As Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons to be judges over Israel. Joel and Abijah, his oldest sons, held court in Beersheba. But they were not like their father, for they were greedy for money. They accepted bribes and perverted justice. Finally, all the elders of Israel met at Ramah to discuss the matter with Samuel. “Look,” they told him, “you are now old, and your sons are not like you. Give us a king to judge us like all the other nations have.” – 1 Samuel 8:1-5 (NLT)
Samuel may have indeed been old, and his two sons were well known to be corrupt. But in the end, the Israelites cited these two reasons as convenient excuses. The truth of the matter is that they no longer wanted God as their King. They wanted to be like all the other nations, even if it meant breaking their longstanding covenant with Him.
So many times God had rescued His people from total destruction and helped them defeat their enemies. They never enjoyed security and prosperity more at any time of their existence than when they trusted and obeyed God. But none of that mattered now. They believed their best move going forward was placing all of their trust and hope in a flawed human being.
And just as Samuel had warned them ahead of time, their decision proved to be disastrous. Saul rejected God, too.
But before we make light of Israel’s horrible decision to kick God to the curb, it’s worth noting that we’re often guilty of the same exact thing.
Aren’t we just as quick to seek a human solution before taking our problems to God? Are we not just as guilty when it comes to placing all of our hope and trust in political leaders instead of repenting from our sin and trusting in the Lord? Don’t we practice just as much idolatry as the Israelites did? Taylor Swift has more followers than Jesus. And she’s just one example! How many times over the past several years have most of us looked at the cultural and political circus’s going on here in America and wished that we could just simply be like another nation?
This is what happens when a country of people rejects God. It happened with Israel, and the same thing is happening today here in the United States. God is giving America what she wants. “You want a new king? You think man is more trustworthy and capable than the great I AM?”
Samuel’s warning is there for us too.
“When that day comes, you will cry out for relief from the king you have chosen, but the LORD will not answer you in that day.” – 1 Samuel 8:18
Wake up, America, before it’s too late.
Former Blackout Artist 