A series in 1 SAMUEL Small Group Bible Studies Term 3, 2012 1
Introduction This term we are embarking on a ten week series in the Old Testament book of 1 Samuel. It recorded events in the life of the nation Israel, around 1000 BC, focusing on the establishment of Israel s monarchy, starting with the birth of Samuel and carrying on to the death of Saul. This narrative begins at a time when everyone does what is right in their own eyes (see Judges 21:25). How should we approach this book? One approach is to engage in character studies seeing the main people in the events as examples, seeing their struggles as parallel to ours. This is a valid approach look at how some of these characters are held up as models of faith in Hebrews chapter 11. However, 1 Samuel is first and foremost a record of God s actions, actions toward fulfilling his promises to Abraham. Primarily, it tells us about God, his character and his ways. We also need to read 1 Samuel as a prophecy fulfilled in what God did finally and fully to establish the Kingdom of God. It points forward to the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The most important questions we need to be asking are; in what way does this part of the Bible point to Jesus?; how does it help us to understand what God has done in Jesus? Then we can ask the questions about examples, warnings etc., in the characters we meet. Note: These studies have been adapted from studies prepared by St Faith s Narrabeen and studies prepared by Campus Crusade for Christ. St Matt s Staff Team 2
The Throne - studies in 1 Samuel Timetable Study Sermon Date Week of corresponding Title Passage Number Group Study N/A N/A Wednesday 18 July Teaching night by John Woodhouse OVERVIEW of 1 SAMUEL 1 22/7/12 23 27 July (Mon Fri) (after sermon) 2 29/7/12 30/7 3/8 (Mon Fri) (after sermon) Cradle & kingdom The Voice 1 Samuel 1:1-2:10 1 Samuel 2:11-4:1 3 5/8/12 6 10 August Beware the king 1 Samuel 8 (after sermon) 4 12/8/12 13 17 August (Mon Fri) (after sermon) 5 19/8/12 20-24 August (Mon Fri) (after sermon) A king s rise A king s demise 1 Samuel 9-12 1 Samuel 13-15 6 26/8/12 (Family service) 7 2/9/12 (Father s Day) 27-31 August (Mon Fri) (after sermon) 3-7 September (Mon Fri) (after sermon) Rally in the valley 1 Samuel 17 Divine vision 1 Samuel 16 8 9/9/12 10-14 Sept (Mon Fri) (after sermon) 9 16/9/12 17 21 Sept (Mon Fri) (after sermon) 10 23/9/12 24-28 Sept (Mon Fri) SCHOOL HOLIDAYS Total surrender Test of faith The king is dead. Long live the king. 1 Samuel 18-20 1 Samuel 21-24 1 Samuel 28-31 3
Study 1 Cradle & Kingdom (1 Samuel 1:1-2:10) LAUNCH When do you find it hardest to trust God? Why? Discuss. EXPLORE Read 1 Samuel 1:1-28 Here, we are immersed in the life of Hannah, an Israelite woman. She lived at a very low point in Israel s history. God had made great promises to Israel promises of a land and a great nation, if the people would be faithful to God. Under Joshua, the people put their trust in God, and began to take control of the land God had promised. Yet, after Joshua s death, the people forsake God, and begin to worship the gods of the neighbouring nations. The book of Judges records a downward spiral, as Israel turns to other gods, then God judges and punishes, Israel repents, the Lord restores them by raising up a leader, then they fall away, worse than before. At the end of Judges, the nation is in chaos, idolatry and evil are rife, and they follow no leader. What hope? And what has happened to God s promise to establish his Kingdom, by establishing a nation from Abraham s descendants? What about the promise that they would be God s special people, living in the land he would give them? Enter Hannah. 1. Hannah is in great distress (e.g. v7, v10). Why is this the case? 2. How does Hannah respond to her situation? (vv9-20) 4
3. What do the events in verses 21-28 show about what matters most to Hannah? How is she an example to us? 4. How does God respond to Hannah s cry? Read 1 Samuel 2:1-10 5. What stands out to you about the focus of Hannah s prayer? 6. List the main things these verses teach about the character and ways of God 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 7. How do the points above relate to Hannah s experience? 8. According to Hannah s song, who should take comfort, and who should be warned? 5
APPLY 9. Personally, how does Hannah s example help you to trust God when facing a crisis? 10. Have you seen God deliver you from a crisis? If you are able, share this with the group. 11. Hannah s song is a demonstration of what God is going to do later on, to fulfill his promises. The child Samuel was to go on to serve God s people Israel. How is his story (birth etc.) similar to that of Jesus? PRAYER POINTS: 6
Study 2 The Voice (1 Samuel 2:11 4:1) LAUNCH Describe a time in your life when you have been very disappointed because a spiritual leader didn t seem to live up to his or her calling. What did you do? EXPLORE Read 1 Samuel 2:11-36. 1. How would you contrast Samuel with Eli s sons? 2. Why does God rebuke Eli for his sons conduct? 3. What does God promise in the face of the religious abuses of Eli s sons, and who seems to be the immediate fulfillment of this promise? Read 1 Samuel 3:1-4:1a. 4. What does it say about God that he intervenes in the history of his people at a time when word from him was rare and everyone was going their own way (3:1; cf. Judges 21:25)? 5. What are the results of God calling Samuel (3:15-4a), and how do these results address the corruption of religious leadership that had come about through Eli and his sons? 7
6. What are the main things we learn about God from this passage? 7. Read John 1:14 and Hebrews 1:1-3. How is Jesus the ultimate expression of God s heart to speak his word to his people? APPLY 8. In what ways do you (as Eli did) honor others above God instead of giving him the reverence he deserves? 9. What warnings are there here, about disciplining children, and about Christian leadership in general? Discuss. 10. How are you comforted by knowing that you can go to Jesus as the faithful priest who will always do what is on God s heart and mind? PRAYER POINTS: 8
Study 3 Beware the king (1 Samuel 8) LAUNCH Talk about a time you wanted something really badly, got it, and then realized that what you got wasn t such a good thing after all. EXPLORE Read 1 Samuel 8:1-9 1. If the Israelites were thinking that one of Samuel s sons would succeed him in giving leadership to the people, what concerns might they have had? 2. What solution do the people offer? 3. According to Deuteronomy 17:14-20, it was part of God s purpose for Israel to one day have a king. Why, then, are both God and Samuel so displeased with the request here? Read 1 Samuel 8:10-22 4. What does God say it will be like for Israel to have a king? 5. What does God say in verse 18 about whether the people will be satisfied in the end with having a king? 9
6. After taking in the consequences of having a king and having God reject them, how do the people respond in verses 19-20? Why? 7. What is sobering about God s willingness to grant the people s desire in spite of their rejection of him? APPLY 8. In what ways can you relate to the people s desire to reject God as the source of security and significance and search for those things elsewhere? 9. In what way is searching for these things elsewhere than God an expression of serving other gods (verse 8)? 10. How does a desire to be like all the people around you play into this? (See verses 5, 20) 11. Read Romans 12:1-2. What do these verses say about our desire to be like the world around us? 10
12. In light of this discussion, how do you think God is calling you to respond to him so that you might experience the blessings of his kingship in your life? 13. What are the main things we learn about God and people from this passage? PRAYER POINTS: 11
Study 4 A king s rise (1 Samuel 9-12) LAUNCH Has there ever been a time in your life when you did something wrong and expected to be punished for it, but received grace instead? Discuss. EXPLORE Read 1 Samuel 9:1-2; 9:15-10:27 1. How would you describe Saul based on 1 Samuel 9:1-2? 2. What does God do through Samuel to affirm Saul as king in 9:15-10:21? 3. How do the people respond to Saul s kingship? Read 1 Samuel 11:1-15 4. How would you describe Saul s first test as King? 12
5. How does Saul respond to this test? 6. How does God show grace to his people through Saul s leadership, even though they sinned against God by asking for a king? Read 1 Samuel 12:1-25 7. How do the people respond when they realize the gravity of their sin? 8. How does Samuel tell the people to respond in the face of their sin? 9. How does Samuel encourage the people regarding God s character? 10. Read 1 Peter 2:9-10. How does the people s experience with God in Samuel s day look forward to our experience with God through faith in Jesus Christ? 13
APPLY 11. In what ways do you need to heed Samuel s call to fear the LORD and serve him faithfully with all your heart; consider what great things he has done for you (1 Samuel 12:24)? 12. What do we learn about God s heart for his people through these chapters? PRAYER POINTS: 14
Study 5 A king s demise 1 Samuel 13-15 LAUNCH Think of a time when you ve been under poor leadership. How has that experience motivated you to experience better leadership in the future or be a better leader yourself? EXPLORE Initial enthusiasm is a great thing. You start something, a new job for example, and because you are approaching it for the first time, there is an excitement about it. But the real test comes when you have been working at something for a while. In a similar way, people can start out as Christians with great enthusiasm, but struggle in the long term. Saul is like this. Last week we saw how Saul began as king in chapters 9-12. Please read chapters 13 & 14. Our study though will focus on chapter 15, which records Saul s final failure and rejection. Some background to help us understand the events here: the Amalekites (Ch 15 v 2 ff) were a nation of nomadic raiders, who inhabited the region south of Israel, above Egypt. They had attacked Israel, as God led his people out of Egypt many years before (See Exodus 17:8-16 and Deuteronomy 25:17-19). For this reason, God had declared that they should be utterly destroyed. They had opposed him and his purposes. Read 1 Samuel 15:1-9 1. From chapter 15:1-3, what is Saul told to do? Why? 2. How does Saul respond to this command? (see verses 4-9) 15
Read 1 Samuel 15:10-21 3. What does Samuel accuse Saul of doing? 4. How does Saul defend himself, at first? ( v 13, then v21) 5. Why do you think Saul acted as he did? What pressures might he have been under, and from whom? ( see also verse 21) Read 1 Samuel 15:22-35 6. What is the heart of Saul s problem? (Look also at verse 12) 7. What is God s response to these actions by his king? 8. What does Samuel do in response, and why? APPLY 9. In what ways can you relate to Saul s failure to take responsibility for his actions, and passion for his own image? 16
10. Religion is popular amongst many people today. Why do you think this is? In what way is Saul s experience a lesson to us, especially if we are involved in religious observances or other church activities? Discuss. 11. Read Hebrews 10:5-10 and 2 Corinthians 5:21. How does Jesus fulfill our longing for a perfect King, and how do we as his followers benefit from his perfect Kingship? PRAYER POINTS: 17
Study 6 Rally in the valley (1 Samuel 17) LAUNCH Have you ever been in a difficult situation where you could do nothing but simply rely on another to rescue you from it? Discuss. EXPLORE Read 1 Samuel 17:1-11 1. How would you describe the setting of this narrative in your own words based on verses 1-3? 2. What impression do verses 4-10 give of Goliath? 3. How do Saul and the people respond to Goliath s challenge in verse 11? Read 1 Samuel 17:12-58 4. From verse 26, what is it about David s approach that is different from others in Israel? Why? 5. How do others view David: - His brother Eliab (v 28)? - Saul (v33 )? - Goliath (v42)? What do you think the writer wants us to understand by this? 18
6. What is David s main concern in what he does? What drives him to fight Goliath? 7. What makes David confident of victory? 8. What is the result of David s victory, for Israel? APPLY 9. The writer to the Hebrews, in the New Testament, holds David up for us as one example of the sort of faith that we as Christians should live by (see Hebrews 11:32-34). What priorities and concerns should we imitate? How are you challenged and encouraged by David s faith? 10. David is a bit like a scale model of the True Saviour King to come, Jesus. Can you see any similarities between David and Jesus? (e.g in what others thought of him, Mark 6:3) 11. Our place in the David and Goliath battle is first and foremost as one of the soldiers of Israel, for whom God has won the victory with no help from us. What do we enjoy as Christians, as a result of Jesus victory on our behalf? (e.g Colossians 1:13-14 ). Take time to thank God for these things. PRAYER POINTS: 19
Study 7 Divine vision (1 Samuel 16) LAUNCH Don t judge a book by its cover is a famous saying. Why is it wrong to judge people externally? Why do we do it so frequently? EXPLORE Read 1 Samuel 16:1-7 1. Why do you think Samuel was mourning for Saul? 2. What is hopeful about God saying, in verse 1, that he has selected a king? 3. What does God send Samuel to do? 4. What is the difference between Samuel s and God s assessment of Jesse s first son? Read 1 Samuel 16:8-13 5. What do you think is significant about the positive descriptions of David s appearance, in verse 12, combined with God s statement about the priority of the heart, in verse 7? 20
6. What happens to David once Samuel anoints him? Read 1 Samuel 16:14-23 7. What happens to Saul in this section? 8. How do Saul s servants try to resolve Saul s problem? 9. What contrasts do you observe between David and Saul in this section? APPLY 10. With respect to yourself and others, in what ways do you place too much value on outward appearance and neglect the value of a heart that s oriented toward God? 11. Do you see any similarities between God s choice of David as king, and King Jesus? PRAYER POINTS: 21
Study 8 Total surrender (1 Samuel 18 20) LAUNCH What are some indications that God is with a person? EXPLORE Read 1 Samuel 18 1. Jonathan makes a covenant with David and gives him items (verses 1-4) signifying that he was conferring his rights as crown prince upon David. How does this strike you as unusual? 2. What evidence do you see of David s prosperity or blessing in this chapter? 3. To what does the author attribute David s prosperity or blessing? 4. How does Saul respond to David s blessedness? Read 1 Samuel 19 5. How does God show his favor to David in this chapter? Read 1 Samuel 20 6. Summarize the plan Jonathan and David devise in verses 1-23. 22
7. How does Saul respond when David misses dinner for a second night in a row? APPLY 8. Read Matthew 6:33. Just as Jonathan sought a kingdom other than his own, Jesus calls us to do the same. In what ways do you find yourself seeking your own kingdom, and how do you sense God calling you to change to ensure you re seeking his kingdom? 9. Think about a difficult circumstance you re facing. What difference would it make if you saw that this circumstance is part of God s bigger plan for your life? 10. Read Romans 8:28-39. In what ways do these themes show up so long before in these chapters of 1 Samuel? PRAYER POINTS: 23
Study 9 Test of Faith (1 Samuel 21-24) LAUNCH How can you tell the difference between an opportunity from God and a temptation from the devil? EXPLORE Read chapters 21 23, where again and again we see Saul s pursuit of David, David s dependence on God in the face of adversity, and more importantly, God s protection of David. Read 1 Samuel 24:1-3 1. Describe the setting in your own words. Read 1 Samuel 24:4-7 2. How do David s men interpret this situation? 3. How does David respond to his men s encouragement? 4. What motivates David to keep his men from harming Saul? Read 1 Samuel 24:8-15 5. What does David do after Saul leaves the cave? 6. In what ways does David express trust in the LORD in his words to Saul? 24
Read 1 Samuel 24:16-22 7. How does Saul respond to David? APPLY 8. Read Matthew 4:1-10. Do you see any parallels between the temptation to kill Saul that David was presented with and the temptation Satan presented to Jesus? 9. Read Romans 12:19. How does David exemplify this command? 10. How can you relate to the temptation to seize opportunities prematurely and take matters into your own hands, instead of waiting for God and his perfect timing? 11. Read Philippians 1:9-11. What can you apply from these verses to help you discern between opportunities from God and temptations that don t come from him? PRAYER POINTS: 25
Study 10 The king is dead. Long live the king. (1 Samuel 28-31) LAUNCH Talk about a time when, instead of turning to God, you tried to solve a problem on your own, and created a big mess for yourself. Read 1 Samuel 28:3-25 1. As this section begins, why is Saul afraid? 2. How does Saul react? 3. What happens as Saul seeks a sorcerer? Read 1 Samuel 30 4. Summarize David s crisis as this chapter begins. 5. How does David respond to this crisis? 26
6. How does God work to turn a tragedy into a triumph? How does David s response in the aftermath of this triumph show his understanding of the way God has been gracious to him? APPLY 7. Read Psalm 23:6. How do you see the LORD s goodness and love following David in 1 Samuel? 8. Read Matthew 27:45-46 and Hebrews 13:5. How does Jesus suffering and death deliver us from experiencing the abandonment from God that we, like Saul, deserve for our disobedience? 9. What practical steps should you take in any crisis? PRAYER POINTS: 27