1 Samuel 7

What can anyone safely do with God and the ark of the covenant? For twenty years the people of Israel “lamented after the Lord,” but no one knew a safe way to be with God.

Then Samuel, who had come of age, was used by God to direct the people. It was good that Israel wanted the Lord. Did they understand that the true God would never take His spot alongside the idols of the nations that His people were worshiping? They needed to get rid of their false gods and serve Him only.

This was very different advice than the original enthusiasm for the ark that had swept through the armies of Israel on the day that it was captured by the Philistines in battle. Samuel was honestly calling them to repent of there idolatry and to turn to the Lord humbly and obediently.

This call to faith actually worked! God was ruling His people through a Spirit-filled prophetic judge who served as His ambassador. Samuel was the final judge. This chapter is followed by the stories of Saul and David. Those accounts begin with the dissatisfaction of Israel with this older way of running the nation.

That old way worked like this: God alone was King. He would raise up a judge in response to the earnest prayers of His people. He brought victory from heaven by His power working in them and around them. There was nothing wrong with that old way. The people had no just complaint against God when they demanded a king like the other nations.

We have a King in the heavens who is fully God and fully man. He still responds to the cries of His people in prayer. He appoints ambassadors in His kingdom who are charged with a message of powerful grace. Those messengers call upon the Lord's people to respond with faith, repentance, and Spirit-filled obedience. There is nothing wrong with that method.

But we can become impatient with a King that we cannot see. We can imagine that the victory for which we crave will only come through the kingdoms of this world. That will not work. We need a bigger and more permanent victory than could ever be achieved by any political, economic, or military movement. Through prayer, the Word of the God, and Spirit-filled love, the Lord will move mountains through you.

One day a visible King will come with a kingdom that cannot be shaken that is already reserved for us in heaven. This is the Lord's plan, and He is so sure of its success that Jesus died as an acceptable offering to God in order to bring it about. Even now He continues to intercede to the Father for our eternal benefit. The resurrection kingdom that He will bring with a loud shout of victory is far better than anything that we have ever seen. But we get a taste of heavenly things even now. In the Lord's Supper and in our covenant worship more generally Christ is our very present “Ebenezer,” our Stone of help.

Do not lose your appetite for God and His good plan of victory. Live the life of the kingdom by the power of the reigning King. Hear His voice in the Word. Call out to Him in prayer. Meet with Him and His people in worship. Eat at His table. Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Look in hope for His return.