Far too often we forget that one of
the promises from God that we are to embrace is a negative one! We romanticize
the love of God so much that we tend to forget that following Jesus is not a
primrose path; it is going to cost us something, perhaps making uncomfortable demands
of us; read: Mt 16:24; Jn 15:19, 20; 16:33. Paul tells Timothy to expect the
same thing (2 Tim 3:12)! Our forgetfulness and surprise of this promise is
revealed in our anger toward God and wrongfully accusing Him of being unfair or
unjust (definitively an unwise move) about a certain situation we didn’t like.
We were caught unprepared, and now we
are ready to vent on the One who volunteered to have God’s wrath vented upon Himself
on our behalf (Rom 5:8; 2 Cor 5:21)! Remember God’s sovereignty (Rom 8:28)?
Because we fail to see the good, is God unjust? So, let me ask you; “What
promise has Jesus ever failed to deliver?” Jesus makes good on all of the OT
and NT promises (2 Cor 1:20; cf. Lk 24:44).
Name one thing that you can say you
own that does not belong to God? The Master can do as He pleases for He is God
Almighty whether we agree or disagree with the affairs of our life. In the past
God has never given any reason why we should not fully trust and obey Him; it
will be no different in the present and the future. God is immutable (Mal 3:6;
Heb 13:8) and absolutely trustworthy (Prov 30:5; Isa 26:4; Jer 17:7, 8; Nah 1:7).
Oh, can you not sense the importance
of holiness to God, fellowshipping with Him, worshiping, praising, praying, reading, studying,
meditating, memorizing, and applying God’s Word consistently and yes, even aggressively?
The wisdom is in the rubber hitting the road, not remaining in our heads! It
only comes from a pure heart with its sleeves rolled up! Hear and heed, attending
church and listening is not enough to
sustain us through life’s storms! Let me give you another perspective of
wisdom.
There is this one petition in the Lord’s
Prayer that goes something like this, “Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Mt 6:10b, “it is” is supplied by the translators).
Frankly, it gives me all kinds of fits (which shows you how wise I am!). How is
the will of God performed in heaven? The answer is always immediately and completely! It is a standard operating
procedure (SOP). So, one of the petitions of our prayer to God is that His will
be done always immediately and completely on earth. Can this happen with sin
and the devil and his demons running all over this place? No, not exactly, but
this is what we are to pray for the coming of His kingdom so that this can be a
reality on earth as in heaven.
Now for that perspective on wisdom, I
told you about. Always doing the will of God in our lives immediately and
completely is a beautiful picture of heavenly wisdom! Forget about being
imperfect and a sinner and focus on that objective if you want to be wise. Get
a vision of that and seek to make that more of a reality in your life through
knowledge of His Word and submission to that authority in the power of the Holy
Spirit. In my humble opinion that is wisdom. Will we ever arrive at this spiritual
level on this side of eternity? Of course not but that is understood. Wisdom is
in obedience to the Word; it is a lifetime pursuit of holiness to God in
becoming more and more like Him with each passing second, minute, hour, day, and
year. That’s not fanatical; it’s logical.
Stop and contemplate that truth;
don’t gloss over it with a cursory read. Imagine always doing the will of God
immediately and completely in the here and now for it’s certainly going to
happen one day when we are with Him in glory. We should practice up, eh? It’s
deep, very deep. It is time for a Selah moment. Do you want a wake-up call on where
you are at in your pursuit of Christlikeness? Boy, this is it! Jesus
proclaimed, “A greater than Solomon is here” (Lk 11:31). Being Christlike is being
greater than Solomon! I say, “Queen of Sheba, you ain’t seen nothing yet! Wait
until you experience the wisdom of Jesus and see His glorious kingdom!” Solomon was just an appetizer, a foreshadowing of things to come!
Do you need a spiritual calibration, a
litmus test, or a measuring stick on how wise you are? Brothers and sisters, here
it is; are you always performing God’s will immediately and completely? Forget
the excuses and work on the execution even though it is a lifetime endeavor! We
can’t save ourselves; we can’t keep ourselves saved; we can’t stay in
fellowship on our own, and we can’t perform God’s will in the flesh! Raise the
white flag in surrender for without Jesus we can’t realize any of that if we intend
to successfully fight the good fight of faith (Zech 4:6).
Why are we not asking for wisdom in
this inescapable spiritual conflict? The Lord knows we desperately have need of
it! James said we should ask, right, if you lack wisdom, and we are all lackers in various degrees?
Living for God is rough and will get rougher (2 Tim 3:13), and we need all the
wisdom we can get to abide in the will of God for our lives! But unlike Solomon, we do not find ourselves inheriting a kingdom to run. As I suggested in part 1,
Solomon did not have access to all of God’s revelations that we do from Genesis
to Malachi, from Matthew to Revelation!
Everything we need for godliness and
wisdom is found in Scripture (2 Tim 3:16-17). We need to absorb Bible knowledge
like a thirsty sponge, not just for the sake of knowledge, but so we can ask the Holy
Spirit for assistance in applying that knowledge in the daily routines of life
to be like Christ in all kinds of weather; now that is wisdom, particularly in
the storms of life. It has been said by a believer, we are either entering a storm,
in the midst of the storm or leaving a storm. Yeah, we need wisdom at all
times in order to glorify Him.
The real reason we lack wisdom is that
we want spirituality without effort [lazy and undisciplined] which is why so
many are ignorant and unwise in the ways of the LORD. They hate reading and
studying so they are content with what they hear from a podium or pulpit. However,
many will flout their worldly success, as if their ability in the ways of the
world is some kind of badge of honor. Often they look down their noses at the less
privileged brethren as losers and failures in life.
Where is their boast in God instead of
things (Jer 9:23)? How can a wise man glory in front of the only all-wise God
(Psa 147:5; Rom 11:33)? How can the mighty man glory in front of the only
all-powerful God (Gn 1:1; Job 42:1-2)? How can the rich man glory in front of
the God who owns heaven and earth (Deut 10:14; Psa 24:1)? How many do you know
who desire fellowshipping around the Word rather than listening to three of the
fastest growing things in the world: making money, sharing a joke, or spreading
gossip? Hear what Yahweh says about this,
“But let him who
glories glory in this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the
LORD, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For
in these I delight," says the LORD” (Jer 9:24).
When was the last
time you heard someone glory in understanding and knowing Yahweh or talking
about what God delights in doing? The people I want to really hang around and
be with are those that understand and know the LORD (cf. Prov 13:20), not those who value worldly things over the things of God (cf. 1 Jn 2:17)!
When it comes to
being wise, let’s face it; the Bible doesn’t give specific answers to handle every
problem that comes our way, but it does provide us with general principles to
guide us through this world of pervasive sin and darkness. So it is imperative
we are aggressive in obtaining as much biblical knowledge in our heart tank as
possible and having the wisdom in applying that knowledge to life’s countless
problems.
Now, wouldn’t it be great if all we
had to do is ask, and like Solomon, we are out of the gate pushing forward
through the realm of overwhelming (1 Kgs 3:7-8; 2 Chron 1:10) or we gain it through
some kind of spiritual osmosis! I have lost count of how many times I have
fallen asleep with the Bible lying on my chest and no transference of knowledge
happened. When I woke up I had to pick up where I left off at stupid when the
lights when out!
We gain biblical knowledge on God’s
terms through the elbow grease of separating from sin, praying, reading,
studying, meditating, and applying it all where the rubber hits the road! The
Holy Spirit of God illumines us to the truth but putting it into action also
requires being controlled by the Holy Spirit of God (Eph 5:18) so that we are
walking in the Spirit (Gal 5:16), unleashing the power of the Holy Spirit in our
lives in gaining wisdom in how to take the general principles we have gleamed
and stored in our heart to make practical application to the endless situations
of in-the-world-but-not-of-the-world living. Here is the caveat; we must (1) ask
(cf. Jas 1:5), (2) in faith (Jas 1:6), and (3) without doubting (failing to trust
when trials come, Jas 1:6).
Solomon in his early years was a very talented,
knowledgeable, and wise man, assuming the throne of his father King David around
the age of twenty. Though he was groomed for the role, he realized something
early on in his reign as king over a great nation according to the will of God
(1 Kgs 3:6); he realized he wasn’t equipped to do this alone; He needed God’s
help. Oh, if we would grasp and go with that spiritual truth in doing God’s
will for our lives (cf. Jn 15:5)!
So Solomon did a very smart thing; he asked
God for “wisdom and knowledge” (2 Chron 1:10, NLT) or “an understanding heart”
(1 Kgs 3:9, NLT). For what purpose did Solomon ask this of God?
He wanted more than anything to lead
his people properly (2 Chron 1:10, NLT) or that he may govern God’s people with
justice (2 Chron 1:10, NLT). Well, you know the story; God gave Him what he
asked for and didn’t ask for (2 Chron 1:11-12)! Notice how that request is
worded in the book of 1 Kings,
“Therefore give to
Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people, that I may discern
between good and evil. For who is able to judge this great people of Yours”
(3:9)?
Let’s read of God’s
response to this request from young Solomon (1 Kgs 3:10-14),
v10 The speech pleased the LORD, that Solomon had
asked this thing.
v11 Then God said to him: "Because you have
asked this thing, and have not asked long life for yourself, nor have asked riches for yourself, nor have asked the
life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern
justice,
v12 behold, I have done
according to your words; see, I have given you a wise and understanding heart,
so that there has not been anyone like you before you, nor shall any like you
arise after you.
v13 And I have also given you what you have not
asked: both riches and honor, so that there shall not be anyone like you among
the kings all your days.
v14 So if you walk in My ways, to keep My
statutes and My commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen
your days."
Who would be so
crazy as to turn down the offer of honor and riches from God? I believe if God
offered Solomon a choice between honor and riches or wisdom that day, I truly believe
at that stage in his life he would have chosen wisdom. Which would you choose
today? Oh, I get it; you are not running a nation and would choose honor and
riches; I’m with you!
Take time out and read
these verses on what Solomon, who had it all, said about wisdom by hovering the
cursor over the references. If there is no popup window, move the cursor away
from the reference and left click and hover over it again; you may have to repeat
the process (Prov 3:13-16; 8:10-11, 18-19; Eccl 7:12). Oh, that we would love
God’s commands above the purest of gold (Psa 119:127).
Acknowledging our limitations before
God opens the door to further wisdom; Solomon overcame his fear as a result and
became a just and righteous king ruling for forty years (1 Kgs 11:42). This is how the queen of Sheba saw him, a just king, who was wise in her
own right but nothing compared to Solomon (cf.1 Kgs 3:12; 2 Chron 1:12).
Sadly, when Solomon was older he
failed to follow the LORD wholeheartedly; Solomon’s “heart was not loyal to the
LORD his God…and did not fully follow the LORD, as did his father David…and did not keep what the LORD commanded” (1
Kgs 11:4, 6, 10). There were negative consequences, of course (1 Kgs 11:11-13);
there always is when we decide to go half-hearted and sin against the Lord (Gal
6:7).
Should we desire to be wise, we have
to go to the Source, “a greater than Solomon is here” (cf. Mt 12:42)! He lives
within you if you are born from above! We got the Source of wisdom within us;
we got the Scriptures containing the words of wisdom from above; we got the
Spirit to help us apply God’s Word to life’s situations! You can’t get any
wiser than that – being like Christ who always did the will of God immediately and
completely! The fall of Solomon reveals that it is worth it to walk in the
wisdom of the Lord than in the wisdom of man under the sun (Eccl 12:13, 14).
Man will disappoint us, but the God-Man never ever will!
It is good that we should hunger and
thirst after righteousness for this is the road to happiness (Psa 1:1) and how
we obtain wisdom. And as we grow older, we should be hungrier to be like Him. Being older
in the Lord doesn’t necessarily equate to being wise in the ways of the Lord.
Ironically, spiritual growth is like
gaining momentum while going uphill! Whoever heard of such a thing? Ask those
who are running the upward race of faith. They all agree with Paul (Php 3:12,
13, 14) in the “forgetting” (we cannot go back), in the “reaching” (we cannot
stand still), and in the “pressing” (we cannot stop) for the goal of
Christlikeness in the here and now (Php 3:12) and the prize of ultimately being
like Christ in glory (Php3:20-21; 1 Jn 3:2). What a picture of wisdom in
action!
Spiritual maturity is the growth process
of closing the gap in this matter of always doing the will of God willingly, immediately, and completely. Wisdom is about growing younger in the Lord (growing
toward childlike faith) and getting hungrier (for
righteousness). <><
%20MG%20t-bkgrd%2060x44%20png.png){kind=small}
 |
| End of Series |
