Serve and Obey the Lord - 1 Samuel 12

When you think of words that describe Christianity what words come to mind? Love. Grace. Forgiveness.

What about serve and obey? They aren’t typically the ones that immediately jump to our mind? In fact, there’s often a level of discomfort whenever the Bible plainly talks about the necessity of obedience in the life of a Christian.

And that’s because we’ve been trained to equate any command of obedience with legalism.

And yet in our passage, we’re reminded that Christians are called to serve and obey the Lord. In fact, it’s exactly what Samuel told the people of Israel in verse 14, “If you will fear the Lord and serve him and obey his voice and not rebel against the commandment of the Lord, and if both you and the king who reigns over you will follow the Lord your God, it will be well.”

Christians are called to serve and obey the Lord. But of course, Christians are not called to an arbitrary sort of obedience. Our passage reminds us that we serve and obey God because of what he’s done for us (vv. 1-12), because he’s long-suffering (vv. 13-18), and lastly because he sent us a mediator (vv. 19-25).

It’s hard to believe that it’s been three weeks since we were last in the book of 1 Samuel, but three weeks ago we looked at 1 Samuel 11. And in 1 Samuel 11, Nahash the king of the Ammonites was threatening the people of Israel. The part that most of us probably remember was that he wanted to gouge out everyone’s right eye, in order to disable Israel’s fighting force. But God raised up Saul for this exact purpose: to protect the people of Israel from their enemies.

And that’s exactly what happened: By the grace and power of God, Saul fought and defeated the Ammonites.

Because of what God’s done for us (vv. 1–12)

And as a follow up to their great victory Samuel gave a speech. Depending on how you categorize them, what we have in 1 Samuel 12 is Samuel’s fourth speech to Israel. He called Israel to repentance in chapter 7, he warned them about the monarchy in chapter 8, and he gathered the people together for Saul’s coronation in chapter 10. 1 Samuel 12 is Samuel’s final grand speech to all of Israel. We’ll see Samuel again in chapters 13, 15, and 16, but this is his final major speech.

I don’t know if you’ve ever noticed this, but sometimes when someone stands up to give a speech, you think to yourself, I don’t know if you’re the right guy for this speech. Especially if there is some sort of deep irony. Things can get a little awkward if for example, a man gives a speech on personal integrity and it’s well known that he’s not exactly a man of integrity.

Samuel was well aware of this fact - that elements of your personal life can discredit what you say. Which is why he invited an indictment against himself. He asks everyone if he had stolen anything, defrauded anyone, or taken any bribes. And of course the answer was no. That’s not to say that Samuel was sinless, but rather, that he had led Israel well. He had led them with integrity and honor.

Which of course would have meant that he has every right to say what he’s about to say. There is no awkwardness, there is no irony.

And so Samuel’s speech begins where many Old Testament speeches began - by tracing Israel’s history.

He recalled Israel’s deliverance from Egypt and how God sent Moses and Aaron to lead Israel out of slavery in Egypt. But what eventually happened in Israel? Verse 9, “...they forgot the Lord their God.”

Then he recounted the period of the judges. The people of Israel would “forsake” the Lord, be overrun by their enemies, and then cry out to the Lord, who would then send a judge to deliver them. Jerubbaal and Barak and Jephthah were judges who saved Israel. Jerubbaal was Gideon’s nickname after he destroyed Baal’s altar.

We’re often reminded of the importance of history aren’t we? We’re often encouraged to study history so we don’t repeat the same mistakes. And so on a cursory level, you might think that that’s Samuel’s point! Remember all the things that have gone wrong? Avoid all of this!

But that’s not Samuel’s point! Samuel’s point in recounting the history of Israel was to say, “look at what the Lord has done. Look at how the Lord has always provided and protected us.”

He says that in verse 7. He encouraged them to remember the, “righteous deeds of the Lord that he performed for you and for your fathers.”

Why is Samuel sharing this? Shouldn’t the people of Israel already know their history? Well, yes. But he tells them why in verse 12, “And when you saw that Nahash the king of the Ammonites came against you, you said to me, ‘No, but a king shall reign over us,’ when the Lord your God was your king.”

They had just won this incredible battle! Saul had just rallied Israel together to defeat Nahash, and there was something brewing underneath the surface: and that was to give Saul credit for something God had done.

It’s so easy to misplace credit, isn’t it? There’s a temptation to give man credit for things that God has done. But something terrible happens when we fail to give God the glory for something that He has done and instead give it to man - that’s the first step towards forgetting all about him! If all you do is think about man and what he’s done then it’s almost inevitable that you’re going to forget about God.

Which was Samuel’s whole point for tracing the history of Israel. They were about to repeat the same mistake! They were going to forget all about God or worse, they were going to start believing He God wasn’t capable of saving them.

You can almost sense the consensus in Israel… what would we have done if we didn’t have Saul? Saul really took care of things for us. Israel had more faith in a human king’s ability to save them than the living God of the universe.

It reminds me of that passage from John 5 when Jesus meets the crippled man at the pool of Bethesda. And Jesus asks the crippled man, “Do you want to be healed?” And do you remember the crippled man’s response?

“Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, and while I am going another steps down before me.” There was some sort of belief floating around that there was magical healing powers in the water and if you got in the water first when it was “stirred up,” then you could be healed.

It would be funny if it wasn’t so sad. You have this deep irony in the passage because the incarnate Son of God, who made heaven and earth and possessed all authority and power standing in front of a crippled man asking him if he wanted to be healed and the man is looking at the waters going, no one will put me in the waters in time.

It’s so much like Israel in our passage isn’t it? They’re looking at God and saying, “what would we do without Saul?” I’m sure the people of Israel may have said, “God is good. But we’re really happy Saul’s our king.” It wouldn’t have been an out and out rejection of God. It would have been much more subtle.

There’s a similar attitude among many who profess faith in Jesus Christ. We often limit God’s power.

God can only get us here, before we need money, education, politics, relationships to give rest to our souls.

So often those who profess faith in Christ are more than willing to assent to his power and authority, but they don’t believe it can affect their life. It’s the attitude that is so pervasive in the Side-B, gay Christianity movement.

They’d say that God has the power to change lives except when it comes to changing one’s sexual desires. That’s where God’s power stops. God is totally powerless when it comes to sexuality.

It’s the same mentality as the people of Israel. God can only do so much for us before we need a king.

Because God is long-suffering (vv. 13-18)

Have you ever wondered, why doesn’t God just strike down the militant atheist? The atheist who intentionally uses offensive language and takes the Lord’s name in vain just to upset believers - why doesn’t God strike him down?

The answer is simple: Because God is gracious, merciful, patient and long-suffering. By the way, it’s not just the hardened unbeliever that God is patient towards, it’s even towards his children.

The people of Israel have clearly sinned in their request for a king, but God doesn’t immediately strike them down either.

God’s long-suffering and patience should cause us to turn from our sin, trust, and live for him. Paul makes in Romans 2:

“Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?”

God’s patience and loving-kindness should cause us to trust and live for him. There are blessings when we live for the Lord. But on the flipside, if you never turn from your sin and trust in him - then you can expect curses. When God enters into a covenant, there are expectations.

Which is precisely the point that Samuel is trying to make in verses 14-15.

“If you will fear the Lord and serve him and obey his voice and not rebel against the commandment of the Lord, and if both you and the king who reigns over you will follow the Lord your God, it will be well. 15 But if you will not obey the voice of the Lord, but rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then the hand of the Lord will be against you and your king.”

If you “fear the Lord” or have faith or trust in Jesus then there are expectations and the expectation is you will “serve him and obey his voice.” The natural outflow of faith in Christ is obedience to Him. Which was the expectation for the people of Israel too. If they truly “feared the Lord” then that would bear fruit in obedience to Him.

If a child says he loves his parents, but he ignores, rejects, and dismisses everything they say, and spits in their face every chance he gets - wouldn’t that cause you to wonder if he actually loved his parents? But a child who says he loves his parents and takes to heart their instruction and seeks to obey them, wouldn’t that be consistent with his profession?

How many people do we all know who profess faith in Christ, but if they didn’t tell you that you’d never know it. Because the manner in which they live their lives bears no resemblance to their profession. There’s a disconnect between what they claim to believe and how they live.

We really get a picture of God’s graciousness through his patience and long-suffering don’t we? But you must remember if you don’t turn from sin and never trust and obey Christ, then you’re storing up God’s wrath.

In fact, it’s a healthy thing for every Christian to remember that we don’t deserve God’s grace, but his wrath. Sin cannot go unpunished.

I remember one time when I was in high school and we were in the middle of two-a-day football practice in the middle of the summer. Football is tough, football coaches are tough. You play no matter the weather conditions. But one time, dark clouds rolled up on us in the middle of practice, and then out of nowhere a massive bolt of lightning came crashing down, thunder rattled the ground. And one of our coaches took off sprinting to the field house. In case you’re wondering, the whole team went into the field house until the storm passed.

And what on earth can make you feel small, powerless, defenseless and weak - than standing outside in the middle of a massive thunderstorm? The pounding rain, lightning flashing, the groundshaking thunder - it’s scary isn’t it?

Normally we think of powerful thunderstorms as something that happens in the heat of summer. But something very different happens in our passage. Samuel reveals in verse 17 that it was wheat harvest, which was the dry time of year. It was the time of year when thunderstorms didn’t happen.

Samuel says, “I will call upon the Lord, that he may send thunder and rain. And you shall know and see that your wickedness is great, which you have done in the sight of the Lord, in asking for yourselves a king.”

And what happened? “Samuel called upon the Lord, and the Lord sent thunder and rain that day, and all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel.”

They’re getting a tiny taste of what they actually deserved. As W.G. Blaikie pointed out, God showed Israel, “what agencies of destruction [He] held in his hand, and how easily He could bring these to bear on them and on their property.”

Because it’s not just important that we remember we’re sinners. Everyone is willing to acknowledge they’ve made a few mistakes over the years here and there. No, it’s important to remember what we deserve for our sin - wrath, condemnation, and destruction.

Israel is breaking covenants, rejecting God, in open sin when here comes the thunderstorm. The thunderstorm demonstrated that God could destroy them. After all, covenant breaking sin is offensive to God who alone has the power to kill both body and soul. Bottom line: sin is serious.

We tend to think of Jesus as a perpetually positive, inoffensive man, but one of the more interesting facts about Jesus is that he talked about hell more than heaven.

Remember Jesus famously said in Mark 9, “...if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than with two hands to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire.”

Jesus is making a clear point: If you are apathetic, flippant, and indifferent, towards sin in your life, my friend - a massive thunderstorm of God’s wrath is heading your way.

And yet we trivialize sin, don’t we? We tell ourselves it’s not that big of a deal! Just a little mistake I made. Everyone does it. People will forget about it. It’s totally fine! Those are the lies that we regularly tell ourselves in order to soothe our consciences.

Sometimes we need our spiritual cages rattled! You and I don’t deserve grace. We don’t deserve mercy. We deserve wrath.

God certainly has the power and authority to condemn, he even gave them a little glimpse of it in the thunderstorm, but he didn’t do it. Because He’s gracious, merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

Resting in God’s mediator (v. 19–25)

But there’s no avoiding God’s wrath on your own. You cannot stand before God on your own merit. You need someone to stand before God on your behalf.

The people of Israel were keenly aware of their inability to stand before God on their own. Did you catch what they said in verse 19? “Pray for your servants to the Lord your God, that we may not die, for we have added to all our sins this evil, to ask for ourselves a king.”

The people of Israel were repentant and at the same time they wanted Samuel to stand before the Lord on their behalf. But Samuel offers them words of comfort, doesn’t he?

“Do not be afraid; you have done all this evil. Yet do not turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart. 21 And do not turn aside after empty things that cannot profit or deliver, for they are empty. 22 For the Lord will not forsake his people, for his great name's sake, because it has pleased the Lord to make you a people for himself.”

Samuel is functioning as a mediator between God and the people of Israel. He even prays on behalf of the people. “Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you, and I will instruct you in the good and the right way.”

Doesn’t this remind you of Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer? Jesus said, “For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. 9 I am praying for them.”

Jesus like Samuel prays for his people too.

But of course, there’s a broader parallel here. Paul reminds us in 1 Timothy 2: “there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all."

Samuel could only encourage people to trust in the Lord, but he couldn’t remove their guilt. Samuel couldn’t remove the stains of their sin. But of course, Jesus can. His sacrifice on the cross removes the guilt of sin and gives you peace with God.

Jesus will shelter you from the thunderstorm of God’s wrath. And it’s because of that glorious truth, we worship, serve, and obey him.

Which is exactly where Samuel ends his speech. Right where he started it: “Only fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart. For consider what great things he has done for you.”

But at the same time Samuel offers a stark warning for all who reject the Lord and persist in their sin: “But if you still do wickedly, you shall be swept away, both you and your king.”

Samuel’s entire speech is covenantal in nature. There are blessings associated with serving the Lord and curses with rejecting him. Which is something that we all know: there’s an eternal hope for all who trust in Jesus Christ and eternal condemnation for all who reject him.

But I want to challenge our preconceived notions: service and obedience are not legalistic terms. Because Biblically speaking, service and obedience to God are expressions of your love for him.

Jesus said that. “If you love me you will keep my commandments.” Obedience doesn’t earn you favor with God, but it is the right response for what he’s done for you. That’s Samuel’s speech isn’t it? Look at what the Lord has done, and because of what he’s done for you - you should serve and obey him. Because if you’re truly trusting in Jesus Christ then that reality will be reflected in your life.

Being a police officer is an incredibly tough job. I’m really thankful for them, but I have to admit, they keep making a difficult job even harder. I think the body cameras make things tougher. I get why they needed them. They were standardized in order to protect officers. But I have to imagine it’s a terrifying experience when someone up the chain of command wants to review your body cam footage. Who knows what they’ll find, right? It’s recording everything you say and do!

Hopefully you can see where I’m going with this: if you profess faith in Jesus Christ and we put a body cam on you - what would we find? Would we find a life of service and obedience to him? Would we find someone who, “serves [the Lord] and obeys his voice” out of love for everything that he has done for you? Or would we find someone who does “not obey the voice of the Lord, but rebels against [His] commands.”

May each of us here today, “fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all our heart.” Amen. Let’s pray together.