1 Samuel #08: an exposition of 1 Samuel 8:1-22. This message by Pastor Rod Harris was delivered at Trinity Baptist Church on Sunday evening, January 8, 2012.
Intro:
No one likes to be exposed or revealed for who they really are. At church we put on the smile and cheerfully respond, “I’m doing well, thanks for asking.” When in reality we are, at times, dying inside. At work we’re praying our boss never finds out how incompetent we are. We hope our friends and neighbors never see past the facade we’ve built. Perhaps worst of all we think maybe God hasn’t noticed the truth about us after all He’s busy running the universal why should He take not of me? I don’t want to burst any bubbles but probably the only person you’ve fooled is you! You’ve not been exposed because your fellow church members, your boss, neighbors and friends have their own faults they’re trying to keep under wraps. As painful as it may be, from time to time, we need to take a good, honest look at ourselves. We need to take a no holds barred look deep into our own souls. The mirror through which we are to look is the Word of God. When we look carefully into the Word we often see our own reflection. Not the reflect we want others to see, not the reflection we are trying to create but the cold hard truth about ourselves. Our text this evening is one of those texts. 1 Samuel chapter 8 is a mirror that reflects the true nature of Israel and in turn each of us.
Text: 1 Samuel 8:1-22
A considerable amount of time has passed between 7:17 and 8:1 (30 or more years?). Samuel is now an old man. He has appointed his sons Joel and Abijah as judges. They were far from him in the south. The problem is they were not like their father. They did not “walk in his ways but turned aside after gain.” They took brides and perverted justice.
Sound familiar? Sounds an awful lot like Eli and his boys. Why did he appoint them? Well he was getting old. Making the circuit became increasingly difficult. By having his boys cover the south he would not have to travel as much and it lighted the work load. That’s logical but by what authority did he appoint them? Samuel was a judge. Israel’s judges did not appoint successors. Judges were raised up by God. In fact there was a time when Israel wanted their judge to establish a dynasty. They said to Gideon, “Rule over us…you and your son and your grandson also.” Gideon replied, “I will not rule over you and my son will not rule over you; the Lord will rule over you” (Judges 8:22-23).
Why did Samuel do it? We don’t know why but we do know it was a colossal failure! Samuel’s sons were no better than Eli’s. That brings us to a proposal from Israel’s elders and that is the heart of our text.
Their proposal seems logical. It seemed like a reasonable means for bringing security and stability but as we will discover…
Thesis: Israel’s demand for a king, like the other nations, exposes the depth of human depravity.
There are two reasons for why I say that.
- Israel’s demand exposes our penchant for substitutes. (8:5-8)
- Israel’s demand exposes disdain for holiness. (8:5, 19-20)
Conclusion:
1 Samuel chapter 8 is a mirror. It reveals Israel and you. It shows how easily you misplace your trust; how ashamed you are to be different; how resistant you are to any word that does not agree with your opinion. You are exposed. And that is a good thing. Because exposure leads to repentance and faith.