“A person is not necessarily smart just because he says things that are smart.” There are some individuals that believe they know everything no matter what the topic may be. Actually, there are some who before you can finish asking the question they already have an answer. These people often based their decisions on the worldly knowledge of information. Too often many confuse information and knowledge as possessing wisdom. That is further from the truth. There are two types of wisdom: earthly (natural) wisdom and then godly wisdom. "Earthly wisdom is doing what comes naturally," while "Godly wisdom is doing what the Holy Spirit compels us to do." In fact Godly wisdom can appear downright foolish by earthly standards. 1 Corinthians 3:19 puts it this way, “God considers the wisdom of this world to be foolish.” Worldly wisdom tells us to “look out for number 1” or “make as much money as possible”, etc. "Godly wisdom is the capacity to seek things from God's perspective and to respond to them according to scriptural principles."
There are times in our lives that we need assistance in making sound decisions. We turn to our loved ones: spouse, friend, mentor, and even our pastors only to find out that the help we need they cannot supply. Often we rely on our own values to make decisions. And that is not always a bad thing nor is it always a good thing to do. Many decisions made are good but are they godly? True wisdom starts with a heart full of faith, not a head full of facts. So today I come here to say, if you are like so many others that need an answer to a pressing situation in prayer, “Ask God for Whatever You Want.” That’s our topic for today, “Ask God for Whatever You Want.” He will hear your prayer and in His timing, He will answer your request.
This brings me to our text, look at verse 5: “The Lord appeared to Solomon during the night in a dream, and God said, ‘Ask for whatever you want me to give you.” But before we go any further allow me a few moments to set the picture. Solomon was appointed the 3rd King over Israel by his father David. King David was a man after God’s own heart. He chose to honor God in his life and to always seek His counsel and follow His leading. Even though he made some mistakes, David was a prosperous and blessed man because he gave God place in his life. David and his wife, Bathsheba gave godly instruction and wise direction to their son, Solomon, and encouraged him to seek godly wisdom and counsel, so that he could also make wise choices for his life. We find the godly writings of Solomon recorded in the book of Proverbs. At the tender age of 19, Solomon had a big responsibility placed in his hands. Solomon’s responsibility wasn’t just the government of the nation but more so people’s lives were placed in his hands as it is with a pastor.
Church, Solomon had things on his mind. The same thing is happening today. Many nights I go to bed with Transformation on my mind inquiring of the Lord what is it that He desires from me regarding the upkeep of His people. Many nights and days, I meditate on the continuous survival of Transformation. So, while Solomon slept, he had a dream where God told him to “Ask for Whatever You Want” which Solomon did. Look at verse 9, “So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong.” Solomon didn’t ask anybody; rather in prayer, Solomon went to the wisest one that He knew. He went to the maker of the heavens and the earth. He went directly to the ‘One’ who could give him sound advice, sound counsel. Solomon sought godly wisdom.
Church, God will often speak to us in our dreams (but that’s another topic). What we are to remember is that we must pursue God to discern our dreams. So here’s the question, How may we attain Godly wisdom and seek the counsel of God? We find the answer to this request in our text for today. Church it wasn’t until Solomon sought the counsel of God that a transformation came forth. God took the finiteness (limitedness) of man to pursue the infiniteness (unlimitedness) of God’s kingdom. We see this in Solomon’s prayer. Church, Solomon’s prayer for wisdom is a good model to follow. Let’s look at this model.
1. Give God praise. Solomon thanked God for His faithfulness to his father David and himself (1 Kings 3:6 – READ). Solomon reflected on God promise made to his father, David in 2 Samuel 7:8-16. The promise was that God would “provide a place for His people, the Israelites and plant them so that they can have a home of their own and no longer be disturbed. The Lord Himself would establish a house for David and David’s offspring.”
Before Solomon asked God for anything, He gave God thanks for what God had already done. Too often, we don’t reflect on our current blessings. Quickly we go to God without giving thanks for what He has already done. This type of behavior is out of God’s will and will often stop our blessings. Turn with me to Philippians 4:4-6:
“Rejoice in the Lord always, I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God”. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 instructs us, “to give thanks in all circumstances.”
It is insulting to God when we don’t thank Him for what He has already done. If you can’t think of anything, let me tell you.
• Did he wake you up this morning, then thank Him.
• Did He provide shelter for you, then thank Him.
• Did He give you food to eat, then thank Him.
• Did He awake you with a sound mind, then thank Him.
• Did He give you activity of your limbs, then thank Him.
• Did He give you eyes to see, mouth to speak, ears to hear, hands to touch, and a nose to smell, then thank Him.
We have so much to thank God for. Stop looking at what we don’t have, and thank Him for what we do have.
The latter portion of verse 6 reads: “And have given him a son to sit on his throne this very day.” Now, Solomon was speaking of himself. But Church we are still living in “this very day” where the son of God continues to sit on the throne. So we are to look at our current blessing and Give God praise for our Counselor, Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
2. Admit our inabilities. Solomon acknowledged his own weakness (1 Kings 3:7 - READ). Solomon was a child who lack experience but that didn’t stop God from calling Solomon into leadership. Because Solomon was limited in his abilities and inexperienced, he wasn’t able to see the whole picture of what God had in store for him as King. He could only see what was before him at that time. He lacked spiritual eyesight and spiritual wisdom. The same thing happens with some of us. We, too, often are unable to see the entire picture…to see the purpose which God has predestined and preordained for each of us. Yet, we’re to trust God just as Solomon did. God knows what He’s doing, we may not but He does. There were other inexperienced biblical leaders that God chose. The prophet Jeremiah cried out this same thing (Jer. 1:6). What about Queen Esther who stopped the murder of her people, the Jews, God’s chosen people. See, our chronological age has no bearing when God makes a request on us. However, even at a tender age, we must not be proud, puffed up. Solomon was king of Israel and Esther was queen of Persia. Both could have allowed their position and prestige to control them but they didn’t. See,
• The choices we make, determine the road we take.
• We make our choices - then our choices make us. In other words,
J. I. Packer, author of ‘Knowing God’ stated that “We acquire divine wisdom when we become humble and teachable, standing in awe of God's holiness and sovereignty, acknowledging our own littleness, distrusting our own thoughts, and willing to have our minds turned upside down.”
We can seek Godly wisdom by studying God's Word diligently as Joshua was exhorted (Joshua 1:7-8). We should seek the Holy Spirit since wisdom is given through the Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:8) and being filled with the Spirit stands along side of wisdom as in the case in Acts 6:3.
In order to seek Godly wisdom and counsel from God, we must ask Him in prayer; it’s not optional. The Bible says, “If my people who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and will heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14).
1 Thessalonians 5:17 instructs us to “pray without ceasing.” That is we are to constantly have God in the forefront of our minds and seek His wisdom, His counsel pertaining to every area of our lives.
Thirdly, if we want to attain Godly wisdom and see the counsel of God, we must:
3. Acknowledge God’s supremacy. Solomon acknowledged God's wisdom (1 Kings 3:8-9 READ). I like the way that the Contemporary English Version records these verses:
“And now, I must rule your chosen people, even though there are too many to count. Please make me wise and teach me the difference between right and wrong. Then I will know how to rule your people. If you don’t, there is no way I could rule this great nation of yours.”
Solomon was wise naturally and politically (2:9; 3:1). But here, he was asking God for something more. He did not want his decisions to be merely the result of his natural wisdom. He wanted to have spiritual wisdom. Our translation says ‘wisdom’ in verse 9. In the original language, the words are ‘a heart that hears’. Solomon wanted to hear from God. Then, like David his father, Solomon would do what God wanted him to do.
How many of us want to hear from God so that we too will know right from wrong and make wise godly decisions? Well, we can do exactly that. We only need to “Ask God for Whatever You Want.” For, the Bible teaches that:
• God is all-wise: “With Him are wisdom and might; To Him belong counsel and understanding” (Job 12:13).
• God’s wisdom is vastly superior to human wisdom: “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,” declares the LORD. 9 “For [as] the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:8-9)
• God alone is wise: “Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery which has been kept secret for long ages past, but now is manifested, and by the Scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the eternal God, has been made known to all the nations, [leading] to obedience of faith; to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, be the glory forever. Amen!” (Romans 16:25-27).
• God is the source of wisdom: “For the LORD gives wisdom; From His mouth [come] knowledge and understanding” (Proverbs 2:6). “But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all men generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him” (James 1:5).
If we want to attain Godly wisdom and see the counsel of God, we must:
4. Have pure motives. His motive was also right in that he asked for wisdom not for his own benefits but to govern God's people (1 Kings 3:9).
Solomon asked for wisdom for God's purpose and glory, not for his own purposes and glory. God was pleased at Solomon’s request because Solomon’s primary concern was the interests of God’s people. Too often, promoted individuals will forget that it was God who allowed the promotion. We forget that God is holding us accountable to how we behave, respond, and react as a result of the promotion, elevation, increase. Rather, some take advantage of their positions and the people that God has placed under them. Many individuals will do things just to obtain recognition from others and never give God credit for enabling them to succeed in the task.
We are to be careful not to attempt to confiscate God’s glory. Solomon was not this type of individual. He recognized that God was the one who promoted him. He recognized that only God would be the one who could equip him to perform the task. Solomon didn’t use his authority for personal advancement; Solomon’s concern was pleasing God and taking proper care of God’s people. He realized that the people did not belong to Him but rather that he was a steward who God assigned the care of His people to. God will hold us accountable. We may be able to fool some people some of the time but we can never fool God. If we want to obtain wisdom and seek the counsel of God, we must have pure motives. James 4:3 states, “When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives.” But if we have clean hands and a pure heart, God promises in 1 John 3:22, “we will receive from Him anything we ask, because we obey His commands and do what pleases Him.” So God granted Solomon’s request to obtain wisdom and godly counsel. But God was so pleased with Solomon that God granted Solomon what He did not ask for (both riches and honor, and long life, verses 13-14). The Bible also says, God granted Solomon more wisdom than anyone else in the world (Read 1 Kings 4:29-30).
Finally, if we want to attain Godly wisdom and see the counsel of God, we must:
5. Apply God’s counsel. Furthermore, as taught in James 1:5-8, he believed in God and did not doubt. Soon after Solomon is granted wisdom, he displays his ability to judge wisely by settling a difficult dispute (verse 16-28).
• The problem (3:16-22): Two prostitutes gave birth to sons, but one of the babies died. One mother claims that the other mother switched babies and gave her the dead child.
• The proposal (3:23-25): Solomon proposes to cut the baby in two, giving half to each mother!
• The protest (3:26): One mother agrees, but the other cries out in protest and is willing to give up the infant that he might live.
• The pronouncement (3:27-28): Solomon awards the baby to the woman who protested, concluding that she is the real mother. News of Solomon's wisdom spreads throughout Israel.
Solomon’s wisdom was also well-known in many nations that many came to listen to him (1 Kings 4:34) including the queen of Sheba (1 Kings 10:1-13).
Conclusion: Church, I have a biblical forecast to give you. A storm is coming and all who haven’t made the right request and sought the counsel of God will be left behind. The forecast is Jesus is coming. The forecast is sometimes the Lord gives us bits of Godly Wisdom that we can share with each other. Maybe we have gone through some hard problems and trials that forced us to learn tough Godly lessons of life. God wants us to learn by our mistakes and misadventures so that we don't repeat the same thing twice...and sometimes we have to go through things again because we didn't learn it the first time. But if we go to God and:
• Give God praise
• Admit our inabilities
• Acknowledge God’s supremacy,
• Have pure motives, and
• Apply God’s counsel
God will, I said God will give us what we ask for and He will impart His wisdom so that we will properly handle the blessing. We will not have to keep taking the same test over and over again. Jesus took the test of suffering while here on earth. He:
• Was plagued by physical misfortunes.
• Loss of a father figure, poverty and physical abuse. He bear the emotional misfortune of rejection.
• Experience rejection from family, friends, followers as well as foes.
• Endured spiritual suffering (beaten, mistreated, flogged, crucified).
• Drank of and emptied the ugly cup of human sinfulness when He became sin.
• Suffered great spiritual misfortune so He could fill that empty cup with every spiritual blessing.
Yet, at every crossing of the test, He endured hardship. Wisdom will not eliminate hardships but godly wisdom will empower us to first, seek God’s counsel and then enable us to walk through the situation, no matter what it may be, if we will only “Ask for What We Want.”
