Read: 1
Kings 3
Now that Solomon has firmly established his reign
over Israel, we can observe how he conducts himself as king. First, he chooses
Pharaoh’s daughter to be his wife. It is likely that, by outward affirmation if
not inward belief, she converted from the Egyptian faith to Judaism prior to
marriage. If this were not the case, Solomon would be breaking the Law by
marrying her (Deut. 7:2-4). At the time, Solomon was abiding by the Law as fully
as possible (v 3). Further, Egyptian gods are noticeably absent from the list
of foreign gods Solomon eventually worshipped (1 Kings 11:5-6). However, this
marriage was a case of following the letter of the law rather than the spirit
of the law. By accepting a foreign wife, Solomon began to blur the lines of
morality – both for himself and the subjects who followed him. The human heart
is wicked and deceitful. Our broken nature will default to going as close to
the line as possible without crossing over. Brothers and sisters, this is not
true obedience. A truly obedient heart eagerly seeks to fulfill God’s commands
out of love for Him, not simply to meet a minimum behavioural threshold.
Despite this indicator of a straying heart, the
Scriptures tell us that Solomon “loved the Lord.” He sacrifices one thousand
burnt offerings – a truly extravagant display of love! When we lavish our love
upon God, He loves to respond to us! In this case, God appears to Solomon in a
dream. God tells Solomon, “Ask what you wish me to give you” (v 5). Solomon
displays humility in his response. He admits that he is ill-equipped to lead a
nation and asks God for an understanding heart to judge and the ability to
discern between good and evil (v 9). This humble prayer pleases God greatly. He
chooses not only to grant Solomon wisdom as requested, but also riches and
honour. Matthew 7:11 reflects this sentiment: “If you, then, though you are
evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your
Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!”
Chapter 3 closes with a display of Solomon’s wise
judgement. God’s gift is clearly at work here! In this familiar story, two
women of harlotry bring a child before Solomon, each claiming she is the
mother. Solomon wisely appeals to a property law (Ex 21:35). While it was not
his intention to literally cut the child in half, Solomon uses this ruling as a
test to reveal the real mother. The result of the case is far-reaching. “When
all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had handed down, they feared
the king; for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him to administer justice”
(v 28).
Prayer and
Journaling
1. What is the heart behind your obedience? Are
there any areas where you are outwardly obeying God, but inwardly toeing the
line? Is the position of your heart one that joyfully obeys or one that desires
to go as far as possible without being caught? Confess as necessary. Ask God to
grow your desire to follow Him (Philippians 2:13).
2. Solomon offered an extravagant sacrifice (v 4)
out of his love for Yahweh. He recognized that whatever we have is merely on
loan from our Creator. Solomon gave his possessions back to God, because he
knew God is worthy of everything we have and everything we are. While most
people do not have the resources available to kings, we are all required to
give whatever we have wholeheartedly to Jesus. What would living a life of
extravagant, loving sacrifice look like for you? Ask God to show you how you
can present yourself completely as a love offering to Him.
3. True obedience comes from knowing God
intimately, walking with Him closely and loving Him deeply. Ask God to speak to
you about who He is today. Journal what He reveals to you. Does this affect how
you feel about obedience?
