JIMMETS – SOLOMON AND JESUS

Time with Jesus - Wednesday, 22 August 2012

Hi all,

There are three Jimmets this morning. The focus is on Solomon and Jesus. Solomon failed because of his 700 wives and 300 concubines. They led him astray. Jesus succeeded spectacularly. We look at this through the eyes of Isaiah and then of Paul to the Philippians.

Blessings

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – Wednesday, 22 August 2012			Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give
©	These devotionals are the intellectual property of Jim Strickland and copyright protected. You are welcome to copy and distribute them to anyone provided it is for non-commercial Christian purposes					©
	INTRODUCTION		DAILY LIGHT EVENING SCRIPTURES	JIMMETS – SOLOMON AND JESUS
Writing Jimmets is great fun. Today, all three are connected. The first is about King Solomon’s sad failure. The next two about King Jesus’ success Whenever I think about King Solomon, I think about a man whom God blessed with wisdom, wealth and power. A man of whom it was said that he was the wisest man who ever lived. There is no doubt that in the early days of His reign, this was true. And yet there is a most unusual statement in the first book of Kings: 1 Solomon made an alliance with Pharaoh king of Egypt and married his daughter. He brought her to the City of David until he finished building his palace and the temple of the LORD, and the wall around Jerusalem. 1 Kings 3:1 TNIV The strangest thing about this statement is that it took place before he had had the dream in Gibeon in which God promised him wisdom, a long life and great prosperity. (1 Kings 3:5-14) We cannot say for certain that the two stories were consecutive. In other words, it may be that the marriage to Pharaoh’s daughter took place before or after his encounter with God in that dream. But if we may rely on the sequence of the two Scriptural events, it seems that Solomon was in a great hurry to get married and cement an alliance with Egypt. It also introduces to us the great failing in his life. Women! We are told 3 He had 700 wives of royal birth and 300 concubines. And in fact, they did turn his heart away from the LORD. 1 Kings 11:3 NLT For what it’s worth, any man who has that many wives and concubines demonstrates a great lack of wisdom. If he saw only one wife/concubine per day, it would be 2.7 years before he had “done the rounds” That’s not wisdom. That’s madness! Furthermore, how do you marry 700 wives? There must surely have been several “mass” weddings? The second Jimmet deals with Isaiah’s great prophecy of the coming Messiah. Notice the way this prophetic word is introduced. “For unto us a child is born. Unto us a Son is given. It seems clear that this is the same person. But let’s look at these words a little closer. “A child is born”. Here we see the humanity of the coming child. A baby will be born physically by his mother in the normal way. He would look 100% human. Indeed, it was essential that He be fully human. So we have a fully human baby boy. The next few words tell us something different. A Son would be given. Only a father can “give” a son. There is only one way this could “fit”. The “given Son” would have to be the Son of God! So here we see Jesus’ divinity. He was 100% Divine. In other words, Isaiah was telling the people that a child would be born who was 100% human and 100% divine. This accounts for the many titles we read in the rest of the verse. To me, “Wonderful Counsellor” speaks of a man with extraordinary ability. Someone who is fully man. But he is also, “The Mighty God”. In other words fully Divine and fully human at the same time. The description fits Jesus perfectly I still wonder what was in Isaiah’s mind when this was prophesied. 2 Peter 1:21 describes the “process”. The final Jimmet speaks of Jesus’ life of obedience to His Father. How He put aside His Divinity so He could be our sacrificial offering on Calvary’s cross. To me this is one of the greatest of all the miracles. That God could come and give His life for me while I was still a sinner. That’s mind-blowing! Jim & Phyllida Strickland			29 God gave Solomon wisdom--the deepest of understanding and the largest of hearts. There was nothing beyond him, nothing he couldn't handle. 1 Kings 4:29 MSG 42 The queen of Sheba will also stand up against this generation on judgment day and condemn it, for she came from a distant land to hear the wisdom of Solomon. Now someone greater than Solomon is here--but you refuse to listen. Matthew 12:42 NLT 6 A child will be born to us. A son will be given to us. He will rule over us. And he will be called Wonderful Adviser and Mighty God. He will also be called Father Who Lives Forever and (The) Prince Who Brings Peace. Isaiah 9:6 NIrV 7 Finding someone who would die for a godly person is rare. Maybe someone would have the courage to die for a good person. 8 Christ died for us while we were still sinners. This demonstrates God's love for us. Romans 5:7-8 GW 6 Though He was God, He did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. 7 Instead, He gave up His divine privileges; He took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When He appeared in human form, 8 He humbled Himself in obedience to God and died a criminal's death on a cross. Philippians 2:6-8 NLT 19 May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. Ephesians 3:19 NLT 24 But to us who are personally called by God himself--both Jews and Greeks--Christ is God's ultimate miracle and wisdom all wrapped up in one. 1 Corinthians 1:24 MSG 3 All the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden in him. Colossians 2:3 NIrV 8 Though I am the least deserving of all God's people, He graciously gave me the privilege of telling the Gentiles about the endless treasures available to them in Christ. Ephesians 3:8 NLT 30 It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God--that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. 1 Corinthians 1:30 TNIV	1 Kings 4:29 He could have asked for money or for fame.            Instead, he asked for wisdom and to rule His people,. such that he would get a name, For fairness; not another wealthy fool. God was very pleased with his request. So He gave him wisdom, power and wealth. A promise that he always would be blessed. And kept in a fitting state of health! Solomon the king was soon well-known, For justice and for always being fair. God gave wisdom and a peaceful throne. Soon his fame was spread out everywhere. He destroyed it with too many wives; And the gods they served throughout their lives. Isaiah 9:6 Isaiah spoke about the coming King.                       A Child who would be born for everyone. A Son be given to us Who would bring, That which man desires to look upon. A Wonderful Adviser from the Lord; The Mighty God, who lives forevermore. The Prince of Peace, who’d rule without a sword! For He is Whom the Father had in store. To think that mortal man could be this way. I wonder what was in Isaiah’s head. Did he know that Jesus Christ one day, Would fulfil the words which he had said? But two Peter one verse twenty-one Shows how Holy men were moved along. Philippians 2:6-8 Jesus didn’t think equality                                        With God, was that on which He had to cling. He gave up His pure Divinity, So that, to the people, He could bring,  Full salvation. As a humble slave, He appeared when taking human form. You would think that He would rather crave, Living with His Father.  That’s His norm. But, in His obedience to God, He would come and die upon the tree. We may look at this as something odd; But He did it for humanity. No one else could pay the cost of sin. Give His life so we may be with Him. Jim Strickland – Written 21st August 2012