So, can I just say before we get started that this is likely to be the best sermon that you will have heard on this passage.
Because it seems that this is not a passage that is often preached on, and I suspect that not many of you have heard this passage preached on.
But it is the word of the Lord, and we expect to hear from him.
So let me just pray.
Heavenly Father, thank you that you are good.
Thank you for your word.
Thank you that it is alive and all useful for teaching.
Lord, speak to us and help us to really hear what you have to say.
I ask that anything that is just of me will quickly be forgotten, and that you will be glorified here in this place tonight.
So I've titled this A Deafening Silence and a Hopeless Situation.
Okay, maybe not a very inspiring title, but let me reassure you that there is hope.
There is hope at the end, at least.
So, a deafening silence then.
Verses 3 to 14.
Now, silence generally means that there is no communication.
If you are leading a discussion group, as I often do with young people, and you ask a question and you get no answer, there is just silence.
It can be really hard to work out what is going on.
It can be really difficult.
You know, has nobody understood what you've just asked?
Has nobody understood what you've been talking about?
Is everyone just shy or bored?
You know, who knows what's going on?
It can be really tricky when there's silence.
On the other hand, silence can say a lot.
Like for parents whose kids have gone silent, there's a good chance that they're up to something and you need to go investigate what they are up to.
Or in a noisy classroom, if pupils realize that their teacher is silently standing, waiting at the front of the class,
they should know that it's time to be quiet.
And if they don't watch out, there could be trouble.
Silence can speak volumes, and a deafening silence says a lot.
So let's look at this deafening silence that we see in Samuel chapter 28.
If you can have the passage open, that will be helpful as we go through the verses.
There will be some other Bible verses, but I'll put those up on the screen.
So right at the start of our passage, we are given two important facts to understand the rest of the chapter.
One, Samuel is dead and buried.
And two, Saul has expelled the mediums.
Okay, those who believe they can talk to the dead.
He's expelled them from the land.
And it quickly becomes apparent why these details are so relevant.
Next, we see that the Philistines, shown in red here, the enemies of God's people have assembled, ready to battle Saul and the Israelites.
Saul has gathered his army, shown in green here.
And as he looks at the enemy army, he's filled with terror.
He does exactly what he should do and asks God what he should do.
But God is silent.
He doesn't answer through dreams or through the Urim, which was some kind of priestly device to find God's will.
And he doesn't answer through prophets.
Saul is stuck.
What can he do in this situation?
He's tried the normal ways of getting answers from God to no avail.
He feels the need for guidance.
Somehow, he's got to find out what to do.
It's not that he really wanted God.
No, he just wanted guidance, the guidance of God, not God himself.
And it's tempting to want God's stuff.
To want that stuff without really wanting God.
Without really wanting him.
I find that even when writing a sermon,
instead of wanting to take the time to really wrestle with God's word and learn from it,
and have God change me and help me to love him more,
it's tempting to just want God to make it a bit easier.
To just give me the sermon.
To just simply give me the words to say.
So that I have a good sermon,
and I don't look like an idiot standing here,
not knowing what to say.
But God wants us to desire him.
Not just what he can give.
Saul just wants to know what to do.
How to get out of trouble.
And God won't give him the answer.
What can he do in this desperate situation?
Well, as far as Saul is concerned,
desperate times call for desperate measures.
Even though Saul had followed God's law,
and gotten rid of the mediums from his kingdom,
he decides he must now consult a medium to get advice.
So he tells the servants to find a woman who is a medium,
so he can inquire of her.
Somehow, the rules don't apply to him.
And here we see two things.
One, we see that bad rulers can do good things.
Saul did get rid of the mediums.
Our own governments can be similar.
Although they may be bad,
they can still do some good things.
Likewise, doing something good
doesn't necessarily make a government or ruler good.
And then secondly,
we see the utter hypocrisy of Saul.
Saul did not do it.
To have tried to get everyone else to stop doing something,
and then to go and do it himself.
It's like the classic bad politician.
Or even worse,
the hypocritical,
do as I say,
not as I do,
preacher.
It again shows Saul up
for the kind of leader he is.
Now,
even though Saul had enacted God's law on mediums,
his servants
seemed to quite easily
be able to tell Saul
of one such woman
not too far away
in Endor.
So,
he decides to go,
completely forgetting
what God says
in Leviticus
chapter 20,
verse 6.
And unfortunately,
that has gone off the screen.
But it says,
if a person turns to mediums
and necromancers
whoring after them,
I will set my face
against that person
and will cut him off
from among the people.
In his desperation
to have,
sorry,
in his desperation
to save himself,
Saul is helping to put
the final nail
in the coffin
of his kingship.
Saul knows
that as king
he can't be seen
going to a medium,
so he disguises himself
and he goes out
at night
with just two
of his servants.
He also
needed to hide himself
from the Philistines
whose camp
at Shunem
he had to skirt around
to get to Endor
where the medium was.
So Saul gets there
and he asks the medium
to consult a spirit
but she's concerned
that this is a trap.
She'll be found out
and punished.
Now notice the irony
of Saul's response.
He swears in God's name.
As surely as Yahweh lives,
you will not be punished
for this.
He uses God's name
to promise her
she will not be punished
for something God
has decreed
must be punished.
Then we get to the question
of who
she should bring up
from the dead.
Here we see the reason
that Saul
wanted to go to a medium.
Saul wants Samuel.
If only he could speak
to Samuel.
Samuel would tell him
what to do.
Samuel would be able
to get God's guidance
for him.
As far as Saul
is concerned,
this is his only hope.
Now,
no details
are given
of what exactly
the medium does
and for good reason.
There are two main problems
we tend to have
when thinking about
the occult.
Either
we write it off
as just
silly nonsense
or we become
far too
interested in it.
And if the details
were given,
no doubt
many would try
to reenact
the practice
themselves.
And it reminds me
of a time
in secondary school,
early secondary school,
and for some reason
my form class
at lunchtime
decided to get involved
in some of this stuff.
they decided
to play
with a Ouija board
of their own making.
And I can remember
I just laughed it off
as silly nonsense.
And it was just
silly nonsense.
But yet,
two of the girls
that were involved
afterwards
became really paranoid.
and for a few weeks
they really had
a hard time.
You know,
Satan had used
that situation
to really
affect them
and to
impose on them
and ruin their life
for just a few weeks.
Thankfully,
it was short-lived.
But it just shows us
that we
shouldn't take
these kind of things
lightly.
Then in verse 12
we see
that the woman
sees Samuel
and cries out
at the top of her voice
and said to Saul,
Why have you deceived me?
You are Saul.
Now these verses
throw up all sorts
of questions.
Is this really Samuel?
Did this woman
really know
how to speak
to the dead?
Why is she so scared?
Well,
last question first.
Why is she scared?
Well,
I believe there are
two main options.
Option one,
she is just a scammer,
a trickster,
and never expected
to really see
a ghostly figure.
So when she actually
sees one,
it scares her.
Or,
option two,
which I would
tend towards,
is that she did
believe
she could speak
to the dead,
but on seeing
Samuel
and realizing
who he was,
she also realized
who her client was.
Her client was Saul.
And that is why
she cried out saying,
Why have you deceived me?
You are Saul.
She was scared
that she had been
found out.
and she was going
to be in big
trouble.
So then,
do I believe
that this woman
could really speak
to the dead?
No,
I don't.
I could be wrong,
but I don't see
any reason
to believe
that anyone
but God
can bridge
the chasm
between the living
and the dead.
it's my belief
that mediums
that truly believe
they are contacting
the dead
are more than likely
being deceived
by evil spirits.
So,
was this really
Samuel?
I think so.
Some would argue
that it is instead
an evil spirit
or demon,
but given the message
that is conveyed
and the way
he is described,
I think it is
much more likely
that it really
is Samuel.
But would God
really use
an evil situation
like this
to speak?
I think so.
Just like
when the chief priests
were plotting
to kill Jesus
and Caiaphas,
who was the high priest
that year,
said,
you know nothing
at all.
You do not realize
that it is better
for you
that one man
die for the people
than that the
whole nation
perish.
He did not say
this on his own,
but as high priest
that year,
he prophesied
that Jesus
would die
for the Jewish
nation.
Now,
it is hard
to imagine
what Saul
was thinking here.
How is anything
good
going to come
from this?
But such
is Saul's
state of mind,
that he sees
speaking to Samuel
as his only hope.
God's silence
has driven him
to despair.
And there will be
times in our lives
when God
will seem
silent.
And we will be
in good company,
like with Job
and King David.
in Job
chapter 30
verse 20
it says this,
I cry out
to you
for help
and you do
not answer
me.
I stand
and you
only look
at me.
Job
feels
God's
silence.
And then
King David,
my God,
why have
you forsaken
me?
Why are you
so far
from saving
me,
from the words
of my groaning?
Oh my God,
I cry by day
but you do
not answer
and by night
but I find
no rest.
This is what
King David
writes in
Psalm 22.
So I say
don't despair
if God
seems silent
to you.
You are
in good company
and if we
now look
at the
hopeless
situation
that Saul
is in,
let me
reassure
you
that there
is
hope.
So
a hopeless
situation
verses 15
to 25.
So
we come
to Samuel
and verse
15
and this
is what
he says.
Why
have you
disturbed
me
by bringing
me up?
Now I
can't help
but think
that he
is not
best
pleased.
Saul
explains
his
situation.
He
explains
that God
has departed
from him
and no
longer
answers
and he
wants
Samuel
to tell
him what
to do.
Samuel
in turn
explains
that in
reality
God's
silence
is speaking
loud
and clear.
God
had already
spoken
and
this
is God
fulfilling
that prophecy
spoken
through
Samuel
in chapter
15.
18.
He
adds
that the
next day
Saul
and his
sons
would be
dead
and that
the
Philistines
will
defeat
Israel's
army.
If
Saul
was in
despair
before
he
must
now
be in
complete
and
utter
despair.
So
much for
trying to
get
guidance
through
illegitimate
means.
Saul
collapses
in
hopelessness
having
not
eaten
and
refuses
to
eat
but
is
eventually
persuaded
by the
woman
and his
two
men
to
eat
something.
They
succeed
in
making
Saul
a little
more
comfortable
as he
faces
complete
disaster.
this
food
has
been
described
as a
meal
fit
for
a
king
eaten
by a
man
not
fit
to
be
king.
This
one
hope
that
Saul
had
this
hope
that
to
speak
to
Samuel
would
fix
things
has
really
blown
up
in
his
face.
This
is
now
a
truly
hopeless
situation.
It
is
clear
for
all
to
see.
The
hopelessness
has
been
laid
bare.
Now
let me
just
say
there
are
two
kinds
of
hopeless
situation.
There
are
the
truly
hopeless
situations
like
Saul's
and
there
are
situations
that
merely
seem
to
be
hopeless.
Often
though
the
problem
is
that
one
appears
to be
the
other
and
vice
versa.
Often
people
are
lured
into
a
false
sense
of
security
feeling
that
everything
is fine
and
dandy.
And
Jesus
gave
an
example
in
the
parable
of
the
foolish
rich
farmer.
in
Luke
chapter
12
and
this
is
what
he
said
and
he
told
them
this
parable
the
ground
of a
certain
rich
man
yielded
an
abundant
harvest.
He
thought
to
himself
what
shall
I
do?
I
have
no
place
to
store
my
crops.
Then
he
said
this
is
what
I'll
do
I'll
tear
down
my
barns
and
build
bigger
ones
and
there
I
will
store
my
surplus
grain
and
I'll
say
to
myself
you
have
plenty
of
grain
laid
up
for
many
years
take
life
easy
eat
drink
and
be
merry
but
God
said
to
him
you
fool
this
very
night
your
life
will
be
demanded
from
you
then
who
will
get
what
you
have
prepared
for
yourself
he
thought
he
had
it
all
but
without
God
his
situation
was
truly
hopeless
as
Jesus
said
in
Mark
chapter
8
verse
36
what
good
is
it
for
someone
to
gain
the
whole
world
yet
forfeit
his
soul
so
those
are
situations
that
are
truly
hopeless
that
appear
like
they
are
not
hopeless
but
on
the
other
hand
we
have
what
appear
to be
hopeless
situations
that
are
actually
far
from
it
in
Acts
chapter
7
we
see
Stephen
preaching
to the
members
of the
Sanhedrin
after
being
falsely
accused
of
speaking
blasphemous
words
against
Moses
and
against
God
okay
and this
is what
it says
in
Acts
chapter
7
verse
30
sorry
verse
54
when
the
members
of the
Sanhedrin
heard
this
they
were
furious
and gnashed
their teeth
at him
but
Stephen
full of
the Holy
Spirit
looked up
to heaven
and saw
the glory
of God
and Jesus
standing at the
right hand
of God
look
he said
I see
heaven
open
and the
Son of
Man
standing
at the
right
hand
of
God
at this
they
covered
their
ears
and
yelling
at the
top
of
their
voices
they
all
rushed
at him
dragged
him
out
of
the
city
and
began
to
stone
him
meanwhile
the
witnesses
laid
their
coats
at the
feet
of a
young
man
named
Saul
a
different
Saul
while
they
were
stoning
him
Stephen
prayed
Lord
Jesus
receive
my
spirit
then he
fell
on his
knees
and cried
out
Lord
do not
hold
this
sin
against
them
when
he
had
said
this
he
fell
asleep
humanly
speaking
Stephen's
situation
was hopeless
he was
about to
be stoned
to death
for simply
speaking
the truth
there was
no possibility
of escape
but we
don't see
someone filled
with fear
and hopelessness
like Saul
instead
we see
Stephen
is filled
with
forgiveness
and hope
this is
the difference
God
makes
this is
the difference
Jesus
makes
and there
are Christians
in these
times today
who face
persecution
and death
in a similar
way to
Stephen
Jesus
is still
making
that
difference
so as we
look at
Saul
at the
very end
of our
passage
we see
a man
forsaken
by God
going out
into the
dark
of the
night
I hope
we can
see
how easily
this could
be us
without
Jesus
and I
wonder
what kind
of situation
you are
in
if God
seems
silent
or you
feel
forsaken
let me
point you
to Jesus
God
has
spoken
through
his word
and through
sending
Jesus
those
same
words
we
saw
King
David
using
earlier
Jesus
cried
out
my
God
my
God
why
have
you
forsaken
me
if
we are
trusting
in
Jesus
we will
never
be
forsaken
because
he
was
let me
just
finish
with some
of the
words
of the
song
we'll
be
singing
next
I'm
forgiven
because
he
was
forsaken
I'm
accepted
he
was
condemned
I'm
alive
and well
his
spirit
is
within
me
because
he
died
and
rose
again
let
me
just
pray
Lord
I
thank
you
for
your
word
Lord
I
thank
you
for
Jesus
I
thank
you
that
he
came
he
died
and
he
rose
again
Lord
I
thank
you
that
he
was
willing
to
be
forsaken
so
that
we
don't
have
to
be
and
Lord
I
thank
you
that
we
can
put
our
trust
in
Jesus
and
we
can
know
that
we
will
never
be
forsaken
and
Lord
I
pray
that
would
be
true
of
every
one
of
us
here
tonight
Lord
help
us
to
know
Jesus
help
us
to
know
your
word
alive
in
our
lives
we
pray
this
in
Jesus
precious
name
Amen