Unit 9 / Session 5 Following Their Own Desires

Announcements:

Awana Restart tonight at 5:45

New Jude series beginning tonight.

Men’s and Ladies Conference on November 1st and 2nd.

Resources:

Big Picture Cards

How many have used the Big Picture Cards with their kids?

Kids Email

Introduction

Big Picture Question: What is the fair payment for sin? The fair payment for sin is death.

Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

The story of 1 Samuel opens with a note of hope. (can anyone catch us up on the beginning of 1 Samuel?)

God has not forgotten His people, and He is continuing to work out His mission to deliver them, notably through raising up a leader for them. But this theme contrasts with the reality of Israel’s leaders at the time — their priests.

Here’s what we’re going to focus on this morning: Faithlessness brings God’s righteous judgment without expression.

Are there people that we excuse their sin because of position, leadership, etc? (politicians, pastors, parents)

Are there areas that you excuse/justify your own sin?

The beginning of 1 Samuel begins with a long-awaited son of a faithful couple given to the Lord so his life might be wholeheartedly devoted to God’s mission in the world. Yet our lesson today covers a family that undermined God’s mission in the world and God’s response to their sin.

Point #1: The Priest’s Evil Sons are Contemptible [worthy of despising] (1 Sam. 2:12-17,22-25)

1 Samuel 2:12–17 KJV 1900

12 Now the sons of Eli were sons of Belial; they knew not the Lord. 13 And the priests’ custom with the people was, that, when any man offered sacrifice, the priest’s servant came, while the flesh was in seething, with a fleshhook of three teeth in his hand; 14 And he struck it into the pan, or kettle, or caldron, or pot; all that the fleshhook brought up the priest took for himself. So they did in Shiloh unto all the Israelites that came thither. 15 Also before they burnt the fat, the priest’s servant came, and said to the man that sacrificed, Give flesh to roast for the priest; for he will not have sodden flesh of thee, but raw. 16 And if any man said unto him, Let them not fail to burn the fat presently, and then take as much as thy soul desireth; then he would answer him, Nay; but thou shalt give it me now: and if not, I will take it by force. 17 Wherefore the sin of the young men was very great before the Lord: for men abhorred the offering of the Lord.

In passages like this one, it can be difficult to make sense of the Old Testament truth so it can be applied to our lives.

At its most basic form, the issue in this passage is that God’s people were ignoring God’s holy standards and using Him for their own selfish pursuits.

Vs. 12 highlights for us that the sons of Eli were wicked. God’s priests were evil!

Can anyone describe from our passage how Hophni and Phinehas broke God’s laws?

They took more meat than they were supposed to, and they took portions of the meat they weren’t supposed to.

They committed sexual sin with the women who served the Lord at the entrance to the tent of meeting.

These religious leaders of Israel were guilty of breaking God’s law.

Essential Doctrine #37: Sin as Transgression: The word transgression means “to cross over” or “to pass by” and is often used in reference to transgressing God’s explicit commands. When God gives a specific command, as He did with Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden, and when that command is disobeyed, transgression has taken place (Romans 5:14 “14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam’s transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come.” ; 1 Timothy 2:14 “14 And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression.” ). In this sense, sin is law-breaking.

1 Samuel 2:22–25 KJV 1900

22 Now Eli was very old, and heard all that his sons did unto all Israel; and how they lay with the women that assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. 23 And he said unto them, Why do ye such things? for I hear of your evil dealings by all this people. 24 Nay, my sons; for it is no good report that I hear: ye make the Lord’s people to transgress. 25 If one man sin against another, the judge shall judge him: but if a man sin against the Lord, who shall intreat for him? Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto the voice of their father, because the Lord would slay them.

Eli confronted his sons, but it was no use. For their egregious errors, Hophni and Phinehas would not listen to their father’s warning because the Lord had already set their judgement in motion. They wanted to ignore God and live according to their own lusts, so God would give them exactly what they desired — the wages of their sin: death (Romans 6:23).

Eli warned that God can intercede for a sin committed against another person, but no one can intercede for a sin committed against God. (1 Samuel 2:25)

What should we learn from God’s response to the sin of Eli’s sons? (we dare not treat sin as a trivial matter; we should be reminded that the wages of sin is death; God takes seriously His holiness, the holiness of His people, and the reputation of His holiness among His people)

“No one can intercede for a sin committed against God.” The hope for sinners rests in the fact that God has appointed an intercessor — Jesus Christ — to advocate on behalf of those who have trusted Him through repentance and faith. Before God the Father, Jesus testifies that the sin of His people has been paid for and that they are forgiven and right with God because they’ve trusted in Him as a perfect substitute. Without this hope, Eli’s question would echo throughout history with no satisfactory answer.

How should Jesus’ ministry of intercession affect your worries regarding your struggles with sin?

Thankfully, the Lord is gracious to forgive sins and has given us Jesus for this purpose. But we must never downplay God’s just wrath against sin.

Point #2: The Priest’s Evil Sons are Rejected (1 Sam. 2:30-34)

1 Samuel 2:30 KJV 1900

30 Wherefore the Lord God of Israel saith, I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before me for ever: but now the Lord saith, Be it far from me; for them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed.

God had blessed Eli and his sons with their role as priests, but they despised their privilege. Therefore, God would take the priesthood from them and give it to another descendant of Aaron.

Eli, Hophni, and Phinehas had a great privilege — they spent their lives among and doing the holy things of God. But they had despised their privilege.

Can you think of examples today where some might “despise” their spiritual privilege?

Knowing that this is our propensity, How might we seek to honor God? (believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God sent for our salvation; we can do what God commands; whatever we do, we can do it all for the glory of God; faithfully use the gifts God has given to us for His glory and the good of others)

1 Samuel 2:31–34 KJV 1900

31 Behold, the days come, that I will cut off thine arm, and the arm of thy father’s house, that there shall not be an old man in thine house. 32 And thou shalt see an enemy in my habitation, in all the wealth which God shall give Israel: and there shall not be an old man in thine house for ever. 33 And the man of thine, whom I shall not cut off from mine altar, shall be to consume thine eyes, and to grieve thine heart: and all the increase of thine house shall die in the flower of their age. 34 And this shall be a sign unto thee, that shall come upon thy two sons, on Hophni and Phinehas; in one day they shall die both of them.

The severe consequences God laid out for the sins of Eli and his sons serve as a warning to all who would despise the holiness of God.

Judgement is a difficult concept in the Bible. But life testifies to the necessity of judgement. If you are a parent with children, you know that kids have to learn the connection between rebellion and pain. If a parent is unwilling to judge a child’s misbehavior, the child will not correct it on his or her own. Consequences help a child learn what is in-bounds and what is not.

How should believers in Jesus Christ respond to the severity of God’s consequences for Eli and his sons?

God rejected Eli and his sons as His priests because they failed to honor Him. His judgment would be harsh but just. In this, God would be faithful to His covenant with Aaron and to His holiness. Believers too struggle with temptation and sin. By God’s grace, our sins are forgiven in Christ and we have no condemnation, yet God remains faithful to discipline His children.

Point #3: The Priest’s Evil Sons are Judged (1 Sam. 4:1b-11)

1 Samuel 4:1–4 KJV 1900

1 And the word of Samuel came to all Israel. Now Israel went out against the Philistines to battle, and pitched beside Eben-ezer: and the Philistines pitched in Aphek. 2 And the Philistines put themselves in array against Israel: and when they joined battle, Israel was smitten before the Philistines: and they slew of the army in the field about four thousand men. 3 And when the people were come into the camp, the elders of Israel said, Wherefore hath the Lord smitten us to day before the Philistines? Let us fetch the ark of the covenant of the Lord out of Shiloh unto us, that, when it cometh among us, it may save us out of the hand of our enemies. 4 So the people sent to Shiloh, that they might bring from thence the ark of the covenant of the Lord of hosts, which dwelleth between the cherubims: and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were there with the ark of the covenant of God.

Why were the Israelites defeated?

*example of Ai and Achan. (Joshua 6-7)

The sin of Eli’s sons led to a defeat and then to a disaster — the Israelites sought a symbol of the Lord instead of the Lord Himself.

What are some ways our sins impact others? (emboldens others in their sin; causes unbelievers to doubt the validity of the gospel we proclaim; causes believers to doubt the power of the gospel to transform lives)

Sometimes we may not even realize our sin until the damage is done. Think about the Israelites for a moment.

They asked a common-sense question, and the common-sense answer should have occurred to them: Why did we get routed by the Philistines? Maybe because they’d turned their backs on God to such an extent that the priestly family was stealing the sacrificial offerings and engaging in sexual sin. You would think that God was trying to get their attention.

Maybe think to yourself, How might God be trying to get your attention right now? Is their any sin that you are continually committing against God or others? (gossip, lying, pride, anger, impatience)

We might be more like the Hophni and Phinehas than we’d care to admit.

1 Samuel 4:5–11 KJV 1900

5 And when the ark of the covenant of the Lord came into the camp, all Israel shouted with a great shout, so that the earth rang again. 6 And when the Philistines heard the noise of the shout, they said, What meaneth the noise of this great shout in the camp of the Hebrews? And they understood that the ark of the Lord was come into the camp. 7 And the Philistines were afraid, for they said, God is come into the camp. And they said, Woe unto us! for there hath not been such a thing heretofore. 8 Woe unto us! who shall deliver us out of the hand of these mighty Gods? these are the Gods that smote the Egyptians with all the plagues in the wilderness. 9 Be strong, and quit yourselves like men, O ye Philistines, that ye be not servants unto the Hebrews, as they have been to you: quit yourselves like men, and fight. 10 And the Philistines fought, and Israel was smitten, and they fled every man into his tent: and there was a very great slaughter; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen. 11 And the ark of God was taken; and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were slain.

Empty threats. *reading about threatening your child.

God must judge sin.

True to His word, the Lord judged Eli’s sons, and they died on the same day, proving God is holy, sin is deadly, and God alone can save.

Do you learn through the pain of others?

Do you view sin and its consequences as this real?

My Response:

Head:

Though we may not sin like these sons, we’ve broken God’s law nonetheless. Our rebellion warrants the type of judgment experienced by Hophni and Phinehas in this narrative.

How does Jesus’ death on the cross for our sin vindicate God’s holiness?

Heart:

Non-Christians should allow the consequences of sin to drive them to God in faith and repentance (Joel 2:13; 2 Peter 3:9 “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”). Christians should feel the fatherly discipline of God as an act of His love and continually turn to Him for forgiveness of their sins (Hebrews 12:1-12; 1 John 1:9).

What do you need to repent of so that you will be restored to a right relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ?

Hands:

How will you use the resources God has given you to grow in your knowledge of God, your obedience to Him, and sharing about Jesus?