Good morning, everyone. And as Pastor said, our text this morning is 1 Samuel chapter 12, which can be found on page 233 of the Pew Bible directly in front of you. But before we go there, I'd like you to turn to Joshua chapter 4. Joshua chapter 4. And in our last time in the book of 1 Samuel, we studied chapters 10 and 11. And in these chapters, Saul was publicly selected and proclaimed as the first king of Israel, and put to his first test as the king of Israel, and was mightily helped by God, who empowered him to gain a great military victory over the Ammonites. And as we ended chapter 11, we were told that Samuel gathered all Israel to Gilgal in order to renew the kingdom. In our study, we were reminded that Gilgal was not an insignificant place in Israel's history. In Joshua 4.19, we're told that when the people crossed the Jordan River into the Promised Land, they arrived at this city called Gilgal. And there they took 12 stones from the Jordan and set stones as a memorial. And Joshua spoke to them in chapter 4, and if you look at verse 21, And he said to the people of Israel, when your children ask their fathers in times to come, what do these stones mean? then you shall let your children know Israel passed over this Jordan on dry ground. For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you passed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up for us until we passed over, so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the Lord is mighty, that you may fear the Lord your God forever. And after these words were spoken, the generation that crossed the Jordan were circumcised, and they celebrated their first Passover in the promised land. And we saw that Gilgal was a place where the past, present, and future faithfulness of God was first memorialized in the promised land. And as we fast forward through the period of the judges to the gathering at Gilgal in 1 Samuel 11, verse 15 tells us, so all the people went to Gilgal. And there they made Saul king before the Lord in Gilgal. There they sacrificed peace offerings before the Lord. And there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly. But despite all of the joy, Despite this moment of national pride and despite everything seeming to be right in the world for Israel, today's passage will show us that God had some unfinished business to address with the nation. Unfinished business that would be addressed by Samuel's final speech to the nation that will echo God's message to Israel when they first arrived in Gilgal and will echo other pivotal moments in the life of this nation. So in honor of God's word, let us stand together and read 1 Samuel chapter 12, Samuel's final address to the nation. And Samuel said to all Israel, behold, I have obeyed your voice and all that you have said to me and have made a king over you. And now behold, the king walks before you, and I am old and gray. And behold, my sons are with you. I have walked before you from my youth until this day. Here I am. Testify against me before the Lord and before his anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Or whose donkey have I taken? Or whom have I defrauded? Whom have I oppressed? Or from whose hand have I taken a bribe to blind my eyes with it? Testify against me, and I will restore it to you. They said, you have not defrauded us, or oppressed us, or taken anything from any man's hand. And he said to them, the Lord is witness against you, and his anointed is witness this day, that you have not found anything in my hand. And they said, he is witness. And Samuel said to the people, the Lord is witness who appointed Moses and Aaron and brought your fathers up out of the land of Egypt. Now, therefore, stand still that I may plead with you before the Lord concerning all the righteous deeds of the Lord that he promised for you and for your fathers. When Jacob went into Egypt and the Egyptians oppressed them, then your fathers cried out to the Lord, and the Lord sent Moses and Aaron, who brought your fathers out of Egypt and made them dwell in this place. But they forgot the Lord their God. And he sold them into the hand of Sisera, commander of the army of Hazor, and into the hand of the Philistines, and into the hand of the king of Moab. And they fought against them. And they cried out to the Lord and said, we have sinned because we have forsaken the Lord and have served the Baals and the Ashtoreth. But now deliver us out of the hand of our enemies, that we may serve you. And the Lord sent Jerobel, and Barak, and Jephthah, and Samuel, and delivered you out of the hand of your enemies on every side, and you lived in safety. And when you saw that Nahash, the king of the Ammonites, came against you, you said to me, no, but a king shall reign over us, when the Lord your God was your king. And now behold, the king whom you have chosen, for whom you have asked, behold, the Lord has set a king over you. If you will fear the Lord, and serve Him, and obey His voice, and not rebel against the commandment of the Lord, and if both you and the king who reigns over you will follow the Lord your God, it will be well. But if you will not obey the voice of the Lord, but rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then the hand of the Lord will be against you and your king. Now, therefore, stand still and see this great thing that the Lord will do before your eyes. Is it not wheat harvest today? I will call upon the Lord that he may send thunder and rain, and you shall know and see that your wickedness is great, which you have done in the sight of the Lord and asking for yourselves a king. So Samuel called upon the Lord, and the Lord sent thunder and rain that day. And all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel. And all the people said to Samuel, pray for your servants to the Lord your God, that we may not die, for we have added to all our sins this evil to ask for ourselves a king. And Samuel said to the people, Do not be afraid. You have done all this evil. Yet do not turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart. And do not turn aside after empty things that cannot profit or deliver, for they are empty. For the Lord will not forsake his people for his great namesake, because it is pleased the Lord to make you a people for himself. Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you, and I will instruct you in the good and the right way. Only fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart, for consider what great things he has done for you. But if you still do wickedly, you shall be swept away, both you and your King. Let us pray. Heavenly Father, this is your word. We need your spirit to understand your word. Help us in these next few minutes to be able to hear with our spiritual ears what you are saying to us. And may you, by your spirit, conform us to the image of our Savior, so that we might bring glory to your name. In Jesus' name, amen. Please be seated. The key verse in our passage is found in verse 24, where Samuel says, only fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart, for consider what great things he has done for you. And so as we study this passage, we should first define what it means to fear the Lord. Good definition of what fearing the Lord means for our study can be found in an October 2016 article, actually, that I found on Ligonier Ministries' website entitled, What Does It Mean to Fear God? And it was written by R.C. Sproul. So listen as he describes it for us. We need to make some important distinctions about the biblical meaning of fearing God. These distinctions can be helpful, but they can also be a little dangerous. When Martin Luther struggled with that, he made this distinction, which has since become somewhat famous. He distinguished between what he called a servile fear and a filial fear. The servile fear is a kind of fear that a prisoner in a torture chamber has for his tormentor, the jailer, or the executioner. It's the kind of dreadful anxiety in which someone is frightened by the clear and present danger that is represented by another person. or it's the kind of fear that a slave would have at the hands of a malicious master who would come with the whip and torment the slave. Servile fear refers to a posture of servitude toward a malevolent owner. Luther distinguished between that and what he called filial fear, drawing from the Latin concept from which we get the idea of family. It refers to the fear that a child has for his father. In this regard, Luther is thinking of a child who has tremendous respect and love for his father or mother, and who dearly wants to please them. He has a fear or an anxiety of offending the one he loves, not because he's afraid of torture or even of punishment, but rather because he's afraid of displeasing the one who is, in that child's world, the source of security and love. I think this distinction is helpful because the basic meaning of fearing the Lord that we read about in Deuteronomy is also in the wisdom literature, where we're told the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. The focus here is on a sense of awe and respect for the majesty of God. That's often lacking in contemporary evangelical Christianity. We get very flippant and cavalier with God, as if we had a casual relationship with the Father. We are invited to call Him Abba Father, and to have the personal intimacy promised to us. But still, we're not to be flippant with God. We're always to maintain a healthy respect and adoration for Him. One last point. If we really have a healthy adoration for God, we should still have an element of the knowledge that God can be frightening. It is a frightening thing to fall into the hands of the living God, as Hebrews 10.31 tells us. As sinful people, we have every reason to fear God's judgment. It is part of our motivation to be reconciled with God. And so as we go through the rest of our study, let us keep in mind that definition of filial fear, which speaks to us of a respect and a deep adoration and awe and reverence for our God. And so in exhorting Israel to fear the Lord and serve Him faithfully, Samuel points to the great things that God has done for this nation as their reason for their fear of the Lord and their faithful service to Him. This message is not an unfamiliar one for any student of Israel's history. We read two passages of scripture, one at the beginning of the sermon and one earlier in our service that showed that element of fear being involved in the messages of God's servants in previous ages. But this message is a necessary one for Israel, as Samuel transitions from his judgeship over the nation, and Saul comes in and takes center stage as their first king. And as with every part of the Word of God, Even though this was spoken to a specific people at a specific time, in a specific place, God's Word is eternal and speaks to us this day. And so we are called, as we study this Word, to think about how it applies to our lives. In Samuel's speech, we will see a human example of fearing the Lord and serving Him faithfully. We will see historical reasons for fearing the Lord and serving Him faithfully. We will hear and see covenant reminders regarding fearing the Lord and serving Him faithfully. And then we will see final exhortations to fear the Lord and serve Him faithfully. Let us first look at the human example of fearing the Lord and serving Him faithfully, which is found in verses 1 through 5. And Samuel said to all Israel, Behold, I have obeyed your voice and all that you have said to me, and have made a king over you. And now behold, the king walks before you. And I am old and gray. And behold, my sons are with you. You think of just this gathering where there's such joy and such peace, seemingly, for Israel. And one would think as Samuel stood before the nation, he would join in the festivities that are going on. And yet he begins his speech by pointing to the reasons that they are gathered in Gilgal to proclaim Saul as their king. And note that he says that it was the people's voice who called for a king. It was not God's voice, although God directed Samuel to Saul and provided all of the ways for Saul and Samuel to meet. Remember, it was the people's pointing to Samuel's age as he refers to himself as being old and gray. And it was his son's conduct of being those who perverted justice because of their taking of bribes. All of these things were part of the reasons that the people announced for wanting a king to reign over them. And yet their demand was not a rejection of Samuel, but it was a rejection of God. And while Samuel can't change his age and the people's concern about his son's conduct was a valid reason for their concern about what would happen once Samuel was to die, what Samuel does in the beginning of his speech is to provide a human example of one who fears the Lord and serves him faithfully. He points to himself. In doing so, Samuel begins by pointing to the fact that the people have known his life when he says in verse 2b, I have walked before you from my youth until this day. And know that Samuel was not making an idle boast. Scripture says in 1 Samuel 3.19 that the manner of Samuel's life was one that was marked by the Lord being with him. and that none of his words fell to the ground. Samuel's life was marked by the Lord's presence and was marked by an authority that came from God. And so Samuel continues to point to his life. Notice that he uses the language of not taking anything from the people when he begins in verse 3, saying, here I am. Testify against me before the Lord and before his anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Or whose donkey have I taken? Or whom have I defrauded? Whom have I oppressed? Or from whose hand have I taken a bribe to blind my eyes with it? Testify against me, and I will restore it to you. By using this language, Samuel is contrasting his life with the description of the king that he gave to the people in 1 Samuel 8. If you will turn there quickly, 1 Samuel 8, beginning at verse 11. Samuel says, 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 harvests 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 orches and give them to his servants. He will take the tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers and to his servants. He will take your male servants and your female servants and the best of your young men and your donkeys and put them to his work. He will take the tenth of your flocks and you shall be his slaves. So Samuel contrasts his life of righteously being a judge over Israel with what the conduct of the king would be. And as he challenges the people to find any offense that they can lay to his charge, the people respond in verse four, you have not defrauded us or oppressed us or taken anything from any man's hand. Samuel responds in verse 5 saying the Lord is witness against you and his anointed meaning Saul who was anointed as king is witness this day that you have not found anything in my hand and in these verses Samuel doesn't say it explicitly but his words show us one of the results of living a life that fears God and serves him faithfully and that is a clear conscience And a clear conscience before God and man is something that every Christian should attain to have. A clear conscience is found in the one who can say like David in Psalm 139 verses 23 and 24. Search me, O God, and know my heart. Try me and know my thoughts, and see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. One with a clear conscience would not utter those words in arrogance or self-confidence or in the spirit of the Pharisee who Jesus described in Luke 18 of being self-righteous and presenting all his righteous deeds before God. But it would be asked with a heart that truly desires to obey the Lord and to serve Him. Having a clear conscience is something that we also hear from the Apostle Paul at various points throughout the New Testament. As Paul stood before the Jewish council to defend himself, he said to the council in Acts 23.1, Brothers, I have lived my life before God in all good conscience up to this day. When standing before Felix, the Roman governor, again, to defend himself against the false accusers, he said in Acts 24.16, So I always take pains, take pains to have a clear conscience. toward both God and man. And in his writings in the New Testament, we see similar statements indicating his clear conscience. Listen, in Romans 9.1, he says, I'm speaking the truth in Christ. I am not lying. My conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit. 2 Corinthians 1.12, For our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience, that we behaved in the world with simplicity and godly sincerity, not by earthly wisdom, but by the grace of God, and supremely so toward you. 1 Timothy 1.5, The aim of our charge is love, that issues from a heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. Second Timothy 1 3 I thank God whom I serve as did my ancestors with a clear conscience As I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day and In all of these instances Paul just as Samuel was not saying that he was sinless but as far as he could tell his hands were clean before God and man and And Paul, just as Samuel, was indicating that as far as he could tell, his motives and actions were without guile and could be judged by God as holy. Do you know what it means to have a clear conscience before God and man? Not that we have lived perfect, sinless lives before others, but have we lived our lives unto God before others, seeking to honor Him seeking to obey His Word, seeking to lead our lives and align our lives rightly with the Word of God, and seeking forgiveness from God and people when we have sinned and have failed to align our lives properly with the Word of God. Can you, like Paul and Samuel, stand unashamedly before anyone as a representative of God? proclaim the gospel to them or does some unrepentant of or unconfessed sin come to mind and cry out in your conscience not allowing you to have a clear conscience are you unable to look someone in the eye because of some unresolved conflict or some bitterness or unforgiveness And while some of the byproducts of a clear conscience are peace of mind and a good reputation among people, which are great things to have, ultimately having a clear conscience, like everything in our lives, should ultimately enable us to bring glory to God. Because with a clear conscience, we can point people to God and without hesitation, exhort others to fear God and to serve Him faithfully. And this is exactly what Paul did in his ministry. And this is what Samuel will do as we continue through his speech. And even though the people affirmed Samuel's clear conscience and his faithfulness in verse 5 by saying, he is witness, Samuel was not there to simply have his clear conscience and his faithfulness affirmed by the nation. But Samuel's faithfulness allowed him to effectively point the people to the faithfulness of God. A faithfulness that was a much deeper faithfulness than Samuel's faithfulness. And a faithfulness with a much longer history, as we see in the next section of the passage, which shows us the historical reasons for fearing the Lord and serving Him faithfully. Look at verse 6. And Samuel said to the people, the Lord is witness who appointed Moses and Aaron and brought your fathers up out of the land of Egypt. Now, therefore, stand still that I may plead with you before the Lord concerning all the righteous deeds of the Lord that he performed for you and for your fathers. when Jacob went into Egypt, and the Egyptians oppressed them. Then your fathers cried out to the Lord, and the Lord sent Moses and Aaron, who brought your fathers out of Egypt and made them dwell in this place. But they forgot the Lord, and he sold them into the hand of Sisera, commander of the army of Hazor, and into the hand of the Philistines, and into the hand of the king of Moab. And they fought against him. And they cried out to the Lord and said, we have sinned because we have forsaken the Lord and have served the Baals and the Ashtoreth. But now deliver us out of the hand of our enemies that we may serve him. And the Lord sent Jerob Baal and Barak and Jephthah and Samuel and delivered you out of the hand of your enemies on every side. And you lived in safety. Samuel points back to the Exodus and walks the people through the history of the nation all the way up to the present, recounting for them God's righteous deeds. The history was marked by Israel's deliverance and salvation from enemies who are much stronger than them. and saw God bringing them into the promised land which had been a promise he had made to Abraham. And one might say that the reasonable response and certainly the right response would have been total dependence upon and faithfulness to the Lord by Israel. But instead, Samuel recounts Israel's cycle, which we see all throughout the book of Judges, a cycle of idolatry, followed by oppression and defeat by their enemies, followed by a turning to the Lord, followed by God's deliverance only to return to idolatry, followed by more oppression and defeat, and on and on and on. a cycle that continued throughout the period of the judges right up to the time of Samuel. But in verse 12, Samuel highlights a shift that occurred in the heart of the nation due to the most recent threat that the nation faced. Look at verse 12. And when you saw that Nahash, king of the Ammonites, came against you, you said to me, no, but a king shall reign over you. when the Lord your God was your king and now behold the king whom you have chosen for whom you have asked behold the Lord has set a king over you so instead of turning to the Lord When Nahash the Ammonite came with his threats against the nation, the people insisted on having a king. They cried out for a king. They demanded a king and rejected their king, who was God, so that their new king could judge them like all of the other kings of the nation judged those other nations. And despite their rejection of God, God was gracious to them in selecting Saul as their king. He was the one who made the way for Saul to be selected. He was the one who directed Samuel to Saul. He was the one, even when they could not select the king themselves or find the king himself when they were looking for him at one point. And then he was gracious to them by sending his spirit to empower Saul to lead the military to victory over the Ammonites. And before we shake our collective heads or wag our collective fingers at Israel and their unbelief and their unfaithfulness, We should ask ourselves, in the light of the faithfulness of God to us, where we have been delivered from far greater enemies than those that the Israelites faced. We've been delivered from the enemies of sin, hell, and the grave. where we have received an eternal salvation that can never be shaken or taken away. How quick are we to look at the current trial or circumstance and think that it is so great that we need to look to ourselves or to look to others for deliverance instead of God. Has God not shown himself faithful to us again and again and again? As it was prayed earlier, he did not spare his own son for our salvation. And yet when times of troubles come, we are prone to doubt him. We're prone to doubt his character. We're prone to doubt his promises. We're prone to doubt his word. Imagine you who are parents of children who are of an age where they can express themselves, that one day your child came to you and began to ask you, are you going to feed me today? Are you going to clothe me today? Are you going to provide shelter for me today? And now mind you, there has been no reason in their history with you of doubting the fact that you will. But each day they come to you and they ask these questions about whether you will care for them. And so you continue to do this despite their questions. But imagine some time later on, they come to you and say, even though you've been providing for me, I'm not convinced that you'll continue to do so. So do you mind if I stay here in this house and yet another family provide for me? In fact, I've actually already selected this other family who will provide for me, but I'll stay here and I'll continue to bear your name and I'll continue to eat your food and wear the clothes that you have purchased. This sounds preposterous to us. And as a parent, you would probably start with a great sense of grief and sadness that your child would ever doubt that you would care for them in such simple ways. And that sadness might even turn to anger after being questioned day after day after day and illustrating your care and your love for them. But this illustration pales in comparison to what was playing out between Israel and God. It pales in comparison to what plays out when we doubt God. When we think of all that God had done for them and all that He has done for us, even more so what He has done for us in Christ. Then we can begin to see how sinful our unbelief is to a holy, faithful God. For in its essence, unbelief is calling God a liar. And if God is a liar, then it would mean that he shouldn't be feared. It would mean that he could not be faithful. It would mean that he is not worthy to be served. But God is not a liar. His faithfulness is one of his perfect, unchanging attributes, and he fulfills all of his promises. whether in the realm of blessing for his people or judgment for those who are outside of his kingdom. And this should cause us to fear him and serve him faithfully. And we need look no further for an example of God's faithfulness than the covenant language that we see God and his servants communicating to Israel throughout the Old Testament, and which Samuel reminds them of in the next section of his speech, where Samuel gives covenant reminders regarding fearing the Lord serving him faithfully look at verse 14 excuse me if you will fear the Lord and serve him and obey his voice and not rebel against the commandment of the Lord and if both you and the king who reigns over you will follow the Lord your God it will be well But if you will not obey the voice of the Lord, but rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then the hand of the Lord will be against you and your king. Samuel's words echo the previous covenantal pronouncements that he had spoken to Israel. These pronouncements were typical of covenants between a sovereign and a nation that came under his care, and those pronouncements came with stipulations. This covenantal language can be found in Deuteronomy 10, 12 through 13, which was the memory verse we as a church actually had this past week, where Moses said to Israel, and now Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you? But to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways, to love Him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments and statutes of the Lord, which I am commanding you today for your good, And later in his speech to the people Moses says in Deuteronomy 11 verses 26 through 28. See I'm sitting before you today a blessing and a curse the blessing if you obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you today and the curse if you do not obey the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn aside from what I'm commanding you today to go after other gods that you have not known. And later on in their history, in the Joshua 23 passage that was read earlier, Joshua reminded the people of what was expected of them as they entered the promised land. And as the nation is at this pivotal moment in history, at the dawn of the monarchy, God once again reminds the people of this covenant. covenant that both the people and their king would be responsible for keeping. And in reminding them of the covenant, Samuel also reminds them of their sin and indicates that his message will be authenticated by God with a sign in order to show the people the seriousness of their sin, but also the serious of God about his covenant and about what he would do if those covenant promises and those covenant stipulations were not heeded. And so we see that in verse 16 where Samuel says, now, therefore, stand still and see this great thing that the Lord will do before your eyes. Is it not wheat harvest today? I will call upon the Lord that he may send thunder and rain, and you shall know and see that your wickedness is great, which you have done in the sight of the Lord and asking for yourselves a king. So Samuel called upon the Lord, and the Lord sent thunder and rain that day, and all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel. And the people said, Pray for your servants to the Lord your God, that we may not die, for we have added to all our sins this evil, to ask for ourselves a king. So to provide us with a better grasp on the significance of this sign that Samuel calls upon the Lord to do listen to the words of noted Old Testament commentator Dale Ralph Davis. He says granted a deafening drenching thunderstorm can certainly terrify and humble folks. But would mere wracking thunder and pounding rain cause such fear, such conviction of wickedness in demanding a king, such urgency for an intercessor, as Israel expresses in verses 18 and 19? Why this sudden insight? Because Israel knew that this was no mere thunder and rain. Samuel has said it was wheat harvest in verse 17. That is May and June, the beginning of the dry season. Every Israelite knew rain was extremely rare at this time. Something like six inches of snow in Miami on Memorial Day. not impossible but so unheard of that it tends to make one think hence Yahweh got Israel's attention and he surely got their attention as they cried out to Samuel that he should pray for them that they might not die since they have added to all of their sins the evil of asking for a king and so in this moment when they seem to realize the severity of their sin and seem to understand how serious God is about dealing with sin and how serious he is about his covenant. They were in a place where they seem to see their folly. And in this point, Samuel gives them final exhortations to fear the Lord and to serve him faithfully. Look at verse 20. And Samuel said to the people, do not be afraid. You have done all this evil. Yet do not turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart. And do not turn aside after empty things that cannot profit or deliver, for they are empty. Despite impressing upon the people the greatness of their sin, Samuel begins the closing of his speech, speaking words that display the great graciousness of God. Do not be afraid. Words that God has spoken to His people throughout redemptive history. Words of peace at moments of fear and distress and crisis. Words that bring comfort and assurance. And words speaking of God being with and for His people. But note that Samuel does not excuse their sin in asking for a king. But his words indicate, as we sing in that great hymn, that God's grace is greater than even their sin. And Samuel pleads with them to not turn aside from the Lord and to go after idols because idolatry is an empty hope. And that is something that I pray God has brought us all to realize. That idolatry, though it seems good and feels good and looks good, it's empty. It's an empty hope in time of distress. It's an empty hope. But God is a true hope. our only hope and in verse 22 Samuel gives the reason for the people not to be afraid and not to turn aside from the Lord he says for the Lord will not forsake his people for his great name's sake because it has pleased the Lord to make you a people for himself Note that God's promise to not forsake His people is not predicated on their obedience or their being faithful to the covenant, but is based solely on God's character. He will not forsake His people for His great name's sake. It's His own pleasure, which should remind us of the words spoken to Israel in Deuteronomy 7, verses 6 through 8. For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for His treasured possession out of all the people who are on the face of the earth. It was not because you were more in number than any other people that the Lord set his love on you and chose you, for you were the fewest of all peoples. But it is because the Lord loves you and is keeping the oath that he swore to your fathers, that the Lord has brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh, king of Egypt. In verse 23, Samuel personally dedicates himself to continued faithfulness to this people and pledging to pray for them and to continue to instruct them where he says, moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you. And I will instruct you in the good and the right way. Excuse me. And so we see in Samuel a man standing before people who rejected him. Standing before people who wanted someone to replace him immediately. And not only does he forgive them. He seeks their good by promising to intercede for them, by promising to instruct them, by promising to remain one who would give wise counsel to their king and provide spiritual guidance to the nation. And then we, excuse me, and then we reach the central point of Samuel's speech in verse 24, which has been the focus of our study. only fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart for consider what great things he has done for you." And one would think that after all that Samuel has done in this speech in pointing Israel to the great deeds of God in the past, pointing them to their sin and asking for a king and pointing at his own life as one who had served them faithfully, and providing these final exhortations that God would be with them, that even though they had sinned greatly against God, He would remain faithful to them. One would think that verse 25 would be unnecessary, but we hear Samuel closing these words. But if you still do wickedly, you shall be swept away, both you and your king. This final sentence is necessary as a warning. And we, knowing the history of Israel, know that, in fact, these words will come true, that the nation and their kings would be swept away. But this warning is not only a warning for Israel, is a warning for all. For anyone who makes themselves or someone or something else their king, except for the king whom God has provided, will be swept away. As Psalm 2 verses 10 through 12 says, after the psalmist wonders why the peoples of the earth seek to throw off the authority of God, The psalmist says this, now therefore, O kings, be wise. Be warned, O rulers of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the son lest he be angry and you perish in the way for his wrath is quickly kindled. This psalm tells us the one who does not serve the Lord with fear And who does not kiss the sun showing their obedience and reverence to the king that that person will perish similar to Samuel's warning that the people and their king will be swept away if they continue to do wickedly. And those who have not bowed the knee to the Son, and those who refuse to obey the Son, will have the same end. An end that is not merely a political or military defeat, but an eternal punishment that results from God's eternal judgment upon those who have rebelled against He and His King's rule. But God has provided a way of salvation out from under His wrath. He is provided that way in the Lord Jesus Christ, who is fully God and fully man. And unlike Samuel, who could not proclaim himself as sinless, this one, this Christ, this Jesus of Nazareth is sinless. He was tempted in all ways as we were, and yet was without sin. And His perfect obedience to the covenant Fulfilling the law of God perfectly in heart, in soul, in mind, and in all of his strength designates him as the complete and only sacrifice that God will accept to pay for the penalty that's required for sin. He is the one who laid his life down for the sins of his people. He was dead and buried in the grave, and rose on the third day, and now sits at the right hand of God, making intercession for his people. A far better, a far more complete intercession than that which Samuel promised to the people. Jesus is the king of an eternal kingdom, and neither he nor his kingdom will ever be swept away. He will return one day to judge all mankind, and on that day every knee will bow, and every tongue will confess that He is Lord to the glory of God the Father. And those who have had their sins paid for by Christ will enter into eternal glory, and those who have not had their sins paid for by Christ will pay for their sins in eternity in hell. So if you have not bowed your heart, if you have not bowed your knee to the Lordship of Christ, I plead with you this day, as Samuel pleaded with the people, do not turn aside after empty things that cannot profit or deliver, but turn to Jesus and be saved today. And finally, for you, O Christian, remember and never forget that Jesus has done great things for us by providing for our justification through his sacrificial death. Jesus is doing great things for us and sanctifying us by the work of the Holy Spirit. And he will do great things for us in our future glorification when he returns and takes us into glory to be with him forever. And we deserve none of this. But this great salvation is given to us by the great grace of our great God, who deserves all glory and honor and praise. May we be empowered by His Holy Spirit to only fear Him and serve Him faithfully. Let us pray. Our Heavenly Father, we thank You for Your eternal Word which convicts of sin, which shows your perfect righteousness, which shows us our need for a Savior. And we thank you for providing that Savior in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He is the one by whom we can come, knowing you as our Father. enabling us by His Spirit to serve you, to fear you, to obey you. And so we ask that in these coming days you would help us to represent you. That we would strive to have a clear conscience before you and before man. Not so that we can sleep soundly at night. but that we might point others to you, that we would not be a stumbling block for those who are in darkness and need to hear the glorious gospel. We thank you for the great things that you have done for us. Make us a most humble and a most grateful people. And may you help us to resolve unresolved situations. May you help us to bring glory to your name by seeking always to live in the light of your presence. We pray all of these things in Jesus name. Amen.