KINGS AND KINGDOMS...

SCRIPTURE

1 Samuel 8:1-18 (NRSV)

Samuel warns against kings

When Samuel became old, he made his sons judges over Israel. The name of his firstborn son was Joel, and the name of his second, Abijah; they were judges in Beer-sheba. Yet his sons did not follow in his ways, but turned aside after gain; they took bribes and perverted justice.

Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah, and said to him, "You are old and your sons do not follow in your ways; appoint for us, then, a king to govern us, like other nations." But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, "Give us a king to govern us." Samuel prayed to the Lord, and the Lord said to Samuel, "Listen to the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them. Just as they have done to me, from the day I brought them up out of Egypt to this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so also they are doing to you. Now then, listen to their voice; only - you shall solemnly warn them, and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them."

So Samuel reported all the words of the Lord to the people who were asking him for a king. He said, "These will be the ways of the king who will reign over you: he will take your sons and appoint them to his chariots and to be his horsemen, and to run before his chariots; and he will appoint for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and some to plow his ground and to reap his harvest, and to make his implements of war and the equipment of his chariots. He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards and give them to his courtiers. He will take one-tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers and his courtiers. He will take your male and female slaves, and the best of your cattle and donkeys, and put them to his work. He will take one-tenth of your flocks, and you shall be his slaves. And in that day you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for yourselves; but the Lord will not answer you in that day."

DEVOTION

Today, we are invited to examine the people and things that we allow to be “king” in our lives. Any time we allow anything to take first place in our lives, that person or thing becomes our idol.

1 Samuel makes it very clear that God does not appreciate when we desire “earthly kings and kingdoms” more than God.

It is a sad fact that when we take our eyes off of God, we often allow ourselves and our resources to be misused and co-opted by others.

For example, when we allow ourselves to become workaholics, our place of employment gets the best of us—fifty, sixty, seventy, or even eighty hours a week. This leaves little to no quality time to spend with our families and in the worship of our God.

This is only one example of how we seek earthly “kings or kingdoms” at the expense of our very precious relationship with the King of Kings.

There are other examples as well. For instance, some of us chase the next raise or promotion. Others of us chase cars, boats, and cabins. Others seek pleasure in the form of drugs, alcohol, or illicit sexual relationships. Still others seek fame, fortune, and power. In all cases, if we relegate God to the “leftovers” pile, we will give the best of who we are, and what we have, to “kings and kingdoms” that do not offer us eternal benefits.

Jesus, is the King of Kings, whose benefit package far exceeds that of any other offered by the world. We know this is so because God loves us so much that God gave Jesus to die on the cross to save us from our sin and gift us with eternal life!

This eternal life is a gift that can only be bestowed upon us by the King of Kings!

Will you realign your priorities today, bowing down only to Jesus? If so, please pray with me:

Holy God, I confess that I have been seeking “kings and kingdoms” that do not have my best interest at heart. Please forgive me of my sin and fill me with your Holy Spirit. I know that you want only the best for me and that you gave me your best in Jesus. I believe that Jesus died on the cross for my sin and rose again on the third day. I love you and I want to share our love with others. I pray this in Jesus’ Name, Amen.

SPECIAL NOTE

If you just prayed that prayer for the first time, today, you are saved! Let me encourage you to tell a Christian friend that you just put all of your hope in Jesus. Ask him or her to help you find a Bible that is easy for you to understand and to find a good Bible believing church where you can be baptized and make new friends who will walk with you on your Christian journey!

I would be honored if you would take a moment to click “YES” in the upper-right hand corner in answer to the question, “Did God save you today?”

Congratulations and Happy Re-birthday! Your salvation is our GOOD NEWS, please go and share the GOOD NEWS with others!