How old was Solomon when he became king?
He was somewhere in his late teens ... a very young man to be king over so many thousands of God’s people. His father, King David, chose Solomon to be the next king, and the young man must have felt his need of wisdom and understanding.
What would you do? Go to a university and study royalty and the laws of the country? A leadership program might help, but Solomon felt his need was deeper than that. In fact, he may not have slept very well when he found himself in such a high position as king. That was the night when God appeared to him in a dream and asked him one big question: Solomon, what shall I give you?
Suppose God asked you that question on one of your sleepless nights, and you knew He had the power to give what you asked for. What would you say? Think about it for a minute.
Solomon answered, I am only a little child, and I am leader of Your chosen people who are more than can be counted. Give me an understanding heart. This was a wonderful beginning, both for him and for you. Wisdom and understanding are God’s good gift and may be found every day in reading the Word of God — the Bible.
God was pleased with King Solomon’s answer. He didn’t ask for a long life or riches or victory over Israel’s enemies. No, he asked for wisdom, and God gave him a wise and understanding heart, as well as all the extras too.
I wonder if you have ever asked God for wisdom. Of course, it would be senseless to ask for wisdom and then start looking for it in foolish places and wasting your time. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Proverbs 9:10), and you will find it in the Book God has written — the Bible. If you look for God’s wisdom, you will also find joy and wonderful riches that will last much longer than gold.
King Solomon was given so much wisdom that he could design and build amazing buildings and design beautiful gardens without hiring special people. He knew all about trees and plants, philosophy and music, all without a university education. People came from other countries to hear his wisdom and learn from him. He didn’t need an education degree — God gave him wisdom, and he just used it.
Is wisdom enough? If you know what is right, will you be sure to do it? King Solomon knew what was right, but, little by little, he let go of it. God had said, “If thou wilt walk in My ways” (1 Kings 3:14). Did you notice that little word “if”? King Solomon’s royal line depended upon walking in God’s ways.
Here’s something for you to think about. If getting to heaven depended on you, even just a little bit, you would never get there. You can be sure that Jesus Himself will take you to His Father’s house, because Jesus did ALL the work on Calvary’s cross. You cannot add anything to the finished work of Christ.
King Solomon’s visitors probably went home thinking that he was a very intelligent man, and he certainly was. But he did not know how to say “No” to himself. God had told him not to have lots of horses and lots of wives. But he brought lots of horses from Egypt, and he had seven hundred wives from countries that had many gods and didn’t believe in the only true God. Here’s the sad part: His wives turned his heart away from the only true God — the God who had given him wisdom and understanding.
Is there something that is turning your heart away from God? King Solomon never thought anything would turn his heart away from Him, but that’s just what happened. He built places of worship for the wicked gods of his wives, and they sacrificed and burned incense there, and King Solomon worshipped their gods too. This didn’t happen all at once. It came about step by step, until he was worse than the people of those countries—because he knew better!
Maybe your friends think of you as a Bible person, but is Jesus your very own Saviour? If you are a true believer, you have the Holy Spirit living in you, and He will give you the power to say “No” to the little steps into sin before they grow into big ones. If you want God’s wisdom today, look for it in the right place! It is our Lord Jesus Christ who is our wisdom and righteousness and Redeemer.
Think About God’s Word!
1. What did Solomon ask God to give him?
2. Why is it important to say “No” to ourselves? Which part of the fruit of the Spirit listed in Galatians 5:22-23 is related to saying “No” to ourselves?
Project: Daniel was marvelously helped in not giving in to what most of us would give in to easily. How many situations can you find where he showed self-control?