1 Samuel 2:9
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In church, it is so fun to be here with you tonight under the preaching of God's Word. We are going to be in 1 Samuel 2.9, so take a moment and flip your Bibles over there real quick for me. When I was growing up, I had an older brother who I was about the same size with. And you may think we would be equally matched physically. But the problem for me with my brother is that he liked pain.
He liked pain a lot. He didn't mind if he was in pain as long as he knew you were in more pain. I, on the other hand, had a deep personal interest in not experiencing any pain. If you know me, you know I'm more of a hotel guy and less of a tank guy. So needless to say, my brother's pain tolerance created an issue for me. I knew that I couldn't escalate things physically because he could always endure more than I could.
So I had to find other ways to wage warfare. I remember one day specifically, I was standing around minding my own business, and my brother came along and he did something to me. I can't really remember what he did. He probably punched me in the arm or something like that. And I remember turning towards him, staring him in the eye, puffing out my chest, and like any man would, I cried, Mom! My mom came running into the room.
She quickly comforted me. She turned to my brother and began ripping him apart. It was awesome. I remember when she turned her back away from me towards my brother, I looked at him in the eyes and I smiled as big as I possibly could. I was triumphant because I looked to a higher authority to take action on my behalf against my foe.
This evening, we're going to explore a significant contrast between two very different types of people. In our passage tonight, one person triumphs because they look to a far higher power to intercede for them, to take action, to guard and to protect them. But the other person, they rely on their own abilities. And because of that, they face a measurable loss. They're cut off. Let's dive into this text tonight together. 1 Samuel 2.9. Here's what it says. He will guard the feet of his faithful ones, but the wicked will be cut off in darkness, for not by might shall a man prevail. Here's what I want to convince you of tonight. God acts on behalf of his people. I'll say it one more time. God acts on behalf of
his people. Two points. Point one, two characters, and point two, one judge. All right, our first point. Point one. Our passage tonight, it focuses on two main characters, the faithful and the wicked. In the first half of the verse, the faithful receive the protection of God. But in the second half, the wicked receive his judgment.
They're cut off. When you and I read this text together, we should ask the question, what makes one faithful and what makes one wicked? Our passage tonight is actually a prayer which exalts the Lord for his faithful provision. If you look back over the first chapter of 1 Samuel, you'll meet a woman named Hannah. She's a desperate woman who wants a child from the Lord.
Year after year, she would go up to the temple to entreat the Lord to give her a son. Her husband's other wife, a woman named Paniah, did have many children. And when Paniah saw Hannah going up to the temple, she would ruthlessly mock Hannah for being barren. Eventually, though, God does provide Hannah a child. She names him Samuel. Our passage tonight is an exaltation of God's provision.
God provides for his people despite the mockery of their enemies. So, who are the faithful ones in our passage tonight? Well, I think that you and I should associate the faithful ones in our text with Hannah. For years, she didn't receive the desire of her heart. For years, she longed for a child.
For years, she endured the provocation of her enemies. But for years, she didn't cease to pray. She didn't cease from going up to the house of God to ask him to act on her behalf. She knew that God could change her situation if he willed it. Hannah is the prime example of what a faithful person looks like in our text tonight.
Like Mary in our text this morning, Hannah doesn't waver in her faith. She believes in God's ability to act if he wishes to do so. I want to take a moment and highlight the fact that Hannah doesn't let her deep pain overcome her trust in God. Friends, I'm deeply aware that in this room tonight, there are many of you who have asked God for years to step into your situation and haven't heard an answer.
I know exactly what that's like. My wife, Anna, and I have asked the Lord for years to give us children, and he hasn't. You may be like that. You may be in a situation where you want to have children, but you aren't able to because of infertility or miscarriages. Or maybe you haven't found the right spouse. You haven't received the desire of your heart.
Others of you, it may be something else, like you desire marriage. Year after year, you hope the right person will come along. And year after year, no one comes. And you're beginning to doubt whether they ever will. God hasn't given you the desire of your heart. you're beginning to wonder how grief and pain, any good could be brought out of your grief and pain.
But has your pain caused you to lose sight that God is completely in control of your individual situation? Have you grown tired of asking God to remember your affliction? If so, be like Hannah. For years, she asked God to step into her situation. For years, he didn't answer.
But she remained faithful to him. You see, the antidote to your pain and my pain is not less prayer. It's found in a desperate prayer life that reflects the truth that God can act in your situation if he wishes to do so. In the Christian life, desperate prayer, desperate and continual prayer, is a glorious marker of one's faithfulness.
So the faithful ones steadfastly believe that God can save them. But what about the wicked in the second half of our verse? Well, I think we should associate the wicked ones with the person of Paniah. Why is that? Well, if you look back to 1 Samuel 1 verse 6, you see that Paniah mocks Hannah for her barrenness. She looks at Hannah, takes her weakness, and weaponizes it against her.
But if you go back up just one more verse to 1 Samuel 1.5, you see that Hannah's barrenness comes as a result of the Lord's doing. You see, in mocking Paniah, in mocking Hannah, Paniah is mocking God's decision to close Hannah's womb. Paniah displays that a wicked's heart mocks God's people But it also mocks, ultimately, God himself.
It looks to something else to save, not to the God of the universe. It's worth taking a moment and thinking, does this reflect your heart? We've just taken about 30 or 40 minutes singing to God and asking him to intervene in various situations. Have you been sitting there thinking the songs we have sung are empty and the prayers we've prayed are useless?
If so, you may be like Paniah, who mocks God's people and ultimately mocks God himself. So, we have two characters, the one who is faithful and the one who is wicked. Let's take a look at our second point. Point two, one judge. When I called my mom, I was really asking her to act as a judge between two parties, both me and my brother.
I wanted her to make a righteous judgment. She heard her child calling to her in desperation, and she acted. In our passage tonight, you and I witness one perfect, holy judge who is able to discern the hearts and minds of everyone. And this just judge responds to our two characters in two very different ways. To the faithful ones, Hannah says, he guards their feet.
That's a bit of an odd phrase. why the feet? What does it mean that God guards the feet of his faithful ones? I think there's two reasons for this. The first reason is that feet represent direction. Where your feet are pointed, that's where you're going. The author of Proverbs makes this very clear. He warns his son to keep his feet from the paths of sinners.
You see, feet represent one's spiritual direction in life. The second thing is feet point to stability. A few years ago, I was walking to a library and I had to step over about a two-foot high wall. My foot caught the top of the wall and my body represented more of a scorpion-like figure and less of a human-like figure. I think that's what Hannah's getting at in our text. But she's pointing to something much more important than just a physical stumbling.
She's pointing to a spiritual stumbling. One that would keep the faithful ones from looking to God. Whether that's sin, temptation, or hardships. You see, God guards the spiritual health and stability of his people. He protects it. But the wicked, on the other hand, they receive a completely different type of judgment.
They are cut off in darkness. Notice that Hannah recognizes that this judgment will happen. It may not be happening right now, but in the future, they will experience that. They haven't escaped God's wrath. Their mocking mouths will be shut in eternal darkness. Why? What have they done to receive such an apparently harsh judgment from the throne of heaven?
Well, Hannah explains this. She says, For not by might shall a man prevail. You see, they're cut off in darkness because they look to something other than God to save them. They look to their own strength, their own might, their own resources, giftings, or anything else to prevail in life. Like Paniah, It might seem like they actually do prevail.
They may have all the children, all the finances and status, but they're in this darkness. How does your heart respond to the fact that there is one perfect and holy judge of the universe that perfectly and fully knows you? Does that inspire confidence or fear?
Maybe even apathy? I trust in a room this size that there are some of you who aren't trusting in Christ for your salvation. You've looked to other things to bring fulfillment in your life. And you don't believe that you'll stand before a holy, just, and righteous God at the end of time. Well, the second half of verse 9 describes you. At the end of time, you'll be cast into other darkness, away from the God of life.
Why is that? Well, it's because you chose to trust in something else other than Christ to prevail in life. You trusted in your own might, your own intellect, your own giftings to bring you fulfillment, to help you prevail. That choice is going to bring you to eternal destruction. If you are fearful or apathetic, it's time that you look to Jesus.
Jesus offers rest to the fearful. He brings comfort to those who are burdened with their sin. He breaks your apathy, and he calls you to repentance. Turn your feet to Jesus. Come to him. Let's pray. Father, thank you that you are the perfect holy judge of the universe, that you see our hearts and you know our minds we ask that we would be faithful unto the end that we would not be discouraged but that we would grow in our trust in you through hardships and through the things that you have planned for our lives help us rejoice in the things that you've given us to rejoice in it's in jesus name i pray amen