BELIEVE IN PROVIDENCE

king saulby zoharglait

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Traditional Art / Drawings / People©2011-2016 zoharglait

We went to celebrate the Eucharist this morning and from the time that it took to introduce ourselves to the sacred environment we came to the realization that this is the moment of remembering that Christ is our king.
We started the Liturgy of the Word with a short reminder from the first book of Samuel, chapter 8 and following.  
This is the beginning of the story of how the Israelites got a king in the first place.  The story of the transition from being a loose agglomeration of tribes to a kingdom is one of the most captivating sections of the Bible.  I strongly recommend that you read it.

The first king that God gave them was named Saul.  This name means "asked" or "requested."  As it turns out, he was not a good king.  Until he came along, the "king" of the people was God Himself.  This was not working very well.  There were prophets and judges helping Him with the earthly organization, but it was not going well.  This was especially true when it came to organizing themselves for war.  They were getting badly beaten by the people who had kings at their head.  So they asked God, through his Prophet/Patriarch, Samuel to give them a king.  Long story made short, God gave them what they asked for.  As you progress in your reading, you will notice that it did not go well with Saul.  Saul committed a lot of sins.  A lot!  His final one was falling on his own sword.  
I am telling you this story (I wish I had more time) because it is a perfect example of getting what you had no idea you would get as a response to your request.  As you read the story, you will see that this guy was more interested in his own welfare than in fulfilling the will of God for the good of the people.  He was so bad that at a given point of the story God disowns Saul.  This was not a good start for the Chosen People.  
Enter, David, the ancestor of Jesus.

I am letting you decide whether or not you have parallels that you want to draw between the story of Saul and the actual time in which we are now living.  If you spend some time reading the historical story of Saul (It happens at about 1010 BC) you will see that the more things change, the more they stay the same.  You will also see that we must be careful about what we ask for.  You will also see that there is a solution, or at least a resolution of the situation.  You will also see that it is important to stay close to God in every aspect of our lives.  You will see that God is tough on Saul but sees to it that the people overcome the disunity caused by the failed king and come back together under the God fearing king David.

It is in this context that Jesus, the descendant of David and who is the Son of God comes and unifies the people, not just of David but of the entire universe.  He does so by being the complete opposite of human kings...first and foremost by being perfectly obedient to the Will of God.

I guarantee that if you take the time to read the story of Saul you will have a wonderful experience.  Your emotions will swing from joy to sorrow; from tears to smiles; from disgust to admiration and finally to satisfaction for having discovered another dimension of Sacred Scripture.  
Thank God for that and remember that no crying is allowed at my funeral.