IF/Then

1 Kings 8

1 Title Slide
If you could write pearls of wisdom for others to read, what would they be?
One author, by the name of Jack Brown, collected gems from hundreds of
people of various ages. Let me share a few of them:

2 • A sixty-four year old said, “I’ve learned that most of the things I worry
about never happen.”
• Another said, “I’ve learned that when someone says something unkind
about me, I will live so that no one will believe it.”
• One twenty-nine year old parent said, “I’ve learned that parents of
other children know just how you should raise yours.”
• A forty-six year old said, “I’ve learned that you can get by on charm for
about fifteen minutes. After that, you’d better know something.”
• A senior citizen said, “I’ve learned that the great challenge of life is to
decide what’s important and to ignore everything else.”
There were also some gems that were simple, home-spun advice. Here are
a few:

3 Rocky, age 9, said, “Wisdom is wearing a hat when feeding seagulls.”

9-year-old Carol commented, “Never ask for anything that costs more
than $5 when your parents are doing taxes.”
Nicholas, age 11, spoke from experience: “Never bug a pregnant mom.”
Kelly, age 10, said: “Don’t ever be too full for dessert.”
Heather, a seasoned teenager said, “When your dad is mad and asks you,
‘Do I look stupid?’ don’t answer him.”

4 • One man said, “I’ve learned that homemade Toll House cookies should
be eaten warm.”
• A four-year said, “I’ve learned you can’t hide a piece of broccoli in your
glass of milk.”
• A seven-year-old said, “I’ve learned that if you spread the peas out on
your plate, it looks like you ate more.”
• “I’ve learned that a person begins cutting his wisdom teeth the first time
he bites off more than he can chew.”
5 If there were a gem to describe the drama that King Solomon finds himself
in, it is that last one. The curtain has just risen, and young Solomon is
standing in the center of the stage. All eyes are on him. Although there is
some debate about how old he was. Most believe he was still a teenager!
Whatever his young age may have been, however, he is now the king over
all of Israel. Chapter 2 of I Kings gives us the first few events surrounding
the succession of Solomon to his father David’s throne. It is a violent,
bloody chapter where Solomon was left to handle the compromises David
allowed in the kingdom. This involved justice that he imposed for enemies
of the throne. So, the first decrees recorded from Solomon relate to the
deaths of a general, named Joab, Solomon’s half brother Adonijah, and that
old snake, Shimei. It was not a pleasant, peaceful start, but it was necessary
to ensure that Solomon would reign as God’s chosen successor to his
father’s throne.
Now moving forward to Chapter 3, we will look at some other notable
events that occurred shortly after his accension to the throne.

6 1 Kings 3:1
Marrying the Pharoah's daughter was a political move to ensure that
Israel’s ancient taskmaster, Egypt, acted as an ally rather than an enemy.
While this was a common practice back then, this alliance led to his heart
becoming entangled. One of the most heartbreaking verses in the Bible is
found in 1 Kings 11:4: “As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart
after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the LORD his God,
as the heart of David his father had been.”  It is said that is said that
Solomon had a harem that included 700 wives and 300 concubines.
This is why the Bible makes it clear that a believer must not marry an
unbeliever. (see 2 Corinthians 6:14).

7 2 Corinthians 6:14
Moving on

8 1 Kings 3:2-4

9 The next thing we notice is that the people were still sacrificing on the high
places, because a house for the name of the Lord was under construction.
This was not where worship was to take place for followers of God.
 Deuteronomy 12:4-5: “You must not worship the LORD your God in their
way. But you are to seek the place the LORD your God will choose from
among all your tribes to put his Name there for his dwelling. To that place
you must go.”
Solomon loved the Lord and demonstrated that love by walking according
to the statutes of his father David. But there’s more to Solomon. He loved
the Lord but notice the next two words: “except that.” I think this describes
a lot of us today. We love the Lord except that we gossip. We love the Lord
except that we (fill in the blank). I think most Christians have an “except
that” in their lives as either a blind spot they can’t see or a fatal flaw that
they are well too familiar with and refuse to deal with.
Back to the scripture. At first glance, Solomon going to the “high places”
sounds like direct disobedience. He had barely ascended to the throne, and
he had married an Egyptian and now, he was sacrificing on some strange
high altar. The word “except,” in verse 3, seems to indicate that Solomon
was doing everything right “except” for the fact that he sacrificed at
Gibeon. The trouble with that thinking is, the companion volume to I Kings
provides an explanation, not a condemnation.
Look at 2 Chronicles 1:3-5:

10 2 Chronicles 1:3-6
Do you know what Solomon is doing? He is beginning his reign by publicly
acknowledging his love and commitment to the God of Israel. Did you know
the first president of the United States of America did the very same thing?

11 On April 30th, 1789, America had a Constitution and a newly formed

government. On that day, the government, the House, and the Senate
gathered for the Inauguration of our first president, George Washington.
Washington’s warning was, if we begin to depart from God, He would
remove His blessings, His prosperity and His protection from our nation.
After Washington’s address, he gathered the leaders from the House and
the Senate and traveled on foot to Saint Paul’s Chapel. No one knows
exactly what was said inside but we do know the entire government was on
their knees praying and consecrating this nation to God. (FYI--Saint Paul’s
Chapel is located at the corner of Ground Zero. It was not damaged during
the mayhem on 9/1/2001. I wonder if God was reminding us of our initial
commitment as a nation?)
12 1 Kings 3:5
 In other words, God said, “Make a wish, Solomon, . . . any wish!”

13 What would you wish for?

That reminds me of the man who found a lamp and started to rub it. Sure
enough, out popped a genie. The genie told him that he had three wishes.
The man couldn’t believe his good fortune, so he thought for a moment
and then said, “I’d like a house on the beach in Door County, Wisconsin.
Make it 20,000 square feet with a boat slip.” Poof, he was in his new house.
The genie then said, what’s your next wish? The man replied, “I’d like a
black BMW, fully loaded with the best stereo system money can buy.” Poof,
the guy was suddenly driving the car. As he was cruising down the highway,
a commercial came on the radio and he started singing along, “Oh, I wish I
were an Oscar Meyer wiener…” Poof!
Solomon did not want to throw away his wish. So, before he answered God,
Solomon took a long hard look at his life. First, Solomon looked backward
thanking and praising God for His faithfulness.

14 1 Kings 3:6

15 David had been faithful and loyal to God. The Bible tells us that David “was
a man after God’s own heart.”

16 As we look back throughout our lives, who is it that has had the biggest
influence upon us? Are we a people after God’s own heart?

As Solomon continued this hard look at his life, he looked within…

17 1 Kings 3:7
He acknowledged his youthfulness and immaturity, his lack of experience
and skill for leadership. He was honest and fair, not overconfident.

18 As we look within our lives, do we have the humility of Solomon? Or are

we overconfident with a know-it-all attitude, not willing to listen to
anyone? Or are we too proud to ask for help?
Solomon then looked around him.

19 1 Kings 3:8
 He saw the enormity of the task, and the varied needs of the people. He did
not shirk from the huge responsibility but was honest enough to admit he
needed help. Our human nature sometimes will not allow us to admit that
we need help. We don’t want to be dependent upon anyone, not even God.

20 Do we go to God, before we step into challenging situations or after we

get stuck in the middle of them?
After much reflection, it was clear what he needed to ask for. So, Solomon
looked up and made his request known.

21 1 Kings 3:9

22 He could have asked for anything…health…wealth…Instead, he asked God

for wisdom to rule. Would this be what you would ask for? Would the
thought of wisdom even cross your mind?

Our world today suffers the most serious lack of wisdom of all of human
history. Some equate wisdom to knowledge, but there’s a big difference
between being smart and being wise.

23 4 guys in airplane—pilot, scientist, elderly preacher, Boy Scout

Developed plane trouble…pilot said we’re gonna have to jump out…
problem is there’s only 3 parachutes.
Pilot said: the Air Force has spent many thousands of $ training me, so I
live—grabbed parachute and jumped out.
Scientist said, I have the highest IQ here, 4 PhD’s, I’m probably the smartest
man in the world, so the world needs me—and he jumped
Elderly preacher looked at Cub Scout and said son, I’ve lived a long life, you
have all your life ahead of you, please take the last chute and jump.
Cub Scout said, no, that’s not necessary...we can both live.
“How’s that possible?”
‘Cuz the smartest man in the world just jumped out wearing my backpack!

24 1 Kings 3:10-12
25 Solomon’s request pleased God, and God granted his wish and gave him
other things as well. How often do we look upward? Are our requests
selfish or pleasing to God?

26 1 Kings 3:13

27 Notice that God not only gave Solomon discernment, but He also gave
Solomon wealth.
Scholars estimate that Solomon’s weekly paycheck would have been 1.4
million dollars. II Chronicles, chapters 1 and 9, tell us that Solomon made
silver and gold as common as ordinary stones. And, in the first year of
Solomon’s reign, his intake of gold articles and coins, as tributes from
surrounding nations, weighed sixty-five tons.

28 1 Kings 10:18-25S
Solomon was also give honor

29 2 Chronicles 9:3-8
Finally, God gave Solomon one final gift.

30 1 Kings 10:14
In other words, IF you follow me and obey my laws THEN I will give you a
long life. During his lifetime, Solomon composed and collected about three
thousand gems of wisdom that we call proverbs, and he wrote about five
thousand songs. But then we have the “IF” statement…
Have you ever noticed how many IF/THEN statements there are in scripture
either implied or literally spelled out? Do you remember rewarding your
own children using the IF/THEN statement? If you play quietly while I am on
the phone, then…. I believe we are given these statements to encourage us
and to help us make good choices. Here are a few that I found.

31 2 Chronicles 7:14; Matthew 17:20;, Mark 8:36; Mark 11:25-26, Romans 10:9
There are hundreds of IF/THEN statements in the Bible, and we need to
understand how important our part is in receiving the promises of the
Father.  The Bible makes it clear that it is foolishness to assume we will
receive the promise without meeting the condition. So, if we are wondering
why we don’t have a closer relationship with God, or why God doesn’t
seem faithful to His promises, THEN maybe we should look more closely at
 our part in God’s conditional statements. God says, “IF you will, THEN I will;
and IF you won’t, THEN I won’t.”

32 There is an ancient Indian legend of a king who loved chess. He challenged

visitors to a game, and was usually victorious. One day a traveling sage
visited the kingdom and was challenged to a game. To entice him to play,
the king offered to give the sage whatever reward he asked if he won.
When the king was defeated, to honor his word he asked the sage what
prize he would like. The sage asked for one grain of rice to placed on the
first square of the chessboard, and then that it be doubled on each
following square.
The request seemed modest, and the king ordered a bag of rice to be
brought. One grain was placed on the first square, two on the second, four
on the third, eight on the fourth and so on. But it quickly became apparent
the terms of the request were impossible to meet. By the twenty-first
square more than one million grains of rice would be required. By the
thirty-first square the total would go over one billion—with more than half
of the chessboard still left to go.
Small things have a big impact when they are added together. It is
important that we seek God’s wisdom for every decision we make,
regardless of how small it seems to us. When we add to our wisdom and
understanding, it grows stronger and stronger.

33 References