1 An Ordinary Kind of Extraordinary Work October 11, 2015 1 Samuel 9-10 Matt Rawlings According to Reader s Digest, what Amy Harris saw in the shallow water along the bank of Redfish Lake in Idaho wasn't a bolt, as she suspected. It was a gold wedding band. She posted her find on Craigslist, but when no one had claimed the ring four months later, she all but gave up finding the owner. As a last-ditch effort, Harris's husband Jody called his old friend, Richard Black, a jeweler in the next town, for advice on what to do with the ring. Black asked, "Did you find it in Redfish Lake?" The surprised couple found out that Alair and Dana Schroeder had recently stopped by Black's shop to buy a replacement for the ring Alair lost that summer at the lake. The same ring! Harris dropped off the band at Black's shop, and, by Thanksgiving, Alair had her ring back. What are the odds that someone who found a gold ring and couldn t find the owner would be so persistent? What are the odds that this woman s husband would call an old friend in the next town, who just happened to have had a couple who stopped in to replace a ring they had lost and that they just happened to tell him the details and that he just happened to remember. Sometimes lost things are oddly reunited with those who lost them but it isn t purely accidental. In the case of the account we are going to read in 1 Samuel, we will see that some donkeys are lost and then eventually found but in the process, God used the ordinary circumstance of lost donkeys to bring about His unordinary plans. We are going to go through all of 1 Samuel chapter 9-10 and I encourage you to follow along with me as we go through it. Because there are 54 verses in total though, we aren t going to read through the whole account like we normally would. Instead, we are going to walk through the highlights and read portions of it as we go along together. At the very beginning, we suddenly have this new character introduced to us out of the blue. At the end of 1 Samuel 8, the story left off with God pronouncing judgment and commanding Samuel to obey the desire of the people to have a king like the nations over them and Samuel sends every man to his own city. Now, we are not sure how long a period of time has passed but we are introduced to Saul. 1 Samuel 9:1-2 There was a man of Benjamin whose name was Kish, the son of Abiel, son of Zeror, son of Becorath, son of Aphiah, a Benjaminite, a man of wealth. 2 And he had a son whose name was Saul, a handsome young man. There was not a man among the people of Israel more handsome than he. From his shoulders upward he was taller than any of the people. In the eyes of the nation, Saul was a likely candidate in some ways. The name Saul actually means desired. He was the son of Kish, who was a man of standing, whom various translations refer to as a man of valor, a man of power; an influential man. And this mighty Kish s son Saul was good looking. The author refers to him as a handsome young man, and not only says he was handsome, it says that none of the men of Israel were more handsome than he. Not only that, he was an impressive figure he was head and shoulders taller than any of the people. From all appearances, he was an impressive figure and one that in today s video age would impress men and women alike. He looked the part and came from an influential family. He looked like he might be the king like all the other nations that they wanted and that God said they would get. But how would God bring this about? We will see four scene s in these two chapters that 1
2 show God s way of directing events to bring about His purposes. The first scene we see is in verses 3-14 and we see an ordinary search. 1. An ordinary search (3-14) Saul s father Kish was a wealthy man who owned donkeys. Likely, he was a farmer and probably used donkeys to pull a plow, to grind grain and pack burdens of grain or ride on. They were like the allaround farm tractor that you could hook up a lot of attachments to back them. But, somehow, his donkeys had gotten out of the pen they were in or broken free and they were lost. I m guessing no one suspected anything supernatural in this it was just a bunch of donkeys that had gotten lost pretty ordinary stuff for them. But, donkeys were a valuable commodity in those days, so Kish sent his son to go and look for the donkeys along with one of his servants. It would be like a skilled carpenter today getting his truck stolen with all of his power tools, saws and drills in it he would want it back. So, Kish sends out Saul and his servant on a trip that hopefully wouldn t take too long to complete. And they searched all over about a 15 square mile area of Northern Israel and they didn t find the donkeys. They probably went from town to town and farm to farm looking for them and asking if anyone had seen them. It took them about 3 days and Saul worried that because they had been gone for a while, his father would begin to worry about them instead. But the servant had heard of Samuel, the prophet, who lived in nearby Mizpah, and he thought that maybe the prophet could tell them where the donkeys were, so he said to Saul, 6 But he said to him, "Behold, there is a man of God in this city, and he is a man who is held in honor; all that he says comes true. So now let us go there. Perhaps he can tell us the way we should go." But Saul knew that he shouldn t go to the prophet and ask him a favor without bringing him a gift. The problem is that they had eaten through their food looking for the donkeys and they didn t have anything to give as a gift. But the servant just happened to have a quarter of a shekel of silver and he offered to give it to the man of God to tell them where to go. Saul agreed and thought it was a good idea and so they went to Samuel s city. Then, in verses 10-13, when they went into the city, they happened to meet some young women going out to draw water and they asked them if the seer was there. The young women just happened to know Samuel s exact whereabouts and told them that Samuel was about to go up to sacrifice but was right inside the city gates and if they hurried, then they would run into him. What they didn t know is that God had divinely orchestrated the lost donkeys, directed their path as they looked all over the countryside randomly and yet He also planned for them to not find the donkeys. God had also given the servant the idea to go to the prophet to find out where the donkeys were. And then God sent them into the city at just the right time to meet the women who would send them to Samuel just as he was coming towards them. What do we see in these verses? We see God using ordinary circumstance the mundane, everyday things of life like lost donkeys and a search that didn t end well to get his people to the right place at the right time. That happens all the time doesn t it? In this story, we find out that what God is doing, is that God use using ordinary things to reveal the king that the people asked for. At the end of chapter 8, we know that a king is coming and that the people wanted a king like the nations. But God uses ordinary events to bring a king he would ordain. 2
3 2. A revelation of the King (9:15-10:1a) The day before Saul came, God had prepared Samuel and revealed to him that Saul would be there. God told Samuel the day before, 16 "Tomorrow about this time I will send to you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him to be prince over my people Israel. He shall save my people from the hand of the Philistines. For I have seen my people, because their cry has come to me." 17 When Samuel saw Saul, the LORD told him, "Here is the man of whom I spoke to you! He it is who shall restrain my people." So, when Saul approached Samuel, he already knew that he was going to anoint him as prince over Israel. I remember one day back on January 25, 1993 very vividly, when I became aware that God used ordinary thought to get me to go somewhere else. I was working for the government and the parking lot of the place where I worked was pretty large and it was sometimes hard to find a space close to the building, so you could end up walking a few minutes into work. And in the winter, it could be annoyingly cold and windy because it was just across from the Potomac River a little ways. So, because I had friends in security, I would always drive in the front entrance when it was cold and scam a VIP parking pass and park right up in front of the building. But that morning, just as I was about to head to the front entrance, I had a strong thought that, no, this morning, I don t need to bother with a parking pass, I ll just go in the back gate and I ll hike in across the back lot. Just a few seconds after I turned in the back gate, when I would have been sitting at the light for the front gate, suddenly the security guards were listening and talking into their walkie-talkies and started running towards the front gate. I got to my desk and my co-workers had just left to respond to an incident at the front gate, where someone had shot 5 cars and killed two people. There are many of these kinds of so-called coincidences in our lives that if we look back, sometimes, we can see how God was at work to use ordinary circumstances to bring about his plans. Most of the time, we are unaware of when God uses an ordinary search or an ordinary turn to get us where He wants but seeing these things is meant to give us assurance that God is providentially sovereign over every are of our lives. What looks like mere coincidence is really no coincidence at all I never would have thought that I would be in Greenville, South Carolina by way of Vancouver, Canada, from Fairfax, Virginia. But God moved events and circumstances and gave desires. Just like God is working all kinds of events and circumstances and desires. Proverbs 16:9 a man s heart plans his ways, but the Lord directs his steps. And in Isaiah the prophet reveals that God is the one over everything past and future using human events to bring about His plans. Isaiah 46:9-11 for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, 10 declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, 'My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,' 11 calling a bird of prey from the east, the man of my counsel from a far country. I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass; I have purposed, and I will do it. Most of the time, even though God is working in and through all things we normally don t see His plans revealed. Most of the time, it just feels like ordinary life and an ordinary search that is frustrating or an ordinary turn into a different entrance or an ordinary job change or life change. Or like it was for Moses, he was going after a sheep before a burning bush caught his eye. But God is working through every little detail of our lives. 3
4 Now, notice that God didn t call him King over Israel he said Samuel would anoint him to be prince. You see, a prince is one who is under a king and it implies that a prince serves a King. The people wanted a king of their own and God in judgement was giving them over to their desire but even in judgment, God was showing mercy to them. God had heard their cry and was going to use Saul to save the people from the hand of the Philistines. Even though this was the man the people would choose, God chose beforehand to use Saul to work through their sinful rejection of God to bring about His purposes to show His people mercy and save them from the Philistines through Saul. In the midst of the people turning away from God and rejecting Him, God was still going to show them mercy. God worked his hand to bring about both judgment and His merciful plans in judgment He gave the people what they wanted but in Mercy, He used what they wanted to deliver His people. And that is what God does for us even when we make mistakes or go astray, God shows us His mercy and gives us His grace. So, when Saul came to Samuel, Samuel knew exactly who he was. Then, when Saul asked about the seer or prophet, Samuel said he was the seer and that Saul was to go up before him to the high place, where the sacrifice to the LORD was to be made and that he was to eat with him and that in the morning Samuel would tell him all that was on his mind. This probably surprised Saul a little and took him off guard. He may have even thought that Samuel was a little crazy and why should I go and stay with this guy? I m in a hurry to get back to my father. So, God revealed to Samuel that Saul was looking for some lost donkeys and God had already sent them back to his father. But so that Saul would stay, Samuel told him something that would have intrigued Saul and made him want to stay to find out what was going on. Samuel told Saul, And for whom is all that is desirable in Israel? Is it not for you and for all your father's house?" Basically, Samuel said, you and your father s house are at the focus of all that Israel desires meaning Israel wants a king and it is all for you. Now, Saul s curiosity was peaked so he said, Am I not a Benjaminite, from the least of the tribes of Israel? And is not my clan the humblest of all the clans of the tribe of Benjamin? Why then have you spoken to me in this way?" But Samuel didn t answer him instead he took Saul and his man-servant and sat Saul at the place of honor at the head of the table, along with 30 delegates whom Samuel had invited for this very purpose possibly elders of Israel. 22 Then Samuel took Saul and his young man and brought them into the hall and gave them a place at the head of those who had been invited, who were about thirty persons. 23 And Samuel said to the cook, "Bring the portion I gave you, of which I said to you, 'Put it aside.'" 24 So the cook took up the leg and what was on it and set them before Saul. And Samuel said, "See, what was kept is set before you. Eat, because it was kept for you until the hour appointed, that you might eat with the guests." So Saul ate with Samuel that day. Now, Samuel had earlier instructed the cook for the meal to set aside the ceremonial portion the choice piece of meat, normally reserved for the person of honor or a dignitary. And Samuel told Saul look, I knew you were coming and I reserved the best for you at this fine banquet of honor with all these guests. So, Saul accepted the honor and ate with Samuel. 25 And when they came down from the high place into the city, a bed was spread for Saul on the roof, and he lay down to sleep. 26 Then at the break of dawn Samuel called to Saul on the roof, "Up, that I may send you on your way." So Saul arose, and both he and Samuel went out into the street. 27 As they were going down to the outskirts of the city, Samuel said to Saul, "Tell the servant to pass on 4
5 before us, and when he has passed on, stop here yourself for a while, that I may make known to you the word of God." In verses 25-27 we see that after dinner, Samuel had a place prepared for Saul and the servant to sleep up on the roof as his guests. So Saul and his servant stayed there and Samuel got Saul up at the very precise time of at the break of dawn and he called him to come down so that he could send Saul on his way. Samuel went with him to the outskirts of the city and then told Saul to send his servant ahead so that he could tell Saul the word of God privately. 3. A series of signs with unfulfilled instructions (10:1b-10:13) As soon as Saul had done this, Samuel got all prophetic and broke out a flask of anointing oil and prophesied over Saul. Now, Saul must have wondered how in the world he could believe Samuel and so Samuel proceeded to give Saul such a detailed prophecy about what would happen that there was no way Saul could doubt what Samuel had said whatsoever. Curiously, this was just given to Saul privately, with the implication that Samuel didn t want Saul s servant to know. But the details were to serve as certain proof for Saul that this was from God. Samuel gave him three signs and he said, the first one is that: When you depart from me today, you will meet two men by Rachel's tomb in the territory of Benjamin at Zelzah, and they will say to you, 'The donkeys that you went to seek are found, and now your father has ceased to care about the donkeys and is anxious about you, saying, "What shall I do about my son?"' Then in verse 3, we see the second sign to confirm that this was from God: Then you shall go on from there further and come to the oak of Tabor. Three men going up to God at Bethel will meet you there, one carrying three young goats, another carrying three loaves of bread, and another carrying a skin of wine. 4 And they will greet you and give you two loaves of bread, which you shall accept from their hand. Then, in verse 5 and 6, we see the third sign of confirmation given to Saul to build his faith and assure him of God s plans for him: After that you shall come to Gibeath-elohim, where there is a garrison of the Philistines. And there, as soon as you come to the city, you will meet a group of prophets coming down from the high place with harp, tambourine, flute, and lyre before them, prophesying. 6 Then the Spirit of the LORD will rush upon you, and you will prophesy with them and be turned into another man. No one could ever want a more specific prophecy to confirm that what they were told was from God. All of us wish we had this kind of prophecy at times don t we? The prophecy demonstrated that God wasn t leaving anything to chance and nothing could be attributed to mere coincidence. They were going to meet two men who by the way were by Rachel s tomb at Zelzah and they would tell Saul very specific words about the donkeys and his father. Then, Saul was going to come to an oak at another city Tabor and he would meet three men who were going up to God at Bethel. And Samuel told Saul exactly what they would be carrying and that one of them would give him two loaves of bread. And then Saul would come to another city, which was a stronghold of the Philistines and as soon as he went into the city, he would meet some prophets of God and they would have some specific musical instruments with them and be prophesying. And Oh, by the way Saul, as soon as you see them, the Spirit of the LORD will fill you and you will prophesy and become a new man. Then, Samuel gives Saul two instructions about what he is to do in verses 7-8. 5
6 7 Now when these signs meet you, do what your hand finds to do, for God is with you. 8 Then go down before me to Gilgal. And behold, I am coming to you to offer burnt offerings and to sacrifice peace offerings. Seven days you shall wait, until I come to you and show you what you shall do." Now, there is something really strange about these verses and it reveals the character of Saul. God gave him two instructions. The first was that right after the Spirit rushed on him mightily outside of the garrison of the Philistines, right after he prophesied and he was like a new man full of the Spirit, he was to do what your hand finds to do, for God is with you. This is like when the Spirit rushed on Samson of old or on other judges and the Holy Spirit filled them to carry out military conquests. And this same language is used somewhere else too it is almost the exact same language that is used in Judges 9:33, where it is a military reference to go out against the enemy and, do to them as your hand finds to do. But we don t see him doing anything. He is filled mightily with the Spirit rushing on him right outside the garrison of the Philistines but he doesn t do anything. Saul is hesitant he is fearful he doesn t do what God wants him to do and he doesn t act like a man who remembers God is with him. All of the signs came to pass and God was giving Saul confirmation of what He was calling Saul to do. All of the people even noticed that Saul was filled with the Spirit and prophesying and it even became a wellknown proverb that God their father is even able to use Saul to prophesy. But Saul didn t obey. Not only did he not do anything with what he was given, he also didn t go to Gilgal and wait for Samuel. Instead, we see in verse 13, that, When he had finished prophesying, he came to the high place. The high place where he went was likely his home. He likely went home instead of obeying God he went to a place of safety. We know this is probably the case, because after he went to the high place, he meets his uncle in verse 14 and his uncle asks him where he went. 4. A crowning of a hesitant king (10:14-27) Saul says, I went to look for the donkeys, but we couldn t find them, so we went to Samuel. But then, Saul failed to tell him what really happened, that Samuel anointed him to be their ruler or that God had confirmed this with three signs or that he was filled with the spirit and prophesied and it was so well know that the people marveled. Saul wasn t responding very well. He wasn t responding in faith to what God was doing and he was timid. 17 Now Samuel called the people together to the LORD at Mizpah. 18 And he said to the people of Israel, "Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, 'I brought up Israel out of Egypt, and I delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of all the kingdoms that were oppressing you.' 19 But today you have rejected your God, who saves you from all your calamities and your distresses, and you have said to him, 'Set a king over us.' Now therefore present yourselves before the LORD by your tribes and by your thousands." God told them through Samuel that He was about to give them the king they wanted their kind of king, but in doing so, the LORD had Samuel give the people one last warning. God reminded them who He was He was their King their leader, their deliverer He delivered them from the slavery of the Egyptians and from all the nations who oppressed them. God is their true deliverer and the one who sets His people free and fights their battles. But then, God also reminded them that by seeking a king of their own choosing, they were now rejecting God. Instead of looking to God who is the One who truly saves you from all your calamities and distresses, they were turning to an earthly king for deliverance. 6
7 Then verse 20-21 tell us even though Samuel knew exactly who he was supposed to choose, he made the choice of their king a random lottery of sorts. The people all were sorted by the 12 tribes of Israel. And through lots, the tribe of Benjamin was chosen. Now, for the careful observer, if they had read or heard the book of Genesis, as they all were supposed to from an early age, they should have remembered that Jacob prophesied over his sons and prophesied that, The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until tribute comes to him; and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples (Genesis 49:10). You see they should have known that something was off, because after all, wasn t the true ruler of Israel, whom was to rule forever to come from the tribe of Judah. It should have made them at least wonder, Was this really the king that they were looking for? But no one seemed to notice and everyone went along. And then all the clans of Benjamin drew lots and the clan of the Matrites was taken. And then more lots were drawn and Kish s family was chosen randomly. Until, finally, Saul was randomly chosen by the casting of lots. But verse 21 gives us this almost comical picture. It says, But when they sought him, he could not be found. 22 So they inquired again of the LORD, "Is there a man still to come?" and the LORD said, "Behold, he has hidden himself among the baggage." 23 Then they ran and took him from there. And when he stood among the people, he was taller than any of the people from his shoulders upward. Here is Saul, this fine figure of a man, who was more handsome and more physically impressive than any other man in all of Israel. He had been given a prophecy to confirm that he was going to be anointed as the leader of Israel. He had been given a new heart and had even been filled with the Holy Spirit and had a great spiritual experience and prophesied. But he is down hiding in the baggage. This impressive man was not so impressive after all and this should have caused some red flags for the people that their chosen king was hiding in the baggage. He was fearful and didn t accept the responsibility that God had given at first. He was outwardly impressive but inwardly fearful. But they took him and got him and it mentions again just how tall he was indicating that the people were impressed with his outward appearance and not his character. So Samuel presented Saul in verses 24-25: 24 And Samuel said to all the people, "Do you see him whom the LORD has chosen? There is none like him among all the people." And all the people shouted, "Long live the king!" 25 Then Samuel told the people the rights and duties of the kingship, and he wrote them in a book and laid it up before the LORD. Then Samuel sent all the people away, each one to his home. The people didn t hear any qualifications they just saw that this man had been chosen by lot and that the prophet declared him king and that he was really handsome and looked the part of an impressive king. So they declared Long Live the King. And then it says Samuel told them all the rights and duties of the kingship that God had already outlined for his people in Deuteronomy 17. The king wasn t supposed to go after women or riches but was to be a man of God s Word and to make a copy of the law for himself. So, it says that Samuel wrote all this down and likely wrote the book of the law as well down and it says he laid it up before the LORD likely before the ark of the covenant, so that God would figuratively serve as a testimony to all that Samuel had told them. God was Samuel s witness and God was the One with whom the king was covenanting. So, if the king did not keep the rights and duties of the king, he would to answer to God. 7
8 Then, Samuel sent everyone home and we are left with another cliff-hanger. It says that some worthless men immediately opposed Saul and they despised him and didn t pay him homage. Did you notice that until the people said long live the King, Saul wasn t referred to as the King because God was going to make him a ruler and God still wanted to be their king? God s plan was for Saul to be a king under God. But these worthless men who don t know God like Eli s sons, they opposed a king who would be under God they wanted a king like the nations and they ask, " How can this man save us? And they despised him and brought him no present. But he held his peace. So, we are left wondering, what would their new king do? How will he respond? What kind of king will he be? Can this kind of man save them? It is the right question isn t it? Saul looks a lot like a powerful king on the outside but he has no power on the inside. In contrast, Jesus came meekly, and His divine power was clothed in poverty and humility and servanthood and weakness. Saul was given the encouragement and empowered to do what Samuel told him to do but he didn t carry it out. Jesus was empowered by the Holy Spirit and always did everything that the Father asked Him to do. Saul wasn t able to find his own donkeys. Jesus told His disciples where to go and find a donkey and when they did, they were to take the donkey and when the man asked them what they were doing, they were to say that the LORD has need of it. Saul was a fearful, timid king who was proud. Jesus is a humble, courageous King who faced our worst enemies. Jesus preached with amazing authority declaring God s Word while Saul hid God s Word from his uncle and hid among the baggage. There is a little bright spot though Saul held his peace when he was reviled and that s about the only similarity between him and the real King. Jesus was wrongly accused for our sake and was like a lamb that is silent before the slaughters. At the end of 1 Samuel, Saul dies a disgraceful death as a coward and he never came back again. Jesus died a shameful, disgraceful death courageously. He despised the shame of the Cross but for the joy set before Him of knowing He would rescue us, died for our sake endured the shame and pain on our behalf. Saul is not the kind of king we need but Jesus is the faithful King that we truly need and that we have. Jesus is the One who delivers us and rescues us from the oppressor. Jesus is the sinless, righteous king who didn t hide but took His place to die for the unrighteous. He took our judgment so that we might go free, so that we might run to God instead of running from Him. The question is, do you know the kind of hope that Jesus brings us? Do you know this king? Do you trust in His rule over your life? Saul points us to Jesus but he also serves as a lesson for us a lesson of what not to do. When we see God at work, we have a choice we can run from God or we can run to God. At the end of the chapter, we wonder what is going to happen next how will Saul respond? We have a choice like this as well. How will we respond with what we ve been given? Will we obey God and will we serve Him? God is in control and He is working all things according to His plans but like Saul, He still holds us responsible. God is orchestrating our lives and if we have placed our faith in Him, He is the one who has made us a new man or woman but we must respond and obey Him. 2015 Redeeming Grace Church. This transcribed message has been lightly edited and formatted for the Website. No attempt has been made, however, to alter the basic extemporaneous delivery style, or to produce a grammatically accurate, publication-ready manuscript conforming to an established style template. 8