The Need for Leaders
Opening Prayer
Think about your pastor(s) and the people who lead your church. Thank God for their faith and commitment.
Read 1 Samuel 8:1-22
[1] When Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons as Israel’s leaders. [2] The name of his firstborn was Joel and the name of his second was Abijah, and they served at Beersheba. [3] But his sons did not follow his ways. They turned aside after dishonest gain and accepted bribes and perverted justice. [4] So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. [5] They said to him, “You are old, and your sons do not follow your ways; now appoint a king to lead us, such as all the other nations have.” [6] But when they said, “Give us a king to lead us,” this displeased Samuel; so he prayed to the LORD. [7] And the LORD told him: “Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. [8] As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you. [9] Now listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who will reign over them will claim as his rights.” [10] Samuel told all the words of the LORD to the people who were asking him for a king. [11] He said, “This is what the king who will reign over you will claim as his rights: He will take your sons and make them serve with his chariots and horses, and they will run in front of his chariots. [12] Some he will assign to be commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and others to plow his ground and reap his harvest, and still others to make weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. [13] He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. [14] He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive groves and give them to his attendants. [15] He will take a tenth of your grain and of your vintage and give it to his officials and attendants. [16] Your male and female servants and the best of your cattle and donkeys he will take for his own use. [17] He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his slaves. [18] When that day comes, you will cry out for relief from the king you have chosen, but the LORD will not answer you in that day.” [19] But the people refused to listen to Samuel. “No!” they said. “We want a king over us. [20] Then we will be like all the other nations, with a king to lead us and to go out before us and fight our battles.” [21] When Samuel heard all that the people said, he repeated it before the LORD. [22] The LORD answered, “Listen to them and give them a king.” Then Samuel said to the Israelites, “Everyone go back to your own town.” Scripture taken from the THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, NIV Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
What was the impact of the people wanting a king?Samuel had ruled Israel well, and the nation had known peace for decades. Good leadership, however, is not necessarily passed on in families, as we saw with Eli’s sons. Samuel’s sons were also unfit to rule (3). The people clamored for a king. They looked around at other nations and wanted to be like them. It seemed rather odd to have a God that could not be seen! They wanted a visible ruler who could lead them in battle. This was a rejection of the rule of God (7). Similar temptations face us in the church today: it seems more sensible to trust in principles of management, committees, five-year plans, or force of personality, rather than in God-appointed leadership. But the Kingdom of God is not run by worldly principles. Samuel warned the people of Israel that they were inviting trouble, but they refused to listen. They forgot about Ebenezer! The people insisted on their own way, and God gave it to them (22). They would learn by hard experience that God has different values.
Apply
Pray for your leaders, both in the church and in the nation, to exercise their influence with wisdom and humility.
Closing prayer
Lord, remind me to pray for those in authority in my church and in government so that they may guide and rule well.
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