Tips for Teaching This Week’s Session of The Gospel Project for Adults

Listen to this week’s leader training podcast with Y Bonesteele, team leader for The Gospel Project for Adults, for a summary and guidance in leading your group.

This week’s additional resources for study and preparation:

• Commentary: “Commentary on 1 Kings 10” by Matthew Henry
• Sermon: “Solomon in All His Glory” by Austin Walker

Transcript of Leader Training Podcast:

Hi, this is Y Bonesteele, team leader of The Gospel Project for Adults. Welcome to another Leader Training Podcast. Today we are in Unit 12, Session 4, Share God’s Wisdom, with the core passage of 1 Kings 10:1-10, and the key concept of: Sharing God’s wisdom points people to Him.

We have been learning about Solomon’s wise decision to ask for wisdom and how God granted him wisdom above all others. This made him famous, not only in Israel but among other nations. This gets us to our passage today.

1 Kings 10:1, “The queen of Sheba heard about Solomon’s fame connected with the name of the Lord and came to test him with difficult questions.” What a great way to start the narrative. The queen of Sheba, possibly modern-day Ethiopia or Yemen, heard about Solomon’s fame. Somehow through traders or travelers or spies in foreign lands, she heard of Solomon’s fame, but not just any fame—his fame connected with the name of the Lord. Not a God-fearer herself, she was doubtful or just curious, curious enough to come to him to test him with difficult questions.

She, of course, was queen, so was going to come to Solomon with an entourage, coming with servants, spices, gold, and precious stones, meant to be gifts for Solomon. So this wasn’t a hostile confrontation. Seemed like the queen was really curious, and she “spoke to him about everything that was on her mind”—politics, leadership, family, life. She knew Solomon was wise so wanted to pick his brain to gain wisdom herself. Verse 3, “So Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was too difficult for the king to explain to her.” With his God-inspired wisdom, Solomon was able to answer all her questions.

How can you grow in your understanding of godly wisdom to help point others to Jesus? Solomon had an extra amount of wisdom from the Lord, but he also probably studied up on the wisdom of his time including Scripture. Of course, we can gather wisdom in a variety of areas, but godly wisdom comes from Scripture, God’s Word, and from the Holy Spirit as we walk in His ways.

And while the queen was with Solomon, she “observed” everything about Solomon, “all of Solomon’s wisdom, the palace he had built, the food at his table, his servants’ residence, his attendants’ service and their attire, his cupbearers, and the burnt offerings he offered at the Lord’s temple, it took her breath away.” In other words, she observed how he lived, how he led, what kind of leader he was, how he worshiped, who he worshiped. You never know who’s watching you. And if someone was, what would they say about your life. Would their breath be taken away, like the queen of Sheba’s? Would they respond in praise like she did? That what they heard about you, “about your words and about your wisdom is true,” as seen in verse 6? She expressed her initial doubts, but through her own witness, her own observation and testimony, she could positively say about Solomon, “Your wisdom and prosperity far exceed the report I heard.”

And what stood out to the queen of Sheba? Joy. The joy of the Lord stood out to her. Verse 8, “How happy are your men. How happy are these servants of yours, who always stand in your presence hearing your wisdom.” Solomon’s wisdom from the Lord resulted in joy from those around him, his men and servants. Those Solomon led were happy, meaning Solomon led righteously and fairly, with wisdom.

And because she saw the people Solomon led were happy, she praised the Lord, knowing and seeing how God had blessed Solomon and how God was the sovereign One who placed Solomon as king. She knew this was “because of the Lord’s eternal love for Israel.” How did she know this? She probably didn’t know much about the Lord of Israel before this trip. But through her conversations with Solomon and how he answered her questions, she had come to acknowledge God, learn of His Sovereignty, His love, and His purposes for His people.

This was an earlier question, but it fits here, “What are some ways you can incorporate the good news of Jesus in your everyday conversations?

Through simple acknowledgements of God’s work in our life, of how we’re trusting Christ to overcome a challenge, of what we’re learning at church or in small groups, some wisdom we learned through Scripture. There are so many ways we can incorporate small moments of the gospel into our everyday conversation. Not every conversation needs to have every element of the gospel. Little nuggets of truth from Scripture or how God is working in your life can go a long way in helping others learn about Christ and the good news of the gospel.

The queen of Sheba knew that the Lord had “made [Solomon] king to carry out justice and righteousness.” And she was so impressed by all that she saw and learned that she gifted Solomon with riches and luxuries, gold, precious stones, and spices of all kinds. The queen, like Solomon, had wealth beyond compare. But she also realized how important wisdom was as she saw it in Solomon’s life.

Why might we be tempted to prioritize wealth over the gift of God’s wisdom? Our society prioritizes wealth over wisdom so it’s easy to be tempted to do the same. Wealth is the standard we usually use for success so it’s hard to overcome that temptation when everyone and everything around us tells us that should be a priority. But godly wisdom is always better. Godly wisdom will give you the good life that God has prepared for you. Wealth can buy things, but wisdom brings life.

How has the Lord blessed you so that you can make the name of Jesus known in the world? Stories of blessings through overcoming challenges, illnesses, financial loss, or other obstacles, or stories of peace from God or growing in character are examples of what your group might share about.

The rest of the chapter, not in our core passage, shows the queen and Solomon exchanging gifts before she left, and Solomon used some of the gifts for the Lord’s temple and worship. We are thus reminded that sharing godly wisdom should lead to sharing about God. And by doing so, people may come to know the Lord, His character, His love, His purposes. This is ultimately seen in how our sharing about our lives should lead to sharing about Jesus Christ, the Son of God who came to save the world.

Moving to the Group Experience then, start with the icebreaker about influencers in our lives. Then move to the Context, pointing to the poster, Pack Item 3: The Kings of Kings, showing the kings of Israel that had gone before Solomon, and how each one had some good characteristics and some not-so-good characteristics. Solomon, though he worshiped idols, was given wisdom beyond compare. And he became very influential in his day throughout his kingdom and beyond.

Moving to the Recap, invite the group to outline the steps the queen of Sheba took before, during, and after her meeting with King Solomon, and record these on a board. You might write that: She “heard” of Solomon’s fame, and “came to test him.” She “came to Jerusalem” and came to Solomon and “spoke to him about everything that was on her mind.” She observed and watched everything going on. Then in evaluation, she blessed the Lord and acknowledged His work in Solomon’s life and gifted Solomon and went on her way.

Then encourage the group to outline the steps King Solomon took in response. After the queen’s questions, “Solomon answered all her questions” and explained everything to her. He let her observe his life and words which included sharing about God, His character and work. Our words should always have words that speak truth about the Lord. It probably came very natural to Solomon, especially as he spoke wisdom. True wisdom must include words about the Lord because He is the source of that wisdom.

On to the Group Activity: replicate the chart on page 149 of the Leader Guide on a board. Point your group to page 120 of the Personal Study Guide. Have someone read 1 Kings 10:1-7 aloud.  Form two  groups and go over the Contemplate instructions, asking what the queen of Sheba and Solomon might have thought about the other before setting up a meeting, as can be deduced from the passage. For example, before the meeting, the queen of Sheba had heard “about Solomon’s fame connected with the name of the Lord” from verse 1. She might have been doubtful about Solomon and his wisdom or merely curious. But she decided to go see for herself “to test him with difficult questions.” We know nothing of Solomon’s thoughts pre-meeting, but as she came with an entourage and gold and spices, he would’ve known that she was wealthy and prominent, and a leader in her own right. On the part about considering factors the queen may have processed before seeking out an audience with Solomon and the reasons Solomon might have agreed to the meeting, remind the group that they can conjecture out of imagination and curiosity, but know that Scripture says little on the matter. The queen may have wondered whether Solomon would take the meeting as she was a foreigner, as well as a woman. Thus, she came with an abundance of wealth to reveal her prominence. Solomon may have seen the wealth and have been impressed so he took the meeting, or he simply may have wanted to share the truth and wisdom of the Lord to her as she came with questions. We do not know his motives but either way, he spoke wisdom and truth to her.

Then when you ask, “How might you have seen these factors play a part in your own conversations with others?” answers may include: people may come and ask me questions about my faith, whether with curiosity or hostility but I can give them answers of truth based on the wisdom of Scripture and lead them to a knowledge of the Lord, specifically a knowledge of the salvation found in Jesus Christ. Their response is out of my control, but I can still speak truth. You will have varying answers.

Then have someone read 1 Kings 10:8-10. Add to their charts the positive outcomes for both the queen of Sheba and King Solomon, the post-meeting results. Answers are on the top of page 150 of the Leader Guide. Conclude with Ephesians 1:15-19, Paul’s prayer for the church in Ephesus, focusing on verse 17, praying over your group that God “would give [them] the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him.”

Debrief with: How did the queen’s understanding of God as the source of Solomon’s success result from their meeting? Through how Solomon answered all her questions and how he led and lived his life. By the way he answered, he revealed God, His character and His work to her.

When you influence or mentor someone else, how can you point them to the Lord as the source of your wisdom? By stating such, that you only have knowledge and wisdom through the Spirit, and by pointing them to Scripture where relevant, showing them that that is your source of truth.

Whenever you are solicited for advice, a reference, a donation, or hospitality, how can you use it as an opportunity to point someone to Christ? If you are living in the Spirit, you realize that everything good from you and for you and around you is from God and you already notice the little miracles that happen daily. You can tell you are growing and learning from the Lord. As you do so, sharing these stories can help point someone to Christ—how you deal with temptation, how you deal with finances, how you deal with marriage or parenting. Many of your successes will come from following the Lord and the failures are from not obeying the Lord. This is where you draw wisdom.

As you Summarize, point people to Pack Item 14: The Greater Solomon poster, remembering that Jesus’s wisdom is greater than Solomon’s wisdom. And in addition, Luke mentions the queen of Sheba to reveal how Gentiles, non-Jews, were invited to be part of God’s family. As we think about sharing wisdom, and specifically the wisdom of Christ, to others, we remember that all are invited into the kingdom if they trust in Christ as Lord. God shows no prejudice or favoritism and desires that all people of all nations would come to Him and find the wisdom found in Jesus.

Moving on, choose the Hands question if time is limited: What opportunities do you see ahead of you this week to share godly wisdom or have spiritual conversations with others? Your group will have varying answers. Maybe it will be a conversation with a neighbor, a coworker, a grocery clerk, a teacher, or coach. Daily we have so many opportunities to share godly wisdom.

Go through Next Steps if time permits, plus prayer requests and praises. And the Psalm for the session is Psalm 67, the Leader Guide mentions verses 1-2 but consider reading or praying through verses 1-4: “May God be gracious to us and bless us; may he make his face shine upon us; 2 so that your way may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations. 3 Let the peoples praise you, God; let all the peoples praise you. 4 Let the nations rejoice and shout for joy, for you judge the peoples with fairness and lead the nations on earth.”

Hey, thanks again for joining me on another leader training podcast. Write me at [email protected] and have a great group time!