A New King
Kings 3:5-15
God appears to Solomon…In a dream. This sounds like the Holy Spirit. God asks Solomon, “What can I give you?”
Solomon is a new king, a new leader, a leader facing difficult challenges. However, he is not a brand-new king. He has already proven that he can handle difficult situations. He has navigated through the early “storms” of his reign. Solomon has already had challenges to his kingdom: Most notably his brother trying to steal power. Solomon knew there would be challenges to assuming leadership following his father David and yet he accepted the throne. He listened to the counsel and encouragement of his father during this transition of power. He heard David’s reminders of the known tests coming from Shimei and Joab. He heard the words that even a king must love to hear from his father, “you’re wise, you’ll know what to do, you know how to handle these things.” He was wise enough to know that he had to deal with his scheming and usurping brother Adonijah. Solomon even exhibits enough savvy to know when to break from David’s way when Shimei disobeys his boundaries. In all these tests the new King dealt swiftly, but also with grace toward these enemies. Solomon has enough experience to know what leadership will entail. He has enough time on the throne to know what he doesn’t know.
When God appears in Solomon’s dream, he recognizes that he has much to learn. Solomon knows, although he has met with early success, he is young and inexperienced. When God offers gifts, Solomon doesn’t ask for riches, nor security, but rather he asks for wisdom. He prays for discernment. His one request, to the Holy Spirt in the dream: Give me senses to perceive people in the way God knows His people. Solomon is wise enough to see that in spite of his success he needs the wisdom and the heart of God to sustainably lead the people of his kingdom.
I remember that Disney used to teach their employees a 4-step line of growth in their Disney employment. The growth began with step one, Unconsciously Incompetent. Step two was growing to be conscious of your own incompetence. Step three being Consciously Competent. And finally, a good Disney employee might move into a state of being so good at what they do that they can perform well without even thinking about their actions: Unconsciously Competent. Solomon has clearly moved through step one and is consciously aware of his competence AND areas of incompetence. A healthy place for any new leader after the heart of God. He knows what he doesn’t know.