1 Samuel

My Faith Is Alive!

August 8, 2018 • Jeff Cramer

The book of Judges finishes off by saying “everyone doing what was right in their own eyes.” The Judges over the land failed to be faithful & chaos abounded with the people of Israel. 1st & 2nd Samuel are books that cover the leadership of three main characters: Samuel = Last judge / first prophet of this time Saul = The rejected King David = The Shepherd King This book will help us to understand the history of where God’s people have been and models for us both faithful & unfaithful. Real men & real women. Through the pages we learn & are encouraged to live life’s of FAITH! The book starts with how Samuel comes on the scene & highlights him becoming the man who gives faithful spiritual leadership which ends up in spiritual re-dedication & national unity!

The Why

August 22, 2018 • Jeff Cramer

1st Samuel is the bridge between the time of the Judges & the establishing of the monarchy when King David would unite the whole nation! At this stage in world history, Israel was in a free-fall politically & spiritually. Anarchy ensued because of disorder due to the absence of authority, and when there was a leader people would not recognize their authority! Judges 21:25 says, “In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.” The result was progressive: People lacked self-control & disregarded consideration for others. Family life was messy & filled with frustrations. Spiritual leaders were corrupted from their God-intended-purpose. The Nation was at a breaking point. Doesn't this sound like the world we live in now? This is the environment where God began to do a new thing in! The big picture of 1st & 2nd Samuel focuses on restoration of national order!

Speak, For Your Servant Hears

August 29, 2018 • Jeff Cramer

During this time of world history the word of God had been put on mute and the prophet / priest / & people lived with their own rules & twisted belief-systems. One of the things the Bible teaches us is how to recognize & understand the voice of God. At this point in 1st Samuel, because the Priests & most of the people disregarded God, GOD was NOT revealing Himself in a widespread manner (v.1). However, in the age we live in today, part of the churches role is to make disciples (followers / learners / students) of Jesus, which depends on the Holy Spirit & willing individuals. God is not playing hid-and-seek with man, but He is very specific when outlining the way to live, no matter what the conditions of any given society are. Through all stages of history God has been present & speaking to man. Ours is no different!

A Bad Day

September 5, 2018 • Jeff Cramer

Eli’s sons didn’t know God & regularly disobeyed God. Their dad (Eli) knew it, but never took corrective actions! God is gracious to the church. If there are areas you’re struggling in your life, please know that God wants to help you thru them s long as, your honest to Him & willing to follow by faith! Eli knew God was going to do something about it (3:18) because Eli never addressed the issues. He just left them there. At this point Gods people gathered for war but suffered defeat at Ebenezer (1 Sam 4:1). However later Samuel erected a stone showing how God can take a past defeat & turning it into a lasting victory!

Can It Get Any Worse?

September 12, 2018 • Jeff Cramer

Today as we look at the details behind the scene once the Ark of God is captured. In the book of Joshua, the land God promised was to be conquered & divided. God had given 300,000 sq. miles to Abraham, but at the very height of the Davidic Kingdom God’s people had only take 10% OR (30,000 sq. miles). So keeping the big picture in focus, this chapter starts by mentioning the City Ashdod. Again, this City was given to God’s people, but in Joshua 13:2-3 near the end of Joshua’s life it was an area that was yet to be conquered!

Walking Away From Failure

September 26, 2018 • Jeff Cramer

We finally move in a direction of good news after several chapters of struggle! The nation of Israel, at the start of Samuel’s life, were primarily people who were stagnant & stubborn! And yet, it was never God's intention to leave them in a bad condition! So after decades we finally watch them “Walking Away from Failure!” Perhaps this is something we could learn from in our lives!?! How long do I want to stay down before moving forward?

Curbing A Bad Appetite

October 3, 2018 • Jeff Cramer

Samuel was a good man, yet in this season of his life he allowed the past to distort his present! Remember, Samuel was raised under Eli the priest who had corrupt sons that didn’t honor God. Yet Eli left them in leadership positions. This same thing was happening here with Samuel and his sons. Now the response of the people was to advance their self-protection instead of allowing God to do it! I totally understand this from the vantage point of pain-prevention! However, when God says step aside & let Me work out the details, that can only be done by faith! Gang, we’re NOT to be mentally & emotionally controlled by the past.

I Want What You Want

October 17, 2018 • Jeff Cramer

Chapter 8 ended with God telling Samuel to warn the people that THIS decision at THIS time was NOT good! God forgives sin when we confess it. However, many times the consequences remain which leaves the scars in our lives! Jesus came to take away our sin and teach us a new way of life, so we don’t destroy ourselves with self-inflicted wounds! But when we refuse His leadership trouble looms ahead! Inspire of the warning God gave, this community demanded something harmful. In the previous generations God worked with their family members to bless them. He was always trying to show His goodness to them. But they refused to trust Him, no matter how many situations He worked out for them! (Ps. 106:13) They forgot His works and did NOT take His counsel.

Lessons For Living

October 24, 2018 • Jeff Cramer

As we continue, the story moves into the next phase with Saul being anointed as the first King of Israel. The flow of this chapter can be broken down into five different movements. Let me give you the high level flow before we break it down. CHAPTER FLOW: (v.1) = Private anointing of King (vv.2-6) = Proof the anointing is from God (vv.7-8) = Directions to go forward (vv.9-16) = Commentary on Saul’s actions (vv.17-27) = Public appointment of King As we observe these O.T. stories as examples & illustrations I want to make sure I’m connecting the dots! We've been given “Hard-truths” to live out but we’ve also been given “ridiculous grace” for obedience to the faith!

Battles that Unify

November 7, 2018 • Jeff Cramer

Learning To Trust

January 16, 2019 • Jeff Cramer

How was God trying to get their attention? At (v.12) there was a demand "Give us a king!" They got their way and a king was given. They we're blinded by bad motivation, and sin is so sneaky like this! It totally distorts our vision. (blinds / binds / grinds) In the New Testament we're encouraged in (James 1:5) to ask God for wisdom to make sense of our circumstances. In fact, one of the anthems of the Christian faith is: (Rom. 8:28) “ we know that all things work together for good” (Grk. #1492) ei -do “we know” = In other words… it’s well known! It's well known in the Bible, that God uses two tools to shape our lives.

Signs Of Decay

January 23, 2019 • Jeff Cramer

In Chapter 13 the story transitions away from Samuel the Priest and switches back to following King Saul by highlighting the “Signs of Decay” in his leadership. The storyline starts by going back to the first few years of Saul’s leadership as King. Up to this point, Israel would rally a militia of 330,000 men when trouble loomed for the country. However, when Saul took over, he put Israel’s first Army in place. (v.2) Says he chose a total of 3,000 men which were divided between Saul & his son Jonathan. Now the story line heats up. Jonathan takes 1,000 troops & he goes out and attacks a military base of the Philistines & completely destroys them, and this is where the weakness of leadership can surface.

War, What Is It Good For?

January 30, 2019 • Jeff Cramer

As the story continues following a shrinking army that went from a militia of 330,000 men down to an army of 3,000 men and now at this point only 600 men. One thing we can apprehend in the scriptures is FEAR is contagious! Moses (OT) was very pointed about structuring leadership and appointing leaders Paul was too (NT). While there are many sides to leadership, the point here is nothing more than understanding how destructive fear is. (Deut. 20:8) As the storyline continues we see one guy rise up and go after the enemy. Saul’s son Jonathan – also c.p. (1 Sam. 13:3). All of these truths bring us front and center with our world today where we find many Christians shrinking back in fear as soon as the cultural debate surfaces in our Post-Christian Country. Which is no different than the ancient Christians faced! Worldview is the lens we view & interpret cultural issues through. Things like: ➢ Intoxication = Smoking weed / prescription drugs / alcohol? ➢ Sexual expression = Is God ok with me living as a gay OR lesbian? ➢ Gender identity = Can a man really be trapped in a women body? ➢ Abortion = Can I abort in 3rd trimester OR can I abort at all? ➢ Greed = Gambling / playing the lottery what’s at the core? ➢ Hatred = Revenge / violence / murder?

Bad Decisions

February 13, 2019 • Jeff Cramer

Last week we looked at the first half of chapter #14 in a message titled: “War – What Is It Good For?” And we learned that it separates the committed from the not so committed. As we transition into the second-half of the chapter the emphasis is upon Saul’s bad decisions. Think about this for a moment, Paul wrote about a Bad Decision (2 Tim. 4:10) as a guy named Demas who loved the present age more than standing with his brothers in ministry. Paul also warned Timothy about another bad decision (1 Tim. 6:10) about straying from the faith through the love of money! The point is, there’s a commonality in bad decisions: 1) Decisions that go against Gods word 2) Decisions that resist the Holy Spirit 3) Decisions that are premature (bad timing) On the other hand, the Bible gives us insight on how to make good decisions.

Conditions Change

April 3, 2019 • Jeff Cramer

We pick up in chapter 16, halfway thru (1 Samuel) we learn that David is God’s King! If I remain in the present disappointments or the past problems I’m going to miss what the Spirit of God is doing in the moment! (Ex. 14:15) There’s comes a time when we must stop praying & start doing. (Phil. 2:13-14) A verse that has helped me many times gain a right perspective. (No longer being mentally or emotionally controlled by my past). In this particular case God rejected Saul because of his own choices. Yet God was working out a much bigger plan. The Bibles tells us that the Christ would come from the tribe of Judah & the root of David (Rev. 5:5) Gods plan was different than the people. Saul was the people’s choice for king but David was God’s choice for king.