When the Israelites come to
Samuel asking for a king and a displeased Samuel prays for direction, the Lord
says some interesting things that indicate Israel has a deeper problem.
7 And the
Lord said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they
say unto thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that
I should not reign over them.
8 According
to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out
of Egypt even unto this day, wherewith they have forsaken me, and served other
gods, so do they also unto thee. (1 Samuel 8:7-8)
If you remember, the people used as a
cover the excuse that Samuel’s sons were perverting judgment, but Samuel had
not stepped down as judge and he could deal with his sons, and in that respect
the current system was not faulty enough to require a change.
Rather, this was a case where the
system was working well and the people didn’t like it because it was working.
They had to really watch their Ps and Qs and it was strenuous. Living the Law of Moses carefully made
them more conscious of their fallen nature and need for a Redeemer and they
didn’t like that.
I like that the Lord shows Samuel that
it is not Samuel that was rejected, but the Lord Himself. Again, Samuel was the judge, but he
wasn’t laying down his own law; he was following God’s law in the Law of Moses,
and if they didn’t like that, then they didn’t like God’s law and they didn’t
like having God rule over them.
Also, the Lord shows Samuel that this
rejection was nothing new, but it was of a piece with all the rebellions the
Israelites had done against God ever since they had been brought out of Egypt—the
times they had murmured over food, the times some parties aspired to the higher
priesthood and leadership, the time they had refused to go up to conquer the
land and then when told not to go up, they decided to go up anyway, the time
they had made a golden calf instead of waiting for Moses, and all the times
they had forsaken God and worshipped Baal. Their problem is sin,
and changing government systems is not going to address that. What they need is a national call to
repentance (and they get it in 1 Samuel 12).
One of the things this teaches me is
that things are no different today and I am no better. I tend to wander and I have to
repent. If I don’t listen to the
counsel of my church leaders, I’m just like those people who wanted a
king. Trying to avoid keeping
commandments is outright rejection of God as ruler over me. If I don’t follow God, I’m following
something else and making that thing or person my god.
Yes, following the Lord requires
discipleship and sacrifice day after day.
It’s a struggle. Seeking to subdue the sin that dwells in the flesh is a struggle. But it is
cool to me that effort doesn’t just show my allegiance to the Lord but it also
is meant to help me become like Him in grace-filled increments.
It's also a good message for around election time. New leaders aren't going to help if the same old nation-wide sins continue. Only nation-wide repentance will bring real change.
There’s something else I notice in what
the Lord says to Samuel. I notice
that the Lord is willing to take from Samuel that feeling of being rejected and
take it upon Himself. Feeling
rejected is not pleasant. It
hurts. It touches me that this
story has a type of Christ’s atoning sacrifice and sufferings here, even to
cover the hurt of rejection. That
means that anytime we are in a leadership position and our righteous direction
is ignored or our counsel is rejected, we can turn to the Lord for comfort.
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