II Chronicles 9:8 Blessed be the LORD thy God, which delighted in thee to set thee on his throne, to be king for the LORD thy God: because thy God loved Israel, to establish them for ever, therefore made he thee king over them to do judgment and justice
Have you ever seen, heard, or experienced something where you thought to yourself, “I would never have believed this if I hadn’t seen or heard it myself”? Oftentimes I have had those experiences, things I have never seen or heard before or maybe I have heard about, but not have seen for myself. This week I am the beautiful Southwest. I am surrounded by mountains, saguaro cacti, and a beautiful sky. Each morning the sun comes up behind a mountain and casts an aura around it. It is gorgeous. A lot of people have only seen this country in westerns but have never seen it in person. It feels, smells, and looks different. In some sense, unless you have been here, you would never believe it.
Earlier this year I was privileged to be in a church in Maine. I was there when the leaves were beginning to change colors. It was beautiful. Maybe you have seen that on a calendar before but have never experienced it. We have also been in Florida and the Midwest, and each of these places have unique vibes of what God has created there. So, if you have only been in one part of the country or world, it is hard to imagine other parts of the country or world.
In II Chronicles 9 there was a woman, the queen of Sheba, who had heard about a place, and more importantly had heard about a person, and even more importantly had heard about a God who was behind it all. When she finally experienced all of this, she came to the conclusion, “I never would have believed it if I hadn’t seen it.
The Bible says, “And when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon, she came to prove Solomon with hard questions at Jerusalem.” She brought a lot of gifts and a grand entourage. You see a progression here. First, you see the testimony of Solomon. She had heard, and what she had heard was from afar, across a vast distance. She had heard the testimony of Solomon.
Then, there was a skepticism of the queen herself. The Bible says she came to prove Solomon with hard questions. After she had done so and Solomon proved to be what she had heard, she said “Howbeit I believed not their words, until I came, and mine eyes had seen it: and, behold, the one half of the greatness of thy wisdom was not told me: for thou exceedest the fame that I heard.”
A lot of times people are skeptical. They are skeptical of the Word of God and the God of the Word. Sometimes it is not a matter of winning an argument, it is the matter of winning a person. I recently talked to a brother who has pastored in various places. He told me about a gentleman who had been without Christ, and those who knew him said, “He is never going to come to Christ. He is not interested at all.” He wasn’t interested, so the instinct was to try to win an argument as if the problem was logical or theological. This pastor just befriended the man, showed him kindness and the love of the Lord Jesus, which doesn’t come naturally to us. Because it wasn’t the pastor, but the Lord Jesus through the pastor, that skepticism melted and the man came to Christ as did his family. What a wonderful story!
So, the queen of Sheba heard the testimony, felt skepticism, and then when she had experienced the wisdom of God through Solomon, she gave credit to God. That is an amazing thing. Summing up all the wealth and wisdom of Solomon she said, “Blessed be the LORD thy God, which delighted in thee to set thee on his throne, to be king for the LORD thy God: because thy God loves Israel.” She praised God not Solomon. Here is Solomon, a man whose wisdom, wealth, and kingdom came from God, and therefore when people saw the magnificence of Solomon, they saw the magnificence of God.
What about you? What does your life show of God? Your life is a reflection of the God you serve. It is not about you. It is so easy to think, “I’m gifted” or “I’m needy” or to wonder about your circumstances, but it is not about you. Our testimony can either be a cause to bless or blaspheme the God of Israel and the world.
Titus 2 teaches that the elder woman should teach the younger woman to be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, and obedient to their own husbands. Why? It is so that God’s Word be not blasphemed. In other words, my behavior reflects on my God.
Verse 8 says to the young men, “Sound speech, that cannot be condemned; that he that is of the contrary part may be ashamed, having no evil thing to say of you.” People may not like your dogmatism, doctrine, or even you, but they ought not be turned away from the Lord Jesus because of a life that is inconsistent or cantankerous. No, he that is of the contrary part should come to shame at what he holds to be true and realize there is a God and He is living through you.
Verse 10, exhorting servants and us, says, “Not purloining [petty theft], but shewing all good fidelity [faithfulness]; that they may adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour in all things.” In other words, I can literally beautify the doctrine or truth of an infinite God by the finite life that I live.
So, your life is a reflection of the God you serve. May God give you the grace to have a testimony to win the skeptical and give credit to God. Blessed be the Lord God and may that be said of your life today.