READING FOR MARCH 12, 2025: 1 SAMUEL 10, MATTHEW 28, PSALM 18:31-50                          1 SAMUEL 10 Some of us may have had to train our successors for their new job. It can be bittersweet, especially if we were leaving involuntarily. Samuel shows he is a man of great character by doing all he could to help Samuel be successful. Samuel first poured oil over Saul head, symbolizing God’s anointing on him for his position of king.  Then he gives Saul a rather complex set of directions to follow over the next days. Aside from the fact that it would be difficult for most of us to remember these details, the fact that they all transpired as Samuel described them confirms God’s involvement and validation in this leadership transition. Do we wish God would be as detailed in his directions to us? In truth, God has given a host of instructions for living in His word. Let’s start by following all of this guidance and see what happens.  The most unusual prediction Samuel gives is that Saul will come upon a group of prophets and that Saul will join them in prophesying because the Holy Spirit will rush upon him.  Samuel says this will make him a “different man.”  Jesus later uses the words “born again” (John 3:3) and Paul the words “new creature” (2 Cor. 5:17).Becoming a Christian and receiving the Holy Spirit is not just getting some new activity for Sunday morning, but it is a complete life change from the inside out. 

Once again Samuel gathered all the people at Mizpah. He again reminded them that God had saved them from many catastrophes, yet they had rejected His word. If this is ever true in our lives or with our church, we also need to be told this for our own good. It is even possible we are unaware because we are not always “in the word.” Read the Bible with a heart open to be corrected. Then Samuel goes through the public exercise of a lottery selection by tribe, family, and person—even though Saul had already been anointed king. This confirmed to the people that Saul was God’s choice. As they sought to proclaim him king, Saul was humor-- ously and endearingly hiding among the baggage. Most of the people supported this selection, but some despised him.  Given our polarizing times, it is easy to despise a leader we did not support. We shouldn’t: “I urge that requests, prayers, intercession, and thanksgiving be made in behalf of all people, for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity” (1 Tim. 1-2).

MATTHEW 28 Skeptics of Christianity often charge that because accounts of the resurrection vary so much, the story was made up. There are considerable differences. Different gospel writers focused on different aspects. Luke wrote that he had read the different accounts and tried to put events in chronological order (Luke 1:3). John, on the other hand, stressed he only included material that would help the reader believe in Jesus (John 20:20-21). The late George Ladd from Fuller Theological Seminary put together a possible sequence that includes all the resurrection events from the four Gospels. Of course, it might not have happened in this order, but it is reassuring to know the resurrection accounts can be harmonized. 

1. The earthquake and removal of stone occurs before dawn.
2. A group of four women come early to the tomb, wondering who will move the stone. As they approach, they are amazed to see that the stone has been rolled away.
3. Mary rushes off to tell Peter and John that the body of Jesus has been stolen (John 20:2). 
4. The other women stay in the garden. They enter the tomb and are met by two angels, who tell them to carry the word of the resurrection to the disciples. 
5. The women rush away from the garden, filled with mingled emotions of fear and joy, speaking to no one about the vision of the angels at the empty tomb (Mark 16:8).                                                                                               

READINGS FOR MARCH 12, 2024: MATTHEW 28, PSALM 18:31-50

• Later in the day, Jesus met them. (Matthew 28:9 does not say that this meeting occurred in the garden.) They had to run away from the tomb. Jesus tells them to bear the word to the disciples; they depart to find the disciples, who are not together but scattered (Matthew 26:56). 
• Peter and John, having been informed by Mary, come to the tomb after the women have left. They see the clothes; vague comprehension dawns on John. They rush off to gather the disciples.  
• Mary returns to the tomb after Peter and John have left; they had run to the tomb (John 20:4), leaving Mary behind. She still thinks the body has been stolen. She is weeping outside the tomb, knowing nothing of the experience of the women she had left in the garden. She sees the two angels, then Jesus (John 20:11-17).
• After the first shock of amazement had worn off, the women find some of the disciples; the disciples cannot believe the fanciful story (Luke 24:11). 
• The disciples have gathered together.   

 Thoughts about the Matthew 28 Resurrection Account:

• How beautiful that the two Marys faithfully kept the Sabbath but as soon as possible (dawn on Sunday) went to Jesus’s grave. These were also strong women who were not frozen in fear like the guards (vs.4) when they encountered the angel. When they met Jesus, they were able to balance fear with joy (vs. 8), a combination that baffles folks today but is commanded in scripture. Can we do likewise? 
• The Jewish leaders never even considered the implications of the resurrection beyond their desire to hold onto power. They fabricated a lie and bribed the soldiers to maintain the lie. Sounds like Watergate. Do we really value and live the truth?
• What’s so special about going to Galilee? Right after Jesus told the disciples they would all desert him (Matt 26:31-32), he quickly changed the subject and told them to meet Him in Galilee. When the angel spoke with the Marys, he told them to tell the disciples Jesus had risen and to meet Him in Galilee. When the Marys bumped into Jesus on the way, He told them to tell the disciples to leave for Galilee. Something big was going to happen in Galilee. Jesus’s first words in Galilee were that He possessed all authority so they can and must go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing and teaching them to obey His words. Have we heard Jesus’s words from Galilee with the full emphasis He intended? If we obey, we have the promise of Jesus’s presence. WE WILL OBEY?

PSALM 18:31-50 David’s Steps to Victory: Starting and Ending with God 

• Verses 30-31 God’s qualities
• Verses 32-36 God’s strengthening of David 
• Verses 37-48 David’s enemies defeated
• Verses 49-50 David’s praise offered to God

Eph. 6:12 reminds us that our battles today are against evil forces and not people! Pray the following steps:

1. Your ways God are perfect and your Word is trustworthy. You are my shield, refuge, leader, and rock (vs. 30-31). (Only pray this if you mean it! God knows our hearts.)
2. Strengthen me, God, and keep me from disobeying you. Prepare me for the challenge(s) I currently face. Keep me from falling with your gentle hand (vs.32-36).
3. Deliver and rescue me from (fill in the blank) and be the God of this victory (vs. 37-48).
4. Thank you for your deliverance and kindness to me and all who care for me (vs. 49-50).