He Wouldn't. . .Would He? June 1, 2016

¹⁸ "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.”  1 Samuel 8:18 ESV

¹⁹ But the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel. And they said, “No! But there shall be a king over us."  
1 Samuel 8:19 ESV 


Again we see the nation of Israel rebelling against God.  In the eighth chapter of 1 Samuel, they are demanding a king.  God tells Samuel that this desire for a monarch is not a rejection of Samuel, but indeed a rejection of God's authority over them.  Ever the loving God, He tells Samuel to warn the Hebrew nation of the downsides of having a king: loss of property, taxes, and conscription.  But they insist on an earthly king.

I wonder if Samuel was surprised with their decision even after his harsh warning.  Even after been presented with a list of negatives, they still demanded a king.  If he were shocked at their insistence on having a king, he should not have been.  Since they did not believe God was sufficient to lead them, why would they have worried if he abandoned them?

I wonder if their ignoring of Samuel's warning was because they did not believe God would punish them or that God could punish them.  I think it was the former.

Do we really believe God will punish us for disobedience?  His discipline is for that other guy.  Surely a loving God will not hold one of His children accountable.  In fact, the Bible tells us He "not leave or forsake" us.  It was the Old Testament that rained fire.  The New Testament God is all about mercy.  

How many choices do we make each day ignoring the possible consequences?  How many people have chosen a diet full of sugar only to be shocked that they were diagnosed with diabetes?  Which ones of us have pushed God to a Sunday only god only to be dismayed when He allowed to make a very bad investment decision?   

If we spit in the eye of our Heavenly Father, he might not "leave or forsake us", but don't expect Him to shield us from all of the consequences of our choices.  God will allow us to receive a painful burn when we touch the stove, otherwise we would continually tough the stove.  When God speaks, it is best to listen and obey.