Review of 1 Samuel
Notes
Transcript
A. Rapport for the time
Journey—taking a Journey
Expectations as you begin a journey vs what actually happens in that journey.
B. Reading of the text
Roger something to read at beginning about the sovereign hand of God.
C. Review of the text
1 Samuel did a marvelous job teaching us that as Christians we are servants of the one true God. When we began our conversation together some 16 months ago we said that the Sovereign hand of God would be seen in 1 Samuel but I don’t think we understood exactly how much at the time. We know about verses like.
27 “Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is anything too hard for me?
20 Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us,
1 Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.
2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.
3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
All the families of the earth shall be blessed is God’s plan and what we witness in the OT is the unfolding of that plan despite the sin of humans and what seems to be a desire to not be on the same page with God. But we Know that ultimately God will accomplish what he wills apart from what we as humans say back to him or fret over. You have spent the last few weeks looking at Job and his desire not to answer God once God reminds him of exactly who HE is.
In 1 Samuel we saw a pattern of the people continue in which they decided what they wanted as if God had no plan. The Israelites get them selves into the most trouble when they decide they will help God.
D. Relevance of the text
The Israelites continued to do things their own way in 1 Samuel over and over again. The pattern coming out of Judges and into Samuel is
a dreary cycle of rebellion—retribution—repentance—restoration—rebellion repeated over and over again. This marked some of the darkest days in Israel’s long history.
I. Prophet from God’s Grace ch. 1-7
A. Hannah—Sovereign hand of God
In remembering Hannah we recognize a woman whose heart was focused upon the Lord.
6 And her rival used to provoke her grievously to irritate her, because the Lord had closed her womb.
7 So it went on year by year. As often as she went up to the house of the Lord, she used to provoke her. Therefore Hannah wept and would not eat.
8 And Elkanah, her husband, said to her, “Hannah, why do you weep? And why do you not eat? And why is your heart sad? Am I not more to you than ten sons?”
Even though her husband was a great encouragement to Hannah she was first and foremost the Lord’s woman.
1 Samuel: Looking on the Heart The Beginning of God’s Work (1:1–8)
This matter goes beyond the particular situations of biblical barren women. We are facing one of the principles of Yahweh’s modus operandi. When his people are without strength, without resources, without hope, without human gimmicks—then he loves to stretch forth his hand from heaven. Once we see where God often begins we will understand how we may be encouraged.
Expository Commentary: God kept Hannah from having children so that his sovereign purposes might be achieved by marking Samuel as a special child. Hannah’s trial also brings her closer to God by strengthening her faith and highlighting his gracious response to her plea for a child.
This story reminded me of the blind man in John when the disciples ask the Lord:
1 As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth.
2 And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”
3 Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.
God in his providence used this in Hannah’s life to form her into the Woman that God wanted her to be as well to bring about Samuel in whom God would use to do great things for his name.
B. Samuel—Prophet, Priest, Judge.
Samuel is unique in so many ways as he is the only person in scripture that is prophet, priest and judge. He is so unique in how God interacts with him and uses him. From Hannah offering him up to be fully committed to the Lord before he is even in the womb to the Lord calling him.
Chapter 3 is definitely one of my favorite chapters as we all have heard the story of God calling out to Samuel and he didn’t know who was calling him.
10 And the Lord came and stood, calling as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant hears.”
11 Then the Lord said to Samuel, “Behold, I am about to do a thing in Israel at which the two ears of everyone who hears it will tingle.
12 On that day I will fulfill against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end.
13 And I declare to him that I am about to punish his house forever, for the iniquity that he knew, because his sons were blaspheming God, and he did not restrain them.
14 Therefore I swear to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be atoned for by sacrifice or offering forever.”
15 Samuel lay until morning; then he opened the doors of the house of the Lord. And Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli.
Samuel’s first task is to give away God’s word to Eli the one that has raised him to tell him that God was going to pour out his wrath upon him. Can you imagine. If you think God is partially sovereign you simply decide you don’t want to do this and move on. Or worse you sugar coat the message of God and don’t do what God tells you to do.
But the Israelites wanted to do things their way. They said in their actions that God was insufficient for them.
4 Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah
5 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.”
6 But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” And Samuel prayed to the Lord.
7 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.
8 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.
9 Now then, obey their voice; only you shall solemnly warn them and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them.”
Samuel the servant of God was offended but didn’t need to be. As a nation, Israel chooses against God. The Israelite’s problem is with the God of the heavens. Isn’t that scary. As if we know more about our lives than the creator of the heavens and the Earth.
I saw an old clip from R.C Sproul this week in which someone asked a question that judged God and his actions. Sproul gets upset and says “who are you that comes from dirt to say anything about who God is?
Samuel would be separated from the world because of the God that he served.
Application: The message of God will separate us in this world. Jesus who is the very word of God was not listened to and was sent to a horrible death by the very people that said they knew the scriptures.
II. King in God’s Place ch. 8-14
Of all the time that we spent with Saul the first thing that sticks out is the fact that he was a nobody that God made into a somebody.
1 There was a man of Benjamin whose name was Kish, the son of Abiel, son of Zeror, son of Becorath, son of Aphiah, a Benjaminite, a man of wealth.
2 And he had a son whose name was Saul, a handsome young man. There was not a man among the people of Israel more handsome than he. From his shoulders upward he was taller than any of the people.
20 Then Samuel brought all the tribes of Israel near, and the tribe of Benjamin was taken by lot.
21 He brought the tribe of Benjamin near by its clans, and the clan of the Matrites was taken by lot; and Saul the son of Kish was taken by lot. But when they sought him, he could not be found.
22 So they inquired again of the Lord, “Is there a man still to come?” and the Lord said, “Behold, he has hidden himself among the baggage.”
23 Then they ran and took him from there. And when he stood among the people, he was taller than any of the people from his shoulders upward.
24 And Samuel said to all the people, “Do you see him whom the Lord has chosen? There is none like him among all the people.” And all the people shouted, “Long live the king!”
Saul would be amongst the baggage claim when he was to be pronounced King of Israel. He was nothing special but God would use him but not in the way you would think. Saul was a judgment upon the people of Israel. The people got exactly what they asked for a King that would treat them back and thing more of himself than he should. For the vast majority of time we watched Saul try to hold on to the power that he thought he had come to deserve. He decided he was bigger than God.
16 And the king said, “You shall surely die, Ahimelech, you and all your father’s house.”
17 And the king said to the guard who stood about him, “Turn and kill the priests of the Lord, because their hand also is with David, and they knew that he fled and did not disclose it to me.” But the servants of the king would not put out their hand to strike the priests of the Lord.
18 Then the king said to Doeg, “You turn and strike the priests.” And Doeg the Edomite turned and struck down the priests, and he killed on that day eighty-five persons who wore the linen ephod.
Saul kept chasing David to kill him even though he had been told by God that he would not stay on the throne of Israel. Even after David had a chance to kill him multiple times but didn’t do it.
17 He said to David, “You are more righteous than I, for you have repaid me good, whereas I have repaid you evil.
18 And you have declared this day how you have dealt well with me, in that you did not kill me when the Lord put me into your hands.
19 For if a man finds his enemy, will he let him go away safe? So may the Lord reward you with good for what you have done to me this day.
20 And now, behold, I know that you shall surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in your hand.
Saul was simply a lost soul who wanted no part of the Kingdom of God. He desired only to pursue his own Kingdom.
T.S. Lost people do lost things is a conversation you have had over the last two Sundays and that is exactly what we see our of Saul.
III. Man after God’s heart ch. 15-31
David is a man chosen by God to sit on the throne in Israel and bring about an everlasting Kingdom. We learned that this was the plan of God all along.
10 The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until tribute comes to him; and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.
Saul was the tribe of Benjamin in Israel and was never meant to stay on the throne forever. But the line of David would be that very thing. Now it wasn’t because David was perfect because we know that he was not even close to perfect. In 1 Samuel we saw him lie and even run to another people—the Philistines and lie some more. But he was a man after God’s heart is what scripture tells us.
14 But now your kingdom shall not continue. The Lord has sought out a man after his own heart, and the Lord has commanded him to be prince over his people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you.”
22 And when he had removed him, he raised up David to be their king, of whom he testified and said, ‘I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after my heart, who will do all my will.’
The difference in David was he was a man who had a relationship with the living God. Who live his life by faith.
David’s throne would be the one in which the Messiah would bring salvation to the world.
16 And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.’ ”
But remember David is anointed at a young age but doesn’t sit on throne in Israel for some 15 years. Why so long?
What we learned was God was shaping David into the leader he needed him to be and preparing him to be a servant of the people. We saw David the man take over so often but also saw him run to the Lord learning that God was all that he had and all he needed in this life.
Application:
We didn’t talk about Jonathon today but he was a huge reminder to us as well of what a servant looks like.
4 people who all did it in a different way but all were under God’s providence for his people Israel.
We know that God’s sovereignty and Providence over that which he created does not change with time or anything else. But the question I want you to answer for yourself this morning is:
How much more sovereign is God now than when we started 1 Samuel?
