The Pathway of Answered Prayer - 1 Kings 3:1-15

Introduction

I’ve been preparing all of my life for the moment I discover a golden lamp with a genie inside. I grew up watching “I dream of Genie” and “Aladdin”, and in the process, I learned a lot about what to do and not do in the case you encounter a genie. Typically, the genie is only going to give you three wishes, and you’re not allowed to use one of your wishes to get more wishes. You’ve seen this. And, what inevitably happens as the person begins making their wishes? They immediately burn through two without even trying hard. The genie will often take them way more literally than they meant, or the thing that they wanted will lead to some type of calamity. For instance, a person may make it their wish to be the ruler of the world. Some genie’s would then turn them into a long tape measure painted up with a picture of the world on it. It’s important to really be clear and specific with genies.

Or, the ruler grants them their intent, they actually become the ruler of the entire world, and, immediately, they become inundated with requests and needs and suffering. They’re famous and powerful, but they have no freedom to live. In a matter of minutes, they have made a mess out of everything, and they’ll use their last wish to undo their previous wish. The opportunity to have anything that they wanted revealed what was in the person’s heart. And, when their heart was revealed and they actually received what they’d always wanted, they realized that their heart was leading them astray. They realize that what they wanted wasn’t actually what they needed or what was best for them.

God’s Word

What do you want most? What’s the ruling desire of your heart? That’s the question that comes to the forefront in 1 Kings 3. Solomon is the king now. He’s been declared the king by David and has been supported by Nathan, but he had not yet experienced divine approval. And, that’s what we’re witnessing in chapter 3. So, God comes to Solomon in a dream, and says, “Ask what I shall give you.” That’s the offer of a lifetime, isn’t it? Ask me for what you most want, and I will give it to you. It’s an offer that’s meant to reveal Solomon’s heart — and our hearts too.

And, this story is powerful for us because it teaches us something of the type of prayer that God is pleased to answer. It shows us so that we can measure our lives and our prayers and our hearts that we might live a Godward, intimate, powerful life defined by God’s intervention and the answering of our prayers. The pathway of answered prayer (headline):

Construct the right “self-perception.”

Constructed vs. Given Identity

1 Kings 3:7 “And now, O Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of David my father, although I am but a little child. I do not know how to go out or come in.”

Solomon is around 20 years old when this scene takes place. Remember back to when you were 20. When you’re 20, you think you know exactly what you want, and if you get it, you’re going to own it like a boss. If you can just get married....if you can just get into nursing school....if you can just get that job. Then, you get it, and it’s not what you expect. Or, you never get it. And, it can throw your whole world upside down. It can lead to an identity crisis because you’re beginning to realize that maybe you aren’t who you thought you were and that you don’t know what you thought you know. So, your self-perception is thrown into a tailspin, a cycle that’s likely to continue if you don’t attain a more accurate understanding of who you are. You see, each of us has both a constructed identity and a given identity. Our constructed identity is what we believe about ourselves. Our given identity is what God has said about us. (Draw with overlapping circles.) And, the bigger the gap there is between the two the greater space there is for us to be thrown into a tailspin, a recipe for real misery and identity crisis.

The early days of Solomon’s reign had been very hard. He knew part of his given identity. God had “made” him the king. He was David’s son and called by God to rule upon David’s throne. But, he was also a very self-confident young man, and after a series of hardship, a lot of constructed self-perception began to crumble. Now, God comes to him in the dark of the night, probably after he’d just fallen asleep after tossing and turning and worrying, and Solomon acknowledges as much. Look at Solomon’s three realizations and see if you can identify with them.

Solomon’s Deconstructing Self-perception

1 Kings 3:7-8 “And now, O Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of David my father, although I am but a little child. I do not know how to go out or come in. And your servant is in the midst of your people whom you have chosen, a great people, too many to be numbered or counted for multitude.”

“I know you’ve called me, but I’m not ready.”

First, Solomon says, “I know you’ve called me, but I’m not ready.” As a young teenager growing up, you can be sure that he couldn’t wait until he was the king. His dad had told he and his mom, Bathsheba, that he was the one set apart by God to be the king. It was his destiny. He just knew how great it was going to be and how great he was going to be at it. But now, he’s gotten what he wanted. He is the king, but the bravado and self-assuredness is gone now. “I am but a little child.” Solomon wasn’t as ready as he thought he was. He’s seeing the gap between what God has charged him to do and what he’s ready to do. That is, Solomon isn’t a mature and strong as he thought. He’s come to the realization that he has some serious maturing to do, which is a mature realization. It’s a step closer to closing the gap between who God says He is, and who he believed he was.

“I know you’ve charged me, but I don’t know how.”

Next, Solomon says, “I know you’ve charged me, but I don’t know how.” Solomon had been charged by God to serve as king “in place of David (his) father.” But, David had cast a large shadow. He had expanded Israel’s territory and solidified their position in the Promised Land. Most specifically, in Solomon’s mind, David had been a great leader, leading his people into battle over their enemies and judging wisely at home — both jobs of the king. And, now, after an attempted coup by his brother and political difficulties with some of David’s past enemies, Solomon says, “I do not know how to go out or come in.” It’s a military idiom referencing going to war and coming home victorious. Solomon recognizes that he doesn’t have the wisdom, understanding, and ability within himself to accomplish the task at hand. The gap is closing more between who he believed he was and who he actually is.

“I know you’re with me, but I’m overwhelmed.”

Thirdly, Solomon says, “I know you’re with me, but I’m overwhelmed.” Solomon recognizes that he is God’s servant sent, as one of God’s people, to rule all of God’s people. The realization is setting in that he isn’t just the king of any nation; he’s king of the greatest nation, the very nation that God himself has chosen as his prized possession. And, think of how verse 8 reads. Solomon talks about being “in the midst” of a people so great that they’re “too many to be numbered or counted.” Suddenly, he feels like a single man responsible for the care and well-being of millions, and he’s accountable to God for it. Solomon comes to the conclusion that the job God has given him is too big for him. The gap is closing still more.

Deconstruction for Reconstruction

The deconstruction of Solomon’s self-perception is intended to provide us with the context of his request. That is, his self-perception and identity have not been deconstructed for deconstruction’s sake. This isn’t a demolition job. After all, part of what Solomon understood about himself was true. He was called and charged by God. God really was with him. This isn’t a demolition; this is a renovation. That’s a glimpse at the nature of sanctification. Solomon’s false beliefs about himself had been deconstructed so that he might know the fullness of joy and peace that would come from understanding both himself and God rightly. That’s the essence of maturing in the Lord. It’s coming back to the Lord time and again that what it is wrong in your understanding might be torn down so that it can be rebuilt in a way that is good and right and true. If you merely stop at deconstruction, you’ll be left feeling like a terrible failure. That’s not the way of the gospel. The gospel makes all things new. The goal is to reconstruct your self-perception with what God has said about you. Where is the gap in your constructed identity and your given identity? What needs to be torn down and rebuilt with the materials that God has given?

Prioritize the proper “ruling desire.”

1 Kings 3:9 “Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, that I may discern between good and evil, for who is able to govern this your great people?””

Give What I Want and What You Have

GK starts her Christmas list at about 6pm on Christmas evening. She’s a planner that way. You buy her a Nintendo Switch this year, and she’s already thinking about how amazing it would be to get a PS5 next year. And, behind her request for the gifts she asks for are two realities: her desire and her source of receiving it. So, she asks for a PS5 for both of those reason: it’s what she wants, and she knows the only way that she’ll receive it is if we buy it for her. Both of those realities are behind Solomon’s request. When he says, “give” he is declaring his greatest desire, and he’s requesting it from the only Source from whom he can receive it. That makes his request especially interesting. What does he request? He requests what the ESV translates as “an understanding mind.” And, what’s interesting about that is the literal translation is a “listening heart.” “Listening” can also be translated as “obeying”. For the Jews, to really hear God and to listen to him was to obey him and live according to his word. So, what does Solomon ask for? What is the ruling desire of Solomon’s heart that he wanted above all else? He wanted to walk in faithfulness before God like David to know God like David that he might enjoy God’s steadfast love like David. That is, Solomon wanted God to give him the understanding, wisdom, and ability to obey and walk closely with God. Solomon saw righteousness as what he most needed and what only God himself could give. He needs God to gift him the ability to obey.

The Desire: A Godward Intuition

The Hebrew people understood the heart differently than the way that we usually do, and it’s important for us to understand so that we can rightly interpret the Bible’s references to the heart. When we think of the heart, we largely think of heart in terms of emotions or even passion. We tend to have neat categories for everything so that the mind is for thinking and the heart is for loving and the body is for doing. But, they didn’t think that way. That’s why every english translation is scrambling trying to give this an accurate translation. They saw everything as being found in the heart. It was the locus of your mental faculties, your passions, and your decisions. They understood the heart has having three ventricles, if you will, that dynamically worked together simultaneously to produce your life. The heart is cognitive, affective, and volitional. That is to say that the heart is where you have beliefs (cognitive), desires (affective), and make choices (volitional). And, that’s the understanding that is in the backdrop of what Solomon is asking for when he asks here for an “understanding mind” or a “listening heart.” He’s desiring a godward intuition that will make the right decisions at the right times in real life that honor and glorify God. He wants a heart that “understands” what is true so that it can “discern” what is good that it might ultimately do (“govern”) what is right. He wants godliness that finds its way into the real world. He wants knowledge of God that affects him in his job and with his family and with his friends. You see, that’s what wisdom is: Wisdom is the ability to obey and honor God in real life situations. It’s the development of a godward intuition that allows you to know, discern, and do what is right in situations that aren’t always black and white. That is, Solomon's desire for wisdom is a desire changed heart that has its compass set on God, and that’s a gift that only God can give. Only God can change the heart. Only God can change the compass of the heart to aim toward him.

Desire Shapes Intuition

And, what we should see from 1 Kings 3 is that this is meant to be the ruling desire of our lives. The desire to know, love, and honor God with the fullness of who you are and in the real world is meant to be the driving force behind the Christian life. What desire is ruling you right now? Because here’s the reality: because of how God has shaped your heart, your desire will shape your intuition. We interpret our lives and experience our feelings and make our choices based upon the desire that rules our heart so that in life’s decision-making moments, in life’s intuitive moments, we ultimately make our choices according to what we most desire. Is your ruling desire achievement? Then, you’ll interpret (cognitively) all of your life by whether you achieved or failed. You’ll feel happy or anxious or depressed (affectively) by whether you’ve achieved or fear not achieving or hopeless because you’ve failed. You’ll make all of your choices (volitionally) to help you achieve, even if that choice means cheating on the test or trouncing your coworker. Is your ruling desire to be the greatest mother? Then, you’ll interpret all of life through the lens of motherhood which may or not come, which may be wonderful or difficult. Your sense of happiness will be bound up with how well you performed or how your kids are doing, a weight they cannot possibly bear. Your temper or seething anger will come if others don’t notice what a mother you are. You’ll make all of the choices in your marriage and walk with God so that your motherhood is prioritized first. And, those are good desires, but they’ll kill you if they’re your ruling desire. Only when we see the our lives and the whole world through the lens of a Godward intuition can we really understand, discern, and do in a way that will allow us to thrive as God’s people. Prioritize the proper ruling desire!

Receive the gifts “God promises”.

We’ve received the same offer.

1 Kings 3:10-13 “It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this. And God said to him, “Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long life or riches or the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right, behold, I now do according to your word. Behold, I give you a wise and discerning mind, so that none like you has been before you and none like you shall arise after you. I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that no other king shall compare with you, all your days.”

And, here’s what I’ve been building to all morning. God is pleased with Solomon, and he answers his prayer above and beyond Solomon’s wildest expectations. So, what we’re able to see is the pathway to the kind of prayers that please God and that God is pleased to answer. When you have the right view of yourself and the right view of God and the right ruling desires of the heart, then you’re praying a prayer that God is pleased to answer. Another way to say this is to say: when your heart (in all of its beliefs/desires/choices) becomes conformed to God’s heart; then, you will receive the very thing you desire most — satisfaction in God himself. I think that’s exactly what the Psalmist is getting at when he says in Psalms 37:4 “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” The second part is contingent upon the first part. When your delight is in the Lord, when being right with him becomes the ruling desire of your life, then God is going to give you exactly what is in your heart.

You see, the good news is that we’ve received the same offer as Solomon. Jesus says in Matthew 7:7 ““Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” Ask for what you want, and it will be given to you. Seek and you will find. But, he’s not just talking about anything. He’s talking about the kingdom life. He’s talking about asking and seeking and knocking so that they life and joy and peace of the Kingdom might be opened to you. He says in Matt 7:11 “If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!” That is, he’s not just looking to give you things; he’s pleased to give you the good things, the things of the Kingdom. And, in the context of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus is saying that if you will earnestly seek and ask and knock and pursue, that you can live, even now, the type of godward, wise, faithful, obedient, joyful life that you will one day experience in the kingdom.

Do you really want it?

1 Kings 3:13-14 “I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that no other king shall compare with you, all your days. And if you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days.””

In fact, that’s the foreshadowing that’s taking place in 1 Kings 3:13-14. God exceeds Solomon’s wildest dreams by giving him a greater answer than he could have ever hoped for, by exceeding his very request. Why? Because always exceeds our expectations, but even more than that, because God was writing an even greater story. A story of a greater king establishing a greater Kingdom who rules by truly Godward wisdom. Matthew 12:42 “The queen of the South will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here.”

He has come. He has made the offer of the Kingdom life to us. The question is: do you really want it? Do you want it more than anything? Pray this morning that He might give it to you.