Paul shares in 1 Cor 5:6, “that a little leaven leavens the whole lump” in other words allowing a seed of sin in your life will quickly spread throughout the entire portion. When small fragments of emotional hurt remains the infection will grow causing the pain to get so intolerable that it affects our perspective in life and can spread to others around us.

Because of the drastic turn of events in King Jeroboam’s life he is given special attention over and over in the Old Testament. No less than twenty-one times he is charged with having caused Israel to sin. How did this young man who is referred to in 1 Kings 11:27-28, as a mighty man of valor, who receives such a incredible promise from God and becomes King, end up as a abhorred sinful leader in scripture? Well, back in verse 27 the scripture specifically points out there was a seed of rebellion that was planted in his life when he was overseeing the king’s project at Millo.

Just as a dry socket is a festering infection that must be dealt with by opening it up and cleansing it out and applying medicine. So, many people need to allow the Lord to search down deep in their hearts and open their lives up to the Holy Spirit ‘s healing. So that we don’t end up like King Jeroboam, we need cleansed from any hurts or bitterness, which will spread to rebellious acts against God and His people. The finished work that Jesus did on the cross is the cleansing and medicine that is so needed. Invite the Lord to apply His ointment to your life that you can be healed.