“For the sake of his great reputation, Adonai will not abandon his people; because it has pleased Adonai to make you a people for himself.”-1 Samuel 12:22
The more I sit down and actually read the Scriptures for myself, the more I notice how a lot of what we’ve been taught in our churches and seminaries is so freakin’ off the mark in so many areas.
For example, consider the teaching that all that God does is for our benefit.
You know, that’s simply NOT true, and it’s not Scriptural.
Take a look at verse 22:
“For the sake of His great reputation
He will not abandon His people.”
God considers the protection of His Holiness, Name, and reputation to be far more important than our petty and personal needs and well-being.
I know that might sound cold, but it’s true.
The Lord’s concern is less for the people of Israel who have purposefully broken His covenants than it is to uphold His Holy Name.
In fact, Samuel says a similar thing.
He says he will continue to serve and intercede on Israel’s behalf…
But it’s not so much for the sake of Israel…
It’s for the sake of upholding God’s reputation.
That’s where his priority lies.
Take a look at verse 23:
“As for me, far be it from me to sin against Adonai by ceasing to pray for you! Rather, I will continue instructing you in the good and right way.”
See, Samuel is driving home the point that it would be a sin to not continue to intercede on behalf of Israel.
He’s basically saying “I’m not going to continue to serve you guys because you deserve it. I’m only doing this because this is the job God gave me to do.”
So if you’re a leader of a congregation, there’s a huge takeaway here we’d be remiss to overlook.
It is this:
If you’re leading a flock that shows you disrespect, ingratitude or is constantly grumbling, you do NOT have permission by the Lord to abandon them.
Ya feel me here?
Imagine if Moses had completely abandoned the Israelites in the wilderness because of their rebellions and sins…
Imagine if Joshua had said to the Israelites, I’m sick of leading you guys, go out and take the Promised Land for yourselves.
Or imagine if Yeshua had abandoned his disciples because he was sick and tired of having to correct their misunderstandings of who he was and what his mission was all about.
We’d be reading a very different Bible right now, wouldn’t we?
Heck, we might not even have a Bible if the fathers of our faith had thrown in the towel halfway through their God-assigned missions.
Here’s the bottom line.
Leadership is tough.
Especially when you’re trying to grow a congregation and the people you’ve prayed for and served for many years continue to hurt you or demand more than you think you can give.
During trying situations, God says you must NOT stop your efforts to lead them in the ways of righteousness and God’s Torah.
If your flock isn’t reciprocating according to your expectations, maybe that’s the problem right there homie.
Stop being attached to a certain way you think things should be.
Who cares if some folks don’t show up to your Bible study, worship service, or whatever you had planned with great enthusiasm?
Heck, who cares if no one shows up at all?
You show up anyway…and do your own solitary Bible study or prayer session.
Stop being so mentally weak and letting outside circumstances control your feelings.
That really is the difference between a man and a child if you think about it.
A child easily throws in the towel when things get tough.
A man doesn’t…especially a Godly man.
It might be best to adopt Samuel’s attitude in that case.
Samuel certainly wasn’t happy with how the people had responded to his many years of dedicated service to them.
Yet he never thought of abandoning them.
Why?
Because God had called him to that post, period.
Ya feel me?
So when you feel like you’re leading a bunch of ungrateful baboons, take the perspective that for God’s inscrutable reasons, it still remains your holy mission to continue to teach them the ways of the Lord.
Samuel understood well that no matter how frustrating things got, he knew it would be a sin to even think about abandoning his post.
If you’re leading a flock, I know this is easier said than done.
So when you’re going through tough times, understand that every great Biblical leader including the prophets experienced incredible frustrations, betrayals, and in extreme cases death threats and stonings.
Heck, let’s not forget that Yeshua himself was betrayed by his closest disciples and nailed to a cross for his dedication to the Lord.
Alrighty, I gotta jump on a call now.
The lesson here is to stop being such a sissy and expecting things to be so darn easy all the time.
Deep satisfaction in life comes from surmounting extreme difficulties.
Ya feel me here?
Alright, see ya next time.
NEXT TIME WE BEGIN 1ST SAMUEL CHAPTER 13
Totally agree.
Glad you resonated with this Veronica. Be blessed!
Hi Richoka I agree with you
‘For the sake of his great reputation, Adonai will not abandon his people; because it has pleased Adonai to make you a people for himself.”-1 Samuel 12:22
Because we(human) alone are the image of God, sometimes we tend to conclude that all that God does 24/7 is only about the wellfare of human beings; to sit down and listen and answer our prayers, correct ,warn or punish and also wait for judgment day.
God is always engaged in business and new projects as well.
We are beneficiaries of God’s business but it should not be replaced with the notion that all God does is about us.
God placed HIS Word so high Psalm 138:2 I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name.
God has held His word so high that even when rulers from the old culture in the bible would use their authority to break the rules and their promises, our God lives by them. He exalts His Word above His name and lives by His own rules
Above ALL things, is GOD’s INTEGRITY
Great comment Abraham.
I loved this sentence “God is always engaged in business and new projects as well.”
I think a lot of us tend to forget that.
We can go way back before Sh’muel: when God wanted to destroy the nation for their sin of the Golden Calf, Moses interceded by telling God if he did that, then the nations who saw God’s great power would think less of him, saying he only was able to bring them into the desert, but not to the land, as he proomised. It would damage God’s reputation with the Goyim.
That same argument was used- successfully, I might add- when God wanted to destroy the people after they refused to enter the land (the first time).
God must always be the first priority, and he must always maintain his position as holy and omnipotent. despite how much he loves all people, even his chosen ones, he will not fail to bring justice upon them when they sin, not just for their sake (punishment is designed to bring us back to God) but for the sake of his Name (not the Tetragrammaton, but his reputation and renown).
As I said on Facebook, awesome comments!
If I had gotten this comment before writing this post, I would’ve incorporated it into this post…lol.
Blessings!
This post is a deep truth + a 5-star application. Great comments, too. Can’t help but chime in!
“The Lord’s concern is less for the people of Israel who have purposefully broken His covenants than it is to uphold His Holy Name.”
*After* they settled in Canaan, Adonai would look at Israel’s perfidy and consider “wiping them from human memory” – ouch! Now *that* would be harsh!
Why didn’t he go through with it? Was it because he cared so much for their hopes and dreams? Did he even care for their existence?
Comparatively . . .NOPE
He withheld their destruction because . . .he was concerned their human (and supernatural) enemies would misunderstand, and say, “Our hand is triumphant, it was not Yah who did all this.” (Dt. 32:27)
Whatever else he does / doesn’t accomplish . . .
Before the eyes of the watching universe – human and non-human – God WILL show himself to be and to hold ALL
glory
honor
power
wealth
wisdom
might
blessing
HOLINESS
As far as the application, I am not YET the man you describe, but I see him testing and strengthening me. Teaching me to ignore my comfort in exchange for participation in His GRAND plan.
Amen, Eric.
One thought that occurred to me when reading your comment just now is that God not abandoning Israel for the sake of His reputation is a sign of His love for all mankind…
In other words, He so desperately wants all people to come to Him that He makes it a priority to preserve His Holiness and reputation so that those outside of Israel will be able to trust Him.
Did I make myself clear there?
Anyways, thanks for your comment…
And blessings!
Yes, perfectly clear – His integrity and holiness, if ever violated, would invalidate Him as the potential Savior of all mankind
Amen. Very well articulated brother. Talk soon. Blessings!