Anointed Leadership: An Expository Study of 1 & 2 Samuel

By Joe Dickinson

It is not uncommon for a Christian to want to accomplish great things for God. And so, in our zeal and passion for him, we set out to do just that. While there is certainly nothing wrong with such a mission, many Christians are faulty in the way to go about it. Too many set out with a zeal to accomplish something great for God without first submitting themselves to be the type of vessel through which God can do something great.

There is a great difference in wanting to be used and wanting to be usable. One relies on self: talent, title, personal strengths. The other relies on Almighty God. And as talented as a person may be, his or her gifts pale in comparison to the power of God and what he could do through them, if they would only submit to him and his ways.

The world needs more people through whom God can pour himself. Churches need men and women who are willing to trust in God and be greatly used of him. Homes need fathers and mothers who rely more heavily on the power of God to sustain them than they do their own muster. Our generation needs people who will wait on God to make them usable before setting out to accomplish greatness in their own strength.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Dec 12, 2013
• ISBN: 9781490804019

Joe Dickinson

Joe Dickinson has served as pastor of Hillcrest Baptist Church in El Paso, Texas, since 2009. He attended and graduated from Heartland Baptist Bible College with a bachelor’s degree in biblical studies. Under his leadership, the church continues to grow and accomplish the Great Commission in El Paso and around the world. He has been married to Tisha since 2003, and they now have four children.

Book preview

ANOINTED

LEADERSHIP

An Expository Study of 1 & 2 Samuel

Volumes 1 and 2

JOE DICKINSON

44483.png

Copyright © 2013 Joe Dickinson.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

WestBow Press books may be ordered through booksellers or by contacting:

WestBow Press

A Division of Thomas Nelson

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.westbowpress.com

1-[phone]

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

ISBN: 978-1-4908-0403-3 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4908-0405-7 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4908-0401-9 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2013914064

WestBow Press rev. date: 11/20/2013

Contents

Volume 1

1.   Hannah and Peninnah

2.   Samuel, Hophni, and Phinehas

3.   The Making of a Prophet

4.   The Rejected of God

5.   The Not-So-Casual God

6.   The Tragedy of Fearlessness

7.   Finding Ebenezer

8.   Greener Grass?

9.   The Journey from Ordinary to Extraordinary

10.   Provision in Spite of Failure

11.   A Delivering King

12.   I am Still the Same

13.   Who is Bigger, You or God?

14.   Faith, Power, and Foolishness?

15.   Who God Rejects

16.   The Requirements for God’s Blessing

17.   Overcoming Goliath

18.   Good Leader, Bad Leader

19.   Protection from the Most Powerful from the Most High

20.   The Treasure of Friendship

21.   In Your Darkest Hour

22.   The Impact of Truth and Deceit

23.   Where is God in My Trials?

24.   David Spares Saul

25.   Forgiveness over Revenge … No Matter What

26.   The Best Response to Injustice

27.   When Obedience Seems Too Scary

28.   Tampering with Evil

29.   When Desire Is Denied

30.   Back to Listening to God

31.   A Tale of Two Kings

Volume 2

1.   Godly Vision

2.   Civil War

3.   To Bury or Not to Bury the Hatchet

4.   The Means and the End

5.   In Due Time

6.   Right Things or Things Right?

7.   Unmerited and Overwhelming

8.   The Davidic Covenant

9.   Victorious Leadership

10.   Amazing Grace

11.   Kindness Misunderstood

12.   David’s Sin—Part 1

13.   David’s Sin—Part 2

14.   Wildfire

15.   Three Steps to Mend a Broken Relationship

16.   The Differences between David and Absalom

17.   The Conflict of David and Absalom—Part 1:

The Loss of Moral Support

18.   The Conflict of David and Absalom—Part 2:

The Battle of the Counselors

19.   The Conflict of David and Absalom—Part 3:

The Fate of the Rebellious

20.   Maintaining the Support of your Allies

21.   The Return of the King

22.   The Cancer of Contention

23.   Hindered Blessing and Power

24.   Virtues of the Great King

25.   Last Words of the King

26.   The Cost of Sin

Preface

Anointed Leadership is a chapter-by-chapter expositional study of 1 and 2 Samuel. It captures the essence of who God is looking for to lead his people. The world needs more people God can pour himself through and use in a great way. This study teaches us what kind of people God does that with.

The expositional nature of the study ensures that opinions are kept out and that the message of the Scripture remains the paramount focus. In this way, the mind of the student is molded to a biblical mentality, making him or her more prone to behave like a Hannah, Samuel, or David and less like our natural human tendencies. (I cannot stress enough the value of expositional teaching.)

The material is very teacher friendly and is complete with discussion questions, which simplifies making application to a large variety of age groups and life stages. It will serve a pastor or Sunday school director with enough lessons to last approximately an entire year.

For what it’s worth, I strongly believe people’s knowledge of the Bible is too shallow today. The Word of God has taken more of a supportive role in a barrage of topical studies rather than just being studied in and of itself. Too many teachers/preachers are using the Bible to support what they want to say rather than simply allowing the Bible to say what it wants to say. Ironically, it’s the message of God’s Word that carries authority and the power to change hearts, minds, and lives. I’m not against topical studies and believe they need to be taught every now and then. But when topical studies become the steady diet to the exclusion of Bible study in its simplest and purest form, poor spiritual health is certain to follow. This material is the pure and simple study of God’s wonderful Word and is amazingly practical as we examine the history of Israel’s great King David.

Intended Reader

This material is intended for pastors, Sunday school leaders/teachers, Bible studies, or small groups. It is a series of lessons that are to be a reliable resource to free the pastor/ministry leader from having to write his or her own material. Again, it has discussion questions, which make it applicable to a wide range of audiences. It can be used for men or women of all ages and is primarily directed at adults.

Volume 1

40103.png

Lesson 1

Hannah and Peninnah

Main idea: God wants to use people who are humble, dependent on him, and obedient.

Text: 1 Samuel 1:1-2:10

Introduction of 1 Samuel

What kind of people does God want us to be? With which traits is God pleased? What causes him to bless and use some people and resist others? We will face these questions in this study of 1 Samuel. First and Second Samuel were actually written as one book. Perhaps because of their length, they were split into two books. We will deal with themes that encompass both books.

Key Themes in Samuel

1.   Who does God choose to use, and who does he choose to reject?

2.   God will protect his anointed. (The term messiah means anointed one. The idea of a messiah for Israel grew from their thoughts about a righteous king who would one day be even greater than David.)

3.   God’s fulfillment of his plan in Deuteronomy:

a.   Rest from enemies and a central place of worship (Deut. 12:1-14, 20-25)

b.   Blessings for obedience and judgment for disobedience (Deut. 28)

Three groups will illustrate who God will use and reject:

1.   Hannah and Peninnah

2.   Samuel and Eli

3.   David and Saul

There is a recurring theme in this book that proves that God resists the proud and disobedient, but gives grace and strength to those who are humble and dependent on him.

Transition Period

First Samuel sees the transition from the time of the judges, when there was no king, and the days of the kings. The kings will carry the brunt of the responsibility concerning the spiritual temperature of the nation. Under the reign of the kings, an entire nation would be blessed or cursed based on the kings’ willingness to submit to the Mosaic law.

Introduction

In the opening story, the stage is set for the rest of the book. This is more than simply the account of how Samuel came into office. It is a first glimpse, revealing what kind of people God blesses and what kind of people God rejects. Hannah was humble, dependent on God, and obedient. She was right on the inside though not so impressive to those around her.

I.   Hannah is the type of person who realizes she is nothing special. She is humble (1:1-11).

a.   Hannah had no children—again, a terrible thing in that day. This completely took away what gave women’s lives purpose.

b.   The Lord had shut her womb (v. 6).

c.   Her adversary (Peninnah, the other wife) made her life miserable because she had kids and Hannah did not. Every time they went to worship, it only highlighted how much better Peninnah was than Hannah.

d.   It bothered Hannah so much that she wept and could not eat.

e.   Her response to God is not one of anger or bitterness but humility. See her prayer in verse 11. Nothing about it is demanding or complaining.

Discuss

1.   Since the Lord shut her womb, isn’t it fair to attribute her humility to the good working of God?

2.   Can you see how God was working all things together for her good, even barrenness (Rom. 8:28)?

3.   When God deals you a bad set of circumstances, do you get angry with God, or do you approach him humbly, as Hannah did?

4.   Read 2 Corinthians 12:9-10. How does this relate to Hannah’s story?

II.   Hannah is the type of person who runs to God when she needs help. She is dependent on God (1:9-18).

a.   Hannah was in bitterness of soul. This means she was heartbroken to the point of tears. She was not bitter at God.

b.   When Hannah’s heart was broken, she prayed.

c.   She promised to give her son to the Lord if he would only give her one.

d.   When she prayed, she did not pray out loud. She only moved her lips.

   i.   This proves that God does not need us to pray aloud to hear us.

   ii.   It also means that other people, like Eli, may think you have lost your mind or are drunk.

e.   When Hannah prayed, she poured out her soul before the Lord. This simply means that all she let out was all that was in her heart. She held nothing back.

Discuss

1.   How did Hannah respond to heartache (prayer, pouring out her soul to God)?

2.   How do you respond to heartache? With prayer? With anger and bitterness?

3.   Discuss what it means to pour out your soul to the Lord. When was the last time you really took time to do this?

4.   Hannah is one of the good examples in the Bible. Do you think God is giving an example to follow whenever we have heartache?

5.   Read Matthew 7:7-11. Does this passage give you the impression that God wants us to ask him for things?

III.   Hannah is the type of person who honors her commitments to God. She is obedient (1:19-28).

a.   Hannah had vowed to give the son God gave to her back to the Lord (v.11).

b.   Lo and behold, God answered her prayer (vv. 19-20).

   i.   The Lord remembered her (what a wonderful thought).

   ii.   She named him Samuel, which means asked of God.

c.   As soon as she had weaned him, she fulfilled her promise and brought him to Eli, where she left him.

Discuss

1.   Do you think it was easy for Hannah to fulfill her vow? Did that affect her obedience?

2.   What do we learn about God in this miraculous answer to prayer?

IV.   Because of the previous points, Hannah is also the type of person that gives all the credit to God (2:1-10).

a.   Hannah’s song and David’s song in 2 Samuel 22 are like an envelope or two supporting pillars to the books of Samuel. They reveal the essence of God’s provision and protection and the types of people he blesses and rejects.

Discuss

1.   Judging from these two songs, for what type of people is God looking?

2.   How important is it to give praise? Do you praise God when you are blessed?

Conclusion

Hannah’s nature is quite contrary to our fleshly nature. We must purposefully decide to be humble, obedient, and dependent.

Lesson 2

Samuel, Hophni, and Phinehas

Main Idea: God wants to use people who are interested in doing what he wants rather than what they want.

Text: 1 Samuel 2:11-36

Introduction

Today’s lesson is a classic case of compare and contrast between the people God wants to use and the people he will reject. The bulk of the story appears to be about Hophni and Phinehas, but throughout the text, Samuel interrupts to remind everyone that he is still faithfully serving the Lord. Notice the abrupt shifts from Samuel to Hophni and Phinehas. It is like turning a light switch on and off, going from light to dark. God is showing one person and then the other guys, one person, and then the other guys. He is plainly showing us two types of people: the kind he is looking for … and the kind he will cast out.

I.   Hophni and Phinehas abused their priestly position, but Samuel ministered unto the Lord (vv. 11-17).

a.   Samuel ministered unto the Lord.

b.   But Hophni and Phinehas:

   i.   Were sons of Belial (Belial means wicked or evil).

   ii.   Knew not the Lord. They knew of him, but their actions proved that he was of no consequence to them. (Doesn’t a lack of godliness prove we are not really that concerned with who God is? If that is so, can we really say we know him?) See 1 John 2:4.

   iii.   They abused their priestly power, causing people to hate the offering of the Lord.

1.   The offering of the Lord was a special time of worship. The Israelites would travel all the way to the tabernacle to offer their sacrifices to the Lord.

2.   God’s law provided the priests with a tenth of all Israel for an inheritance (Num. 18:21).

3.   They were also provided all the meat that was left over after the fat was burned unto God (Lev. 7:28-38, 1 Sam. 2:28).

4.   Still these wicked priests were making the people give them their meat before they ever offered it unto the Lord. This was wrong, and the people knew it! When they asked to first offer it to God, the priests’ servant would threaten to take it by force.

5.   This caused people to hate bringing their offerings, which in turn made the sin of these wicked priests very great before the Lord.

Main point: Their actions were causing people to hate the things of God.

Discuss

1.   Is it possible for our actions to cause others to hate the things of God (i.e. church, Sunday school, choir, outreach, etc.)? How so?

2.   How could a person discourage others from serving God? Are you ever guilty of this?

3.   Why do you think Hophni and Phinehas were being so mean to the people who were trying to worship God? (They were more interested in their wants than God’s desires.)

Hophni and Phinehas were not the kind of people God was looking to use. Still their wickedness did not stop there.

II.   Hophni and Phinehas profaned God’s house by committing gross sin in it, but Samuel continued to minister to the Lord (vv. 18-26).

a.   But Samuel (notice the compare/contrast):

   i.   Continued to minister before the Lord

   ii.   His loving parents still came to see him. His mom (Hannah) even made him a little coat. (How do you think Hannah felt only seeing her little boy once a year? How do you think Samuel felt? Is it fair to say they were dedicated to the Lord?)

   iii.   God blessed Samuel’s parents for the loan of their son (v. 20).

1.   Hannah had three boys and two girls!

b.   Back to Eli and his reprobate sons:

   i.   They had turned the tabernacle into a brothel (v. 22).

   ii.   Eli reprimanded them.

   iii.   Still they refused to listen and repent. Interesting food for thought: It says they did not listen to their father because the Lord would slay them. This means that they had crossed a line where God made it impossible to repent. This is similar to the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart and giving those in Romans 1 over to a reprobate mind.

c.   However, Samuel grew on and had favor with both God and man.

Discuss

1. What are the main differences between Samuel and the priests Hophni and Phinehas?

2. What are some of the traits of each we could relate to today?

III.   God Told Eli he would remove him and his two wicked sons and replace them with someone interested in doing what he wanted to be done (vv. 27-36).

a.   He first pointed out their sin

   i.   They despised the commandment of the Lord.

   ii.   Eli honored his sons above God.

b.   Life Principle: For them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed (v. 30).

c.   The curse:

   i.   Your lineage will be cut off.

   ii.   Your sons will die on the same day.

   iii.   You will not be serving God any longer.

d.   So what kind of priest is God looking for (v. 35)?

   i.   Faithful

   ii.   Does what is in God’s heart and God’s mind. (Kind of sounds like what God is going to say about David being a man after his own heart—but we do not want to get ahead of ourselves.)

Discuss

1.   Why did God reject Eli and his family?

2.   What kind of people is God looking for?

Conclusion

God wants to use people who are interested in doing what he wants rather than what they want. Therefore, we have to ask ourselves, How important are God’s wants to me? When you go to the house of God, are you there to minister or to have someone ministering to you? Christ himself in Matthew 20:28 stated that his purpose was to minister rather than to be on the receiving end. If anyone had a right to be served on this earth, it was Jesus. The King of Kings practiced servanthood because he knew it is what God wanted. God wants humble, submissive, God-honoring servants, not self-centered, consuming glory hogs. So which one are you—the blessed or the rejected?

Lesson 3

The Making of a Prophet

Main Idea: To be effectively used by God, we must be sensitive to his leading and faithful to his Word.

Text: 1 Samuel 3

Introduction

What has God given you to do? What is your purpose? Do you know? Have you ever tried to find out? What is God’s will for your life? What has God been trying to say to you lately? Is it possible that he has been speaking to you for some time, but you just have not been paying attention? God’s leadership makes effective leadership.

I.   Samuel was sensitive to God’s leading (vv. 1-10).

a.   Samuel continued to faithfully minister to the Lord.

b.   The Word of God was rare. They had the Mosaic Law (Genesis to Deuteronomy) and perhaps Joshua and Judges, but no one was hearing from God like Moses or Joshua had. There were no prophets to tell the people what God was saying

c.   As they all lay down for bed one night, God began to call Samuel.

   i.   Samuel thought it was Eli and responded to Eli.

   ii.   Samuel did not yet know the Lord in a personal way. He knew of him but was not yet on talking terms like Moses, Joshua, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He simply did not recognize the voice of God.

d.   After three false alarms, Eli realized God was speaking to Samuel and instructed him how to respond if God called again.

e.   Samuel obeyed on God’s fourth call and responded, Speak; for thy servant heareth.

Samuel wanted to hear from God and was responsive to his calling.

Discuss

1.   How do we hear from God today? (We hear through God’s Word and Holy Spirit. Any still, small voice that does not line up with the Bible is not the Holy Spirit!)

2.   Do we need to be sensitive to God’s leading throughout the day? How can we do this?

3.   How eager are you to hear from God? How often do you read your Bible?

4.   When God speaks (i.e., preaching, Bible reading, etc.) are you listening intently to see what he has to say to you? On the other hand, are you just going through the motions?

5.   How often do you think God is trying to speak to people, but they are not listening or they do not realize it is God?

We need to be listening and looking for God to speak to us. We need to be anticipating the voice of God every time we open our Bibles, whether at home or in a church service.

II.   Samuel had a message from God (vv. 11-14).

a.   God told Samuel what was going to happen to Eli and his family.

b.   The bottom line is that only God knew what would happen, but now Samuel knew.

Discuss

1.   Are there any messages God has given to us? What are they?

2.   Are there people out there, like Eli, who do not know the truth we know?

3.   Where did Samuel get his message? How can we get a message from the same place?

III.   Samuel was faithful to convey the message fully (vv. 15-18).

a.   He woke up the next day and was afraid to tell Eli of the bad news for him and his family.

b.   Nevertheless, he told him every whit. He told the whole truth, plain and blunt.

Discuss

1.   Sometimes the preacher has a tough job. Sometimes he has to tell people things he knows they are not going to like, but they are true, so he has to tell them. If the preacher preaches something from the Bible you do not like, how should you respond?

2.   Is the truth always easy to hear? Does that make it any less necessary?

3.   Do you appreciate honest preaching, or would you rather only hear what makes you feel good?

4.   Who do you know who needs to know the truth of God’s Word? What will happen to them if you let fear keep you from telling them the truth?

IV.   God exalted Samuel and gave him credibility among the people (vv. 19-21).

a.   Samuel grew, the Lord was with him, and he let none of his words fall to the ground. That means that whatever Samuel said happened. (This was apparently a well-known reputation of Samuel’s. See 1 Sam. 9:6.)

b.   God gave Samuel credibility across the nation.

Conclusion

We have seen how God took Samuel from his simple position in the temple to a nationally renowned prophet practically overnight. Samuel was given credibility and placed in a position of great importance. God did all this. God was using Samuel. Samuel did not put himself in these positions. He was not even trying to earn the respect of the people. He simply did his job faithfully, and God turned his whole world around. I think we would all like to be used by God to do something special. However, like Samuel, we need to be listening to God’s leadership and be faithful to do what he gives us to do, no matter how scary that may be. When we do, we can expect God to make us effective leaders.

Lesson 4

The Rejected of God

Main Idea: God will send judgment on those who forget Him and those who despise Him.

Text: 1 Samuel 4

Introduction

This lesson will show the fulfillment of God’s rejection. We have already seen examples of the two different types of people God will either bless or reject. In chapters 2 and 3, we heard God pronounce judgment on the