1 Samul 28:3-25 | Food for Thought
1 Samuel 28:3-25
Food for Thought:
When God Goes Silent • The story shifts back to Saul, who’s now feeling the pressure of the Philistine army. Despite seeking the Lord’s counsel, Saul gets radio silence from God. In his desperation, Saul decides to seek out a medium (someone who talks to spirits) in order to get some supernatural advice from the now-dead prophet, Samuel.
Have you ever experienced “radio silence” from the Lord? What was that like? What did you do?
The author makes a point to tell us that Saul had outlawed mediums already. Why do you think that’s important context for the story?
Do you know what the bible says about things like mediums, fortune tellers, and other people / things that claim to communicate with spirits? What have you heard? Why would God prohibit his people from using people / things like that?
Have you ever used stuff like that? …been tempted to? What’s the appeal?
Here’s a crazy thing: it works! Saul hears from Samuel. But just because “it works,” does that mean it’s good and right? Explain.
When He’s Already Spoken • Samuel seems pretty grumpy that Saul would bother him - especially because Samuel has nothing particularly new to offer Saul! Samuel says that God’s gone quiet and Saul’s feeling the squeeze because God already said that would happen. This shouldn’t be surprising to Saul, because God said he’d be cut off and his family line would pay the price. Samuel does, however, give one final bit of information: what God said would happen is going to culminate the next day with Saul’s death.
Is there more information you want (or have wanted) from the Lord? Is there stuff you wish he would tell you; questions you wish he would answer; or things you wish he would say? What is that?
Saul already knew what God had said: he was going to be cut off from the Lord, and so would the men in his family. How much of this story do you think is driven by Saul’s unwillingness to accept what God had already said and/or his desire to want God to say something different?
Let the Lord sift your heart: how much of what you want the Lord to say is fueled by your own unwillingness to accept what God has already said? …a desire (or demand?) that he say something different?
What steps can you take towards addressing this: processing with other Christians, studying more of your bible, asking the Lord for understanding, repenting of pride, etc.?
How does this passage emphasize the significance of the bible (how God has already spoken to us in clear ways) today? Do you treat the bible as your final rule of faith and practice, or do you treat it as a starting point? …one voice among many?
When You Have to Face the Facts • Saul’s pretty crushed once Samuel departs and he’s left with the news that he’s going to die the next day. He doesn’t even want to eat, but the people around him finally convince him to. Despite being in a dejected state of mind, the medium slaughters a fattened calf and baked bread to give him the strength she knows he needs - even if he doesn’t want it.
Saul cuts himself from what’s good for him when he doesn’t like what he hears. On one hand, I’m sure we can all relate to losing our appetites when bad news hits. But on the other, this isn’t “new” news. What thoughts or feelings do you have towards Saul at this moment?
What do you do when the answers you get from the Lord are what you’ve already heard before - and you don’t like them? Has it ever driven you away from what’s still good for you: the Lord, community, prayer, the bible, etc.? Tell us about it.
Again, let your heart be sifted: is it harmful (mean, bad, spiteful, etc.) when the Lord confronts us with true things that we don’t like, don’t want to agree with, etc.? How is distancing ourselves from, replacing, ignoring, etc. the Lord the same thing as refusing to eat before battle?
How can we learn to move towards the Lord - not away from him - when he seems quiet? …consistent in what he’s said that we don’t like? …when we’re desperate? Consider specifically what you already know about the Lord in the gospel (the “old” good news) - not something “new” that you need from him.
How is God’s final word to us in Christ fundamentally different than the words he spoke to Saul? How can they be so different? How does this change the way we move through and respond to desperate times, hard words, or “spiritually quiet” seasons?