In one region of Africa, the first converts to Christianity were very diligent about praying. In fact, the believers each had their own special place outside the village where they went to pray in solitude. The villagers reached these “prayer rooms” by using their own private footpaths through the brush. When grass began to grow over one of these trails, it was evident that the person to whom it belonged was not praying very much.

 

Because these new Christians were concerned for each other’s spiritual welfare, a unique custom sprang up. When ever anyone noticed an overgrown “prayer path,” he or she would go to the person and lovingly warn, “Friend, there’s grass on your path!”

 

Let me ask you today, “Friend, is there grass on your path?”

 

Do you pray?

 

J.C. Ryle simply states a basic truth, “I ask you again whether you pray, because a habit of prayer is one of the surest marks of a true Christian” {A Call to Prayer, 5}.

 

Do you pray? Let his statement ring in your ears today. If he is correct, and I believe he is, then look at your life today: do you pray? If a habit of praying is the litmus test for a true Christian, are you one?

 

Now, let’s not get too discouraged. There is hope. I hope we see that hope in this passage today.

 

So whether you pray consistently or not, I do know that when you pray, it easy to pray for your own needs. We don’t need instruction on how to pray for our own needs, interests, etc.

 

What we need is instruction on how to pray kingdom-centered prayers. Praying for yourself is easy. Praying to see the kingdom extended in your life can be difficult.

 

My hope is that by the end of this exposition, you’ll be encouraged and renewed to pray so that you get to walking on your “prayer path” again and start getting rid of the grass on your path.

 

Today we’ll be instructed in the art of prayer. Solomon is going to show us that-

 

KINGDOM-CENTERED PRAYERS BRING PLEASURE TO THE LORD. LOOK AT VERSES 5-10…

 

At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night, and God said, “Ask what I shall give you.” And Solomon said, “You have shown great and steadfast love to your servant David my father, because he walked before you in faithfulness, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart toward you. And you have kept for him this great and steadfast love and have given him a son to sit on his throne this day. And now, O Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of David my father, although I am but a little child. I do not know how to go out or come in. And your servant is in the midst of your people whom you have chosen, a great people, too many to be numbered or counted for multitude. Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, that I may discern between good and evil, for who is able to govern this your great people?” It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this.

 

If you remember from last week’s exposition, we observed that Solomon had repeatedly offered 1,000+ burnt offerings to the Lord at Gibeon. The Mosaic tabernacle was located at the high place in Gibeon, while the ark of the covenant was located inside a tent in Jerusalem.

 

Solomon had repeatedly offered burnt offerings, which symbolized his total sinfulness and complete surrender to God. We saw 3x in Leviticus 1 that the burnt offering was “a pleasing aroma to the Lord.” So Solomon has been pleasing the Lord. That’s why Yahweh appears to Solomon at Gibeon in a dream in today’s text. Solomon has been pleasing the Lord with his wholehearted, extravagant devotion.

 

And we read in verse 5 that Yahweh appeared to Solomon and basically gave him a blank check: “Ask what I shall give you.”

 

We would do well to learn some important aspects about prayer from this passage. In fact, that could be one of themes of this chapter. 8x the verb sa’al  {“to ask”} appears in this passage: vv. 5, 10, 11 (5x), 13. In addition, verse 10 states that Yahweh was pleased that Solomon “asked” for wisdom. So this theme emerges: KINGDOM-CENTERED PRAYERS BRING PLEASURE TO THE LORD.

 

If kingdom-centered prayers bring pleasure to the Lord, how might we get motivated to pray this way? If you’re like me, sometimes prayer can be difficult. Yes, I love to pray, but sometimes my passion level for prayer is low, to say the least. How can we get excited about prayer? How can we pray in such a way that God gets excited about/gets pleasure from what we pray for?

 

Those are 2 important questions that we’ll answer today.

 

QUESTION #1: How can we get excited about prayer?

 

1} Dwell on God’s generosity.

 

If there is anything that should stoke the fires of our passion for prayer, it should be the generosity of God. The fact that we are addressing a gracious God should stir us up. It did Solomon- LOOK AT VERSE 6…

 

And Solomon said, “You have shown great and steadfast love to your servant David my father, because he walked before you in faithfulness, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart toward you.

 

Solomon knows that Yahweh had been good to his father David. We could stop here and expand that truth that Solomon had to have heard of Yahweh’s goodness from his father and ask ourselves as parents, “Are we teaching our children about the goodness of God? Are we teaching them about his attributes?”

 

Or, are we telling others about how God has intervened in our lives here at CBC? That’s part of the reason why we started our Blend Sunday school class, to get us talking about the Lord, His Word, and what He’s doing in our lives.

 

Solomon knows that Yahweh is a good and gracious God because he heard and witnessed this in the life of his father David, as David walked before Yahweh in faithfulness, righteousness, and uprightness of heart.

 

In fact, Solomon himself knows how Yahweh has intervened in his life to establish his kingdom {see 1 Kings 1-2}. He’s seen first hand God’s goodness.

 

Interestingly, Solomon uses one of the most theologically-packed Hebrew words here: hesed {“steadfast love”}. If you remember from our exposition in Ruth, we saw this word pop up time and again. Hesed is the Lord’s covenant loyal love. “It is the love of God that commits him to a relationship or course of action to which he has pledged himself by covenant” {Eugene Merrill, Everlasting Dominion: A Theology of the Old Testament, p.67}.

 

Scripture repeatedly states that the Lord abounds in hesed:

 

Numbers 14:18

The Lord is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, forgiving iniquity and transgression…

 

Jonah 4:2

for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster.

 

Joel 2:13

Return to the Lord your God,
for he is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love;
and he relents over disaster.

 

Nehemiah 9:17

They refused to obey and were not mindful of the wonders that you performed among them, but they stiffened their neck and appointed a leader to return to their slavery in Egypt. But you are a God ready to forgive, gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and did not forsake them.

 

And more commonly it says that His “hesed endures forever” {see Psalm 106:1; 107:1; 118:1-4; 2^nd Chronicles 5:13; 7:3, 6; 20:21}.

 

In fact, the last refrain of each of the 26 verses in Psalm 136 ends with, “for His steadfast love {hesed} endures forever.”

 

And for believers in Jesus Christ who have been justified by His blood, we know that the Lord has committed Himself to this relationship we have with Him!

 

That truth should stir us up! Do you believe it? That through Christ, God has pledged Himself in covenant loyal love to you?

 

Dwell on God’s generosity to you through the cross and let that truth springboard you into praise and prayer.

 

Practically, it looks like this {I’m just copying Solomon here}:

 

“Lord, thank You that You are a gracious God, slow to anger and abounding and overflowing with this loyal covenant love. I know I don’t deserve it. But because of Jesus Christ, I come to You now in faith because You have pledged Yourself to this relationship. I don’t rely on my feelings, but Your character as revealed in Your Word. You are gracious. You are good. I trust in that. And because of that, I now pray for/about…”

 

When you are in the slumps about prayer, begin by dwelling on His goodness and grace and it will lift you up!

 

The second way that we can get excited about prayer is to-

 

2} Dwell on God’s faithfulness.

 

Where does Solomon start? Not with his present situation, nor his future, but by going to the past. He rehearses God’s faithfulness. In fact, he begins in Hebrew with “You,” emphasizing the Lord. “You have kept Your promises, Lord, to my father David by giving him a son to sit on his throne.”

 

Solomon is praising Yahweh for his faithfulness and dependability in the past. Ralph Davis says, “That is proper in itself- God should be so praised. But it is also useful for the pray-er, for as we praise in prayer we are encouraged in petition, for we realize as we rehearse Yahweh’s record that we are coming to a faithful God. Praise then becomes the basis of confidence” {The Wisdom and the Folly, p.36}.

 

Or, as I once heard an old preacher say, “Praise is the plow that prepares the heart for the planting of the promises.”

 

It is as we rehearse God’s faithfulness in prayer that we are encouraged to pray with more passion, conviction, and trust!

 

Dwell on God’s generosity. Dwell on God’s faithfulness.

 

If you pray by dwelling on His generosity and faithfulness, you’ll pray kingdom-centered prayers. And-

 

KINGDOM-CENTERED PRAYERS BRING PLEASURE TO THE LORD.

 

Why? Because they highlight His goodness, His character, His glory.

 

What else should drive us to prayer? What else ought to make us run to the generous, faithful God?

 

3} Dwell on your weakness/inability.

 

As Solomon rehearses the Lord’s faithfulness to his father David, it begins to dawn on him: “I am the king of the nation and I represent the Lord.” What does that thought then produce in Solomon? Awareness of his own weakness and inability. LOOK AT VERSES 7-8a…

 

And now, O Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of David my father, although I am but a little child. I do not know how to go out or come in. And your servant is in the midst of your people whom you have chosen, a great people, too many to be numbered or counted for multitude.  

 

The task before him is too great to pull off by himself. Solomon knows that there are too many people in Israel for him to be accountable for. How does he describe himself? “…I am but a little child. I do not know how to go out or come in…”

 

Solomon does not mean that he’s a 5^th grader wearing Toughskin Jeans and a Dukes of Hazzard tin lunchbox. He was probably in his late teens or early twenties. What he means is that he lacks experience in leadership and the responsibility before him is great. Therefore, he cries out to God.

 

But before we move on, we must realize that this was a test from the Lord. Solomon was given a blank check by the Lord. Those commentators who want to throw Solomon under the bus forget that his heart was revealed here.

 

Ronald Wallace notes, “It was a severe test. It was put to Solomon in abrupt suddenness with no prior hint that it was to be given. The answer was demanded there without meditation or attempt at dress rehearsal—no cover up of what was there in the heart! It is significant, too, that it was put under dream conditions, away from the inhibitions and conventions of the surrounding world that so often keep us from being or revealing our true selves” {Readings in 1 Kings, p.24-25}.

 

Solomon’s heart was revealed. He knows he is weak and unable to lead the people and that truth forms his request to the Lord.

 

As Simon J. DeVries says, “Our requests reveal what sort of person’s we are” {1^st Kings, WBC, p.55}.

 

What do you pray for? What are the primary requests that you bring to the Lord? A life of ease? Free from suffering and hardship? Where are your prayers centered?

 

Solomon instructs us in the art of praying kingdom-centered prayers which please the Lord.

 

What does Solomon pray for? LOOK AT VERSE 9…

 

“Give your servant therefore an understanding mind…”

 

The Hebrew is, “Give your servant a hearing heart…” Solomon’s heart revealed he needed a new heart! The Old Testament idea of the heart was not just the emotions. It contained the intellect, affections, and will. So Solomon is not asking for a “touchy-feely heart” because he was trying to get in touch with his feminine side. He is asking God for a hearing or understanding heart in order to rule God’s people. He needs wisdom!

 

Solomon is saying, “I’m dumb! King Dumb needs Kingdom Wisdom!”

 

ILLUSTRATION: Dr. Paul Tripp, who teaches and has taught at various seminaries tells a story of one of his family episodes when his children were younger. One of his boys was playing baseball by hitting rocks with a rake handle. It wasn’t too long before the younger brother, age 3, had stumbled across the path of one of those “rock baseballs.” Smack, right into his little forehead the rock went. Blood began to pour out. Paul began wiping away the blood to see how bad the damage was. Darnay just sat there calmly and quietly and had a strange peace about him. Paul could see his son’s lips moving, so he got down close enough to hear what he was saying. He heard him saying over and over, “I’m just so glad my daddy is a doctor!” The boy knew his dad had a “Dr.” in front of his name and often had appointments with people. But Ph.D’s in theology aren’t much use when your head is gushing blood. Darnay had no idea of his dad’s limitations.

 

Solomon on the other hand knows his limitations. He’s a dumb kid who desperately needs Yahweh’s wisdom. That’s why he prays for wisdom to lead God’s people.

 

When you take Jesus’ words to heart from John 15:5, “…for apart from me you can do nothing,” then you’ll begin praying kingdom-centered prayers!

 

Solomon shows us that-

KINGDOM-CENTERED PRAYERS BRING PLEASURE TO THE LORD.

 

His heart springs forth in a request for the good of the kingdom and the glory of Yahweh. That is what drives his prayer. LOOK AT VERSES 8-9…

 

And your servant is in the midst of your people whom you have chosen, a great people, too many to be numbered or counted for multitude. Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, that I may discern between good and evil, for who is able to govern this your great people?”

 

Kingdom-centered prayers that please the Lord are focused on the good of other people and God’s glory. Let’s unpack each of these:

 

1} Praying for the good of others.

 

Isn’t  it staggering that as the blank check is offered to Solomon from the Lord his mind goes to the people under His care? What is driving Solomon’s prayer? The good of the people!

 

We ought to camp out here. Solomon is not praying for what will enhance his life. He’s praying for what will help the people of God!

 

Not how he will succeed as king, not his success ratings, but what will profit the people of God; what will extend the kingdom.

 

Take a moment sometime and do an inventory of your prayers. Are they just self-centered or do they give evidence of a passion for the gospel and the kingdom of God?

 

Praying for the good of others brings glory to God because it grounds the power of the prayer in God as the source or answer to the need. He is mightily glorified when we pray to Him as the true source!

 

Kingdom-centered prayers also focus on God’s glory-

 

2} Praying for God’s glory.

 

Notice how God-centered Solomon is in his prayer:

 

*your servant David {v.6}

*your servant king {v.7}

*your servant…your people {v.8}

*your servant…your people…your great people {v.9}

 

Who’s getting the glory in this prayer? The Lord! David and Solomon were His servants. The nation of Israel were His people.

 

The focus of the prayer was the Lord.

 

Now, perhaps the most shocking verse is verse 10:

 

It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this.

 

What a thought! We can please the LORD! We saw this last week that our wholehearted, extravagant devotion pleases the Lord.

 

And now we see that these kingdom-centered prayers bring pleasure to the LORD. Simply amazing that we can bring pleasure to the Lord by how and what we pray for!

 

Proverbs 15:8

The prayer of the upright pleases him.

 

Literally it’s, “The prayer of the upright is His pleasure.”

 

That brings us to the whole goal of our praying: to please Yahweh. In fact, that should be the whole goal of why we do everything here. To see our God get pleasure out of what we do, how we live, etc.

 

Oh, the debates happen. Praise choruses vs. hymns, drums vs. no drums, red carpet vs. blue carpet, Pizza Paisan vs. Pizza Hut for Wednesday night meal, etc.

 

When we fight over these things, when we leave a church because there aren’t enough hymns or because the preaching is too long, or because we don’t have a ministry for a specific age group, etc, etc we have lost the goal of what we are to do: to bring pleasure to God.

 

But what do churches do today? Cater to felt needs. I don’t give a rip about felt needs. I agree with John Piper, preach needs and make people feel it. You desperately need God, do you feel it! That’s preaching felt needs!

 

But we cater to the worshipper, I mean, consumer. Wrong!

 

The goal of worship is to please God! To bring Him pleasure! The goal of everything we do is to make God happy, to bring Him pleasure…NOT YOU!

 

And when our prayers are centered on God’s people, God’s kingdom, God’s glory, then He is pleased. Only then we can experience joy in Him!

 

KINGDOM-CENTERED PRAYERS BRING PLEASURE TO THE LORD.

 

And we see this truth exemplified in the rest of the chapter. LOOK AT VERSE 11-28…

 

READ 1^ST KINGS 3:11-28…

 

The Lord gives evidence of His pleasure in Solomon’s kingdom-centered prayers by granting his request. Solomon then returns to Jerusalem where he offers more sacrifices to the Lord.

 

Then we see evidence of the wisdom, the “hearing heart,” that Solomon asked for when these 2 prostitutes appeared before him. The Lord gave him wisdom to discern who was the real mother.

 

Solomon called for a sword and was going to cut the baby in half. When the real mother was willing to give up her baby, Solomon knew who the real mother was. This was evidence of the wisdom that God had given Solomon.

 

This is a famous story but let’s not lose the God-centeredness of it. Remember, Solomon asked for wisdom to govern the Lord’s people. Now 2 prostitutes {!!} have experienced the wisdom given by Yahweh to Solomon.

 

But notice how verse 28 points out that the nation heard of the judgment made with these 2 women:

 

And all Israel heard of the judgment that the king had rendered, and they stood in awe of the king, because they had perceived that the wisdom of God was in him to do justice.

 

Don’t miss the point: the nation perceived that the wisdom was from God. Solomon had prayed for wisdom from God for God’s people, so who gets the glory? God!

 

1^st Peter 4:12

“…whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ…”

 

When you pray, pray for God’s people, God’s kingdom, God’s pleasure, God’s glory.

 

Let me ask you again the question that I asked you at the beginning, “Friend, is there grass on your path?”

 

If so, remember that-

KINGDOM-CENTERED PRAYERS BRING PLEASURE TO THE LORD.

Let’s become a church by God’s grace that never has grass on its prayer path.

 

Let’s collectively pray now in such a way that we give God pleasure…