Offensive Demands

Intro

1 Samuel 8 ESV

When Samuel became old, he made his sons judges over Israel. The name of his firstborn son was Joel, and the name of his second, Abijah; they were judges in Beersheba. Yet his sons did not walk in his ways but turned aside after gain. They took bribes and perverted justice. Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah and said to him, “Behold, you are old and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now appoint for us a king to judge us like all the nations.” But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” And Samuel prayed to the Lord. And the Lord said to Samuel, “Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them. According to all the deeds that they have done, from the day I brought them up out of Egypt even to this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are also doing to you. Now then, obey their voice; only you shall solemnly warn them and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them.” So Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people who were asking for a king from him. He said, “These will be the ways of the king who will reign over you: he will take your sons and appoint them to his chariots and to be his horsemen and to run before his chariots. And he will appoint for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and some to plow his ground and to reap his harvest, and to make his implements of war and the equipment of his chariots. He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards and give them to his servants. He will take the tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers and to his servants. He will take your male servants and female servants and the best of your young men and your donkeys, and put them to his work. He will take the tenth of your flocks, and you shall be his slaves. And in that day you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for yourselves, but the Lord will not answer you in that day.” But the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel. And they said, “No! But there shall be a king over us, that we also may be like all the nations, and that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles.” And when Samuel had heard all the words of the people, he repeated them in the ears of the Lord. And the Lord said to Samuel, “Obey their voice and make them a king.” Samuel then said to the men of Israel, “Go every man to his city.”

Your Legacy Shows the Quality of Your Work

Samuel did good work as a servant of the Lord.

His Children did not grow to know the Lord.

A repeating story.

He left room for the people to seek a disobedient solution.

For Us, We See the Importance of the Legacy we leave

The importance of Biblical Parenting.

Deuteronomy 6:4–9 ESV

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

There is no indication on whether Samuel did this or not, only that they did not walk in his ways.

We do know that Samuel traveled a lot. Were his children with him? Or being influenced by others who perhaps did not walk in his ways?

What is clear, is that they did not follow the Lord. There are Christian parents, that despite their best efforts, their children do not walk in the faith.

I am not proposing that if your children do not walk in the faith, or are not active in their faith that you have failed. Not at all.

You are not responsible for their actions. But you are responsible for yours.

A modern example of this. Bob Pierce:

Youth Pastor turned Missionary to China

Founded World Vision

After being fired from that ministry founded Samaritan’s Purse

Lost a daughter to Suicide.

Life ended mostly estranged from family.

Consider these passages:

1 Timothy 5:8 ESV

But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

1 Timothy 3:4–5 ESV

He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church?

Ephesians 6:4 ESV

Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

For those who are leading the church, pastors or elders (episkope) in particular in this passage, and then reiterated in the following section about deacons the call is to manage your household well.

For all believers the call is to provide physically for their family. they are to train their children to know the lord.

We have dealt specifically with parenting in this first portion, but I believe the lesson can extend further.

We must invest ourselves into others and make disciples.

This means:

If you don’t have children, you are not exempt from discipleship.

If your children are grown, you are not finished.

We must replace ourselves, and they must replace themselves.

He left room for the people to seek a disobedient solution.

Your Actions Show Your Heart

The people had reason to complain about Samuel’s sons.

Their proposed solution was awful.

What they did was evil in the eyes of Samu

What they proposed means.

Judges: People -> Judges (was one of the people worked on behalf of God) -> God

Judges have no authority other than what God gives. They don’t have as much authority to abuse their position. They are often directly appointed by God.

God is the ultimate King of the people. The judge is only acting as a servant and intermediary for God.

King: People -> King (Superior to the people, authority in and of himself) -> God

King is superior to the people. He can and will abuse his position as God warns the people. He is supposed to follow God and be obedient to Him, but when he is not, he leads he people astray.

When the king leads them astray, he becomes the ultimate authority, not God.

They were warned. Their king would:

Take your sons.

Take your daughters.

Take your land. Your best land.

Take your servants

You will regret it

The Lord won’t answer.

Even after this warning… They still wanted a king.

This is what happens to us when we choose lesser things.

The Word of God does not exist to be a burden, but to give us direction on how to live a life that is holy and pleasing to God.

Not surprisingly, a life that is holy and pleasing to God is one that will be the most fulfilling for us in the end while minimize the harm we inflict on ourselves.

Let’s be clear: God’s word sets his standard for how we should live.

The reason the Bible says “Do not ________” is because it is wrong. NOT because your life is better if you don’t do that.

HOWEVER, it need not be mutually exclusive. It is possible and indeed true that if you do what God says to do and do not do what he says not to do, your life will be better.

The promise of the lesser thing, is always that it will be better than what you have now.

Good marketing does not make a good product.

The Lord Grants the Desires of Your Heart

But the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel. And they said, “No! But there shall be a king over us, that we also may be like the nations, and that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles.”

They utterly rejected the Lord.

The Lord is their King, but they want a king.

They are called to be distinct, but they want to be like the nations.

Thee Lord judges and fights their battles, they want a king to do it instead.

This was not new. The people lived in continuous rebellion.

From they day they were brought out of Egypt.

How can we understand this?

Hosea.

Through his word the Lord warns us. He gives us clear indication of what will happen should we be disobedient.

We all have experienced this in our life.

There have been times you have given advice or counsel to people with the best of intentions.

Despite this, he allows us to go our own way.

There is a popular (and incorrect) depiction of Jesus in the world of almost an ethereal hippie.

Just here for love peace and good times. He taught (mostly) good things. He was all positive.

In reality, Jesus spoke more about Hell and punishment than he heaven. Why? As a warning.

If you do these things, if you walk this way, this is what your lot will be.

Eternal Torment, unquenchable fire, the worm does not die, weeping and gnashing of teeth, outer darkness, from which there is no return...

WHY does he describe it in this way?

Like with Samuel, God describes what will happen if you continue in your present course of action, presents the alternative, but ultimately he allows people to continue in their sin if that is what they are determined to do. Romans 1 describes it well.

Romans 1:21–25 ESV

For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.

Where are you today?

Are you leaving a legacy?

Where is your heart in regards to God?

Are you following him or going your own way?