THERE’S NOBODY LIKE HIM! (1 Kings 10:1-13)

THERE’S NOBODY LIKE HIM! 

1 Kings 10:1-13   (NKJV)

The Queen of Sheba’s Praise of Solomon

1  Now when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the Lord, she came to test him with hard questions.

2 She came to Jerusalem with a very great retinue, with camels that bore spices, very much gold, and precious stones; and when she came to Solomon, she spoke with him about all that was in her heart.

3 So Solomon answered all her questions; there was nothing so difficult for the king that he could not explain it to her.

4 And when the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, the house that he had built,

5 the food on his table, the seating of his servants, the service of his waiters and their apparel, his cupbearers, and his entryway by which he went up to the house of the Lord, there was no more spirit in her.

6 Then she said to the king: “It was a true report which I heard in my own land about your words and your wisdom. 7 However I did not believe the words until I came and saw with my own eyes; and indeed the half was not told me. Your wisdom and prosperity exceed the fame of which I heard. 8 Happy are your men and happy are these your servants, who stand continually before you and hear your wisdom! 9 Blessed be the Lord your God, who delighted in you, setting you on the throne of Israel! Because the Lord has loved Israel forever, therefore He made you king, to do justice and righteousness.”

10 Then she gave the king one hundred and twenty talents of gold, spices in great quantity, and precious stones. There never again came such abundance of spices as the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.

11 Also, the ships of Hiram, which brought gold from Ophir, brought great quantities of almug wood and precious stones from Ophir.

12 And the king made steps of the almug wood for the house of the Lord and for the king’s house, also harps and stringed instruments for singers. There never again came such almug wood, nor has the like been seen to this day.

13 Now King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all she desired, whatever she asked, besides what Solomon had given her according to the royal generosity. So she turned and went to her own country, she and her servants.

 

Intro:

Have you ever met someone who just left you in awe? I mean, they were so great and so wonderful that you were left shaking your head and saying, “There’s nobody else like that!”. Well, those kinds of meetings are rare, but they do happen occasionally. The Bible records for us the account of one such meeting. In this passage, the Queen of Sheba was left in amazement when she met King Solomon (in the Old Testament). She went away saying, “There’s nobody like him!”.

Many years later, when Jesus Christ was ministering here on earth, He mentioned this very event. She spoke of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba and He reminded His listeners that He was even greater than Solomon, Matt. 12:42. If an earthly king left that queen astounded at his glory and greatness, how much more will King Jesus amaze those who meet Him?

This morning, I would like to preach for a while on this thought, There’s Nobody Like Him! I want to show you that as great as Solomon was in his day, a Greater Than Solomon is here!

I want to tell you today that There’s Nobody Like Him! There are a few thoughts in this passage that I would like to draw out for you today.

I. THE REPUTATION OF THIS KING

(Ill. The land of Sheba was located some 1,200 miles south of Israel. It corresponds to modern day Yemen. As she served in that country, the sailors and merchants that passed through shared the word of the greatness of King Solomon. What their testimony said about him was this: There’s Nobody Like Him!)

A. She Had Heard Of His Wealth – v. 7 – She heard of the great riches that flowed into the kingdom of Solomon – 1 Kings 9:28 (Ill. 31,500 lbs. worth $2,419,200,000), 1 Kings 10:14-15 (Ill. 50,000 lbs. worth $38,361,600,000). Solomon’s wealth was greater than the human imagination can comprehend!

B. She Had Heard Of His Works – v. 6 – She heard of the great kingdom he had built, 1 Kings 5-9. She heard of the Temple he had constructed for his God. She heard of the great palace he had built for himself. She had heard that he was a powerful king and she wanted to know more!

C. She Had Heard Of His Wisdom – v. 1-3, 6-7 – 1 Kings 4:29-34 – She had heard of his intellect and that he could answer deep questions. This queen came to Solomon because she had problems that her power and wealth could not solve. She came to Jerusalem because there were questions for which her gods did not have the answers. She came because she needed help that only Solomon, a wise king,  could give her!

D. She Had Heard Of His Worship – v. 1 – Notice where the fame of Solomon was in the mind of this woman; “concerning the name of the Lord.” what impressed her more than his position, more than his power, more than his prosperity and more than his prestige, was his relationship with his God. When she learned that Solomon’s God was the One responsible for his glory, she wanted to know more! She wanted to know about this connection he had with God. She was interested in meeting the God of King Solomon!

E. We are not here to exalt Solomon today, but we are here to lift up One Who is greater than Solomon! Can I just remind you before we move deeper in the text that There’s Nobody Like Him anywhere? He is all that Solomon was reputed to be, but 10,000 times more!

I’m going to say more about these things in just a minute, but let me say right now that There’s Nobody Like Him in His Wealth: He can meet every need, whether it be physical, material or spiritual! There’s Nobody Like Him in His Works: He has all power and He can move your mountains, quench your thirst and save your soul! There’s Nobody Like Him in His Wisdom: He holds all the answers to all your questions.

In fact, He is the Answer to all the riddles, problems and questions of life! They all rest and reside in Him. There’s Nobody Like Him in His Worship: He can bring you into the presence of the God of Eternity! He Alone can give you the vital connection you need to God. He Alone bridges the gap between God and man! His Name is JESUS!

(Note: There’s Nobody Like Him in His reputation! When lost men hear about Him, it piques their curiosity. It whets their appetites. It makes them want to come to know Him! Just like the Queen of Sheba, I got interested in Him because some of those who knew Him were talking about Him! By the way, everyone who knows Him should be talking about him, Acts 1:8.)

II. THE RICHES OF THIS KING

(Ill. When the Queen of Sheba arrived at Jerusalem, she was astounded at the greatness of this king’s wealth. What she saw blew her mind, v. 5.)

A. She Saw His Possessions – v. 4, 13 – She saw his house and his wealth. He gave her tremendous wealth before she returned to her own country.

B. She Saw His Provisions – v. 5 – Provisions of his table refers to the massive amount of food required to feed those who ate from his table on a daily basis, 1 Kings 4:22-23.

C. She Saw His People – v. 5 – She watched his servants as they ministered to him. She noticed how they sat in his presence listening to his voice. She noticed how others hastily carried out his wishes. She was amazed because they were actually happy to be his servants! Who had happy servants?

D. She Saw His Piety – v. 5 – She watched Solomon as he entered the Temple of God. History notes that Solomon had a covered walkway connecting his palace with the House of God. She watched him worship and saw the sacrifices he made to His God and she was amazed, 1 Kings 8:63; 1 Kings 9:25.

E. When the Queen of Sheba saw the riches of King Solomon, she was totally flabbergasted! She said, “There’s Nobody Like You!”

But, I want to remind you that there is a greater than Solomon among us today! HE IS JESUS CHRIST!

Let me just remind you that There’s Nobody Like Him in His Possessions – Psa. 24:1; Psa. 50:12; Job 41:11. He owns it all and He can take care of His people! There are no shortages with Him!

There’s Nobody Like Him In His Provisions – Not only does He have it all, but He is willing to share it all with those who feed from His table, Phil. 4:19; Psa. 37:25! Solomon had enough at his table to feed those who ate there, maybe as many a several thousands or more.

The Lord JESUS has enough to give all of His children their “daily bread”! Not just the physical necessity of food, but also the spiritual food that we need so desperately as well. There’s Nobody Like Him In His People, Titus 2:14; Eph. 2:10.

His people love Him and want to be around Him to hear His Word and to do His bidding. Those who know Him and love Him want to serve Him! There’s Nobody Like Him In His Piety, Heb. 7:26; Heb. 4:15; 1 Pet. 2:22. Solomon was a man of faith, but the Lord Jesus is the focus of faith! He is infinitely holy and righteous! Solomon was a man who offered sacrifices to God, what makes Jesus so wonderful is that He offered Himself as a sacrifice to God for humanity!

JESUS CHRIST gave His life on the cross to redeemed all those who will place their faith in Him, 1 Pet. 1:18-19. He promises to share His righteousness with those who come to Him for salvation, Rom. 4:24. He will take away the debt of sin from your account and replace it with His Own righteous, which is the only way to enter the presence of God, Phil 3:9.

III. THE REALITY OF THIS KING

(Ill. The Queen of Sheba had heard about Solomon, but she didn’t believe it until she had seen it for herself, v. 7. What she saw when she came to Solomon left her dumbfounded! She just had to step back and say, “There’s Nobody Like Him!”)

A. Her Personal Discovery – Her trip to Jerusalem led her to some personal conclusions.

1. He Was More Wealthy Than She Had Heard – She got more from him than she gave him.

2. He Was More Wise Than She Had Heard – He was able to answer every one of her riddles, v. 1, 3.

3. He Was More Wonderful Than She Had Heard – She concluded that she hadn’t even heard the half of his glory and greatness!

(Note: Every person who has ever heard about Jesus Christ and has responded by coming to Him for salvation can echo everything the Queen of Sheba discovered. JESUS will always give you back far more than you give up! He will reveal to you that answers to the riddles and problems of life. He will always prove to be far more glorious than anyone could ever articulate! He will leave you flabbergasted, astounded and amazed! You will have to say “There’s Nobody Like Him!” Everybody who told me about Jesus lied to me! JESUS was far better than they said! The wonderful half has never been told!)

B. Her Profound Declaration – She had some things to say to Solomon about what she saw.

1. Regarding His Servants – She commented on the happy nature of his servants! (Note: Most Servants are never happy! Solomon’s were!)

2. Regarding His Savior – She commented on the greatness of Solomon’s Lord! She bragged on His goodness and she bragged on His love. She was convinced that there was nobody like Solomon and nobody like His God! Hallelujah!

(Note: One of the reasons I can say “There’s Nobody Like Him” is because those who know Him are a happy and joyful people! There may be worries and there may be problems in daily living, but they possess a “joy unspeakable and full of glory” in the depths of their soul! He does that through His grace! Those who know Him Who is greater than Solomon are those who like to brag on Him and His Father! Praise God, There’s Nobody Like Him and His people ought to be the first to say so! Hallelujah! Praise the Lord!)

Conc:

The Queen of Sheba came to God because of what she saw in Solomon’s kingdom. She went back to her country saying, “There’s Nobody Like Him!”

I wonder if you have ever met the one Who is greater than Solomon? Oh, we have far more evidence than she had! We have the Word of God. We have the testimony of changed lives. We have the ministry of God all around us!

Do you know Him? If not, you can! If you do, are you still caught up in the glory of Who He is? Or, has He become old news in your life? Let Him remind you that “There’s Nobody Like Him!”

He is the GOOD SHEPHERD!

Praise God!

 

 

 

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