1 Samuel: The Chosen King
Day in Court
March 19, 2023 • Andrew Murch • 1 Samuel 12
1 Samuel 12:1-25 | Andrew Murch | A crotchety old man stands in front of all of Israel, reminds them of their past, and warns them of their future. Have we read this before? The way this book is going, we may see it again. Now, what is it about this message that seems similar? God is good and mighty to save? Check. The people have the promise of a blessing if they obey the Lord’s laws and commands? Check. There is a forecasting of future disobedience and curses because of it? Check. All we are missing is a mountain and a golden calf...how about king? Ah, there is human nature! Instead of a splendid cow, the people of God had dethroned the Immortal God in exchange for a fallen man of flesh and blood.
A Bittersweet Coronation
March 12, 2023 • Will Anderson • 1 Samuel 10:17–27, 1 Samuel 11
1 Samuel 10:17-11:15 | Will Anderson | Where the farmer king fights his transformation, the Lord of All remains sovereign. The bleating of His sheep Israel when Ammonite wolves threaten them stirs the Father to raise a savior for his people. The Lord would not suffer disgrace upon Himself or His people. Saul cannot help but listen to the Spirit and unite the people as a king should. The Lord does this, He is the savior of his people.
Losing Donkeys, Finding Kings
March 5, 2023 • Andrew Murch • 1 Samuel 9, 1 Samuel 10:1–16
1 Samuel 9:1-10:16 | Andrew Murch | Imagine scouring the county for your missing dog only to be told by a smelly, scraggly fortune teller that you’ll one day be President. “You’re going to rule the nation. Don’t worry about your doggy; he’s a good boy. Have a leg of lamb. Mazel tov!” That scenario is similar to what Saul thought happened up until he realized he was talking to the prophet of the Living God. Instead of paying a fee to learn about missing livestock, Saul was receiving a down payment on discovering Israel’s deliverance. Instead of reading the future, the son of Kish was availing himself to the One who writes the future. What happens next to Saul is supernatural and changes his very self into something grander than his donkey-keeping would suggest. Saul may have looked the part of what the people were hoping for in a king: he was a tall man from a rich family in a fierce tribe. These were not enough on their own. The Lord still had to shape this Benjaminite into a leader. In the Lord’s mercy, Samuel played into Saul’s simple desire for fortune telling and tells him the future as a sign. When these come to pass, Saul is anointed with the Spirit and prophesizes amongst the prophets. From these initial moments, the evidence seems to be there. It looks like Saul may have a heart for the Lord and treasure the word of the Lord. Only time will tell what really lies in the center of Saul’s heart.
The Price of Security
February 26, 2023 • Andrew Murch • 1 Samuel 8
1 Samuel 8:1-22 | Andrew Murch | Do you have a pivotal moment in your life? What season or event in your life do you look back on and say, “now that changed everything!” First Samuel 8 is a pivotal moment in the life of Israel. This is a moment that generations would look back on in the life of Israel and recognize when things changed. Life was never the same. Israel was never the same. History was never the same.
Revival
February 19, 2023 • Andrew Murch • 1 Samuel 7
1 Samuel 7:1-17 | Andrew Murch | Though the Ark of the Covenant has returned from enemy lines and is back in the hands of the Israelites, a couple of decades pass with no progress. The people of Israel are still living in fear of their Philistine neighbors and seem to have no interest in serving Yahweh. Behind the scenes, in these decades since Samuel had been called by the Lord, Samuel is growing into a true prophet and priest. His first message is what all prophets of the Lord say, he calls Israel to repent and turn from the false gods that keep stealing their attention and worship. For a moment, instead of a flashback to Judges, this feels like a flashback to Joshua 24 where Joshua implores the people of Israel in the same way. Joshua called the people of Israel to turn from their idols and cling to Yahweh. At that time the people renewed their covenant before the Lord, and once again they seem to be doing the same thing here. They confess their sins, they put aside their false gods (and false hopes), and follow Samuel’s lead in worship and reverence of the Lord. THIS is what the Lord wanted from Israel all along and while the aroma of the sacrifice was still in the air and the prayers still on the lips of the people, the Lord defended them against their powerful enemy. What we have already seen from God is proven again, no man can shape or thwart God’s plan, he is sovereign over his people. The Lord judges the corrupt and honors the humble whose hearts are submitted to him. In this story the proverb is in action, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” (Jam. 5:6, 1 Pet. 5:5, Prov. 3:4). God’s people never were able to and never will be victorious because of their own might and strength. To God alone is the might, power, strength, and victory and God’s people submit their hearts to him in faithful humility.
When God Comes to Town
February 12, 2023 • Andrew Murch • 1 Samuel 5, 1 Samuel 6
1 Samuel 5:1-6:21 | Andrew Murch | Israel has already experienced that they cannot use God like their personal genie in a box and the Philistines are about to experience the same as well. At first, the Philistines are feeling pretty good. You see, these battles were not about the strength of one army versus another, but rather, was a show-down of the ‘gods’. The nation with the stronger god would win in battle. Duh! So obviously Dagon is greater than Yahweh, right? Don’t forget that the Lord allowed the Ark to be captured, and like a scene out of a comedy he shows that Dagon is nothing but a silly statue broken into pieces. These people who thought they could take Yahweh as a prisoner of war discover that they are under his terrible judgment. Like the Egyptians under Pharaoh they are plagued by God’s wrath. However, the Philistines get wise and say, “We know what happened to Egypt, let’s not be like them! Send it back!” So in tow of a few cows, away the Ark goes.
The Unavoidability of Accountability
February 5, 2023 • Josh Lane • 1 Samuel 4
1 Samuel 4:1-22 | Josh Lane | This passage is a humbling reminder to all who read it of the weight of God’s holiness. As we walk through the story of the Old Testament we have a few flashbacks to the book of Judges as this specific story in 1 Samuel seems to go from bad to worse quickly. This passage shows us how seriously God views sin, how separate He is from sin, and how much we need a savior from our sin. When the Lord calls to Samuel in his sleep, we hear God promise judgment on the house of Eli for their continued sinfulness and blasphemy (1 Samuel 3:11-14). Today’s passage is the fulfillment of that promised judgment. God always delivers on his word.
The Word of the Lord
January 29, 2023 • Andrew Murch • 1 Samuel 3
1 Samuel 3:1-21 | Andrew Murch | 1 Samuel continues to put the reader’s head on a swivel. We look to Eli’s family and see that their end is coming, then turn and look at Samuel. This young boy is learning to hear the voice of the Lord. Something that Eli’s family had seemed to forget. We’ve seen this theme continually in Scripture, that when darkness seems to be winning, and all hope seems lost; God is finding a way – that somewhere, light is breaking forth and hope is flickering back to life. The characters in 1 Samuel will show us more than once that when someone fails to hold fast to God’s best for them, he can find another, and often a less likely candidate whom God commissions for His glory. With that, our text will more formally welcome a young Samuel to the scene, our newest flicker of hope, onto the stage of redemptive history in contrast to a family of corrupt priests and derelict fathers.
Worthless Men and a Faithful Priest
January 22, 2023 • Andrew Murch • 1 Samuel 2:12–36
1 Samuel 2:12-36 | Andrew Murch | Last week, our narrative opened with the backstory of Samuel and his miraculous birth. As Samuel is dedicated to service in the temple, we turn to the priesthood and to Eli and his sons, Hophni and Phinehas. In our passage this week, the focus shifts from the faith of Hannah to the folly of Eli’s son and the failing of Eli to properly address and correct his sons as priest and father. The text isn’t shy in describing these sons. It’s short and straight to the point, “the sons of Eli were worthless men” (2:12). These young men were using their position and power amongst the people of God for selfish gain. They used food (sacrifices) and women however they pleased, and God is clearly not pleased. These narratives bounce back and forth from the wickedness of the sons to the development of Samuel before the Lord. The text turns the head of the reader from one to the other and is clearly setting up for the rise of Samuel in the place of the corrupt priesthood. Samuel’s origin story is still in development but this is a critical moment for Israel. Will the priesthood spiral into essentially paganism as it did in the time of the Judges, or will God use this young man to redeem the priesthood? Reports of Eli’s sons’ mishandling of the sacrifices and their appalling behavior with the women at the temple eventually reach Eli. In response, Eli’s less-than-authoritative response to his sons’ behavior stands in stark contrast to his positions of priest and father given to him by God. Eli should have literally stripped them from their priestly garments. Yet with a slap on the hand they continue with business as usual. The reaction from these young men reminds us of the heart of Pharaoh. As they chose to not listen, just as Pharaoh chose to harden his heart, the Lord continues them on that trajectory and their consequence is queued up for the right moment. Turn the head and once again we look at Samuel who continues to grow in “stature and in the favor of God” (2:26) and of men. Samuel’s path stands in sharp contrast to the path chosen by Hophni and Phinehas, and God responds to Eli and his family in a way that affirms in our hearts and minds that we must honor God before men.
Snapshot of the Sovereign Lord
January 15, 2023 • Andrew Murch • 1 Samuel, 1 Samuel 1:1—2:11
1 Samuel 1:1-2:11 | Andrew Murch | As we crack open the book of 1 Samuel, none other than the namesake of the book will appear in these first chapters. However, much like the iconic stories of the Scriptures, we begin with a barren woman. Here we see that in seasons of barrenness and in seasons of plenty, the Lord’s plan is never thwarted and he is always good.