Sermon Series: The Kings and People of Israel
To understand why the Israelites demanded a king to rule over them, we must look at the historical context of that time. When Samuel was old, he appointed his two sons as judges. But we are informed in verse 3 that these two sons were disobedient to God’s laws and corrupt. They were focused on shameful gain, so they judged the people with their eyes only on profit.
Therefore, the elders of Israel told Samuel that since his two sons were not fit to be judges, Samuel should appoint a king to rule over them after he dies. And because Samuel actually appointed a king after him, he was the last judge of Israel. Israel then became a monarchy. When the elders asked Samuel to appoint a king, he was saddened because he considered their demand as a rejection of him and his sons as judges. His leadership was questioned. But it was more than that: Samuel saw their demand as evil. But the Lord said to Samuel, “they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them” (8:7).
This 9-part series surveys the life and times of a sampling of the kings of the united monarchy, and later, the southern kingdom of Judah. We read in Scriptures that most of them were evil in the sight of the LORD, but a few did what was right and good in the sight of the LORD, and a few others did both good and evil in the sight of the LORD.
Schedule
| Date | Sermon title | Scripture texts |
| 8/21/2022 | “They Have Rejected [the LORD] from Being King” PDF mp3 | Deuteronomy 17:14-20; 1 Samuel 8:1-22 |
| 8/28/2022 | King Saul: “To Obey is Better than Sacrifice” PDF mp3 | 1 Samuel 15; Mark 12:33 |
| 9/4/2022 | King David: “The LORD is My Rock” PDF mp3 | 2 Samuel 22:1-7; 21-31; 44-49; 1 Corinthians 10:1-4 |
| 9/11/2022 | King Solomon: “I Will Give Your Kingdom to Your Servant” PDF mp3 | 1 Kings 3:1-14; 2 Corinthians 6:14-18 |
| 9/18/2022 | King Jehoshaphat: “They Taught the Book of the Law” PDF mp3 | 2 Chronicles 17-20 (excerpts); Ephesians 6:4; 2 Timothy 1:5 |
| 9/25/2022 | Jehoram, Ahaziah, Athaliah: Axis of Evil PDF mp3 | 2 Chronicles 21-23 (excerpts); 2 Samuel 7:16; Jeremiah 23:5; Matthew 1:1, 6-8 |
| 10/2/2022 | King Uzziah: “But When He was Strong, He Grew Proud” PDF mp3 | 2 Chronicles 26:1-10, 16-21; Isaiah 1:1-7; 6:1, 8-13; James 4:6b-10 |
| 10/30/2022 | Hezekiah’s Reformation PDF mp3 | 2 Chronicles 29-32 (excerpts); Hebrews 12:28-29 |
| 11/6/2022 | The Last Kings: “The Wrath of God Rose Against His People” PDF mp3 | 2 Chronicles 34-36 (excerpts); John 2:18-22 |
