“For the Lord will not forsake His people for His great name’s sake; because it has pleased the Lord to make you His people. 23. Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you; but I will teach you the good and the right way. 24. Only fear the Lord, and serve Him in truth with all your heart; for consider how great things He has done for you. 25. But if you shall do wickedly, you shall be consumed, both you and your king.”
The context of this passage is Samuel’s sermon to Israel after they had chosen a king to lead them instead of God. God allowed them a king, but Samuel knew that this would not solve the moral and military problems of Israel. Though Israel had chosen a king to rule over them, Samuel was still God’s man to influence them to do what was right. Because of Samuel’s influence and godliness, the closing of the period of Judges was more positive. This text shows why Samuel was an important influence on his people, and how we can influence the people in our lives. Though Samuel was disappointed in the people for their choice of having a king “like all other nations,” he vowed to continue to pray for them. Here is specifically what he said: “Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you.” He said that it would be a sin if he ceased to pray for these recalcitrant people. Samuel influenced them through prayer, for he knew the power of prayer. This is where we come in. No matter how bad things may seem in our world, our families, our jobs, our churches, etc. we need to continue to pray for the people in our lives. Many mothers have lived to see their sons our daughters saved because they did not cease to pray for them. Take Samuel’s advice and do not cease to pray for those who seem to be defying your prayers. Just believe that God is at work in their lives, as He is still at work in our wayward world. Don’t sin by refusing to pray. Though it seemed an impossible task for Samuel, he promised: “But I will teach you the good and the right way.” Samuel continued to teach what was right in spite of the fact that the people seemed to be ignoring everything he taught. Perhaps we need to be reminded here that God has called us to be faithful, even if we do not seem to be successful. I would have quit preaching a long time ago if I had quit doing what God called me to do because people seemed to ignore what I was preaching and teaching. (I have also had to deal with myself in practicing what I preach.) We can’t stop being a voice for righteousness and sanity in a world that has gone sin crazy. I think that Samuel first taught the people the “good and right way” by living in that way himself. We can’t stop living God’s truth or telling His truth. In verse 24, Samuel gave a hint about what he was teaching the people: “Only fear the Lord, and serve Him in truth with all your heart: for consider how great things He has done for you.” He called on the people to fear and reverence God and to serve Him with all of their hearts. This message has not changed and is surely needed from God’s people today. Samuel also called upon the people to remember all that God had done for them. We need to do the same in our lives and to remind others about the same thing in their lives. If we are not careful, we will forget God’s blessings on our lives. While we need to continue to pray, teach and serve, we need to also warn people as Samuel did in verse 25: “But if you shall still do wickedly, you shall be consumed, both you and your king.” The judgement of God is as sure as His love. We need to teach people that God loves them, but we also need to teach people that judgment day is coming – as it did with Israel. In these trying times, we need to remember the influence that one person can have and we can use Samuel as an example. Bro. Joe
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AuthorDr. Joe Beauchamp is the author of this blog and website. Categories
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