Then two prostitutes came to the king and stood before him. (I Kings 3:16 ESV)
A True Judge
The law of the land, ANY land, is not separated from God and His gospel. In this oft-quoted story of King Solomon we do not see common sense displayed, nor human fairness, nor expediency.
Instead, Solomon displayed in his judgment an awareness of the presence of sin, the consequences of sin, and the hope that all sinners have in God’s grace and mercy. That grace and mercy are what Jesus Christ is all about.
It takes an awareness of Sin to understand grace. It takes acknowledgement of guilt to accept forgiveness. It takes hopelessness to appreciate hope.
A true judge judges from that perspective.
Lately, it seems our nation seeks legal expertise, the ‘correct’ political viewpoint, and soft words when evaluating a judge.
But Solomon shows us that there is no such thing as a secular judge.
A judge is either judging on the basis of God’s law and God’s amazing gospel… or that judge is not really judging at all.