Deuteronomy 30:19-20

I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him, for he is your life and length of days, that you may dwell in the land that the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.

Monday, November 1, 2010

1 Samuel 9

1 Samuel 9

When Israel requested a king to rule over the land in order that they may be like the rest of the nations, God was obviously not pleased. That had never been His intentions for Israel. He had no problem with their being a leader in Israel, for He had always placed a man or woman (such as Deborah) in charge of the nation since the time they left Egypt. The reason this request upset God so much was because of their desire to be like the other nations when everything God had done for Israel was to set them apart. He had never intended for Israel to be like the other nations, and He had blessed them countless times to show them where they stood in His eyes. It was not that He loved the other nations any less, but God had always planned to use Israel to reach out to the nations. If they resembled the other nations, then they would lose that uniqueness that God had given them.


Nevertheless, God knew that this request was just another one of Israel’s moments of forgetfulness. They had once again forgotten who God really was. They forgot all that He had done for them and their ancestors. This was more than forgetfulness; it was sin. They were ready to sell themselves short in order to resemble the nations surrounding them. So God decided to give them what they wanted even though He knew it was not what was best for them. He warned Samuel of what was to come, but He also provided Israel with a king.

From the start, there was no inclination that Saul would actually turn out to be everything that God had warned Samuel about. Samuel, as well as Israel, knew that eventually their king would oppress them and take advantage of all that they had. They knew that they would one day regret asking for a king, for God had warned them of what was to come. But Saul rose into power in a very humble way. He was not seeking the kingship. He was simply wandering around Israel looking for his father’s donkeys. He had been sent on a task to find the lost donkeys, and he and his servant could not find them. They ended up in the city of Zuph and his servant knew of a man (Samuel) in the city that could help them find the donkeys, for this man was a man of God. They searched the city for Samuel and finally received help.

While Samuel did help them find the donkeys, he also pulled Saul aside for an important conversation. Having been told by God that he would meet this young man from the tribe of Benjamin the day before, Samuel knew that God had brought Israel’s first king to his city. Samuel began sharing these things with Saul, and Saul immediately wondered how it could be, especially since he was from the smallest of the tribes of Israel. Samuel, however, knew that Saul was the man that God had chosen to be the king, and his task was to anoint Saul as the king.

If you know the story of Saul, you know how it turns out. He never really lives up to be the king that God had intended him to be. While God knew what the results were going to be, He still gave Saul the opportunity to remain faithful and lead Israel in the right way. He expected Saul to obey the commands given through Moses, but Saul would eventually depart from the ways of God. Saul’s story is tragic, but we can use it as encouragement to stay on the right path. We all have great potential, and with God’s help, we can all accomplish great things in this world for His kingdom and for His glory. To do so, however, we must remain obedient to God and never think we can do it on our own. Saul started off on the right foot and had great potential, but it was never fully realized. It is great to start off strong for God, but we must also finish strong for Him in the end.

Matt

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