SAMUEL: The Lord Thunders

We can never experience victory and peace in life without God’s help. But God won’t share his glory with idols or tolerate our half-hearted worship either. As judge and prophet, Samuel spends 20 years preaching a sermon of repentance to God’s people.The call is for them to return to the Lord with all their hearts, put away idols, direct their hearts to God and serve him only. The emphasis on the heart is striking. Presumedly, this sermon is a regular part of Samuel’s circuit and it culminates in Israel's response, gathering to repent at Mizpah. The Philistines see the gathering as a threat and prepare to attack. Fearful Israel begs Samuel to intercede in prayer for them and he does so, after sacrificing a lamb to atone for their sins. God responds, thundering with a mighty sound and throwing the Philistines into confusion, allowing Israel to pursue and defeat them. The victory produces peace and restoration of lost territory. We see foreshadows of Jesus and the Gospel in Samuel's preaching, intercession, and atonement, which all lead to victory. Samuel raises a memorial stone called Ebenezer, which means “stone of help.” Interestingly he says, “till now the Lord has helped us,” implying that faith is still required for the future. The main point of the message for us is that there is no victory without repentance. That is true for past victories and will be the same for future battles.