March 8 - I Samuel 8-10
The Israelites decided that they needed a king. This desire was partly based on the fact that Samuel's sons were not walking with the Lord like Samuel did, but mostly they wanted to be like the other nations. This desire upset Samuel, and I believe it upset God, too. He realized that they were rejecting His rule over them. They wanted to follow a man instead of following God. This is always easier to do, but it is never better than having to stay in touch with God personally. Even though it was against God's "perfect will" for them, God told Samuel to grant their request. This is the "permissive will" of God. It is much better to live in His perfect will than in His permissive will. He even had Samuel warn them of all of the negatives about having a king, but they still were set on this choice, so God granted it. Watch out what you desire from the Lord! He may give you what you want instead of what you need. I believe He always grants this kind of request in the hope that we will learn a great lesson.
God went out of His way to fulfill their desire. He chose Saul to be their king. Saul was handsome and tall. He was just what men look for in a king. However, beyond those superficial qualities God gave him everything he needed to be a blessed king. He gave him signs of His will for his life. He gave Him the Spirit of the Lord to empower him, and He made him into a new person. It seems to me that God was more than gracious to prepare Saul, but the key was still in Saul's hands. He had to trust the Lord. That is what God does for us as Christians. We have all we need to live the Christian life, but it is up to us to trust God daily. If we do not trust Him, we will take all the provisions of the Lord and use them in the wrong ways.
God did His part in selecting and equipping the king perfectly. Now, He waited to see what Saul would do and what the people would do. Failure is never a result of God's inability. Failure results from our desire to be independent from God and do it ourselves. This is the lesson God wanted to teach Israel at this point. It is also the lesson He wants us to learn from this passage.
Tomorrow, I intend to read I Samuel 11-13.
God went out of His way to fulfill their desire. He chose Saul to be their king. Saul was handsome and tall. He was just what men look for in a king. However, beyond those superficial qualities God gave him everything he needed to be a blessed king. He gave him signs of His will for his life. He gave Him the Spirit of the Lord to empower him, and He made him into a new person. It seems to me that God was more than gracious to prepare Saul, but the key was still in Saul's hands. He had to trust the Lord. That is what God does for us as Christians. We have all we need to live the Christian life, but it is up to us to trust God daily. If we do not trust Him, we will take all the provisions of the Lord and use them in the wrong ways.
God did His part in selecting and equipping the king perfectly. Now, He waited to see what Saul would do and what the people would do. Failure is never a result of God's inability. Failure results from our desire to be independent from God and do it ourselves. This is the lesson God wanted to teach Israel at this point. It is also the lesson He wants us to learn from this passage.
Tomorrow, I intend to read I Samuel 11-13.