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In the Old Testament, God had appointed His judges to rule the land. Samuel was His voice to the people, and this was the best scenario these people could have. Instead of obeying a man’s wishes, they got to obey the Sovereign Lord which of course would bring them life and peace. However, the people wanted a king! The following verses show us why:
1 Samuel 8:5b
“Now appoint us a king to rule over us like all the other nations.”
God had given them the best thing for them and exactly what they needed. Instead of seeing that God had given them something good, they looked around at what the people around them had and thought they could get something better. God said to Samuel:
1 Samuel 8:7
“Do everything they say to you,” the Lord replied, “for it is me they are rejecting, not you. They don’t want me to be their king any longer.”
When we don’t want God to be our king, we no longer want what He has provided us with either. We want what we think could be better for us, not what He has shown us is best for our life.
Samuel told the people how horrible it would be for their lives if they rejected what God had given them. Their lives would be turned upside down and it would not be the good life they thought they could have. Still, the people replied:
“Even so, we still want a king,” they said. “We want to be like the nations around us.”….. and the Lord replied, “Do as they say, and give them a king.”
And so it was. The people got their king and faced all the destruction that God said they would experience. They had pain unimaginable all because they looked at the people around them and convinced themselves that they could do better than what they had from God.
This reminds me of the story in which God brought the Israelites out of Egypt. God provided for them the best food they could possibly eat at just the right portions every day. It nourished them, was healthy for them, and came directly from the hand of God. However, the Bible says they desired the food of the Egyptians (those that didn’t serve the Lord). They said, “What You have provided for us is not good enough, God! We want to experience again what those who are not living for You are getting to experience.” So God gave them over to their evil desires. He gave them quail from Egypt, but it was not satisfying. While they were yet eating it, God’s anger burned against them and they experienced pain, not pleasure. The Lord said in Numbers 11:
“Therefore the Lord will give you meat, and you shall eat…. —until [you are satiated and vomit it up violently and] it comes out at your nostrils and is disgusting to you—because you have rejected and despised the Lord Who is among you..”
While the meat was yet between their teeth, before it was consumed, the anger of the Lord was kindled against the people, and the Lord smote them with a very great plague.
That place was called Kibroth-hattaavah [the graves of sensuous desire], because there they buried the people who lusted, whose physical appetite caused them to sin.
If you really want it, God will let you have it. But please know it will never, ever be what the deceiver has promised you it will be.
Proverbs 1:31
Therefore, they must eat the bitter fruit of living their own way, choking on their own schemes.
We can either embrace what God has given us and take pleasure in the fruit of the Spirit that comes from Him in our life: Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Or we can eat the fruit that we see the people around us eating that looks so tempting. Only that fruit will taste bitter as we choke on it and vomit it up.
Father God, Your Word is so clear and easy to follow. You show us in great detail how our choices will affect our lives. You are not a totalitarian. You want to see us experience Your good life, but You will eventually give us what we really want. Even if what we really want is not from You. When we choose our own way over Yours, it is You are we rejecting. Please help me not desire what the people around me who aren’t living for You are experiencing. The deceiver will make that quail and that fruit look delicious, but it only causes pain and heartache. Thank You for the good things You have given me in my life. They are exactly what I need and I embrace them fully.
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