Today we see the beginning of the decline of Saul, but the rise of David. The Lord blesses faithfulness and humility. I am sure you have experienced the same.
1 Samuel 15: The LORD Rejects Saul
1 And Samuel said to Saul, "The LORD sent me to anoint you king over his people Israel; now therefore listen to the words of the LORD.
2 Thus says the LORD of hosts, 'I have noted what Amalek did to Israel in opposing them on the way when they came up out of Egypt.
3 Now go and strike Amalek and devote to destruction all that they have. Do not spare them, but kill both man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.'"
4 So Saul summoned the people and numbered them in Telaim, two hundred thousand men on foot, and ten thousand men of Judah.
5 And Saul came to the city of Amalek and lay in wait in the valley.
6 Then Saul said to the Kenites, "Go, depart; go down from among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them. For you showed kindness to all the people of Israel when they came up out of Egypt." So the Kenites departed from among the Amalekites.
7 And Saul defeated the Amalekites from Havilah as far as Shur, which is east of Egypt.
8 And he took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive and devoted to destruction all the people with the edge of the sword.
9 But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep and of the oxen and of the fattened calves and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them. All that was despised and worthless they devoted to destruction.
10 The word of the LORD came to Samuel:
11 "I regret that I have made Saul king, for he has turned back from following me and has not performed my commandments." And Samuel was angry, and he cried to the LORD all night.
12 And Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning. And it was told Samuel, "Saul came to Carmel, and behold, he set up a monument for himself and turned and passed on and went down to Gilgal."
13 And Samuel came to Saul, and Saul said to him, "Blessed be you to the LORD. I have performed the commandment of the LORD."
14 And Samuel said, "What then is this bleating of the sheep in my ears and the lowing of the oxen that I hear?"
15 Saul said, "They have brought them from the Amalekites, for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen to sacrifice to the LORD your God, and the rest we have devoted to destruction."
16 Then Samuel said to Saul, "Stop! I will tell you what the LORD said to me this night." And he said to him, "Speak."
17 And Samuel said, "Though you are little in your own eyes, are you not the head of the tribes of Israel? The LORD anointed you king over Israel.
18 And the LORD sent you on a mission and said, 'Go, devote to destruction the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they are consumed.'
19 Why then did you not obey the voice of the LORD? Why did you pounce on the spoil and do what was evil in the sight of the LORD?"
20 And Saul said to Samuel, "I have obeyed the voice of the LORD. I have gone on the mission on which the LORD sent me. I have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and I have devoted the Amalekites to destruction.
21 But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the best of the things devoted to destruction, to sacrifice to the LORD your God in Gilgal."
22 And Samuel said, "Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams.
23 For rebellion is as the sin of divination, and presumption is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, he has also rejected you from being king."
24 Saul said to Samuel, "I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the LORD and your words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice.
25 Now therefore, please pardon my sin and return with me that I may worship the LORD."
26 And Samuel said to Saul, "I will not return with you. For you have rejected the word of the LORD, and the LORD has rejected you from being king over Israel."
27 As Samuel turned to go away, Saul seized the skirt of his robe, and it tore.
28 And Samuel said to him, "The LORD has torn the kingdom of Israel from you this day and has given it to a neighbour of yours, who is better than you.
29 And also the Glory of Israel will not lie or have regret, for he is not a man, that he should have regret."
30 Then he said, "I have sinned; yet honour me now before the elders of my people and before Israel, and return with me, that I may bow before the LORD your God."
31 So Samuel turned back after Saul, and Saul bowed before the LORD.
32 Then Samuel said, "Bring here to me Agag the king of the Amalekites." And Agag came to him cheerfully. Agag said, "Surely the bitterness of death is past."
33 And Samuel said, "As your sword has made women childless, so shall your mother be childless among women." And Samuel hacked Agag to pieces before the LORD in Gilgal.
34 Then Samuel went to Ramah, and Saul went up to his house in Gibeah of Saul.
35 And Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death, but Samuel grieved over Saul. And the LORD regretted that he had made Saul king over Israel.
1 Samuel 16: David Anointed King
1 The LORD said to Samuel, "How long will you grieve over Saul, since I have rejected him from being king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and go. I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king among his sons."
2 And Samuel said, "How can I go? If Saul hears it, he will kill me." And the LORD said, "Take a heifer with you and say, 'I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.'
3 And invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you shall do. And you shall anoint for me him whom I declare to you."
4 Samuel did what the LORD commanded and came to Bethlehem. The elders of the city came to meet him trembling and said, "Do you come peaceably?"
5 And he said, "Peaceably; I have come to sacrifice to the LORD. Consecrate yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice." And he consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.
6 When they came, he looked on Eliab and thought, "Surely the LORD's anointed is before him."
7 But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart."
8 Then Jesse called Abinadab and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, "Neither has the LORD chosen this one."
9 Then Jesse made Shammah pass by. And he said, "Neither has the LORD chosen this one."
10 And Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel. And Samuel said to Jesse, "The LORD has not chosen these."
11 Then Samuel said to Jesse, "Are all your sons here?" And he said, "There remains yet the youngest, but behold, he is keeping the sheep." And Samuel said to Jesse, "Send and get him, for we will not sit down till he comes here."
12 And he sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy and had beautiful eyes and was handsome. And the LORD said, "Arise, anoint him, for this is he."
13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the LORD rushed upon David from that day forward. And Samuel rose up and went to Ramah.
David in Saul's Service
14 Now the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and a harmful spirit from the LORD tormented him.
15 And Saul's servants said to him, "Behold now, a harmful spirit from God is tormenting you.
16 Let our lord now command your servants who are before you to seek out a man who is skillful in playing the lyre, and when the harmful spirit from God is upon you, he will play it, and you will be well."
17 So Saul said to his servants, "Provide for me a man who can play well and bring him to me."
18 One of the young men answered, "Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite, who is skillful in playing, a man of valour, a man of war, prudent in speech, and a man of good presence, and the LORD is with him."
19 Therefore Saul sent messengers to Jesse and said, "Send me David your son, who is with the sheep."
20 And Jesse took a donkey laden with bread and a skin of wine and a young goat and sent them by David his son to Saul.
21 And David came to Saul and entered his service. And Saul loved him greatly, and he became his armour-bearer.
22 And Saul sent to Jesse, saying, "Let David remain in my service, for he has found favour in my sight."
23 And whenever the harmful spirit from God was upon Saul, David took the lyre and played it with his hand. So Saul was refreshed and was well, and the harmful spirit departed from him.
Things to think about…
1. In 1Sam 15 Saul has been asked to annihilate the Amalekites. Everyone is to be devoted to destruction, including the women and children. This is hard to hear with our 21st Century culture. They were to be destroyed initially when the Israelites came into Canaan and weren’t. Saul carries out this request, but does not kill the king and keeps all the best of the sheep and cattle. He thought this would be pleasing to the Lord. Have you ever done something where you thought the Lord would be happy, but upon reflection, it was really all about you and what you wanted from the beginning? Saul killed the people but kept the property and the king as a trophy. When we serve the Lord without accountability it can often be about self-serving and glorifying self. Samuel’s response in vs 11 “Samuel was angry, and he cried to the LORD all night.”
2. Look at Samuel’s response to Saul’s justification for being disobedient in 1Sam 15:16. He says “Stop!” Samuel says ‘obedience is better than sacrifice’. Have you ever been tempted to keep something back for yourself? If you are under financial pressure it might have been your tithe; if you are pressed for time it might have been some form of service or ministry. We are called to always reflect on our priorities and heart motivations. Have you got yours in balance with a Christ honouring perspective? Sometimes the test is to prove where the heart truly lies.
3. When had 1Sam 15:23 on our wall “rebellion is as the sin of divination (witchcraft)”. To obey is better than sacrifice. God wants our hearts and then our obedience. The two often go hand in hand. Even a child is known by his actions, whether they are true and right, Prov 20:11.
4. In 1Sam 16:1-13 we see Samuel anoint David as the new king. Samuel has fears even for his own life. He knew what Saul was like. Yet he goes to the house of Jesse to anoint David. Samuel feels grieved over Saul being anointed as king and then seeing him fail was grieving to watch. Have you ever had high expectations for someone, and they have failed you miserably? They started off well but then their true colours were shown. The Lord certainly felt this from Judas. But remember Peter did the same, only the outcome was vastly different. We see the same when we compare Saul and David. Both fall morally, but we have two different outcomes.
5. In 1Sam 16:14-23 we see that David is brought into the service of Saul as his armour bearer and when the distressing spirit comes, David plays the harp and the spirit leaves. This is often how it is with Christians and the world. The world is distressed by all kinds of things. We are the comforting, rational influence that should bring peace and harmony into every area of life. Is this the case with your witness? Do those whom you study or work alongside of see you as a comfort and a help? How is this being made evident? Praise and worship of the Lord can break the spirits of anger and depression.
6. The harmful spirit that came upon Saul departed when David played the Lyre, 1Sam 16:23. I think the spirit of praise in our homes does the same thing. If you are feeling down or weary put on praise songs in the car or living room. The world’s spirit can taint us, but God’s presence is in the praise of His people. David knew this, Ps 22:3. Fill your ears, mind and heart with God’s truth in song that your joy may return.
Vision Point for cell groups – Cell groups on break over the school holidays
CBC’s Vision :- To be a growing biblical church community, significantly influencing our city and beyond, through intentional outreach, fulfilling our mission.
Sunday’s sermon “Hannah the hero” – reading 1 Samuel 1:1-20
1. Have you ever felt something was not fair? You or a close friend or relative was going through something, yet others seem to be better off. Peninnah was blessed with children and godly Hannah was not, how is this fair?
2. Elkanah didn’t say the wisest thing to his wife here. Elkanah loved Hannah but he didn’t understand her needs here. Why is this a critical issue for the praying husband. Discuss 1Pet 3:7.
3. Hannah is blessed with Samuel and then fulfills her vow. Discuss why this is important and how it involves faith. What happened for Hannah as a result.
4. What is truly fair in this life? Discuss the sacrifice of Christ on your behalf and having a right perspective of fairness as a result. How should we act as a result?
5. Pray for each other, for those cleaning up after the flood and the Ukraine situation.
Prayer Points
1. Pray about your support to the floods in Qld and also to the Polish Baptist Church in Chelm efforts to support Ukrainian refugees. This is the church we will be supporting. You will need google chrome to translate https://baptysci-chelm.pl/kontakt .
2. Pray for the flood clean-up and all those affected a second and third time round.
3. Sally Gauntlett has been admitted to care. Please pray for Richard and the family through this challenging time.
4. Ross Goltz is in constant pain. Has constant hip and joint pain. Seeking specialist help. Please pray for relief.
5. Families that have just started attending CBC.
6. Ukraine to repel Russia and peace to come.
7. Christ to be seen through us in our community.
8. Pray for other building projects – café roof, the repair of the house roof.
9. Growth, conversions, joy in the Word and Spirit to remain and increase.
Praise Points
1. People visiting church on Sunday.
2. Another fine week. Pray for flood clean-up alone the east coast.
3. Joy, peace and grace we see at CBC. Thankyou Lord
4. Covid restrictions lifted – no masks.
Announcements
1. Donation funds will be set up to assist a Polish Baptist Church with Ukrainian refugees. Please label your donation – Ukraine appeal. The same will be the case for those who have gone through the floods in Qld. Label Flood appeal.
2. A new cell group has started at the church for residents around Karalee. Wed 7pm at church.
3. Kidz@Church every Sunday
4. Members Meeting 20th March after the service.
5. Church bank details bsb:- 704 913 and Acc number:- 4000 4388 1
6. Tune in again this week on our youtube page. Subscribe to the CBC channel Chuwar Baptist YouTube channel.
Catechism question for March...
Q. 1. Did Christ remain in the grave after his crucifixion? A. No; he rose from the grave on the third day after his death.
Bible Reference – Luke. 24:45-47; 1Cor.15:3&4.
“Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known” Jer 33:3
