Wisdom From God

Seeking God's Wisdom Together 

Connecting Church to Home

King Solomon’s Request

After the death of his father, King David, Solomon took the throne as the king of Israel. His first great task was building the Temple, a beautiful place for all of God’s people to gather and worship Him. Shortly after he became king, God appeared to Solomon and asked him what he wanted most.

Instead of asking for a long life, great riches, or power over his enemies, Solomon asked for wisdom so he could lead God’s people well. God was pleased with this request and gave him "amazing wisdom." We see this wisdom in action when Solomon helped two women who were arguing over a baby; he used God’s insight to reveal the true mother. People from all over were amazed by the wisdom God gave him. Solomon eventually wrote down many of these wise sayings in the book of Proverbs so that we could learn to be wise, too.

Human Wisdom vs. God’s Wisdom

As you open your Bibles together, you can help your child find the book of Proverbs in the Old Testament, located right after the book of Psalms.

A "proverb" is a short saying that teaches us a lesson about life. However, there is a big difference between the advice we hear in the world and the wisdom we find in the Word. Use the table below to discuss this with your child:

The Bible tells us that wisdom doesn't just fall into our laps; we have to look for it! Proverbs 2:4-5 says we should seek wisdom "like silver and search for it like hidden treasure."

Parent Tip (30-Second Activity): Hide a coin or a small treat somewhere in the room and ask your child to find it. Once they find it, explain: "If you knew there was silver or treasure buried in our backyard, you wouldn't just sit on the porch—you would grab a shovel and search hard! God wants us to search for His wisdom with that same excitement because it is the most valuable thing we can find."

Walking the Path of Wisdom

In our lesson, we used the metaphor of a path to describe our lives. When we follow God’s Word, we are walking on a safe, smooth path. But on the sides of that path, there are dangerous things waiting to pull us away: vultures, skulls, snakes, and scorpions.

These represent sins like being unkind, getting angry, or disobeying. For example, just like the sting of a scorpion hurts, the "sting" of mean words can hurt our friends and family. Following God’s wisdom is the "headline" of our lives because it helps us stay on the safe path and make choices that honor Him.

How Wisdom Helps Us Every Day:

The Most Important Truth: Wisdom vs. Salvation

As we teach our children to be wise and make good choices, we must be careful to keep the Gospel at the center. There is a very important distinction between our behavior (how we act) and our belonging (who we belong to).

==IMPORTANT TRUTH: Doing good things or obeying the sayings in Proverbs does not save us or get us to heaven. Only Jesus saves us when we turn from our sins and trust in Him.==

We don't seek wisdom to earn God’s love; we seek wisdom because we already belong to Jesus! Because the Holy Spirit lives in us, He helps us understand the Bible and gives us a heart that wants to grow in the Lord's wisdom (Proverbs 2:6).

Family Table Talk: Discussion Questions