09/30/2022
I am including my sermon notes for Sunday. This is only an outline. The Holy Spirit often provides a lot of additional material by way of illustrations and comments from experiences.
Big Ochlocknee Baptist Church Oct. 2, 2023 Solomon and Wisdom
I. Psychiatrist M. Scott Peck said, “Life is difficult.”
• Life’s a series of problems. We only grow up by facing and solving them.
• Many people would rather not suffer the pain required to face problems.
• Solomon was the wisest and wealthiest of all the kings of Israel.
• We will see that Solomon proved that money could not buy happiness.
II. Scripture: 2 Chronicles 1:7-12 + Prayer
III. The Bible says wisdom is more precious than silver or gold and that nothing you may desire can compare with wisdom.
• Why? It is so very precious and durable. It makes life so much better.
• We all need wisdom to live for God, and to live at all successfully.
• I asked for wisdom to lead this church the day you elected me pastor.
• I still pray daily for wisdom. I need it very much. So do you.
IV. Wisdom is the very best thing you can possibly desire.
• What is wisdom? Somebody said it’s knowing what to do and when to do it.
• Alfred, Lord Tennyson said, “Knowledge comes but wisdom lingers.”
• You might define wisdom as knowing what is best in any situation, based on knowledge and experience.
• We need both of these in order to be wise.
• I am certain that real wisdom, the very best wisdom, is knowing Christ as Savior.
• Pr. 9:10 says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.”
• Pr. 13:20 warns us, “He who walks with wise men will be wise.”
• God is telling us to be careful with whom we associate. People rub off on us.
• We all become a little like everyone and everything we are associated with.
V. How do you go about getting wisdom?
• The Bible tells us how in James 1:5.
• It says, “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.”
• God gave Solomon wisdom; He will give it to His children who ask for it.
• However, take note: No wise man ever thinks himself wise.
• The reason is that the wisest man occasionally makes a fool out of himself.
• Pr. 26:12 warns, “Do you see a man wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.”
• Even Solomon played the fool later in his life. He had 700 wives and 300 concubines!
• The mistake many “intellectuals” make is thinking they know best.
• Charles Templeton is a prime example. Here is a man who preached with Billy Graham, only to later commit apostasy.
• Did he lose his salvation, as some think and preach as possible? No. He was never saved.
• Pr. 21:30 clearly says, “There is no wisdom or understanding or counsel against the Lord.”
• Pr. 3:5 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding.”
• Man is not mentally equipped to understand ultimate reality.
• We are not intelligent enough to understand many spiritual things.
• We don’t even understand a lot of physical phenomena on earth.
• 1 Corinthians 2:14 explains that the natural man cannot understand spiritual things.
• Instead, to the natural man, the lost man, they are foolishness.
VI. Wise men still seek him. We see this sign, especially at Christmas time.
• I love that statement and know that it is surely true.
• Real wisdom is trusting Christ as Savior.
• It’s the very first and most important thing to do.
• Have you done that yet? If not you are not a wise one but something else.
• The Bible calls unbelievers in God fools (Ps. 14:1).
• If you’ve not trusted Christ as Savior yet, what are you waiting for?
• Why put off the most important single thing you can do on this earth?
• Why risk your immortal soul? Eternity is not just a long time, but forever.
• The Bible says today is the day of salvation. Today you have a chance.
• You may well not have the chance tomorrow.
VII. Invitation
VIII. Benediction
