SAUL & THE WITCH OF ENDOR
PART 1
Saul had failed God twice by rejecting the totality of God’s commandment. He preferred to have the crowd around him rather than the truth of God (just like most preachers today). In 1 Samuel13, Saul was unable to wait till the hour appointed by Samuel. He feared the people and forced himself to sacrifice. Had he waited, Jesus would have been named ‘Son of Saul’ because his kingdom would have been established. Again in 1Samuel15, Saul failed to pass complete judgment on Amalek. God was done with him, yet he continued ruling.
Many years passed, and the Philistines came up to war against Israel. Saul needed to hear from God.
Now in the Old Testament God spoke to the fathers in divers manners (i) Dreams (ii) Urim (iii) Prophets. None of these responded to Saul. He remembered those with familiar spirits whom he had driven during his last revival, and he went after them.
Saul disguised with 2 of his servants and went to ENDOR to see a witch. This woman did not know the person she was talking to, so she reminded her client of the decree of Saul on satanism. Saul encouraged her by guaranteeing her safety IN THE NAME OF THE LORD.
1Sam28:11-12. The woman was told to bring up Samuel, but when she saw Samuel, she screamed. She knew it was Saul. How?
Let me first clarify the identity of the spirit that was called up.
Most people say it was not Samuel stating that a familiar spirit could have nothing to do with God’s prophet.
Pay attention. From Genesis after Satan conquered Adam, all men fell from the glory of God and were trapped at death in the prison house of Satan. No matter how powerful that man was, at death he was Satan’s guest in his prison.
This prison house of satan was described by Jesus in Luke 16 in the story of Lazarus and the Rich man. It had 2 compartments: (i)The place of Torment for the Unjust. (ii) Abraham’s bosom without Torment for the Just souls. Though the just souls had no torment, they were in prison waiting for scriptures to be fulfilled. (Psalm 23:4, Job14:7-14)
Now the witch of Endor could call out Samuel because her father the devil was in charge of their souls. Samuel was with Abraham, Abel, Adam, Noah etc. The camp of the Unjust had Cain, Nimrod, Goliath etc.
When Samuel came up, he was yet a prophet. He delivered the message clearly. (Pls read 1Samuel 28:15-19)
But shockingly, Samuel told Saul that by tomorrow you and your sons shall be with me. Saul was rejected in earth but for the purpose of election according to the foreknowledge of God, he had his place with Samuel in Abraham’s bosom.
To be continued…
God bless you all. – Bro. Nice
SAUL & THE WITCH OF ENDOR
PART 2
We saw in The Scripture how the witch of Endor was able to access the soul of Samuel who was a Prophet of God. This I explained was because Satan trapped all souls at death after he overcame Adam in the Garden of Eden.
(Roman3:23, 5:12)
Another thing Satan was able to do was to resist God’s angels concerning earthly matters especially as related to mankind because the fall of Adam transferred the ownership of the earth to Satan (Matt4:8-9). Some examples could be seen in the bible like that of Gabriel and the Prince of Persia, Joshua the high priest and Satan. (Dan10:12-14, Zech3:1-3)The prayers of Just men could also be hindered as in the case of Daniel.
When Jesus finally came and was tested through his earthly life, it pleased the Father to Tabernacle in his body, thereby making Jesus the HOUSE OF GOD. From that moment Jesus became THE ANOINTED ONE meaning the CHRIST. He from that river Jordan experience became THE ALMIGHTY GOD revealed in Flesh. (Mal3:1, Col1:15, 2:9, Jh1:10, Jh14:6-7)
All these were the move of God to spoil the works of Satan as stated in 1John3:8.
Recalling the story of the Rich man and Lazarus. Many have taken this narrative to be a Parable but that is not true. Names are never mentioned in parables as we have in this story.
The rich man was the same that met with Jesus in Mark10:17-23.
He met The Lord Jesus happily but left sadly. He continued to prosper even after rejecting The Lord’s counsel.
Note that in between these 2 stories, (a) THE RICH YOUNG RULER and (b) THE RICH MAN AND LAZARUS, there is a parable told by Jesus concerning “THE RICH FOOL”. Luke12:16-20.
This parable is hiding the events that took place after the rich young ruler rejected the counsel of the Lord. He continued to prosper and boasted concerning his planned enlargement but that night he died in his sleep.
Luke 16:19-31 is a true account of what happened after the death of both Men, Lazarus and the Rich man.
They are both seen in different compartments. The place of Torment and Abraham’s bosom. Though there was no torment in Abraham’s bosom, all those Just men were trapped and waited deliverance. Remember that Lazarus was there for only 4 days.
On the day that Jesus died, some wonderful things happened. While he was d-y-i-n-g (dying) for The Life of Every Flesh is in the Blood (Lev17:11), The blood of Jesus started to drop on the Earth. His blood “Hallelujah” was not dumb. It spoke like the blood of righteous Abel, but as Paul wrote in Hebrews, it spoke “…BETTER THINGS than the blood of Abel”. Abel’s blood cried for vengeance, but vengeance belongs to no human, but God. Now the blood of Jesus Christ spoke better things, not “a better thing” but Better Things. What could these things be?
To be continued…
God richly bless you.
-Bro. Nice
SAUL & THE WITCH OF ENDOR
PART 3
Hebrew12:24 KJV: “And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.”
We know that there have been 2 covenants. In this passage the covenant that is referred to here is the New Covenant (New Testament), which came by blood. This New Testament was initiated at the inauguration of the Lord’s Supper, but the actual sprinkling of blood was done the next day on Golgotha hills. (Matt26:27-28)
Now what Jesus said in Matthew 26:28 was actually said when the first Covenant (Testament), which we now call old was instituted.
In Exodus 24:6-8, Moses after he had read the laws to the children of Israel took blood in a basin and sprinkled the people saying: “And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which the Lord hath made with you concerning all these words.”
This as we read was the blood of sprinkling in the Old Covenant (Testament), but this was only the PRE-FIGURATION of what was to come.
It was never mentioned anywhere in The Scripture that the blood of those animals spoke anything. The Old Testament atonement was just a form of sustenance until the perfect would appear.
Matthew 27: 50-53.
Jesus Christ while on the cross cried with a loud voice and gave up the ghost; the following events took place.
* The Veil of the temple was RENT in twain from top to the bottom;
* the rocks rent;
* And the graves were opened;
The blood of Jesus was sprinkled for the past, present and future sons and daughters of God.
Each drop of his blood (in a sense) called out everyone of God’s people from the past to the future. The blood of Jesus spoke better things; what could be better than God identifying in his people? The blood of Jesus called Adam, Abel, Noah, Samuel, SAUL and David etc. This group ended with John the Baptist. (Matt12:13, Luk16:16)
The only one person the Blood of Jesus called at that PRESENT time was the Thief on the cross, before calling those in the future church ages. He called you and I, this is not to get you excited but if truly you were called to The One True Faith of Jesus Christ, then you were called from the foundation of the world when The Lamb was SLAIN in The Spirit.
(Ephesians 1:4,5,7-12)
According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
This have nothing to do with denominational meats. Those who are called, like Eagles will stand all the way for the undiluted truth of God’s Word. Amen!
When Samuel said to Saul that night “ye and your sons SHALL BE WITH ME” though Saul was fallen, his soul was anchored and could not be lost.
After the death, burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, Satan was totally disarmed. He could no longer do the following;
* Hinder the prayers of the saints, except if such a one was holding what belonged to Satan.
* hold the souls of the Sons of God after death. For Abraham’s bosom, which was the name given to the place where they were held beneath the earth, was taken UP into Paradise.
2 Corinth 12: 3-5.
The blood of Jesus Christ is the most expensive substance in the whole world. FOR BY IT SALVATION WAS PERFECTED, AND REDEMPTION WAS COMPLETED.
The very drop of it in the life of a person can create a trillion world MUCH BETTER THAN THIS PRESENT ONE.
There is no salvation in any other name. Those who blindly seek salvation in the titles of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, because of their failure to understand Matt28:19 will be disappointed. They have not the Mark of Jesus Christ.
Repentance and Remission of Sins MUST be PREACHED IN THE NAME OF THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. (Luke 24:46-48)
Friends! Repent and be baptized now in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins. (Acts2:37-38, 4:12,17,18, Gal3:27, Rom6:3-6, Acts8:12-18, 19:1-5)
JACOB'S TROUBLE
Yesterday, we looked at Jacob’s many troubles. How that though it was his right to get the birthright, but God was not happy with him in the way he lied and stole both from his father and brother. Both Rebecca and Jacob suffered terribly from this sin. It had to take a forgiveness from Isaac and a re-confirmation of the blessing upon him to get him into peace with God. (Genesis 28:1-3)
When we read Genesis 27, we see Rebecca speaking about the trouble she was going through due to the wives Esau took. Then she sent Jacob to Laban.
This is not as we read…Jacob and Esau struggled for the blessings when they were between the ages 35/40. Esau married at age 40. But Jacob roomed aimlessly for the next 30 yrs without finding footing on the blessings he had stolen.
Rebecca finally appealed to Isaac to help Jacob by sending him to Padam Haran (Gen27:42-46). Isaac had to call Jacob and bless him (forgive him) and instruct him on how to maintain the blessings (Gen28:1).
Jacob was 77yrs old in Genesis 28:1.
He set his face towards Haran and as he journeyed he got to place and had to rest.
He gathered STONES to rest his head, but amongst those stones was a Rock, not just a rock but The Rock of Ages. The same Rock that will symbolically follow his descendants in the years to come. It was here that God CONFIRMED the blessings of Jacob. (Gen28:18)
When he woke up, he did not gather stones, he only took that particular stone and anointed it.
Jacob married Leah mistakenly at the age of 84, Reaping what he had sown.
His service with Laban terminated when he was 97yrs old.
Though Jacob took the blessing which was his…but the way and manner he took it brought much troubles.
I want to say this to all who are humbled at heart.
Look back and humble yourselves to confess your faults genuinely. If you wrong an unbeliever, don’t think that God will favor you. Repent sincerely and apologize to that fellow and God will confirm His blessings on you.
Shalom
Good morning to you all – Br. Nice