Finding life among the dead

Introduction (4 min)

What shocking News about your health, What scared you enough to cause you to change your behavior? For some people, it might be a cancer diagnosis. For Others. It might be a stroke Or a heart attack.

However, As a nurse A lot of time. I see People. Who had diabetes? Even with many of their limbs, their fingers, their feet cut off, they refuse to change the way that they eat and the way they exercise.

- Maybe they love their lifestyle more than they love Been alive. And having a fulfilled and good life. Or maybe after making so many wrong decisions, it's so much harder for them to change that way of life.

What about you, brothers? How often do you have great fears Thinking about your future Ministry or marriage?? What do you think it takes for you to change your behaviors in these context?

Brothers, this is what happened to Saul, The King of Israel. Please turn with me to 1 Samuel Chapter 28, verse 3. To verse 25.

Saul was anointed by God. Saul was blessed by God. Saul had the Spirit of the Lord on him, Samuel was once proud to anoint Saul with oil to install him as Israel's king. At one point, Saul led Israel into many battle and won. But at many point throughout the book of Samuel, Especially. When he refused to obey God to Destroy God's enemies, but instead Listen to the wrong voices and disobey God. Through Samuel, God said, “I will no longer be with you.” I will take the Kingdom away from your hands and give it to someone else. Who would listen to me with their whole heart.

APP:Friends, a lot of us are in or will be in Very similar situation to Saul

You were also gifted By God. And affirmed by the local church to be here. We have aspiration of ministry. We've been through many ups and downs. At least I have had a lot more downs than up.

I want to convince you today. To not listen To the voices of the world when we are fearful. But instead, To listen to the voice Of God's servant. We must not listen to their Voice our fear. We must not talk To them our fear, and we must not become like them in our fear.

This is where out story picks up. At this moment Saul before his biggest battle and fiercest enemy.

Read v3-8

Move 1 (5 min)

Do not Listen to the counsel of the dead out of fear, but listen to God’s wisdom (v3-8)

§ This is not the first time Saul was afraid. In fact, In Samuel 15 Saul was afraid of the people and listened to their voice instead of fearing God and obeying him.

§ And in chapter 17, Saul and all of Israel were afraid of Goliath. Instead of God.

§ And even earlier than that, in chapter 12, Samuel told Saul at his installation if you fear Yahweh and serve him and trust in him. You will have nothing to fear, but if you do not obey God. God's will Take everything away from you.

§ Saul at his wits end. What did he really seek from the Lord? Well, Saul is seeking his own Kingdom. He's seeking the preservation of his life. He's seeking Yahweh to help him.

§ We know why. Saul cannot seek God. He killed all the priests of the land Out of fear and jealousy of David. So failed to obey the voice of Samuel. Gods prophet.

§ What's worse, Saul refused to obey what God has revealed to him, that if you return to Yahweh, he will return to you and he will have compassion on you. That is the heart of God in Deuteronomy. As the King of Israel, he does not know God's word and God's heart.

§ Now Saul decided to do exactly what God ordains him not to do in Leviticus 19 verse 26, which is to destroy. And kill all the necromancer, all the diviners, all the mediums.

§ Saul decided to directly disobey God once more.

APP: brothers ‘Sin will take you farther than you want to go, it will keep you longer than you want to stay, and it will cost you more than you want to pay.”

Brothers, How many time have you make excuses for your sin? How many time have you make excuses For you to not do good to others?

It's just a white lie, It's just a TV show, It's just small compromises. To your integrity as a man and as a husband. It won't hurt. No one will know.

ILLUSTRATION: One of the most terrifying story that I heard. From Tim Keller. It's about a pastor. Whose sermons still saves people until? The week after. When they find out he Committing adultery with his secretary. It's somewhere that he never thought he would be when he started his ministry, When he say his vow to his wife on his wedding day.

We must not listen to the voice. Of the dead. But we must train ourselves to listen to the voice of God's wisdom.

TRANSITION: Not only must we not listen to the voice of the dead, we must not talk to the dead. Out of fear.

Move 2 - (8 min)

READ v9-19

There's a lot of irony going on here.

§ The Pagan Witch knows the law better. Than this king of Israel.

§ Saul, the King of Israel swear by the God of Israel to in order to disobey God’s law.

§ Lets address some common questions you might have as the text was read

· Is the spirit really Samuel or a demon?

I would argue yes this is same, since the word of Samuel here is similar to the word of Samuel given to Saul in chapter 15.

And two you can see by how surprised. The Witch was when And she cried out And become afraid.

YHWH would not allow a demon to represent him, there is no textual evidence else that a demon impersonating YHWH

· Is saul saved since hes going to be with Samuel?

I would argue no. Samuel is merely referring to the land of the dead. We have already seen up to this point that Saul was given over to sin, death. And to the wickedness of his action. And show no repentance.

· Why does the witch said theres a God that’s coming out of the ground when she saw Samuel?

as you notice in Sauls addressed to Samuel, he said. God has turned away from me, And the witch said, A God has coming up to the ground. The generic term for gods or spiritual beings (Elohim) Was used here.

o In contrast to that, Samuel refers to God As Yahweh, the Covenant Lord of Israel.

I believe the author is trying to show us Saul is not seeking to know the covenant God, but he's seeking. A God like the nations. It is ironic that Israel ask for a king like the nations and they get a king like the nations who seek after serving and worshipping a God like the nations. A God who just show up to help him with his battle. And he was hoping that Samuel. Would help him in this battle. By addressing and seeing that Samuel represent the covenant God.

· Saul has rejected God, and God has now rejected him utterly and completely.

· He did not want God to answer him or direct his life. All he want is victory from his enemies. He wants to keep his Kingdom and his lineage, and he want his life to be preserved.

· But the striking thing is That Samuel gave him the reversal of what he's asking and seeking from God. Because of his disobedience, God has now become his enemies. Instead of giving him victory over his enemies, God has torn the Kingdom away from him rather than giving his lineage to Kingdom. And God will not preserve his life, but instead will take it from him.

APP: Friends, in what way do you not listen to the voice of God? But still expect him to bless you? How often do you listen to the voice of your wife or your children? As they tell you about your anger issues. How well do you take criticism from friends and church members and mentors?

o You see the voice of God. To his people, in the new covenant is all around you, all these people that God has put in your life (your wife, your friends, your church members). They all have the Holy Spirit of God, we are to be very careful. When we listen to one another.

o Friends, do not ignore the voice of the Holy Spirit in confronting you in your sin.

Friends do not put off the voice of friends. And family when they point out inconsistency in your Christian walk. Whether it is Speech. When you're angry, whether it be. Behavior when you're stressed.

Let us not Listen to the voice of the Of the dead and talk to the dead. But listen to the wisdom Of God, from his people. For if not, we will become like the dead in our fears.

Move 3 17min - 21min (5 min)

Do not Become like the dead in fear, But become like the God of Life (v20-25)

Read v20-25

§ Saul response to the judgment of God in hunger, fear, weakness. And falling down to the ground.

· Saul physical state show his spiritual state here. Without. The Lord and obedience to His will, Saul become spiritually hungry, spiritually weak, filled with fear instead of confidence in God and His promises. Lastly, He spiritually fall to the ground. To the land of the dead. Saul did the exact opposite of what Samuel does. What Samuel did was rising from the earth, now Saul falling to the earth.

It is also really interesting the way the story ends. It ends with a meal. The author could have just left us this whole section and picks up at Chapter 29.

I want you to pay close attention. To the witch and what she said and what she doesn't say.

The woman said nothing about Saul’s sin, about God's will, about Samuel as the true prophet of God, about repentance from his sin to God.

instead what she said was very reasonable. Eat. Get some strength so you can carry on into your battle.

In verse 21,22, and 23. You hear the word listened, listened, listened repeated multiple times.

· As if the author is calling us back to different stories. Where there was an authority figure that listened to the voice of the one he should have led. And in the end, suffer the consequences of his action.

The language sequence here is very interesting, He feared and he listened to the voice of his people. Like he did Earlier against Amalek in ch 15. Saul listen to the voice of the animals. Saul listen to the voice of his people. Saul listen to the voice of the enemies of God, But Saul did not listen to the voice of Yahweh.

What Saul should have done Is to fast from food and repented like David did When he sin against God. Or fasted and prayed like King Hezekiah, When he was announced, he would die soon.

§ Yet again Saul shown that he does not know the heart of God. That God will turn from his anger if we turn from our sin and grieved over our sin and trust in God.

The last statement is the death sentence for Saul “And they ate, and they rose, and they went away in the night.”

As He Take his last meal, he completely turned away From the covenant Lord of Israel, and become partner with the dead. He now completely walk in the counsel of the wicked, stand in the way of sinners, and sit and fellowship with the scoffer and those who live in disobedience and rebellions against God.

§ And he will not rise in judgment. But will perish in all of his ways.

Conclusion (3 min)

§ APP: Brothers, I have an encouragement and a warning for you.

· If you're sinning against God. Right now. It is not too late to turn from your sin.

o It is not too late to trust in Jesus sacrifice On the cross. God has not given up on you. Jesus was forsaken so that we would not be forsaken. If we turn from around sin, he is faithful and just to forgive us Of our sin.

o Be careful brothers, so that there wont be an evil and unbelieving heart in you, that turns you away from the living God. But encourage each other daily, so that none of us will be hardened by the lies of Sin

o Go home to day to friends and close family members and ask them to be honest with you about 1 area you can do better as a Christian, as a man, as a minister.

o Listen carefully without being defensive.

thank them for their honesty

o Pray and ask for forgiveness for that Sin

o And Turn from your sin before it is too late, Before you go down 10 years to the Ministry, before you're 20 years to your marriages. And have to suffer through the indignation and suffered through The humiliation of fallen in the ministry of having a broken marriage.