LIGHT OF UNDERSTANDING (6)

“Therefore give to Your servant an UNDERSTANDING HEART to judge Your people, that I may discern between good and evil” – 1 Kings 3:9a

The Impact of the LIGHT of UNDERSTANDING begins in the HEART: “Therefore give to Your servant an UNDERSTANDING HEART to judge Your people, that I may discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this great people of Yours?” (1 Kgs 3:9). This was the crux of Solomon’s Prayer at Gibeon, when he was given the opportunity to ask for whatever he desired. His request for an Understanding Heart to judge the people, pleased God, Who granted him the request, with additional blessings of riches, honour, and longevity (vv.13-14).

Solomon knew that Wisdom and Understanding, like other divine virtues, are fundamentally heart-based. The heart is critical to the Believer’s Walk with God. Scripturally, the term “Heart” is used to denote a person’s inner self. It refers, not just to the physical blood-pumping organ, but to the invisible, intangible, but vitally powerful center of our being. The heart is the centre of spiritual activity, moral comprehension, and human will. The heart is the seat of cognition, affection or emotion, volition or will, and passion. As the physical heart chiefly governs how the human body functions; so, the spiritual heart determines the deepest dimensions of our spiritual and other inner functions. The heart is that faculty in us from which the essence of life flows: “KEEP YOUR HEART with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life” (Pro.4:23).

Solomon’s story depicts the great value God places on the possession of an understanding heart, not only for personal leadership of life, but the effective leadership of other persons. The psalmist also prayed: “Give me UNDERSTANDING, that I may keep your law and observe it with my WHOLE HEART” (Psa.119:34). We can likewise ask and receive: “The HEART of him who has understanding seeks knowledge, but the mouth of fools feeds on foolishness” (Pro.15:14). The understanding heart is never full of itself in pride. It always longs for more from the Ultimate Source of Knowledge, Wisdom, and Understanding – The Omniscient, All-knowing, All-wise God: “Wisdom rests in the HEART of him who has understanding, but what is in the heart of fools is made known” (Pro.14:33). Possessing Understanding is proof of Wisdom!

The Understanding Heart is also the Discerning Heart, able to “discern between good and evil.” Solomon’s request for a discerning heart was neither careless nor impulsive, but deliberate and purposeful. He wanted understanding in order to carry out his divine assignment effectively. This includes the ability to understanding one’s strength relative to the strengths of those we’re privileged to mentor or lead. This is not acquired by self-effort, but is imparted by God: “The Lord gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding” (Pro.2:6). An understanding heart is one means by which God works through His people, to build healthier, more wholesome relationships with others.