The Kings of the Earth

Dec. 9, 2014

by Bob Farrell

The Last Word

The Saviour Compassion Tour is underway - if you haven’t checked to see if we’re coming your way, please go to my page on FB and look at the tour schedule (last Sunday night in Tulsa was sold-out, as are the five shows this weekend in Akron - wow).

Now let’s get back to the Saviour story.

In our last episode of ‘The Story of God’s Passion For His People’ God delivered the people of Israel from the yoke of slavery under Pharaoh; and brought them into the Promised Land, fulfilling the promise he had made to their fathers; over the Jordan and into their own ‘land of milk and honey’, to live in fellowship with Him and at peace with their fellow-man - except that’s not how it played out.

Check out Samuel’s ‘farewell speech’ (I Sa 12), where he reminded the folks how God gave them Moses to lead their forefathers out of bondage, settled them into their new digs - and then they promptly ‘forgot the Lord their God’ and He ‘sold them into the hands of the Philistines’ - right back into slavery.

Ooo. Then, realizing their plight, the Israelites returned to form and ‘cried out to the Lord’: “We sinned - we worshipped Baal - we screwed up - we need deliverance - help us and we will serve you!” And God did. He raised up several prophet leaders - including Samuel. But the folks didn’t (serve Him, that is).

So that soon they were back in hot water with new enemies, only this time they begged God for something new: a king. “Put a king over us, then we’ll be like all the other nations - he’ll lead us and go out before us and fight our battles. Regrettably you, Samuel, are too old and your wayward sons aren’t qualified - so make it a good one - just not you.” 

They wanted what all the other nations had: a king of the earth.

I say be careful what you ask for.

The Promised Land

Nov.11, 2014

by Bob Farrell

Over The Jordan

I’m in such a Saviour mode right now I think I’ll just continue stepping through the oratorio - right up to the Saviour Tour sponsored by Compassion International, Dec. 7-20, 2014, with soloists Larnelle Harris, Wayne Watson, Angie Primm, and Rod Fletcher.

By the way, if you haven’t done so please visit our new page @ facebook.com/SaviourOratorio. I’ll be posting this week on FB how you can attend a performance and even print some posters for your church.

Last time we were with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, ending with the fall of man. Let’s pick up the thread of the Story of God’s Passion for His People by going forward hundreds of years, to a time when Israel was groaning under the bondage of slavery.

Much had transpired in those intervening years - stories of triumph and tribulation. I still remember my first reading of Old Testament scriptures and stories, and how it struck me that those folks seemed to ebb and flow in huge, drastic swings - and mostly paid the price for their willfulness, pride, and rebellion.

I’m so glad us children of God are no longer like that.  Right.

Let me set the scene for “The Promised Land”: the people of Israel slaves in Egypt under the tyrananical rule of Pharaoh; weeping and wailing and much gnashing of teeth; crying out for God.

And He heard them.