The Source of Glorious Wisdom (2 Chronicles 1)

WEBVTT 1 00:00:01.879 --> 00:00:07.309 Few remain standing. Let's turn to second chronicles, Chapter One, and we 2 00:00:07.469 --> 00:00:23.420 will hear God's words to night. Second Chronicles, Chapter One, Solomon, 3 00:00:23.500 --> 00:00:28.059 the son of David, established himself in his kingdom, and the Lord, 4 00:00:28.179 --> 00:00:32.899 his God, was with him and made him exceedingly great. Solomon spoke to 5 00:00:33.060 --> 00:00:38.009 all Israel, to the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, to the judges 6 00:00:38.130 --> 00:00:42.450 and to all the leaders in all Israel, the heads of father's houses, 7 00:00:43.570 --> 00:00:48.090 and Solomon and all the assembly with him, went to the high place that 8 00:00:48.210 --> 00:00:52.600 was in Gibeon, for the tent of the meeting of God, which Moses, 9 00:00:52.799 --> 00:00:56.560 The Servant of the Lord, had made in the wilderness was there. 10 00:00:57.640 --> 00:01:02.359 But David had brought the Ark Up, brought up the Ark of God from 11 00:01:02.399 --> 00:01:06.870 Kiriof Jereim to the place that David had prepared for it, for he had 12 00:01:06.950 --> 00:01:11.750 pitched a tent for it in Jerusalem. Moreover, the bronze altar that Bezzleel, 13 00:01:11.870 --> 00:01:15.430 the son of Uri, son of her had made was there before the 14 00:01:15.549 --> 00:01:19.900 Tabernacle of the Lord, and Solomon and the assembly sought it out, and 15 00:01:21.099 --> 00:01:25.299 Solomon went up there to the bronze altar before the Lord, which was at 16 00:01:25.340 --> 00:01:30.700 the tent of meeting and offered a thousand and burnt offerings on it. Verse 17 00:01:30.819 --> 00:01:36.049 Seven. In that night, God appeared to Solomon and said to him, 18 00:01:37.129 --> 00:01:41.810 ask what I shall give you, and Solomon said to God, you have 19 00:01:41.969 --> 00:01:46.409 shown great and steadfast love to David my father, and I made me king 20 00:01:46.530 --> 00:01:49.920 in his place. Oh Lord God, Let your Word to David my father 21 00:01:51.560 --> 00:01:56.280 be now fulfilled, for you have made me king over a people as numerous 22 00:01:56.319 --> 00:02:00.719 as the dust of the earth. Give me now wisdom and knowledge to go 23 00:02:00.000 --> 00:02:05.150 out and come in before this people, for who can govern this people of 24 00:02:05.230 --> 00:02:10.550 yours, which is so great? God answered Solomon, because this was in 25 00:02:10.669 --> 00:02:17.219 your heart, and you have not asked possessions, wealth, honor or the 26 00:02:17.340 --> 00:02:22.139 life of those who hate you, and have not even asked long life, 27 00:02:22.819 --> 00:02:25.419 but have asked wisdom and knowledge for yourself that you may govern my people, 28 00:02:25.659 --> 00:02:30.210 over whom I have made you king. Wisdom and knowledge are granted to you. 29 00:02:31.289 --> 00:02:36.009 I will also give you riches, possessions and honor, such as none 30 00:02:36.050 --> 00:02:39.169 of the Kings had, but who were before you and none after you shall 31 00:02:39.250 --> 00:02:45.199 have the like. So Solomon came from the high place of Gibbeon, from 32 00:02:45.240 --> 00:02:51.319 before the tent of the meeting to Jerusalem and he reigned over Israel. Solomon 33 00:02:51.439 --> 00:02:57.840 gathered together chariots and horsemen. He had fourteen hundred chariots twelvezero horsemen whom he 34 00:02:57.919 --> 00:03:01.909 stationed in the chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem. And the king 35 00:03:02.069 --> 00:03:07.870 made silver and gold as common in Jerusalem as stone, and he made Cedar 36 00:03:07.949 --> 00:03:14.419 as plentiful as the Sycamore in the SHEPPELA. And Solomon's import of horses was 37 00:03:14.500 --> 00:03:17.620 from Egypt and coup, and the king's traitors would buy them from coup or 38 00:03:17.620 --> 00:03:23.180 a price. They imported a chariot from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver 39 00:03:23.740 --> 00:03:27.770 and a horse for a hundred and fifty. Likewise through them. These were 40 00:03:27.810 --> 00:03:32.810 exported to all the kings of the Hittites and the Kings of Syria. You 41 00:03:32.889 --> 00:03:52.199 may be seated. Well, as we come to this second half of chronicles, 42 00:03:52.280 --> 00:03:57.870 or second chronicles is it is called, we come to something more of 43 00:03:57.909 --> 00:04:04.110 a speedier tail and we read in first chronicles the account of mostly of two 44 00:04:04.229 --> 00:04:10.699 kings, after the genealogies at the beginning of first chronicles. First we read 45 00:04:10.740 --> 00:04:14.780 of Solomon, or I'm sorry, Saul, a rather quick story, and 46 00:04:14.819 --> 00:04:17.860 then the rest of the chapters. For the most part, we're devoted to 47 00:04:17.939 --> 00:04:25.050 David has ascension to power and his reign. And second chronicles. We're going 48 00:04:25.129 --> 00:04:30.089 to move through about four hundred years of history there. It's full of these 49 00:04:30.569 --> 00:04:35.329 many biographies, the King after King, after King after King, and over 50 00:04:35.449 --> 00:04:40.759 this over this period of time, over these four hundred years, through these 51 00:04:41.040 --> 00:04:47.279 little king biographies, we come to learn several things. First, we have 52 00:04:47.399 --> 00:04:53.470 a lot of examples good kings and bad kings. We see what it is 53 00:04:53.750 --> 00:04:57.990 to rule in God's name and to rule well, what it is to rule 54 00:04:58.189 --> 00:05:02.870 poorly and against God and the things that he desires. We also come to 55 00:05:02.910 --> 00:05:11.180 see how the history of Israel develops through these accounts of these kings. And 56 00:05:11.300 --> 00:05:15.579 in all of this we see God's promises being fulfilled. The beginning of that 57 00:05:15.939 --> 00:05:21.930 testimony, Solomon himself says, remember how he begins his prayer in Verse Eight. 58 00:05:23.170 --> 00:05:26.689 You have shown great and steadfast love to David, my father, and 59 00:05:26.730 --> 00:05:30.250 have made me king in his place. The fact that Solomon is king is 60 00:05:30.329 --> 00:05:35.680 no accident. God told him Solomon would be king. God promised things to 61 00:05:35.800 --> 00:05:41.920 Solomon. He's fulfilling that promise and we'll see how God continues to work through 62 00:05:42.439 --> 00:05:47.800 these people well as we do. So what will have is this rather indepth 63 00:05:47.959 --> 00:05:53.949 study on the Kingship of Christ. In all these various ways in which these 64 00:05:53.990 --> 00:05:58.110 kings act and fail to act, will see how our will see, in 65 00:05:58.230 --> 00:06:03.189 comparison to our Lord, how he was much better than even the best and 66 00:06:03.459 --> 00:06:10.259 how he saves us from the worst. Well him to come to understand King 67 00:06:10.339 --> 00:06:15.420 Jesus in his glory, in his power, in his wisdom, in his 68 00:06:15.500 --> 00:06:21.569 might. And so we begin with Solomon and in this chapter, in this 69 00:06:21.970 --> 00:06:28.649 beginning account of Solomon's reign, we get this, essentially this big idea about 70 00:06:28.889 --> 00:06:34.519 godliness. And it's this that Godly people seek wisdom. God people, Godly 71 00:06:34.600 --> 00:06:40.439 people, seek wisdom first in their service to God, because they understand how 72 00:06:40.959 --> 00:06:46.399 important their call is and they also understand the limits of their own minds and 73 00:06:46.600 --> 00:06:50.790 hearts, understanding the call that God has placed on our lives, understanding the 74 00:06:50.990 --> 00:06:56.990 limits and our ability to fulfill that call. A Christian is one who will 75 00:06:57.750 --> 00:07:01.220 recognize that, not fight against it, but recognize it and go to God 76 00:07:01.379 --> 00:07:08.899 and seek wisdom, even as Solomon did. So let's think about Solomon's example 77 00:07:08.980 --> 00:07:14.620 and how other chronicler puts it here and has US understand Solomon in his reign. 78 00:07:15.129 --> 00:07:21.769 Solomon, we see, did very well. His reign is summarized here 79 00:07:21.889 --> 00:07:26.290 and then in the following chapters it's going to focus in in particular on his 80 00:07:26.370 --> 00:07:30.040 work on the temple. But what do we see here? First, we 81 00:07:30.120 --> 00:07:35.079 see that Solomon is obedient. He worships. You notice at the tent of 82 00:07:35.160 --> 00:07:41.279 meeting which Moses sets up. At this particular time in history, there's really 83 00:07:41.319 --> 00:07:46.069 only two places you could worship a Gibbeon, where he mentions, or in 84 00:07:46.149 --> 00:07:49.829 Jerusalem where David had brought the ARC. Eventually that will all shift over to 85 00:07:49.870 --> 00:07:55.069 Jerusalem, but at this particular time the altar was in Gibbeon, and so 86 00:07:55.189 --> 00:08:01.180 that's where Solomon goes and he offers a thousand burnt offerings on it. Now. 87 00:08:01.259 --> 00:08:05.939 Second, chronicles doesn't highlight the failures of Solomon, as some of the 88 00:08:07.019 --> 00:08:13.649 other historical books do. We don't read about how Solomon failed to keep the 89 00:08:13.689 --> 00:08:18.490 high places, other centers of worship, from being set up because the Lord 90 00:08:18.529 --> 00:08:24.370 had only commanded worship in his particular and chosen place. But here we see 91 00:08:24.449 --> 00:08:30.279 Solomon doing what he should do, worshiping God where he had called worship, 92 00:08:30.920 --> 00:08:35.679 worshiping God in the way that he had called it. We also see that 93 00:08:35.759 --> 00:08:43.990 Solomon understands something about his task. Solomon is a King Who has vision, 94 00:08:43.190 --> 00:08:48.909 we might say, in leadership terms today. He knows what he is called 95 00:08:48.029 --> 00:08:52.789 to do. You hear it in his prayer, he says, for you 96 00:08:52.870 --> 00:08:56.700 have made me king over a people as numerous as the dust of the earth. 97 00:08:56.779 --> 00:09:01.220 He understands who he is and how he got that power. And then 98 00:09:01.299 --> 00:09:05.659 in his request in verse ten, we see what he asks for and why. 99 00:09:07.899 --> 00:09:11.490 He asks give me now wisdom and knowledge to go out and come in 100 00:09:11.610 --> 00:09:16.809 before this people, for who can govern this people of yours, which is 101 00:09:16.970 --> 00:09:22.570 so great? Solomon understands that he is to govern, he is to rule 102 00:09:22.690 --> 00:09:28.600 and he is to rule in wisdom and fair of fairness. He's to take 103 00:09:28.720 --> 00:09:33.879 God's law that has been given to his people and apply it in particular ways 104 00:09:33.360 --> 00:09:39.629 and all the complicated situations that come up in life. And he he knows 105 00:09:39.750 --> 00:09:43.789 that, he understands what he is supposed to do. He understands that people 106 00:09:43.789 --> 00:09:48.669 are depending on him and that the loving thing to do in service to them 107 00:09:48.870 --> 00:09:56.539 is to govern, and govern well. This might seem kind of obvious, 108 00:09:56.139 --> 00:10:01.340 isn't this, of course, what King is supposed to do? Perhaps you 109 00:10:01.539 --> 00:10:03.019 can feel the weight of it a little more if you compare it to what 110 00:10:03.259 --> 00:10:09.289 many kings have done. Instead, not every king recognizes that he is called 111 00:10:09.330 --> 00:10:15.929 to serve his people, to rule them and govern them and justice and fairness 112 00:10:16.529 --> 00:10:22.759 according to a moral lawn, and even under the authority of God. Now, 113 00:10:22.919 --> 00:10:24.879 many kings throughout history and even, as we'll see, some of Israels 114 00:10:24.919 --> 00:10:31.120 and kings, think that kingship is really all about them. They set up 115 00:10:31.159 --> 00:10:35.710 their kingdoms as if there are these kind of autonomous realms in which they rule 116 00:10:35.909 --> 00:10:39.509 and can do whatever they want. They don't seek obedience and service to God 117 00:10:39.750 --> 00:10:46.509 and service to his kingdom. They seek wealth, riches, honor, glory, 118 00:10:46.750 --> 00:10:50.299 Long Life and pretty much at whatever cost. It is not so with 119 00:10:50.419 --> 00:10:56.820 Solomon. Solomon, is his father before him, sees his rule as one 120 00:10:56.940 --> 00:11:01.860 that's conducted in service to God. God is the one who made him king. 121 00:11:03.620 --> 00:11:05.289 God is the one who made the people as numerous as they are. 122 00:11:07.090 --> 00:11:11.210 It is God who can give wisdom, and so it is to God that 123 00:11:11.409 --> 00:11:18.490 Solomon Goes. This is a good example to follow. Each of us in 124 00:11:18.600 --> 00:11:22.039 our lives are kind of like little kings. Now, you and I might 125 00:11:22.120 --> 00:11:28.360 be very, very little kings. Most of us don't have people under us 126 00:11:28.399 --> 00:11:31.919 as numerous as the dust of the sea, which we are called to govern 127 00:11:31.000 --> 00:11:35.309 and control, and most of us would praise God for that. That is 128 00:11:35.350 --> 00:11:41.470 a very hard task, but it's true that if we think about our lives, 129 00:11:41.509 --> 00:11:46.389 even those of you who are kind of young, you'll think that there 130 00:11:46.429 --> 00:11:50.299 are certain things that you are in charge of, responsibilities that you have, 131 00:11:52.100 --> 00:11:58.379 gifts that God has given you to use and to use in service to him. 132 00:11:58.820 --> 00:12:03.529 Each of us are citizens, after all, of the Kingdom of God, 133 00:12:03.850 --> 00:12:07.370 just as Solomon was a citizen of that kingdom, and each of us, 134 00:12:07.450 --> 00:12:11.529 in our own particular little realms, as small as they may be, 135 00:12:11.570 --> 00:12:16.399 are nevertheless ours. There are as to care for. The gifts that we 136 00:12:16.519 --> 00:12:20.000 have, big get been given are the gifts that we are called to be 137 00:12:20.159 --> 00:12:26.120 stewards of. So, whether you find that you are in charge of just 138 00:12:26.240 --> 00:12:31.389 a few chores at home and maybe a few animals, or maybe you run 139 00:12:31.590 --> 00:12:35.350 a big corporation and have many people under you, or maybe you're a political 140 00:12:35.429 --> 00:12:41.509 ruler, or all kinds of things, we are all called to consider these 141 00:12:41.710 --> 00:12:48.100 callings and to act in accordance with God's will. We have people who depend 142 00:12:48.259 --> 00:12:52.980 on us. We are called to serve God as he has given to us, 143 00:12:52.019 --> 00:12:56.299 and so Solomon is a very good example of how we are to act. 144 00:12:58.539 --> 00:13:03.889 Solomon was a man like we are. He understand he and he understood 145 00:13:03.929 --> 00:13:07.009 this and he acted well. You see this in his obedience and in the 146 00:13:07.090 --> 00:13:11.529 worship that he offers, and you see this in the des is are he 147 00:13:11.649 --> 00:13:16.840 has for future obedience in his prayer. Solomon obeys when he goes and he 148 00:13:16.960 --> 00:13:20.840 worships in the way that he does, but he understands that there are difficult 149 00:13:20.840 --> 00:13:31.909 tasks ahead of him, complicated situations which will require as king wisdom, and 150 00:13:31.070 --> 00:13:37.990 so that's what he prays for. In praying for these things, Solomon does 151 00:13:39.110 --> 00:13:46.179 something else that we should pay attention to. He recognized his limits. The 152 00:13:46.299 --> 00:13:48.899 proverb say it, and it's true, that the wiser always seem to be 153 00:13:50.019 --> 00:13:54.620 the ones who get wiser. You notice that in life that it's to the 154 00:13:54.730 --> 00:14:00.210 wise that wisdom is added, and you see that here in examp Solomon's example. 155 00:14:00.289 --> 00:14:03.769 Even as he's on his knees praying for wisdom, he seems to have 156 00:14:03.850 --> 00:14:09.480 enough wisdom to ask for that very thing right. He recognizes his limits, 157 00:14:11.159 --> 00:14:16.960 he recognizes his needs. It's the fool king who doesn't do this right. 158 00:14:16.759 --> 00:14:20.840 It's the foolish person who says I can do whatever I want, I have 159 00:14:20.960 --> 00:14:26.190 all resources at my command, I I do as I choose, I pick 160 00:14:26.350 --> 00:14:35.389 my own ways. Wisdom is the careful, skillful application of God's Law to 161 00:14:35.549 --> 00:14:39.899 our lives. It's navigating all of the challenges that we have in this world 162 00:14:41.019 --> 00:14:45.659 in a skin skillful way. But there's all kinds of things that get in 163 00:14:45.740 --> 00:14:48.899 the way. These are the things that Solomon recognized. They are the things 164 00:14:48.940 --> 00:14:52.129 that get in your way, the things that get in my way, things 165 00:14:52.250 --> 00:14:58.049 like sin, for example, our own sins, our own blindness. We 166 00:14:58.370 --> 00:15:03.210 go after a good thing, but then all of a sudden we find temptations 167 00:15:03.370 --> 00:15:07.679 in US desiring an evil thing and it keeps us from the thing, the 168 00:15:07.799 --> 00:15:13.320 good things that we want. Sin Gets in the way. Another thing that 169 00:15:13.360 --> 00:15:16.480 gets in the way of wisdom is ignorance, simply not knowing the right thing 170 00:15:16.600 --> 00:15:20.279 to do, not not doing the right thing because you don't know it. 171 00:15:22.149 --> 00:15:26.429 Maybe it's because of youthfulness, maybe it's because of not paying attention, but 172 00:15:26.549 --> 00:15:31.669 either way, ignorance is a problem. Solomon knows that. You remember what 173 00:15:31.750 --> 00:15:35.139 David said to the rulers and the leaders. He says he's young, is 174 00:15:35.179 --> 00:15:39.820 he's a he's a he's inexperienced. That's what David says about his son. 175 00:15:39.860 --> 00:15:45.259 And Solomon doesn't say Gee, Dad, what are you talking about? I 176 00:15:45.419 --> 00:15:50.450 know what I'm doing. No, he says, Lord, please give me 177 00:15:50.649 --> 00:15:56.169 wisdom and knowledge. He recognizes his ignorance. In addition to sin and ignorance, 178 00:15:56.210 --> 00:16:02.649 of course, lack of skill, ability practice. If Solomon is young 179 00:16:02.730 --> 00:16:07.360 and inexperience, he knows that wisdom takes time. Now, of course, 180 00:16:07.440 --> 00:16:11.399 God gives him this wisdom, and it seems like he gave a great deal 181 00:16:11.480 --> 00:16:15.200 of it all at once to Solomon. But, as we learn in the 182 00:16:15.320 --> 00:16:19.710 proverbs, wisdom is not something that's simply dumped on you and then you have 183 00:16:19.990 --> 00:16:26.110 it. It's something that's learned through practice and skill and seeking and paying attention 184 00:16:26.350 --> 00:16:33.779 and observing, and this Solomon did. As I said when I started here, 185 00:16:33.860 --> 00:16:37.860 the wise often seemed to be the ones who get wiser. It's a 186 00:16:37.980 --> 00:16:41.860 thing to pray for, it's a thing to seek after, and Solomn in 187 00:16:41.940 --> 00:16:47.019 seeking this, in this great example that we have before us, we should 188 00:16:47.019 --> 00:16:51.649 follow it. God's word calls us to it. It says to seek wisdom 189 00:16:51.690 --> 00:16:56.690 even more than we would seek gold or silver, more than wealth or honor. 190 00:16:56.169 --> 00:17:03.559 It is priceless, and Solomon understood that. He could have been presumptive 191 00:17:03.559 --> 00:17:07.920 upon God's promises. Well, God said he'd give me the kingdom. So 192 00:17:07.359 --> 00:17:11.880 there I have it. He could have been prideful and seeking to set his 193 00:17:11.920 --> 00:17:18.190 kingdom up outpart from God, but instead he humbled himself and went before God 194 00:17:18.470 --> 00:17:25.029 and sought wisdom and knowledge, not for himself, not so that he could 195 00:17:25.029 --> 00:17:27.910 have a fancy degree on his wall, as if that would mean anything to 196 00:17:29.029 --> 00:17:33.980 anyone. He sought it so that he could serve. He sought wisdom them 197 00:17:34.059 --> 00:17:38.420 so that he could love, so that he could take care of the people 198 00:17:38.539 --> 00:17:48.369 that God had given him. There's one more aspect of Solomon's wisdom in seeking 199 00:17:48.450 --> 00:17:53.410 wisdom that I want to point or your attention to. Solomon's Godliness in seeking 200 00:17:53.490 --> 00:18:02.079 wisdom wasn't merely recognizing his limits and seeking wisdom. It was also in seeking 201 00:18:02.119 --> 00:18:08.960 it from God in particular. Many people, perhaps even all people, have 202 00:18:10.319 --> 00:18:15.670 some sense of these obstacles I mentioned a moment ago. Have a sense of 203 00:18:15.710 --> 00:18:18.630 their sins, of their ignorance, of their lack of skill. Now may 204 00:18:18.710 --> 00:18:25.670 not always seem that the fool is often quite blinded to these things and parades 205 00:18:25.750 --> 00:18:32.420 himself forward as though nothing could possibly stop him. But I think even fools 206 00:18:32.500 --> 00:18:37.059 from time to time will meet up against these walls. The problem is they 207 00:18:37.099 --> 00:18:41.410 don't recognize them or admit them as such. But many people have a sense 208 00:18:41.529 --> 00:18:45.890 of these things, they have a sense of their sins, their ignorance, 209 00:18:45.009 --> 00:18:52.930 their lack of ability, but they seek them and all kinds of other places 210 00:18:53.170 --> 00:19:00.720 other than from God. Solomon didn't do this. He sensed his inabilities, 211 00:19:00.759 --> 00:19:04.519 he sensed his wisdoms and he his limits and he went to the one who 212 00:19:04.599 --> 00:19:11.029 could provide these things. Solomon didn't sit in his ignorance and say, well, 213 00:19:11.109 --> 00:19:14.789 I guess this is just the way it's going to be. Solomon didn't 214 00:19:14.789 --> 00:19:18.109 sit in his ignorance and in his youthfulness and his lack of skill and say, 215 00:19:18.190 --> 00:19:23.740 well, I guess I'll just try my best. No, he pursued 216 00:19:23.819 --> 00:19:30.420 it and he started by seeking it from God. Well, why God? 217 00:19:30.900 --> 00:19:34.099 Well, first of all, God said, ask what I shall give you. 218 00:19:34.299 --> 00:19:38.609 That's a pretty good start. God offered to him a gift, and 219 00:19:38.849 --> 00:19:45.130 Solomon said, I will ask this one. James Five, I hope you 220 00:19:45.250 --> 00:19:49.970 remember, says that if anyone seeks wisdom, let him ask God. In 221 00:19:51.130 --> 00:19:56.039 case you doubt that, and I think probably all of us have remember Solomon, 222 00:19:56.960 --> 00:20:00.640 it's kind of simple. He asked God for wisdom and God gave it 223 00:20:00.799 --> 00:20:06.519 to him. God gives him permission to ask, and he gives us permission 224 00:20:06.559 --> 00:20:11.069 to ask. On this issue in particular, he says in James, if 225 00:20:11.150 --> 00:20:17.950 any of you lacks wisdom, ask for it, seek God and he will 226 00:20:17.950 --> 00:20:25.220 grant these things. He seeks it from God because God offers it to him. 227 00:20:26.579 --> 00:20:30.779 He's also wise to seek it from God because, I hope you know, 228 00:20:30.900 --> 00:20:34.809 God is the source of all wisdom. Where else would you go? 229 00:20:37.210 --> 00:20:41.769 Sure, there are wise friends and good counsel, you can read books and 230 00:20:41.849 --> 00:20:45.529 learn all kinds of things, but ultimately, where does all that come from? 231 00:20:47.529 --> 00:20:52.160 Where is the source of all knowledge and all wisdom? It's God. 232 00:20:52.279 --> 00:20:56.119 If you want to understand how you're the plumbing in your house works well, 233 00:20:56.279 --> 00:21:02.160 probably good idea to talk to a plumber who maybe even the one who designed 234 00:21:02.200 --> 00:21:04.829 the system. If you want to understand the world and how it works, 235 00:21:04.869 --> 00:21:10.029 if you want to understand the Kingdom of God and how it functions. Do 236 00:21:10.069 --> 00:21:14.069 you think it be a good idea to go to God, the one who 237 00:21:14.069 --> 00:21:17.589 made it, the one who rules over at, the one who knows all 238 00:21:17.710 --> 00:21:22.380 things in it? God is wise himself. He is the source of all 239 00:21:22.500 --> 00:21:27.220 wisdom. He's also the end of all wisdom. If wisdom is the application 240 00:21:27.380 --> 00:21:36.450 of law towards love and goodness, towards holiness and all good things, what 241 00:21:36.569 --> 00:21:41.730 are we describing when we say things like that? We're describing God, in 242 00:21:41.930 --> 00:21:48.519 His Holiness and his wisdom and his goodness. Our final goal, the end 243 00:21:48.599 --> 00:21:55.200 of wisdom, is to be close to God, and so it makes sense 244 00:21:55.240 --> 00:22:02.750 that in seeking wisdom, Solomon saw God. So, as I say, 245 00:22:02.829 --> 00:22:07.230 we can learn a great deal from all of this. A little foolish man 246 00:22:07.549 --> 00:22:11.829 seeks his own will, seeks his own wisdom, but a wise man sees 247 00:22:11.910 --> 00:22:18.339 what he does in service to God and he pursues that wisdom and that service. 248 00:22:18.500 --> 00:22:25.059 By pursuing the all wise God. He seeks God's blessing and all that 249 00:22:25.180 --> 00:22:30.809 he does, instead of setting up his own little fiefdom, he serves in 250 00:22:30.049 --> 00:22:36.930 God's instead of trying to be an autonomous ruler separate from all creatures and all 251 00:22:37.089 --> 00:22:42.170 and and God himself. He sees himself as a servant, and we should 252 00:22:42.170 --> 00:22:48.519 do that and whatever area of responsibility and authority we have been given, whatever 253 00:22:48.720 --> 00:22:55.960 calling God has placed on your life, seek God. He's the one who's 254 00:22:56.039 --> 00:22:59.269 called you to it, he's the one who's granted you these gifts. He 255 00:22:59.950 --> 00:23:03.549 is the one who is all wise and knows all things, and he is 256 00:23:03.670 --> 00:23:11.109 the one who invites you explicitly to ask for wisdom, not just so that 257 00:23:11.269 --> 00:23:17.579 you can do a better job, but so that you can serve him and 258 00:23:17.660 --> 00:23:25.619 draw closer to him in that service. To truly do that, however, 259 00:23:26.170 --> 00:23:33.170 we cannot merely look to Solomon, but we have to look to Solomon's God. 260 00:23:33.569 --> 00:23:37.890 It's not enough to simply go to examples, human examples, and say 261 00:23:37.930 --> 00:23:41.759 well, here is a good example of wisdom, and try to follow that 262 00:23:41.799 --> 00:23:45.880 as best we can. Now we have to go to the Lord himself, 263 00:23:47.039 --> 00:23:52.440 and even Jesus. To put it another way, it's not Solomon's wisdom we're 264 00:23:52.519 --> 00:23:57.430 seeking, but it's the wisdom of Solomon's God. That also means that, 265 00:23:57.589 --> 00:24:02.789 in true humility, we don't just ask, but we ask in faith that 266 00:24:02.910 --> 00:24:07.910 he will grant these things we can do that because we are his children, 267 00:24:07.710 --> 00:24:11.900 we are his chosen servants, we are the ones whom God has called us 268 00:24:11.980 --> 00:24:18.900 to these things. Once we were enemies of God, once we were rebellious 269 00:24:18.980 --> 00:24:22.259 people, setting up our own kingdoms in our own particular ways, doing as 270 00:24:22.420 --> 00:24:27.890 we saw fit, but not any more. As those who have died in 271 00:24:29.009 --> 00:24:34.210 Jesus Christ, having this these particular sins of pride and presumption, crucified on 272 00:24:34.289 --> 00:24:40.440 the Cross and having been risen with him, we now belong to God, 273 00:24:40.720 --> 00:24:45.279 not as enemy kings trying to rule over him, but we belong to him 274 00:24:45.279 --> 00:24:52.559 as servants, as people that are in his kingdom seeking after his things. 275 00:24:53.349 --> 00:24:57.990 And so when we go to God and we seek for wisdom, we come 276 00:24:59.190 --> 00:25:03.109 in faith that he has granted these things to us. We don't have to 277 00:25:03.430 --> 00:25:07.900 demand them from God, we don't have to shake it out of him, 278 00:25:07.140 --> 00:25:11.099 we don't have to manipulate him. HMM, maybe if I ask for wisdom, 279 00:25:11.140 --> 00:25:17.980 I can get wealth too. Right. We simply go to him and 280 00:25:18.259 --> 00:25:22.650 ask for what we need. If you need wealth, ask him for that 281 00:25:22.849 --> 00:25:26.289 too. If you need long life and honor, ask him for that too. 282 00:25:26.650 --> 00:25:29.730 He's a good God. If that's what you really need. He'll give 283 00:25:29.769 --> 00:25:36.000 it to you. But in this life, more than all these other things 284 00:25:36.039 --> 00:25:40.160 which will be granted to us and be land our wildest dreams, in the 285 00:25:40.279 --> 00:25:45.400 glories and the kingdom to come. Right now, what we need is wisdom 286 00:25:45.680 --> 00:25:51.750 for moving forward through this life and service to our king who has died for 287 00:25:51.789 --> 00:25:56.789 us, who has forgiven us, who has called us into his servants. 288 00:25:56.869 --> 00:26:02.349 And as we ask that, we know that God will be faithful. He 289 00:26:02.670 --> 00:26:07.059 was faithful to Solomon and his promises to David. How much more faithful, 290 00:26:07.660 --> 00:26:14.380 to speak in that way, will he be to Christ? How much more 291 00:26:14.460 --> 00:26:17.700 faithful will the bother be to his son? As if he could be more 292 00:26:17.940 --> 00:26:22.690 faithful? He's infinitely so. But when g Jesus comes into the world to 293 00:26:22.809 --> 00:26:29.730 rule and reign as our king, there's not a single moment where wisdom is 294 00:26:29.970 --> 00:26:36.359 lost or not exercised. There's not a single aspect of God's kingdom which lacks 295 00:26:36.559 --> 00:26:41.839 wealth in some way. All that we see in God's blessing on Solomon is 296 00:26:41.880 --> 00:26:48.630 a small thing in comparison to the father's blessing on his son, our king, 297 00:26:48.069 --> 00:26:55.509 our ruler, Tick Solomon. He gave great wealth, a thousand four 298 00:26:55.509 --> 00:27:00.980 hundred chariots, twelve thousand horsemen. We have archeological evidence of some of these 299 00:27:02.059 --> 00:27:08.660 things. I read about a stable that was excavated at negudo housed about four 300 00:27:08.740 --> 00:27:15.140 hundred horses. That is a big stable. I think the biggest one I've 301 00:27:15.140 --> 00:27:19.289 ever seen is maybe eight horses, four hundred. The thing was made out 302 00:27:19.329 --> 00:27:23.450 of stone. SOLOMN has these cities set up. They're called, what does 303 00:27:23.490 --> 00:27:30.319 he call them? City chariot cities, these particular places that are devoted to 304 00:27:30.519 --> 00:27:36.079 housing his wealth and power. You remember what he says there, that the 305 00:27:36.240 --> 00:27:45.109 gold and silver were so common they're like stones. That's amazing. Do you 306 00:27:45.150 --> 00:27:48.710 think the son of God, our Savior, has anything less than that? 307 00:27:48.630 --> 00:27:52.549 Of course us not, because all the wealth in the world, and not 308 00:27:52.750 --> 00:27:57.660 just precious stones but even your souls, this is part of his wealth, 309 00:27:59.140 --> 00:28:03.339 it's part of his glory, part of his honor. These are the things 310 00:28:03.460 --> 00:28:07.980 that the sun has, and so when we go to the sun, when 311 00:28:08.019 --> 00:28:11.259 we go to him, we don't just go to a human king and say, 312 00:28:11.299 --> 00:28:17.170 Jesus, I'd like you to help me resolve this case. We go 313 00:28:17.369 --> 00:28:22.809 to our king and our God, who is the all wise God and who 314 00:28:22.890 --> 00:28:27.680 promises to give us wisdom for this life that we might live it in service 315 00:28:29.480 --> 00:28:34.319 to him. And you know, when we don't, he's also faithful to 316 00:28:34.359 --> 00:28:41.589 forgive us. He not only provides us the wisdom we lack, but he 317 00:28:41.789 --> 00:28:47.150 forgives us for when we lack it. In all this, we find that 318 00:28:47.230 --> 00:28:52.630 we have a great God and a great king in Jesus, and so let 319 00:28:52.630 --> 00:28:57.980 us serve him as such. Let us go into our world and whatever positions 320 00:28:59.099 --> 00:29:03.140 that we have been given and do as Solomon did, to go to God 321 00:29:03.220 --> 00:29:06.900 in faith, to seek the things that he has and the things that he 322 00:29:07.380 --> 00:29:11.529 desires to give us, so that he might be pleased and others might be 323 00:29:11.690 --> 00:29:15.410 served in love. Let us pray