Scripture: 1 Samuel 15:24-35 I. You will not have something precious torn from you if you fear God more than people.  A. Saul admits in vs. 24 that the reason he disobeyed God was that he feared the people in his army. Saul both feared the rejection of the people in the army, and he…

I. Obeying God is better than success. A. 1 Samuel 14:47-48 is a summary of Saul’s successful reign as king. Saul could look all around Israel at the end of his reign and see victory over Israel’s enemies. From the standpoint of Israel’s history, Saul is a success. Saul was successful in defeating Israel’s enemies.…

Scripture: 1 Samuel 14:1-23 I. God will not use the fearful and disobedient to save others. A. 1 Samuel 14 presents a contrast between King Saul and his son Jonathan. Where was King Saul (vs. 2)? He and his men were hiding in a cave. So, Jonathan is moving (vs. 1) while Saul is sitting.…

Scripture: 1 Samuel 13 I. If you don’t obey God, God cannot bless your future. A. 1 Samuel 13 opens with another battle between Israel and those pesky Philistines. King Saul’s son Jonathan wins a battle against the Philistines (vs. 3), and the Philistines retaliate big time. So, what was King Saul going to do? Saul…

Scripture: 1 Samuel 12 I. God’s verdict is that His people are unfaithful. A. The main complaint that God has to bring against His people is found in vs. 12. God had made a covenant with His people. A covenant is a chosen relationship in which two parties make binding promises to each other. Israel…

Scripture: 1 Samuel 11 I. God saves you when there is no one else who can save you. A.  Back in 1 Samuel 8:20 the people of Israel told Samuel they wanted a king who would go out before them and fight their battles. Now Saul is going to fight his first battle as king.…

Scripture: 1 Samuel 8 I. We leave God behind for substitutes. A. Instead of worshiping the one true God, we worship substitutes for God. Earlier in its history, God had anticipated Israel wanting a king. Deuteronomy 17:14-15: “When you come to the land that the LORD your God is giving you, and you possess it and dwell…

Scripture: 1 Samuel 7:3-17 I. God helps us stand before Him by leading us to repentance. A. The people were sad that their sins had separated them from their God (vs. 2). The key word in verse 3 is the word return. Israel was finally returning to the LORD. They were repenting. The word repent means…

Scripture: 1 Samuel 6:1-7:2 I. God reveals His holiness to unbelievers. A. In 1 Sam. 6:1 we see that after the ark of the Lord had been captured by the Philistines, it stayed with the Philistines in their country for seven months. During those seven months, God was doing some serious damage to the Philistines.…

Scripture: 1 Samuel 5 I. The LORD is greater than idols. A. In vs. 1-2 we see what the Philistines did after they had defeated the Israelites in battle and had captured the ark of the LORD. The Philistines were making a statement by putting the ark of the LORD beside their god Dagon. They…