Samuel had delivered God’s verdict to Saul: “To obey is better than sacrifice. . . . Because you have rejected the word of Yahweh, he has also rejected you from being king” (vv. 22-23). Our passage picks up at the climax of this story. The question is, how will Saul respond? In this sermon, pastor […]
1 Samuel 8 ends with Israel foolishly asking for a king “like all the nations” and the Lord telling Samuel to give them the king they wanted. In chapter 9 we are introduced to Saul and how he is anointed to be Israel’s king. In this sermon, pastor Mitch reminds us that, despite his people’s […]
In chapters 5-6, we follow the exiled ark of Yahweh as he continues to gain victory over his enemies and eventually returns to his place among his people. And while this story is certainly a cause for us to rejoice, it is a cause for us to rejoice with trembling before our holy God. In […]
In chapter 1, God answered Hannah’s prayers for a son—a son whom she vowed to give back to Yahweh all the days of his life. Now, in chapter 2, we hear another one of her prayers, and it’s a psalm of thanksgiving. As we saw last time, Hannah’s story is meant to be a picture […]
With this sermon we are starting a new series through the books of 1-2 Samuel. Originally one scroll in Hebrew, these books recount the series of events that saw Israel transition from judges to kings, and from tabernacle to temple. The backdrop for Samuel is summed up with the final verse of Judges: “In those […]
Scripture shows us that God is not only good, wise, sovereign, but also surprsing. He does new things which are often unexpected and astonishing but full of wisdom far beyond what we could ever imagine. This new and surprising way of working is what God’s word of comfort to his people through Isaiah was all […]
In chapter 40, Isaiah established the fundamental principles about God to assure Israel of God’s power and eagerness to save them. Now in chapter 41, Isaiah brings these principles into clearer focus. This section begins and ends with God addressing the nations, but in between is a lengthy section of comfort and reassurance given to […]
In Isaiah 40 the prophet has been speaking of God’s promised comfort in vv. 1-11. God was not done with his people and he would not leave them in exile. He would forgive them, restore them, and even commission them to proclaim his good news of salvation! And to assure us of his power to […]
After being hurled into the raging sea, God mercifully preserves Jonah’s life by sovereingly appointing a great sea creature to swallow him. From the belly of the fish, Jonah offers a prayer of thanksgiving to the Lord from the belly of the fish, acknowledging that he had been spared from a death he deserved. In […]
