Proof


1 Samuel 10:17-27
17 Now Samuel called the people together to the Lord at Mizpah.
18 And he said to the people of Israel, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘I brought up Israel out of Egypt, and I delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of all the kingdoms that were oppressing you.’
19 But today you have rejected your God, who saves you from all your calamities and your distresses, and you have said to him, ‘Set a king over us.’ Now therefore present yourselves before the Lord by your tribes and by your thousands.”
20 Then Samuel brought all the tribes of Israel near, and the tribe of Benjamin was taken by lot.
21 He brought the tribe of Benjamin near by its clans, and the clan of the Matrites was taken by lot; and Saul the son of Kish was taken by lot. But when they sought him, he could not be found.
22 So they inquired again of the Lord, “Is there a man still to come?” and the Lord said, “Behold, he has hidden himself among the baggage.”
23 Then they ran and took him from there. And when he stood among the people, he was taller than any of the people from his shoulders upward.
24 And Samuel said to all the people, “Do you see him whom the Lord has chosen? There is none like him among all the people.” And all the people shouted, “Long live the king!”
25 Then Samuel told the people the rights and duties of the kingship, and he wrote them in a book and laid it up before the Lord. Then Samuel sent all the people away, each one to his home.
26 Saul also went to his home at Gibeah, and with him went men of valor whose hearts God had touched.
27 But some worthless fellows said, “How can this man save us?” And they despised him and brought him no present. But he held his peace.

Do you ever wonder if (or doubt if) God is actually in control of every situation? Sometimes it seems that things have spiraled right out of even the control of an all-powerful God.

Today’s story proves that God has everything firmly in His hands – firmly; to the point of causing a pair of dodecahedrons (there’s your big word for the day – it means 12 sided dice, which I learned about teaching math to 5th graders) to state what He already had set in place. Back in the book of Exodus, God set up a system whereby the people could know His will about a situation using these two objects called Urim and the Thummim. It is believed they were these dice. Each side of the dice represented on of the 12 tribes. They were rolled and the side that came up indicated that the specific tribe on top was involved in the choice to be made. They were rolled until the will of God was revealed “by chance.” In the Old Testament, many things were decided this way, using the Urim and Thummin, which were ordinarily attached to the High Priest’s garments. In the New Testament, we do not see them used at all, except at the time that Judas was replaced by Matthias as an Apostle. Once the Holy Spirit indwells His people, there is no need for such a tool.

Back to the story at hand. God chooses Saul to act as His prince to lead the people. Now it is time to reveal to the people His choice, so the cast lots (or throw the dice) to see how God would provide for their cry for a king. As we know, Saul has already been anointed by Samuel. The decision has already been made and acted upon by those in charge – God and His spokesman, Samuel. And wouldn’t you know it – those dice land on Saul. Out of the thousands of people who probably populated Israel at the time, the lot falls to Saul. God’s choice is ratified and displayed for all to see – except for Saul. He’s hiding in the “baggage” area. (This term doesn’t mean suitcases, like it does today. It means armory or where the dishes and cooking supplies were kept.) Saul himself hasn’t yet come to terms with God’s calling. His humility remains intact.

Should you ever doubt that God’s control is permanent and unshakeable remember Saul and his selection and placement as prince over the people. If all God had to do that day was keep a couple of dice under control it was an easy day. Taking care of your every need and seeing that your daily situations fall in line with His will is well within His power. It doesn’t make Him tired or impatient (like it would me!)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

יהוה שָׁמַר--Yahweh Shamar (God Watches)

Image
Psalm 121 1 I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? 2 My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. 3 He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber. 4 Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. 5 The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade on your right hand. 6 The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night. 7 The Lord will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. 8 The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore. There are numerous passages I cling to when stress takes over my life. I would be hard pressed to declare a favorite, but this psalm would come close. So this morning I listened to Psalm 121 about 20 times as I meditated through the verses. First, I want to point out that the word or idea of shamar appears in every verse expect 6. The NIV uses the word "watch" while the ESV uses "keep". The...
Read more

Excusez-moi

Image
2 Kings 23:31-37 31 Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he began to reign, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. 32 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers had done. 33 And Pharaoh Neco put him in bonds at Riblah in the land of Hamath, that he might not reign in Jerusalem, and laid on the land a tribute of a hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold. 34 And Pharaoh Neco made Eliakim the son of Josiah king in the place of Josiah his father, and changed his name to Jehoiakim. But he took Jehoahaz away, and he came to Egypt and died there. 35 And Jehoiakim gave the silver and the gold to Pharaoh, but he taxed the land to give the money according to the command of Pharaoh. He exacted the silver and the gold of the people of the land, from everyone according to his assessment, to give it to Pharaoh Neco. 36 Jehoiakim was twenty-fiv...
Read more

Narrow Door

Image
Luke 13:22-30 22 He went on his way through towns and villages, teaching and journeying toward Jerusalem. 23 And someone said to him, “Lord, will those who are saved be few?” And he said to them , 24 “Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able. 25 When once the master of the house has risen and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us,’ then he will answer you, ‘I do not know where you come from.’ 26 Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’ 27 But he will say, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you come from. Depart from me, all you workers of evil!’ 28 In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God but you yourselves cast out. 29 And people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and recline at tabl...
Read more