Short Attention Span Sunday School: Primary 6 Lesson 31 The Wisdom of King Solomon

PRIMARY 6 LESSON 31 THE WISDOM OF KING SOLOMON

CLASSROOM PREP
Write on the board:
Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is knowing not to put it in a fruit salad.

Have an image of an owl up too.

Post up:
“Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths” - Proverbs 3:5–6

OPENING ACTIVITY OPTION ONE - WISE / NOT WISE
(Hand out papers or index cards with WISE on one and NOT WISE on the other.

Read out these situations and have them raise up the WISE paper or the NOT WISE paper.)

Wearing a helmet when you ride your bike.
Always chewing your food.
Listening to your parents.
Never tying your shoes.
Spending all of your money and save nothing.
Being kind to others.
Only eating candy all day.
Reading the scriptures.
Ignoring a new kid in class.
Refusing to spread a rumor about someone.
Apologizing when you’ve hurt someone’s feelings.

OPENING ACTIVITY OPTION TWO - OWLS

Today we are going to be talking about knowledge, wisdom, and an understanding heart.

There are many references in Church magazines and popular culture about how owls are symbols for wisdom.

So just for fun, we're going to hear some fun facts about owls:

http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/sciencefacts/animals/owl.html

LESSON

The reason we're talking about wisdom etc. is because we're going to learn about someone new today -- King Solomon!
Have you heard of him?
He's thought of as someone who was very wise.

(Go through the lesson)

1 Kings 1

:39 David has gotten old at this point, and he anoints his son Solomon as the next king!
...and all the people said God, save King Solomon.
:40 the people were happy! ...the people…rejoiced with great joy

1 Kings 2

:1 David knew he was going to die
:2 he told Solomon to be strong
:3 walk in the ways of the Lord, keep the commandments, etc. (read this scripture)
:10 David died
:12 Solomon becomes King!

1 Kings 3

:3 Solomon loved the Lord and followed his father David’s example etc.
:5 The Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream and God said Ask what I shall give thee
:6 Solomon said the Lord showed his father great mercy and gave him, David, a son (Solomon, himself)
:7 Solomon is speaking very humbly, comparing himself to a child and needing guidance
:8 He feels humbled by how many people he is serving
:9 He wants an understanding heart to judge the Israelites, to know good from bad
:10 The Lord was pleased by this!
:11-13 Because he asked for this, and not to live long or for money, or to kill his enemies, he is blessed with wisdom and an understanding heart AND riches and honor!
:14 AND he will live long!
:15 Solomon showed gratitude by offering burnt offerings

2 Chronicles 1
:7 God appeared to Solomon again and said again “Ask what I shall give thee.”
:10 He wants wisdom and knowledge so he can judge his people
:11 Again because he didn’t ask for other things, he’s blessed with wisdom and knowledge AND riches and wealth and honor

Now here we see his wisdom and knowledge and understanding heart in action

1 Kings 3 16-28
(Read this out loud, possibly act it out, or draw the elements on the board as you read it so they understand)

1 Kings 4:29 Solomon had wisdom and an understanding heart

Another great thing King Solomon does is he has a temple built! Thought of as the first temple.

POST-LESSON DISCUSSION
What did Solomon accomplish because the Lord blessed him with wisdom and understanding?
He received permission from the Lord to build a temple in Jerusalem.
He used the finest materials that had been collected by David.

Now unfortunately, Solomon eventually turned away from God and used his riches and wisdom for his own glory.
He was persuaded to worship idols.

We can learn a lot of good things from Solomon, but what can we learn from his downfall? (when God gives us a gift, use it to glorify Him and to serve others)

PROVERBS ACTIVITY

He also shared his wisdom with others!
Let’s turn to a book in the Bible called Proverbs.
What is a proverb? (a wise saying)

Most of these were written by Solomon - they can still help us today!

(Ideas to do with these:
- Follow the manual and have them take turns looking up/reading/explaining them
- Pass out one to each student and have them draw a real-life situation illustrating the proverb and take time to have them explain and share with the class
- Have the Proverbs and your own written version up on the board or laid out on the floor and have them match the versions or have them match the Proverb with the reference (if you think they can look up scriptures well)

If you have a costume crown (or can make a crown), have them wear the crown during their turn to share!)

“Hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother” (1:8).
“If sinners entice thee, consent thou not” (1:10).
“Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding” (3:13).
“Lying lips are abomination to the Lord: but they that deal truly are his delight” (12:22).
“A soft answer turneth away wrath” (15:1).
“A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance” (15:13).
“How much better is it to get wisdom than gold!” (16:16).
“Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall” (16:18).
“Pleasant words are as an honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones” (16:24).
“He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty” (16:32).
“A merry heart doeth good like a medicine” (17:22).
“As he thinketh in his heart, so is he” (23:7).
“Say not, I will do so to him as he hath done to me” (24:29).
“A faithful man shall abound with blessings” (28:20).
“Whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe” (29:25).

TESTIMONY

I’ve seen a lot of wisdom in our class, a lot of knowledge in our class, and a lot of understanding of others.

As we all strive to be more wise and to have an understanding heart, we will become more like our Savior.

Scripture ideas to send home:

“And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand that is on the sea shore.” - 1 Kings 4:29 (something heart-shaped or sand-related)

“Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths” - Proverbs 3:5–6 (something heart-shaped)

You can also send them home with a costume crown and one of the above scriptures and under the scripture mention to follow the wisdom of King Solomon.

Owl-related take-home as well would work for wisdom!