1 Samuel sermon series
LISTER HILL BAPTIST CHURCH
SERMON SERIES ON 1 SAMUEL
Stepping Stone to God's Kingdom Come - the Books of Samuel
For those folk blessed with a Christian upbringing or Sunday school background, 1 Samuel provides a treasure house of memories. There was that young lad puzzled by a voice calling his name, the ark of the covenant that proved to be a hot potato for Philistine cities, a giant of a bully cut down to size by a shepherd boy, one of the best friendships in scripture and a desperate king visiting a banned witch by night.
As we read the pages of this Old Testament book, we are stepping back through 3,000 years of history to learn how God shaped the tribes of Israel, emerging from the wild and wilful times of the Judges, into a centralised kingdom led by David.
It's highly selective history, what you might call theological biography or history plus, telling how men and women like Hannah, Eli, Samuel, Saul and David related to God or failed to do so. The books of 1&2 Samuel were originally an item in the Hebrew Scriptures and they cover a period of more than 100 years from the birth of Samuel in possibly 1100 BC.
In 1 Samuel we are introduced to a dynamic style of prayer from a childless woman and a dangerous kind of prayer by a nation wanting a human king despite the fact that they had an amazing heavenly king. So the book relates how God gave Israel a king after man's own heart before choosing a replacement after God's own heart.
Overshadowing the introduction of human kingship for Israel is the reality that God alone is the true king of his people not to mention the whole world. That's why Israel?s human kings are seen as subordinate to God?s spokesmen the prophets. Samuel, who is Israel's last judge as well as a prophet, plays a key prophetic role as king-maker and king-shaker. It's noteworthy that Chronicles suggests that the writers or recorders of the books of Samuel were the three prophets Samuel, Nathan and Gad.
The books of Samuel in fact launch the 500 years or so period of the kings of Israel ands Judah leading down to the destruction of Jerusalem and the Exile in Babylon in the 6th century BC.
The opening six chapters present the failed priesthood of Eli and family at Shiloh, leading a largely unfaithful nation, as the stage for God's revival of his people. This spiritual progress is twinned with Israel's military progress, surrounded as the nation is by hostile Philistines on the west, Aramean kings to the north, Amalekites to the south and a medley of Ammonites, Moabites and Edomites to the east.
The three key players in this military drama are Samuel, Saul and David, with Saul's son Jonathan outshining his dad in one important episode. So as might be expected in this history of God's gracious dealings with his covenant people in the Ancient Near East, the action is laced with big helpings of drama - from passion and power play to brutality and bitterness. And at the heart of it all is the Lord God working out his mighty purpose en route to the arrival of that greater David, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Over the next year, we will be studying the book of 1 Samuel. Set out below are the weekly sections we will be considering. The notice sheet will give an indication of which chapter we will be studying next.
1 Samuel 1 Hannah's prayerful faith and faith-filled prayer
1 Samuel 2: 1-11 Hannah's appreciation of God's power and man's frailty
1 Samuel 2: 12-36 Casual & contaminated worship versus committed worship
1 Samuel 3 Restoration of revelation to Israel via Samuel's servant spirit
1 Samuel 4 Superstition is no substitute for spirituality
1 Samuel 5 God's hand is heavy against false religion - no compromise
1 Samuel 6 - 7:1 Who can stand in the presence of the Lord, the Holy God?
1 Samuel 7: 2-17 Total reliance on the Lord's help in spiritual warfare
1 Samuel 8 Do not love the world
1 Samuel 9 God teaches Israel a lesson - appearances can be deceptive
1 Samuel 10 Are we doing whatever our hand finds to do since God is with us?
1 Samuel 11 Victory via good leadership, unity and the Lord's deliverance
1 Samuel 12 Serve the Lord faithfully with all your heart - Samuel's example
1 Samuel 13 Why waiting for God's timing and leading is so important
1 Samuel 14 Jonathan's wisdom highlights Saul's foolishness
1 Samuel 15 Don't lean on your own understanding but on God?s word
1 Samuel 16 The Lord looks on the heart & is heart-knower
1 Samuel 17 David chooses to wear whole armour of God
1 Samuel 18 Brotherly love versus envy and jealousy
1 Samuel 19 Attitude to enemies, God's protection
1 Samuel 20 Jonathan & David, an example of faithful friendship
1 Samuel 21 Refreshed by the bread of God?s presence
1 Samuel 22: 1-5 David deals with adversity
1 Samuel 23 David deals with doubt
1 Samuel 24 David practices principle of love your enemies, restraining grace
1 Samuel 25 Abigail; blessed are the peace-makers
1 Samuel 26 Do not repay anyone evil for evil
1 Samuel 27 & 29 Dangers of leading a double life
1 Samuel 28 Saul dabbles in deadly disobedience
1 Samuel 30 Fight of faith when calamity strikes
1 Samuel 31 How the mighty have fallen - what we can learn from Saul's mistakes?