Be Wise & Shine: Solomon [Dan.12:3]
- Olusegun Emosu
- 6 minutes ago
- 7 min read
Text: "Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament, and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever." (Dan.12:3).
INTRODUCTION:
There are unquantifiable benefits in wisdom, while it is a folly to glory in foolishness. Wisdom makes the fame of the bearer spread abroad and globally. The manifestation of such fame is likened to the brightness of the stars in heaven. Stars shine globally and cannot be hidden. By a way of definition, wisdom is the correct application of knowledge. This simply means, being able to put into correct practice, what one has understood or what has been revealed to the bearer by divine revelation. For us to scale through this complex world, we need to be immersed in the ocean of God-given wisdom. Proverbs 4:7 encouraged us, to embrace wisdom, amongst other things, "wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding." This implies, it is of no use amassing wealth, education and what have you and be void of wisdom, to manage it. The parable of the rich fool is a case in study here. He lacked the wisdom to manage it and in consequence, he paid dearly with his life. And the wisdom in this context, is strictly the one from 'above'..."but the wisdom that is from above is first from above is first pure, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy." (Jam.3:17).
PURE WISDOM & FAME: SOLOMON'S EXAMPLE
King Solomon was a trailblazer when it comes to the issue of possessing wisdom from above. The pure and partial-free wisdom, as given him by God, gave him unprecedented fame - a good fame that made him shine beyond his life time. By reason of this God-given wisdom, his fame did not only shine beyond his territories, he became a sought-after king, such that the Queen of Sheba paid him a visit. Coming with a royal and powerful delegation on hearing of the fame of Solomon, the scripture says, "she came to test him with hard questions." (1 Kgs.10:1b). To say the queen was perturbed at Solomon's unrivaled wisdom and at the right answers she got from Solomon, is an understatement. She acknowledged God in the life of Solomon. She remarked, "it was true report which i heard in my own land about your words and your wisdom. However, I did not believe the words until I came and saw with my own eyes; and indeed the half was not told me. Your wisdom and prosperity exceed the fame of which I heard." (1 Kgs. 10:7). Seeing is believing ! Straight from the heart of a woman of substance adjudged to be powerful, wealthy and wise, in her own class. Wisdom from above does not fail any human test.
The royal visit and interactions eventually led to exchange of royal gifts among the two royal rulers. She gave Solomon one hundred and twenty talents of gold, spices in great quantity; and precious stones, so much so that the biblical writers summed it up as, "there never again came such abundance of spices as the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon." (1 Kgs. 10:10). King Solomon on the other hand also complimented the 'historic and unusual' royal gifts by yielding to the demands of the queen, " Now King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all she desired , whatever she asked, besides what Solomon had given her according to the royal generosity." (1 Kgs. 10:13).
SOLOMON & THE FOOLISH VIRGINS: A CONTRAST
It took Solomon just an attempt to scale through to being globally and historically acknowledged as the wisest man that ever lived, simply by the 'fair' and 'rare' judgement he delivered to the two harlots in 1 Kgs 3. Before then, he had encountered God in a dream while he was at Gibeon, where God gave him a blank check to ask for whatever he desired. He asked for nothing material other than the 'spirit of discernment' between good and evil. He knew he needed more than wealth to rule the people according to God's standard. He needed something larger than the tangible. God acceded to his request. In contrast with the five foolish virgins, we see a group of chaste and pious ladies that had a costly "BUT", in their journey in life. Much as they were obviously chaste, pure and pious, they lacked the spirit of discernment in that should the bridegroom delay in his coming, what provisions would they make for any eventuality in case they ran out of oil for their lamps? Wisdom from above demands we make provision for the unforeseen future.
All the ten virgins had longed and prepared for the day they would meet with the bridegroom. It was not a day's preparation. They had kept all spiritual laws. They remained undefiled. They were godly by all standards. They had dissociated themselves from the world and all worldly things. Hence, it seemed they were ready to fly, given the opportunity. However, there was a missing loop- they lacked the main essential that would aid their reigning with the bridegroom- extra oil. At the nick of time that they were supposed to enter and 'shine' with the bridegroom, they were denied entry..."and the foolish said to the wise, give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out. But the wise answered, saying, no, lest there should be not enough for us and you..." (Mt.25:9). This tells us that for us to enter into the realm of the wise and shine, we need to be on our toes. We have to be vigilant, to be well informed and guided. The wise, striving to shine, takes extra measures to deliver.
The wise goes over and above doing the minimum. The wise stays abreast of situations. The wise that will shine, desires not only material things, but waits on the LORD's mind and seek His face before making demands, before making any move. The wise is not overly bossy. He acknowledges God as the Ultimate boss. He seeks recourse in Him. The wise is not carnal. The wise does not play to the gallery...joining others, even on a just cause is one thing, getting equipped, prepared and updated for the end result of the cause, is another thing. There 'MAY' not be another chance to enter and shine. This was the undoing of the chaste, pious, and godly, but 'foolish' virgins. For Solomon, the one time opportunity was all he needed to still be regarded as the wisest king that ever lived, and he never allowed it slip by, "so King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom" (1 Kgs.10:23) . This accolade did not divorce him even in his latter years, he went against the mind of God in the area of marriage, "for it was so , when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the LORD his God..." (1 Kgs.11:4).
WISDOM AS IT RELATES TO US:
Daily application of the wisdom of God in us implies we are expressing and speaking the mind of God. With this, we are able to impact and influence our generation positively. The wisdom from above, in us, manifests in such a way that many who are perishing would seek after righteousness. They, by the reason of the positive impact might detour from their sinful and perishing way. It's unlike the wisdom of the sinful world that manipulates and cut corners. Such backfires on the long run, "for the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God" (1 Cor.1:20).
Invariably, the credit of a changed life by reason of preaching the wisdom from above, goes to the initiators of the new move, in the sense that they shine like stars forever. Timothy, in his parting speech said, "finally, there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the LORD, the righteous Judge, will give me on that Day..." (2 Tim. 4:8).
Sidebar:
It is of no use amassing wealth, education and what have you and be void of wisdom, to manage it.
It took Solomon just an attempt to scale through to being globally and historically acknowledged as the wisest man that ever lived, simply by the 'fair' and 'rare' judgement he delivered to the two harlots in 1 Kgs 3.
Much as they were chaste, pure and pious, they lacked the spirit of discernment in that should the bridegroom delay in his coming, what provisions would they make for any eventuality in case they ran out of oil for their lamps?
CONCLUSION:
It is always a joyful and glorious thing to dwell in the wisdom of God. It makes a life be at peace and serves as a guiding post in dealing with the myraids of complexities in this sinful world we live in. The need to partner with God in our decision-making process is invaluable with the help of wisdom from above. Godly wisdom takes us far in life!
Happy New Year!
PRAYERS:
LORD, i desire and crave for more of the wisdom from above, shower it upon me abundantly.
LORD, help me to not forfeit Your wisdom in my life. I refuse to be a rich fool.
LORD, let my life impact many that they may turn to righteousness.
LORD, help me shine my shine in Your wisdom.
![Goshen ! [Gen.47:6]](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/47580c_41975edb3dd14d09b2de8ec5f2d4d2c1~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_980,h_1225,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/47580c_41975edb3dd14d09b2de8ec5f2d4d2c1~mv2.jpg)
![True Worship Restoration: Josiah's Template [2 Kgs.22:1-2]](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/47580c_dcaee6bb4d4b44f7a59018a0e29f4492~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_980,h_1568,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/47580c_dcaee6bb4d4b44f7a59018a0e29f4492~mv2.jpg)
Comments