Holy Spirit A Tale of Two kings

Monday, February 3, 2025

Saul

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!”   1 Samuel 10:34

Please read 1 Samuel 8:19-11:15. In this section of Scripture we find Israel rejecting God as their king and desiring a king like the other nations had. God tells Samuel to honor their request (1 Samuel 8:24). Samuel anointed Saul in obedience to the command of the Lord (1 Samuel 10:1). Ceremonial anointing in the Old Testament was and act where a special oil (Exodus 30:22-33) was smeared, rubbed, or poured on someone’s head serving as a symbol that God had chosen and set apart that person for a specific purpose. This anointing for kings, priests, and prophets also symbolized that God’s presence was with them and His favor was upon them. This is the anointing that Saul received from Samuel. Saul was the man God has chosen as king of his people. The Spirit of God rushed upon Saul, empowering him for the work of the Lord that he was set aside to do. All the people came together and recognized the anointing that Saul had received, and they made him the first human king over God’s people. Saul had a clear path before him. He had the opportunity and the anointing of God, and the presence of the Spirit to lead the people. Consider this anointing. It happened differently in the Old Testament, but we too have been set apart for the Lord. Think about the way that God has called you and set you apart to serve him. How are you living out that call with the power entrusted to you?
 


Tuesday, February 4, 2025

Rejected

And Samuel said to Saul, “I will not return with you. For you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel.”   1 Samuel 15:26

Please read 1 Samuel 13-15. God rejects Saul from being king over Israel (1 Samuel 15:26). Saul’s heart was not given over to the Lord. He was disobedient and did not care for that which was entrusted to him by God. He did not lead God’s people for God, he led them for his own gain. The Spirit had rushed upon him and given him the power that was needed, but Saul pridefully used his own power, his own intellect, his own desires and his own greed to rule over him. He sought to take advantage of the sacrifice on more than one occasion (13:8ff, 15:21). Samuel declares what is true. Obedience is better than sacrifice. For God, obedience is an indicator of love (John 14:21-23). One who loves God obeys God and God is pleased to be with that person. Saul discovered that disobedience brought rejection. It is not that God has changed his mind about Saul. It is that God responded according to his changeless nature to Saul’s change in conduct. Saul was unable to lead the people for God. He was not ready to sacrifice from a pure heart. God will remove the Spirit from Saul (16:14). He is no longer king and so he will no longer need to power of God to rule. As you consider the life of Saul and his response to God, consider that if you are a follower of Jesus, you have been saved by his sacrifice for you. Are there any ways that you have tried to take advantage of his sacrifice? Ask the Lord to fill you with a love for him that reveals itself in joyful obedience to his word!
 


Wednesday, February 5, 2025 

Spirit

Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward. And Samuel rose up and went to Ramah.    1 Samuel 16:13

Please read 1 Samuel 16 today. Throughout all of Scripture, we see God working his plan. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are involved in the unfolding of that plan. Remember that the Holy Spirit is not to be thought of as merely a force. He is a Person. It is through the Holy Sprit that the power of God comes upon people. In the Old Testament, this did not signify salvation as such, although salvation may accompany his presence. The power of God in the Person of the Holy Spirit would come upon people to empower them to do remarkable work for God. There are several places in the Old Testament that we see this to be true (Numbers 11:25; Judges 3:10, 6:34, 11:29, 14:6, 14:19, 15:14, 2 Chronicles 24:20). Joshua was said to have the Spirit in him and to be full of the Spirit to lead the people of Israel into the Promised Land (Numbers 27:18; Deuteronomy 34:9). God, coming on people (in some cases rushing upon people) in the Person of the Holy Spirit allowed his redemptive plan to move forward and to unfold. This is God’s providence unfolding in the account of the nation of Israel. The Spirit rushing upon David prepares him to be the king of Israel, but even more, as the plan of God unfolds, we will see this being the foundation for the coming King. Consider the patience of God as he works to unfold his plan of redemption. Consider Father, Son, and Holy Spirit working inseparably to bring about salvation.
 


Thursday, February 6, 2025

Left

And she said, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” And he awoke from his sleep and said, “I will go out as at other times and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the Lord had left him.   Judges 16:20

Please read the account of Samson today as found in Judges 13-16. Many people know the story of Samson. From before birth he was set apart for service to the Lord. Throughout his life there were moments when the Spirit came upon him and empowered him to do remarkable things (14:6,19; 15:14 and implied in 16:28ff). There was one moment that was very significant in the life of Samson. It was the moment the Spirit left him. What was perhaps most significant about that moment was that Scripture records that he didn’t even realize the Spirit had left. He was so out of touch with the presence of God in his life that he did not even know when the presence departed. As we read the account of Samson, we notice that he has faults and definite lapses in judgment. But perhaps being born with such a promise led to a bit of a sense of entitlement. Perhaps that is what caused him to lose touch with the power of God in his life. It seems he lived the way he wanted and trusted that the power that had been given him would get him out of the trouble he had managed to find his way into. Until it didn’t. Because The Lord left him. I have thought of this verse as one of the saddest in Scripture. Yet, it has served as a wakeup call for me more than once in my life. Since the ascension of Jesus, the Spirit comes and dwells permanently in the lives of those who are born again. What an amazing gift. But do I know this presence with a sense of entitlement that keeps me from depending upon his presence every step of the way in my life? Take some time today to praise God for the Holy Spirit within you!
 


Friday, February 7, 2025

Take not

Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me.  Psalm 51:11

Please read Psalm 51 today. Many years after David was anointed king, he fell into sin with Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11). Nathan confronts David about this, and David repents (2 Samuel 12). Psalm 51 gives us a glimpse into his repentant heart, and his open transparency and vulnerability allow us to see how a truly repentant person approaches God. In the midst of his psalm, he prays that God would not take the Holy Spirit from him. As opposed to Samson, David seems to know the presence of the Holy Spirit in his life and can’t imagine life without him. Notice the verses that surround this prayer (10-12). He prays for a clean heart and a right spirit within himself. He prays that he would not be cast from the presence of God and that God would restore the joy of the salvation that David had received from him. Finally, he prays for a willing spirit within himself. David was a man after God’s own heart (1 Samuel 13:14). He had seen what happened to Saul. He was there when God departed from Saul and so he knew that was a possibility for him as well. He had been entrusted to lead God’s people in God’s way with God’s power. He sinned. He repented. God forgave. There would be consequences to his sin, but the Spirit leaving him was not one of those consequences. Take some time today to ponder the heart of this amazing man of God. How do you approach God in repentance? I pray that God would not allow me to ever take for granted the amazing gift of the Spirit in my life. I pray that I will stay in his presence in confession and repentance, reliant upon his Power in my life.
 


Saturday, February 8, 2025

Inspired

For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.  2 Peter 1:21

Please read 2 Peter 1:16-21 today. Tomorrow in our services we will consider the role of the Holy Spirit in the inspiration and illumination and interpretation of Scripture. Throughout all the Old Testament, the Spirit of God was coming upon the prophets and the priests and the kings. He was guiding them and leading them, and he was bringing the word of God to them and through them. The Bible we read and memorize is much more than mere words, it is the heart of God breathed out and preserved for us. As you prepare your hearts for worship this weekend, take some moments to memorize 2 Peter 1:21. It will serve to remind you that God has given the word to you! 

Holy Spirit A Tale of Two kings