1 Samuel 10:9-11:15

As we have gone through Samuel, God has been showing Israel why a king is a bad idea.

Saul had been secretly annointed as king, and kept that to himself throughout the events of the next day.

Comically, he hid himself away when the time came for him to be revealed as God's chosen king.

Why did God choose a king for Israel?

God had been telling Israel why there shouldn't be a king - so why did He give in and chose them a king?

This is an odd tension to have here in the Bible. Or is it?

A repeat theme throughout the Bible is the Fall. Where someone takes something they see as good, they take it, and there are consequences.

So it is with Saul! He was seen to be good, so the people take him as their king. We should recognise the similarities of the themes to get a point. The people wanted something that was other than God's provision and so took something that actually turns out to be bad.

If we look into the law of Moses, we see some interesting things about what God's king should be. He should have no army, he should be poor, and he should not have many political allies of influences. He should keep a copy of God's word and read it. This makes sense. The king should fulfill God's purist for Israel to be set apart.

What we see in Saul's first actions as king appears to be good - he is like an Israelite Judge. The center of this story is that Saul becomes filled with the spirit. The victory and power doesn't come from Saul - it comes from the presence and power of the Lord.

Fast forward to the New Testament, where we see Jesus being tempted in a similar way to Adam and Eve in Genesis. But this time, we don't see Jesus caving like throughout the Bible. He is not in Adam, but listens to God's word and follows Him. He goes out in the power of the Spirit to establish His kingdom.

Look back at Saul - after their victory the Israelites see their error and renew the kingdom. The best thing we can do is to turn to Him and recommit ourselves to His kingdom.