The Staying Power of Grace

In 1 Samuel 12, we see people who have 'made their bed and now must lie in it.’ They’ve chosen to be like other nations wanting a human king, rejecting God as their true King. Samuel presents his case before them, reminding them of all that God has done for them in the past and how quickly they’ve turned away, forgotten and outright rejected God.

We all know what it’s like to ‘make our bed and then have to lie in it’. We know what it is to want our own way and to make decisions that lead to negative consequences. It’s part of the human condition.

Samuel doesn’t leave them there and neither does God.

It would be such a futile, hopeless scenario if there was no hope or redemption available...but there is!

Verse 20-22:

Samuel said to them, “Don’t be fearful. It’s true that you have done something very wrong. All the same, don’t turn your back on God. Worship and serve him heart and soul! Don't chase after ghost-gods. There’s nothing to them. They can’t help you. They’re nothing but ghost gods! God, simply because of who he is, is not going to walk off and leave his people. God took delight in making you into his very own people.” (The Message translation)

For all of us, this should give us great hope...no matter what choices you’ve made, no matter how much you’ve made your own “bed”, God will not walk off and leave. When we think we have to soldier on, in the consequences of our sin and selfishness, without help from God in our time of need, we make things worse. The hope of the gospel lies in the fact that even then...God is ready to act, love, give grace and restore. Thanks be to God!

Verse 23-25:

“And neither will I walk off and leave you. That would be a sin against God! I’m staying right here at my post praying for you and teaching you the good and right way to live. But I beg of you, fear God and worship him honestly and heartily. You’ve seen how greatly he has worked among you! Be warned: If you live badly, both you and your king will be thrown out.” (The Message translation)

Samuel’s posture of ‘staying at his post, praying, teaching, begging, and reminding’, is a good reminder for me, as to what my role is when I see others making choices that I know aren’t good. It’s easy to give up on people, or to rebuke them and get angry. It’s easy to get hurt and make others feel that they have to dig themselves out of their own hole. That’s not what Samuel does. He makes it clear...the people have sinned, there is no doubt about that. He also makes it clear, that even now, there is still hope as long as the people will turn to God in reverence with their whole heart and mind. He’s trying to hold out a stick to the person going down in quicksand. He doesn’t do this because he feels like it, or it’s easy. No, he does this because he knows it’s the right thing to do and he wants his own conscious clear before God.

Who in your life and mine...needs us to ‘stay at the post, pray, teach, beg and remind’? Where are we giving up on people...choosing instead to gossip, get angry, or hurt? How aware are we of our own need for help when we find ourselves in quicksand, or our own need of grace?

God doesn’t walk away from His people and neither can we.

Ultimately...God redeems this whole king thing. Jesus the King of Kings comes from this line of kings...the family of David. God is not bound or thrown off by our sinful choices...what a blessed relief!

Staying at the post,

Ruth Spencer