An Unlikely Candidate

Introduction

The 2008 presidential campaign of (AN UNLIKELY CANDIDATE) Barack Obama, then junior United States Senator from Illinois, was announced on February 10, 2007 in Springfield, Illinois.[1] After winning a majority of delegates in the Democratic primaries of 2008, on August 23, leading up to the convention, the campaign announced that Senator Joe Biden of Delaware would be the vice presidential nominee.[2] At the 2008 Democratic National Convention on August 27, (AN UNLIKELY CANDIDATE) Barack Obama was formally selected as the Democratic Party nominee for President of the United States in 2008.[3] He was the first African American in history to be nominated on a major party ticket.

On November 4, 2008, (AN UNLIKELY CANDIDATE) Obama defeated the Republican nominee, Senator John McCain of Arizona, making him the President-elect and the first African American elected President.[5][6] He was the third sitting U.S. Senator, after Warren G. Harding and John F. Kennedy, to be elected president. Upon the vote of the Electoral College on December 15, 2008, and the subsequent certification thereof by a Joint Session of the United States Congress on January 8, 2009, (AN UNLIKELY CANDIDATE) Barack Obama was elected President of the United States and Joe Biden Vice President of the United States, with 365 of 538 electors.

Just as President Barack Obama was an UNLIKELY CANDIDATE, so was our chief character in the text for today.

See, Israel has not heard from God in decades. The priests are corrupt. The nearby nations threaten the land’s safety. Even Eli, the high priest and judge of Israel, is not faithfully serving God and the people. Israel needs more than a judge. Israel needs to hear from God again. Israel needs a prophet.

So God gives them Samuel.

Samuel serves the people as a prophet and judge. He speaks the word of the Lord to the people, and teaches them how to live as the people of God. But when Samuel grows old and Israel’s enemies attack, the people demand that Samuel appoint a king. Samuel advises the people to trust in God and not in human leadership, but the people do not listen–they are determined to have a king rule over them and deliver them from the enemy.

Israel has not heard from God in decades. The priests are corrupt. The nearby nations threaten the land’s safety. Even Eli, the high priest and judge of Israel, is not faithfully serving God and the people. Israel needs more than a judge. Israel needs to hear from God again. Israel needs a prophet.

So God gives them Saul.

So God gives them Samuel.

Samuel serves the people as a prophet and judge. He speaks the word of the Lord to the people, and teaches them how to live as the people of God. But when Samuel grows old and Israel’s enemies attack, the people demand that Samuel appoint a king. Samuel advises the people to trust in God and not in human leadership, but the people do not listen–they are determined to have a king rule over them and deliver them from the enemy.

(CIT) The writer’s purpose for this text today is to …God’s sovereign hand at work in the life of Israel.

So God gives them Saul.

Saul is a foolish, selfish, cowardly king. He ignores the word of the Lord and craves the approval of men. He disobeys God several times, oversteps his duties, and puts the people at odds with God and each other. King Saul does not keep the Law of Moses, and does not direct the Israelites to live as God’s holy people.

So God gives them David.

First Samuel marks a great turning point in Israel’s history: Israel transitions from theocracy to monarchy. Instead of crying to God for help—which worked before (, )—Israel demands that Samuel appoint a king. At first, they are saddled with the ungodly Saul, but God raises up another to deliver and lead His people.

It is in 1 Samuel that we first see an example of Messiah (God-anointed royalty). Saul and David are anointed by God to lead and deliver Israel. Jesus, a descendant of David (), is the true Messiah anointed by God to rule over all () and save the lost ().

See, Israel has not heard from God in decades. The priests are corrupt. The nearby nations threaten the land’s safety. Even Eli, the high priest and judge of Israel, is not faithfully serving God and the people. Israel needs more than a judge. Israel needs to hear from God again. Israel needs a prophet.

So God gives them Samuel.

Samuel serves the people as a prophet and judge. He speaks the word of the Lord to the people, and teaches them how to live as the people of God. But when Samuel grows old and Israel’s enemies attack, the people demand that Samuel appoint a king. Samuel advises the people to trust in God and not in human leadership, but the people do not listen–they are determined to have a king rule over them and deliver them from the enemy.

So God gives them Saul.

Saul is a foolish, selfish, cowardly king. He ignores the word of the Lord and craves the approval of men. He disobeys God several times, oversteps his duties, and puts the people at odds with God and each other. King Saul does not keep the Law of Moses, and does not direct the Israelites to live as God’s holy people.

So God gives them David.

I. The Mission (1-5)

Samuel’s mission (16:1–5)

The Lord tells Samuel that he has selected someone to replace Saul as king.

He directs Samuel to go to Bethlehem and anoint one of Jesse’s sons as Israel’s next king.

(H. L. Willmington, The Outline Bible (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 1999), .)

II. The Rejection (6-10)

Samuel’s meeting (16:6–10)

Jesse introduces each of his seven oldest sons to Samuel, but none of them meet the Lord’s approval.

(H. L. Willmington, The Outline Bible (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 1999), .)

III. The Selection (11-13)

Samuel's mission complete (16:11-13)

The Lord tells Samuel to anoint David, Jesse’s youngest son.

When he does so, the Spirit of the Lord comes upon David.

(H. L. Willmington, The Outline Bible (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 1999), .)

Conclusion

David came out of Bethlehem. You do know David was not the only King to come out of Bethlehem. The KING OF KINGS came out of Bethlehem!