Reputation Is Everything
Opening Prayer
God of life and new beginnings, You are the Creator of all that is, the Sustainer of my life. I bow in worship before You.
Read 1 KINGS 10:1-25
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Scripture taken from the THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, NIV Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Meditate
We need to keep our priorities in line with what God wants, not with what popular culture has to say!
Think Further
How do we decide whether or not a life is successful? I would like to say that I judge it by whether someone has made good relationships, constantly demonstrated love, integrity, truth and justice, and generally lived in a way pleasing to God. However, like everyone else, I sometimes catch myself seeing money, fame and worldly achievements as the key measures.
There is no doubt at all that Solomon had all these latter things. His knowledge and ability to answer difficult questions were renowned throughout the world. The level of his wealth was also legendary–hence the visit of the Queen of Sheba, herself a renowned leader of the time. On the surface this is simply an example of the extent of Solomon’s reputation, but it is interesting to see how the story works out. Yes, Solomon was remarkably intelligent and remarkably rich, but when the Queen of Sheba gave her flattering speech to Solomon, talking of how happy his people must be to have him as ruler, she was almost certainly aware that, as the text later reveals, many of his people were far from happy. Solomon, however, in spite of his intelligence, was not immune to flattery. He had perhaps come to believe his own press. It is notable in this instance that although the Queen of Sheba brought many gifts, she was the one who went away better off (13)!
Verses 23 to 29 reinforce the picture of Solomon’s reputation, but the writer almost certainly also had Deuteronomy 17 in mind, given the many links between Kings and Deuteronomy: “The king, moreover, …must not acquire great numbers of horses… He must not accumulate large amounts of silver and gold” (Deut. 17:16-17). The account is saying, “Was Solomon successful? Judge for yourselves.”
Apply
Think about what it is in your life that you are most proud of and compare that with what it is that you think God is most pleased with.
Closing prayer
Lord, I have been blessed with so much. I want to keep my eyes on You and live courageously for You, despite all that I have.
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