Old Testament reading: 1 Kings 3-4
“Your wish is my command.” God didn’t use these exact words in His appearance to Solomon in a dream, but that was the gist of it (3:5). This is when Solomon asked for wisdom. Consider Solomon’s great humility in recognizing his own inadequacies in ruling over Israel, whom Solomon identified as “Your people.” Two statements in this text stand out to me. First is the stated purpose Solomon’s request for an understanding heart. In his own words, he asked for wisdom to discern between good and evil. A man may have intelligence to decipher riddles and solve conundrums, but if he does not learn to discern between good and evil, he is not truly wise. Second is God’s promise to give Solomon “what you have not asked.” When we truly seek God and desire His will be done in our lives, God blesses us in ways that we do not ask or think, for which we should all be thankful!
New Testament reading: John 6-7
Jesus did not come to earth to reign on earth as a physical king. Sadly, many professed believers do not understand this. Though Jesus readily admitted himself to be the Christ (anointed one), He rejected the notion that His kingdom would ever be of an earthly sort. This is one reason why He refused to taken by the crowds in John 6:15 and made into an earthly king. His kingdom is a holy, spiritual kingdom. It is not, nor will it ever be a physical kingdom. When Jesus returns, it will not be to establish an earthly kingdom, but rather to deliver the already established kingdom (the church) back to God the Father (cf 1 Cor 15:23-24).
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