Israel wanted a King. This rebellion against God as Lord and King crushed Samuel's heart and angered God at the people's lack of faith. Samuel reminded God's people that while they have stumbled and fallen because of their political concerns, they must not abandon the Lord himself. Instead, their political concerns must give way to their total allegiance to God and a willingness to serve him fully as Lord and King. In the middle of their politically fueled fear, anger, arrogance, disappointment, triumph, defeat, conflict, confusion, confidence, rivalry, and self-will, God wanted them to turn to him - not their political parties and political champions. Their hope must lie with God! I believe this is a lesson from history that we should heed.
Video Commentary...
We've included Phil's ToGather video from four years ago as an added blessing to our verse today:
Forgive us, dear Father, for our sinfulness, short-sightedness, and silliness that we have, at times, shown regarding rulers, nations, and our source of hope. We want to serve you with an undivided heart, cleansed by your forgiveness and enabled by the transforming power of your Holy Spirit as we trust in you as our Lord, Savior, and King. We thank you and ask for this grace in Jesus' name, Amen.
"Dear Disciple,
You are saved by grace. You received that grace through faith. There is no room for boasting about being saved. Neither is there any....."
"And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin..."
"If I slip into the place that can be filled by Christ alone, making myself the first necessity to a soul instead of leading it to fasten upon Him, then I know....."
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