Category: 1 Samuel

A Biblical Pattern of Repentance

Repentance is deeper and more active than a feeling or an emotion Repentance is the pathway to God’s blessing.

Samuel had enough spiritual sense to know that God’s people would not experience God’s blessing without repentance. He knew that repentance is deeper and more active than a feeling or an emotion. The well-respected prophet outlined a pattern for biblical repentance in 1 Samuel 7:2-6. That pattern included three steps.

Step 1: Wake Up to What God’s Word Says.  Verse three is attributed to Samuel, but it’s really based on the promises of Deuteronomy 30:1-5. The blessings and curses section of the Covenant Law is capped off with the promise of restoration and deliverance if God’s people return to Him with their whole hearts. The first step of repentance starts when sinners become attentive again to the truth and authority of God and His Word. 

Step 2: Take Responsibility for Missing the Mark. This step included two sub-steps: stopping and starting. Instead of giving excuses for their actions, the Israelites stopped worshipping the false gods that they had added to their spiritual life. They removed the idols that crowd out their worship of the One, True, and Living God.

The second sub-step was starting – they started worshipping God alone. They served the Lord with a renewed sense of enthusiasm, unhindered by fake alternatives.

Step 3: Make a Confession of Your Sin: Samuel also gathered the people for a time of confession where they acknowledged their sin together. This final step included a ceremonial pouring out of water and a day of fasting. This was appropriate and needed since the Israelites had broken God’s trust together.

Common wisdom suggests that effective confession should involve those who have been affected by the sin. This always involves God and the individual offender. In some cases, larger groups like a family or even a church congregation should be involved if they are aware of and significantly impacted. 

The New Testament teaches us that repentance should be an ongoing experience for those who’ve placed their faith in Jesus Christ (Acts 2:38, 1 John 1:8-9). Salvation doesn’t erase the believer’s lifelong struggle with sin, it just changes the ultimate outcome. 

Samuel’s pattern for repentance can serve God’s people well, even today. Attention, correction, and confession should be a regular part of a believer’s life, not items lost to an ancient era. These three steps are strides toward experiencing God’s blessing. 

Making Christ Your King

The Old Testament books of Samuel describe Israel’s quest for a human king. 1 Samuel compares the failed kingship of Saul with the successful monarchy of David. 2 Samuel connects the reign of King David with the coming reign of Jesus Christ, who stands in sovereignty over the hearts of God’s people until the end of time. The last book in the New Testament hails Christ as “The King of kings and the Lord of lords. (Revelation 19:16)

Israel’s ancient quest is a dramatic reminder that we are all searching for a king. It may be a higher power or a higher purpose, but we are all searching for something – no exceptions. Ecclesiastics 3:11 says that God has “set eternity in their heart,” which means that we all have an unquenchable thirst for purpose and meaning beyond the day-to-day.

What does it look like for someone to make Christ their King? How can we spot someone who has given their allegiance to the Son of God? Here are three things that are true of an individual who has fallen under the authority of Christ.

  • Loyalty to Christ. Saving faith is about a personal commitment to Christ, not a promise, a prayer, or a creed (John 3:16). It’s about what He has done for us, not what we have or will do for Him. This may sound obvious, but you can’t make Christ your King without making Christ your King.
  • A Changed Life. True faith always produces a changed life (2 Corinthians 5:17). Some people may take longer than others. The opportunities and struggles will be unique to the individual, but no one walks away from a personal encounter with Christ unchanged.
  • A Love for the Things of God. It’s only natural that those who claim God’s name will have an affection for the things that are associated with Him. God’s Word (the Bible), God’s people (the local church), God’s will (the Great Commission) – these are things that will take over the heart of a person who is committed to Christ (John 14:5).

You can only have one sovereign in your life. You can worship a vague ideal, or you can worship the God who is revealed in the pages of Scripture, you can even worship yourself, but you can’t have more than one king. Those who make Christ their King will experience a very different reality than those who make another choice. So, choose wisely.