1st Samuel 12:1-25

To log onto UNITYINCHRIST.COM’S BLOG, Click Here

Share on Facebook

1^st Samuel 12:1-25

“And Samuel said unto all Israel, Behold, I have hearkened unto your voice in all that ye said unto me, and have made a king over you. 2 And now, behold, the king walketh before you: and I am old and grayheaded; and, behold, my sons are with you: and I have walked before you from my childhood unto this day. 3 Behold, here I am: witness against me before the LORD, and before his anointed: whose ox have I taken? or whose ass have I taken? or whom have I defrauded? whom have I oppressed? or of whose hand have I received any bribe to blind mine eyes therewith? and I will restore it you. 4 And they said, Thou hast not defrauded us, nor oppressed us, neither hast thou taken ought of any man’s hand. 5 And he said unto them, The LORD is witness against you, and his anointed is witness this day, that ye have not found ought in my hand. And they answered, He is witness. 6 And Samuel said unto the people, It is the LORD that advanced Moses and Aaron, and that brought your fathers up out of the land of Egypt. 7 Now therefore stand still, that I may reason with you before the LORD of all the righteous acts of the LORD, which he did to you and to your fathers. 8 When Jacob was come into Egypt, and your fathers cried unto the LORD, then the LORD sent Moses and Aaron, which brought forth your fathers out of Egypt, and made them dwell in this place. 9 And when they forgat the LORD their God, he sold them into the hand of Sisera, captain of the host of Hazor, and into the hand of the Philistines, and into the hand of the king of Moab, and they fought against them. 10 And they cried unto the LORD, and said, We have sinned, because we have forsaken the LORD, and have served Baalim and Ashtaroth: but now deliver us out oof the hand of our enemies, and we will serve thee. 11 And the LORD sent Jerubbaal, and Bedan, and Jephthah, and Samuel, and delivered you out of the hand of your enemies on every side, and ye dwelled safe. 12 And when ye saw that Nahash the king of the children of Ammon came against you, ye said unto me, Nay; but a king shall reign over us: when the LORD your God was your king. 13 Now therefore behold the king whom ye have chosen, and whom ye have desired! and, behold, the LORD hath set a king over you. 14 If ye will fear the LORD, and serve him, and obey his voice, and not rebel against the commandment of the LORD, then shall both ye and also the king that reigneth over you continue following the LORD your God: 15 But if ye will not obey the voice of the LORD, but rebel against the commandment of the LORD, then shall the hand of the LORD be against you, as it was against your fathers. 16 Now therefore stand and see this great thing, which the LORD will do before your eyes. 17 Is it not wheat harvest to-day? I will call unto the LORD, and he shall send thunder and rain; that ye may perceive and see that your wickedness is great, which ye have done in the sight of the LORD, in asking you a king. 18 So Samuel called unto the LORD; and the LORD sent thunder and rain that day: and all the people greatly feared the LORD and Samuel. 19 And all the people said unto Samuel, Pray for thy servants unto the LORD thy God, that we die not: for we have added unto all our sins this evil, to ask us a king. 20 And Samuel said unto the people, Fear not: ye have done all this wickedness: yet turn not aside from following the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart; 21 and turn ye not aside: for then should ye go after vain things, which cannot profit nor deliver; for they are vain. 22 For the LORD will not forsake his people for his great name’s sake: because it hath pleased the LORD to make you his people. 23 Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you: but I will teach you the good and right way: 24 only fear the LORD, and serve him in truth with all your heart: for consider how great things he hath done for you. 25 But if ye shall still do wickedly, ye shall be consumed, both ye and your king.”

Introduction

[Audio version : https://resources.ccphilly.org/detail.asp?TopicID=&Teaching=WED652]

“He begins by saying “And Samuel said unto all Israel, Behold, I have hearkened unto your voice in all that ye said unto me, and have made a king over you.” (verse 1) The nation had begun to ask for a king. Samuel had gone to the LORD, and the LORD had said ‘Samuel, they’re not rejecting you, they’re rejecting me, in asking for a king,’ and had encouraged Samuel, Samuel has taken this to heart, to a great deal. Finally, the process of anointing Saul, the nation not quite being aware of that, and then Nahash, an Ammonite enemy coming and forcing himself on those of Jabesh-gilead, Saul, the Spirit of the LORD coming upon him, sounding the trumpet, calling for Israel, and 330,000 of Israel gathered to Saul, and there’s an incredible victory over the Ammonites and the rescue of those in Jabesh-gilead. And after that victory, Samuel had brought them back to Gilgal, he thought this was the perfect place for the nation to recommit itself, 330,000 armed men, to recognize Saul, and the coronation as it were. And Samuel is handing the leadership of the nation to Saul, not the prophetic ministry. Samuel has been both Judge and Prophet, and he's the last Judge of Israel, the last of 500 years of Judges, he is the last Judge, and he is also a Judge and a Prophet. And he’s struggling, as we go into this. I believe with all my heart, Samuel, most of this nation knew him or of him from the time, many that are old, from the time he was a small boy at the Tabernacle with Eli. Certainly they had known him since he had become a young man, and become prominent, and it said ‘God didn’t allow any of his words to fall to the ground.’ The whole nation had rallied around Samuel, and he’s going to say to them now ‘I’m old, look at me, I’m old, I’ve got gray hair, I’m an old man, and you’re calling for this king,’ and he’s going to speak to them first about his own character, his own ministry. And I think he’s taken it to heart, they’re saying ‘We want a king,’ he’s been leader of the nation, he’s been the last of the Judges, and now they’re calling for a change, and as we read through the Book of Judges, we heard ‘and there was no king in Israel in those days, every man did what was right in his own eyes,’ that can no longer be said, now there is a king in Israel. It does not mean they’re going to do what’s right in their own eyes, but now there is a king, and that’s changed. Samuel is not only the last of the Judges, he’s the first of the line of Prophets, so he will relinquish civil leadership to Saul, but certainly not the prophetic ministry. You know, we read through this, I believe there’s great passion involved in this as Samuel does this. He’s going to challenge them, he’s going to mention the LORD by the way 30 times in the first 25 verses, he’s going to try to impress on them ‘You may have a king, but king-sming, that don’t mean anything, the LORD still has to rule over the nation, if you will submit to the LORD and listen to the LORD, he will bless you and your king. If you turn away, your king is not going to mean anything.’ So there’s really a burden on his heart, so he goes through an interesting process.

What Faith Is All About For The Believer--No king But An Invisible King

“And Samuel said unto all Israel, Behold, I have hearkened unto your voice in all that ye said unto me, and have made a king over you. And now, behold, the king walketh before you: and I am old and grayheaded; and, behold, my sons are with you:” they’ve already rejected, they’re corrupt, they’re not at all like their father, “and I have walked before you from my childhood unto this day. Behold, here I am: witness against me before the LORD,” put me on trial, take me to the courthouse, “and before his anointed:” that’s king Saul now, “whose ox have I taken? or whose ass have I taken? or whom have I defrauded? whom have I oppressed? or whose hand have I received any bribe to blind mine eyes therewith? and I will restore it you.” (verses 1-3) ‘Tell me, bring the charges against me, tell me where my character has failed,’ he’s no false prophet, he’s no hireling, he leaves his sons to defend themselves, and he brings his own character before them. God wants to make sure no one sees the dismissal of Samuel as civil leader because of any failure on his part or any injustice. And he says ‘Bring any charges,’ “And they said, Thou hast not defrauded us, nor oppressed us, neither hast thou taken ought of any man’s hand.” (verse 4) Not a single thing, “And he said unto them, The LORD is witness against you, and his anointed is witness this day, that ye have not found ought in my hand. And they answered, He is witness.” (verse 5) so the last of 500 years of Judges. And he’s going to do an interesting thing here, he’s going to say ‘Have I injured you? Have I done anything wrong?’ listen, God’s program through the ages, it changes, he has a dispensation, he has people, he has those that walk with him, he has a Seth, you know, he has Enoch, he has a Noah, and he’ll raise up an Abraham, then an Isaac and a Jacob, and a Joseph, and a people, and leaders will pass off the scene, and Moses will pass, and things will change, Joshua, then will arise and take the leadership, then Joshua will pass off and Judges will come upon the scene. And now the whole era, 500 years of judgeship is now passing away, and a new era is going to begin with kings in regards to civil leadership, Prophets certainly are spiritually raised up by God. And he’s saying, ‘As this goes on, I’ve been God’s representative, bring a charge against me, I haven’t done anything,’ and the people say back to him, ‘You haven’t done anything, your hands are clean, you have been godly, you have been caring for us, you have watched over us, you have led us, you’ve never taken anything from us, we have benefitted from your life, Samuel, from the time you were a child, you’ve walked before us until now.’ “And Samuel said unto the people” verse 6, “It is the LORD that advanced Moses and Aaron, and that brought your fathers up out of the land of Egypt.” It was the LORD that did that, they didn’t cry for a king, and there was no king, don’t forget your history. Now almost as if he’s calling them all to court, he said ‘You can put me on trial, I can put you on trial,’ “Now therefore stand still, that I may reason with you before the LORD of all the righteous acts of the LORD, which he did to you and to your fathers. When Jacob was come into Egypt, and your fathers cried unto the LORD, then the LORD sent Moses and Aaron, which brought forth your fathers out of Egypt, and made them dwell in this place.” (verses 7-8) the 40 years coming into Canaan, all of the blessings, and no king, the LORD did that, there was no king. “And when they forgat the LORD, he sold them into the hand of Sisera, captain of the host of Hazor, and into the hand of the Philistines, and into the hand of the king of Moab, and they fought against them. And they cried unto the LORD, and said, We have sinned, because we have forsaken the LORD, and have served Baalim and Ashtaroth: but now deliver us out of the hand of our enemies, and we will serve thee. And the LORD sent Jerubbaal, and Bedan, and Jephthah, and Samuel, and delivered you out of the hand of your enemies on every side, and ye dwelled safe.” (verses 9-11) No king, but the invisible King. Now he’s doing an interesting thing here, and I think we need to take note of it. He said ‘You see me, here I am standing in front of you, and have I harmed you?’ and they said ‘No.’ There he is, he’s tangible, he’s been the leader, God’s representative, he’s been a leader. They say to him, ‘No, you’ve been great for us,’ and we’re so much of the time, that way with a human, with a mentor, with a person that we look to and trust and say that person has been great, and Samuel says, ‘Now let me go through your history, because I was just the servant of the LORD, it was the LORD who raised up, nobody asked for Moses and Aaron, but God raised them, God did this, God did that, God delivered, God was there, God was faithful, but because he’s not visible like Samuel, he’s not tangible in our lives in difficult times when there’s enemies, when there’s bondage, when we’re crying to the LORD, we have to believe that the LORD’s hand is as real without a Samuel as it is with Samuel, it is God that’s working.’ And it’s difficult for us sometimes, because it’s much different when there’s somebody tangible there, laying their hand on the problem, representing the LORD, serving and helping. But he’s saying all of the great things of the history of this nation took place without a king. It was the LORD that did that, he raised up Moses and Aaron, Moses had failed, he was on the backside of the desert, he raised these people up, and it was the LORD’s hand that did that. And I think sometimes in our lives, we look at this, and I think we have to keep in mind, that it’s God that does these things, he’s the One that’s behind the scene, for you and I, for me. That’s what faith is all about. It’s much easier for me to lean on the tangible than it is for me to lean upon the unseen and the invisible, to the God that we love, that we serve. And he’s doing a beautiful job of laying out the case for and behalf of the LORD, that he’s been there and they’ve experienced all of those benefits from his hand. Verse 12, he says, “And when you saw that Nahash the king of the children of Ammon came against you, ye said unto me, Nay; but a king shall reign over us: when the LORD your God was your king.” now the LORD had delivered the nation over and over again, and they start screaming ‘We want a king, when the LORD your God was your king, you should have known that.’ “Now therefore behold the king whom ye have chosen, and whom ye have desired! and, behold, the LORD hath set a king over you.” (verse 13) but listen to verse 14, “If ye will fear the LORD,” not the king, “and serve him, and obey his voice, and not rebel against the commandment of the LORD, then shall both ye and also the king that reigneth over you continue following the LORD your God: but if ye will not obey the voice of the LORD, but rebel against the commandment of the LORD, then shall the hand of the LORD be against you, as it was against your fathers.” (verses 14-15) and literally it says “and the LORD, he will go before you.” it isn’t just you’ll be following the LORD, but then the LORD will continue to go before you. Verse 14 begins in the Hebrew with an inference, he’s saying all of these things happened, you asked for a king, verse 14 you could read ‘Yet if you will fear the LORD,’ he's saying to them ‘Even now, God was your king, you rejected him, you wanted a human being, ok, you got your human being, you got your human king, but yet even now, if you will fear the LORD, if you’ll serve the LORD, if you’ll obey the voice of the LORD, and won’t rebel against the commandment of the LORD, then both you and this king, human king that you have that’s reigning over you, the LORD will continue to go before you.’ What a blessing, that’s true by the way in any nation in the history of humankind, if the people and the king will be obedient to the LORD and follow the LORD, God’s blessing will be on that people and on that nation.

‘You Didn’t Want To Listen To The LORD’s Voice, You’re Going To Listen To It Now’

“But if you will not obey the voice of the LORD, but rebel against the commandment of the LORD, then shall the hand of the LORD be against you, as it was against your fathers.” (verse 15) understand, he will still be the LORD, but his chastening hand will be upon them. He’s saying now, ‘I’m challenging you, I want you to watch something, you know, to whom much is given, much is required, you need to understand the king is no security, you need to understand that that little throne, wherever you put that is only a reflection of the Big Throne, and you need to know whose still in charge.’ So he says, “Now therefore stand and see the great thing, which the LORD will do before your eyes. Is it not wheat harvest?” now that is the second half of May and early June, the rainy season in Israel was through the winter, for former and the latter rains are late in the fall and early what we would call the Spring, and at this point in time the season is already dry. And he says “Is it not wheat harvest?” and they don’t want rain then, because it ruins the grain harvest, the rains are over by then. He says, “I will call unto the LORD, and he shall send thunder and rain; that ye may perceive and see that your wickedness is great, which ye have done in the sight of the LORD, in asking you a king. So Samuel called unto the LORD; and the LORD sent thunder and rain that day: and all the people greatly feared the LORD and Samuel.” (verses 17-18) you didn’t listen to the LORD’s voice, you’re going to listen to it now. One thing that they clearly had to understand is that the victory over Nahash and the Ammonites had nothing to do with Saul, had nothing to do with the fact that he had 330,000 men, it was the LORD who had granted that, it’s the same God that had led their nation since it’s inception. “And all the people said unto Samuel, Pray for thy servants unto the LORD thy God, that we die not: for we have added unto all our sins this evil, to ask us a king.” (verse 19) it’s a wonder he didn’t say ‘Ask your king.’ Notice, “unto the LORD thy God,” not unto the LORD our God, “that we die not,” that’s a pretty serious thunder storm. And Saul must be standing there thinking ‘oh, I feel great,’ he wanted to hide in the stuff, he didn’t want to be king anyway, now he’s king and Samuel’s calling down thunder and rain, and the people are screaming ‘We repent, we made a mistake, all the things we’ve done in the past, now we’ve done this thing, we’ve asked for a king.’ I don’t know if they were all pointing at him, but I’m sure Saul feels terrible. And you know, look, sometimes, I’ll speak for myself, it takes a storm to wake me up sometimes. I don’t like them, I don’t like the program, I like smooth sailing, again, if I could write it out, be happy, teach Bible studies, sing songs and get Raptured, that’s just, you know. It doesn’t always go that way, and sometimes in my own life, and I know in yours, it takes a storm, it takes some thunder, it takes something happening out-of-season sometimes in our life to wake us up, to make us take inventory again. Look at verse 20, they’re crying out now, “And Samuel said unto the people, Fear not: ye have done all this wickedness: yet turn not aside from following thee LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart; and turn ye not aside: for then should ye go after vain things, which cannot profit nor deliver; for they are vain.” (verses 20-21) Isn’t it interesting, they were terrified. ‘You have done wrong, it was a mistake asking for a king, yet fear not, God’s manifested his awesome power here today, don’t be afraid, don’t turn aside from following the LORD, but serve him with all of your heart, and turn ye not aside,’ this is what he says, ‘for then should you go after vain things,’ and he tells us, ‘which can not profit nor deliver, for they are vain.’ He said, look, you’ve made a mistake, this was wrong, and God is making you realize that, but don’t be terrified. He’s not doing it so you’ll turn away from him, he’s doing it so you’ll turn to him, that you’ll follow him more closely. And because if you turn away from following the LORD, you end up giving yourself to vain things, everything else that human beings pursue, it ends up to be empty, if you turn away from following the Lord with all of your heart. He would say the same thing to us this evening, if you do that, what you’re going to do is you’re going to give your energy and your time to vain things, you’re going to give your ambitions to something that ultimately ends up empty. This isn’t to scare you away, you need to follow him, you need to do that with all of your heart. Because you pursue these other things, he says, ‘these are things that cannot profit nor deliver you in the day that you need deliverance.’ They pay you no benefit up front, and in the day of trouble they pay no dividends at all, you get involved in something that leaves you empty and it leaves you broken.

“It Has Pleased The LORD To Make You His People”--What That Means

And listen to verse 22 and the incredible grace that is expressed here, he says “For the LORD will not forsake his people for his great name’s sake: because it hath pleased the LORD to make you his people.” he’s going to give us the reason too. And it isn’t because he looked down and said ‘They’re so cute, how could anybody forsake those cutypies down there, they’re just so,’ hasn’t anything to do with it, no offense but that takes the pressure off of me too. “For the LORD will not forsake his people” here’s the reason, “for his great name’s sake” Yahweh, they didn’t know his name, YHVH, they couldn’t even pronounce his name, what’s YHVH? Can you say it? What they do is they put an “a” after “Y” so it’s “Ya,” and “o” after “h” so it’s Yahovah, they just put in the vowels so you have Jehovah, you take the vowels out you have YHVH. “For his great name’s sake,” the point is, that name is a covenant name, he is a covenant God, and the covenant that he makes stands because of who he is, he first made it with Abraham. And Abraham was asleep, and a burning furnace passed between the sacrificed parts, and there was only one party, told by Paul, that went through, God made the covenant, he is the covenant-keeper, the reason he will not forsake you and I is because of his own great name’s sake. David would realize it, ‘O LORD, our LORD, how excellent is thy name in all the earth, when we consider the sun, the moon, the stars, the work of thy fingers, what is man, what is man that thou art mindful of him or the son of man that thou visitest him?’ for his own great name’s sake, ultimately, they shall call his name Yeshua, Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins. The LORD will not forsake his people, we are under a better covenant. Now look, it doesn’t mean you can go out and do what you want, because we’re told he will chasten his people, he just won’t forsake them. You may look at somebody and think ‘If I was him, I might forsake that one.’ But he won’t. You should say that most often when you look in the mirror, by the way. He’ll chasten, he doesn’t forsake. “For the LORD will not forsake his people” this is so incredible, “for his great name’s sake: because it hath pleased the LORD to make you his people.” imagine that. This is the Old Covenant, the Old Testament. I know for you and I, sometimes it’s hard for us to believe that now, how it pleased the Lord to make you his people. What’s the purpose of your life, why are you alive, why do you breathe? Why are you here? You know it tells us in Revelation chapter 4, verse 11 ‘that all things are created for his pleasure.’ You’re alive for his pleasure, not for yours. If you don’t get that straight there’s a huge confusion in what you do, in your behavior. You know, we’re not here for our pleasure, whether that’s pornography, whether that’s one thing or another thing, whatever. It says we’re here for his pleasure, it pleased him to make you his people, ‘we were created for his pleasure.’ Does that insult you this evening, that you were created and you exist for his pleasure? Is that insulting? It’s only insulting if you don’t understand who he is. He’s not an insecure egomaniac in the sky who made you, and said ‘No, you do what I say, follow me, you’re here for my pleasure not yours.’ You know, you watch him again through the days of Creation, man’s first full day of existence, the seventh day. Why? so God could fellowship with him. It was God’s pleasure to walk in the cool of the day in the Garden of Eden with Adam, that was his pleasure. As he tries to communicate to us, again, his heart, the theologians say that God uses anthropomorphism, he takes human ideas and puts divine truth into them, he tells us that he is our Shepherd and we’re his sheep. That sounds nice to you and I because we’ve not been around many shepherds and we don’t realize how stupid sheep are, but that’s also, it takes a lot of pressure off us, to know the shepherd’s never dependent on the IQ of the sheep. He’s our Shepherd, we are his sheep, that’s an interesting relationship, David said ‘The LORD is my Shepherd,’ and he had been a shepherd, and he says ‘I shall not want, I shall lack no good thing.’ This is a better deal than having a PhD, this is a better deal than having a million bucks in the bank, this is a better deal, than owning Apple, this is a better deal, the LORD is my Shepherd. David says ‘If that’s true I’ll never lack a single thing,’ because he knew what it meant to be a shepherd [see https://unityinchrist.com/pom/AShepherdLooks.htm]. Now, the sheep, Sinclair Fergusson who is a favorite of mine, Presbyterian minister, the Scottish accent always knocks me out, but I love to listen to Alistair Begg, I love to listen to him, but he talked about growing up in Scotland and watching the shepherds in the field, he said, “I couldn’t wait to get away from the country and get to the city,” “I wanted to get away from sheep, I wanted to get away from the farms, I was a young man, and I would watch these guys and think, What is wrong with them? sheep are sooo stupid,” And he said “the whole time I was a teenager,” and he said “It wasn’t until I was a man one day, a Christian, I’m watching them, and all of a sudden the light went on in my head, and I realized ‘these are men who love sheep, that’s the only reason they were doing that, these are men who love sheep.” You know, the Westminster Catechism says that man’s purpose is to serve God and glorify him, and I agree, but there’s something beyond that, and that is, man’s purpose is his pleasure, his pleasure. I don’t know how many sheep serve and glorify the Shepherd, he uses other terms that we understand much better, he says he’s our Father and we’re his children. Now I’ve got four of those, raised them, and none of them were there, I wouldn’t say they were there to serve me, kids [I’m laughing real hard], I would say I was there to serve them. It wasn’t like I came home from work and they’re ‘Oh Daddy, what can I do, what can we do, our list of chores is done,’ they weren’t there to glorify me ‘Oh Daddy, we glorify you, we glorify you,’ this is so good for me ego.’ Again, I remember, honestly, just you’re painting. And I’m not happy about that anyhow. I try to act like I’m doing it with delight because it makes my wife feel better, but I’m painting, and then one of them saying ‘Daddy, can I paint too,’ and you’re thinking ‘oh, this is already complicated enough,’ and you let them paint, not because it blessed me, but because it blessed them, they get a paint brush and in five minutes it was everywhere, then they get tired and moved onto something else. There was never a situation where I said ‘Honey, did you see what he did there with that paintbrush and roller, if we have three more we could get the whole house painted.’ [laughter] none of them serve me. He says that he’s the Bridegroom and we’re the Bride. We did not have a marriage so my wife could serve me, just for you guys that aren’t married yet, I’m just telling you, ok, we’re not married so she could glorify me. It’s not as though I come home from work and Kathy’s waiting, ‘O praise you Joe, O glorify you Joe.’ And look, she does, she’s my partner, she’s my enabler. But the point is in all of that, the pleasure is the intimacy, with my wife, with my children, it’s the relationship. It says here ‘It pleased the LORD to make us his people,’ not because of what he was going to get out of his people. Always think in the context of serving, he’s always more interested in the servant than the service. When I look at my children, I don’t think ‘How can they serve me today!?’ I think, ‘What can I give them today? What can I say to them today?’ ‘they’re young adults now, can I give them anything still, they’re busy about their own lives, can I look into their own eyes, can I tell them I love them, what can I say to them today?’ I would give a million dollars, if I had it, to turn the clock back, and have them all little again, just for one day, knowing who they are now. You know what, because, they have with their lives, you know, in a great compliment to Kathy and I, we appreciate where they are in their walk with the Lord, but the pleasure of it is holding them. I came home today and the grandkids were over, and my granddaughter, Kathy bought them this play kitchen, whatever it is…I’m broke, and I’m going through a whole other, thought the kids were gone and I was done with all this, I’m back to bikers and changing tables and toy room and looks like Toys R Us, and they’re all fiddling around, and I came in and took this little plastic frying pan, and Sheila took it back from me, and she said “No more touching [loud laughter].” The pleasure is, just to look at their faces, I love to drive them crazy, and I really love to get them bad and send them home, get them all sugared up. But look, it should not be offensive to us that we were created for his pleasure, if you understand what his pleasure is, his pleasure is in you. He loves you, he loves us in a way that no one has ever loved us, and we either step out of the boat onto the water, we either receive that by faith, or we never receive the fulness of it. It isn’t because of anything lovable in us, again, it isn’t because he said ‘They’re so cute, I gotta send my Son down there to die for them.’ There wasn’t anything in us that elicited his love. The ancient rabbis would say he loves us because of who he is. And it pleased him to make Israel and you and I into his people. We were created for his pleasure. Yes we should serve him and glorify him, I agree. But above and beyond, we were created for his pleasure, it is his pleasure to have us return to him, it is his pleasure not just to set up the Garden of Eden, but a place, ‘In my Father’s house are many mansions, if it were not so I would have told you, an inheritance incorruptible, undefiled, that fadeth not away.’ If God took pleasure in setting up the Garden of Eden, imagine what pleasure he’s taken in setting up that Eternal City that he knows we’ll never fall from, Satan will never tempt, we’ll never be lost from that place. That is the place that has always been in his heart, it’s the city that Abraham looked for, because God knew when he set up Eden that man would fall, the Lamb was slain from the foundation of the world. And yet all of this rolled out, and you’re alive tonight for his pleasure. Please don’t let that be offensive. You’re not here for your pleasure. We give ourselves to vain things, and those things can’t profit us, and when we’re in a jam they can’t deliver us. But if we realize he was pleased to make us his, what an interesting thing. The pressure is not on us to perform. You get up in the morning, and the birds are singing, look around and think ‘His mercies are new every morning, Lord, your creation shows forth your handiwork, they’re speaking to me today, it’s so far out. Lord, I don’t know what’s going to happen today, but I know that you’re pleased with me, we’re the completed work of Jesus Christ by faith, my walking with you Lord is so simple, I don’t have to earn this, I don’t have to deserve it, your love is upon my life, and it is your good pleasure to give us the Kingdom, you’re pleased to have me as your son.’ That’s amazing, because I don’t know if any of us grew up in a home where we felt every day of our lives that our parents were pleased to have us. I got chased around with a strap enough when I was a kid, and heard that stupid thing ‘This will hurt me more than it will hurt you,’ I never believed that. He’s pleased, it pleased the Lord to make you his people, how incredible.

‘Let Your Awe Of God Draw You To Him, Not Away From Him—Consider How Great Things He Hath Done For You’

Look at Samuel’s heart, and I believe he’s hurt by them, I think he feels rejected. “Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you: but I will teach you the good and the right way: only fear the LORD, and serve him in truth with all your heart: for consider how great things he hath done for you.” (verses 23-24) “that I should sin against the LORD,” not against Israel. I think of Jeremiah 15 when God says ‘Though Moses or Samuel stood before me, I would not turn my wrath away, his anger from Jerusalem.’ That tells us the company Samuel was in. And Samuel’s heart here, ‘God forbid I should sin, not against Israel, but against the LORD, because the LORD had been pleased to make Israel his people,’ so he says ‘God forbid I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for his people.’ And I need to learn that, as a leader, to be more prayerful, and to give myself. And prayer and the Word always go together, the apostles, you know, ‘It’s not fitting for us to wait on tables, that we might give ourselves to the Word and to prayer.’ He says “God forbid that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you: but I will teach you the good and the right way:” the teaching of God’s Law, God’s Word, “I will teach you the good and the right way:” Amen, amen. He says, “only fear the LORD, and serve him in truth with all your heart: for consider how great things he hath done for you.” Now look, back up in verse 20, “Samuel said unto the people, Fear not:” here he says “only fear the LORD,” what he’s saying there is, ‘Don’t fear that God’s going to destroy you, that he’s gonna smoke you,’ here he says ‘I want you to fear the LORD, I want you to stand in awe and reverence of God, let your awe of God draw you to him, and not drive you away from him.’ That’s what he’s saying here to them. “Only fear the LORD, and serve him in truth with all your heart: for consider how great things he hath done for you. But if ye shall still do wickedly, ye shall be consumed, both ye and your king.” (verses 24-25) again, king-sming, God will deal with you if you turn away. He had said again in Jeremiah much further on in their history, ‘Thy own wickedness shall correct thee, and thy backsliding shall reprove thee. Know therefore and see that it is an evil thing and bitter that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God and that my fear is not in thee saith the LORD of hosts.” that we should live with a reverence of God, that that should be genuine in our lives. But particularly looking around the world that we live in today. So interesting here, and what a beautiful challenge he gives here at the end, and how wonderfully God’s grace I believe is put forth. (Let’s see how far we can get here.)

1^st Samuel 13:1-14

“Saul reigned one year; and when he had reigned two years over Israel, 2 Saul chose him three thousand men of Israel; whereof two thousand were with Saul in Michmash and in mount Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan in Gibeah of Benjamin: and the rest of the people he sent every man to his tent. 3 And Jonathan smote the garrison of the Philistines that was in Geba, and the Philistines heard of it. And Saul blew the trumpet throughout all the land, saying, Let the Hebrews hear. 4 And all Israel heard say that Saul had smitten a garrison of the Philistines, and that Israel also was had in abomination with the Philistines. And the people were called together after Saul to Gilgal. 5 And the Philistines gathered themselves together to fight with Israel, thirty thousand chariots, and six thousand horsemen, and people as the sand which is on the sea shore in multitude: and they came up, and pitched in Michmash, eastward from Bethaven. 6 When the men of Israel saw that they were in a strait, (for the people were distressed,) then the people did hide themselves in caves, and in thickets, and in rocks, and in high places, and in pits. 7 And some of the Hebrews went over Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead. As for Saul, he was yet in Gilgal, and all the people followed him trembling. 8 And he tarried seven days, according to the set time that Samuel had appointed: but Samuel came not to Gilgal; and the people were scattered from him. 9 And Saul said, Bring hither a burnt offering to me, and peace offerings. And he offered the burnt offering. 10 And it came to pass, that as soon as he had made an end of offering the burnt offering, behold, Samuel came; and Saul went out to meet him, that he might salute him. 11 And Samuel said, What hast thou done? And Saul said, Because I saw that the people were scattered from me, and that thou camest not within the days appointed, and that the Philistines gathered themselves together at Michmash; 12 therefore said I, The Philistines will come down now upon me to Gilgal, and I have not made supplication unto the LORD: I forced myself therefore, and offered a burnt offering. 13 And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done foolishly: thou hast not kept the commandment of the LORD thy God, which he commanded thee: for now would the LORD have established thy kingdom upon Israel for ever. 14 But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the LORD hath sought him a man after his own heart, and the LORD hath commanded him to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the LORD commanded thee.”

Saul’s Son Jonathan Stirs Up A Hornets Nest

“Saul reigned one year;” God’s not really interested in what he does from year to year, it’s in a semicolon here, “and when he had reigned two years over Israel,” ah, we’re going to hear much more about David than we hear about Saul and his reign. Paul in Acts chapter 13, around verse 21 in the city of Antioch, Paul tells us Saul reigned for forty years, Old Testament historians feel it was actually around 42 years, that Paul the apostle was talking in general terms here. It says after he had reigned two years “Saul chose him three thousand men of Israel; whereof two thousand were with Saul in Michmash and in mount Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan in Gibeah of Benjamin: and the rest of the people he sent every man to his tent.” (verse 2) he sent all of them home except 3,000, you know, just go to your tents. I’m not sure what he was thinking when he did that, he’s a new king, he’s never been a king, he’s setting up the kingdom, he should have kept more of a standing army, that’s for sure. But he sends that 330,000 home, and he only keeps 3,000, so 327,000 people get sent back to their houses, he keeps 1,000 people with his son. You would think a normal father would keep 2,000 with his son, and a thousand with me, you know. But he sends a thousand with his son, he keeps two thousand with himself. And we’re going to love Jonathan, Jonathan is a godly young soldier, even at this point in time. And we need to realize how much older than David he is, because they become best friends. “And Jonathan smote the garrison of the Philistines that was in Geba, and the Philistines heard of it. And Saul blew the trumpet throughout all the land, saying,” this is very strange, by the way, “Let the Hebrews hear.” (verse 3) Why Saul would say, instead of “let Israel hear,” why he would say “let the Hebrews hear,” is an interesting discussion. But, his son Jonathan can’t stand the fact that there’s a Philistine garrison right in the midst of God’s country, and jealous, and no doubt driven with a certain amount of jealousy for the things of God. He attacks and overcomes this Philistine garrison with his thousand men. We’re going to see in the next chapter, if the Lord tarries the next week, when Jonathan and his armour bearer go and they put to flight the whole camp of the Philistines, just the two of them. He said, ‘You know, God can give victory with many or few, it doesn’t make any difference with him,’ so he’s quite a man, Jonathan, and hopefully we’ll become more familiar with him as time goes on. But he attacks this garrison, and then word spreads to the Philistines no doubt, they hear right away, and all Israel heard that Saul had smitten the garrison, which wasn’t true, but it was Jonathan. We’re not sure whether they just hear that in a general context, or whether Saul let’s that go forward, Saul ends up to be an interesting man, filled with all kinds flaws. It tells us that when he heard that the children of Israel were singing ‘Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands, that he becomes exceedingly wroth, or filled with wrath and jealousy,’ he’s very jealous, very insecure, he can’t stand it. So we’re not sure here, if the word goes out, ‘Hey, the Philistine garrison has been smitten,’ and by the time it spread to Israel it said that Saul had done it, smitten a garrison of the Philistines, “and that Israel also was held in abomination with the Philistines. And the people were called together after Saul to Gilgal.” (verse 4b) So he calls them all back to Gilgal again, where there had been 330,000. Now he’s only got 3,000. And we’re going to watch Saul through a series of failures here, and he lies, he’s a man that lies, he’s a man that constantly makes excuses, it’s interesting to watch him. And Samuel will be there to try to correct him, and that pathway downward, if you constantly, you know if you’re a person who can never say ‘You know what, you were right and I was wrong, I blew it, I was wrong here,’ if you can’t ever say that, to your kids, to your spouse, whatever, it is a downward path. And we’re going to find this guy ultimately, with a witch, and then committing suicide, that’s how far down this man goes on this path. He calls them back to Gilgal, “And the Philistines gathered themselves together to fight with Israel, thirty thousand chariots, and six thousand horsemen, and people as the sand which is on the sea shore in multitude: and they came up, and pitched in Michmash, eastward from Bethaven.” (verse 5) “30,000 chariots,” and scholars even question that number because it almost seems impossible, “six thousand horsemen,” and notice, “people as the sand which is on the seashore in multitude.” Bethaven is “house of vanity,” or “house of evil,” they pitched there, this is one of the largest gatherings ever numbered in the Old Testament of the Philistines. [Jonathan stirred up a real hornets nest here, I’d say 😊] And it finally says that the army itself was without number. Now we hear that same expression in the days of the Judges with Gideon, when Gideon faced the Amalekites, and it said again, remember the Amalekites, that they were without number, like the sand of the sea, and when we follow that story of Gideon, you know God takes him down to just 300 men, and they defeat that Amalekite army with 300 men. We’re going to see Saul’s army come down to 600 men here, and he’s terrified, and he lies, and he does everything wrong. He’s got twice the number that Gideon had, and the failure is total on the part of Saul. And so it’s an interesting process for us to watch here, and it says in verse 6, “When the men of Israel saw that they were in a strait, (for the people were distressed,) then the people did hide themselves in caves, and in thickets, and in rocks, and in high places, and in pits.” that strait is 3,000 against tens and tens of thousands. Now in the Old Testament you were “distressed,” now you’re just stressed, we take the “dis” off. They were “distressed,” we’re “stressed.” Here’s Saul’s army, in caves, in thickets, in rocks, up on the top of the mountain in high places, and in pits. Great to have your own king, huh? ‘Let’s hide ourselves, boys.’ “And some of the Hebrews went over Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead [Reuben]. As for Saul, he was yet in Gilgal, and all the people followed him trembling.” (verse 7) So we’re going to find Saul’s at Gilgal, and he’s only got 600 of his 3,000, 2,400 have become deserters, he’s left with 600 guys at Gilgal against an army that’s like the sand of the sea, and it says that they were trembling. Now look, these are difficult days, they had asked for a king, they were in a position now they didn’t want to be in. We might look around us today and feel like these are difficult days, and they are. There are things that trouble me, as I look at the economy, and I don’t know where it’s going, and I wonder. People try to make comparisons in regards to what’s happening now, and what happened in the Great Depression, those are two completely different worlds. What we may be facing financially will be a paradigm shift that may be unlike anything we’ve ever seen. They are clamoring right now to bring back about a one-world economy, that’s what it’s all about now. These are troubling days. I’m troubled when I think of terrorism and the things that are going on, we’re troubled as a nation, as we look at universal health care, what should happen, what shouldn’t happen. The truth right now is unemployment is about 17 percent when you take into consideration those people that had been laid off, we’re troubled [he was saying that in 2009, and those things were nothing compared to what’s going on right now and about to happen as a result, now we’re approaching difficult days, as the war between the Russian Federation and the Ukraine rages in the Ukraine, and Europe becoming so frightened that their only option is now to unite into a superpower, which the Bible predicted over 2500 years ago, see https://unityinchrist.com/prophecies/2ndcoming_4.htm]. Israel was trembling, it seemed like all of the odds were against them, God was not trembling, God was not troubled. He was not afraid of the Philistines, though there were troubling times, God was not troubled by anything but unbelief, Saul’s unbelief, that’s all that troubled God. Because if he had a Samuel, he could have that guy up on the mountain with a sucking lamb, sacrificing the lamb, and he shook the whole area of Israel and defeated the Philistines without a sword being raised. God, the God we serve, the God who is pleased to have you as his people, the God who never stops looking at you with his unending love. He’s not troubled by what’s going on in the world around us tonight. The only thing that troubles him is unbelief in his people, he’s not troubled by the odds, he can turn that around in any time that he so desires.

The Penalty Of Not “Waiting Upon The LORD”

Those who are with Saul are trembling, “And he tarried” that’s Saul, “seven days, according to the set time that Samuel had appointed: but Samuel came not to Gilgal; and the people were scattered from him.” (verse 8) So there was a number of days that Samuel said ‘You go there, you wait there, I’ll be there in a certain length of time.’ No doubt Samuel said that by the word of the LORD, “but Samuel came not” we know all 1,200 eyes are looking for him, Saul’s too, you know all 600 soldiers are looking for him, ‘Do you see Samuel? You see Samuel?’ they wanted Samuel to get there really bad, they don’t care so much about the king anymore. “but Samuel came not to Gilgal; and the people were scattered from him.” from Saul, he’s losing what he’s got left of his army now, they’re going from him. And look, there are times when God asks us to tarry, asks us to wait. He asks us to wait in regards to revenge, sometimes we want to reap out revenge on our own, he says “no, wait, vengeance is mine.” He asks single people to wait in regards to sexual involvement, intimacy was in the marriage, he asks us to wait, to tarry at times, God’s Word tells us to wait for certain things. We’re not to be rash, we’re not to strike out foolishly, we’re not to do certain things. And here, Saul, what an example that God holds in front of us, he tarried seven days, he waited seven days, the time that Samuel had appointed, but Samuel hadn’t come to Gilgal, and the people were scattering, so “And Saul said, Bring hither a burnt offering to me, and peace offerings. And he offered the burnt offering.” (verse 9) That’s bad, he is not a Prophet, he is not a priest, you remember what happened when the children of Israel took the Ark of the Covenant into battle in an unauthorized way, they lost it. They shouldn’t have touched it, they shouldn’t have treated it like was a lucky rabbits foot or something, and now Saul in desperation is doing the same thing, he’s offering a sacrifice, because they remembered what Samuel did in the great victory over the Philistines before without a sword being raised. Now Saul, he offers a burnt offering. “And it came to pass, that as soon as he had made an end of offering the burnt offering, behold, Samuel came; and Saul went out to meet him, that he might salute him.” (verse 9) right on time. Saul goes out like nothing happened. Samuel said ‘Why are your hands all bloody, what in the world are you doing?’ “And Samuel said, What hast thou done? And Saul said,” listen to this guy now, what he should have said is ‘I was freaked out, we’re all freaked out, we were scared to death, and you didn’t come, I sinned, I was wrong, forgive me, pray to God,’ and that would have happened. Look what he does [says] instead, we’ll read through it, he gives five excuses, “Because I saw that the people were scattered from me, and that thou camest not within the days appointed, and that the Philistines gathered themselves together at Michmash; therefore said I, The Philistines will come down now upon me to Gilgal, and I have not made supplication unto the LORD: I forced myself therefore, and offered a burnt offering.” (verses 11-12) Samuel says ‘What have you done?’ and Samuel did get there in time. Saul says ‘Well, the people, it’s their fault, they were scattering, they were leaving, I saw them, what was left of them, some army, they were leaving from me. And you,’ sounds like Adam in the Garden of Eden, ‘the woman that you gave me, that serpent,’ ‘and then you, hot-shot Prophet, you’re supposed to come, you didn’t show up within the days you said you’d be here, and the Philistines, it’s their fault, they gathered themselves together at Michmash, what do you think I was supposed to do? And then when I saw that I know I am supposed to pray, I know I’m supposed to be religious, well I haven’t yet made supplication, if you had been here I wouldn’t have had to think about that, but because I love God I had to think about that, so I did that, and because nobody else was around I forced myself to do what I know I shouldn’t have done.’ ‘I threw the gold in the fire and the calf came out,’ he sounds like Aaron. “I forced myself therefore,” Saul becoming a man of excuses, five excuses at least that he gives here. And look at Samuel in verse 13, “And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done foolishly: thou hast not kept the commandment of the LORD thy God, which he commanded thee: for now would the LORD have established thy kingdom upon Israel for ever.” I think Samuel here has no future in professional counseling, he needs to take some courses, certainly, somebody else is going to have to talk to Saul after he’s done with him. Look what he says, he doesn’t say ‘Saul, I think we should look here, how did you feel when you did that? how did you feel when you were sacrificing that lamb? how’d you feel about trembling?’ He doesn’t do any of that. ‘Samuel said to Saul, What you did was really stupid, man, Thou hast done foolishly.’ And believe me, he’s got the course in counseling that matters, he’s God’s voice, he’s God’s prophet. “Thou hast done foolishly: thou hast not kept the commandment of the LORD thy God,” you could kind of sum up every counseling case there is with those two sentences (you have to be Samuel to get away with that 😊). “thou hast not kept the commandment of the LORD thy God, which he commanded thee: for now would the LORD have established thy kingdom upon Israel for ever.” ‘Saul, if you’d have listened, you’d have done what’s right, God would have established your kingdom.’ “But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the LORD hath sought him a man after his own heart, and the LORD hath commanded him to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the LORD commanded thee.” (verse 14) Personal, “commanded thee,” personal. We got something very fascinating going on here. Does everybody know what the LORD is talking about here?--“the LORD hath sought him a man after his own heart,” everybody knows what we’re talking about here? David, right? Well the problem is, Saul’s going to rule for 30-some more years. It will be, it seems, every chronology I’ve been able to dig through, and everybody who does digs, it would be at least 20 years after this before David would be born, David is not born yet, it’s going to be at least 20 years before Samuel pours the oil, the best, the guys that are really trying to be kind of positive, say that David was just born at this point in time, he was a baby in a crib somewhere. Most scholars say David didn’t even exist at this point in time, wasn’t even there. But it should certainly, those of you who work in nurseries, those of you who have babies at home, it should certainly tune up your attitude towards those little ones. Because one of them, God was able to look at and say ‘This is a man after my own heart,’—Maaa! [he makes a baby crying noise] ‘I’m going to give him the kingdom.’ Saul’s going to rebel against this for years, until he ends up committing suicide. “But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the LORD hath sought him a man after his own heart, and the LORD hath commanded him to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the LORD commanded thee.” (verse 14) And every indication I can find is David is not even born yet. God knows the end from the beginning. “and the LORD hath commanded him” prophetic of what he will do, “to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the LORD commanded thee.” It’s a remarkable, remarkable verse. We’ll probably have to end, ya, let’s shut it down there, because we’ll use the rest of this chapter to kind of give us an entrance into the story of Jonathan and his armour bearer. Ok, we’ll do that…we should stop there. I think even there, Samuel’s looking for Saul, you again, I love his counsel, ‘What are you doing, really stupid man, you didn’t listen to God’s Word at all, it’s why you’re in this mess.’ I think even then he’s trying to elicit from Saul ‘You know what, Samuel, you’re right, I’ve blown it, pray for me. Would you offer a sacrifice for me?’ I know that, ever there, Samuel would loved to have drawn a confession from Saul, because God so loves his people. Now look, I encourage you this evening, if you’re in compromise, if you’ve crossed the line, look, it’s pleased him to make us his own children, his own people. He takes pleasure in us. John the apostle says ‘We love him because he first loved us.’ If you have trouble loving him and being faithful to him, it’s because you have not apprehended the measure of grace yet that blows your mind. Because when your head blows off [symbolically he’s speaking], when his grace blows your mind, good things happen in your heart. ‘We love him because he first loved us, and here is the love that manifests, not that we loved him, but that he first loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins, he sent his own Son to be the place where God Almighty’s wrath could be satisfied, so that we could be his own, so that we could be his.’ And we’re almost afraid, when God says ‘You know what? My pleasure is to be with you, I’m pleased to call you my people.’ We almost think ‘Well where are the strings attached? There are strings attached here somewhere,’ and there aren’t. In grace, there are no strings attached. What God wants is for that grace to take hold of our hearts so that we serve him wholeheartedly, that we give ourselves to him. You know we’ll strangle ourselves in legalism if we never get past that. And we may say we believe in grace, but we’ll sin, we’ll do stupid things. If we really enter into his grace, it is so demanding. If you fall and make a mistake, grace picks you up, kicks you in the rear-end, dusts you off, and says ‘Get going again!’ It is the most demanding doctrine in the Bible, the Grace of God, it leaves us no excuse, it leaves us no excuse. Every one of us can find tomorrow morning that his mercies are new. I encourage you to do that. Read ahead, we’ll come to some remarkable things as we move into 1^st Samuel further. We’ll have the musicians come, we’ll lift our voices. As we sing tonight, if you’re here and you need to get saved, you know, you can come up here, we want to pray with you, give you some literature to read. If you’re going to turn away, repent of your sins tonight and ask Christ to be your Saviour, come, we rejoice to see that…[transcript of a connective expository sermon on 1^st Samuel 12:1-25 and 1^st Samuel 13:1-14, given by Pastor Joe Focht, Calvary Chapel of Philadelphia, 13500 Philmont Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19116]