And warn them Samuel did:
He said, "This is what the king who will reign over you will do: He will take your sons and make them serve with his chariots and horses, and they will run in front of his chariots. Some he will assign to be commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and others to plow his ground and reap his harvest, and still others to make weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive groves and give them to his attendants. He will take a tenth of your grain and of your vintage and give it to his officials and attendants. Your menservants and maidservants and the best of your cattle and donkeys he will take for his own use. He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his slaves. When that day comes, you will cry out for relief from the king you have chosen, and the LORD will not answer you in that day." 1Samuel 8: 11-18
Sounds a lot like what our government does today! When you
put your faith in man this is what happens. When you look to what a king or
president can do instead of God, this is where it leads. The sad response from
But the people refused to listen to Samuel. "No!" they said. "We want a king over us. Then we will be like all the other nations, with a king to lead us and to go out before us and fight our battles." 1Samuel 8: 19-20
And so it still goes today. Expecting John McCain or Barack Obama to fight our battles instead of the Lord. Expecting them to solve the wars in this world, the lack of healthcare or the crumbling economy. These are the anxieties of everyday life and they are the third thing Jesus warned us about in the key verse that would weigh us down at the end of days. As we see the results of the excessive greed and corruption the world has to offer; resulting in trillions of dollars of bailouts it is easy to be anxious. As we see that close to 25% of all retirement monies have already been lost while CEO's fly away on golden parachutes, it is easy to be angry. When jobs stagnate and there is no healthcare it is easy to be worried. These anxieties of life are very real and they naturally weigh us down.
But here is the reminder from the Lord. Neither Obama or McCain are the answer. God is the answer. When you lose your job, God is your provider. When you lose your healthcare, God is your healer. When you do not know which way to turn, God is your banner. Who is control beloved? God is in control. I have heard Christians everywhere say that George Bush was God's chosen man. The truth is that God will use whoever He allows to come to power for His own glory and for His providential will. Bill Clinton was God's man as well. As was Reagan, and Kennedy, and anyone else who has risen to positions of authority. Don't believe me? Let us look to the Prophet Daniel:
" 'The decision is announced by messengers, the holy ones declare the verdict, so that the living may know that the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he wishes and sets over them the lowliest of men.' Daniel 4:17
You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like cattle and be drenched with the dew of heaven. Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he wishes. Daniel 4:25
