Wisdom

Today’s Passage – 1 Kings 3 – 5 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)

(Second Milers also read – Mark 5 – 6; Proverbs 17; Psalms 81 – 85

“And now, O LORD my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in.” – (1 Kings 3:7)

“And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had judged; and they feared the king: for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him, to do judgment.” – (1 Kings 3:28)

“And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand that is on the sea shore. And Solomon’s wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the children of the east country, and all the wisdom of Egypt. For he was wiser than all men; than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, and Chalcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol: and his fame was in all nations round about. And he spake three thousand proverbs: and his songs were a thousand and five. And he spake of trees, from the cedar tree that is in Lebanon even unto the hyssop that springeth out of the wall: he spake also of beasts, and of fowl, and of creeping things, and of fishes. And there came of all people to hear the wisdom of Solomon, from all kings of the earth, which had heard of his wisdom.” – (1 Kings 4:29-34 KJV)

“If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” – (James 1:5)

1 Kings chapter 3 is a wonderful illustration of the principle found in James 1: if you lack wisdom, you can ask God for it. Solomon recognized that he had a big job to do, and limited knowledge and ability. He admitted that he was like a little child. God likes when we see ourselves as little children. Unfortunately, all too often we are so puffed up with pride that we think we are almost godlike, knowing everything. God gave Solomon the wisdom he needed so that he could fulfill God’s will for his life. We even see an example in vv 16 – 28 of Solomon’s wisdom in action.

We need God’s wisdom today more than ever. The world that we live in is offering us all kinds of advice as to how we should live and raise our families; but oftentimes this worldly wisdom is not wise at all. We need discernment so that we will know what we should and shouldn’t do; but we need to ask. I believe the most important step in the acquisition of wisdom is acknowledging that our little, finite, human minds don’t know everything. We need God to help and guide us through all of the complexities of life. Just this morning as I was walking and praying, I was thinking about how limited I really am. I just can’t put all of the pieces together at times. But, I know that God can. Instead of trying to figure it all out on my own, I can spend my time much more profitably by simply asking God for His help. The Scripture says that “he upbraideth not”, meaning He won’t hold back, and He won’t scold us for asking. He wants us to depend upon Him. Moms and dads need God’s wisdom so that they can raise godly children. We need wisdom at our jobs, and in our churches. It’s available to us from the Lord simply by asking.

Oh, and by the way, I would be remiss in mentioning that the greatest collection of God’s wisdom has already been recorded for us in the Word of God. But, you already know that, because you spent time reading it this morning. Wisdom begins with the fear of the Lord, and it blossoms with education and experience.

“Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.” (Proverbs 4:7)