What do you do if you have made a bad decision, a decision you know is contrary to the will of God, and it cannot be undone? You can’t unring that bell. That was the situation Israel was in at the end of Samuel’s life.
Yahweh was to be Israel’s king, not any man – 12] The Lord your God was your king – and he had been a faithful king – 7] all the righteous deeds of the Lord that he performed for you and for your fathers – 8] cried out to the Lord – He raised up Moses and Aaron to deliver them from Egypt, raised up judges like Gideon, and Barak, and Jephthah, and Samson, and Samuel to deliver them from oppression after they had taken possession of the land – 10] we have sinned, because we have forsaken the Lord…now deliver us out of the hand of our enemies that we may serve you – He sent judges who delivered you out of the hand of your enemies on every side, and you lived in safety.
They wanted to be like all the other nations, nations who had a king – 17] Your wickedness is great, which you have done in the sight of the Lord, in asking for yourselves a king.
Illustration: It was like England tossing Churchill to the curb as soon as WWII was over.
Well, what do we do, when we’ve messed up and can’t undo what we have done?
- Admit it, confess it as sin straight up – 19] We have added to all our sins this evil to ask for ourselves a king – don’t excuse it, don’t minimize it, don’t try to justify it.
- Renew your commitment to God – don’t say, well, I’ve messed up so badly there’s no point in trying to follow God anymore, I’ve messed up so bad I can’t expect him to take me back, or to take care of me, or meet my needs, or use me again – 20] do not be afraid – do not turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart – the Lord will not forsake his people, for his great name’s sake, because it has pleased the Lord to make you a people for himself – Don’t quit on God, because he most assuredly is not going to quit on you. He will not forsake his people.
14] If you will fear the Lord and serve him and obey his voice and not rebel against the commandment of the Lord…it will be well.
3. Become independently dependent upon God – 21] Do not turn aside after empty things that cannot profit or deliver, for they are empty – You see a shiny, bright box by the side of the road and think, ah, this is the thing I’ve been missing all my life. You think this the secret, think this is what I’ve been looking for – only to drag it home, take the top off, and find out it’s empty inside – nothing is in there. Oh the hopes I had that this would be the bright thing I was looking for, but this thing is not the secret I hoped it would be.
So we need to transfer our dependence from man to God, from the people God brings into our lives to God himself, from the mentors and models God brings into our life to God himself. Who raised up Moses, Aaron, Joshua, Gideon, Barak, Samson, Barak, Samuel? God did. It’s not the men he brings into our lives that we need, it’s the God who brings them to us. We need to learn not to idolize any man – no matter how good, no matter how great. He will disappoint us in the end. The only one who won’t disappoint is God. That is why he says, 24] only fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart.
4. Never stop praying and never stop learning – 23] Far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you, and I will instruct you in the good and the right way.
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