Two pastors were lifelong friends, and both loved being outdoors. They decided they would go camping overnight in the wild. They arrived at a beautiful campsite and set up their tent. After a grilled supper, they sat around the fire for a little while watching the embers, chatting away about the Lord and their respective churches. Finally, after an enjoyable time of fellowship, they decided it was time to sleep. Both were out quickly. Sometime around two o’clock in the morning, Tom, pastor one, woke up. He saw hundreds of stars that dotted the heavens. He called to his friend Bob, pastor two. “Wake up, wake up.” Bob stirred a little, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. Tom says, “Look up into the sky and tell me what you see.” Bob squinted saying, “Well, I see a beautiful night sky. I guess I would say I’m seeing the handiwork of the Lord in all its magnificence.” Tom, “But, what does that tell you?” Bob says, “God, being omnipotent, unlimited power, created all these stars which are most likely in other galaxies that God also created, and we get the blessing of seeing all this with our natural eyes. Why? What does it tell you?” Tom says, “It tells me somebody stole our tent.”
Some people see more quickly than others and some have greater discernment than others. Discernment is the ability to discriminate (not racially or ethnically) but in making decisions and making determinations after an examination. It is closely related to wisdom. Many passages in the Bible speak about discernment. Hebrews 4:12 speaking about the Word of God says, “…is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” I Corinthians 2:14 tells us “But the natural man (unsaved man) receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.”
If I were to ask you what Solomon asked for most of you would say that he asked for wisdom. But I think it was much more than just wisdom. Open your Bible to I Kings 3. Solomon is a young man, but he is a grown man, not a child. In this chapter, we see several things. He loves the Lord and he’s at Gibeon making sacrifices to the Lord (vs. 3-4). He has a dream, and the Lord appears to him in the dream asking him, “What shall I give thee?” Solomon in response is humble with his words, speaking of God’s kindness to David his father. He recognized that God placed him on that very throne and even though he was a young adult, he called himself but a child not knowing whether to come in or go out (vs. 5-7). The request Solomon made to the Lord is found in verse 9. “Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad…” God was pleased with the ask and granted to him “understanding to discern judgment … I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart” (vs. 11-12). Keil & Delitzsch are old commentators. It is their contention that the “understanding heart” in v. 12 means “a hearing heart or a listening heart.” There was one final thing God told him. “And if thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statues, and my commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days” (v.14). He had the promise of a long life if he did right. After this supernatural night, King Solomon sat down and wrote Psalm 72. In that wonderful Psalm, he asked God for help in applying wisdom. (BTW, Solomon also wrote Psalm 127.) May the same desires Solomon sought for himself be the ones we seek for ourselves.