What Kind of King Will He Be? Sermon on 1 Kings 3:3-15

Rev. George Miller
Oct 28, 2018
1 Kings 3:3-15

Today our journey through the Narrative Lectionary takes us to the familiar tale of King Solomon.

The question is this “What kind of king will Solomon be?”

Will he be the kind of leader who enjoys starting fires, or will he be the kind that prefers to plant gardens?

Will he be the kind of king who destroys creation or the kind that builds communities?

Will he be the kind of leader in which everything is from the perspective of “Me, mine and I”?

Or will it be from the perspective of “We, ours and us?”

In other words, will Solomon be the kind of king who leads from domination, or will he be the kind that leads in more of a servant-style?

We heard last week how his father David was a king who lead with armies and war, adultery and murder, conflict and chaos.

Will King Solomon’s rule be any different?

We find out in today’s reading.

Here we have a classic story about how Solomon has a dream in which the Lord asks what he wants.

Solomon could have asked for silver and gold, he could have asked for riches and women, but instead he asks for something else:

Wisdom.

He says to God “YOU have made me your servant even though I don’t know much about anything. YOU have shown steadfast love to your people.”

“Therefore, give me a listening heart and a way to know right from wrong so I can better serve your flock.”

This act of humility, this seeking of justice and kindness pleases the Lord so much, that God not only bestows upon Solomon the heavenly gifts of wisdom, but the earthly gifts of honor and glory.

As a result, we are introduced to King Solomon’s first act of servant leadership.

2 women come to him with an issue involving children. They are both prostitutes and they both recently had a child, but one child has died while the other is alive.

The women argue over who the living boy belongs to, while King Solomon listens with his new heart.

He comes upon a creative way to discern which woman is more the mother than the other, and settles the dispute in such a unique way that soon the whole kingdom hears about his wisdom.

It’s interesting to note what King Solomon’s first task is after his encounter with God.

It is not about war, and it’s not about taxes. It’s not about business, and it’s not about the economy.

King Solomon’s first issue involves women and their children.

Solomon’s first act deals with the most basic, elemental, human topic there is- family.

Not just family, but he is confronted by individuals who would’ve been considered the lowest, most vulnerable of people.

Not only does his decision involve women and children, but prostitutes and their illegitimate offspring.

King Solomon is not called to use his new gifts of discernment for the sake of land barons and billionaires, but for those members of society who would be deemed the unclean, the uncouth; unseen and unheard.

And yet…and yet- King Solomon, the most powerful, most wise person in all of the land stops all that he is doing.

He sees them…He hears them.

He listens to their words and the contents of their hearts.

And he makes a decision, based on compassion, based on justice, based on his humbly walking with the Lord.

This way of Solomon watching over God’s people is so radically different from what has been done before and what’s been done since.

If you read through chapters 4-10 you’ll hear how he had officials that were delegated specific responsibilities for each month of the year.

You’ll hear how he made sure his citizens had enough food and drink to be nourished and content.

He honored the environment, composing songs that celebrated the trees and animals, birds and fish.

He shared his wisdom and understanding with the world, so much so that people would travel to hear what he had to say.

He found ways to create peace with Israel’s former enemies. He used his relationship with other leaders to build the Holy Temple, making sure to pay fair wages to the laborers.

He found ways to create employment for all the men, employing artists and artisans, blue and white collar workers.

For 20 years King Solomon used God’s wisdom to create steady employment and peace-time rest for the people.

He surrounded himself with people of skill, intelligence and knowledge.

He gathered the elders, the community heads and all the citizens to bless and be blessed by the work that had been done via the Temple.

He called upon all the people to give honors and blessings unto the Lord, and he called upon God to always be good to the people, giving them rain, times of peace, and the gifts of forgiveness.

He welcomed leaders from other nations, showed hospitality to men and women of other ethnicities, and had a thriving economy of imports.

Sadly, in chapter 11 we do witness a reversal. After 20 years of being such a successful servant leader, King Solomon eventually trip ups.

He allows his own desires to get in the way. He turns from God and begins to worship false idols and build other temples.

This displeases God and sets into motion a chain of events to leads to Israel’s downfall.

…but even then, there is still an ember of hope, there is still a shoot that endures, for from Solomon’s lineage eventually we will come to arrival of the greatest and the truest King there will ever be- Jesus Christ, son of Joseph, descendant of King David.

Today’s reading shows us a way in which we can each seek after God’s heart.

Today’s scriptures celebrates a time in which there was once a leader who sought to do what was right, what was good, and what was pleasing to the Lord.

And as Christians, isn’t that what we see in the life of Jesus Christ?

We see in Jesus that gift of discernment. We see in Jesus that close connection with God and the ways of heaven.

We also see in Jesus that connection with the personal.

Just as Solomon became involved with the issues of family and children, Jesus reaches out to the simple, to the every day, to the common, often addressing the things that happen within our very own homes.

In Jesus we see how God is made known through the meals we eat and the tasks we undertake. In Jesus we see how God is concerned about our health and our healing.

In Jesus we see how God is concerned about the least of these and the mustard seeds and the sparrows that fall.

In Jesus we see just how much the personal, mundane, and every day truly matters to God.

In Jesus we see one who walked in the gardens, built communities, and lead from a servant model of “We, ours and us.”

Today’s reading offers a glimpse into a time when justice, kindness, and humility reigned upon the earth.

It’s a reminder that those very same things are still possible for us when we choose to follow the Lord, when we dare to dream, and when we seek out what is best for others and not just ourselves.

May each of us today find our own way to please the God of Solomon.

May we each find a way to seek an understanding mind, a hearing heart, and a spirit that is stayed on Jesus.

Amen and amen.