Chapter 82

A STUDY ABOUT WISDOM

Matthew 20:20-28

In keeping with our custom, we begin this study with prayer.

Dear Heavenly Father, Almighty God,

We come before You in the name of Your only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. Father God, as we go through this study please open our spiritual ears, eyes and heart. Please Father, cause us to truly hear, see and understand that the ways and methods of Your Kingdom are vastly different from the ways and methods of this world. As we see and understand this, please move upon us to live our lives in obedience to Your will and desire.

Amen

INTRODUCTION

To see the difference between the ways of the world and the ways of God’s Kingdom we go to the time when the mother of James and John asked Jesus, that when hers sons were in His Kingdom, He would allow each one to sit at His side. To read this conversation, we go to,

Matthew 20:20-23

[20] Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to Him with her sons, kneeling down and asking something from Him. [21] And He said to her, “What do you wish?” She said to Him, “Grant that these two sons of mine may sit, one on Your right hand and the other on the left, in Your kingdom.” [22] But Jesus answered and said “You do not know what you ask. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?” They said to Him, “We are able.” [23] So He said to them, “You will indeed drink My cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with; but to sit on My right hand and on My left is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it is prepared by My Father.”

After hearing their request, the remaining ten apostles were upset and displeased with James and John. To see this, let us read from,

Matthew 20: 24

[24] And when the ten heard it, they were greatly displeased with the two brothers.

Let us now read Jesus’ response to His disciples. To do this we go to,

Matthew 20:25-28

[25] But Jesus called them to Himself and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them. [26] Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. [27] And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave—[28] just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”

To help us understand the significance of Jesus’ response we will,

1. Review the example of King Solomon.

2. Review the example of King Rehoboam.

3. Explore the difference between the two types of wisdom.

4. Briefly review the example of Jesus Christ.

5. Review the application for us, the born-again Christian.

We begin with,

THE EXAMPLE OF KING SOLOMON

To do this we begin by reading Solomon’s prayer from,

2 Chronicles 1:6-12

[6] And Solomon went up there to the bronze altar before the Lord, which was at the tabernacle of meeting, and offered a thousand burnt offerings on it. [7] On that night God appeared to Solomon, and said to him, “Ask! What shall I give you?”[8] And Solomon said to God: “You have shown great mercy to David my father, and have made me king in his place. [9] Now, O Lord God, let Your promise to David my father be established, for You have made me king over a people like the dust of the earth in multitude. [10] Now give me wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people; for who can judge this great people of Yours?” [11] Then God said to Solomon: “Because this was in your heart, and you have not asked riches or wealth or honor or the life of your enemies, nor have you asked long life—but have asked wisdom and knowledge for yourself, that you may judge My people over whom I have made you king—[12] wisdom and knowledge are granted to you; and I will give you riches and wealth and honor, such as none of the kings have had who were before you, nor shall any after you have the like.”

An overview of the wisdom God gave King Solomon is recorded in,

1Kings 4:29-34

[29] And God gave Solomon wisdom and exceedingly great understanding, and largeness of heart like the sand on the seashore. [30] Thus Solomon’s wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the men of the East and all the wisdom of Egypt. [31] For he was wiser than all men—than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, Chalcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol; and his fame was in all the surrounding nations. [32] He spoke three thousand proverbs, and his songs were one thousand and five. [33] Also he spoke of trees, from the cedar tree of Lebanon even to the hyssop that springs out of the wall; he spoke also of animals, of birds, of creeping things, and of fish. [34] And men of all nations, from all the kings of the earth who had heard of his wisdom, came to hear the wisdom of Solomon.

A sample of Solomon’s wealth is given in,

1 Kings 10:23-25

[23] So King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom. [24] Now all the earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. [25] Each man brought his present: articles of silver and gold, garments, armor, spices, horses, and mules, at a set rate year by year.

Unfortunately, Solomon loved many foreign (non-Jewish) women. It was this desire that was Solomon’s downfall. To read about it, we go to,

1 Kings 11:1-10

[1] But King Solomon loved many foreign women, as well as the daughter of Pharaoh: women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites— [2] from the nations of whom the Lord had said to the children of Israel, “You shall not intermarry with them, nor they with you. Surely they will turn away your hearts after their gods.” Solomon clung to these in love. [3] And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart. [4] For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the Lord his God, as was the heart of his father David. [5] For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. [6] Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and did not fully follow the Lord, as did his father David. [7] Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, on the hill that is east of Jerusalem, and for Molech the abomination of the people of Ammon. [8] And he did likewise for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods. [9] So the Lord became angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned from the Lord God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice, [10] and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods; but he did not keep what the Lord had commanded.

The Lord’s response to Solomon’s behavior is given in,

1 Kings 11:11-13

[11] Therefore the Lord said to Solomon, “Because you have done this, and have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant. [12] Nevertheless I will not do it in your days, for the sake of your father David; I will tear it out of the hand of your son. [13] However I will not tear away the whole kingdom; I will give one tribe to your son for the sake of My servant David, and for the sake of Jerusalem which I have chosen.”

We now go to,

THE EXAMPLE OF KING REHOBOAM

To read what occurred when Solomon’s son, Rehoboam, ascended to his father’s throne over the nation of Israel. We begin with,

2 Chronicles 10:1-5

[1] And Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had gone to Shechem to make him king. [2] So it happened, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat heard it (he was in Egypt, where he had fled from the presence of King Solomon), that Jeroboam returned from Egypt. [3] Then they sent for him and called him. And Jeroboam and all Israel came and spoke to Rehoboam, saying, [4] “Your father made our yoke heavy; now therefore, lighten the burdensome service of your father and his heavy yoke which he put on us, and we will serve you.” [5] So he said to them, “Come back to me after three days.” And the people departed.

The advice Rehoboam received from elders is in,

2 Chronicles 10:6-7

[6] Then King Rehoboam consulted the elders who stood before his father Solomon while he still lived, saying, “How do you advise me to answer these people?” [7] And they spoke to him, saying, “If you are kind to these people, and please them, and speak good words to them, they will be your servants forever.

The advice King Rehoboam received from his friends is found in,

2 Chronicles 10:8-11

”[8] But he rejected the advice which the elders had given him, and consulted the young men who had grown up with him, who stood before him. [9] And he said to them, “What advice do you give? How should we answer this people who have spoken to me, saying, ‘Lighten the yoke which your father put on us’?” [10] Then the young men who had grown up with him spoke to him, saying, “Thus you should speak to the people who have spoken to you, saying, ‘Your father made our yoke heavy, but you make it lighter on us’—thus you shall say to them: ‘My little finger shall be thicker than my father’s waist! [11] And now, whereas my father put a heavy yoke on you, I will add to your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scourges!’”

Rehoboam’s decision is recorded in,

2 Chronicles 10:12-15

[12] So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam on the third day, as the king had directed, saying, “Come back to me the third day.” [13] Then the king answered them roughly. King Rehoboam rejected the advice of the elders, [14] and he spoke to them according to the advice of the young men, saying, “My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to it; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scourges!” [15] So the king did not listen to the people; for the turn of events was from God, that the Lord might fulfill His word, which He had spoken by the hand of Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat.

Let us notice the following verse,

15 … This took place to fulfill God’s prophecy to divide Israel into two separate kingdoms; one was identified as Judah and the second was named Israel. To see this let us read Israel’s response,

2 Chronicles 10:16

[16] Now when all Israel saw that the king did not listen to them, the people answered the king, saying: “What share have we in David? We have no inheritance in the son of Jesse. Every man to your tents, O Israel! Now see to your own house, O David!” So all Israel departed to their tents.

Let us now explore,

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE WISDOMS

To explore upon this difference, let us first review,

THE WISDOM DISPLAYED BY REHOBOAM AND HIS COMPANIONS

We begin by rereading from,

2 Chronicles 10:8-11

[8] But he rejected the advice which the elders had given him, and consulted the young men who had grown up with him, who stood before him.[9] And he said to them, “What advice do you give? How should we answer this people who have spoken to me, saying, ‘Lighten the yoke which your father put on us’?” [10] Then the young men who had grown up with him spoke to him, saying, “Thus you should speak to the people who have spoken to you, saying, ‘Your father made our yoke heavy, but you make it lighter on us’—thus you shall say to them: ‘My little finger shall be thicker than my father’s waist! [11] And now, whereas my father put a heavy yoke on you, I will add to your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scourges!’”

This type of advice or wisdom to receive or hold on to self seeking power and/or authority over others is earthly, sensual and demonic. To see we go to,

James 3:12-16

[12] … if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. [15] This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. [16] For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there.

As a side note, even today, we see this earthly wisdom operating throughout our everyday life experiences. For example, within the various levels of government, sports, entertainment, the work place, and unfortunately within Christianity, we find people and organizations, to achieve and maintain what they believe to be greatness, will lord it over others.

Let us now explore,

THE WISDOM DISPLAYED BY KING SOLOMON AND THE ELDERS

We begin by reviewing King Solomon’s request as recorded in,

1 Kings 3:5-9

[5] At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, “Ask! What shall I give you?” [6] And 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. [7] 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. [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?”

Let us now read God’s response to Solomon’s request in,

1 Kings 3:10-12

[10] The speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing. [11] Then 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.

For completeness, let us review,

THE WISDOM DISPLAYED BY THE ELDERS

To do this let us reread,

2 Chronicles 10:6-7

[3] Then King Rehoboam consulted the elders who stood before his father Solomon while he still lived, saying, “How do you advise me to answer these people?”[7] And they spoke to him, saying, “If you are kind to these people, and please them, and speak good words to them, they will be your servants forever.”

This type of wisdom given to King Solomon and spoken by the elders was the one from Heaven. To see this let us read from,

James 3:17

[17] … the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.

This is the type of wisdom that true born-again believers in Jesus Christ are to be filled with.

To see some of the fruits or activities this wisdom will produce from within the born-again Christian, we will look to,

THE EXAMPLE OF JESUS CHRIST

Before we begin, let us recall Jesus’ response to the request made by the mother of James and John. To refresh our memory let us reread

Matthew 20:25-28

Let us notice the following verses,

26 … To become great in God’s Kingdom we are to be a servant.

28 … Jesus said He came to earth for two reasons: (1) to serve the people and (2) to physically give up His earthly life as a ransom for many.

We now begin by looking into what Jesus did to fulfill His statement that,

HE CAME TO SERVE

To see how Jesus fulfilled this objective we will briefly review three examples of what Jesus did to serve the people He encountered.

First of all we find that

He healed their sicknesses and infirmities

A good summary of this is recorded in,

Matthew 4:23-25

[23] And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people. 24Then His fame went throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all sick people who were afflicted with various diseases and torments, and those who were demon-possessed, epileptics, and paralytics; and He healed them. [25] Great multitudes followed Him—from Galilee, and from Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan.

Secondly, as we read the New Testament we discover that,

Jesus constantly taught the people

The question may arise as to; “Why did Jesus constantly teach the people?” Surely, there were many accomplished teachers and scribes who studied and taught the people about God and the things of God’s Kingdom. The answer to this question is that many of these teachers were corrupting the Scriptures and leading the people astray. Specifically, instead of teaching the pure Word of God they were teaching the people their own manmade traditions. To see this let us read a short excerpt from the time when the scribes and Pharisees were chastising Jesus’ disciples for eating with unwashed hands. To do this we go to,

Mark 7:5-9

[5] Then the Pharisees and scribes asked Him, “Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands?” [6] He answered and said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written:

‘This people honors Me with their lips, But their heart is far from Me. [7] And in vain they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.

[8] For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men-the washing of pitchers and cups, and many other such things you do.” [9] He said to them, “All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition.

The consequence of this type of teaching is provided to us in the following excerpt from Jesus’ chastisement to the Pharisees and scribes. The Scripture of interest is,

Matthew 23:13

[13] “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.

Thus, to serve the people and provide them with the correct and proper understanding of God, His commandments and His Kingdom, Jesus constantly taught them.

Jesus’ compassion and intense concern for the spiritual well being of the people can be seen when the apostles returned to Him from their tour of service and teaching. To read what occurred we go to,

Mark 6:30-34

[30] Then the apostles gathered to Jesus and told Him all things, both what they had done and what they had taught. [31] And He said to them, “Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.” For there were many coming and going and they did not even have time to eat. [32] So they departed to a deserted place in the boat by themselves. [33] But the multitudes saw them departing, and many knew Him and ran there on foot from all the cities. They arrived before them and came together to Him. [34] And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd. So He began to teach them many things.

Let us notice the following verse,

31-32 … At this point in time the apostles were tired and hungry from their tour of service and teaching. Consequently, to rest and eat, Jesus and His apostles sailed to a deserted place.

33 … After the people discovered where Jesus and His apostles were going; they promptly ran to meet them.

34 … Instead of turning the people away, we see Jesus, the Lord of lords and King of kings, patiently reaching out to help the people understand about the things of His Kingdom.

The third example is that in addition to healing the people’s sicknesses and teaching, we also find there were times when,

Jesus fed the people

To see this let us read about the time when He, with seven loaves of bread and a few fish, fed 4,000 men in addition to the women and children. To read about this miraculous event let us go to,

Matthew 15:32-38

[32] Now Jesus called His disciples to Himself and said, “I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat. And I do not want to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way.” [33] Then His disciples said to Him, “Where could we get enough bread in the wilderness to fill such a great multitude?” [34] Jesus said to them, “How many loaves do you have?” And they said, “Seven, and a few little fish.” [35] So He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground. [35] And He took the seven loaves and the fish and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitude. [37] So they all ate and were filled, and they took up seven large baskets full of the fragments that were left. [38] Now those who ate were four thousand men, besides women and children.

In addition to serving,

JESUS GAVE UP HIS EARTHLY LIFE AS A RANSOM FOR MANY

There is probably no better way to see than to read from,

John 3:16-17

[16] For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. [17] For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

As we saw in previous studies/chapters, Jesus accomplished this by His crucifixion, burial and resurrection.

This brings us to,

THE APPLICATION FOR US

Perhaps the best way to see this is to read about the time when Jesus washed the feet of His disciples. This took place just before the Feast of Passover, which at this time Jesus’ sojourn upon this earth was at its completion. This is recorded in,

John 13:3-5

[3] Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come from God and was going to God, [4] rose from supper and laid aside His garments, took a towel and girded Himself. [5] After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded.

It is noted that during these days many people only wore sandals on their feet. Thus, after walking on streets of dirt, the feet of the people were dirty. Thus, Jesus was performing the customary practice of the people washing the dirt and grime off their feet.

To continue our reading and go to,

John 13:6-8

[6] Then He came to Simon Peter. And Peter said to Him, “Lord, are You washing my feet?” [7] Jesus answered and said to him, “What I am doing you do not understand now, but you will know after this.” [8] Peter said to Him, “You shall never wash my feet!” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.”

Let us now read Peter’s response as recorded in,

John 13:9-11

[9] Simon Peter said to Him, “Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head!” [10] Jesus said to him, “He who is bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean; and you are clean, but not all of you.” [11] For He knew who would betray Him; therefore He said, “You are not all clean.”

With the above background in mind, let us now read Jesus’ teaching to His apostles then and now to you and me. To do this we go to,

John 13:12-17

[12] So when He had washed their feet, taken His garments, and sat down again, He said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you? [13] You call Me Teacher and Lord, and you say well, for so I am. [14] If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. [15] For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you. [16] Most assuredly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master; nor is he who is sent greater than he who sent him. [17] If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.”

As we reflect upon the above examples of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, we come to realize that throughout His ministry upon this earth, Jesus was completely moved by wisdom from Heaven.

This is the wisdom the born-again believer in Jesus Christ should operate in.

Consequently, if we do not see this type of wisdom coming from within us, we are to go to God, with faith, and pray for it.

If we do this, God promised that He will give us this type of wisdom. To see this let us read from,

James 1:5-6

[5] If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. [6] But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.

CLOSING

Let us now close this study by reading from,

1 Thessalonians 5:23-24

[23] Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. [24] He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it.

Amen

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