1 Kings 4:29-30 tells us, “God gave Solomon wisdom, very great insight, and understanding  as vast as the sand on the seashore.  Solomon’s wisdom was greater than the wisdom of all the people of the East, greater than all the wisdom of Egypt.”

It is hard to imagine that kind of wisdom.  Wisdom given directly by God.  I’m sure I’m not alone in thinking I have “some” insight and “some” understanding.  Try to imagine the level of insight and understanding if it was given to you by God Himself.  That’s some impressive wisdom for sure.  Solomon builds the temple for God and Solomon displays much of the wisdom and insight God blessed him with through the entire lengthy process.  Upon completion of the temple, God appeared to Solomon to deliver the most important news.  1 Kings 9:4ff- “As for you, if you walk before Me as your father David walked, with integrity of heart and uprightness, doing everything I have commanded you, and if you keep My statutes and ordinances, I will establish your royal throne over Israel forever..”  Now that is a great promise!  What a wonderful story of how powerful God is to bless His people with such great and incredible gifts.  For Solomon it was the incredible gift of wisdom and insight and understanding.  The gift that will forever have Solomon known as the “wisest man in the world” and yet………. 1 Kings 11:4ff-”When Solomon was old, his wives seduced him to follow other gods.  His heart was not completely with the Lord his God, as his father David’s heart had been.  Solomon followed Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians,  and Milcom, the detestable idol of the Ammonites.  Solomon did what was evil in the Lord’s sight, and unlike his father David, he did not completely follow the Lord.”  The bible goes on to tell us that Solomon even built high places for the detestable idols of the people.  Good grief!  How can this make any sense to anyone reading it for the first time?  It gets even more unbelieveable when we are told that God appeared to Solomon and God was burning with anger.  God commands Solomon to stop.  Solomon does not listen and continues to do evil in the sight of God.  The result of this response is God tearing the kingdom away from Solomon and giving it to his servant.

What’s the message for us today?  I believe it can be simply stated as we need to grow in our understanding of our condition when it comes to wisdom.  Regardless of how “wise” we become and how much insight and understanding we obtain there must always be an acknowledgement that we are still mere flesh and blood corrupted daily by sin.  Let’s not forget the garden.  In Genesis 3 satan tells Eve that the reason God didn’t want her to eat the fruit was because if she ate it her eyes would be opened and she would be like God.  It was all about knowledge.  Look at the explanation given by God for removing Adam and Eve from the garden.  Genesis 3:22- The Lord God said, “Since man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil, he must not reach out , and also take from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever.” The main point being mere flesh and blood, now corrupted by sin, cannot maintain the purity of true knowledge.

I have a new appreciation for the truth found in 1 Corinthians 1 concerning wisdom.  As I look around at how mankind has tried so diligently to establish wisdom concerning God and His character I must confess i get a little bit amused.  I look at Solomon who was blessed directly with wisdom from God.  He is described as the wisest man in the world and yet sin still brought him down.  He was flesh and blood.  The most important lesson from Solomon for me is to realize we are ALL flesh and blood, corrupted by sin regardless of the wisdom we claim to have.  1 Corinthians 1:20-21- “Where is the philosopher?  Where is the scholar?  Where is the debater of this age?  Hasn’t God made the world’s wisdom foolish?  For since, in God’s wisdom, the world did not know God through wisdom, God was pleased to save those who believe through the foolishness of the message preached.”  I try to avoid diving into discussions about the “deeper” things of God.  I have chosen instead to take the route of the apostle Paul by saying, “I am determined to know nothing except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.”