Well, that's been the subject of our lesson this morning. The good tree that brings forth good fruit is Christ. And he liveth in us. How often did... You heard what he said to the Pharisees. How can you bring forth good fruit? Because you're an evil tree. You're not going to bring forth good fruit. But what did he say to his disciples? Herein is my Father glorified that you bear much fruit. Not evil fruit. You're not talking about evil fruit. When you bear forth the fruit of the Spirit, God is glorified. Because that speaks of the, oh, what a salvation, what grace that he would cause us to be able to worship him, to praise him, to love him. We who are as wretched as the most wretched ever born into this world are able yet to worship the Savior because Christ liveth in us. We're able to love Him, we're able to believe on Him.

But where we read there in verses 38 through 42, we saw The Pharisees addressed the Lord as master. I want to say one more thing about that. Not only was he not impressed by their flattery of him. We we tend to be impressed by flattery, don't we? But he turned right around and told him you're evil. You're a wicked and adulterous generation. And. There's no flattery to them, and he's not being cruel. The Lord didn't come to condemn the world. He come that the world through him might be saved. This is the truth. He had Pharisees that believed on him. They were religious Jews steeped in the dead doctrines of man's works and man's will. And he had mercy on a few, the remnant, as he always has. But he's just telling them the truth here and all that hurt it. We who look at it today learn from what he said that we need him. He's taken away, he's burning our bridges that lead to self, flesh, trusting in the arm of the flesh, and showing us the truth of how a sinner can be saved.

But also, not only did he in his words not flatter them, though they called him master, but he completely snubbed them in what he did. He passed over the religious scholars, the ones who knew the Bible, the ones who were sound in doctrine. He passed them over and chose fishermen, a tax collector, an old man, the worst of the worst, the most foolish and despised and overlooked. Just like King David, he was overlooked. He was the last one. When they asked his father to bring his children in, because one of them was the anointed of the Lord, he didn't even call David in from the field. Because he was certain that David wasn't the one. And yet, God doesn't look on the outward appearance. He looks on the heart. So the Pharisees and the doctors of theology were passed by by the Lord, and he chose a bunch of nobodies to preach his gospel, that the excellency may be of him and not of us. He still does that.

The Lord called his generation wicked and adulterous for seeking a sign, and our generation is no different, as we said. They want to see spectacles, religious entertainment. But His people just want to know that He's with us. They want to hear of Him and what He did for us. Does that ever get old? Does it ever get stale to hear of the Savior's love for wretches like us? You know, his words of condemnation, or words of rebuke, I should say, to the church at Ephesus, I believe it was, is that you've left your first love. And I wonder that about us. I wonder that about his true church in general in these days. They didn't leave the doctrine. They didn't leave the truth. He wouldn't have called them a church if they had. But they had left their first love. And he warned them that if that continued, he would take the candlestick away, take the gospel away. And I pray that's never true of us. It's always fresh and new. His mercies are new every morning.

But the Lord said, the people of Nineveh will rise up in judgment against you Pharisees, because they didn't need a sign. They believed God's prophet. You notice that? He said, the only sign you're going to get is the sign of Jonas, or Jonah. But the people of Nineveh didn't need a sign at all. They just believed what God said through his prophet. You see how he worded that in the text?

What did Jonah say? Well, we know what Jonah and all the prophets said. Listen to Acts 10, 43. To him, to Christ, give all the prophets witness that through his name, whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins, faith without works, or justified by faith without, whosoever believeth in him, whosoever trusts him as their righteousness since they have not, Since all of our best deeds are filthy rags, Christ my righteousness, I believe on Him. Since my sins are so numerous that I can never reckon them back up, since my sins are continual, since all I am is sin, everything I do, even in the spirit, is tainted with sin, I look to him as my lamb, my sacrificial lamb before God. I believe on him and that character.

To him, give all the prophets witness. The people of Nineveh believed Jonah. And he said, you Pharisees, you don't believe his prophecy, nor the one of whom he prophesied. I'm standing here before you, and you don't believe me either. You didn't believe what Jonah said about me, and you don't believe what I'm saying about me.

And he said to them, also the queen of the south shall rise up in judgment against thee. Why? Well, he referred them to what happened in the scriptures With which again, remember the Pharisees are very familiar, the scribes and Pharisees were very familiar with scripture. So when he talks about the Queen of Sheba, talks about the Queen of the South, they knew exactly who he was talking about. And he's referring them to 1 Kings chapter 10. Let's turn over there, if you would.

1 Kings chapter 10. Beginning with verse one. And when the Queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon, now these are the people, this is the woman that the Lord is telling these Pharisees, she's gonna rise up in judgment against you. She heard of the famous Solomon concerning the name of the Lord. Key phrase. Doesn't say she heard how rich he was. Doesn't say she learned how well-renowned he was and how great he was in the thing. She found out that he was, that concerning the name of the Lord, he was knowledgeable. He knew something about who God is.

She came to prove him with hard questions. And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels that bear spices and very much gold and precious stones. And when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart. And Solomon told her all her questions. There was not anything hid from the king which he told her not. There was not one question she asked, in other words, that he didn't know the answer to.

And when the Queen of Sheba had seen all Solomon's wisdom in the house that he had built, and you think about Christ in this, because remember, it was concerning the name of the Lord she came to find out about. And Solomon is a type of the Lord in this, And notice where it said there was nothing hid from him. The Lord is the answer to every question. He's the answer to every question worth asking. Not only can He tell you the answer, He is the answer.

And when she, verse 4, had seen all of Solomon's wisdom in the house that he built, and the meat of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel, and his cupbearers, and his assent, by which he went up into the house of the Lord, there was no more spirit in her.

And she said to the king, It was a true report that I heard in mine own land of thy acts and of thy wisdom. Albeit I believed not the words until I came and mine eyes had seen it. And behold, the half was not told me. Thy wisdom and prosperity exceeded the fame which I heard. Happy are thy men, happy are these thy servants, which stand continually before thee, and that hear thy wisdom. Blessed be the Lord thy God.

That's the result of it, not what a great man you are. Blessed be the Lord your God. That's when you're gonna know what greatness is, when you see the Lord. He used the Lord's, he used his servant here. Blessed be the Lord thy God, which delighted in thee to set thee on the throne of Israel, because the Lord loved Israel forever. Therefore made he thee king to do judgment and justice.

Because the Lord loved us, he put his son on the throne. to do justice, to satisfy the justice of God in our place, and judgment, to decide the matter. When all of our decisions were anti-Christ, against the Lord's Christ, He made a decision that overruled all of it. That's what judgment means, him who decides, him who decides.

Solomon was a great man. She said, the Lord blessed you. He blessed you. That's why you're so great. The Lord revealed himself to this woman, didn't he? She understood why Solomon was great.

Look at first Kings chapter three, verse five. In Gibeon, the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night, and God said, Ask what I shall give thee. And Solomon said, Thou hast showed unto thy servant David my father great mercy, according as he walked before thee in truth and in righteousness and in uprightness of heart with thee. And thou hast kept for him this great kindness, that thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne as it is to this day.

And now, O Lord my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father. And I am but a little child, I know not how to go out or come in. And thy servant is in the midst of thy people, which thou hast chosen a great people that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude. Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad. For who is able to judge this thou so great a people?

And the speech pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this thing. And God said unto him, Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself long life, nor hast asked riches for thyself, nor hast asked the life of thine enemies, but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern judgment.

The Lord knows us, doesn't he? That's what we would be tempted to ask, that I'll never die, I'll live forever. A fountain of youth, you know. Or have asked great riches. You know, that's what people, if you had a lamp with a genie in it, you know, you'd ask him for $50 million or something crazy. Or maybe this. Kill all my enemies. I want revenge on all of my enemies. That'd be a good one we might ask for. But Solomon said, Lord, you've put me over your people, and there's no way that I can do that justice. There's no way I can do that right. There's no way I'm sufficient for that. Give me some wisdom. Give me understanding. that I might succeed in what you've given me to do.

Behold, I have done according to thy words, verse 12. Lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart, so that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall there any arise like unto thee. And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked. Isn't this beautiful? Both riches and honor, so that there shall not be any among the kings like unto thee all thy days.

We see why Solomon was the man that he was, and why The king of Sheba heard of his wisdom because God had given him wisdom like none before or none after. She traveled very far to see him, but not just to satisfy her curiosity. Somebody might well travel far to see just the splendor of the kingdom of Solomon because he was very, the Lord did bless him in riches. And also just the wisdom of Solomon, just to the natural man would be impressive.

But she came to learn concerning the name of the Lord. That's why she's going to rise up in judgment. The Pharisees didn't care what God said. They cared about their own popularity and fame and everybody looking up to them, the power that they wielded over the people. And he threatened that. And so they despised him in spite of the fact that he fulfilled every prophecy of the Old Testament, that no man ever spake like him, that he did things only God could do. None of that meant anything to them.

So our Lord compares himself with Solomon with one qualification, greater. greater, wiser than the wisest man that ever lived, richer than the richest man that ever lived, greater and more glorious than any man that ever lived, able to answer concerning the Lord God, able to to testify of God, who He is, and what His purpose is in this world, and what His decrees are, and what His glory is all about, like no other man that ever looked greater in every way than Solomon.

We see in the book of Hebrews that Christ was compared to Moses But we see these words, which will teach us a little something about our text, that Paul in that book of Hebrews, he said that Christ is greater, greater than Solomon, better than Solomon. And he said that Christ is worthy of more glory than Moses in that the one who built the house is worthy of more glory than the house. That's a big difference. How much glory is the house worth? Worthy of? Nothing. None. It's just materials. It's dead materials. It's a pile of junk without the one that built it. So that's what we're talking about here.

Greater in every way. Infinitely greater. and even compared to the angels in the book of Hebrews. You see this word over and over, better, better, better. He's the messenger of a better covenant. He's the ruler of a greater kingdom than Solomon's, although it was the greatest that ever was. Worthy of more glory, the queen of the south is gonna rise up in judgment against these and so many because she came not to see Solomon's great wealth, or to learn what he knew about the sciences and the arts and all that, and he knew everything about all that.

But she came because of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the Lord. We come to Christ not for riches. Religion is all about that, isn't it? He'll bless you with so many riches and this and that. That's not why we come to our Solomon. We come to find out who God is. We come to Christ to find out who God is.

by His grace, every question, every hard question that there is. You know, there's some hard questions, but He not only has the answer, He is the answer. What are the questions that men ask? We've talked about this before. What's the origin of man? You know, all these theories and foolish imaginations about that. The origin of man is Christ. Without him was not anything made that was made. What's the purpose of man? Christ. Of him and through him and to him are all things. What's the destiny of man? Christ. Everybody's going to stand at the judgment seat of Christ. Every philosophical question that man has ever raised has one answer. Hard questions, unless you know who Christ is.

Revelation 4, 11, thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power, because you created everything, and for thy pleasure they are and were created. I'm pleased with it too, but he didn't create it primarily to please me. He made it the way he liked it. Here's a hard question. How can God be just and justify a sinner? Same answer. Same answer. Christ. The blood of Christ cleanseth us from all sins. What must I do to be saved? Christ. Christ. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. Hard questions, many wise and prudent have sought to answer them. Isn't that what the Lord said? You've hidden these things though. You've hidden the answers to these hard questions from the wise and prudent and reveal them unto babies like us. What a glorious thing. What a glorious thing.

The Pharisees asked questions to accuse the Lord. This queen asked questions to find out who God is. That's why she'll rise up in judgment against them. And it says there, In verse 2, back in 1 Kings 10, it says, she came to Jerusalem with a very great train with camels that bear spices and very much gold and precious stones. And when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart.

Let's talk about that last part first. Come to the Lord Jesus Christ and bear your heart. Confess your sins to him. Confess your weakness. Confess your impotence. Confess your bankruptcy when it comes to any spiritual merit before God. Bear your heart. Bear your heart before Him. That's the message of the gospel. Confess all your sin. Confess your need for His mercy. The Pharisee was bragging on himself, but the publican said, Lord, I'm a sinner. That's confession. I'm a sinner. I need mercy, not reward, not recognition. I need your mercy because I'm a sinner." And he wouldn't even look up, a beat on his chest.

come to him like this queen came to Solomon. And notice this, she came with great gifts. Not because mercy isn't free, it is free. You know why she did that? Because that's what you do when you're coming before a king. She came to him with the respect that he deserved. As a great king, that's what that means. He didn't charge anything for the answers that he gave to her questions, but she brought all of this out of respect. Christ is to be had in reverence of all of them that are about him. A greater than Solomon is our king. Bow to him. Bow to him. Open your heart to him. He already knows what's in your heart. But we're to bear it, we're to confess it, we're to say what he said about it. Say what he said about how mercy can be.

Adam hid behind a tree from God. God saw him. God knew the problem. She didn't tell Solomon what was in her head. You know, a lot of people want to come tell them what they know. Isn't that how Nicodemus came at first? We know. I know. Here's what I know. But he didn't even know the ABCs when it came to who God is and how God saves a sinner. The Lord told him the most basic gospel truth. You must be born again. You've got to have a new nature. You've got to be created anew by God. Your old heart's not worth having! It's what Paul renounced in Philippians 3.

Now, he didn't know the basics, but he came saying, I know. But the Queen of Sheba didn't come like that. She didn't bear what was in her head, but what was in her heart. In the third verse there in 1 Kings 10, Solomon told her all her questions. There was not anything hid from the king, which he told her not. There wasn't anything too hard for him to answer. And he didn't withhold anything. He didn't say, well, you know, you're going to have to figure that one out for yourself. No.

And this thing's not done in a corner. The gospel is mysterious, and it is hidden from the wise and prudent. It's hidden from us by nature. But when God gives you that new heart, when all of a sudden there's a good tree growing that bears fruit, part of that fruit is faith. An aspect of that fruit is faith and love. And so you bear your heart unto him, and he reveals himself Paul said, I didn't shun to tell you the whole gospel, to tell you everything that God said. And then you know where she said, I heard of you before, but it wasn't, the half was never told me. That's true of us too, isn't it? We don't know the half of it yet, but that's why we're still coming. That's why we're still here. We haven't arrived.

know anything as we ought to know. We won't know him fully until we are like him. And in his presence, Job said, I've heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now mine eye seeth thee, and I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes. It took his breath away too. I've been hearing of Christ since I was a boy, but the half has never yet been told. But by His grace, through faith, we see the Son of God in His glory in the preaching of the Gospel. God has revealed his glory in the face of his son. He shined in our hearts to do that. Our hearts didn't come up with that. Our hearts didn't strain enough to see. He shined his light of knowledge and truth of the gospel in our hearts. And we see his glory in his son.

It said there was no more spirit in her, that is no more wind, no more breath. As the glory of Christ and the unsearchable riches of his grace ever taken your breath away? If he ever reveals to us even half, less than half, there won't be any breath left in us. Happy are thy men, happy are these thy servants, isn't that the truth? He's our king, would you have it any other way? They stand continually before Thee, were never without Him, and that hear Thy wisdom. Is that what we do? We stand continually before the Savior and hear His wisdom. And it doesn't get better than that.

Blessed be the Lord Thy God. Glory to His name for all of this. Glory to Him which delighted in Thee. If He delighted in me from eternity, knowing everything about me, He delighted in me, how can we not say, blessed be the Lord our God? Because the Lord loved Israel forever, therefore made He the King. Because He loved us, He gave His only begotten Son. to be the propitiation for our sins. And he died on that cross for our sins. And he was buried and rose again and ascended to the throne because God loved us. To do judgment and justice, he rules all things for his glory and our good. Because he loved us, he made Christ Not only the king, but my king, your king, if we know him, if we're his, his king, our king, his subjects, his people, his servants.

Blessed be the Lord thy God. Let's pray.