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Youth Conference 2020 : The LORD looks at the heart - Session 4

Text: 1 Samuel 8
1 December 2020

SESSIONS # 4 TUESDAY, 1 DECEMBER 2020
Text: 1 Samuel 8

THE DEMAND FOR A KING
1 Samuel 8:1-5

1. The elders of the nation of Israel

a) They approached Samuel
b) Their assessment
i) Samuel was old
ii) His sons did not walk in the ways of Samuel
c) They asked him to make them a king
i) Like all the other nations
ii) This king would lead them like a judge 1 Samuel 8:4-5

2. The reasoning of the elders

a) Flawed
b) Secular
c) No spiritual soundness
d) Stubbornness
e) Foolishness

3. What was lacking?

a) Faith in God
b) Failure to comprehend God’s hand in the past
c) Inability to include God in the difficult present circumstances of life
d) Influenced by the world

GOD’S WORD TO SAMUEL
1 Samuel 8:6-21

1. Samuel’s Response 1 Samuel 8:6

a) This request displeased him
b) He had spent his whole life ministering to the people
c) Yet, they sought to be like other nations
d) His years of ministry seemed to have been in vain
e) He felt rejected

2. Samuel turned to God 1 Samuel 8:6

a) He prayed
b) God answered

3. Prayer

a) An integral part of his life and ministry
b) Prayer life reflective of his faith
c) And his relationship with God

GOD’S WORD TO SAMUEL

1. This was God’s assessment

2. God’s revelatory insight concerning the reasons behind their request for a king

a) The people had not rejected Samuel
b) They had rejected the LORD
c) They did not want God to reign over them 1 Samuel 8:7

3. Looking back at the history of Israel

a) They had never fully obeyed God from the beginning
b) They had forsaken the LORD
c) They had chosen to worship idols instead 1 Samuel 8:8

4. Heed the voice of the people

a) They can have a king
b) But a word of warning must be given

5. The kind of king the people would end up having

a) A description of the behaviour of the king was foretold 1 Samuel 8:10-18
b) A key phrase: “He will take” 1 Samuel 8:11

THE RESPONSE OF THE PEOPLE

1. The people refused to obey Samuel 1 Samuel 8:19

2. They insisted on having a king

3. They wanted to be like other nations 1 Samuel 8:20

INTERACTION
QUESTION AND ANSWER

1. Why did Israel ask for a King?

2. Why did God consent to this request?