All of us have at one time or another received something from a dear friend or family member that to us was the most precious thing they could ever have done. We all say that it is the thought behind the gift that counts even more so than the gift itself but we all see the gift as indicative of the person’s feelings toward us and appreciation for what we mean to them. Sometimes also we can determine what gift we get from someone else.
In our text for today, the young King Solomon had the opportunity to choose something special that God would bestow to him and what a gift it was indeed.
It has been said many times over that Solomon was indeed the wisest man that ever-lived although not all of his decisions reflected this.
I believe that the conversation preceding the gift itself is more consequential than the actual gift because it set the course for the type of King that Solomon would become.
In the text we read that Solomon had a dream and in the dream God came to him and said, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.” What would you say to someone who comes to you with that invitation, especially someone who you know has considerable resources? Have you ever wondered if God was testing Solomon? In response, Solomon recalls how God had been kind to his father David even to the point of blessing him with a son to sit on his throne. Solomon then goes on to tell God that he cannot rule his people, the people that God has placed him over, he needs a discerning heart in order to do so. This is probably the greatest irony of the entire story because in the request that he made Solomon showed greater wisdom than he even thought he had.
If you ever wonder what sort of person I should be in life that will be truly pleasing to God, this account tells us what really is pleasing to God. Let us look more deeply into what Solomon’s response was and why God was so pleased with him. There are lessons for us all here.
Gratitude is the essence of our relationship with God.
In verse six (6) while recounting the goodness of God to his father, Solomon was in essence expressing his gratitude to God. Solomon was convinced that his very presence on the throne having succeeded his father was the result of God’s kindness and favor and he was grateful. If we really want God to bless us we must always have a grateful heart. It is easy for us to find something to complain about and miss the blessings that are all around us. If you think that life has been filled with tough times and rough experiences, look again. You have been blessed. God has been good to you more than you can think or count. As the song says, “Count your blessings, name them one by one. And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.” We cannot truly acknowledge God to be real to us without being grateful to him and living out this gratitude in our whole lives.
Humility is always pleasing to God.
Solomon is the king of what at that time was a prosperous and impressively large kingdom. Yet he saw himself as only a little child. This was not mere weakness as some of us today would think. It was the best example of humility, the kind of humility that touches the heart of God. In his own right, Solomon was no fool. He had learnt a lot undoubtedly from his father and he was ready and prepared to rule in the way his father did. In seeking God, Solomon already showed that he knew what was the most important aspect of his father’s long reign and what would be important to his reign as well, which is a close relationship with God. Solomon was not prepared to boast about what he had inherited or be obsessed about the power he already had. He simply wanted to do what was right in God’s sight because he was ruling over God’s people as he himself observed when he said, “For who is able to govern this great people of yours?” (1Kings 3:9 NIV) In this way Solomon demonstrated true humility. Humility is what makes us aware that we are nothing and can do nothing that God does not endorse or allow. Humility makes us understand that it is never about what we want or like but what pleases God first.
Selfless commitment to God opens the door to God’s generous heart.
If there was one word that could be used to describe the request made by Solomon to God, I would say it is selflessness. I actually prefer the phrase ‘selfless commitment’ as a more complete expression of what his request to God showed us about his heart. This is the capacity to think about others or what you can do for others before your own needs and desires. What you desire in life is what you can use to benefit other people, not primarily yourself and those close to you. What runs through all that Solomon has said is the fact that he diminishes himself and his own personal desires in order that what is truly important to God can be foremost in his heart and mind. Solomon in making this request demonstrated what it is to be selfless and committed to God and in so doing won God’s favor. In turn, God’s generosity is poured out on the king who begins his reign with an astounding decision between two prostitutes which you can read about later in the chapter.
The message from the text seems pretty clear.
When one submits oneself completely to the will of God then you will be blessed.
These blessings can be in the form of tangible things but more importantly it will be seen in God’s favor in your life. I must emphasise here that being blessed by God does not necessarily mean that you will have everything you want, because those blessings come with the understanding that God already knows what is best for you and gives what is in His will for your life to have whether that is in the form of tangible or intangible things.
So then, as we go through our daily routine, we must ask ourselves, what is the greatest or the best gift we can ever receive? Is it something tangible or something intangible? Is it something from your best friend or partner and if so what might that gift be? More importantly, we should ask ourselves whether the best gift we can ever have is that which God alone can give to us.
The best gift we can ever receive can only come from God and that is the gift of God’s favor and endorsement. Do you recall what the angel Gabriel said to Mary when she was told that she would be the mother of the Christ child? Gabriel greeted her by saying, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” (St. Luke 1:28 NIV) Many centuries before, when her ancestor and Solomon’s father David was chosen over Saul to be king, the prophet Samuel had said to Saul that his successor would be “a man after God’s own heart. (1Samuel 13:14 NIV) All of this points to one key thing which the Lord saw in Solomon as well. The greatest gift we can ever receive is God’s favor which comes from a desire to submit oneself to God’s will and to live a life of humility and obedience to God’s way. In the end it is our decision to accept the Lord Jesus and live faithful lives. That is the best gift we can ever have because that gift is a sincere and faithful relationship with God. Then the blessings from God will be so obvious that as the writer of Proverbs puts it, “When the Lord takes pleasure in anyone’s way, he causes their enemies to make peace with them.” (Proverbs 16:17 NIV) Note that it doesn’t say you won’t have enemies but it says that even those who don’t mean you any good will not seek to be in conflict with you.
Solomon’s blessing and gift from God was wisdom and a whole lot more. What is the gift that you seek from God or what is the gift that you cherish the most in your life right now? I trust that it is your relationship with God and consequently, the blessings that come from this relationship. If not seek him now while he may be found as the prophet Isaiah says. Allow yourself to receive the most important and greatest of gifts from God which is abundant life, while you are still able to do so, so that you can live a life that the world can see that you are blessed and highly favored by God and your life will be a light to others who will see in you what the Christlike life really looks like.
May God bless you and keep you and shine his glorious light through you as you accept His gift of life eternal in Him. Amen.