Lead Like Solomon Depend Upon His, And Not Your Own, Wisdom 1 Kings 3:5-15
Description: Challenging everyone to place less trust in themselves and more trust in God.
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Benjamin Franklin is the one usually credited with saying: "Early to bed and early to rise, makes a man healthy, and wealthy, and wise.” Solomon chose wise. And the Lord was so pleased with Solomon’s choice, that the Lord gave Solomon health and wealth to boot!
What’s it take to be wise? Our text this morning suggests… it starts with humility. So let’s start there.
I. It Starts With Humility
DO YOU AND I REALIZE HOW MUCH WE DON’T KNOW ABOUT WHAT WE DON’T KNOW? Solomon said…
1 Kings 3:7 ...O Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of David my father, although I am but a
That’s humility. That’s something you don’t hear from many kings. And that’s certainly not something you hear from our politicians. Our politicians say “Elect me, I’ve got all the answers. Elect me, and all your problems will go away.” And now I hear there’s another candidate who’s entering the race! How refreshing would it be for some man, some woman, to say, “Who me? That job’s too big for me. I’d need the Lord’s help to pull something like that off!” THAT’S THE MAN, THAT’S THE WOMAN, I’D LIKE TO SEE GIVEN A SHOT!
Solomon said, “I can’t do it Lord. The job’s too big…
1 Kings 3:8 ...your servant is in the midst of your people whom you have chosen, a great people, too many to be numbered or counted for multitude.
“...and on my own I’m not going to be able to pull this king-thing off. I’ll screw it up.”
Can you say that? Dad? Mom? Husband? Wife? “I’m a freshman when it comes to this ‘family’ business. I’m a sophomore when it comes to knowing how to make this marriage work.” Or as my dad says about such, “I’m an ‘armeture’ when it comes to such stuff!”
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There’s no shame in admitting that. THAT YOU DON’T EVEN KNOW HOW MUCH YOU DON’T KNOW. Sometimes it’s just being truthful, and humble.
That’s why we call early enrollees in higher education...
● “Freshmen” ● And “Sophomores” ● And “Juniors”
...before we ever call them “Seniors,” or “Graduates,” and turn them loose on the world.
We just selected Church leaders for next year.
● One new elder, ● four new deacons, ● and what will probably be one new board chairman among them.
Two of them, to their credit, have already come to me and said, “I don’t know how to do this.” One of them said, “You’ve worked with Board Chairmen, what do I need to know?” When I heard him say that the first thought that crossed my mind was, “Already wise beyond his years!” Already afraid he might not do a good job for Jesus. And what did Solomon say about that?
Proverbs 9:10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom...
● We need to be honest. ● We need to be humble. ● We need to be the first one to admit WE DON’T EVEN KNOW WHAT WE DON’T KNOW.
Because by so doing we will be putting ourselves in the best position to learn.
Have you ever tried to teach…
somebody something who thought they already knew everything?
How’d that go? Sometimes you just have to throw your hands up and say, “I guess they’ll just have to learn on their own.” How much better to just be honest, and humble, and say, “I DON’T EVEN KNOW WHAT I DON’T KNOW,” and put yourself in the best position to learn?
And admittedly, some people are going to have more trouble with this than others. And please, no elbows or dirty looks thrown to your neighbor. But some people think they already know everything. And they really struggle with humility. Now some people don’t struggle with humility at all. They have a self-esteem problem and they struggle with the other side of the coin. But
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some people are like Zeke who struts into Zach’s blacksmith shop just after Zack has thrown a hot horseshoe in the corner to cool. Zeke comes strutin’ in and picks up Zach’s horseshoe to examine Zach’s work… which he immediately throws back down. And Zach says, “What’s the matter Zeke? Is that horseshoe too hot for you to handle?” To which Zeke says, “Naw. It just doesn’t take me long to look at a horseshoe!”
Some people really struggle with pride. And it can really get them hurt if their not careful. Especially when it comes to the things of God!
And let me say this: If you are here this morning, uncertain about all this Jesus business, God, the Bible, eternal life, all this stuff; then I encourage you to just keep an open mind. That’s all. I commend you for being here. But I encourage you to keep an open mind while you are here. And to humbly, and honestly, admit; YOU DON’T KNOW ALL THAT YOU DON’T KNOW. There are lots of things you don’t know. And maybe this is one. And maybe, after giving this a fair hearing, over time, you judge it to be a bunch of hooey. But at least you gave it a fair shot. You put yourself in the best position to learn. But who knows, you just might come to know one more thing you didn’t know before. What is it the Bible says?
James 4:10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will
But you have to humble yourself first. Solomon did. And God gave Solomon…
● wisdom beyond his years! ● Wisdom beyond his peers! ● Wisdom that still, to this day, the world cheers!
And to think, it all starts with a little humility...
II. And It Ends With Great Gratitude
After praying for wisdom, and we’ll get to that in a minute, but after praying for wisdom that Solomon believed he didn’t have, but needed, the Bible says…
1 Kings 3:10 It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this.
It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked for wisdom, not for his own sake, but so that he could govern God’s people, and help them distinguish between right and wrong. Something our world could use more of!
And God was so pleased that Solomon had asked for this that the Lord…
1 Kings 3:11 ...God said to him, “Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long life or riches or the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right,
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1 Kings 3:12 behold, I now do according to your word. Behold, I give you a wise and discerning mind, so that none like you has been before you and none like you shall arise after you.
1 Kings 3:13 I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that no other king shall compare with you, all your days.
1 Kings 3:14 And if you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days.”
1 Kings 3:15 And Solomon awoke, and behold, it was a dream.
Because he considered God’s Word, even if spoken in a dream, a done deal. And he thanked the Lord for it. Because it was a dream come true! 1 Kings Chapter Four says...
1 Kings 4:29 And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding beyond measure, and breadth of mind like the sand on the seashore,
1 Kings 4:30 so that Solomon’s wisdom surpassed the wisdom of all the people of the east and all the wisdom of Egypt.
1 Kings 4:31 For he was wiser than all other men…
1 Kings 4:32 He also spoke 3,000 proverbs, and his songs were 1,005.
1 Kings 4:33 He spoke of trees, from the cedar that is in Lebanon to the hyssop that grows out of the wall. He spoke also of beasts, and of birds, and of reptiles, and of fish.
1 Kings 4:34 And people of all nations came to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and from all the kings of the earth, who had heard of his wisdom.
All of which is attributed, not to Solomon’s diligent study, but to a miraculous gift from God. And here’s where parents may want to cover their school children’s ears. Because Solomon prayed for wisdom... and God gave it. Solomon didn’t acquire it on his own. That comes later. You can read about that time in his life when he applied himself to the acquisition of knowledge in Ecclesiastes Chapter One. I put that in the sermon notes. You may not like what you read there,
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but it’s there just the same. “Solomon’s diligent search for wisdom.” He did that. But that’s not what we are reading about this morning. What we are reading about this morning is Solomon’s humble and honest admission that…
SOLOMON DOESN’T HAVE A CLUE AS TO WHAT HE IS TO DO.
So he asks God for wisdom. And God
● Two prostitutes, living in the same house, give birth, three days apart. ● One woman’s child dies in the middle of the night, when the mother very unfortunately rolled over on him. ● When she realized what she had done, she arose while the other mother slept and exchanged her dead son for the other mother’s living one. ● In the morning, when the other mother awoke, and looked closely at the dead child, and discovered it was not the child she had borne, ALL
And in the day before a simple DNA test could have proven which woman was the mother of that last, remaining child, in perhaps the wisest court ruling ever spoken… King Solomon...
1 Kings 3:23 Then the king said…
...Well, I’m not going to tell you what the king said. I’m going to let you read it for yourself. You can find the reference at the bottom of the “Sermon Notes” on the back of your programs. But after Solomon’s judgment is rendered the Bible says…
1 Kings 3:28 And all Israel heard of the judgment that the king had rendered, and they stood in awe of the king, because they perceived that the wisdom of God was in him to do justice.
And the point the Bible is trying to make is that the wisdom that was within... Solomon, was from heaven, and had been given, in response to a humble admission that Solomon did not have what it took to govern such a great people. The Lord was so pleased that Solomon had asked for this that the Lord said, “Granted!”
The wisdom within had been given; it was from heaven and not from Solomon.
And what do you do when the Lord gives you something you ask for? You say, “Thank you!” And you try to show your gratitude to the Lord. And the Bible says when…
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1 Kings 3:15 ...Solomon awoke, and behold, it was a dream. Then he came to Jerusalem and stood before the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and offered up burnt offerings and peace offerings, and made a feast for all his servants.
Solomon said thank you. The story of Solomon’s wisdom begins with humility, & ends with gratitude. What’s it take to be wise like Solomon? It starts with humility, & it ends in gratitude,...
III. But In Between There’s A Whole Lot of Prayer
James Chapter One and verse Five says...
James 1:5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.
And I don’t know whether James had Solomon in mind when he said that, but later in the Book of James he says...
James 4:2 You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you
Solomon asked. He humbly and honestly admitted he didn’t have what it takes. So he asked that he be given it.
1 Kings 3:9 Give your servant therefore an understanding mind…
...is what our translation says this morning. Other translations say, “Give your servant…
● “An understanding heart…” KJV ● “A discerning mind…” NET ● “A hearing heart…” AMP
...one translation says. Which sounded interesting, so I looked it up. And the Hebrew literally says Solomon asked the Lord to give him “a listening heart,” a heart that would be open to listening to the Lord’s direction. Of all the translations I read I think I like John Wycliffe’s the best. The first ever English translation of the Scripture, handwritten by John Wycliffe himself way back in the 14th C., more than 200 years before the KJV of the Bible was written. Written in old middle English, which will throw you a bit when you first see it. But it’s translation, I believe, is spot on when it comes to what Solomon was asking. Here’s how Wycliffe translated it...
1 Kings 3:9 Wycliffe Therfor
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Solomon truly believed he didn’t have what it took to pull this off. So he asked the Lord to give him a listening heart. So Solomon could hear the Lord speaking to him, directing Him when it came to what was right and what was wrong. And the Lord was so pleased with what Solomon asked, that the Lord gave it to him. And I’m asking this morning if we can do the same thing.
Our kingdom may not be as big as his. Our kingdom may only consist of ourselves right now, well, how well are we reigning over ourselves? Or is that proving to be more than we can handle. Maybe our kingdom now includes another? Well, how well are me managing our marriage, our home, our kids, our business, our ball team, our school, our classroom, or our congregation? Are we big enough, to admit, that on our own, we are not near big enough to pull this off. The wisest man who ever lived did. And his advice to us when it comes to our little kingdoms...
Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.
Proverbs 3:6 In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.
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We’re going to give everyone a chance to do that. To quit “flyng by the seat of your pants,” thinking that you’ve got this, & start flying “by instrument.” & the “instrument” we’re talking about is “a listening heart.” A heart that says, “Lord, I don’t have this. I need you to guide me, to speak to me, to direct my path. Give me that kind of wisdom. Just like Solomon was given.”
Back in the hills we’d often see the Wv Air National Guard flying overhead with their front windshields tarped over & blacked out. They were learning to fly “by instrument” & not by “the seat of their pants.” Pilots were learning to not trust themselves as to how high, or low they were flying; how slow or how fast. They were learning to not trust their own equilibrium when it came to whether the plane was flying level or banking to the right or the left. They were learning to trust their instruments so that when time came, they could fly in the dead of night.
For Solomon, that time came right up front, at the beginning of his reign. For you & I, it comes when we trust Jesus to direct our life. Some of you are just BEGINNING to learn about Him while others of you have already come to BELIEVE. Others of you have committed yourselves to BECOMING dedicated followers with full intention of joining others in BUILDING His Kingdom. Wherever you are in that process, we pray that you will humbly admit that you don’t have this, and ask God for the wisdom to listen, to Him. You’ll be so glad you did. You will thank God over and over again that you did! Let’s stand and pray that prayer together...
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