Psalm 115:3 is the theme of the lesson today.
Read 1 Samuel 28
What was Saul's response when he saw the Philistine army?What did Saul want the woman from Endor to do for him?
Why do you think the woman might have cried out at the top of her voice when she saw Samuel?
God's occasional refusal to respond to the please of someone in His word often strikes a humanitarian chord in us. As first we may wonder why God would not answer Saul since Saul first inquired of Him before he sought a spiritist.
God neither responds haphazardly nor withholds an answer without regard. God is silent at times. Isaiah 59:1-3 gives us one explanation for this silence--one that certainly applied to Saul at this time.
Unconfessed, unrepented sin can easily be the reason for God's silence in our lives. Saul continued in disobedience to God. He relentlessly sought the life of an innocent man and even attempted to spear his own son.
He had priests slaughtered and gave approval to an entire town being wiped out. Isaiah 59:2 does not say God can't hear, but that He WON'T.
One prayer God surely will hear even when we've been rebellious and sought our own way is the prayer of sincere repentance. The prayer for deliverance from sin must precede the prayer for deliverance from our enemies.
Sometimes there is backsliding/taking a few steps back; sometimes our footprints in the sand look like figure eights.
What does the Word say about spiritists and mediums? Saul knew God's Word. After his regard for God shrunk and his flesh abounded, he sought the very thing he had considered wrong. We've done the same things from time to time, but as we grow in spiritual maturity prompted by the Holy Spirit we can regain strength to be on the right track.
How does James 4:17 apply to Saul and to us?
No doubt, God had His own agenda the day Saul sought the witch of Endor.
Saul might have asked the spiritist, "Do you happen to see a tiny little tear in the robe?" Neither Samuel's clothing nor his mood had changed.
God did something rare that day. He gave Saul a vision of Samuel raised momentarily from the dead so He could smack Saul in the face with His sovereignty.
We arrive at God's sovereign purpose for supernaturally intervening. The encounter ends with the harsh news of the imminent death of Saul and his sons.
Sometimes the most merciful thing God can do in a rebellious person's life is let him know he is going to die so he can beg the mercy of God.
next: Alone with God
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