Heroes: Devotions From Time of Grace MinistrySample

LEADERSHIP: HER MAJESTY, THE QUEEN OF SHEBA

The country of Yemen today is one of the poorest places in the Arab world, and its poverty glares all the more by comparison with its oil-rich neighbors. But Yemen was once a rich and prosperous trading center and oasis. Known as the land of Sheba in the 900s B.C., it was governed by a formidable queen.

This remarkable woman is a hero to me because when she heard of King Solomon's wealth and achievements, she didn't just stew in envy or plot ways to try to dip into his river of cash. She packed up a camel train of servants and fabulous gifts and traveled to Jerusalem to see things for herself and listen to the king's famous words of wisdom, convinced that he was speaking for the Lord God (as in fact he was – there is a whole book of the Bible based on his utterances on human life).

"She said to the king, ‘The report I heard in my own country about your achievements and your wisdom is true. . . . Indeed, not even half was told me; in wisdom and wealth you have far exceeded the report I heard. How happy your men must be! . . . Praise be to the LORD your God, who has delighted in you and placed you on the throne of Israel." (1 Kings 10:6-9)

The queen of Sheba was also a hero to Jesus Himself. He cited her as a model of faith, in stark contrast to the hardhearted unbelief He saw all around Him in Israel: "The Queen of the South [i.e., Sheba] will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn them; for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon's wisdom, and now one greater than Solomon is here." (Matthew 12:42)