Wisdom

Text: ESV 1 Kings 3:9 Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, that I may discern between good and evil, for who is able to govern this your great people?

Goal: That we receive God’s wisdom.

ESV 1 Timothy 1:2 Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.

We’ll start today with some Bible trivia, just to see if we’re wise or not. Which biblical character is known, more than any other, for his great wisdom? I’ll give you some clues. His father was King David and his mother was Bathsheba. We just read about him in our Old Testament reading today. He built the great Temple for the Lord. In his later years his heart turned away from God and he built high places to worship Chemosh and Molech. If you haven’t figured it out yet, the biblical character’s name is King Solomon. When Solomon was about to become king, God appeared to him in a dream. God told Solomon that he could ask anything of the Lord and it would be given to him. Solomon made an interesting request. He could have asked for riches and fame. He could have asked for health and military success, but he asked the Lord for wisdom. “Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, that I may discern between good and evil, for who is able to govern this your great people” (1 Kings 3:9)? God was pleased with Solomon’s request and granted him wisdom and greatness beyond comprehension.

Do you sometimes wish that God would come to you with an offer like Solomon’s? Do you ever find yourself regretting past decisions, thinking about what your life would be like if you would have used more wisdom and discernment? Are you ever concerned about your own faith after reading about Solomon and his wisdom? Just think, this man was given wisdom beyond comparison and he fell away from God’s grace and mercy. How wise was he really? What does that mean for me and my lack of wisdom? These are the kind of questions that might keep you awake at night. These are the kind of questions that may cause you to have some doubts about God and His wisdom. These are the kind of questions that won’t go away very easily.

We struggle with these questions because we’ve tried to become wise on our own. We’ve become lovers of wisdom, instead of lovers of God. We’ve grown over-confident in our own talents and abilities. When Solomon realized his weakness and his inability to lead God’s people, God provided what he was lacking. When Solomon said, “I am but a little child, I do not know how to go out or come in,” God was with him (1 Kings 3:7). As Solomon built the magnificent Temple for the Lord, the Lord provided all the riches and all the talent to accomplish the task. But when Solomon decided that his own wisdom was sufficient, that he didn’t need God anymore, Satan was able to seduce him away from God’s true wisdom.

When we rely on our own wisdom, it gets us into trouble as well. Solomon, in his own wisdom, built a high place for Molech. Molech is the god to whom the Israelites later sacrificed their own children. During the time of Solomon there is no evidence of child sacrifice, but think about Solomon’s lack of wisdom. Solomon, in his own wisdom, didn’t even realize that his actions were paving the way for the Israelites to burn their own children on the arms of Molech. The wisdom of our society fully embraces the sacrifice of children as well. The only difference is that we have the technology to make the sacrifice before the child is even born. And even when we allow for the birth of a child, we’ve figured out other ways to sacrifice our children and to destroy our families. But we are wise and clever. We sacrifice our children to the god of education. We sacrifice our children to the god of prosperity. We sacrifice our children on the altar of entertainment.

When we rely on our own wisdom, it gets us into all sorts of trouble. Solomon, in his own wisdom, tried to live in two different worlds. He thought that he could serve the true God and also serve other gods as well. He tried to divide his life into segments. One segment serving God and the other furthering his political career. So often, our own wisdom tells us that it’s ok to put God on the back burner . . . just for a little while. Just long enough to get through school. Just long enough to make some extra money. Just long enough to get that promotion or pay raise. Just long enough to commit our favorite sin. And before we even realize what’s happening, Satan has seduced us completely away from God’s wisdom and God’s plan for our lives.

God gave Solomon incredible wisdom, but Solomon chose to reject God’s gift. Where Solomon failed, Jesus succeeded. Where Solomon allowed his wisdom to fade, Jesus “increased in wisdom and in stature” (Luke 2:52). Where the favor of God left Solomon, the favor of God was upon Jesus. When Jesus was only twelve years old, His wisdom amazed the teachers in the temple (Luke 2). This amazement eventually turned to bewilderment and finally resentment.

The wisdom of Jesus wasn’t tolerated for very long. The wisdom of Jesus offended people. The wisdom of Jesus caused Him to be mocked and ridiculed. The wisdom of Jesus led him to Calvary. The wisdom of Jesus left Him hanging from a tree. The world was not, is not, will never be ready for the true wisdom of God. His wisdom is only wise when it is seen through eyes that have been opened by the Holy Spirit.

God has opened our eyes. He has given us incredible wisdom. “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight, making known to us the mystery of His will, according to His purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in Him, things in heaven and things on earth” (Ephesians 1:7-10). We know who God is. We know that we have redemption through His blood. We know that our trespasses are forgiven. We know that we have the riches of His grace lavished upon us. We know the mystery of His will. We know that God has a plan for us, for heaven and earth, and for all eternity. We are wise.

So with our wisdom, those tough questions from earlier should be easy to answer, right? Well, maybe. Here’s the first tough question: “Do you sometimes wish that God would come to you with an offer like Solomon’s?” God has already given us the offer and the wisdom. We know Jesus Christ and that’s all the wisdom that you need to survive this world. Second question: “Do you ever find yourself regretting past decisions, thinking about what your life would be like if you would have used more wisdom and discernment?” The answer is you are forgiven all of your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Final question: “Are you ever concerned about your own faith after reading about Solomon and his wisdom?” The answer is right here in Ephesians (1:3-6): “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His will, to the praise of His glorious grace, with which He has blessed us in the Beloved.” Jesus Christ is the answer to all of our tough questions. Jesus Christ is God’s Wisdom in human flesh. Jesus Christ gives us wisdom and discernment. Jesus Christ has given us His Holy Spirit. Jesus Christ helps us to push away worldly wisdom. Jesus Christ repairs our families. Jesus Christ strengthens our children. Jesus Christ helps us in our struggles. Let’s try the trivia question one more time and let’s get it right this time around: “Which biblical character is known, more than any other, for his great wisdom?” Jesus Christ and that’s our final answer.

ESV Philippians 4:7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.