Sermon notes of Pastor Mark Downey
February 28, 2016
Scripture Reading: I Samuel 8:4-6
“Then all the elders of Israel gathered themselves together, and came to Samuel unto Ramah, And said unto him, Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways: now make us a king to judge us like all the nations. But the thing displeased Samuel, when they said, Give us a king to judge us. And Samuel prayed unto the Lord.”
I mentioned recently, as well as being a common retort, that we live in exciting times (for both fearful and joyful people), but the pendulum also swings, for the rest of humanity, as a time of mediocrity and boredom. What's the difference between excitement and boredom? I think it's whether or not people judge things. In other words, making a decision as to whether something is right or wrong. Sometimes being a Christian can be extremely difficult. Being a watchman on the wall can be like bamboo shoots growing through your fingernails. It is painfully excruciating to watch what is happening to America; a generation without a moral compass. Ancient Israel had guards who would stand upon the walls of Jerusalem and in the towers and look out upon the land. What were they looking for? Enemies! They were guarding their city against opposing forces, invading aliens. I've yet to see in the classifieds an ad in the 'employment opportunities' section that said: Need a blind, deaf and mute security guard i.e. sees no evil, hears no evil and speaks no evil. To hire such people would be counter-productive to say the least. This is how God evaluated Israel's watchmen in the days of Isaiah the prophet, “Israel's watchmen are blind, all of them, they know nothing; all of them are mute dogs, they cannot bark; they dream, lie down, and love to sleep. They are dogs with mighty appetites; they never have enough. They are shepherds who lack understanding; they all turn to their own way, they seek their own gain. Come, let me get some wine, let's guzzle some beer; and tomorrow will be like today, only far better!" Isaiah 56:10-12. Do the presumptuous defenders of our faith and people understand what's happening today? Unfortunately, they do not and we have reached a judicial conundrum.