READING FOR MARCH 10, 2025: 1 SAMUEL 8, MATTHEW 26, PSALM 18:7-19 1 SAMUEL 8 In this chapter we see how God works with his people and yet how God’s people can choose not to follow God’s plan completely. This rebellious trait is a danger that even the best of us sometimes do not see in ourselves. Take Samuel for example. He was a wonderful judge, but he failed in some important ways in his last years. First, he appointed his sons as judges to succeed him. God’s practice was to raise up judges Himselffor particular situations: “Then the Lord raised up judges who saved them from the hands of those who plundered them” (Judges 2:16). On this point, the judge Gideon understood his role better than Samuel: “But Gideon said to them, ‘I will not rule over you, nor shall my son rule over you; the Lord shall rule over you’” (Judges 8:23).
Then Samuel was blind to the sins of his sons until he was confronted by the people. This is surprising given his experience with Eli and his wayward sons. It provides a significant lesson to all in spiritual leadership: instruct one’s own children in godly ways. This may be why Paul places the following criterion for church leadership: “He must be one who manages his own household well, keeping his children under control with all dignity (but if a man does not know how to manage his own household, how will he take care of the church of God?)” (1 Tim. 3:4-5).
Perhaps the people were right to confront Samuel about his sons, but they were definitely wrong in their desire for a King. They already had God as their king, but “they have rejected Me [God] from being King over them” (vs 7). Nonetheless, they wanted to be like all the other countries around them. How exactly like us today. The all wise, loving, powerful God has given us His directions for living, yet we often prefer to be in step with the culture around us. God was willing to allow them to choose this bad pathway, but in his grace, he wanted them to at least know all the problems ahead of them: loss of freedom, prosperity and even children. Let’s make Jesus our Lord, not ourselves or our culture. “Present your bodies as a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect” (Rom.12:1-2).
MATTHEW 26 This chapter might be the most dramatic in the entire Bible. Since the story is so well known, rather than restate the familiar sequence of events, perhaps we can look more closely at how various participants interact. It might give us insights into our lives. Woman with Costly Perfume. Other than Jesus Himself, she is the only person in this story portrayed in a positive light. Jesus implies that she alone “gets it” about Jesus’s upcoming crucifixion. Even so, she had to put up with the sneers of the disciples. Let’s be like her and not let the naysayers, likely always around, hindering our devotion to our Lord. There seems to be a competition between using the perfume on Jesus and selling it to give money to the poor. Jesus would never suggest helping the poor is bad, but the higher priority, in Jesus’s opinion, is His substitutionary death on the cross. This is the reason Jesus came to earth. Jesus’s death
READINGS FOR MARCH 10, 2025 CONTINUED: MATTHEW 26, PSALM 18:7-19
and resurrection is our only hope to be free of sin and death. Any other view is not Christian.
Judas. We know from John’s Gospel that Judas said using perfume on Jesus was a waste of money: “Now he (Judas) said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief, and as he kept the money box, he used to steal from what was put into it”(John 12:6). So, we learn Judas was a thief, a liar, and a traitor as well as a disciple. The fact that such a person ministered with Jesus does not make Christianity untrue.Jesus still rose from the dead—the litmus test for the truth of Christianity. Should it surprise us that not everyone involved in ministry today is an honorable person? It was so from the beginning. Jesus also said Judas, although completely guilty personally, played a role in fulfilling prophesy, which in turn brought life to the World. This relates back to an earlier discussion regarding Job 9 on March 1, 2024. The presence of evil can be used to facilitate a higher good. Although Jesus eventually won a great victory, He did not minimize Judas’s guilt. He said Judas’s situation would be worse than non-existence. This statement casts some doubt on the view that the final state of those who reject Jesus is non-existence or annihilation.
Peter. Peter was a giant of the Bible. Time and time again, he was at the center of the action, initially in a positive way. Yet, the flip side of his exuberant faith was his tendency to not maintain his courage and/or good judgment. At the Transfiguration he wanted to build shelters for Moses, Elijiah, and Jesus, as if they were equal. After he correctly described who Jesus was, he advocated against Jesus going to the cross. He bravely walked on water, until he didn’t. He obediently accompanied Jesus at the Garden but kept falling asleep and then cut off the ear of the high priest’s servant. And then tragically, but thankfully not irrevocably, he denied Jesus three times at the high priest’s courtyard. This was after his almost boastful pledge: “Even if they all fall away because of You, I will never fall away!”
Would that all could be that bold for Jesus, but can we learn from Peter’s flaws? Maybe an example from one of Paul’s letters is helpful. He desired to be bold but was humble enough to not assume he could do so in his own strength: “Pray in my behalf, that speech may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel” (Eph. 6:19). This prayer can be ours as we share our faith.
PSALM 18:7-19 David was not content just to say God helped him. His language was a touch more evocative. When God heard David’s cry for help, the earth shook, the mountains trembled, smoke emerged from God’s nostrils, and fire flamed from His mouth. God immediately came by bending the sky, bringing down darkness, and flying to the rescue on a cherub at the speed of the wind. God’s voice thundered from the sky, accompanied by hailstones and fiery coals. God scattered David’s enemies with arrows and flooded their way with deep channels of water. God then rescued David from the danger of the waters and his powerful enemies. Finally, God comforted David and placed him in a safe place. Why did God do this? Because God delighted in David. NEWS FLASH: GOD DELIGHTS IN US IF WE ARE HIS. Psalm 147:11 says, “The Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast love.” Remember a time when God delivered us. Let’s reword our memory of it using speech worthy of who God is, what God did, and why God did it.
