I Samuel 8:19,20
‘Nevertheless, the people refused to listen to the voice of Samuel, and they said, “No, but there shall be a king over us, that we also may be like all the nations, that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles.”’
This is a sad, but not an uncommon occurrence. It’s the response of self will. Unfortunately, we’ve all probably done it. Acts 10:14 says, ‘”No, Lord,” Peter declared. “I have never eaten anything that our Jewish laws have declared impure and unclean.”‘ The words “No, Lord” can’t go together. If we claim Christ as Lord, then we are subservient to Him. We wouldn’t say no to Him.
Unfortunately, we are self willed and do disobey. Romans 7:19 says, “For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want.” Due to the fall, we have a nature that sins. Yes, even though we’ve been born again and have a new, godly nature that seeks to do right, the old nature wars against it.
What do we do to walk the narrow path? We need to rely on the Lord to keep us from evil, rely on His Spirit for strength, we need to fill ourselves with His Word (the Bible) and rely on the church and it’s people. These practices are the essentials of the christian life. These are pillars that ensure a strong structure. The absence of any of them makes us unsteady.
We will still bump into the temptation to disobey. He tells us to flee (2 Timothy 2:22). If we dwell upon temptation, we will succumb to it. In the context of today’s passage, the people wanted a king. This didn’t happen instantly. It was suggested by some and tolerated. Thus the topic spread to be more commonplace. Then it became mainstream. It should have been shot down at it’s inception. It should have become frowned upon.
When ungodly thoughts enter our minds, we are to replace them with the truth. Colossians 3:16 says, “Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” Don’t let contrary thoughts abide within us.
Lord, thank You for Your Word, Your Spirit and Your people that help us walk strongly in Your ways. Help us not to let ungodliness abide within.