Outline:
- Scripture is the combined work of God's people throughout history
- We see God's call to community through Genesis and the formation of Israel
Judges:
- Judges were not legal leaders
- Called on in times of need to help God's people
- See them raised up mostly when Israel falls away from God
- Not an organized leadership as we experience today
- Not a dynasty- raised up from various families
- Lack of organization in raising judges was meant as a reminder of the need of God
- God is ultimately the leader
Kings:
- Last Judge is Samuel
- People disillusioned, Samuel's sons are the early prototype for P.K.s or "Priest's Kids"
- Ask for a King instead, want to be like other nations
- (1 Sam. 8:1-5)
- God tells Samuel they are rejecting God, not Samuel (1 Sam. 8:7)
- Samuel warns the people that this will not turn out well for them (1 Sam 8:10-18)
- King will take what is best from them for himself
- Is a sign of Israel turning from God to themselves
- Israelites decide this is what they want anyways
- Result: things are good for awhile, until after Solomon
- Kingdom then gets split in two (Northern Kingdom and Judah)
- Thanks to Solomon's foreign wives, Israel turns from God to foreign gods
- Leads to downfall of Israel
Take-aways:
- God wants Israel to live together as a community
- God wants the community of Israel to rely on God alone
- People decide they want to follow their own way (even though this hasn't worked)
- God lets people have what they want
- Result is the downfall of Israel
- Tiny kingdom, couldn't have done anything without God anyways