Sermon Tone Analysis

* A Cry for Discernment (1 Kings 3)*

 

In /Fool’s Gold, /John MacArthur writes a fitting introduction to the subject of discernment we’re going to look at today.

It’s very fitting based on where we live here, near where *gold* was discovered in the 1840’s.

We live in what’s called “*gold* country” as you see on signs of businesses around here.

The name of our church is *Gold* Country Baptist Church.

And the Scriptures often use the analogy of *gold* in comparison to spiritual truth, and we should take advantage of these reminders in our community of the spiritually valuable subject we’re looking at today.

The first chapter of the book /Fool’s Gold /begins with the title “All that glitters … A Call for Biblical Discernment.”

It points out that not everything that looks like gold is of real lasting value, and that principle is true with spiritual hype and fads and trends as well:

 

‘for James Marshall (who discovered gold at Sutter’s Mill

in 1848) and [others] … “eureka” meant instant riches, early retirement,

and a life of carefree ease.

It’s no wonder California (the “*Golden*

State”) includes this term on its official seal, along with the picture of

a zealous *gold* miner.

News of Marshall’s discovery spread quickly throughout the

nation.

By 1850 over 75,000 hopefuls had traveled to California by

land, and another 40,000 by sea.

Whether by wagon or by boat, the

journey was an arduous one, as adventurers left friends and family

behind in search of vast fortunes.

Even when they finally arrived in

San Francisco, the closest goldfields were still 150 miles away.

Undaunted nonetheless, many of the forty-niners set up mining

camps and started to dig.

As they traveled out to their various destinations, prospectors

quickly learned that not everything that looked like gold actually was.

Riverbeds and rock quarries could be full of golden specks, and yet

entirely worthless.

This “fool’s gold” was iron pyrite, and miners had

to be able to distinguish it from the real thing.

Their very livelihood

depended on it.

Experienced miners could usually distinguish pyrite from gold

simply by looking at it.

But in some cases the distinction was not quite

so clear.

So they developed tests to discern what was genuine from

what wasn’t.

One test involved biting the rock in question.

Real gold

is softer than the human tooth, while fool’s gold is harder.

A broken

tooth meant that a prospector needed to keep digging.

A second test

involved scraping the rock on a piece of white stone, such as ceramic.

True gold leaves a yellow streak, while the residue left by fool’s gold

is greenish-black.

In either case, a miner relied on tests to authenticate

his finds—both his fortune and his future depended on the results.

Doctrinally speaking, today’s church is in a similar position to the

California gold rushers of 1850.

Spiritual riches are promised at

every turn.

New programs, new philosophies, new parachurch ministries

—each glitters a little bit more than the last, promising better

results and bigger returns.

But, as was true in the mid-1800s, just

because it glitters doesn’t mean it’s good.

Christians need to be

equally wary of “fool’s gold.”

We must not accept new trends (or old

traditions) without first testing them to see if they meet with God’s

approval.

If they fail the test, we should discard them and warn others

also.

But if they pass the test, in keeping with the truth of God’s

Word, we can embrace and endorse them wholeheartedly.

California gold miners would only cry “Eureka!” when they

found true gold.

As Christians, we should be careful to do the same.[1]

It was just a few years ago where Charismatics at some wild meetings claimed there was actual *gold* dust coming down from God as a miracle while they were worshipping and that some people’s fillings in their mouth were allegedly turning to *gold* during the revivals (divine dentistry?).

Hank Hanegraaf traces these and other Counterfeit Revivals as just the latest and craziest of the manipulations and absurdities from bogus “fallings in the Spirit” to these shorter-lived bogus “*gold* fillings in the Spirit”.[2]

In the same way that those in the early Wild West of California found out that not everything sensational was to believed, it’s also true spiritually that not everything that glitters has /real/ value.

I want to begin to mine some of the riches of God’s Word with you this evening on something of real value, in fact priceless value, the matchless worth of *discernment* or wisdom or understanding from God’s sufficient scriptures.

Job 28:12-17 (NASB95)

 12 “But where can wisdom be found?

And where is the place of understanding? 13 “Man does not know its value, Nor is it found in the land of the living.

14 “The deep says, ‘It is not in me’; And the sea says, ‘It is not with me.’ 15 “*Pure gold cannot be given in exchange for it*, Nor can silver be weighed as its price.

16 “*It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir*, In precious onyx, or sapphire.

17 “*Gold or glass cannot equal it, Nor can it be exchanged for articles of fine gold.*

Psalm 19:7 (NASB95) \\ 7 The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul; The testimony of the Lord is sure, *making wise* the simple.

10 They are *more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold*; Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb.

King David knew a lot about gold as a king of Israel, but he knew from experience that wisdom or discernment for the simple from the Word of God was of far greater value than any material riches.

It should be pursued by believers with the same intensity and abandon as those that rushed to California seeking temporary treasure – but believers get greater rewards.

The psalms say we are to love God’s truth above gold, even above fine gold, and to see it as better than thousands of gold or silver pieces (Ps 119:72, 127).

David’s son Solomon gives perhaps the greatest illustration of this in all of God’s Word in 1 Kings 3.

 

1 Kings 3 (NASB95)

5 In Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream at night; and *God said, “Ask what /you wish /me to give you.*”

6 Then Solomon said, “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.

7 “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.* 8 “*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.

9 “So *give Your servant an understanding heart to judge* Your people *to discern* between good and evil.

For who is able to judge this great people of Yours?” 10 It was pleasing in the sight of the Lord that Solomon had asked this thing.

11 God said to him, “Because you have asked this thing and have not asked for yourself long life, nor have asked riches for yourself, nor have you asked for the life of your enemies, but *have asked for yourself discernment* to understand justice, 12 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.

13 “I have also given you what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that there will not be any among the kings like you all your days.

As a child I remember a bunch of us were considering the profound hypothetical question one time, “If you were given three wishes for whatever you wanted, what would you ask for?”

I think one of the girls said something like “world peace” for one of her wishes (which I don’t think was any of the guys’ wishes).

Some wished for a billion dollars, others wished for something to change in their life, someone may have wished to play in the NBA.

Those of us who thought we were clever wanted to use one of our wishes that we would get more wishes.