Israel Gets a King, Saul (but Saul Proves Unfaithful) (1 Samuel 8-15)

For Starters...

Many times a lack of confidence and trust in God is a result of what we see with our eyes of what we think we might see if certain things happen We see tragedy of sorrow in a friend's life and we wonder what happen to God. Life seems to be unpredictable, so anything could happen to us too. Can we trust God? Maybe there's another way to make life more secure against bad times, we think. Maybe we could pursue that way instead of trusting in the Lord. Our thinking sometimes goes like that -- we begin to trust in what we see and not in God. This seems to be how it was with the people of Israel.

What's the Story?

The people of Israel are dismayed over the ungodliness of Samuel's sons and have no confidence in their ability to lead them in battle or anything else. They ask Samuel for a king to lead them -- like the other nations have. In spite of Samuel for a king to lead them -- like the other nations have. In spite of Samuel's resistance, God grants them a king with all the consequences that go with being ruled by a king. Saul, son of Kish, is chosen by God to rule as Israel's king and Samuel says farewell to God's people as their judge. Saul is tall and handsome. He is fierce before Israel's enemy but a bit of a coward before Israel herself, and proves to be disobedient before the Lord. Because of his lack of respect for God's sovereignty and his unwillingness to do as Samuel bids him God tears the kingdom from Saul and his family forever.

Just the Facts...

* Samuel says farewell as Israel's last judge.
* Saul becomes Israel's first king.
* Saul is 30 years old when he begins to rule as king, and reigns for 42 years.
* Jonathan is Saul's son.
* Saul loses the kingdom because of his refusal to obey God and destroy the Amalekites entirely.

So What?

* Do we seek another king (someone or something other than God that we feel will make us secure or significant) in our life because we lack trust in God's ability to rule our life? Israel wanted a king to make her secure. Perhaps we want acceptance by our peers; good looks; intelligence; or even money. Perhaps you think, "It works for others, it'll work for me!" That was Israel's mistake. Will you make the same mistake?
* Saul had a chance to be God's king over God's people. What a great privilege! But because of fear, cowardice, and disobedience he lost that privilege. We, as Christians, reign with Christ. We're privileged too! But through fear of what we see, cowardice at what might happen, we can fail God through disobedience. Don't fail God by choosing another King in our lives. He is the Mighty One who lives in us. Mt. 6:24 Psalm 20:7