Rejection Hurts

Dear John, it's not you, it's me. I regret to inform you. No thanks. Your services are

no longer required. Your application has not been successful. You're fired.

Let's just be friends. I don't know how you feel when you hear these words, but I'm sure we will all

have faced rejection at some point in our lives, whether it's in relationships, sports, work, or

education. Tonight we are looking at a passage that involves rejection and hurt. Rejection hurts.

Let me pray. Lord God, Heavenly Father, High King of Heaven, I ask that through the teaching of your

word and the work of the Holy Spirit, we would have the joy of seeing lives transformed, of people

coming to faith and being baptized, of seeing passion for you being reignited and our wayward lives

brought in line with you. Speak to us, we pray. Amen.

Now, I wonder when you were listening to the passage being read earlier, whether you picked up on a few

things. I wonder if you picked up on history repeating itself. I wonder if you picked up on

who was being rejected and who the rejection hurts.

So let's look at our passage just now. We'll be looking at some other verses from the Bible,

but they'll be on our screen. Our main focus will be on the passage. So if you can have that open in

front of you, I think that would be a good idea. And let's first look at the rejection and the request.

And here we will see the first bit of history repeating itself. In the first three verses of chapter

8, we see that history has repeated itself in Samuel's sons. Samuel's sons have turned out

like Eli's sons. Samuel made his son's rulers like himself, but they did not follow in their father's

footsteps in how he governed. But instead, they went after dishonest gain, taking bribes and letting money

decide how justice would be done. This leads to the people rejecting their rule, which seems fair enough.

Why would they want to be governed by Samuel's corrupt sons?

But instead of looking to God, seeking his will, and trusting that God would provide

another judge like Samuel to rule and guide them, they look to the nations around them and think,

well, why can't we have what they have? They all have kings. We should have a king.

I'm sure Samuel feels hurt. He feels rejected. Hadn't he led the people well?

Why should they be turning on him now? Wasn't it Samuel who in the last chapter we saw had got the

Israelites to rid themselves of their foreign gods and had cried out to the Lord on Israel's behalf?

And the Lord had answered him and subdued the Philistines so that they stopped invading

their land. Hasn't Samuel improved the Israelites' lives immensely? And here they are telling him that

he's old, turning against him and his leadership and asking to have someone completely different

to him and who'll do things in a completely different way to him. A king. What is Samuel to make of this?

What should he do? How many leaders would have seen this as a rebellion that needed to be crushed?

How many times have we seen that happen throughout history and even around the world today?

When one person is the ultimate authority and then their leadership is challenged,

even peacefully, things can turn nasty very quickly. Just look at Syria as a heartbreaking example of this.

But Samuel is not the ultimate authority in Israel. No. And he knows this. And he does exactly the right thing.

He does what we should do when we face rejection. He turns to God, to Yahweh, the ultimate authority in Israel.

And when we face rejection, for whatever reason it may be, we should turn to God, the ultimate authority.

And if you are a Christian or are thinking about it, then you should know that as a Christian,

you should expect to face rejection for your faith.

Jesus himself was rejected. And we see in John 15 that he told his disciples this.

So we can expect to be rejected.

And when that comes, we should first and foremost take it to God in prayer.

And in verse 6 of our passage, we see Samuel praying to God and telling of the elders' request.

Now concerning the request, it should be said that the concept of kingship in Israel is not in and of itself necessarily a bad thing.

And I don't think that we should be said that.

And I don't think that we should be using this passage to try and argue one way or the other about our own constitutional monarchy.

Back in Genesis, God said to Abraham that he would bless Sarah, his wife.

I will bless her.

Of priests and a holy nation.

In Deuteronomy, God even predicts the elders' request.

Deuteronomy 17.14 says,

Some people have suggested that if Israel hadn't asked for a king at this point,

then God would have later gone ahead and appointed David as king when the time was right.

So we've seen the rejection of Samuel and the request for a king.

Let's now look at the repeated rejection and the response.

You see, the problem with the elders' request is that it comes from a repeated rejection of God as king.

God tells Samuel,

Listen to all that the people are saying to you.

It is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king.

As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day for seeking me and serving other gods.

So they are doing to you.

This is more history repeating itself.

And here we see that it is not really Samuel that they are rejecting.

It is God himself they are rejecting.

In the Psalms, we see the place God should have.

The Lord is king forever and ever.

The Lord is enthroned as king forever.

And when we go back to Deuteronomy 17,

we see the place that a king of Israel should have in relationship to God.

When he takes the throne of his kingdom,

he is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law taken from that of the Levitical priests.

It is to be with him and he is to read it all the days of his life

so that he may learn to revere the Lord his God

and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees

and not consider himself better than his fellow Israelites

and turn from the law to the right or to the left.

This human king would be subject to God as king

and fully dependent on God's word as the law of the kingdom.

The ultimate king of Israel would still be the Lord

and the human king would be serving as his deputy

in a similar fashion to Samuel's leadership.

But the elders of Israel reject this plan

by asking to have a king like all the surrounding nations.

This king would be the ultimate authority, not the Lord.

This is why God himself assesses their request by saying,

They have rejected me as their king.

They are rejecting him just as they had done many times before.

Ever since they became an independent nation

when God rescued them from Egypt.

If you know the story of Exodus,

then you know that it wasn't long

after being rescued that the people were worshipping a golden calf.

The nation continued to look to other nations

and to copy their practices

and worship their false gods.

Yet God was faithful.

In verse 20 of our passage,

we see the other reason

the people have for wanting an earthly king.

They wanted a king who would be physically on the battlefield,

leading them and fighting their battles.

They have a lack of trust in God and his protection.

Even though throughout their history,

there have been many times

when they have called out to God,

turned to him,

and he has won the battle.

And I wonder how often

these kind of things are a problem for ourselves.

How often do we see what others have

and want that for ourselves?

How often does the grass look greener

on the other side?

In the age of social media,

it seems increasingly difficult

to escape this trap

with friends, acquaintances, celebrities,

all projecting an airbrushed version

of their lives onto our devices.

And where is our security?

Is it in physical things?

Our houses?

Our savings?

Our families?

Or maybe you feel totally insecure.

Can I just say that real contentment

and true security

can only be found in God

through Jesus.

And if you are already a Christian,

it is so important

that we remind ourselves

of that every day.

So, given that this request

is a repeated rejection of God,

why does God allow

this situation to occur?

And why does he respond

by telling Samuel

to listen to the people

and to grant their request?

Well, this is a classic example

of God using people's sin

to accomplish his own good

and perfect plans.

we see this concept clearly

with Joseph,

who was sold as a slave

by his brothers

and was used by God

to rescue his family

and all of Egypt

from famine.

Joseph tells his brothers

in Genesis 50 verse 20,

Genesis 50:20

you intended to harm me,

but God intended it for good

to accomplish

what is now being done,

the saving of many lives.

I can think of how this has happened

in my own life

and how I ended up

in Edinburgh

when I was in secondary school

and thinking about

which university to go to.

I wasn't really asking God

about where I should go.

I was happy just to not think

too much about it

and take the easy option,

go to Queens

in Belfast.

Easy.

But I ended up

in a relationship

with a girlfriend,

which after it was all over,

I could see

was not particularly healthy.

I can now see

that the way that I lived

at the time

showed that this relationship

was more important to me

than my relationship with God.

I can see

that I was putting

my own temporary happiness

above being obedient to God.

It was clearly wrong,

but God used it

to accomplish his will

in getting me

to Edinburgh.

You see,

my girlfriend

was absolutely set

on going to St. Andrews.

And it was this

that caused me

to look

at Scottish universities

and to find

somewhere near St. Andrews

where I could study

electrical engineering.

And so,

I ended up in Edinburgh

and becoming part

of this church

and eventually

finding my wife.

So,

although I regret

that relationship,

I can see

how God used it

for good.

We also see

the same concept

with Jesus

who was innocent

yet became a victim

of an evil plot

to kill him.

However,

this horrendous act

was part of God's

good plan

to rescue us.

So,

we have seen

the repeated

rejection

of God

and the response

of God.

Let's now take

some time

to look

at the results

and the refusal.

In verses

11 to 18,

we see the results

of rejecting

to the people

what the consequences

will be for Israel

if the elders'

request

is to be granted.

Having a king

like all the other nations

will lead to the people

being slaves.

slaves serving

the king

and his desires.

He will use

the people's sons

to run

in front

of his chariots.

Their main purpose,

I think,

being just to make

the king look important.

He will take

their sons

to be commanders,

others to work

his land,

and yet more

to make weapons

of war.

The king will take

some of the people's

daughters

to make perfume,

some to bake,

and others to cook.

He will also

take the best fields,

vineyards,

and olive groves,

and give them

to his attendants.

He will take

a tax

on their produce

and give it

to his officials

in attendance,

and take

a tenth

of their flocks,

and he will make

the people slaves.

take,

take,

take,

take.

This human king

will be a taker

in sharp contrast

to God,

the giver

and provider.

Israel's desire

for a human king

like all the other nations

will be costly.

and if we look

at verse 18,

we see what will

happen

when the people

see the results

of their rejection

of God

and their request

for a king.

When that day

comes,

you will cry

out for relief

from the king

you have chosen,

but the Lord

will not

answer

you

in that day.

Notice the words

cry out.

These are the same

words

that appear

in the book

of Judges

when the people

are under

a foreign king's

oppression

and they call

out to God.

God would then

hear them,

would raise up

a judge

to rescue them

and free them

from the bondage

and oppression

of this foreign king.

Another set

of recurring words

that you find

in the book

of Judges,

particularly towards

the end of the book,

are the words

in those days

Israel

had no king.

Everyone did

as they saw fit.

So it's kind

of ironic

that they

will be

crying out

to God

because of

the oppression

of their own

king

who they

have requested.

But they

will have

made their

beds

and they

will have

to sleep

in it.

They will

not be

able to

escape

these

consequences

consequences.

And no relief

will come

from God

this time

when they

call.

Samuel

clearly warns

the people

on God's

behalf.

But what

is their

response?

It is a

refusal

to listen.

No,

they say.

we want

a king

over us.

Then we

shall be

like all

the other

nations

with a

king to

lead us

and to

go out

before us

and to

fight our

battles.

They

refused

to listen

and will

have to

face the

results

of rejecting

God

and the

refusal

to listen

to God.

So hopefully

we have

seen the

results

that people

had from

rejecting

God.

What about

us then?

There too

are

results

or

consequences

for us

rejecting

God.

Potentially

eternal

consequences.

rejection

hurts.

Rejecting

God

hurts

us.

If like

me

and you

are already

a Christian

then you

should be

living

with God

as your

king.

But like

me I'm

sure

there will

be areas

of your

life

where God

is not

in full

control.

can I

encourage

you to

confess

your

sin

to

God

and

to

a

trusted

brother

or

sister

in

Christ

so

that

you

may

be

freed

from

that

sin

and

its

earthly

results.

If you

are not

yet a

Christian

then

can I

ask you

to pay

special

attention

to our

last

little

bit.

We're

going to

have a

look at

a thing

called

Two

Ways

to

Live.

If you're

already a

Christian

then

you can

just

have a

little

snooze.

Okay

I'm

honestly

joking

but I

know

there is

a

temptation

to

switch

off

at

this

point.

So

can I

just

encourage

you

to

think

maybe

about

learning

this

simple

style

of

sharing

the

gospel

and

to

think

and

to

pray

about

who

you

could

share

it

with.

So

two

ways

to

live

you

can

find

it

quite

easily

by

searching

the

web

there's

also

an

app

that

you

can

download

for

Android

or

Apple

devices

and

it's

just

a

simple

way

of

sharing

the

gospel

in

just

six

simple

steps

with

some

very

simple

drawings

that

hopefully

anybody

should

be able

to draw

for

themselves.

So

here

we've

just

got a

circle

a

stick

man

and

a

crown

and

here

we

see

the

world

and

the

crown

representing

God

God

is the

loving

ruler

of

the

world

he

made

the

world

and

he

made

us

rulers

of

the

world

under

him

revelations

411

says

you

are

worthy

our

Lord

and

God

to

receive

glory

and

honor

and

power

for

you

created

all

things

and

by

your

will

they

were

created

and

have

their

being

but

is

this

the

way

that

things

are

now

no

we

have

all

rejected

the

ruler

God

by

trying

to run

life

our

way

without

him

but

we

fail

to

rule

ourselves

or

society

or

the

world

Romans

3

says

there

is

no

one

righteous

not

even

one

there

is

no

one

who

understands

no

one

who

seeks

God

all

have

turned

away

so

what

will

God

do

about

this

rebellion

God

won't

let us

rebel

forever

God's

punishment

for

rebellion

is

death

and

judgment

Hebrews

9

says

man

is

destined

to

die

once

and

after

that

to

face

judgment

God's

justice

sounds

hard

but

because

of

God's

love

God

sent

his

son

into

the

world

the

man

Christ

Jesus

Jesus

always

lived

under

God's

rule

yet

by

dying

in

our

place

he

took

our

punishment

and

brought

forgiveness

Christ

died

for

sins

once

for

all

the

righteous

for

the

unrighteous

to

bring

you

to

God

but

that's

not

all

God

raised

Jesus

to

life

again

as

the

ruler

of

the

world

Jesus

has

conquered

death

and

now

gives

new

life

and

will

return

to

judge

the

world

in

his

great

mercy

he

has

given

us

new

birth

into

a

living

hope

through

the

resurrection

of

Jesus

Christ

from

the

dead

so

where

does

that

leave

us

it

leaves

us

with

a

choice

two

ways

to

live

there's

our

way

reject

the

ruler

God

try

to

run

life

our

own

way

but

the

result

will

be

we

will

be

condemned

by

God

we

will

be

facing

death

and

judgment

then

there

is

God's

way

to

submit

to

Jesus

as

our

ruler

to

rely

on

Jesus

death

and

resurrection

and

that

will

result

in

being

forgiven

by

God

and

being

given

eternal

life

let's

pray

Lord

God

Heavenly

Father

High

King

of

Heaven

thank

you for

sending

your

Son

Jesus

who

was

rejected

and

killed

for

our

sake

thank

you

that

you

brought

him

back

to

life

and

that

he

is

now

reigning

with

you

Lord

help

us

to

submit

to

his

rule

and

to

rely

only

on

his

death

and

resurrection

for

us

to

be

saved

thank

you

that

if

we

are

trusting

in

Jesus

you

are

willing

to

forgive

us

and

have

promised

us

eternal

life

in

Jesus

name

Amen