Written by: Ron Spillards
1
Samuel 12 v 6-10
Then Samuel said to the people, “It is the
LORD who chose Moses and Aaron and brought your ancestors out of Egypt. Now,
stand there, and I will remind you of all the good things the LORD did for you
and your ancestors.
“After Jacob entered Egypt, his descendants cried to the LORD for help. So the
LORD sent Moses and Aaron, who took your ancestors out of Egypt and brought them
to live in this place.
“But they forgot the LORD their God. So he handed them over as slaves to
Sisera, the commander of the army of Hazor, and as slaves to the Philistines and
the king of Moab. They all fought against your ancestors. Then your ancestors
cried to the LORD and said, ‘We have sinned. We have left the LORD and served
the Baals and the Ashtoreths. But now save us from our enemies, and we will
serve you.
Notes
What an exciting thing it is to realise that God has a plan and purpose for
each of our lives!
Here in this Bible passage Samuel, - the prophet of the Lord – reminds the
people of Israel that God’s corporate plan for them as a nation began a long
time earlier when He chose, - or appointed – Moses as their great leader.
Moses was a wonderful example of God’s ability to protect, guide and equip a
person to make an impact for God upon their generation.
Samuel reminds the people that through Moses – personally assisted by Aaron
– their nation had been set free from slavery in Egypt and led into their own
land, originally call Canaan and now called Israel.
There is a hint here of the incredible miracles that God did for them in those
early years of deliverance. Soon, however, while they enjoyed all the good
things, they forgot that it was God who had been their Provider! As Samuel
pointed out, they soon realised the consequence of their mistake!
In response to this Bible passage, two questions come to mind. Do we so easily
forget that it is God who is the provider of our good things? Is our present
life-style consistent with our commitment to follow Christ as a Christian?
Today – let’s start afresh with God, thanking Him for all His goodness and
opening our lives anew to Him – allowing Him to continue to fulfill His plan
and purpose for our lives.
1
Samuel 12 v 11-15
So the LORD sent Gideon, Barak, Jephthah, and
Samuel. He saved you from your enemies around you, and you lived in safety. But
when you saw Nahash king of the Ammonites coming against you, you said, ‘No!
We want a king to rule over us!’—even though the LORD your God was your
king. Now here is the king you chose, the one you asked for. The LORD has put
him over you. You must honor the LORD and serve him. You must obey his word and
not turn against his commands. Both you and the king ruling over you must follow
the LORD your God. If you do, it will be well with you. But if you don’t obey
the LORD, and if you turn against his commands, he will be against you. He will
do to you what he did to your ancestors.
Notes
One sentence seems to stand out in today’s Bible passage. It is,
“….you must honour the Lord and serve Him.” The Israelites were being
asked to honour God in their life-style!
The Bible passage mentions the names of several people who honoured God and
really made an impact on their generation.
….GIDEON delivered his people from their oppression but first cleared up his
own home and cleared out the evil influences that were there.
….BARAK inspired ten thousand men to follow him in serving God and, as a
leader, won a great victory as a result.
….JEPHTHAN, although having a very tough time in his childhood, became known
as a man of great faith and unswerving commitment campaigning for God, truth and
justice as a fearless leader in his society.
….SAMUEL from boyhood understood God’s ways and dedicated his life to God,
becoming the spiritual leader who helped the whole nation to turn back to the
Lord.
Each of these allowed God to be number one in their life and went on to honour
Him in their life-style!
Even the newly-appointed King of Israel Samuel says, is not exempt from the
challenge of honouring God as number one in life!
What does this Bible passage say to us today? It shows us that to really impact
our generation its vital that we let God be Number One in our lives and then go
on to obey Him and honour Him in our life-style.
“Yes, Lord, whatever the cost!”
1
Samuel 12 v 16-20
“Now stand still and see the great thing the
LORD will do before your eyes. It is now the time of the wheat harvest. I will
pray for the LORD to send thunder and rain. Then you will know what an evil
thing you did against the LORD when you asked for a king.”
Then Samuel prayed to the LORD, and that same day the LORD sent thunder and
rain. So the people were very afraid of the LORD and Samuel. They said to
Samuel, “Pray to the LORD your God for us, your servants! Don’t let us die!
We’ve added to all our sins the evil of asking for a king.”
Samuel answered, “Don’t be afraid. It’s true that you did wrong, but
don’t turn away from the LORD. Serve the LORD with all your heart.
Notes
The message that comes from today’s Bible passage is that prayer really
does change things! Samuel says to the people “….Stand still and see….I
will pray for the Lord to send….” The thunderstorm he prayed for is not
unusual – but coming from a clear sky at a time of year (the wheat harvest)
when it did not normally rain and at the word of the prophet made it a miracle!
God answered the prayer of Samuel the same day that he prayed, resulting in an
immediate and complete change of attitude amongst all the people!
One of the greatest facilities God has given us as Christians is prayer! In
prayer….we thank God for His goodness and worship Him for all that He is….we
confess our sins and mistakes to Him…..we receive His forgiveness….and we
pray for our friends and family as well as for ourselves. Samuel proved that
when we pray God hears and answers!
In our earliest days as a Christian an old lady gave me a bookmark which this
message on it:
Read the Bible every day
Don’t forget to thank and pray
Godly lives are made that way
I never forgot that message. I began to pray for my Mum and Dad: within two or
three years both had become Christians; their marriage-relationship was
transformed and many other people were deeply affected. Yes, prayer really can
change things and as Samuel said in today’s Bible passage…. “Don’t be
afraid….Serve the Lord with all your heart!”
1
Samuel 12 v 21-25
Idols are of no use, so don’t worship them.
They can’t help you or save you. They are useless! For his own sake, the LORD
won’t leave his people. Instead, he was pleased to make you his own people. I
will surely not stop praying for you, because that would be sinning against the
LORD. I will teach you what is good and right. You must honor the LORD and truly
serve him with all your heart. Remember the wonderful things he did for you! But
if you are stubborn and do evil, he will sweep you and your king away.”
Notes
One of the messages that comes from today’s Bible passage is ‘who or
what do we worship?’ Samuel points out to the people that beyond all the
things and people that are so important, valuable and precious to them is the
Lord! He is above all for He is the Lord – and thoroughly deserves all the
love and worship they can bring to Him.
Samuel also highlights two other very important things about the Lord – “The
Lord won’t leave his people. Instead he was pleased to make you his own
people.” God has brought the people of Israel into a very special relationship
with Himself – they are ‘His own people’ and come what may He is not going
to back-off from that relationship nor let them down.
One of the hugely important and really encouraging truths about being a
Christian today is that once we are committed to Him He was promised to never
leave us nor let us down. The Holy Spirit comes to indwell us, empower us and to
be with us forever!
In addition the Bible makes it clear that Christians belong to God. He has made
us His people: we belong to Him
Because the people of Israel belonged to God, Samuel called them to “honour
the Lord and truly serve Him with all your heart” Similarly, today because we
are Christians we too belong to God and remembering all the wonderful things He
has done for us, we need to honour and serve Him with all our heart as well!
1
Samuel 13 v 1-4
Saul was thirty years old when he became king,
and he was king over Israel forty-two years. Saul chose three thousand men from
Israel. Two thousand men stayed with him at Micmash in the mountains of Bethel,
and one thousand men stayed with Jonathan at Gibeah in Benjamin. Saul sent the
other men in the army back home.
Jonathan attacked the Philistine camp in Geba, and the other Philistines heard
about it. Saul said, “Let the Hebrews hear what happened.” So he told the
men to blow trumpets through all the land of Israel. All the Israelites heard
the news. The men said, “Saul has defeated the Philistine camp. Now the
Philistines will really hate us!” Then the Israelites were called to join Saul
at Gilgal.
Notes
A new beginning is an important time. Starting a new job, attending a new
college – whatever it maybe – always carries a unique set of challenges and
adjustments that we have to handle.
Israel had a new beginning. Saul was their very first king. Israel had demanded
a change in their style of government. Instead of looking to God alone –
invisible but represented by the prophet Samuel – they demanded a visible king
as well. They wanted to become like some of the well-organised nations about
them and have a king who could lead them to victory over their enemies. It was a
new beginning!
Saul was a skilful military strategist. He set in motion a strategy that would
eventually result in the development of Israel into a great military power in
the years to come.
But first he needed to create a small standing army of carefully selected,
committed men. Then he and his son Jonathan began a campaign of guerrilla
warfare and harassment against their traditional enemy, the Philistines.
Finally, having achieved a notable initial victory, Saul seized the enthusiasm
of the moment to rally the nation to his cause. In Israel is new beginning Saul
had carefully laid a military foundation that would result in great victories in
the future.
In handling the challenges of new beginnings ourselves we need to look to God
for His wisdom and help and not merely look to our own resources and abilities.
This was something that sadly Saul was sometimes reluctant to do!
1
Samuel 13 v 5-8
The Philistines gathered to fight Israel with
three thousand chariots and six thousand men to ride in them. Their soldiers
were as many as the grains of sand on the seashore. The Philistines went and
camped at Micmash, which is east of Beth Aven. When the Israelites saw that they
were in trouble, they went to hide in caves and bushes, among the rocks, and in
pits and wells. Some Hebrews even went across the Jordan River to the land of
Gad and Gilead.
But Saul stayed at Gilgal, and all the men in his army were shaking with fear.
Saul waited seven days, because Samuel had said he would meet him then. But
Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the soldiers began to leave.
Notes
How do we react to emergencies? Do we panic? Do we run away and hide? An
emergency was rapidly developing around king Saul that was to become a real test
of character for him. The Philistines angered by the guerrilla warfare that Saul
had initiated against them, lost no time in gathering together a very large
army. Today’s Bible passage says. “….their soldiers were as many as the
grains of sand on the seashore”. While Saul was seeking to call Israel to arms
and to slowly begin to form a large army himself at Gilgal, the Philistines
invaded and camped at Micmash!
Panic immediately began to overtake the Israelites who had been answering
Saul’s rallying call: they began to run away and hide faster than they had
assembled!
However Samuel the prophet had arranged a plan with Saul for just such an
emergency. Samuel would meet him at Gilgal, agree a battle-plan and pray to God
on Saul’s behalf for a successful outcome. Saul waited anxiously but
Samuel’s arrival was delayed and even the elite soldiers of Saul’s small
standing army began to desert in ever-increasing numbers!
The Christian is not exempt from emergencies and problems but how we react to
them is all-important for they will often become a test of character for us.
In Christ we have a resource of strength that enables us to face even the
biggest emergencies in life. Paul the Apostle – who had more than his share of
problems once said “I can bear everything through Him/Christ who gives me
strength” (Philippians 4v 13)
1
Samuel 13 v 9-12
So Saul said, “Bring me the whole burnt
offering and the fellowship offerings.” Then Saul offered the whole burnt
offering. Just as he finished, Samuel arrived, and Saul went to greet him.
Samuel asked, “What have you done?”
Saul answered, “I saw the soldiers leaving me, and you were not here when you
said you would be. The Philistines were gathering at Micmash. Then I thought,
‘The Philistines will come against me at Gilgal, and I haven’t asked for the
LORD’s approval.’ So I forced myself to offer the whole burnt offering.”
Notes
How easy to want to take ‘short cuts’ when we are under pressure. Our
Bible passage today tells us that Saul took such an action in an emergency. The
mistake he made resulted in enormously negative consequences for his future.
The Philistines had invaded Israel and the Israelites were panic stricken at the
size of the invading forces and began to rapidly desert from Saul’s army.
However, Samuel had agreed a plan with Saul to address just such an emergency.
Samuel would meet Saul at Gilgal, agree a battle plan and pray to God for a
successful outcome.
Saul waited anxiously for Samuel but before the agreed time had expired he gave
up waiting, acted alone and took a ‘short cut’. Samuel had intentionally
delayed coming – probably to test Saul’s character. When he arrived he found
that Saul had hastily blundered in the holy ministry of the priest, usurping
Samuel’s role and had offered sacrifices and prayer to God. By so doing, Saul
in fact disobeyed God and showed that he was willing, if necessary, to go into
battle without the blessing of God through Samuel. He had of course, no right
even as king to intrude into the priest’s role and showed that he was quite
content to bring glory to himself rather than God. The consequences were far
reaching. Samuel rebuked the unrepentant Saul, indicating the Saul had no future
as king and would be replaced!
Serious stuff and quite a warning for us too! An emergency in life is one of the
prime moments when we need to cry out to God. Not to act alone, as if He
didn’t matter, but to look to Him to intervene in ways that only God can do.
word-on-the-web uses the Scripture text taken
from the Youth Bible, New Century Version (Anglicised Edition) copyright 1993 by
Word Publishing Milton Keynes