June 8, 2010 The Glory of Wisdom and Counsel

Today, the glory of God shines forth in two awesome examples of the how the Holy Spirit manifests Himself as wisdom, understanding and counsel (see Isaiah 11:2)-- King Solomon and Stephen.  I never would have thought to connect them, but there it was.  I hesitated to even mention it for fear of it being too obvious.  But then, the glory of God is obvious each and every day when then sun rises and we think our first thought-- but plenty of people manage to miss it.  It's always in good taste to magnify the Lord!

I'm not going to write a big essay on these two, because I think you're intelligent enough to see what I'm talking about.  I'll simply refer you to a few verses to get you started on your own study.  God honored Solomon's request for "understanding to discern justice, behold, I have done according to your words; see, I have given you a wise and understanding heart." 1 Kings 3:12.  "And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had rendered; and they feared the king, for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him to administer justice." 1 Kings 3:28

The Apostles told the people to chose deacons from "men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom." Acts 6:3.  "And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and signs among the people." Acts 6:8  (Notice that Stephen was not one of the Twelve, yet he did signs and wonders).  When he was taken before the council for his "blasphemy", they saw his face shining with the glory!  What was the glory?  The Spirit of God!

In the next few days, when you read about Stephen, look to see how the same Spirit of discernment was working in him as in Solomon when the king judged a case.  Why did he get a different reaction from the same people than did Solomon? How does Solomon's heart for the nation compare to Stephen's?  What does this tell us about the prerequisites for making righteous judgments?

There is great glory in wisdom and discernment!  I want those-- don't you? We can't be sure what kind of outcome we'll have when we function in the Spirit of wisdom and counsel, but I believe it is a great need, not only in our daily lives, but for the nations we represent.  Whatever the turn of events, we can be assured that God's glory will rest on the one who serves Him with faith, love, and humility enough to give His timely counsel with razor sharp clarity of discernment and wisdom.  We could even end up glowing like Stephen did!