Human trafficking is the cause of slavery

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Equal Parts

Book of 1 Samuel Chapter 30

As we begin to see the story of David in the Bible, we see him as a young man, a man after God’s own heart, fleeing for his life from a king who wanted him dead.

Chapter 27 describes to us how David left the promised land and moved into a territory of the Philistines.

If God teaches us one important thing after we are saved, it is that we are not to associate with the enemies of God.

Yes, we live amongst them, but we are still to come out from them and be separate from the ways of the world.

David himself began to doubt the promises of God.

David began living a life of deception and lies.

Lying to and deceiving any person is one of the worst evils that can be committed by us!

These things will always damage any relationship!

If lies and deception are not exposed, they will cause all sorts of problems for the liar and the deceiver, and we see this in America every day not only from people but also from our own government.

Chapter 28 tells us that Saul got so desperate for a spirit different from his own, that he sought one from the world of the occult.

We see that people can get tired of their way of life but they usually still reject God’s way.

Saul had not understood the truth of the Holy Spirit because he had rebelled against the Lord.

When we go to the world of the occult instead of to our Holy God, we are treading on dangerous ground that is also unholy ground!

Saul had reached that point where the Lord would not answer him, and he was desperate for the truth of God, but he refused to read the Word of God, which he had a copy given to him by Samuel.

What does God say?

Gen 6:3 And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man,

Saul had reached that point in his life where God had left him to do his own thing and he found that it was not working out so well, but it was too late for Saul.

When we face desperate situations, seeking the Lord for the answer, but we continue living with sin and iniquity without repentance, the Lord will not hear us.

Psa 66:18 If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:

It is a serious offense against the Lord to go the occult, who are the children of the Devil.

There is no such thing as a white witch or a dark witch.

They all try to take the place of God.

For no one knows more than God nor can they.

Just the fact that we think we could get some good advice from someone other than God is a terrible sin!

The fate of a disobedient person is that of utter despair and hopelessness!

The truth is, God has the power to hold each of us in His hand and work out all things for each believer!

Chapter 29

In this chapter we find that “all” evil associations will create problems for us!

Being closely tied to worldliness will lead us down the path of destruction and death!

Rom 12:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

What was the solution to David’s predicament? His solution was Jehovah God!

The Lord has the answer to every question that we have!

God has the power to deliver all His people!

God moves events daily to be make His will prevail!

We seem to have the ability to get ourselves into predicaments that we cannot handle, but God has the power to deliver us through these things.

Now Chapter 30

*1Sa 30:1 And it came to pass, when David and his men were come to Ziklag on the third day, that the Amalekites had invaded the south, and Ziklag, and smitten Ziklag, and burned it with fire;
1Sa 30:2 And had taken the women captives, that were therein: they slew not any, either great or small, but carried them away, and went on their way.

The first thing we should notice is that it was the Amalekites that had escaped from King Saul that had done these things to David and his men.

None of the Israelites had obeyed God in destroying the Amalekites and they were a truly wicked people.

They would cause trouble for Israel as long as they existed!

We see that they used the same tactics. They went after the young and the innocent who could not protect themselves.

There is a word we have for that and it is “predator”.

They did not always kill everyone, but they made slaves out of all of them even the children.

They were traffickers in human beings!

It is no wonder that God had chosen to destroy them.

Enslavement, being held in bondage is one of the most terrible evils on the face of this earth.

But child trafficking is allowed to continue by most all governments which should be enough proof that the elite and those with government connections of each nation are involved in these things or they would have been stopped long ago.

We should demand more action than we are getting from our government!

David and his men had returned from the battlefield and found that their women and children and all their possessions had been taken by the Amalekites and their homes burned.

We should remember that David had forsaken the Promised Land and was living amongst the Philistines at this time and was about to go to war against his own people, but God had intervened and the Philistines had sent David back to Ziklag afraid that he would turn against them in the midst of the battle.

It had taken David and his men about three days to return home to Ziklag.

While the Israelites and the Philistines were about to go to war, the Amalekites had chosen this time to attack many vulnerable locations that had been left undefended including Ziklag.

Was God involved in this?

We know for sure that the providence of God is involved in everything that goes on in this world, to lead this world to the day of the return of Jesus Christ but God does not cause evil.

Another thing we know for sure is that this instant brought David back to Jehovah God from which he had strayed.

David had nowhere else to turn except to return to Jehovah.

The Lord should be the first place we turn to and not the last place we turn to.

David had lost his wives and his family and all his friends and his army was turning against him.

We would have expected David to ask for the council of God before he joined the Philistines but he did not.

We would have expected David to ask for the council of God when he joined with King Achish to war with Israel but he did not.

David now asks for the council of God, to know if should pursue after the Amalekites.

*1Sa 30:3 So David and his men came to the city, and, behold, it was burned with fire; and their wives, and their sons, and their daughters, were taken captives.
1Sa 30:4 Then David and the people that were with him lifted up their voice and wept, until they had no more power to weep.
1Sa 30:5 And David’s two wives were taken captives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite.
1Sa 30:6 And David was greatly distressed; for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David encouraged himself in the LORD his God.

There is one thing that it seems we are never prepared for.

We are never prepared for the unexpected events of sorrow.

We do not know what will happen to us or our family from one moment to the next, and we do not know how to prepare for it.

There is only one preparation that we can make and it is to have a close personal relationship with the Lord.

David had allowed his relationship with Jehovah to suffer because of the actions of King Saul, but we are never to blame the things that happen to us on the Lord.

Yes, the providence of God is at work in this world, but God is not the blame for these things that happen to us, especially if we have forsaken Him.

Terrible things happen to all people, the good and the wicked.

We must know where to go when these things happen to us, and that place to go is to the Lord.

If we go to hang out with the enemies of God, and to be a part of their wickedness, then we may expect to be met with evil tidings when we return home again.

We have been called according to the purpose of God and it is that purpose where we should show our strength.

When we walk outside of the umbrella of God’s protection, we should know we will get burned.

We must encourage ourselves through the Lord and He will overrule our thoughts, and He will bring the Light of Jesus out of darkness, and He will bring peace out of trouble.

It is never too late to call upon the Lord!

*1Sa 30:7 And David said to Abiathar the priest, Ahimelech’s son, I pray thee, bring me hither the ephod. And Abiathar brought thither the ephod to David.
1Sa 30:8 And David enquired at the LORD, saying, Shall I pursue after this troop? shall I overtake them? And he answered him, Pursue: for thou shalt surely overtake them, and without fail recover all.
1Sa 30:9 So David went, he and the six hundred men that were with him, and came to the brook Besor, where those that were left behind stayed.

There was no one else to go to but to the Lord!

What a promise was made to David by Jehovah!

God said to David yes, to pursue after these marauders.
God said you will surely catch up with them.
God said you will surely overtake them and get all your possessions back and all your family.

How could David not go after these people who God had doomed to destruction.

In typology the Amalekites represent the flesh.

What had God said about the flesh?

Mat 18:8 Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire.
Mat 18:9 And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire.

Rom 8:12 Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh.
Rom 8:13 For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.

David with six hundred men chased after the Amalekites until they reached the brook Besor.

*1Sa 30:10 But David pursued, he and four hundred men: for two hundred abode behind, which were so faint that they could not go over the brook Besor.

David and his men had spent the last three days traveling to get back home.

They had left home in hot pursuit of those who had taken their families and their possessions and they faced the brook Besor with extremely high banks and torrential waters.

Today this place is called the Besor Ravine.

Some of David’s men just were too worn out to go any further.

They were in a state of total exhaustion!

It was at this time they found a half-dead Egyptian lying in a field.

*1Sa 30:11 And they found an Egyptian in the field, and brought him to David, and gave him bread, and he did eat; and they made him drink water;
1Sa 30:12 And they gave him a piece of a cake of figs, and two clusters of raisins: and when he had eaten, his spirit came again to him: for he had eaten no bread, nor drunk any water, three days and three nights.
1Sa 30:13 And David said unto him, To whom belongest thou? and whence art thou? And he said, I am a young man of Egypt, servant to an Amalekite; and my master left me, because three days agone I fell sick

This Egyptian had not eaten in three days and had been too tired to make it to the Brook for water.

Once this man revived, David began to interrogate him and David began to find out some things about these Amalekites.

This man had been a slave to one of the Amalekites, but he had become too sick to travel and he was left behind to die.

He told David how these Amalekites had raided three separate places, one of them being Ziklag.

*1Sa 30:14 We made an invasion upon the south of the Cherethites, and upon the coast which belongeth to Judah, and upon the south of Caleb; and we burned Ziklag with fire.

The Amalekites had raided the Cherethites and killed men and took their possessions.

These Cherethites were connected to Philistines who for some reason did not go to war with the other Philistines.

It was these Cherethites that had come from Crete not the Philistines who probably came from Egypt.

We see later that these same Cherethites become the bodyguards to King David and after David for his son Solomon.

These Amalekites had raided a portion of Judah and had done the same thing.

These Amalekites had raided the Negev of Caleb, which was near Hebron, another portion of Judah given to Caleb by Joshua.

They had raided Ziklag and burnt it to the ground and took all the wives and children as slaves and took all of the possessions of David and his men.

We can see the hatred they had for Israel.

Since this man knew so much, David took him with him because he knew the plans of the Amalekites.

This Egyptian agreed to go under two conditions.

1) That David would not kill him.
2) That David would not return him to his master.

*1Sa 30:15 And David said to him, Canst thou bring me down to this company? And he said, Swear unto me by God, that thou wilt neither kill me, nor deliver me into the hands of my master, and I will bring thee down to this company.
1Sa 30:16 And when he had brought him down, behold, they were spread abroad upon all the earth, eating and drinking, and dancing, because of all the great spoil that they had taken out of the land of the Philistines, and out of the land of Judah.

The lesson we are to learn here is that we are to have compassion for those in need even if they are our enemies.

By showing this man compassion David learned the whereabouts of those who had his family.

We should take notice that these Amalekites had raided places in Israel where the soldiers had left to join the war with the Philistines.

We should also notice that these Amalekites had raided places of the Philistines where the soldiers had left to join the war with the Israelites.

They had raided Ziklag because they knew that David and his men had left to join the war with the Israelites but God had stopped David from the slaughter of his own people.

David could never have been King of Israel had he done so!

Another day and these Amalekites would have returned to their homeland and divided the spoils and it would have been much harder for David and his men to regain their possessions and their families. so we can see the hand of God in the background.

He had told David that he would get his family back and all his possessions.

These Amalekites felt safe enough to celebrate their victories before they reached home and this is when David found them with the help of that Egyptian.

They saw no visible sign of danger and yet they were nearest to destruction.

This is what we see in the world today.

Those who are wicked and corrupt do not see the signs of danger, yet they are very near to their own destruction, because the Lord’s vengeance is very near!

In typology these things teach us of the return of Jesus Christ.

1Th 5:1 But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you.
1Th 5:2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.
1Th 5:3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.

We that trust in the Lord know, that the return of the Lord Jesus Christ is very near, but another way to look at this is the fact that the triumphing of wicked is about to end.

Job 20:5 That the triumphing of the wicked is short, and the joy of the hypocrite but for a moment?
Job 20:6 Though his excellency mount up to the heavens, and his head reach unto the clouds;
Job 20:7 Yet he shall perish for ever like his own dung: they which have seen him shall say, Where is he?

This was the perfect time for David to attack and he did.

*1Sa 30:17 And David smote them from the twilight even unto the evening of the next day: and there escaped not a man of them, save four hundred young men, which rode upon camels, and fled.
1Sa 30:18 And David recovered all that the Amalekites had carried away: and David rescued his two wives.

The Amalekites were a people condemned to death and God used David as the hand of judgment in this case.

Just like the Lord Jesus Christ, David had come to set the captives free.

This is another picture in the Bible of a wonderful “deliverance” constructed by Jehovah God!

David recovered everything he had lost and his family.

There were still about four hundred of these Amalekite that escaped this day using camels to escape.

In addition David recovered all the spoils these raiders had taken from those various places.

*1Sa 30:19 And there was nothing lacking to them, neither small nor great, neither sons nor daughters, neither spoil, nor any thing that they had taken to them: David recovered all.
1Sa 30:20 And David took all the flocks and the herds, which they drave before those other cattle, and said, This is David’s spoil.

All the possessions of David and his men were recovered along with wives and family unharmed.

While David’s men rounded up all their own property, they also rounded up all the animals and the possessions that were left behind by the fleeing Amalekites.

It is these things that were called David’s spoils and it will be these things that will be divided among all the other of David’s followers and friends.

In typology we can see a relationship with the Lord Jesus when He made us free.

1) We were captives of sin: We sin and we cannot help it, it is in our genes. No matter how much we try, we sin and come short of the Glory of God.

Alone we cannot break free from that sin, but by the power of our Lord Jesus we are made free from sin.

2) We were captured of death: Death had us in its grasp and refused to let us go! We die, every one of us and there is nothing we can do about it.

From dust we came and to dust we will return, but by the power of the Lord Jesus Christ death no more has a hold on us.

Death is now our ticket to the glory world.

3) We were held captive by Hell. Before we gave ourselves to the Lord Jesus, we were bound for Hell and there was nothing we could do about it.

The Lord Jesus has made us free from Death, Hell, and the Grave and are now acceptable to God through His Son.

Heb 2:14 Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;
Heb 2:15 And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

Now let us look at the theme of our lesson today.

*1Sa 30:21 And David came to the two hundred men, which were so faint that they could not follow David, whom they had made also to abide at the brook Besor: and they went forth to meet David, and to meet the people that were with him: and when David came near to the people, he saluted them.
1Sa 30:22 Then answered all the wicked men and men of Belial, of those that went with David, and said, Because they went not with us, we will not give them ought of the spoil that we have recovered, save to every man his wife and his children, that they may lead them away, and depart.
1Sa 30:23 Then said David, Ye shall not do so, my brethren, with that which the LORD hath given us, who hath preserved us, and delivered the company that came against us into our hand.
1Sa 30:24 For who will hearken unto you in this matter? but as his part is that goeth down to the battle, so shall his part be that tarrieth by the stuff: they shall part alike.
1Sa 30:25 And it was so from that day forward, that he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel unto this day.

The more we look at David, we can see why God chose him to be King of Israel, still recognizing that he was only human and not a perfect man.

Those two hundred who had been too tired to help pursue the enemy, rushed out to meet David and his other men.

David did not rebuke them nor show scorn at them, but allowed them to join in the celebration.

Some in David’s army did not feel the same as did David.

Notice the Bible calls them wicked men and of Belial. Belial means worthless and lawless.

These men were opposed to sharing with these men the spoils of the Amalekites.

David declared two facts:

1) The victory was the Lord’s, so those spoils were a gift from Him to be shared.
2) It is just as important to supply the needs of every soldier, as it is to supply the needs of the combat soldier, or the army will never be ready when called upon again for battle.

Justice demanded that they all shared and shared alike.

This principle of equal distribution remained a permanent law all the time of King David.

Of all the gifts the Lord allows us to receive, the gift of salvation is given equally to all those who accept the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Savior.

We must never be greedy with the gifts God shares with us while we are alive.

A greedy heart will mistreat all others.
A greedy person seldom reaches out with a helping hand.
A greedy person will in many cases is aroused to cheat and steal, in order to satisfy that greed.

God’s Word is truly clear:

We must always be just in our dealings with other people whether Christian or those of the world.

Covetousness is condemned by our All-knowing Savior!

Col 3:2 Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.
Col 3:3 For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.
Col 3:4 When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.
Col 3:5 Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry:
Col 3:6 For which things’ sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience:
Col 3:7 In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them.

God demands that we treat people justly, and fairly!

God says we are to be generous in dealing with people!

A Christian is not to be greedy or to covet another’s possessions.

All good gifts come from above and God will never change His ways!

Jas_1:17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.

Amen!

The Truth of God

/ Bobby Mayfield / Leave a comment

Samuel’s Farewell Sermon

Book of 1 Samuel Chapter 12

Of all the tributes we can offer to the Lord, obedience to His Word is the greatest thing we can do to show the Lord that we love Him!

The next best thing we can do is to repent our sins.

Repent means much more than saying I am sorry.

To repent is a complete change of mind and a change of direction to mean walking as the Lord walked, walking with the Lord.

The next thing would be a faithful service in whatever we do in the ministry of the Lord.

We trust the promises of God because we know of God’s faithfulness to His Word!

God is faithful!

1Co_1:9 God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.

Fellowship with the Lord consist of the knowledge of His will for us, and an agreement with His design for this world, which means a world built around families with mutual affection conforming to the image of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Church is a group of families that worship together as the family of God.

Job 22:21 Acquaint now thyself with him, and be at peace: thereby good shall come unto thee.

Rom 8:38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
Rom 8:39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

1Jn 2:6 He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.

1Jn 1:6 If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:
1Jn 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

1Jn 1:3 That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.
1Jn 1:4 And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.

This has been the goal of our Lord Jesus since the first day of creation.

Gen 1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
Gen 1:27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

It is sin that breaks our fellowship with the Lord!

It is sin that is destroying our world, not climate change!

We must be faithful to the Lord once we know the truth!

Samuel had now become an old man and in all his days, he had been faithful to the Lord while being truthful to all of Israel.

Samuel would spend his last days on earth preparing the people of Israel to live under a monarchy.

Saul was now the first King of Israel.

Once both sides had repented, the people and the new king, they both could live a life of faithful service.

For the new government to succeed, the people would have to faithfully serve the Lord and faithfully fulfill their calling upon this earth.

Samuel preached this message to all of Israel and to the new King of Israel who was sitting within the voice of Samuel.

*1Sa 12:1 And Samuel said unto all Israel, Behold, I have hearkened unto your voice in all that ye said unto me, and have made a king over you.
1Sa 12:2 And now, behold, the king walketh before you: and I am old and grayheaded; and, behold, my sons are with you: and I have walked before you from my childhood unto this day.

Samuel closed his ministry before the people.

Samuel closed his ministry as Judge of Israel but he was still God’s Prophet!

As Samuel was stepping aside, he stressed the necessity for King Saul to be faithful to Jehovah God as he had been.

Our success comes from our ability to remain in the will of God all our lives, or from the day we repent and return to the Lord.

Samuel talked of his own righteous life, not bragging, but as an example of the expectations he had for King Saul.

Samuel declared to the people that he had done exactly what they asked him to do, to give them a king to rule over them.

We know that God was the ruler of Israel so, to now have a king would be a terrible step backwards.

Samuel had lived a righteous life since he had been called at the age of twelve.

Samuel had executed justice to Israel all his days.

In order for Israel to prosper, King Saul would have to be faithful and execute true justice and we know that politicians are not really concerned for the people as they say, but most are more concerned with their own bank account.

Israel could have chosen the two sons of Samuel, but they were not considered to be like their father.

We do not know much truth about these two sons.

We do know that Israel was determined to have a king and that king like the kings of other nations, many of which they had destroyed or conquered.

Samuel knew he was too old to continue doing the things he had done all his life.

We all reach this time in our lives where we just cannot do the things we used to do.

Would Saul be a faithful king? We know that answer is no because we can read of his history.

Samuel had never stolen, or cheated, or oppressed anyone.
Samuel had never taken a bribe from the rich and powerful.
Samuel was not guilty of any wrong and if someone thought so, he would immediately make it right.

The people of Israel agreed with Samuel.

We know that King Saul was present as Samuel described his life, and we can just imagine what he was thinking.

Samuel had lived righteously, and this is what the Lord expects from each of us!

To be like the Lord Jesus Christ, we would have to be a lot like Samuel.

For Saul to be a great king, he would have to be a lot like Samuel.

1Co 15:57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

If we have the victory the Lord has given to us, then we need to abound in the work of the Lord!

1Co 15:58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.

Samuel reminded all these people that it was the Jehovah that had gotten them out of the slavery of Egypt and not some man.

*1Sa 12:6 And Samuel said unto the people, It is the LORD that advanced Moses and Aaron, and that brought your fathers up out of the land of Egypt.
1Sa 12:7 Now therefore stand still, that I may reason with you before the LORD of all the righteous acts of the LORD, which he did to you and to your fathers.

We see in America that many groups are insisting that the history of America not be taught in our schools.

History is about facts.

Certainly, there are parts of our history of which we are not proud.

Certainly, slavery is one of those things.

It was not slavery that built our nation!

Slavery in America came from human trafficking which still exist today, and it needs to be stopped.

The pure fact is, more money can be made trafficking humans than can be made by illegal drugs.

The slavery of Israel came about by the ruthless kings of Egypt.

It was Jehovah God who put an end to this slavery!

It was Jehovah God who called and brought forth Moses to lead this people.

It was Jehovah God who put Aaron the first High Priest in place, and this would continue except for the changes that took place with Zadok.

Zadok was still in the family line of Aaron and was a Levite.

The family line of Eli would be stopped by the Lord Himself.

These children of Israel had become blind to the workings of the Lord and the same thing is taking place in America today.

I do not see how the Catholic Church can defend such people as Biden and Pelosi and some others, knowing that the stand they take goes against the Word of God.

There are many so-called Christians in politics and most everyone of them go against the truth of the Gospel, and they are proud to say so.

What kind of ruler would Saul be?

If he trusted the Word of God and used it to rule these people, he would do an excellent job.

If he ignored the Word of God and rejected Jehovah, his kingdom would fail and we can read what happened because God included it in the Scriptures.

The leaders we have in America today will go down as the people who destroyed the only free society on this planet, and it is intentional.

Corruption cannot be stopped; it must be removed.

2Pe_2:19 While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage.

What was the most disturbing history of these people?

They had consistently forsaken the Lord!

They had turned away from the Lord and lived their own lives as they wished, doing their own thing and this is the recipe for failure.

The Lord had judged them and chastised them, and they lived this way until they cried out to the Lord with great promises, which they would not keep.

If you want to know true history, then it is easy to see that our Lord has saved and delivered all who turn to Him by faith!

Today, that faith must be in the Lord Jesus Christ and this faith can remove anyone from any bondage of sin and wickedness, and all other bondage, such as drugs, alcohol, the gay lifestyle, homosexuality, immorality, depression, hatred, false worship, and any other bondage of sin.

This is the promise that God makes, and He has never broken a promise!

These things were just as true in the days of Saul, but his life led to failure.

Samuel continues with some history:

God had sold them into the hands of Sisaro, to the Philistines several times, and the King of Moab.

They had cried out and the Lord had sent men such as Jerubbaal, and Bedan, and Jephthah and others.

God had sold them into the hands of the King of Ammon, and they had not recognized the fact, that God had delivered than many times and they asked for a king.

*1Sa 12:12 And when ye saw that Nahash the king of the children of Ammon came against you, ye said unto me, Nay; but a king shall reign over us: when the LORD your God was your king.

In all these deliverances, it had been the Lord God who had delivered them who is much better than any king!

Samuel told Israel you already have a king, and He is the Lord God of all creation, there is no greater king than the Lord Jesus Christ.

We know the Lord Jesus Christ will return to this earth to be King of the Jews, and He will bring all of us with Him to rule and reign upon this earth for one thousand years, and I believe this is true.

If we reject the Lord and ask for some human ruler, we are committing a serious sin, it is called idolatry.

Every time someone votes for a Democrat today are voting for the policies of the Democrats and they are exposing themselves to idolatry, because the policies of the Democrats have rejected the Word of God.

I know this sounds political, but it is only the truth.

It is the same for Progressives.

It is the same for many Republicans.

If we refuse to vote, we are just as guilty because we are only helping those who are against the Lord.

It is the same for anyone who goes against the Word of God!

We will be judged for all the things we do in this lifetime!

Israel had rejected the rule of the Lord by rejecting the Word of God.

They had turned away from the Lord and we must not fall into this trap, and it is a deadly trap.

They now faced God’s terrifying judgment!

America is now facing God’s terrifying judgment!

This is what Samuel’s last sermon was telling these tribes of Israel, yet they still chose idolatry.

Samuel says these are the things you know that are true of the Lord your true King, and now you can see the one you chose to replace Him.

*1Sa 12:13 Now therefore behold the king whom ye have chosen, and whom ye have desired! and, behold, the LORD hath set a king over you.

If you have chosen Lord as your ruler, you have chosen a Theocratic form of government in your heart.

Why in the world would we ever choose some human ruler who does not follow the Lord?

This is what Samuel was asking Israel.

Saul was a giant of a man in his physique as compared to the average Israelite.

Saul was less than a grasshopper when compared to the Lord the true King.

God had proven throughout the brief history of this nation that He was their Savior.

He was their Provider.

He was their Protector.

He was their Guide through the wilderness called life.

He is the same in all these things for each Christian today!

To ask for a king like all those other nations was a terrible thing to ask for.

Sometimes God will give us what we ask for just to teach us a lesson!

It would have much better to ask for a king, “after God’s own heart”, which would have been much better.

This is the same choice we should all make when we get the opportunity to choose.

Those in power today are trying their best to take this freedom to choose away from us, along with many of our other freedoms.

*1Sa 12:14 If ye will fear the LORD, and serve him, and obey his voice, and not rebel against the commandment of the LORD, then shall both ye and also the king that reigneth over you continue following the LORD your God:
1Sa 12:15 But if ye will not obey the voice of the LORD, but rebel against the commandment of the LORD, then shall the hand of the LORD be against you, as it was against your fathers.

What is the truth of God? If we will fear the Lord, serve Him, and obey His voice, which is the written Word of God, and not rebel against the written Word of God, which is a commandment for us and our rulers, and continue to follow the Lord, things will go well for us and our nation.

But if we rebel against the truth of God then, shall the hand of the Lord be against us.

We know our Lord never changes and He will not treat America any different than He treated Israel during these times of rebellion.

You cannot be a Christian and want some wicked ruler to rule over you!

Then Samuel says, just take a look at some small portion of the power of God.

*1Sa 12:16  Now therefore stand and see this great thing, which the LORD will do before your eyes. 
1Sa 12:17 Is it not wheat harvest to day? I will call unto the LORD, and he shall send thunder and rain; that ye may perceive and see that your wickedness is great, which ye have done in the sight of the LORD, in asking you a king.
1Sa 12:18 So Samuel called unto the LORD; and the LORD sent thunder and rain that day: and all the people greatly feared the LORD and Samuel.
1Sa 12:19 And all the people said unto Samuel, Pray for thy servants unto the LORD thy God, that we die not: for we have added unto all our sins this evil, to ask us a king.

These people realized that they had only added to their sins against God.

You know, we can get forgiveness of our sins if we are sincere in asking for forgiveness.

In Israel’s case, they may have realized they were wrong but guess what, they still had Saul as king, and he would turn out to be an ungodly king.

There are a few men in the Bible that God would do things at their request but not many and not often.

We know of Moses and Joshua and the Lord had his own reasons each time.

We need to realize that our Lord is a Mighty God, with unlimited power and not some puny false god.

We will reap what we sow.

How can we ever expect some puny arm of flesh to replace the arm of God!

Is God showing the world that He can change the face of the heavens and persecute us with storms such as what is called “climate change”?

He did it once to Israel, why not do it today, to show this world which is so full of sin and idolatry?

We are in our own peril if we reject the power of the God of the Bible!

The Lord certainly has the power to bring judgment upon any people or all people at the same time!

For Israel it was an exceedingly rare thing for rain during harvest time, and we can be sure they lost a part of that harvest.

We know how destructive thunderstorms can be!

This sermon from Samuel had led the nation of Israel to confession.

Do we need a Samuel in America today to lead us to the point of confession of our sins, well this is not true because we already have the Lord Jesus Christ who died for our sins and who has given us the truth, and few are listening to His Words.

The truth is, rejecting the Lord will bring judgment against us!

If we forsake the Lord, forget, ignore, and neglect the Lord, we will face the judgment of God!

This also is the truth of the Scriptures!

People just do not want to hear the truth, because they are raised in a world where the truth is not important because we live in a world based on lies, beginning with evolution.

We must walk a righteous walk before God, no matter what this world is doing!

2Pe 2:9 The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished:

*1Sa 12:20 And Samuel said unto the people, Fear not: ye have done all this wickedness: yet turn not aside from following the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart;
1Sa 12:21 And turn ye not aside: for then should ye go after vain things, which cannot profit nor deliver; for they are vain.
1Sa 12:22 For the LORD will not forsake his people for his great name’s sake: because it hath pleased the LORD to make you his people.

There is only one answer to the problems we face today, and it is to return to the Lord and to serve the Lord with all our heart!

If we have confessed our sins then, we can do this if we then repent and walk away from the lies of this world, and turn to the truth of the Lord.

The biggest problem people have today is that they do not want to give up their sin.

Almost everyone has a pet sin that they refuse to give up!

Sinners just do not want to repent and without repentance there is no forgiveness!

When sin becomes the most important thing in our lives, we are traveling on the road to damnation!

The Lord will not forsake any people who are committed to Him!

The Lord will not forsake any people He has made promises to.

The Lord Jesus will not forsake Israel because He has made promises to them.

The Lord will never leave us, nor forsake us, because He is bound by His promises to us.

You see our salvation is not on our own merits.

Our salvation has always depended upon the mercy of God and the promises He has made!

You see, if the Lord fails to keep even one promise, then His honor would suffer in this world.

The Lord must deliver Israel or He will be found to be a liar.

The Lord must deliver the true Church of He would be found to be a liar.

If the Lord God of this world does not keep His promises, then His Word is useless.

It is never too late to repent and return to the Lord while we are living.

It is impossible to repent after death!

The Lord made Israel His people.

The Lord made the Church His chosen people!

Then Samuel mentions prayer.

We immediately see that we sin against the Lord if we do not pray for sinners!

Samuel promised to pray for and to teach Israel all the days that remained in his life.

We must be intercessors for our children.
We must be intercessors for all our family, and it is a sin not to.
We must be intercessors for all sinners.

The key to our relationship with the Lord is to serve Him in truth that comes from the heart!

*1Sa 12:23  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: 
1Sa 12:24 Only fear the LORD, and serve him in truth with all your heart: for consider how great things he hath done for you.
1Sa 12:25 But if ye shall still do wickedly, ye shall be consumed, both ye and your king.

You know, if the Lord does nothing else for us after we are saved, He has already done much more than we deserve by saving us from a burning Hell.

The Lord also wants to bless us in this life, but we must have a personal relationship with Him.

We must respect the Lord who is also the Creator of all we see, and all we cannot see in this universe.

We should understand that the new King Saul was present during this sermon from Samuel and heard every word he spoke.

Then Samuel issues a final warning to all of Israel, but this applies to all leaders in this world and to all believers.

If we continue to sin, we will be judged and chastised by the Lord!

For Israel many were destroyed until ultimately, they were exiled from the Promised Land.

This is why the return of Israel to the Promised Land was such a momentous day in fulfilled prophecy!

We should understand that the problem with Israel was not to have a king who would go out and win battles for them.

The problem with Israel was internal and it was spiritual!

The problem with America is not that America is still the most powerful nation on earth, at least for the time being.

The problems in America is internal and they are Spiritual.

Eph_6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

America will have to return to God and repent, to have a better future just as Israel will have to do.

Israel has the promises of God, America does not, only the believers do.

No king and no leader are powerful enough to stop the hand of God in judgment!

There is no approach to God that does not begin with repentance!

Much of the Church has forgotten this.

We must turn away from sin, in order to come face to face with the Lord!

Act 3:19 Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;
Act 3:20 And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you:

The Word of God cannot be denied!

Isa 55:7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

Amen