This is Spoken Gospel.
We’re dedicated to seeing Jesus in all of scripture.
In each episode, we see what’s happening in a Biblical text
and how it sheds light on Jesus and his gospel.
Let’s jump in.
Israel does not want God to be their King anymore.
They want to do away with God’s system of tribal leadership and become more like the monarchies they see around them.
Samuel warns that the rules of foreign kings are marked
by “taking” and by “serving,” and Israel’s king will be the same.
He’s going to take what he wants, and once it’s all gone, he’ll enslave them to get more.
But regardless, Israel demands a king.
And God gives them one in Saul.
Despite his objections, Samuel appoints him as the new ruler of Israel.
Samuel then gives Saul three prophecies that will confirm him as God’s elected king, the most significant of which is the coming of God’s Spirit.
The Spirit transforms Saul not only into someone who can lead Israel, but into a prophet as well.
Samuel then publicly confirms Saul’s leadership by casting lots.
By God’s control of these objects of chance, Saul is chosen as God's king.
But Saul hides from his coronation.
Like Israel, he doesn’t want to acknowledge God’s call to be different from the people around him.
But immediately Saul is given the chance to prove his worth as a king
when the Israelite town of Jabesh Gilead comes under siege.
The Spirit overwhelms Saul, and he saves the town.
So, now proven by both chance and battle, Saul is officially made king.
Samuel then marks the transition of power from himself to Saul in a speech.
He reminds Israel that he has never “taken” anything from them
nor made anyone “serve” him during his leadership.
He recounts the ways God was faithful to them despite their unfaithfulness in requesting a king.
And he demonstrates God’s displeasure by sending a storm in the middle of their harvest.
Samuel will no longer lead Israel, but he does promise to pray and to teach them how they should be faithful to God.
He warns them that failing to do so means both Israel and her king will be swept away.
[music]
Israel’s desire for a king isn’t just a change in political organization,
but a rejection of God’s right to rule Israel.
It’s spiritual treason because Israel is ultimately God’s Kingdom.
So, God gives them the leader they deserve—a king who over the course of his life will reject God as the true leader of Israel.
And that’s foreshadowed as he hides at his coronation, rejecting and refusing
to acknowledge God’s choice of him as Israel’s leader.
The victories and prophecies Saul performs don’t reveal God’s approval of Saul,
so much as his mercy towards his people.
Even in their rejection of God as their King, God still graciously acts like one.
He defeats their enemies through the leader they wrongly desired.
And like Israel, we want to place our own “kings” on the throne and be ruled by voices other than God’s.
And just as God allowed Saul to rule Israel, the apostle Paul tells us
that God will give us the leaders and lives we deserve too.
These “kings” will take and take until we’re finally enslaved by them.
But even in our rejection of God as King, God still acts like one.
Jesus takes the throne, even when it means being crowned with thorns.
Just like Saul’s coronation, Jesus’ cross is both our rejection of God as King, and the moment we are rescued from our enemies.
Jesus nails our enemies’ head to the cross and proves himself
as a worthy King, even more powerful than death.
And Jesus, rather than taking from and enslaving, promises to serve and to set free even traitors like us.
So don’t be like Israel.
Admit your rebellion, accept God’s chosen leader Jesus,
bow to the True King, and you will live forever in his Kingdom of peace.
So, may the Holy Spirit open your eyes to see the God who is King.
And may you see Jesus as the King who doesn’t take or demand to be served
but serves by offering his life and Kingdom to us.