Manhood is a Mindset. J. Colin Trisler
God restored their fellowship.6
David walked closely with God in humility and wisdom, and Israel flourished under his leadership. When he grew old and died, his son Solomon succeeded him as the new king of Israel.
Solomon was young and inexperienced when God put him on the throne. By his own estimation, he was not ready to lead. He even went so far to describe himself as a little child who didn’t know if he was coming or going in life (1 Kgs 3:7). Ready or not, however, the throne was his. And the legacy of an entire nation now rested upon his fledgling shoulders. Needless to say, the inexperienced Solomon felt overwhelmed by the weight of his newfound responsibility.
The Bible tells us that “Solomon loved the LORD, walking in the statutes of his father David, except he sacrificed and burned incense on the high places” (1 Kgs 3:3)—meaning, in a very basic sense, that up to this point in his life, Solomon was inconsistent in his walk with God. He loved his Heavenly Father, and he followed in the wise footsteps of his earthly father. Yet Solomon had not committed himself to walking full-time in the wisdom of the Lord. His indecisiveness—his failure to take on the full responsibility of manhood—rocked his youthful spirit back and forth like a tiny paper boat struggling to stay upright in an angry sea of insecurity.
Reality, however, waits for no man; and like it or not, the throne was his responsibility. In that moment of high anxiety and self-doubt, reality forced Solomon to make a choice. Would he allow his insecurity to master him? Or would he man up and master his insecurity?
By this time, David, his earthly father, had died. But Solomon still had a Heavenly Father who recognized his dilemma. One night, God appeared to Solomon and offered his support.
“Ask what you wish me to give you,” was how God began the conversation (1 Kgs 3:5).
Solomon had a genuine heart for God. He loved the Lord because he had seen with his own eyes how loyal God was to his wise father, who had walked full-time in the principles of God’s wisdom. So Solomon took God up on his offer.
This was his prayer:
“You have shown great lovingkindness to Your servant David my father, according as he walked before You in truth and righteousness and uprightness of heart toward You; and You have reserved for him this great lovingkindness, that You have given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. Now, O LORD my God, You have made Your servant king in place of my father David, yet I am but a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in. Your servant is in the midst of Your people which You have chosen, a great people who are too many to be numbered or counted. . . . Give me now wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people, for who can rule this great people of Yours?” (1 Kgs 3:6–8; 2 Chr 1:10).
Notice that Solomon did not back down from his responsibility as the king. Nor did he look to abuse his newfound authority by asking God for worldly glory or tyrannical power. Instead he asked for something of real value. Something only God can give: true wisdom.
Solomon’s mature choice pleased God. And he responded to Solomon’s request in this way:
“Because you had this in mind,” God said, “and did not ask for riches, wealth or honor, or the life of those who hate you, nor have you even asked for long life, but you have asked for yourself wisdom and knowledge that you may rule My people over whom I have made you king, wisdom and knowledge have been granted to you . . . behold, I have done according to your words. Behold, I have given you a wise and discerning heart, so that there has been no one like you before you, nor shall one like you arise after you.” (2 Chr 1:11–12; 1 Kgs 3:12)
Solomon could have asked God for anything. But instead of wealth or fame or power, he asked for what he decided was his highest value: to know the ways of God’s wisdom in full.
When reality called on him to make a decision, Solomon put the wisdom equation into effect:
Knowledge. Solomon knew what he needed from God. Israel was God’s covenant people and he was their king. He was young and inexperienced, but the responsibility of the throne was his nonetheless and there was no getting around that. His firm grasp of these facts put his situation in context and informed his next move.
Morality. Solomon made the moral choice in asking for wisdom. He could have asked God for something easy and cheap. But he instead took the more responsible route. He sought the wisdom he needed to govern with justice and righteousness and integrity. Solomon pleased God with his maturity, when he proved his heart was virtuous like his father David.
Rationality. Solomon made the rational choice in asking for wisdom. Solomon was inexperienced and scared. But he refused to surrender to his fear. He stood strong and accepted his responsibility like a man. He allowed his mind to rise above his emotions, and he made a good choice when he decided that long-term wisdom, not some easy or shortsighted scheme, was the solution to his inexperience.
Skill. Solomon put his God-given gifts into action; and with God’s wisdom as his guide, he led Israel into a golden age of prosperity.
Notice, though, that Solomon didn’t face his challenges on his own. When reality forced him to make a choice, he turned to two reliable sources for support.
He looked up to God, his Heavenly Father, as the singular source of all that is right and true.
He also looked back on the godly example of his earthly father to see what wisdom looked like in real-world everyday life.
Solomon saw with his own eyes that David was a man who walked before God with integrity. He saw how God rewarded his father’s wisdom with great and faithful love (1 Kgs 3:6). He acquired the wisdom he needed to be a successful king by focusing his attention on both his Heavenly Father and his earthly father. He took what they taught him, all those things that are proven to be good and right, and governed his life by those truths day in and day out.
And he found great success along the way.
Solomon understood the insecurity that comes along with raw youth. But he also understood that God’s wisdom was the answer to solving the problems that inexperience and immaturity can bring about.
The truth never changes
Like Solomon, we all have a choice to make. In our daily decisions, we can choose to think long-term and act with wisdom. Or we can choose to pursue some short-sighted scheme and get tripped up by our own foolishness.
The reason foolishness continues to thrive in our world is because, as sinners, we would rather trade knowledge, morality, rationality, and skill for their opposites: ignorance, immorality, irrationality, and incompetence.
Even wise men like Solomon are not immune to the temptation to indulge in foolish behavior. As Israel’s king, Solomon developed a worldwide reputation for unparalleled wisdom. But later in his life, he shifted his focus away from God and lapsed into severe disobedience. This does not mean that he stopped loving God or that God stopped loving him. It means that Solomon made a series of bad choices that caused him to stumble in his personal life and in his relationship with God. He chose to reject God’s wisdom for the sake of sinful distractions; and for a time, he sought fulfillment in the pleasures and possessions of this world. But after he considered all his foolish behavior, he realized such empty pursuits were “vanity and striving after wind and there was no profit under the sun” (Eccl 2:11). Solomon knew well the rewards of wisdom. But he also experienced firsthand the painful consequences of folly.7
Before we pass too harsh of a judgment upon Solomon, however, let’s keep this fact in mind: The Bible tells us he was a wise man, not a perfect man. Since the beginning of time, the world has been full of people just like him: men who possess the capacity to be wise yet still choose to do foolish things. Even today, the wisest among us stumble over our own foolish choices because foolishness is easy. Acting like a fool requires no real effort. Living like a wise man, however, requires much effort. It demands self-control, rational sacrifice, and long-term thinking. The straight and upright path of wisdom is a challenging path to walk. But the wise man remains devoted to this way of life because he understands this simple fact: