B14-devotions

1 Samuel 16:11-13

Devotions for Saturday 16th January

Review

This passage comes from the heart of the story about Samuel’s anointing of David as king over all Israel, while he was a youth, and in front of his whole family. There would be many years before David’s call would be realised, so the anointing is in some way prophetic; a promise of what was to come when David was 40 years old, and had fought to bring peace to the divided and spoiled nation of Israel (see 2 Samuel 5).

But how and why does God put his hand on some people’s lives to guide them for a purpose such as this? We can never fully answer this mystery, because none of the stories in the Bible give us an answer to our questions about why God uses one person and not another. However, it is clear that God does chose individuals for special tasks, and always has done, though how he does this, we will never fully know. If there had been a blueprint for God’s method of selection for a King of Israel, then the prophet Samuel would surely have known it. When he first selected Saul as King over Israel (1 Sam 9), he thought that all had gone well. He had followed the Lord’s instructions, but things had gone wrong and Saul had turned out to be a tyrant (1 Sam 15). Samuel was distressed and confused by this, but he followed the Lord’s leading again, and went in search of a King of Israel again.

If you read through the first thirteen verses of 1 Samuel 16, you will notice that Samuel was very cagey about what he was being called to do, and was very impatient. Saul was still alive and becoming dangerously aggressive and isolated as a king whose authority was not fully respected by all Israel. What Samuel did in selecting David from the family of Jesse was done undercover; it was treason, and everyone knew it. I am not sure whether Jesse was scared of Samuel, or Samuel of Jesse, for they both knew that Saul’s authority as King was becoming non-existent, and they both knew that Samuel was choosing another king at a time when everything was going wrong in Israel and the monarchy. But Samuel persisted in following the Lord’s command, even if he did leave and go to Ramah immediately after the anointing without even offering any advice to the elect David. Samuel had been faithful, but it is easy to see that David was probably left wondering what had happened.

The Bible does not record what David felt. It is content for us to observe that he was a handsome young man, full of the knowledge of sheep and of the field, and full of potential, which at this stage was evident to God at least. David was probably aware of what had been done to him, and we can only imagine what it must have been like for a young man to come to terms with being anointed king of his people in such a manner. What would he do? Would he tell everyone about him to be obedient to him and grasp all the authority he could? The shepherd boy knew that if he tried to act in an authoritarian way with sheep, they would all run away from him. David knew that people’s respect had to be gained through care and over time, so he made no move at all; he followed his life as it panned out before him, confident that the Lord who had kept him safe in the fields and had led him safe thus far would do so in the future. It is not often that people are so wise, but this clearly marks out David as one of the spiritual ‘greats’ of the Old Testament.

The spiritual faith of David is an inspiration to us, and we do well to follow in his footsteps. For this reason, church tradition regards David as a ‘type’ of Christ, that is, one who points to the life of Christ in both word and deed. Inspired by David, we should do whatever the Lord asks of us, and especially do what is before us to do, even if it is just to ‘feed the sheep’. David may have gone from his anointing to do just this, with little knowledge of how he might win the nation over whom he had just been anointed. However, he did not bemoan the task or stand back from it.

Centuries later, when Jesus said ‘Feed my sheep’ to Peter after the resurrection (John 21:16,17), it was a simple instruction, even though Peter did not fully understand what Jesus was saying at the time. Eventually, through time, the saying has come to signify the pastoral role of a leader of God’s people throughout the church. God can create immense good out of humble obedience.

go to discipleship notes

11 Samuel said to Jesse, ‘Are all your sons here?’ And he said, ‘There is still one left, the youngest, and he is keeping the sheep.’ Samuel said to Jesse, ‘Send and bring him; for we will not sit down until he comes here.’ 12 He sent and brought him in. He was healthy, had beautiful eyes, and was of striking appearance. The Lord said, ‘Rise and anoint him; this is the one.’ 13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers; and the spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David from that day forward. Samuel then set out and went to Ramah.

We praise You Great Lord of all Creation

You are the One who makes all things perfect!

You are the One who knows what is right and wrong!

You are the One who graciously forgives our sin!

You are the One who liberates us for Glory!

Alleluia – AMEN!

Lord Jesus, You are special

You came as the King of all the earth;

Teaching people the truth about God,

Demonstrating Your authority over evil,

And performing great signs and wonders.

You came as the Servant of all people;

Doing all the work the Father gave You,

Showing commitment to the path of love,

And submitting to God’s will on the Cross.

You came as a Man, yet still being God;

Living side by side with friends and sinners,

Healing, liberating, caring, listening,

And giving up everything to share our life.

You came as God, the Eternal Word;

Showing Your people the way to the Father,

Debating with Jew and with Gentile,

And proving Your glory in victorious power!

Jesus, You are special

Prayer ideas

God is known as ‘El-Shaddai’, meaning Almighty God. Praise Him for His power and strength to save you

On-going prayers

Pray for persecuted Christians Pray for those who are persecuted by others within their own families; pray for strength and courage
Give thanks for the many people who love you, and show it
Pray for the people of North Korea who live under oppression

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