Great Prayers of the Old Testament
Part 9: Great Prayer Lessons from King Solomon
1 Kings 3:1-13
Sermon by Rick Crandall
(Prepared November 30, 2024)
BACKGROUND:
*Last time in 1 Kings 3, we started studying one of the most important prayers we can ever pray. Shortly after he became king, King David's son, Solomon, prayed to the LORD for wisdom, and he teaches us to pray for wisdom. But before we studied Solomon's prayer, we needed to learn more about his life. And one of the most important things we learned about Solomon was that He loved the LORD God.
*Verse 3 tells us that "Solomon loved the LORD." But 2 Samuel 12:24 shows us that the LORD loved Solomon first. This has always been the case. As John 3:16 says, "God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." The Lord always takes the first step in our everlasting love relationship with Him. That's why 1 John 4:19 tells Christians, "We love Him because He first loved us." By His grace, God reached out to reveal Himself to Solomon. And the same is true for us. You see, Christianity is never about us earning God's love. It's about us responding to the love God already has for us! It's about us responding to the love God had for us before the beginning of time!
*And why does the LORD love us? Simply because "God is love". The Bible declares this truth in 1 John 4:8. And 1 John 4:16 tells Christians that "we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him."
*The writer of Psalm 116:1-2 said, "I love the LORD, because He has heard My voice and my supplications. Because He has inclined His ear to me, Therefore I will call upon Him as long as I live." And Zephaniah 3:17 says, "The LORD your God in your midst, the Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you in His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.''
*Christians: How could we not love the Lord God who loved us first? And when it comes to our prayer life, we should certainly express our love for the Lord. We also should put a priority on worship. Solomon is a good Old Testament example for us in vs. 2-4. There God's Word says:
2. . . The people sacrificed at the high places, because there was no house built for the name of the LORD until those days.
3. And Solomon loved the LORD, walking in the statutes of his father David, except that he sacrificed and burned incense at the high places.
4. Now the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the great high place: Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar.
*Remember that this was early in Solomon's reign, before he began to worship idols. 2 Chronicles 1:3 tells us that "Solomon, and all the congregation with him, went to the high place that was at Gibeon; for the tabernacle of meeting with God was there, which Moses the servant of the LORD had made in the wilderness." Also, the Temple had not yet been built in Jerusalem, so the high place at Gibeon was a proper place to worship the LORD. (1)
*But notice Solomon's devotion to worship the LORD. The new king offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar! Then about ten years later, in 1 Kings 8:63, the ark containing the Ten Commandments was brought into the new Temple. And at that dedication, Solomon offered a sacrifice to the LORD of 120,000 sheep! King Solomon was passionate about worshiping the LORD. (2)
*Untold millions of lambs were sacrificed in Old Testament times. Over and over, countless times, God was reminding His people that the wages of sin is death. And every one of those lambs was pointing to Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, the only lamb who could ever take away the sins of the world. Jesus had to take the punishment for our sins by dying on the cross for us. So, when Jesus began His ministry, John 1: 29 tells us that "The next day John (the Baptist) saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, 'Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!'" That is the only way we could receive the mercy of God.
MESSAGE:
*Christians: We are so blessed to live on the resurrection side of the cross! Now we can worship God anywhere any time day or night. And it is always a good thing for us to worship the Lord! Worship puts our focus on God. Worship also elevates our thinking, and in worship we draw closer to God. That is crucial, because James 4:8 tells us that when we draw near to God, He draws near to us. And it's all because of the cross of our risen Savior Jesus Christ.
*But notice what happened in vs. 5 after Solomon worshiped: "The LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, 'Ask! What shall I give you?''' How would you answer that question right now? Young King Solomon shows us some of the best ways we should pray.
1. CHRISTIANS: THE LORD WANTS US TO PRAY THANKFULLY.
*That's how Solomon prayed in vs. 5-6 when the LORD appeared to the young king in a dream by night. Church: We may not be able to physically see the Lord right now, but we know that His Holy Spirit is here with us and in us. We also know that we can hear God speak to us any time we open His Word. And in Jeremiah 33:3, we can even hear God say, "Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know."
*Here in vs. 5 God said, "Ask! What shall I give you?'' And Solomon began his prayer in a most thankful way. In vs. 6 Solomon said, "You have shown great mercy to your servant David my father, because he walked before You in truth, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with You; You have continued this great kindness for him, and You have given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day."
*Solomon began his prayer by expressing great gratitude to God. The young king was grateful for God's mercy to his father David, grateful for being blessed with a good earthly father, grateful for God's continued kindness, and grateful that God gave David a son to be the new king.
*Between 1994 and 2005, the Lord let me go on five mission trips to Ukraine. One of my favorite memories was on the deck of a river boat we took to the cites along the Dnieper River. Everywhere we stopped, we would witness, worship, and pass out Bibles and tracts. That day, we were in the Black Sea port city of Sevestopal. We had invited a group of young Ukrainian Christians to worship with us on the ship. The leaders of that group were three former drug dealers who had been wonderfully saved by Jesus. Then they were called by God to start churches in that city, and God was using all three.
*But those people were so poor compared to us. The average income back then was $50 a month when you got paid, and lots of months they didn't. One of our interpreters on that trip was a teacher. She continued teaching that year, even though she had not gotten paid for the last 6 months. The school system had run out of money.
*Though highly educated, most of the Ukrainians were very poor. But those young Christians stood on the back of that ship, singing with all their hearts:
"Give thanks with a grateful heart.
Give thanks to the Holy One.
Give thanks because He's given Jesus Christ, His Son.
And now let the weak say, 'I am strong.'
Let the poor say, 'I am rich,
Because of what the Lord has done for us.' -- Give thanks." (3)
*Those young Ukrainian Christians were very poor from the world's point of view, but the Holy Spirit of God filled their hearts with godly gratitude. And even on our worst days, we still have great reasons to give thanks to our Lord! So pray thankfully for the countless blessings God has poured into your life.
2. THE LORD WANTS US TO PRAY THANKFULLY. HE ALSO WANTS US TO PRAY HUMBLY.
*We see Solomon's humility in vs. 7 where he said, "Now, O LORD my God, You have made Your servant king instead of my father David, but I am a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in." Solomon humbled himself before the LORD, and that is exactly how God wants us to pray. As James 4:10 says, "Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up."
*The best example of godly humility is the Lord Jesus Himself. The eternal Son of God humbled Himself to become a mortal man. That's why Colossians 2:9 says, "in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily."
*Think of the Lord's humility when Jesus was born in a stable for animals. One of my favorite Christmas stories helps us understand. It happened up in Arkansas, on a day when Pastor Jon Allen visited one of his church members. The man's name was George Pressman, and he was one of the finest Christians Bro. Jon had ever met. At age 72, George still lived in the farmhouse where he had been born. Pastor Jon actually drove by George's house every day on the way to the church. But one winter morning Jon drove by just as George came out and headed to the barn.
*Jon decided to turn in, and he followed George into the barn. As George began to feed the calves, chickens, and turkeys, Jon began to have second thoughts about visiting his friend in the barn. It was cold, and it smelled so bad than Pastor Jon almost lost his breakfast. Just when that thought crossed his mind, Jon stepped right in the middle of a fresh cow patty, and it oozed up on his newly shined dress shoes. George chuckled and said, "Come on out on the grass Pastor, and we'll clean you up."
*They headed toward the barn door. But after a couple of steps, George stopped in his tracks, and turned to Pastor Jon. Then George said something the pastor never forgot: "Preacher, -- Jesus was born in a place like this."
*Pastor Jon looked around in stunned silence. A few feet away, the calves were licking up the last of their grain, and they were eating out of a manger. (4)
*The Lord Jesus Christ humbled Himself to go all the way from the throne room of Heaven to a manger on the dirt floor of a stable in Bethlehem. Then Jesus humbled Himself to die the cross for our sins. Now Philippians 2:5-8 urges us to:
5. Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus,
6. who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God,
7. but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men.
8. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.
*Thank God that three days later, Jesus rose again, forever in victory over death! That's why in Philippians 2:9-11, Paul went on to say:
9. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name,
10. that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth,
11. and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
3. THE LORD WANTS US TO PRAY HUMBLY. HE ALSO WANTS US TO PRAY UNSELFISHLY.
*We see this truth in vs. 8-9 where Solomon prayed:
8. And Your servant is in the midst of Your people whom You have chosen, a great people, too numerous to be numbered or counted.
9. 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?''
*Solomon could have asked for any selfish thing, but he chose to ask for an understanding heart to judge God's people with the ability to judge between good and evil. Solomon prayed unselfishly, and that's the way God wants us to pray today.
4. ALSO NOTICE HOW THE LORD WILL ANSWER OUR GODLY PRAYERS, AND FIRST, HE WILL ANSWER HAPPILY.
*1 Kings 3:10 tells us that Solomon's "speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing." Solomon's could have asked for selfish things, but instead he prayed for godly wisdom and the ability to make righteous decisions in cases brought before the king. Solomon's godly request pleased the Lord. And Church: The Lord is always pleased with our godly prayers!
*What could be more important than pleasing the Lord in our lives and in our prayers? -- Nothing! And Jesus Christ is the best example of anyone fully pleasing our heavenly Father. As Jesus said in John 8:26-29,
26. "I have many things to say and to judge concerning you, but He who sent Me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I heard from Him.''
27. They did not understand that He spoke to them of the Father.
28. Then Jesus said to them, "When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things.
29. And He who sent Me is with Me. The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him.''
*Church: This is our greatest goal! To pray and live in a way that always pleases God. This is why in Psalm 17:15, King David told the LORD, "As for me, I will see Your face in righteousness; I shall be satisfied when I awake in Your likeness." Praise the Lord! And strive for prayers that please God.
5. THE LORD WILL ANSWER OUR GODLY PRAYERS HAPPILY AND HE WILL ANSWER THEM GENEROUSLY.
*We see this truth in vs. 11-13 where:
11. . . 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,
12. 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.
13. 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."
*In Matthew 12:42, Jesus was speaking to some hardhearted, unbelieving scribes and Pharisees. And the Lord said, "The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here." Based on these verses, we can say that King Solomon was the wisest man who ever lived, -- except for one, and that is our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!
*Then back to Solomon's dream in 1 Kings 3:13-14, the LORD told Solomon:
13. . . "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.
14. 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.''
*The Lord blessed Solomon in an incredibly generous way. 2 Chronicles 9:13-14 in the Good News Translation says, "Every year King Solomon received over 25 tons of gold (That is about 2 billion, 128 million dollars each year) in addition to the taxes paid by the traders and merchants. The kings of Arabia and the governors of the Israelite districts also brought him silver and gold."
*I also saw estimates that King Solomon was worth over 2 trillion dollars, and that he was the richest man who ever lived. Solomon was a very rich man, and his financial riches came as part of the answer to his prayer in this Scripture. (5)
*But all of Solomon's money was the lagniappe answer to his prayer. The money was icing on the cake, because Solomon's true wealth was the wisdom that God gave to the king. God gave Solomon a great answer to his prayer. God gave Solomon an "over and above" answer to his prayer. God gave the new king an Ephesians 3:20-21 answer to his prayer. That's where Paul gave this great praise to God: "Now unto Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen."
*God gave Solomon a great answer to his prayer. And God always answers the godly prayers of His people. He always gives the right answers at the right time! And Christians: We may not be able to physically see the Lord right now, but we know that His Holy Spirit is here. And we can hear God speak to us any time we open His Word. In Jeremiah 33:3, we can even hear God say, "Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know."
CONCLUSION:
*Solomon was the richest man who ever lived. But remember what Jesus said in Matthew 16:26. There Jesus was speaking to His disciples, and the Lord asked, "What is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?"
*Your life, your soul is worth more than all the riches of the world. Your soul is worth more than every diamond and every drop of oil in the world. Your soul is priceless. There is nothing worth more.
*Please think of the incredible value that God has put on your life. Nobody in their right mind would trade a finger for a thousand dollars. Would you trade your arm for 100,000 dollars? Would you trade your tongue for a million? Of course not. But the real you who lives inside your body is worth infinitely more. Jesus tells us that we are priceless. And we are priceless, because we are God's creation.
*Zig Ziglar put it in perspective when he asked us to think about the priceless masterpieces painted by DaVinci or Michelangelo. And Zig said, "I am roughly familiar with the price of the canvass and the paints. In and of themselves, they are not worth much at all. No -- The value of the painting comes from the touch of the Master's Hand." (6)
*And you are priceless, because you were created by the greatest Master of all. On top of that, you are priceless because of the highest price Jesus paid on the cross for our souls. That's why 1 Peter 1:18-19 tells believers, "You were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot."
*If you have never received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, please call on the Lord to save you today. This is the most important thing we can ever do in life. Jesus knows everything about us, both the good and the bad. But Jesus still loves us anyway! He is the only way to God's forgiveness and eternal life in Heaven, so please put your trust in our crucified and risen Savior. You can do that right now as we go back to God in prayer. Then be like Solomon and pray for more wisdom. Our kind and gracious God will surely give you all the wisdom you need.
(1) GotQuestions.org - "Why did Solomon worship at a high place" - https://www.gotquestions.org/Solomon-high-place.html
(2) THE OPEN BIBLE - "The Old Time Gospel Hour Edition" - Copyright 1975 by Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville TN
(3) "Give Thanks" by Henry Smith - copyrighted in 1978 by Integrity's Hosanna! Music - recorded by Don Moen - released in 1986 by Integrity, Hosanna! Music and Sparrow
(4) Illustration Digest – Number 4 1995
(5) Sources:
-"How RICH was King Solomon" - http://www.biblestudy.org/basicart/how-rich-was-solomon.html
-Solomon's wealth in today's money - Quora - https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-estimate-of-king-solomons-wealth-in-todays-economy-and-is-he-the-likely-richest
(6) Original source for Zig Ziglar quote unknown
