September 8, 2024 Sermon Notes and Questions

Posted on September 5, 2024 Posted By: Jenni Nikolakakis Categories: Message Notes, Weekly Program

Kings of Israel – Saul: “How We Finish Matters!”

Wk 3 – How Saul Reacts to Trouble

1 Samuel 11:1-15

9/8/24

John Arobio

Message Notes for Week 3

God said you will have trouble. We see this in:

John 16:33 (ESV)

“I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world, you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

Saul’s Reaction

1 Samuel 11:1-15 (ESV)

¹ Then Nahash the Ammonite went up and besieged Jabesh-gilead: and all the men of Jabesh said unto Nahash, “Make a treaty with us, and we will serve you. ² But Nahash the Ammonite said unto them, “On this condition will I make a treaty with you. that I will gouge out all your right eyes, and thus bring disgrace on all Israel.” ³ And the elders of Jabesh said unto him, “Give us seven days’ respite, that we may send messengers through all the territory of Israel. Then, if there is no one to save us, we will give ourselves up to you.” ⁴ Then came the messengers to Gibeah of Saul, they reported the matter in the ears of the people, and all the people wept aloud.

⁵ Now behold, Saul was coming out of the field behind the oxen. And Saul said, “What is wrong with the people that they are weeping?” And they told him the news of the men of Jabesh. ⁶ And the Spirit of God rushed upon Saul when he heard those words, and his anger was greatly kindled.

⁷ He took a yoke of oxen, and cut them in pieces, and sent them throughout all the territory of Israel by the hand of messengers, saying, “Whosoever does not come out after Saul and Samuel, so shall it be done to his oxen. And the dread of the Lord fell on the people, and they came out as one man. ⁸ And he mustered them at Beze, the children of Israel were three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand. ⁹ And they said unto the messengers who had come, “Thus shall you say to the men of Jabesh-gilead: ‘Tomorrow, by the time the sun is hot, you shall have salvation.’” And the messengers came and told the men of Jabesh; and they were glad. ¹⁰ Therefore the men of Jabesh said, “Tomorrow, we will give ourselves to you, and you may do with us whatever seems good unto you.” ¹¹ And the next day, Saul put the people in three companies. And they came into the midst of the camp in the morning watch and struck down the Ammonites until the heat of the day. And those who survived were scattered, so that no two of them were left together.

¹² And the people said unto Samuel, “Who is it that said, ‘Shall Saul reign over us?’ Bring the men, that we may put them to death.”¹³ And Saul said, “Not a man shall be put to death this day, for today the Lord has worked salvation in Israel.”

¹⁴ Then said Samuel to the people, “Come, and let us go to Gilgal, and there renew the kingdom.” ¹⁵ And 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.

THE GREAT HIGH

Saul was anointed as king and presented to the people. He then took the found oxen and went home.

THE GREAT THREAT

We see in verses 1-4 that there is a great threat on the men of Jabesh by Nahash the Ammonite. To surrender and let the cut of the right eye of the men or be slaughtered.

SAUL’S REACTION AND GOD’S SPIRIT COMES UPON HIM

When Saul heard he was greatly angered, and the Spirit of God came upon him. Saul did two things when he heard the news.

First he waited the Lord and did not rush immediately into the fight.
Secondly he did not do it by himself but gathered others to him for the battle.

THE BATTLE

In verse 11 we see how the battle was fought and the great success it was. A complete route of the Ammonites.

SAUL’S REACTION AFTER THE BATTLE

Saul does two things here.

First he honors the Lord and gives credit for the successful battle to the Lord. He does not take the credit for himself. He says that it was the work of the Lord.
Secondly, he does not do what the hot blood of battle would lead to do. He does not take the lives of the enemies but instead leaves the judgment and the ultimate judgement to the Lord.

So, what can we learn from this time in king Saul’s life?

____________ will often come in our lives. Often after success.
We _________to the Lord first, _________His spiritual guidance and _________upon Him.
We should __________our resources and___________other people. Not to
We should not seek to get ___________ but instead we should __________it to the Lord.
Finally, we should always be______________ the credit and glory to the Lord.

THE BOTTOM LINE IS:

When trouble comes seek the Lord, wait for him and gather resources.

Then give the glory to the Lord.

Dan Hall is the transition team lead. Please contact him with any questions.
Interim pastor is in place.
Transition Team Needs
- Areas that still need to be covered. If interested, contact Dan Hall:
  - Benevolence Assistant— (assist the coordinator with requests that come to the church from folks who have some kind of need).
  - Benevolence Team Member—with the lead of the coordinator, work to follow up on benevolence requests.
  - Missions Contact— (communication with the mission the church supports in S/E Asia).
  - Janitorial—help clean the building once every 3 weeks.
  - Tech—Audio/Video and worship lyric technician.
  - Greeter—welcome people in and when they leave.

Kari will be replacing Christine as bookkeeper.

A Search Team will be put together to start the process of finding a new pastor.
- The typical time to replace a Pastor is 12-18 months. Please wait on the Lord with us!
- The team will update the church regularly

Prayer is a critical part of this process! Please pray continually for the board’s guidance in seeking God’s will.

September 14^th 10am-2pm

“Hot September Days”

in the parking lot of the Bridge Church Spanish Springs

Please sign up to volunteer to help out or to enter your car

Food and drinks will be available for purchase.

Who are the first 3 kings in Israel?
What are some things that stand out about Saul before he became king?
Read 1 Samuel 11:1-4, who are the Ammonites? What is their connection with the Israelites?
Read 1 Samuel 11:5-8, what does it mean that the “Spirit of God rushed upon Saul”? Is there any difference how the Spirit operates today?
Read Proverbs 23:17, what is the fear of the Lord? Using a bible app, what does the word for fear mean?
Read 1 Samuel 11:9-13, what does “salvation” mean in verse 13? What does it say about Saul’s character to not have these people who were against him put to death?
Read Romans 12:19, what is the problem when we take revenge on others who have done us wrong?
Read 1 Samuel 11:14-15, up to this point what are some of the characteristics of Saul? Considering what we’ve studied so far does it seem to be a good choice? What are some of the qualities we focus on for a strong leader? What are some of the qualities of a weak leader? Can/God use both of these types of leaders in the Bible? Can you point out a few examples?
Please continue to pray that God will lead our church and that we would continue to seek His will for the future.