God is King

"When you saw that Nahash the king of the sons of Ammon came against you, you said to me, 'No, but a king shall reign over us,' although the LORD your God was your king. Now therefore, here is the king who you have chosen, whom you have asked for, and behold, the LORD has set a king over you. If you will fear the LORD and serve Him, and listen to His voice and not rebel against the command of the LORD, then both you and also the king who reigns over you will follow the LORD your God. If you will not listen to the voice of the LORD, but rebel against the command of the LORD, then the hand of the LORD will be against you, as it was against your fathers"...Then all the people said to Samuel, "Pray for your servants to the LORD your God, so that we may not die, for we have added to all our sins this evil by asking for ourselves a king." Samuel said to the people, "Do not fear. You have committed all this evil, yet do not turn aside, for then you would go after futile things which cannot profit or deliver, because they are futile. For the LORD will not abandon His people on account of His great name, because the LORD has been pleased to make you a people for Himself...Only fear the LORD and serve Him in truth with all your heart; for consider what great things He has done for you."
- 1 Samuel 12:12-15, 19-22, 24

I believe this story of Israel demanding a king to be one of the saddest stories in all of Scripture. God had given them one of their greatest and godliest rulers in Samuel. He was a prophet, priest, and judge for the people. He served as a bridge between the period of the Judges to the time of the Kings. Judges was marked by rebellion, defeat, confusion, nations disunity, and, despite all this, God's unwavering faithfulness. He did not abandon His people regardless of their idolatry and rebellion. Instead He was faithful to His promises of blessing their obedience and punishing their disobedience. Even as they continued to turn their back on God, He blessed them with the righteous leadership of Samuel who unified the tribes into a nation, helped the people seek God, and caused them to experience peace on every side. 

Despite all this in 1 Samuel 8 the people come to Samuel demanding a king. They gave two reasons: the first being that Samuel's sons were evil and did not walk in the Samuel's ways. However, Eli, the leader that preceded Samuel also had evil sons, but God raised up Samuel to lead the people in their place. In no way was this an valid excuse because God could have and would have raised up another godly leader in the same way He had done for them many times before. Their second reason, was that they wanted to be like the other nations: "Nevertheless, the people refused to listen to the voice of Samuel, and they said, "No, but there shall be a king over us, that we also may be like all the nations, that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles" (1 Sam. 8:19-20).

Samuel is deeply grieved at their request, but God reminds him, "for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me from being King over them" (8:7b). He warns them of the foolishness of their choice, but they are stubborn in their request. Consequently, the king God provides them matches their request. The same was that the people of Israel were more concerned with being like the nations around them, Saul, cared only about what people thought instead of what God thought. We find repeated occasions in which Saul disobeys and displeases God and every time he gives excuse after excuse about how he feared the people. 

In chapter 12 Samuel is addressing the nation for the final time of his career. He reminds the people that even though they are unwilling to accept or admit it, God is still their King. He reiterates God's faithfulness- that if they seek Him, God will bless them abundantly and provide them with peace. But if they turn away from God, He will be faithful to punish them. But Samuel adds that no matter what God would never abandon them. 

The thing that makes this story chilling to the bone is how similar our hearts are to the people of Israel. We reject God as our King on a daily basis. We deeply desire acceptance and to "fit in" with the people around us, when the only opinion that matters is God's. We are quick to give excuses for and even ignore our sin. Although God has protected and provided for us over and over, we still anxiously doubt and dread. We go after futile things which cannot profit or deliver, because they are futile (1 Sam. 12:21). We want to see and put our trust in something tangible because we are certain that will be easier than remembering that God is in control. We cling to money, relationships, occupations, entertainment, even our own ability, even though the LORD your God is your King! (12:12).

In the same way Samuel leaves a charge to the people, "Only fear the LORD and serve Him in truth with all your heart; for consider what great things He has done for you" (12:24). I challenge you in the same three ways:

God is King!
1. Fear Him (trust and rely on all that He has revealed about Himself)
2. Serve Him (love and obey Him)
3. Thank Him (for consider what great things He has done for you)

1. Image taxdollars.ocregister.com