Description:
Our purpose in this study is to identify the difference between a heart dedicated to God and one dedicated to self. Based on the Word of God, we all start out as sinful. As David said in Psalm 51:5, “Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.”
Message from Marsh: “May your personal walk with the Lord lead you to be transformed, renewed, and blessed.”
Marsh
Founder/President
Thank you for coming to: mensgroup.org
Men and Matters of the Heart
LESSON 4 – The Wise Heart
The result of Humility and a Desire to Mature
(www.mensgroup.org – “Original Study”)
Lesson Focus: We will be investigating the benefits of and blessings to a person who maintains a wise heart.
“Blessing on you for desiring to be wise. May your journey into wisdom be full of knowledge, experience, insight, and be recognized as a gift from God.” – C. Marsh Bull.
Starting Prayer: Father, you want us to be wise, to live a life that is not broken down but built up. Help us to see the value of wisdom in our daily lives and decisions today.
Opening Questions:
1. Share several characteristics of the wisest person you have ever known personally.
2. Recently, when have you desired to make a wise decision and why?
Scripture Passage:
If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. (James 1:5)
Phrase Explanation:
To be identified as a wise person suggests that your high level of knowledge, depth of experience, and intuition have united with your skills and abilities. Like capabilities and skills acquired in warfare or in the leadership of a business, wise choices at the right moments protect you from missteps and give you confidence as you move forward. There is an even deeper source of wisdom that comes from God, it is His spiritual gift of wisdom.
Solomon, the son of King David and Bathsheba, was thrust into the position of king at a time of crisis brought about because Adonijah, David’s fourth son, had decided to declare himself the new king of Israel. But Bathsheba went to David and reminded him of his vow to make Solomon the next king. Immediately, David’s officials gathered, and Zadok, the priest, anointed Solomon with oil to be Israel’s next king.
When news of this reached Adonijah’s party, the guests quickly dispersed and Adonijah rushed to the sacred tent to take hold of the horns of the altar, to stop anyone from killing him. The story continues in 1 Kings 1 as Solomon’s reign begins.
Only in his teens, Solomon felt the heaviness of responsibility related to being King. One day during his worship and sacrifice at Gibeon, God graciously came to him in a dream and said, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you” (1 Kings 3:5b). What a great promise from God. Solomon could seemingly ask of God anything and have Him agree to it.
His reply is notable:
Now, Lord my God, you have made your servant king…But I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties…[over] a great people, too numerous to count...So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong.” (1 Kings 3:7-9)
The Lord was pleased and responded:
Since you have asked for this and not for long life or wealth for yourself, nor have asked for the death of your enemies but for discernment in administering justice, I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you nor will there ever be! (1 Kings 3:11-12)
Because of Solomon’s love for God and the humility in his request, God blessed him abundantly, and if he obeyed God’s decrees and commands, he was promised a long life.
Through his writing of Ecclesiastes, Solomon found a futile end to merely having human wisdom, which was meaningless and worthless (Ecclesiastes 2:9-11). But the rest of the wisdom literature Solomon wrote emphasized that God-given wisdom enables a person to lead a good, true, and satisfying life.
Several more blessings are identified as the benefit of a wise heart. It is tuned to God, receives a reputation for its understanding, its “gracious words promote instruction” (Proverbs 16:21), and it is humble in its willingness to learn, “the wise in heart accept commands…” (Proverbs 10:8a).
A wise heart is deep and wide, and has other elements that are necessary to obtain it. It is given by God to those who are humble, trustworthy, and desire to mature. It is precious, useful, and honoring to have godly wisdom.
Discussion Questions:
1. What do you think Solomon’s response to God revealed about him?
2. Put in your own words what you think is the difference between human wisdom and God-given wisdom.
3. What struck a chord with you in Solomon’s story?
Application:
1. How deep is your desire to have a wise heart? How would it help you?
2. What would be necessary to do if you received it?
3. What would you say to a young man who wanted to have wisdom?
Closing Prayer: Father, your word has revealed to us the importance of desiring and obtaining wisdom for our lives. Gives us the desire for a wise heart, one that loves You, obeys You, and knows the difference between truth and falsehood.
Suggested Additional Resources:
Similar or opposite verses: James 3:13-17; Proverbs 2:2-6, 9-11; Proverbs 16:23; Psalm 90:12; Proverbs 23:15; Proverbs 10:20; Psalm 5:9
Continue to Lesson 5 – The Steadfast Heart – Courageous, Resolute, Confident, Persistent, Fearless
Or use these links to navigate to various parts of this study:
Intro | Lesson 1 | Lesson 2 | Lesson 3 | Lesson 4 | Lesson 5 | Lesson 6
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