When the Hebrew people said to the prophet Samuel, "Give us a king to lead us." he was displeased. When Samuel took their request to the Lord, God said, "...they have rejected me as their king." God told Samuel to return to the people and "...warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who will reign over them will claim as his rights." (see I Samuel 8:6-22)
The message God gave the Hebrews was very clear: I AM YOUR KING! There can be no substitute. God made certain that Samuel spelled it out to the Hebrews in detail. Samuel told them the terrible things that would happen to them if they empowered a king (a man) to rule over them. He told them that they would give up their freedom. He told them that they would one day cry out for relief from their king but the Lord would not answer their cries. These foolish people, even after God's stern warnings, refused to listen to Samuel and said, "No! We want a king over us."
So be it! "The Lord answered, 'Listen to them and give them a king.'" The rest is history...a very sad history of hundreds of years of oppression resulting from one bad king after another.
This lesson teaches that God never intended for sinful man to rule over others with supreme power. Kings, pharaohs, sheiks, shahs, wangs, maharajahs, emperors, and presidents should never be empowered with ultimate authority over man.
We also looked at One World Government; the purpose of government--to protect or provide; taxes; welfare; and the responsibility and instruction we have from God to obey authority. God is sovereign and "...there is no authority except that which God has established."
Next week we start a new series: YOU MAKE ME CRAZY
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