Introduction
There are few things in the world more pompous than a royal coronation. The preparations for Queen Elizabeth II's coronation started 16 months before the actual coronation. On the day of the coronation, three million people lined the streets of London on the route the crown princess was going to take to Westminster Abbey. 750 commentators broadcast the event live in 39 languages. The whole ceremony was an exercise in exaggerations. The speeches extolled the virtues of the newly crowned queen.
Now let's go back about 3,000 years (Elizabeth II was crowned in 1953) and consider another royal coronation: Saul's coronation. Let's read the rest of the chapter.
I. Review of Where We Are
A. Up to chapter 8 or so, things are happening at the same time as the events in the book of Judges.
1. Verses 6-12 follow the cyclical pattern of Judges – more on it later.
2. Samuel is the last judge in the sense of the book of Judges.
B. 1-2 Samuel provides the transition from decentralized government and worship to a established king in David and a centralized place of worship in Jerusalem.
C. 1-2 Samuel is all about the covenant with David in 2 Samuel 7.
D. The people of Israel demanded a king to lead them in the place of God and God gave them Saul.
1. We have been dealing with this issue since chpt. 8.
2. Now we finally have the official coronation of King Saul in Gilgal.
a. Gilgal was a place of covenantal importance since the days of Joshua when Israel would go there to renew their allegiance to the Lord.
b. Here, however, Gilgal is not so much a place where Israel renews her faithfulness to the Lord (though they were supposed to, 11:14), but where God renews his faithfulness to them, 12:22.
E. Two weeks ago, we saw that chpt. 12 was organized in the shape of a covenant.
1. We saw that that was the case because God speaks to his people in that way.
2. He especially does that when he is saying something very important.
WCF 7:1 – The distance between God and the creature is so great that although reasonable creatures do owe obedience unto him as their Creator, yet they could never have any fruition of him, as their blessedness and reward, but by some voluntary condescension on God's part, which he hath been pleased to express by way of covenant.
{TRANSITION: As we work our way through this passage, we will see that the Holy Spirit establishes Samuel's credentials as the covenant messenger, God's credentials as the author of the covenant, and Israel's credentials as the covenant-breaking party. Then he reminds us of the terms of the covenant and the seriousness of if and ends the chapter with the faithfulness of the Lord.}
II. Samuel's Credential as the Covenant Messenger: Above Reproach, 1-5.
A. Israel has no objective, logical reason not to listen to Samuel.
1. He lived his life before them, 2.
2. Yes, his kids didn't turn out well, but they know that it wasn't because Samuel neglected them, 2.
3. Now he is old and ready to move on.
"Samuel's speech was something of a retirement speech. Though he remained alive for perhaps another thirty years, he no longer led Israel as judge and military commander. Instead, he led Israel by speaking the Word of God to the king." Peter Leithart
B. While in chpt. 8 Samuel described the king as taking, taking, taking, here he says that he himself did not take, 3.
1. He was not like the kings of the nations.
2. Nor was he like his sons.
C. So, Israel knows that when Samuel speaks he has her best interest in mind, 5.
III. God's Credentials as the Covenant-Maker: Impeccable and Marked by Grace and Compassion, 6-11.
A. God's faithfulness in redeeming Israel from the bondage of slavery shows that he can be trusted, 6-8.
B. God's faithfulness in providing judges shows that he can be trusted, 9-11.
1. We see here the typical Judges cycle.
2. Sin à Misery à Cry out to God à Deliverance à Sin.
C. We are hard on Israel for missing the point of God's faithfulness and acting contrary to all the evidence they had, but we tend to do the same thing.
1. God has delivered us and blessed us time and again, and once he delivers us we forget about it and go back to trusting whatever it was we were trusting before.
2. Someone might say, "My life has not been marked great deliverance. As a matter of fact, I've had a very hard life. I don't really see the faithfulness of the Lord. I've prayed for him to make my life easier and he hasn't answered. I have no proof of his faithfulness."
a. To that we say, what about the cross?
b. What about eternal life?
c. What about deliverance from the guilt of your sins?
d. What about the Spirit of God dwelling in you testifying to your spirit of the goodness of God?
3. If, after considering these questions, you still doubt the faithfulness of God, then you may want to consider that your faith is not real.
{TRANSITION: So far so good. The messenger of the covenant is blameless and trustworthy, the Maker of the covenant is gracious and compassionate. How about Israel?}
IV. Israel's Credentials as Covenant-Keepers: Not so Good, 9, 12, 16-19.
A. Throughout her entire history, God delivered Israel from the enemy; therefore, it stands to reason that when Nahash started threatening Israel, the people would cry out to God because it worked every other time – but they don't, 9.
B. Sin is always contrary to fact, 9.
1. Despite all the evidence they had, the people of Israel still thought it would be better to have a king like the nations instead of having the Lord.
2. That is exactly what we do when we sin.
a. We act contrary to all the evidence we have concerning God.
b. So we can't really make sense of sin or justify it because it is not reasonable.
C. Sin is always deceitful, 19.
Jam. 1:14-15 – But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death. Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren.
1. We keep on telling ourselves that sin will pay off this times, that it will satisfy this time, and it might satisfy for that moment, but it leave a bitter taste no matter what.
2. Not is sin deceitful, but also our hearts are deceitful.
Jer. 17:9 – The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?
D. Sin doesn't fulfill, 21.
Jam. 1:15 – Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.
Pro. 13:15 – Good understanding gains favor, but the way of the unfaithful is hard.
V. A Reminder of the Terms of the Covenant, 13-15.
A. Obey and be blessed, 13-14.
B. Disobey and be cursed, 15.
1. This is really not rocket science.
a. You obey God and you will generally experience the blessings of following his precepts.
b. You disobey God and you will generally experience the curses of ignoring his precepts.
1) True in marriage.
2) True in raising kids.
3) True in relationships.
4) True in rebellion.
2. Notice that a bad king is just a reflection of the heart of the people, 14b.
VI. A Sign That the Lord Means Business, 16-19.
A. It was the dry season, so this type of storm was not common at all.
B. It was also harvest season and a storm of this magnitude would ruin the grain on the stock that was ready to be harvested.
C. Notice that God follows the pattern he follows throughout the Bible – the miraculous sign was not an end in itself but an authentication of his Word.
VII. At the End of the Day, What Really Matters Is That God Is Faithful, 20-23.
A. Don't think that you are beyond the reach of God's grace, 20-21.
1. Someone might think. "I've sinned so badly and messed up beyond hope; there is no hope for me."
2. That's not the case at all.
3. As long as God is God, there is hope for the sinner.
B. God is incredibly faithful to you because he is immovably faithful to himself, 22.
1. His covenant faithfulness to us is based on his covenant faithfulness to himself.
Ez. 36:22-28 – Therefore say to the house of Israel, 'Thus says the Lord God: "I do not do thisfor your sake, O house of Israel, but for My holy name's sake, which you have profaned among the nations wherever you went. And I will sanctify My great name, which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned in their midst; and the nations shall know that I am the Lord," says the Lord God, "when I am hallowed in you before their eyes. For I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land. Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them. Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; you shall be My people, and I will be your God.
2. This is also the basis for his unconditional election of us.
Eph. 1:11-12 – In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory.
The Conclusion of the Matter: Serve God Faithfully, 24-25.
The effect that this truth that God in Jesus Christ is incredibly faithful to you must result in your serving him faithfully. When your eyes are opened to the grace of God in Jesus Christ, the consequence of it is worship and service.
http://olympiabp.blogspot.com/2015/05/a-strange-coronation-1-sam-12.html
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