The Secret of the Kingdom
The Secret of the Kingdom 1 Samuel 10 verses 1 to 16
Introduction
I wonder could you tell me what country this person belongs to…
*Show picture of Frenchman
Rightly or wrongly, we have certain images in our heads of what French people look like. We could also tell by the way they speak.
What country would the people be from who did this…
*Show picture of German towels
The way people act will give us a hint about where they are from.
What about this person…
*Show picture of Scottish person
We know that people belong to certain countries, that they are citizens of a certain country, by what they look like, how they act, or how they sound.
The question is: How will people know that we are citizens of God’s Kingdom? In other words, what does it mean to be God’s People?
We will think about this as we study 1 Samuel 10; in verses 1 to 16 we see:
A Secret Anointing
Strange Signs and Instructions
Lack of Deeds and Words
Saul is spiritually blind and does not know God’s Way. But we see God graciously provide him with everything he needs to succeed as Israel’s king: anointing by Samuel, signs confirming his new status, and instructions regarding how he is to proceed.
However, Saul’s failure to obey these instructions give us reason to question Saul’s fitness to be king. More than that, they teach us about God’s Kingdom. In particular, we learn that obedience to God’s Word is the secret to living in God’s Kingdom- to belonging to God. Obeying the King’s commands shows that you are a citizen of the Kingdom. And we see this most clearly in the life, death and resurrection of the True-King, Jesus Christ.
So, let us see these truths as we begin with Saul’s… Secret Anointing
In verse 1 Saul is anointed by Samuel in secret. Samuel pours a flask of oil on Saul’s head and gives Saul a kiss as a sign of honour. That’s it. There doesn’t seem to be much to it, does there?
At this point we can only imagine what Saul was thinking as the great prophet poured the oil on his head and kissed him. But then the words Samuel spoke explained the actions.
According to Samuel’s words (the ‘…message from God…’ Samuel had promised to make known to Saul), it was the Lord who had poured the oil on Saul’s head: ‘Has not the Lord anointed you leader over his inheritance?’.
Of course, at one level Samuel did the anointing. But since this was done in exact obedience to the Lord’s command, Samuel was simply acting on God’s behalf. Saul needed to understand that he had been anointed not just by Samuel, but by the Lord!
This anointing with oil was a sign that God would use Saul to serve His purposes. Anointing also symbolised the Holy Spirit’s equipping for God’s chosen servants. In other words, Saul was to understand, in this special event, that God has called him and equipped Him to lead His People in those difficult days.
See again the grace of God! How He loves His People and He will do what is best for them. Even in their rejection of Him- in their choosing to be like all the other nations- God will not abandon His People. They are His People who He has chosen and who He cherishes. He will work all things for the good of those He loves and the glory of His Name.
In this case He will raise up Saul to be the king to lead the God’s People against their enemies. But more importantly God will use Saul to point His People to the King they need- their True King.
But we are getting ahead of ourselves. For now, we witness a secret anointing which comes with an explanation.
So, we have coronation, followed by explanation, now followed by confirmation… Samuel’s Signs and Instructions
Imagine I call to your house one evening. We chat for a little while and then, at the end of the evening, I tell you that I have a message from God: You will be the next king (or Queen) of Great Britain. I suspect you would not believe me! You may wonder if I have lost my mind. You might reasonably expect some evidence.
Samuel’s words and actions in verse 1 are a lot for Saul to take in. Being told you are going to be king is extraordinary- especially when up until now the role didn’t even exist!
And so, to help Saul understand, Saul is sent on his way with the promise of three signs. These signs are given to help Saul see that God has chosen him and will be with Him to accomplish God’s purposes.
In verses 2 to 8 we see Saul’s anointing was followed by signs and instructions that were designed to confirm to Saul the truth of God’s message. We do not need to go into details about the signs. They can be summed up like this:
- In verse 2, two men will meet him at Rachel’s tomb to tell him the lost donkeys are safe.
- In verses 3 and 4, three men will meet him at Bethel to offer him bread.
- In verses 5 and 6, a group of prophets will meet at Gibeah with whom Saul will prophesy as the Spirit of God comes upon him to equip him.
God, through Samuel, wants Saul to understand this truth: God has chosen Him and will equip Him to serve His People. And God is going to make this clear to Saul through three signs that will take place precisely as God describes. That these events occur just as God describes, through Samuel His prophet, will be proof that God is sovereignly guiding Saul to be leader of His People.
Again, we see the grace of God. God is ministering to Saul in his doubt and confusion. God is making it clear to Saul that He has called Him to lead His People. The Spiritually blind Saul is being given eyes to see and to understand God’s will.
This is always how God works with His People- He helps us to see Him and to know His Way. He helps us to see Him clearly in His Word and to know His way as we humble ourselves in prayer. We must simply trust and obey.
And notice how God equips Saul for the task by giving Saul His Spirit. All who God calls to serve Him will be equipped for the task. When we come to Christ in faith His Spirit grants to us Spiritual Gifts to be used in service of His Church. And if God calls us to a special task He will also equip us for that task.
If we belong to God and want to serve in His Kingdom then we must listen to Him and obey Him. And we must trust that God will go with us and help us every step of the way.
So we must learn from Saul’s… Lack of Deeds and Words
(Boys and Girls): I wonder do you always do what you are told?
Well, remember what we were learning earlier: we show we love our parents by ‘honouring’ them- by listening to them and doing what we are told. When we honour our parents, we show we love them. And when we honour God- when we listen to and obey Him- we show that we love our Heavenly Father and belong to His People.
This was a lesson Saul failed to learn.
So far, God has graciously called Saul and confirmed this calling with divinely given signs. God is helping Saul see in His spiritual blindness.
In verse 9 we learn that ‘…all these signs were fulfilled that day…’. In other words, what God said would happen, happened exactly as God said it would: God’s Word was sovereign. And so, Saul must reign according to God’s Word. Saul must listen to God’s Word, given to him by God’s prophet, Samuel, and obey God’s Word.
This helps us make sense of what is said in verses 7 and 8. Here we see the three signs were followed by two instructions.
The first was this: ‘…do what your hand finds to do, for God is with you…’.
Empowered by God’s Spirit, Saul was to act, assured that God was with him. But what was he to do?
‘Do what your hand finds to do…’ does not mean that Saul could do whatever he liked. Instead, it means there was a task for Saul to do. What was the task?
Samuel’s words were a summons to Saul, empowered by God’s Spirit and assured of His presence, to act against the enemies of Israel. The Philistine garrison at Gibeah presented an obvious opportunity to do that!
The second instruction, then, was what Saul was to do when he had defeated the Philistines. He was to go to Gilgal. There at Gilgal they would celebrate the anticipated victory over the Philistines and Samuel would show Saul what he was to do next.
Saul’s leadership was to be guided by God’s Word- given to Him by God’s Prophet, Samuel. God’s Kingdom was to be ruled by the True-King’s Word, not the wants and desires of His People. God’s People are always to be guided and governed by God’s Word.
Obedience to God’s Word is the secret to living in God’s Kingdom. Obeying the King’s commands show that you are a member of God’s Kingdom.
And so, at this point in the story we are called to consider: do we obey God’s Word? Are we really part of God’s Kingdom?
Now, you may instinctively say something like: Well, nobody’s perfect, but I believe Jesus died for my sins and just try my best to live for Him. I get out to church as much as I can, and I make sure I ‘pay in’ to the church.
But is that really what is being asked of us here?
Surely a God who knows His People completely, and who loves His People completely, deserves more than half-hearted obedience. Surely the One who calls us His treasured possession and gives us a glorious calling deserves our complete devotion.
Too often we fit the ‘God stuff’ into our busy schedules rather than allowing our True-King to rule all our lives. We are to love the Lord with all our heart, soul, mind and strength, not with what we have left over after we lived according to our own desires.
Remember, God is our loving Heavenly Father who is to be loved and honoured. In our obedience we show how much we truly love God. And in our obedience we are blessed as we live life the way it is supposed to be lived.
So, Saul has been given a divine calling and been provided with signs that confirm his calling. Then he is given clear instructions about what he is to do next.
What is interesting, in verses 9 to 16, is that there is no indication, in either his words or deeds, that Saul obeys God. Firstly, the failure to mention the Philistines in verse 10 reflects Saul’s failure to act in obedience to God’s Word. After seeing the signs fulfilled and the instructions given, this is the moment we expect Saul to launch some kind of attack on the enemy and to defeat them by God’s power. Instead, Saul did nothing.
Instead of the expected action from Saul, we simply hear of the response of the people to what had happened to Saul. There is a remarkable anti-climax in verses 11 and 12. While we expected to see the commencement of Israel’s deliverance from the Philistines, we hear only bewildered questions and strange proverbs.
Finally, in verses 14 to 16 Saul’s uncle suddenly appears and there is strange interaction between him and Saul. Here it is interesting that Saul did not share anything of what Samuel had said- except the bit about the donkeys.
This indicates that whatever else had happened to him, Saul did not enter a true saving relationship with the Lord, for the simple reason that he showed no inclination to obey God’s Word. When we are true followers of God, citizens of His Kingdom, it will show in our words and deeds.
Saul provides a perfect illustration of Jesus’ teaching about the necessity of faith that obeys God’s Word. Our good works are not the cause of our salvation, but works are a necessary consequence of true and saving faith. The secret to living as citizens of God’s Kingdom is wholehearted obedience to God’s Word. Obedience to the King’s commands proves that you are a member of the Kingdom.
In Matthew 7 verse 21 Jesus taught:
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven…
In other words, those who are followers of Jesus, citizens of God’s Kingdom, will seek to obey God’s Word and do God’s Will.
The evidence of salvation is not given in dramatic experiences or even great deeds, especially when there are no signs of repentance from sin. Instead, the people who have been welcomed in God’s Kingdom are those who trust in God’s Word and live in obedience to God’s Way.
Saul was truly ‘a king like all the other nations have’ because he gave lip service not heart obedience to the Word of God. Saul failed to understand the secret of the Kingdom.
Saul was not the True-King of God’s People because he would not obey God’s Word. In contrast, Jesus is the True-King who was fully obedient.
In humble obedience to His Father, Jesus came to fulfil the Law and win peace with God for His People. Through His perfect life of obedience and His obedience unto death Jesus established God’s Kingdom and purchased a People for God.
In Jesus, God’s People find the reason to obey and the power to obey. The love of God shown to us in Christ calls us to love God with heart, soul, mind and strength. And the Spirit of Christ enables us to live a life of increasing obedience as we are made more like Jesus.
Conclusion
Jesus is the True-King sent by the Father to establish His Kingdom and grant eternal peace to all who trust in Him as Saviour and Lord. Today we must embrace the Kingdom of God in Christ and follow Him in total obedience
Jesus our King gave His life to pay the penalty for our sins so we could find peace of God. And Jesus gave us His Spirit to obey His Word and follow His Way- the way of true life. This is the glorious secret of the Kingdom we must believe and declare, this day and forevermore.