FROM DISGRACE TO DELIVERANCE I Sam. 11

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1 FROM DISGRACE TO DELIVERANCE I Sam. 11 Israel was going through a change at the top! The people had voted with their hearts to remove the way they were uniquely governed to the way the nations around about them were being governed, - they wanted to be like everyone else. They moved from being a theocracy, - when God alone was Ruler, - to a monarchy, where they crowned Saul King. Of course, his coronation had taken place in 10:24 but this was a new period of transition that the nation was exploring and it would have been hard for the people to immediately depart from the old period of the judges. Saul would still have been seen by many as a kind of continuation with a similar legacy to men like Gideon, Ehud, Shamgar, Jephthah and Samson. Yes, he had become king and now he needed something that would clearly set him apart as being different to the previous regimes of the judges. The opportunity presented itself through Nahash and the Ammonites. THE DISGRACE 11:1-3 Jabesh-Gilead was just south of the Sea of Galilee, on the eastern side of the Jordan River. It was in the territory of the tribes of Gad and Manasseh and was in a sensitive and vulnerable area, open to attack. The Ammonites had been nibbling at it for years, - e.g. in the time of Jephthah (Judges 11) we read, 4 And it came to pass in process of time, that the children of Ammon made war against Israel. 5 And it was so, that when the children of Ammon made war against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to fetch Jephthah out of the land of Tob: 6 And they said unto Jephthah, Come, and be our captain, that we may fight with the children of Ammon. A similar situation has again arisen with Saul and the Ammonites thought they would have another go! Nahash ( serpent ) was their king (Ammonites Lot s drunken incest with his younger daughter, Gen. 19:30-38). They were a particularly ruthless and wicked people, - they preempted Hitler s Final Solution because they too wanted to commit the genocide of the people of Israel, Amos 1: 13 Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of the children of Ammon, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they have ripped up the women with child of Gilead, that they might enlarge their border: 14 But I will kindle a fire in the wall of Rabbah, and it shall devour the palaces thereof, with shouting in the day of battle, with a tempest in the day of the whirlwind: 15 And their king shall go into captivity, he and his princes together, saith the LORD.

2 2 They set a deal before the inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead, - mockingly calling it a covenant. As the condition of this treaty Nahash demanded that the right eye of every inhabitant be gouged out. Consequently, these one-eyed slaves would be a constant disgrace and embarrassment to the whole house of Israel and a testimony to the power and authority of Nahash. Nahash was confident he would get to gouge their eyes out and he was willing to prolong their agony of mind by allowing them time (one week) to see if there was any way out of their predicament, - he was confident there wasn t! It seems the first place the elders of Jabesh-Gilead ran to was to Saul, the fledgling king. In these dark days God turned their attention to the man He had chosen for His people as king. (In former days they would have gone to Samuel, - the tried and proven spokesman and servant of God, - but they had moved on from the old ways and from the old days. They were now contemporary and had caught up with how every other nation would have dealt with such a threat.) In the midst of this looming disgrace they searched for THE DELIVERER vv.4-10 Notice that in the midst of disgrace we find God s grace. Give us a king! The people said. God could equally have said, Now you ve got your own king, you don t want Me anymore, - I ll leave you to your own devices. But no, in the midst of their disgrace God demonstrated His grace. They came to Gibeah weeping and wailing (v.5), Help us for we have nowhere else to turn! Saul came from the fields, where he had been with the cattle, and he listened to their story. Then we read of a beautiful work of God s goodness, I Sam. 11:6 And the spirit of God came upon Saul when he heard those tidings. (Away back in those days, the Spirit of God only temporarily came upon an individual, whereas today He enters into the believer permanently). Prior to Saul this had been an experience privileged to other Judges, Judges 3:10 And the spirit of the LORD came upon him [Othniel], and he judged Israel, and went out to war: 6:34 the spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon, 11:29 the spirit of the LORD came upon Jephthah,

3 3 14:19 the spirit of the LORD came upon him [Samson], and he went down to Ashkelon, and slew thirty men of them (i.e. Philistines). The victory was not to be in Saul, the Word of God is showing us that the victory over this enemy was in the Holy Spirit Zech 4:6 Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts. God was still in control and God took over! Saul cut up the oxen and sent it round all the tribes of Israel demanding that they come together to stand up for this town of Jabesh- Gilead. When the Spirit of God moved He moved to bring His people together! v.7 And the fear of the LORD fell on the people, and they came out with one consent. This was not a fear of reprisal or of punishment, but instead it was a fear of God inspired by God. As a consequence, 330,000 men of war encamped at Bezek within striking distance of Jabesh-Gilead. In the opening verses of this chapter we see the disgrace that the enemy wanted to bring upon God s people; in these middle verses we see that God provided, - by His Holy Spirit, - the deliverer; in the final verses of the chapter we see THE DELIVERANCE vv Saul was acting with authority not with the authority of those elders that came to Samuel demanding a king that would make them to be like the other nations (cf. 8:4,5) but Saul was acting with all the authority and all the power of God, It was because of God that he had mustered an army of 330,000 It was because of God that he was at their head And it was because of God that the victory over the Ammonites would be theirs! Very early the next morning Saul drew up three waves of attack. They swept into the camp of the enemy, - into its very centre, - and utterly crushed the enemy. The army of the Ammonites was annihilated! These were high days following the battle, the people were excited and enthusiastic about their new king who had brought them victory(!) They remembered the opposers in 10:27, the people who despised Saul, the children of Belial who said, How shall this man save us? The supporters of Saul now wanted to deal with them (11:12) but Saul said no and he told the nation, v.13 today the LORD hath wrought salvation in Israel.

4 4 Samuel then called all the people to a mighty victory feast at which Saul was ceremonially affirmed king. The highlight of that day was when the people spent time before the altar of the Lord and the Lord blessed them mightily because the Bible says v.15 there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly. What a change has taken place in this chapter. It began with desperation and it finished with deliverance. It began with defeat looming over the town of Jabesh-Gilead and yet ended with victory. There was no mention of the Lord in the opening chapters and yet at the end of the chapter God is enjoying all the glory. In the midst of disgrace His grace was at work among His people. Something had changed what was it? Was it because the elders of Jabesh-Gilead came with tears in their eyes with their hearts breaking with sincerity? Was it because Saul was such a great champion of the people such a great warrior? No, it was neither it was when the Spirit of God came (v.6). I guarantee you that you always find the children of Belial who are against the movement of God and who oppose His work; I guarantee you too that you will find the Jabesh-Gilead s where the enemy is threatening to overrun; it s often the case too that churches run to a man to deliver them out of some hole or another. The kind of man we need for this church is he s got to be young, have a family, properly educated, get on well with the young folk and with the older folk, be a good preacher and teacher and a good visitor, he s got to be out in the community, etc, etc Many a church runs to a man and these inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead ran to a man. But, you know, churches are failing because they run to a man. The enthusiasm that a man brings with him only lasts for a while. I m here almost six years: we ve had fifteen people added to the membership list, five have resigned and eight have died what I can do for you is tremendously limited but there s no good placing all your confidence in me. I do hear churches saying we need this kind of a man and that kind of man when are they ever going to learn that they need a man of God s choosing and a people whose confidence is in the Lord!

5 5 If I was being judged the way the sons of Belial judged Saul I would be failing miserably but, - you see, - it was when the Spirit of God came in a mighty way that God brought His people out of despair and disgrace and into deliverance. Who would have thought that a small town like Jabesh-Gilead mattered so much as to muster 300,000 people in its defence? Who would have thought they mattered so much to God?! God has saved you and redeemed you and plucked you out of the hand of the enemy. Every day of your life He holds the worst attacks of the enemy back. He shields you as He also shields our fellowship. Nahash, - the serpent, - desires to defeat the Church of Christ he wants to close and to finish the witness of small little fellowships like our own ( Mustard Seed, St. Monan s, Dunkeld, etc) but look at the story of Jabesh-Gilead, - even they they matter to God! Jesus Christ promised, Mt. 16:18 upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Look at the first time the word Lord is mentioned in the chapter, - it was when the fear of the Lord fell on the people (v.7). Pray that the fear of the Lord in the Holy Spirit would fall upon this place, that any sons of Belial would have nothing more to say, that the enemy would be met on the battlefield and that this little town of Jabesh- Gilead here would rejoice again even as Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.