In this Gospel Partner episode, see how God’s wisdom is what we need to overcome our challenges and experience good success in all areas of our lives. About Gospel Partner Gospel Partner is a publishing house committed to advancing the gospel of grace. Our mission is to find ways to make Jesus-centered, grace-based teaching resources completely free for those who cannot afford them. If you would like to join us in this global publishing mission reaching over 150 nations, and receive access to more than 1,000 sermons by Joseph Prince, visit: https://bit.ly/3Q356Mx
Here are other ways you can support the mission: • Become a supporter on Patreon: https://bit.ly/3Q357jz
• Become a supporter on Buy Me A Coffee: https://bit.ly/44Nxk27
Through any of these ways above, you will be supporting our ongoing commitment and publishing mission to (1) accelerate our content development work, (2) support the innovation of our technology, and (3) make more resources available for free to people in need. Do note that as we are a publishing house with a focus to advance the Gospel through resources, we do not accept tithes, offerings, and donations. About this episode You are watching the sermon, Redefine Success God’s Way, preached on Jul 16, 2023 by Joseph Prince. This episode was made free on YouTube because of the support of our gospel partners. Thank you for partnering with us! Chapters 0:00 In Today’s Gospel Partner Episode… 0:31 Join Us As A Gospel Partner 1:58 01 Your Heavenly Father cares about your life! 8:17 02 God’s wisdom brings true success 18:28 03 Start reading the book of Proverbs daily 26:11 04 Seek the presence of Jesus 28:56 05 Surround yourself with wise counsel 47:57 06 Lessons from the story of Joseph 58:26 07 See good success in all that you do! 1:11:49 08 Receive this prayer of wisdom New here? Here’s a gift of 7 free sermons to grow in the gospel when you sign up for updates: https://bit.ly/44R6eah
If you are dealing with a health challenge, we are believing with you for your breakthrough, and we speak the Lord’s healing over you. As you stand in faith for your complete healing, be sure to practice both faith and wisdom. Be sure to consult a qualified medical practitioner or healthcare provider regarding your health status, and do not, on your own accord, disregard any professional medical advice or stop taking your medication. We are praying for you and look forward to hearing your praise report! Facing a health challenge? Purchase/request healing scriptures e-book and audio companion now for free: https://bit.ly/3XUlS2t
Reign over every adversity, lack, and destructive habit. Purchase/request Destined To Reign 15th Anniversary e-book for free: https://bit.ly/44x5GXd
Subscribe and be the first to know when a Gospel Partner episode is released: https://www.youtube.com/c/JosephPrinc… You can also find us at: 
/ josephprince
#gospelpartner #josephprince #2023sermon
Success is not an end. It is
actually a journey. In every
venture, in every endeavour,
ask God for wisdom. It’s a
wisdom that that gives success
in every area of your life.
Don’t be hasty! Take your
time, especially in the major
decisions of life, what to
embark on. If you need a
specific direction, God can
speak to you. Take your time
to consult the people that
love you, that God has
surrounded you with. God is
more willing to give you
wisdom than you want it. He
cares for you, and He cares
for what you’re going through.
Hello, church. What a
privilege to once again bring
you God’s Word, His Word in
season for you during this
time. So whatever you’re going
through right now, God knows
all about you. Even like you
feel like, “I’m a face in a
crowd. Does God give me
personal attention?” Yes,
Jesus said your Father numbers
the hairs on your head. That
is very intimate, detailed
concern, amen? He cares for
you and He cares for what you
are going through. That’s
love, and we cannot fathom
this kind of love because our
love is very general. We love
a person because of what they
do for us, not because of
unconditional love many times,
amen? We are learning to walk
in unconditional love, but
God’s love for you is
unconditional. He pays
attention to every detail in
your life. “Fear not, little
flock.” And when He said that,
there were many around him who
were people who were out of
fellowship with God, people
who were not walking with God,
besides His disciples, who
were learning to walk with
God. But nonetheless, He said
to all of them, “Your Father,
who cares for the birds of the
air, He knows what you are
going through. He numbers the
hairs on your head. Know you
not that you are of more value
than all the birds of the air
whom God feeds,” amen, whom
God takes care of. Then He
says, “Behold the lilies of
the field, all the grass of
the field, which today is, and
tomorrow is cast into the
oven.” It is all dried up when
the sun comes out during the
season of summer. But yet He
says, “Your Father cares for
this temporal grass. How much
more will He care for you?”
Amen? Then He says this, that,
“Even Solomon,” who was the
richest man in history, He
says that, “Even Solomon in
all his glory was not arrayed
like one of these,” flowers,
one of these grass, amen? Then
He says, “If God so clothed
the grass of the field, which
today is, and tomorrow is cast
into the oven, how much more
will He clothe you?” Think
about that. He compares
Solomon with the grass and
said that the glory of that
grass that God gives to it is
greater than the glory of
Solomon. But then He goes on
to say, “But God cares for you
more than the grass, which is
greater than Solomon’s glory,”
amen? So how much more will
God care for you? Praise the
Lord. I believe that we are
going through a season where
we are seeing things happen
all over the world that is
shouting out lack, shortage,
amen, recession, and yet God’s
people are worried, they are
anxious, they are troubled by
what they are seeing. That
goes to show that we are
spending lots of our time on
social media. We are watching
the news. We are look–hearing
the reports of the world
instead of spending time in
the Word of God. And the Word
of God is the only place where
you can find faith. The Bible
says, “Faith comes by hearing,
and hearing by the word of
God.” You cannot find faith
anywhere else. You know, if
faith comes by hearing the
Word and the Word of God, then
fear comes by hearing and
hearing the word of man, amen?
And the fear, that fear brings
a snare. That fear will cause
bad things to happen. In fact,
in the book of Job, it says,
“The thing which I greatly
feared has come upon me.” So
fear has no part in the child
of God’s life, amen? And for
you, God doesn’t want you to
be afraid. That’s why every
time an angel appears to a
servant of God, a child of
God, it’s always the first
word from the angel’s mouth
is, “Fear not.” And Jesus’s
favorite expression is always,
talking to His disciples
especially, “Fear not. It is
I; be not afraid.” And it’s
always His refrain, amen, time
and time again, “Don’t be
afraid.” So how? How can we
not be afraid, seeing what is
happening all over the world?
We can by listening to God’s
Word. You know, if you are
depressed, if you are anxious,
you are worried, amen, you
wake up in the middle of the
night and you are thinking
about what is to come and
there’s a foreboding kind of
fears that is closing in upon
you in the hours of darkness
especially, then you’re
experiencing depression, the
only way out of that is to
hear your way out of it. “And
faith comes by hearing, and
hearing by the word of God.”
And that Word of God, we have
established in another sermon,
that we have shown you that
faith comes by hearing, and
hearing by the Word of God,
but the preceding verses tells
us, “How shall they hear
without a preacher?” So find a
preacher whose word you know
is gospel-centered, is
Jesus-centered, and is
grace-centered, because that’s
a new covenant word, amen? And
as you listen to it, you’ll
find yourself– all of a
sudden faith springs eternal,
amen? Health springs speedily,
amen. You’ll find that that
fear will just– you will look
for it. Like the Bible says,
you’ll look for your enemy,
and you will find him no more.
All of a sudden it’s gone,
without focusing on it. You
know, the way you get rid of
darkness in a room is not by
cursing the darkness, by
scolding the darkness, but by
switching on the light, amen?
Listen to God’s Word, amen?
Listen to anointed preaching
of God’s Word. You know, I’ve
made my sermons, thousands of
them for all these 15 years of
sermon, amen, on
grace-centered, Jesus-centered
sermons available online as–
for all those who are our
Gospel Partners and all those
who subscribe to
JosephPrince.com, amen, and
download that Joseph Prince
app. You will find thousands
of sermons there for every
need of your life. And time
and time again, we are
receiving so many testimonies
of people whose lives are
transformed, marriages turned
around, and bodies are healed,
supernatural breakthroughs in
the area of finances, and
great restoration especially
in the area of seeing God as
who He is for the very first
time, a God of love, amen. So
you cannot have all these
visions from God, you cannot
have all this perspective and
wisdom without hearing
anointed messages, amen? And
that’s where faith comes, in
the context of a preacher
preaching the Word, amen? If
we look at the Bible, the Word
of God, and we look at the
richest man, the wealthiest
man in history–and we have
established that we are not
into love of money. We are not
into wealthy–just being
wealthy, because you can be
wealthy and still be a poor
man, amen? Wealthy in finances
and accumulation of
possessions, and yet they’re a
poor man. Why? You don’t have
God. You don’t have a blessed
family. You don’t have
successful relationships, you
know? People talk behind your
back and you just live with
plenty of money. It’s like the
one who beats another person
when he ends his life with
more possession wins. No, my
friend, that’s the greatest
way to lose in life, amen? To
enjoy life, you know, it is
important for us to really,
first and foremost, know who
God is, not who we are. You
know, people say you gotta
know who you are, that’s the
beginning of knowledge. No,
it’s knowing who the Lord is,
the God who loves us. And in
finding Him, we find
ourselves. Like the Bible
says, “As Jesus is, so are we
in this world.” When we look
at the wealthiest man in the
Bible, Solomon, amen, we find
that when he was a young man,
he had a big pair of shoes to
fill. His father, David, had
passed on, and God appeared to
him in his dream. And God
said, “Ask! What I shall give
you?” And this is what Solomon
said, “‘Give to Your servant
an understand heart to judge
Your people, that I may
discern between good and evil.
For who is able to judge this
great people of Yours?’ The
speech pleased the Lord, the
Solomon had asked this thing.”
The speech pleased the Lord.
This remark here tells us that
God is pleased with people
asking wisdom from Him, amen.
The Lord is the same
yesterday, today, and forever,
and that speech will still
please Him today when you ask
God for wisdom. The Bible
says, “If any of you lack
wisdom, ask of God.” I think a
lot of people don’t ask of God
because they don’t see
themself lacking wisdom. They
think they know. “I know, I
know, I know what to do. I
know, I know, leave me alone.”
But the Bible says that those
who lack wisdom, they will ask
God for it, amen? And the
Bible says God will give it
with no doubt. Don’t–let
there be no doubt that God
will give it. It goes on to
say that, “But let him ask in
faith, nothing wavering. For
he that wavereth is like a
wave of the sea driven with
the wind and tossed,” in the
context of, if any of you ask
God for wisdom, God will
definitely give it. Don’t
doubt it, amen? This one
prayer He will answer. And
what does wisdom give you,
God’s wisdom, amen? Not the
wisdom of the world. The Bible
is very clear. In James, it
says there’s a wisdom from
above and there’s a wisdom
that is sensual, that is
fleshly. But the Bible says,
“The wisdom from above is
pure, peaceable, gentle, easy
to be intreated.” This is the
wisdom from God, and it’s a
wisdom that gives success in
your life, in every area of
your life. The Bible says in
Proverbs chapter 3, it talks
about wisdom having two hands.
So wisdom here personified as
a woman with two hands, and it
says, “Length of days is in
her right hand, in her left
hand riches and honor.” Notice
right hand is always the hand
of prominence. Most people use
their right hand, okay? So
length of days is in her right
hand. That’s the priority.
Would you agree that health,
wholeness, amen, peace, and
longevity is a priority, amen?
Not riches. Riches is in her
left hand. But notice what it
gives, what wisdom gives. “In
that right hand are length of
days, in her left hand are
riches and honor. Her ways are
ways of pleasantness,” ways of
pleasure, “no’am” in Hebrew,
which means it is pleasurable,
“and all her paths are peace,”
shalom. So first of all,
wisdom gives you length of
days. That is health. Then
after that, it gives you
riches. It gives you honor,
esteem, amen? The ways are the
ways of pleasure, so it gives
you pleasure, and all her
paths are shalom. It gives you
shalom peace. Praise the Lord.
It comes by embracing wisdom.
Just like it goes on to say
later on, “Embrace wisdom.”
And when you embrace wisdom,
what happens? When you embrace
your wife, both her hands are
behind you, supporting you,
right? So you have all the
blessings of the hand, but you
don’t go for riches on one
hand or for the health on the
other hand, you go for wisdom,
the wisdom of God. And the
Bible says the Lord was so
pleased with the wisdom– with
the wisdom request of Solomon
that God gave him– and God
says, “I’ll give you what you
didn’t ask for.” “God said to
him: ‘Because you have asked
this thing, and have not asked
long life for yourself, nor
have asked riches for
yourself, nor have asked the
life of your enemies, but you
have asked for yourself
understanding to discern
justice,'” God says, “behold,
I have done according to your
words; see, I have given you a
wise and understanding heart,
so that there has not been
anyone like you before–
before you, nor shall any like
you arise after you. And I
have also given you what you
have not asked: both riches
and honor.” Can you see that?
It’s like Proverbs chapter 3
we read just now, riches and
honor in the left hand, amen?
So God says, “I’ve give you
what you have not asked: both
riches and honor,” which comes
with wisdom, “so that there
shall not be anyone like you
among the kings all your days.
So if you walk in My ways, to
keep My statutes and My
commandments, as your father
David walked, then I will
lengthen your days.” Now,
notice this one comes with a
proviso, okay? It comes with a
condition. Notice we have
established that God says,
“I’ll give you what you have
not asked.” He actually asked
for wisdom. He didn’t ask for
riches and honor, but with
wisdom come riches and honor.
So God says,”I have given,”
all right? “I have given,”
what? “Both riches and honor.”
That’s the left hand, right?
That’s the left hand we read
just now, but notice the right
hand has not been given yet.
God says, “I have given you.”
So riches and honor has been
given that same night that
when God appeared to him in
the dream, amen, and God
asked, “What I shall give
you?” That same night he asked
God for wisdom, God gave him
already riches and honor,
amen? That was the beginning
of it, praise God. But notice
that God did not give him the
right hand yet. The right hand
comes with a requirement,
amen, a condition. “So if you
walk in My ways, to keep My
statutes and My commandments,
as your father David walked,
then I will lengthen your
days.” Notice the length of
days comes–health and length
of days comes with the right
hand. Unfortunately, we know
that Solomon didn’t live long.
Solomon actually began well.
He prospered and became the
wealthiest man, not just king,
the wealthiest man in history.
Now, if you look at his wealth
in terms of today’s
assessment, he will be the
first trillionaire in history,
okay? Because all the measures
and the amount and all that is
specifically mentioned in the
Bible that came into his
kingdom, okay? He’ll be the
first trillionaire. Now, he
had riches and honor, but he
didn’t live a long life.
Notice why? Because he
deviated from God’s
commandments. He deviated from
God’s Word. And God says that,
“If you keep My commandments,
I’ll lengthen your days.” So
that came with a condition,
amen, “If you keep My
commandments,” which Solomon
did not. Later on, he married
many, many wives, many foreign
wives, and with the wives came
all their idols and their
gods. And Bible says the heart
of Solomon– remember, Solomon
actually asked God, “Give me
an understanding heart.” By
the way, in the Hebrew, the
word “understanding heart,” is
actually a hearing heart. That
heart, later on his
wives–because of his love for
his wives, all his foreign
wives, the wives turned his
heart away from God. Notice,
that’s where it all starts.
The–his blessing all start
with his heart, amen. He asked
God for this, “Therefore give
to Your servant an
understanding heart.” That
word “understanding” is the
word “hearing.” Hearing heart,
amen, “to judge Your people,
that I may discern between
good and evil.” So he actually
asked God for wisdom, but
wisdom in a sense that an
understanding or a hearing
heart. The Hebrew word “shama”
is used here, a hearing heart.
Even in the Septuagint, the
Greek version of this verse,
it says–the word there is
actually “hearing.” Hearing,
amen? So that’s what Solomon
deviated from. And later on in
his life, and he actually
started worshipping idols,
started to move away from
worshipping God, the true God,
the God of Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob, and he moved away. That
tells us something, people,
that wisdom is a person and
it’s our Lord Jesus Christ. If
you look at 1 Corinthians
1:30, the Bible tells us, “Of
him are you in Christ Jesus,
who of God is made unto us
wisdom, and righteousness, and
sanctification,” that’s
holiness, “and redemption.”
“Of him” means it is not of
your doing or your works. “Of
him” means it is of God’s
doing that you are in Christ
Jesus. And Christ Jesus is
made unto us all, unto you,
you can say, “Christ is made
unto me wisdom,” amen? Before
I counsel someone, I always,
you know, just say this under
my breath. I make a confession
of faith, “Christ is made unto
me wisdom. Christ is my
wisdom.” Just like I say,
“Jesus is my righteousness,”
amen, Jesus is my wisdom. So
that’s what Solomon did later
on in his life. He rebelled
against God. How? By deviating
away from the Lord, and the
Lord is his wisdom. So wisdom
is not something that is, oh,
it’s in your head, in your
heart, and it’s there forever.
No, you can lose that wisdom,
why? Because wisdom is a
person. When you turn away
from the person of the Lord,
amen, you turn away from
wisdom. Sometimes it’s very
shocking for me to see how
Solomon, you know, so wise–
and the Bible says he was
wiser than all the wise men of
the east. “And God gave
Solomon wisdom and exceedingly
great understanding, and
largeness of heart like the
sand on the seashore. And then
Solomon’s wisdom excelled the
wisdom of all the men of the
East and all the wisdom of
Egypt. For he was wiser than
all men– than Ethan the
Ezrahite, and Heman, Chalcol,
and Darda.” If you study these
people, most of them are the
people during the time of his
father David, and they were
the wisest men then. In fact,
they were all in temple
worship, amen? You will find
psalms by Ethan the Ezrahite.
Heman also was a worship
leader. And Chalcol, which
means the dance. And all these
people were the wise men of
Solomon’s day. “And his fame
was in all the surrounding
nations.” See, the Bible says,
“He spoke three thousand
proverbs, and his songs were
one thousand and five.”
Imagine you are a songwriter
and you have written 1,005
songs, amen. So his wisdom is
manifold. It’s diversified in
many, many areas, amen. When
God gives you wisdom, it’s not
just to make money, amen,
though riches and honor has
been promised by God. By the
way, if riches and honor are
things that God does not want
us to have, he will not be
giving it to Solomon. He won’t
be saying that, “In the left
hand of wisdom are riches and
honor,” okay? Just to
sidetrack a little bit to talk
about, you know, how people
can preach and share that
riches would destroy you. It’s
true, friend, if your ambition
in life is just to be rich,
you’ll be pierced through with
many sorrows. The Bible says
that, amen? We don’t have an
ambition to be rich. And this
area of being hasty to be rich
or wanting to be rich as your
ambition in life, that rich is
in the area of just one area:
money. But God wants to give
you riches and honor, includes
money as well, amen, but in
every area of your life. You
will prosper in your
relationships with your
spouse, with your children,
with everyone around you,
amen? Praise the Lord. And
that’s God’s desire for all of
us. That’s why He put all this
wisdom into Solomon, amen,
that Solomon can put them all
in the book of Proverbs. And
the book of Proverbs is
divided into 31 chapters, why?
Well, I believe that, you
know, God wants us to hear for
that particular day, if it’s
the 5th of November, let’s say
it’s the 5th of December or
the 10th of December, right,
we can actually go to the 10th
chapter and start reading on
the 10th chapter. And you will
find that every month, that
10th day, that 10th chapter
will speak differently to you.
All the verses there, you look
for that verse that sort of
leap out at you, the verse
that sort of arrest you, amen,
and say, “Look at me. Study
me,” that’s the verse for you
for that day. It lights up.
It’s like the urim and thummim
of the priest in the temple.
The word that lights up,
that’s the Word of God’s
direction, God’s wisdom, amen.
So you study the corresponding
day, 31 days in a given month,
all right? Most months have 31
days, and if not, you just
read twice, amen? Or you can
read more if you want, amen?
But particularly if you do
that, I believe God designed
it for modern man who live in
31 days in a month, amen, for
them to study and find wisdom
for that particular– Every
day you can find wisdom for
that specific day. Praise God.
You can share with your
children these truths as well,
and just read to them that
particular chapter and ask
them, “All right, I’m gonna
read this chapter to you,”
that’s what I did with Justin
as well, “and then you’re
gonna tell me which one speaks
to you.” It’s very interesting
exercise, amen? You will find
that later on he will tell me,
“That one speaks to me. Yeah,
this one speaks to me. I find
this one speaks to me.” Then I
ask him, “Why does it speak to
you?” Amen? You’ll find that
the same chapter next month
will speak differently, amen?
Different verse will speak to
you. So isn’t it amazing that
God has ordained this way for
us? And another way you
receive wisdom is by
meditating on God’s Word,
amen. The Word that you
receive when you– like for
example, you’re hearing this
sermon right now. Take what
speaks to you, that particular
aspect, and meditate on it.
Take the verse that speaks to
you, amen, that sort of lights
up to you, and meditate on
that verse. Memorize that
verse and start to meditate on
it. You know, Solomon asked
God for wisdom and for a
hearing heart as well, amen?
And also he says, “That I may
discern.” That’s another river
of wisdom. There are many
rivers. There’s–in the
Hebrew, there’s the word
“chakam” for wisdom, and
sometimes in the English Bible
they don’t differentiate, all
right? They’ll say “wisdom”
for quite a few things, but
the main word for wisdom is
“chakam,” but there’s another
river of wisdom from God
called “bin,” and then there’s
also “mada”, and then there’s
also “yada.” “Mada” is
actually–“yada” and “mada” is
the same. There’s also
“sakal”, amen? If you look at
what Solomon asked God, he
asked God for, “an
understanding heart to judge
Your people,” and the word
down there, “judge Your
people,” all right, is that
it’s a good judgment. In other
words, it’s like story of the
two mothers that came,
claiming that the baby is
hers, right? And he wants to
arrive at the righteous
decision, amen, and really
give to the mother, the
rightful mother, that child.
So that is how he judges his
people, not in a negative
sense to condemn people, okay,
but he asked God for “a
hearing heart to judge Your
people.” Notice it’s
unselfish. In fact, earlier on
he says to God, if you read
the first part in his prayer,
he says that, “I’m like a
child.” At that time, he was a
young man, but yet he says,
“I’m like a child; I do not
know how to come in or how to
go out.” You see, God gives
wisdom to people who are
humble, not people who are
proud. In fact, you never ask
God for wisdom, you don’t even
want to read the book of
Proverbs if you think that, “I
can do it. I’ve got it under
control, all right? I don’t
have to read the book of
Proverbs. I don’t have to
listen to anointed sermons. I
don’t have to ask God for
wisdom.” It takes humble
people to ask God for wisdom.
As for me, every day I need
the wisdom of God. Every day,
amen, I need God to give me,
supply me the understanding,
and the knowledge, and the
know-how, amen? After all
these years that I’ve lived,
amen, I still feel like I’m a
child when it comes to the
things of God. When it comes
to even preaching and teaching
and all that, I still ask God
for wisdom, and I’m so
desperate, amen. When I ask
God, there’s a sense of, “I
really need.” Because if God
doesn’t speak to me, if God
doesn’t give me His wisdom,
what can I give you, amen? So
whatever area, or field, or
occupation you are in, or
ministry that you’re in, ask
God for wisdom. God has a
wisdom for success in that
area. Now, notice, the Bible
says that, “The speech pleased
the Lord, that Solomon had
asked this thing.” If you keep
on reading, this is the very
first thing that Solomon did.
It’s a sign that he has
received wisdom, all right? In
verse 15, “Then Solomon awoke;
and indeed it had been a
dream. And he came to
Jerusalem and stood before the
ark of the covenant of the
LORD.” Notice the very first
thing he did was stand before
the Ark of the Covenant of the
Lord. “He offered up burnt
offerings, offered peace
offerings, and made a feast
for all his servants.” Notice
the very first thing, right,
that he did when he woke up,
after he has received wisdom
from God, after he has
received a hearing heart,
amen, the very first thing was
to seek God’s presence, to
seek the Lord Jesus Christ.
And that’s why wise men will
always seek Him, just like the
wise men from the East came to
seek the Baby Jesus. Today,
wise men will still seek
Jesus, amen. Are you seeking
the Lord, amen, especially
seeking the Lord for wisdom,
amen? So the very first sign
that someone has received
wisdom is that he cherished
the person of our Lord Jesus
Christ. He valued the presence
of our Lord Jesus and he will
come to the Lord Jesus. Anyone
coming to the Lord Jesus is a
sign that he has received
wisdom, amen? So we know that
the ark of the covenant is a
picture of our Lord Jesus
Christ, right? I’ve said
before that even the structure
and that furniture being
overlaid with gold, that His
deity because gold is always a
symbol, a type of deity,
divinity. And then it overlays
the wood, acacia wood, which
is incorruptible wood. That is
His humanity. Then we have the
mercy seat. That’s the work of
Jesus on the cross where the
blood is sprinkled. And God
says, “When I see the blood, I
will pass over you,” right?
And God says, “There I’ll meet
with you, there I’ll talk with
you.” Where? Above the mercy
seat, and that’s the holiest
place. So that place that is
the holiest place of all,
that’s where the ark is
placed, in the Holy of Holies.
The holiest place of all, the
greatest holiness, right at
the heart of holiness is
mercy, amen? So grace is the
greatest holiness sermon you
can ever preach, friend,
because mercy seat is found
where? Directly in the center
of the Holy of Holies, the
holiest of all, and it is the
work of our Lord Jesus Christ
at the cross, amen? So the
gold and the wood speaks of
His deity and His humanity.
The mercy seat speaks of His
work at Calvary, amen? And the
blood is shed on the mercy
seat, and that’s where God
says, “I will commune with you
and I will talk with you.”
Praise God. So a sign that
someone has received wisdom,
the very first thing is that
he will seek the Lord’s
presence, amen? So right after
he received wisdom, he sought
Jesus Christ, our Lord Jesus,
amen, which is– the ark of
the covenant is a type of–
the reality is our Lord Jesus.
So the sign today that someone
has received wisdom is that
he’s always focused on Jesus,
and he comes to Jesus with
every need, amen, and he
always talks about Jesus.
Praise the Lord. That’s a sign
that someone has received
wisdom, amen? Praise the Lord.
That’s how you gauge it.
Number two, another sign that
someone has received wisdom is
that he becomes even more
humble. You know, in this
chapter, this chapter 3, when
he asked God for wisdom it’s
in chapter 3, but notice what
happens in chapter 4. I used
to read chapter 4 and I didn’t
understand why all the sudden
it became like– chapter 3 was
kind of like interesting to
read how a young man, you
know, had a dream from God and
all that, but in chapter 4 it
was more administrative.
Notice chapter 4, the very
next chapter, it says, “So
King Solomon was king over all
Israel. And these were his
officials: Azariah the son of
Zadok, the priest; Elihoreph
and Ahijah, the sons of
Shisha, scribes; Jehoshaphat
the son of Ahilud, the
recorder; Benaiah the son of
Jehoiada, over the army; Zadok
and Abiathar, the priests;
Azariah the son of Nathan,
over the officers; Zabud the
son of Nathan, a priest and
the king’s friend; and
Ahishar, over the household;
and Adoniram the son of Abda,
over the labor force.” The
reason I take time to read all
this is that you can sense,
like, it’s just like–you
know, on a superficial reading
it shows, like, you know,
administration, who is in
charge of what, right, who is
placed over which department
in his kingdom, but there is a
reason and a purpose for all
this, all right? Nothing is
without significance in the
Word of God. Every nuance,
every turn, every chapter,
every word has a meaning,
amen? It will seek God for the
wisdom of it. So I used to
read this and think, “Why is
all of a sudden God talk about
administration and all that?”
No, God is telling me, “I’m
still continuing what happens
to a man after he receives
wisdom. First of all, he
values the person of My Son.
Number two, he becomes humble
and he surrounds himself with
people that he can tap into
their advice, into their
counsel, into their wisdom.”
And that’s why it says here,
“And these were his
officials,” verse 2, “Azariah
the son of Zadok, the priest.”
So right after he received
wisdom, he begins to value and
prioritize the person of our
Lord Jesus Christ, amen,
worshipping Him as central in
his life. Number two result of
receiving wisdom is that he
became humble. Now, we said
just now–we showed you that,
“Solomon’s wisdom excelled the
wisdom of all the men of the
East and all the wisdom of
Egypt.” Then it goes on to
say, “He was wiser than all
men–than Ethan,” and all the
rest. These are the wisest men
at that time, during the time
of his father David
especially, and yet the Bible
says he was wiser than all
men. So we see that Solomon’s
wisdom, the wisdom that God
gave him, excelled the wisdom
of all the men of the East. So
you can think of all the
famous men in history from the
East, the wisest men at that
time, and the Bible says
Solomon’s wisdom excelled them
all, and all the wisdom of
Egypt, Egypt being a type of
the world. All the wisdom you
can find in this world today,
Solomon’s wisdom, which is the
wisdom of God given to him,
excels them all. He was wiser
than all men, amen. And all
these men here now is
referring by name to people
who were the wisest men during
the time of his father David,
amen, and yet he excelled them
all. So this wisdom is
preeminent. It’s superior
against all the wisdom you can
find in the world and anyone
else that’s wise. So friend,
ask God for wisdom. Wisdom is
not intellect. It can involve
intellect, and many times it
does, but the wisdom is a
wisdom from God. It comes as a
flow. In fact, you will find
the Holy Spirit is involved.
When you are filled with the
Spirit, you are filled with
wisdom. And here, you find
that Solomon’s wisdom excelled
them all, yet when he received
wisdom from God, the very next
chapter tells us he surrounded
himself–just think of it. He
surrounded himself with people
who would give him advice,
especially people in positions
to give him advice. The very
first person is Azariah the
priest. And why would he need
a priest? I mean, doesn’t he
have direct contact with God?
After all, God appeared to him
in a dream directly. God
appeared to him, God spoke to
him directly. Why would he
need a priest? And yet he was
humble. Now, this speaks to me
today that all of us need a
pastor. We need leaders,
pastors, you know, care
leaders, people who are– we
esteem and respect as people
who hear God, amen? Not that
they are in a position of
authority over us, no, but a
position of feeding us, a
position of responsibility, of
grace over us, amen? As they
hear from God, concerning our
life and whatever they need to
affirm, or even correct, or
warn in our lives, it’s
because it is a direction from
the Lord. We trust them,
especially in their ability to
hear God, and that’s why they
are in our lives, amen? But
many times, you find that when
people think that they are
wise, they are smart, they
don’t ask, you know, any of
their leaders for advice,
amen? They just, you know, run
roughshod into the situation,
and only to find that being
hasty of spirit, like the book
of Proverbs tell us, is to
exalt folly or to exalt
foolishness. Don’t be hasty.
Take your time, especially in
the major decisions of life,
what to embark on. This
financial plan that someone
gave you for you to invest in,
is it really–is it really
good? Is it really from God?
And many times, you look at
your leaders, okay, and you
start thinking, “Well, what do
they know about financial
acumen, you know? What do they
know about financial
intelligence? They are not in
this field.” But then, they
are in the field that covers
all this. They’re in the field
of hearing God, amen, and God
has a Word to say about all
these areas, amen. His wisdom
surpassed all these people in
all these areas, amen. They
can confirm, even if they are
not knowledgeable about that
area. I’ve seen it time and
time again, as they seek the
Lord, they receive from the
Lord the Word that’s needed
for that situation.
Personally, I find that–and I
say this to the glory of God.
I find that many times I’m not
knowledgeable, I’m not
experienced in some of the
areas that people come to me
with for counsel, for help in
the area of their concern, but
it’s an expertise, it’s a
skill, a skill set that I
don’t possess myself. But then
God gives me a Word and that
Word is what sustains them.
That Word is what brings them
out. Friend, you need to have
spiritual leaders around you,
care leaders, or cell group
leaders, or– they function as
people who hear God for you.
And even if they don’t have
that Word right now, there’s
no need to rush into
something. Every time someone
tells you to rush into
something, make that decision
right now, sign on that dotted
line, you know, and there’s a
push to do something, just
stop for awhile and tell
yourself, “He that is hasty of
spirit exalts foolishness,
exalts folly,” amen? It’s
never God’s way. The Bible
says, “He that believeth shall
not make haste,” amen? Relax,
amen, breathe, amen. Take your
time to consult the people
that love you, that God has
surrounded you with. Ask them
to hear God. Ask them to pray
about this, especially your
spouse, amen. There are people
who are–they undertake
financial venture, amen, or
investment, or whatever
without even consulting their
wife. And I know of cases like
this. In fact, a lot of
marriage failures have come
specifically in the area of
finances not handled properly.
And you know, they don’t tell
their wife about using their
money, their money– it’s not
his money, it’s their money,
okay– to invest in something
that they feel their wife have
no knowledge about. You know,
I always like to say that men
are like that, you know?
Sometimes they will go to a
financial conference to listen
to advice, all right, that–
and they pay for it, like $200
for that conference or
whatever it is, and they pay
for it just to hear the same
advice for free at home from
their wives, amen? And you
know, wives, they might not
know everything about your
finances– financial side of
things and all that, but they
have this intuition. God has
given women this special gift
of intuition, amen, and that’s
where God speaks to us. That’s
where they are sensitive. And
they can confirm something
that God is speaking into your
spirit, amen. That’s why Eve
was hanging around the tree of
knowledge of good and evil,
because she was intuitive. And
the devil knew that and the
devil started speaking to her.
Of course, she heard the wrong
voice and she obeyed the wrong
voice, but the thing is this,
nonetheless, doesn’t change
the fact that the devil knew
who to approach, amen, because
of the intuition of that woman
that God has given her. So
just check with your wife.
Make sure she has the peace
before you do anything. You
know, Wendy and I, we have
this agreement. If she doesn’t
feel the peace, I won’t do it.
Even like my decision to go
without salary, all right,
from the church was something
I had to bounce off her and
have her pray, amen. But until
she comes back to me and tells
me she’s okay with it, all
right, then we are in
agreement, I will not embark
on it, all right? We must be
in agreement. The Bible says,
“How can two walk together,
except they be agreed?” So
like I said, there are guys
who, you know, they just want
to get into this financial
investment thing using their
money, all right, the wife’s
money as well, okay, and then
later on, you know, just to
come up with all this coming
back on them with no profit,
you know, and they have lost
thousands of dollars. And then
they explain to their wife and
still there’s this hastiness
to be rich, you know, always
looking for the next fad that
comes along. And friend, the
Bible tells you that if you
are hasty to be rich, you do
not know that poverty is on
its way to you. That’s what
the Bible says. The man who is
hasty to be rich, he has an
evil eye and does not consider
that poverty is coming, all
right? Poverty will come. So
just be aware of this. God
doesn’t want us to be hasty to
be rich, or hasty just in
life, in anything, in
decision-making, all right?
Take your time. Take your time
and hear the voice of God. You
say, “God speaks to me
direct.” Friend, I just
established that from Romans
10, that even the faith that
comes by hearing is hearing
through the voice of a
preacher, the Word of God
through the voice of a
preacher, amen. “How shall
they hear without a preacher?”
But we say, “We can hear
without a preacher. God speaks
to me direct.” Well, not
according to the Bible. The
Bible says, “How shall they
hear without a preacher,”
okay? We know God can speak to
anybody, and at times He does,
all right, but it’s the
exception and not the rule.
The rule is that He speaks to
you clearly through the voice
of your preacher, amen. And
many times it confirms what
you have already in your
spirit, because you hear God.
But the thing is this,
God–it’s like God gives you a
sense on the inside that is to
be confirmed, and God wants
you humble. God wants you
teachable. He doesn’t want
pride to come in, so He will
give you a sensing, an
intuitive feel inside, but He
knows that you’ll be looking
for confirmation. And God
wants to confirm to you that
intuition through the voice of
people that are, number one,
His people, amen, who have the
Holy Spirit in them, and who
love you, who have been placed
in a position of
responsibility over you, okay?
So check with that. And let’s
continue reading that portion.
And it says he also appointed
Elihoreph and Ahijah, the sons
of Shisha, scribes, teachers.
Now, he wrote 1,005 songs, all
right? He has many proverbs,
and the Bible says thousands.
And why would a man like that
need scribes? And a scribe in
those days, if you keep on
reading, it says Jehoshaphat
as well, the recorder. Why do
you need a recorder? Scribes
and recorders in those days,
they write down events that
happen so later on they can
tell the king and remind the
king, especially in his later
years, what transpired, what
happened. We learn a lot from
history, okay? Unfortunately
some things that people learn
from history, they learn from
history that they learn
nothing from history, okay?
When history is actually there
to tell you going by this
route has proven fatal in
times past, okay? So, instead
of that, we don’t learn from
history. Just remember,
history is made of His story,
amen? Go to the right one and
you will find wisdom just in
that particular hour of need.
You need a specific direction,
God can speak to you, amen? If
you have some sensing in your
heart that God is speaking to
you, confirm it with someone
that you trust, amen, someone
who is filled with God’s
Spirit as well. Because if you
have the Holy Spirit and they
also have the Holy Spirit, and
together you can come, and
pray, and ask the Lord, and
then you have the
confirmation. Especially in
the areas of major, you know,
decisions of life, amen, make
sure that you hear God for it.
All right, Jehoshaphat the
recorder, again, the recorder
in those days– Today we have
recordings, right? We record
down. And all my sermons, like
I said just now–I speak for
myself because I know myself
best, amen? All my sermons on
Joseph Prince app is all
available down through the
years, amen? Thousands of
sermons is available. So, why?
Because there was a recorder,
amen? It has been recorded. In
those days, they record
manually, amen, the Word of
God, the book of Proverbs. So
he has a recorder, amen?
Again, the scribes and
recorders is to remind him.
But why need a reminder? I
mean, he has the most
brilliant mind. God has given
him wisdom. His memory is a
near-perfect memory. Why would
he need someone to remind him?
And that’s a sign that someone
has received wisdom, amen?
They surround themself with
advisors. They surround
themself with people–the
priests, amen? They surround
themself with recorders to
remind him. You don’t take for
granted all these things just
because you have received the
wisdom of God. In fact, all
this demonstrates that you
have received God’s wisdom,
amen? Praise the Lord. And not
only that, Benaiah the son of
Jehoiada, over the army,
right? Zadok, Abiathar, the
priests. You can also say
that, “Why be concerned about
areas of warfare when God has
given me peace in my kingdom?”
In fact, the Bible says
Solomon never went to war.
During his reign, it was
peaceful. It was a golden era
of Israel, all right, and for
the kingdom. So he never went
to war, yet you find that he
appointed Benaiah over the
army. Why? That’s wisdom,
amen. During times of peace,
when you have an army, amen,
that’s a guarantee for your
outward peace, amen? It’s a
sign to all the nations around
the world not to attack, amen,
and Benaiah, we know from
other places in the Bible,
that this is a mighty warrior
of God, especially during the
time of David. And Zadok and
Abiathar, the priests. Again,
this plural noun. Just now he
had a priest, which is the
pastor, right? And now he has
priests, all the spiritual
overseers, the spiritual
people that God has placed in
his life. So friend, a sign
that you have received wisdom
from God is that you surround
yourself with people who can
speak into your life. And
sometimes it is corrective.
Sometimes when they speak to
you, all right, it’s not
pleasant. For example, from
the book of Proverbs, it says,
“Poverty and shame will come
to him who disdains
correction, but he who regards
a rebuke will be honored.” You
know, today we have a
generation of people, “Don’t
correct me. Don’t tell me what
I did wrong, you know? I don’t
wanna hear it. And I know what
to do.” In fact, the younger
they are, the more they know
what to do. You know, our
children even, especially, and
they believe they know what to
do. And it grieves us because
we look at them and we know
that there’s a better way of
doing that, there’s a better
way of doing this, but yet
they want to go on their own
way, and usually they fall
flat on their face. It’s the
same thing even for adults.
Many times, you know, the
rebuke comes, and the Bible
says, “Open rebuke is better
than secret love,” from the
book of Proverbs again. Open
rebuke is better than someone
saying they love you secretly.
No, God wants you, if you love
someone, you see them going
down the wrong path, correct
them. That is someone who
loves you, amen? Someone who’s
not out for your money,
someone who’s not just out to
benefit themself. They care
for you. Surround yourself
with people like that. And
when they see you going on the
wrong path, they will tell
you, “Look, bro, I love you
enough to tell you this is not
the way to go. This is not the
way to do it,” amen? And time
and time again, we see in our
counseling and all that,
families break down because of
the father, you know, all of a
sudden going on a wrong path,
amen. It might start with a
little flirtation and then
later on became an affair, all
because no one came in. When
they saw the thing happening,
they saw them flirting, no one
came in and said, “Bro, what
you’re doing, you are saying
those kind of things to a girl
who’s not even your wife. Come
on, what’s happening, bro? I
can see it,” amen? You need
people like this in church.
You need people to tell you
straight, amen, because they
love you, amen? Or you see
someone, you know, and they
are investing in a business
that is not moral, that is not
right. And I’m speaking from
experience here. I know of
families that break down
because the husband wanted to
become rich quickly, and they
feel like they are in for a
good deal, even though the
wife says no. The wife doesn’t
feel peaceful about it. And
the Bible says clearly in the
book of Proverbs, “He that
gathers by labour shall
increase,” amen? But no, I
don’t want a labor way. I just
want the easy way. I know I
can make money by this
whatever fad that comes.
Friend, the Bible says,
“Blessed is the man who walks
not in the counsel of the
ungodly.” Notice the ungodly,
they have counsel. It’s not
that they don’t have counsel,
but the Bible says what?
“Blessed is the man who walks
not in the counsel of the
ungodly.” They will tell you
how to spend your money, how
to invest your money, but if
they are people who are not
filled with God’s Spirit and
you don’t bare witness with–
even if they are Christians
telling you to do that, but
you feel like there’s a check
in your spirit, check with
someone who doesn’t have a
private interest, amen, in
this venture. Ask someone who
can be neutral, who can ask
the Lord for you, so that
together you can confirm that
this is of God, someone you
respect. Like we established
just now, all right, surround
yourself with people like
this, your care group leaders,
your pastors, amen, before you
make a major decision,
especially one that involves a
lot of money, or a change of
location, or a change of
career, amen? It’s important
you listen and listen to the
wisdom of God in them, amen?
But friend, don’t walk in the
counsel of the ungodly. And
the Bible says, instead, walk
in the Word of God, amen? And
where do you find the Word of
God? You find the Word of God
from the Bible. You find the
Word of God, the rhema Word,
the specific Word, in the– in
your spirit, in your heart, to
be confirmed by all those that
God has placed in
responsibility over you, in
shepherding over you, amen?
Praise the Lord. And the Bible
says the result of, the same
chapter that starts with,
“Blessed is the man who walks
not in the counsel of the
ungodly,” ends with, “Whatever
he doeth shall prosper.” So
don’t walk in the counsel of
the ungodly. Meditate on God’s
Word, amen, day and night and
you will prosper. Your leaf
will not wither and whatever
you do prospers, amen? So the
wisdom that we are talking
about is a wisdom from God, my
friend. It’s a wisdom from
God. Remember Joseph. The
Bible tells us that when
Joseph was a slave in Egypt
and he was thrown into prison
because of false accusation,
and in prison he interpreted a
butler’s dream, and he
reminded the butler, “When you
are released, don’t forget to
mention me, all right? I’m
still in prison. Mention a
good word about me so that I
can be released from this
place, because I’m thrown here
because of a lie.” But that
butler forgot Joseph, but God
never forgot Joseph, praise
the Lord, and God will never
forget you, amen. So the Bible
says, “At the end of two full
years, Pharaoh had a dream.”
And he had two dreams in one
night. The first dream, he saw
seven cows. They were
good-looking and plump, fat
cows, healthy cows. And the
Bible says that these cows
came out of the river, right,
and they were healthy-looking,
plump. Then all of a sudden,
seven other cows came out, and
they were ugly, and they were
gaunt, and they were so
scrawny. And these thin,
scrawny cows ate up the seven
cows, okay? You know, dreams
usually is symbolic and they
don’t make natural sense,
okay? Then he slept again. And
then he had another dream, and
this time he dreamt of seven
ears of corn, of wheat, right?
And from one stalk came seven
heads, and the seven heads
were plump, all right? They
were plump. It means full of
wheat, amen, and full of
kernel. So that means it’s a
healthy harvest. And then he
had–he saw another seven
ugly, blighted, withered
heads, seven heads of grain
that were withered, blasted by
the east wind, the Bible says.
And then these seven, you
know, withered heads ate up
the plump heads. So he slept.
And he was thinking when he
woke up, “What is this dream
all about?” And again, the
butler that Joseph interpreted
for was summoned, and when the
butler was before Pharaoh, he
says, “It’s my fault, you
know, not to mention this
earlier, but there was a young
Hebrew and he interpreted my
dream correctly. It all came
to pass.” So they got Joseph
out of prison and Joseph heard
the dream, and this is what
Joseph said. “And the dream
was repeated to Pharaoh twice
because the thing is
established by God, and God
will shortly bring it to
pass.” You know, I have a
special thing that, you know,
down through the years I would
dream sometimes. Not all my
dreams are of God. Most of
them are not, okay, but there
have been times that God will
give me dreams. And if it’s a
dream from God, usually it
will happen twice, all right?
“The dream was repeated to
Pharaoh twice,” Joseph said,
“because the thing is
established by God, and God
will shortly bring it to pass.
Now therefore, let Pharaoh
select a discerning and wise
man, and set him over the land
of Egypt.” Do you remember
that Joseph, earlier on his
life, he had dreams from God,
but he was not able to
interpret. Many of us are in
the place where we feel like
there’s something significant
about a dream, a prophecy, or
something that God spoke to
us, but we are not able to
really interpret it, or you
know, make sense of it in a
way that we can understand. So
what is happening here?
There’s a difference. Even
King Nebuchadnezzar, the most
powerful kingdom at that time,
all right, the king of
Babylon, he had a dream from
God, but he was not able to
interpret. He had to have
Daniel come in to interpret
the dream. He had to have
God’s man to come in to
interpret the dream. So the
ability to interpret is
something from God, uniquely
from God. To dream a dream can
be for any man, and they don’t
have to be filled with God’s
Spirit. They can just be, you
know, having that dream and
just dream, but they are not
able to interpret. So there’s
a difference. At one time,
Joseph was not able to
interpret. He had a dream and
he was not able to interpret
it. And he just told his
brothers, “I saw you all
bowing before me,” and all
that, but he was not able to
interpret it, okay? But later
on, he was able to interpret
dreams. What was the
difference? The difference was
this: The ability to interpret
came after he said no to
Potiphar’s wife with all her
seductions, right? He said no,
and there is something about
this. There’s something about
walking with God and not
sinning. The Bible says, for
example, “Whoever commits
adultery destroys his soul,”
all right? His soul here is
not just your life, but
also–it can mean life, but
also “soul” is the realm of
the mind and the emotions. The
more you indulge in fleshly
lusts, you’re into porn, and
you are into adultery, or
whatever, let me tell you
this, your mind cannot think
straight. You’re not able to
make good decisions. I find
many times people who are
involved in fleshly lust, they
become more and more ignorant.
They become more and more
unintelligent. They become, in
other words, stupid, okay? The
Bible says it’s stupid to do
all these things. Whoever does
these things, right, destroys
his soul. So his soul was
okay, but he destroys it. So
the ability to–notice the
ability to interpret. Any man
can have a dream from God. God
can give a man a dream even
though he’s not a believer,
and yet the ability to
interpret it is only for those
who will walk with God, amen?
So we find that Joseph said no
to the fleshly lust, amen, and
after that he was able to
interpret even though he was
in prison, all right? That
came to pass. I thought that’s
an important note for us to
take account of. And over
here, you find that Joseph
said about the two dreams,
they are actually one dream,
he told Pharaoh. And that
means the fat cows and all
that, and the fat ears of
grain, right, signify seven
years of plenty, all right?
There’ll be seven years of
plenty. The harvest will bring
forth plentifully. There’ll be
a bumper crop. And for seven
years, it’s gonna be just wave
after wave of bumper crop.
After that will come, all
right, seven cows, scrawny and
ugly, and they will eat up the
cows. In other words, there’ll
be seven years of famine.
Right now, prophetically
speaking, we are in a famine.
We’re in a recession and it’s
global. So we’re in a famine,
and God has wisdom for us
here. And the famine of Joseph
was such that all the seven
years of plenty was forgotten.
But then God never gives a
dream without giving us wisdom
to apply it in our lives, and
God gives wisdom to who? In
the case of Nebuchadnezzar,
God did not give it to him.
God gave it to His man,
Daniel, the man of the hour,
amen? God gave him wisdom and
then he was able to interpret
the dream and prepare King
Nebuchadnezzar for what was to
come, okay? In fact, even
establishing his identity as
someone that God raised him
for such a time as the time
that Daniel was in and to know
what he should do, okay? So
every time God gives a dream
to an unbeliever, only a
believer, a man who is filled
with God’s Spirit, is able to
interpret it, and then that
gives you a connection there.
At the same time, during
famine, God’s people always
rise to the top, and God will
give them the wisdom and the
Word for that season, for that
time. And this is what
happened as well when Joseph
gave the interpretation to
Pharaoh. Joseph says, “Prepare
yourself, all right? Let
Pharaoh do this.” Now, in a
way, Joseph was not
recommending himself, yet he
was, right? He said, “Let
Pharaoh select a discerning
and wise man, and set him over
the land of Egypt. Let Pharaoh
do this, and let him appoint
officers over the land, to
collect one-fifth,” that’s
20%, “of the produce of the
land of Egypt in the seven
plentiful years. And let them
gather all the food of those
good years that are coming,
and store up grain,” okay? So
here, the wisdom was to
appoint a discerning and wise
man, and set him over the land
of Egypt. Now, Joseph wasn’t
saying, “I recommend myself
for the job, okay? I
volunteer.” No, he says, “Let
Pharaoh select a discerning
and wise man.” And this is
what Pharaoh should do, ensure
that during the seven years of
plenty, set aside– with every
harvest, set aside 20%. Set
aside 20%. Live off the rest,
amen, sell off the rest, but
store up the 20%. So this is
what Joseph advised Pharaoh,
“And look for a wise,
discerning man that you can
put in charge of this.” Notice
Pharaoh’s response. “So the
advice was good in the eyes of
Pharaoh and in the eyes of all
his servants. And Pharaoh said
to his servants, ‘Can we find
such a one as this, a man in
whom is the Spirit of God?'”
Notice, a man who is wise and
discerning, here Pharaoh says
something quite prophetic,
right? We know that it’s
prophetic because he discerned
correctly. He says, “Can we
find such a one as this,”
pointing to Joseph, “a man in
whom is the Spirit of God?” It
goes to show that a discerning
and wise man is a man in whom
God’s Spirit dwells. “Then
Pharaoh said to Joseph,
‘Inasmuch as God has shown you
all this, there is no one as
discerning and wise as you.'”
And it goes on to say, “You
shall be over my house, and
all my people shall be ruled
according to your word; only
in regard to the throne will I
be greater than you.” Wow,
just in a short while, Joseph,
who was brought out from
prison is now the most
powerful man beside Pharaoh,
okay? Pharaoh says, “Only in
the throne will I be greater
than you,” so he’s the number
two man in the whole realm of
that kingdom. And the kingdom
of Egypt at that time was the
most powerful kingdom at that
time. So with the wisdom of
God, he rose through the
ranks. And friend, that’s
where you find God’s wisdom
will propel you into a place
of promotion. I’m not talking
about for pride–you know, for
proud reasons and all that.
Would to God that we stop
praying just for a job and
pray for a position, a
position of influence that we
can impact many lives for our
Lord Jesus, amen? Don’t just
pray for a job, don’t just
pray for, you know, something
that you just wanna live by,
but pray that you might be an
influence to many people.
Remember later on, Joseph said
to his brothers that, “God
sent me here to save many
people,” amen, “to save many,
many lives,” amen? So he
realized he has a greater call
than just fulfilling a job. So
friend, that’s you and I as
well, but I wanna point to you
this thing in closing. Joseph
recommended a man who is
discerning and wise. That’s
what he advised Pharaoh. Now,
Pharaoh says, “Well, who can
find a better man than you? A
man in whom is God’s Spirit
and a discerning and wise
man.” And he became–he was
promoted. This word
“discerning” in the Hebrew is
the word “bin.” And the word
“wise” is the word “chakam.”
Now, why am I showing you
this? Because it’s very
interesting that this word
“bin” was also used in the
prayer of Solomon, “That I may
discern,” okay? It says “bin.”
It’s the same word in the
Hebrew, “That I may discern,”
discerning man. Wise, chakam,
chakam. But also, remember
that there is a translation of
the Old Testament in Greek.
Your Old Testament is actually
in Hebrew, translation in the
Hebrew, and your New Testament
is written in Greek, right?
But there’s Old Testament
translation of Greek which is
the Septuagint version. If you
look at the Septuagint
version, it says–where it
says, “A discerning and wise
man,” the word “bin” for
“discerning” is the word
“phronimos.” Phronimos. And
the word “chakam” for “wise”
is the word “sunetos.” Now,
“phronimos” is very
interesting because
“phronimos” means someone who
is sharp, all right, in his
discernment, someone who is
very discerning, someone who
is able to look at the true
nature of things. And there’s
a–he’s a sagacious person, a
person who is recognized for
his prudence. He’s able to see
things before it happens,
amen. Discerning, “phronimos,”
very interesting word. And
“chakam,” wise, “chakam” in
the Hebrew, the Greek is
“sunetos.” “Sunetos” means,
literally, someone who is able
to take two and two, bring it
together to find the solution,
amen? He’s able to put two and
two together and conclude. And
this is what Solomon had also
when the two women came to
him, all right, claiming that
the baby is hers. He was able
to put two things together and
come up with the right answer,
the right mother actually. So
here, this word “sunetos” is
interesting because we find
this word– this is in the
adjective form, “sunetos,” but
in its verb form, it’s found
here in Joshua 1:8. In Joshua
1:8, again, just like Solomon,
Joshua is about to fill up a
big pair of shoes. Moses has
died and gone on to be with
the Lord, and he’s gonna fill
up Moses’ shoes, right? I
mean, anyone who would
intimidated by that. But the
very first instruction God
gave him was this, “This Book
of the Law will not depart
from his mouth.” God says,
“Don’t let this Book of the
Law depart from your mouth.”
What does it mean? Mutter on
it. Memorize it and mutter on
it. “You shall meditate in it
day and night.” And the word
“meditate” is the word
“hagah,” which is to mutter on
it, meditate. You know when
you are–like, you’re talking
to yourself, you’re thinking
or you’re planning something,
you talk to yourself, right?
That is God’s way of
meditation, amen? Meditation
is not emptying your mind.
Meditation is filling your
mind with God’s Word, with
substance, amen, of power,
substance of grace, amen. You
meditate on it day and night.
And God says the result will
be, “For then you will make
your way prosperous, and then
you will have good success.”
Now, this word “good success”
in the Hebrew is the word
“sakal,” but in the Greek it
is the word “suniemi.” Now, it
sounds like “sunetos” because
it’s the same word actually.
“Sunetos” is the adjective in
the Greek and “suniemi” is the
verb. So in other words, when
you meditate on God’s Word day
and night, you will make your
way prosperous and you will
have good success, suniemi,
amen? How do you get suniemi?
Just like Joseph, all right,
he had suniemi. He had
sunetos, amen, putting two and
two together. He’s able to
discern. He’s able to put even
literally the two dreams as
one, and he’s able to see the
answer. That comes from
sunetos. It’s one of the
rivers of God’s wisdom that
God releases into your life
when you have sunetos.
“Sunetos,” again, is the
adjective. In the verb form,
it is “suniemi.” So here, you
have suniemi, good success,
sakal. Very interesting word,
“sakal,” because you find
David behaved himself in a
sakal way. When it says,
“David behaved himself
wisely,” all right, that is
“sakal,” amen, “suniemi.”
Praise the Lord, amen. So how
do you have suniemi in your
life? How do you have this
sakal in your life? How do you
have this wisdom to put two
and two together when others
are not able to even reconcile
them and see the solution? God
says by meditating on His Word
day and night. Another way of
meditating of course is also
to hear sermons, amen, day and
night. You know, if the devil
is bombarding you with
depressive thoughts, and dark
thoughts, and negative
thoughts all day long, “You’ll
not be well. This disease is
gonna kill you. And this is
what happened to so-and-so.
That’s what happened to
so-and-so,” and you don’t keep
your mind. How do you do that?
If the devil is bombarding you
24 hours, okay, a day, 24/7,
okay, let me tell you this,
it’s time for you to meditate
on God’s Word. Listen to God’s
Word day and night. And when
you’re not listening to God’s
Word, meditate on what you
have listened to. Meditate on
God’s Word. Mutter it under
your breath, because the devil
is not playing fair. He’s
bombarding you all day and
night. You need to meditate
God’s Word day and night,
praise God. This is one of the
greatest pleasures in my own
personal life. I’ve done this
for many years, take a verse
to meditate on. You know, when
I wake up in the middle of the
night, and I don’t care
whether it’s because I ate the
wrong kind of food, or too
much coffee, or the devil is
trying to disturb my sleep,
but if I wake up in the middle
of the night, one of the
things I always do is always
to meditate, meditate on God’s
Word. Oh, I pray in the
Spirit. I don’t stay up there
and worry about not having
enough sleep and what’s gonna
happen in the day. You know,
many times in the dark moments
of the night, you find your
thoughts going astray. You’ll
find your thoughts getting
very dark, just like the
darkness around you, but
friend, that’s the time you
need to focus on God’s Word.
You need to make your mind
focus on God’s Word and start
muttering it, amen? Muttering
helps to control your mind to
focus on something. You know,
people do not know how to
focus nowadays. They have so
many distractions all around
them. And meditating on God’s
Word will make you focus,
focus on that one verse, focus
on the word in that verse,
amen? It will help your
concentration, which is a key
to success in life which is
sadly lacking in today’s
generation, in today’s world,
because they are so pulled in
so many directions and there’s
a lot of distractions out
there. So friend, meditation
will give you, what? Suniemi,
amen, the ability to put two
and two together and see the
wisdom of God in it. It’s one
of the branches of God’s
wisdom. I wanna close with
this Word: “You will make your
way prosperous,” tsalach,
amen? In the Hebrew, it’s the
word “tsalach.” And in the
Greek, the word here is
“euodoo.” “Euodoo” is used in
3 John 2, “Beloved, I wish
above all things that you
prosper and be in health, even
as your souls prosper.” All
right, the word “prosper”
there is the word “euodoo,”
okay? Same over here. In
Hebrew, it is “tsalach.” And
very interesting, this word
“tsalach” is used also
when–in the Old Testament, it
says the Spirit of God came
upon Samson and Samson did
this exploit. The Spirit of
God came on Samson in another
occasion and he did this, he
did that, all right? The word
there for coming upon Samson
is the word, “The Spirit of
God ‘tsalach’ on Samson.”
Later on, the Spirit of God
“tsalach” on Saul, and also
David. When David was anointed
by Samuel the Prophet, the
Bible says, “The Spirit of the
LORD came upon David.” The
word “came upon David” is the
word “The Spirit of the LORD
‘tsalach’ David.” What does
that mean? Success and the
Holy Spirit are together.
Whatever areas of life you
wanna be successful in, you
wanna be prosperous in, amen,
you can trust the Holy Spirit
will bring you there, amen?
He–the Holy Spirit coming on
you is tsalaching, amen?
Tsalaching, the Hebrew word,
all right? Tsalach. He will
tsalach. He will prosper your
way, amen. Even in your
marriage, in your
relationships with your
friends, with your colleagues
and people around you, He will
tsalach those relationships,
amen. He will tsalach your
parenting with your children.
He will tsalach your business
life. He will tsalach every
area of your life, especially,
amen, in the area of soul,
because as your soul prospers,
so you are in health and then
you prosper outwardly. That’s
what 3 John 2 tells us, amen?
So I pray in Jesus’s name that
you will become that
discerning and wise man, that
you will become that man that
has the “chakam,” that has the
“bin,” or in the Greek, that
has the “sunetos,” as well as
also the one who has the
“phronimos,” amen? Someone who
is wise and discerning,
someone who is able to flow
with what God is doing in this
occasion. And remember that
when God gives a dream, God
gives a prophecy, whatever,
it’s to prosper His people,
amen? There’s a verse in the
Bible, in the book of Ezra, it
says that, “God’s people
prospered through the
prophesying of Haggai and
Zechariah.” So these two
prophets was raised, amen, and
prophesying is today like
hearing a sermon being
preached to you, amen? It will
prosper you. It will “tsalach”
you, amen, just like the
people of God prospered
because of the prophesying of
the prophets in those days,
amen. I pray that you will be
a discerning and wise man, a
man who prospers in his way.
Something interesting about
the word “prosperous” also, in
the Greek it’s actually the
prosperous journey. So that
tells us prosperity or
success, amen, is not an end.
It is actually a journey,
amen? While you are journeying
to the end, amen, you are
prospering in your way. Praise
the Lord. So my friends, ask
God for wisdom. In every
venture, in every endeavor,
ask God for wisdom. You know,
I ask God for wisdom every
day, because every day I see
my need, I see my lack, and I
need God. I need His wisdom
desperately, amen? May you
also find yourself every day
in that place, in that place
of being humble, being
teachable, and asking God for
wisdom, amen? God is more
willing to give you wisdom
than you want it. And then
number two, all right, once
you know that you value the
person of Jesus, all of a
sudden you see, “My goodness,
Jesus is what all this thing
is all about. I want to love
Him more. I want to worship
Him more. I want to know Him
more,” amen. That’s a sign
that you have received wisdom.
All of a sudden Jesus becomes
central in your life. Every
sermon you hear, you want to
hear Jesus in that sermon,
amen? And then another result
of knowing that you have
received wisdom is this: All
of a sudden you are willing to
hear advice, advice from
people who are spiritual,
people that are flowing with
God, amen, especially your
leaders in your local church,
amen? You start listening. You
start bouncing off them. If
God is directing you, if it’s
God, you can bounce off them
and hear the same thing. It’s
like a word of confirmation,
amen? You will surround
yourself with people that are
like-minded, people who have
the Holy Spirit just like you
have, and you will bounce off
them, especially in the areas
of major decisions in your
life, amen. Have them pray
together with you, like the
book of Acts. The Bible says
time and time again, “Being
let go, they went to their own
company. Being let go, they
went to the–” always to
gather together, “And they
prayed with one accord.”
Notice the togetherness,
togetherness in the early
church, all right? That’s how
they operate in wisdom. That’s
why, “Great grace was upon
them all. And with great power
they gave witness to the
resurrection of the Lord
Jesus.” Praise the Lord,
hallelujah. Father, in Jesus’s
name, I thank You for everyone
that’s hearing this word right
now, Father. I pray, Father
God, that You will raise
discerning and wise men and
women out of this sermon,
Lord. I pray, Father, in
Jesus’s name You will raise a
whole new generation of
Josephs, Daniels, and
Solomons, Father, with a good
ending, Father, hallelujah,
amen. Praise the Lord. And
Father, I pray that You will
fill them, Father, with Your
“chakam,” with Your “bin,”
with Your “phronimos,” and
with Your “sunetos.” Father, I
pray You will fill them with
every branch of Your wisdom,
that they will operate not
with fleshly wisdom, not with
human logic, but with the
wisdom of God. I pray You will
prosper them, Lord, in all
that they undertake. May their
lives make a turn right now
because as they receive Your
wisdom, Father, I pray they
will continue, Lord, to walk
with You and to continue that
wisdom, Lord. Not as Solomon
did, Lord, but as Jesus did,
Lord, to the end of His life,
the Author and Finisher of our
faith. And prosper their
journey, prosper all the way
until we see You, Lord Jesus,
face to face. In Jesus’s name
I ask, amen.
I hope you enjoyed today’s
episode, but don’t go just
yet. If you’d like to receive
prayer, share your testimony,
or find out more about Gospel
Partner, just click the link
on this screen. If not, I’ll
see you in the next episode.