We read in 1 Samuel chapter 8 the demand of Israel for a king like the other nations of the world after the Judges at the time
- Joel and Abijah – the sons of Samuel who was himself an Israelite judge had become corrupt.
So what led to this and why did God grant their request for a king, despite knowing that a human king would let them down.
The Bible is very much a spiritual book as well as a religious and historical book. It’s a book about the history of man exploring his environment,
in search of himself and God – the mystery behind how it all began. A quest to unravel the past, understand the present and gain insight into the future. As the world population grew and languages evolved, life became more complex, as evidenced at the tower of Babel- Genesis 11.
Mankind was duly dispersed from a failed mission to build a tower into heaven and people began to travel further than ever before,
settling down at places previously uninhabited. We soon realized that in order to be effective in our newly built communities,
we had to coalesce around a leader – so, patriarchs evolved – Abraham was a prime example.
However, what made Abraham more unique and successful was that the Lord, the God who was not made by human hands had revealed Himself to Abraham
- Genesis 12 and Abraham had put his faith in Him – making the Lord, his king . God had revealed Himself as one who you can make an agreement with,
the one who provides, who protects, who judges, who rewards, who nothing is impossible for, who keeps His promise etc.
This was the experience of the Patriarchs that followed – Isaac and Jacob. They too, like their Father Abraham, knew God and made Him their King.
God led their families and communities through them. These patriarchs were crucial not only in leading their families in the way of the Lord but
also in sharing the knowledge they had about God with them and of course instructing them to keep the way of the Lord – Genesis 18:19
This was the norm as Israel went into Egypt as only a handful. Jacob the grandson of Abraham was the patriarch at the time and God instructed him
and his descendants through him. God was his King and Father at the time. Meanwhile the other communities that had settled into nations,
coalesced around a leader and the people naturally chose for themselves a human king who ruled over them.
In the case of Israel however, the Lord Himself had delivered them out of Egypt – Exodus 3:8.
It was God not Moses who delivered the Israelite out of Egypt for Himself and the Lord was their King.
We will explore further the role of God as King in our lives next week. The Lord still wants to be your Father and King. Would you let Him?