Chosen
1 Samuel 15:34-16:13
Click here to view the full sermon video, titled "Chosen"
1 Samuel 15:34-16:13
Then Samuel went to Ramah, and Saul went up to his house in Gibeah of
Saul. Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death, but Samuel
grieved over Saul. And the LORD was sorry that he had made Saul king over
Israel.
David Anointed as King
The LORD said to Samuel, “How long will you grieve over Saul? I have
rejected him from being king over Israel. Fill your horn with oil and set out; I
will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a
king among his sons.” Samuel said, “How can I go? If Saul hears of it, he
will kill me.” And the LORDsaid, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have
come to sacrifice to the LORD.’ Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show
you what you shall do, and you shall anoint for me the one whom I name to
you.” Samuel did what the LORD commanded and came to Bethlehem. The
elders of the city came to meet him trembling and said, “Do you come
peaceably?” He said, “Peaceably. I have come to sacrifice to the LORD;
sanctify yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice.” And he sanctified
Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.
When they came, he looked on Eliab and thought, “Surely his anointed is
now before the LORD.” But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not look on his
appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him, for
the LORD does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward
appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart.” Then Jesse called Abinadab
and made him pass before Samuel. He said, “Neither has the LORDchosen
this one.” Then Jesse made Shammah pass by. And he said, “Neither has
the LORD chosen this one.” Jesse made seven of his sons pass before
Samuel, and Samuel said to Jesse, “The LORD has not chosen any of
these.” Samuel said to Jesse, “Are all your sons here?” And he said,
“There remains yet the youngest, but he is keeping the sheep.” And
Samuel said to Jesse, “Send and bring him, for we will not sit down until he
comes here.” He sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy and had
beautiful eyes and was handsome. The LORD said, “Rise and anoint him, for
this is the one.” Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the
presence of his brothers, and the spirit of the LORD came mightily upon
David from that day forward. Samuel then set out and went to Ramah.
Chosen
1 Samuel 15:34 – 16:13
Rev. Essie Koenig-Reinke
Lucy has a new favorite book. This happens every couple weeks, but this
one surprised me. It’s not a board book, it is not interactive. It is a story.
While it is a picture book, the font is tiny and there are multiple paragraphs
on the page. It’s a solid 10 minute read at bedtime, but she loves it. It’s
called Fauja Singh Keeps Going. It’s the story of the oldest person to EVER
run a marathon. Fuaja was born in Punjabi, India and when he was young
his parents were told he might never walk. But Fauja didn’t listen, Fuaja
didn’t stop and at age 5 he learned to walk. Throughout the story you hear
how Fauja is resilient in the face of adversity, and how he grew up to farm
and raise a family. By the time he was in his 80s, his family all lived over
seas and Fauja left his home to join them. When he first got there he was
lonely and he was sad, but one day he watched a marathon on TV and
decided that he could do that too and so he began to run. And in his late
80s, he ran his first Marathon. He continued to race around the UK.
However, around that time he learned that Sikh people like himself and his
family were being harassed and hurt in the United States. Fauja really
wanted to help, and so he decided to run the NYC Marathon, the biggest
Marathon in the world. And do you know what happened – he barely
finished the race. At the start line people called him names, and harassed
him. Then some injuries he had sustained caused him to limp across the
finish line with his worst time ever. However, after returning home, Fauja
did not listen, and did not stop, instead he decided to be the first
100-year-old person to run a marathon. At the ripe age of 100, on October
16, 2011 – Fauja Singh ran the Toronto Marathon in 8 hours, eleven
minutes and six seconds. Making him the oldest person to EVER run a
marathon. As I read this story each night to Lucy – she gasps in surprise
each time Fauja does something no one thought he could. And she points
to him and says, “he is running and happy.”
As a retired athlete, one of the things that I have always believed is when it
comes to athletics it is always bigger than just the match, game or race.
And the story of Fuaja Singh is no exception. When he was a child – no
one would have ever chosen him to run a marathon, because the doctors
said he might never walk, and yet, Fauja has traveled the world, promoting
peace, by running hundreds of miles and races.
Our story today is one that defies the odds, and moves in ways we don’t
expect. We pick up right after God has rejected Saul as King. Saul had
been too concerned with what the people would think, and did not follow as
the Lord Commanded. Samuel had to deliver the bad news, and complete
the task that Saul could not. As the sun sets on Saul’s rule, we catch a
glimpse of the grief Samuel holds. It is real grief, this is not what he wanted,
this is not what the people wanted, and yet God had spoken, “God was
deeply sorry he had ever made Saul King over Israel.”
We open with grief – a theme in Samuel’s prophetic ministry. Grief that is
woven into Israel’s history. A grief so deep for God and Samuel alike, and
yet the story keeps going. We could stop here - overwhelmed with sadness,
but the story keeps going.
It becomes wildly apparent that this needs to be a new beginning, a new
way forward. God’s primary focus in all of this is the future of Israel and her
people. And so God sends Samuel to the house of Jesse to anoint the next
King.
And it’s here that we begin to catch onto what God is doing here.
Throughout 1st Samuel and especially in these few chapters, there has
been some wordplay happening that as English readers and speakers we
wouldn’t pick up on. However, the Hebrew authors intentionally use two
different words for the verb “to see.” One is “nabat” which means to look
upon, but not truly see. The other is “ra’ah” which means “to see,” and in
this part of the story it takes on a deeper meaning, to see with the Spirit of
God.
Nabat is used when God looks at Saul and Saul looks at God. Nabat
comes up again and again with David’s brothers. However, when they send
for David – the second thing noted about him is that he has beautiful eyes,
and it is made clear that this is the one God chooses, the one who sees
with righteousness and clarity. He sees the same vision and hope that God
holds. God makes it clear when stating, “I have provided for MYSELF a
king among Jesse’s sons.” Saul may have been the king of the people, but
this next King will be the King for God. And now we know, this King, is a
shepherd boy. He is the youngest son. He has no military training, he is
wispy rod of a child and he is described as ruddy. And with all of those
brothers around - has he ever had to lead before? In the eyes of humanity,
these attributes would strike him off the list before he even had a chance to
appear. Yet this is the one God chooses, and catches everyone off guard.
Ancient readers, and people would expect someone like Saul or Eliab to
be king – they are strong, manly, handsome, used to responsibility.
However, what the world seems to deem as qualities of a true king, are not
the same as God’s list of attributes, and like so many other places in our
canon we watch God come close to humanity through the life and person of
someone we least expect. In this case a young, shepherd boy.
And so Samuel anoints David. And it has become clear that he is God’s
chosen King.
God chooses people and moves in the ways we least expect because
God’s vision and dreams and hopes don’t always align with the world's
status quo or the shielded vision of our humanity.
and God’s dreams for the world cannot be drowned out. God won’t stop
here.
On May 11, 2024, Viola Fletcher turned 100 years old. While this is a
celebration of life and longevity, there is the added weight for Viola as being
the oldest survivor of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre. As a child who went
to schools in Oklahoma this wasn’t taught in my history class, it was not
something I learned as a white, middle class, woman until I was an adult.
Until I was pregnant with my daughter and on a trip home, I asked if we
could go to Tulsa and visit the new museum called Greenwood Rising. A
museum that told the history of this community and their people, and held
the tension and pain of this tragic and violent time. If you haven’t heard this
story, know that following the Emancipation Proclamation and Juneteenth,
which we celebrate this Wednesday on June 19th. Which was the
liberation of 250,000 black Texans in 1865 (2 years after the emancipation
proclamation) many black folks began settling out west. One such
community was the Greenwood district in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Over the next
60-70 years, the black community blossomed there. They had a bustling
economy, and were doing well for themselves. Until one day- racism in its
finest white, turned on the black community - based on an unsubstantiated
claim. Rather than waiting on Law enforcement – white folks took to the
street, and what started as riot quickly devolved into warfare. And the
Greenwood residents were completely unmatched. Their homes were
bombed from the sky and they were attacked in the streets. It took days for
them to receive support and weeks for federal aid. It was like living in a war
zone. Homes, businesses, hospitals, schools – all gone. The wealth and
the economic success that took years to build was gone in a night. The
grief and pain in this community is palpable, and yet so is the resiliency and
creativity, and zeal and faithfulness.
Viola Fletcher never asked to be one of the faces of this moment in our
history. She lived her life – coping with what she had experienced the best
she could. She raised a family, she cared for her neighbors. And yet the
older she got the more attention she drew. After turning 100 her grandson
began writing down her story so he wouldn’t forget it. And at Viola’s 107th
birthday a black owned publishing company showed up and celebrated and
over the years they talked about how this story needed to be told. Viola
Fletcher’s Book, “Don’t let them Bury my Story” was published in August
2023. In her first public appearance about the book, they were sitting in the
DC Public library. And the publisher asked for her guests to start with the
importance of Juneteenth, a day where it is a reminder that it is important to
tell their stories. The stories of their lives, those that aren’t reflected in our
history books, the stories the government tries to wipe away. The lived
reality of black Americans in our country, our neighbors, our friends, our
families. And Viola Fletcher did just this, not because she ever wanted to,
but because she could see, the story needed to be told. God moves in
ways we least expect. God chooses people to further Kin-dom building
work that we least anticipate. Peoples' eyes who are beautiful and reflect
the Glory of the Divine and dreams of God. Just like a small shepherd boy,
Fauja and Viola stumbled into this story, and yet found themselves anointed
– proclaiming justice, mercy and love of the creator. Driving humanity to
recognize our failings, to repent, to grow and be better. Are they perfect,
No. No one is perfect but they were called and chosen. Chosen to run for
peace. Chosen to tell their story. Chosen to reveal the goodness of God to
all of creation.
Beloveds, we may or may not be chosen in ways like Viola, Fauja or David.
But we are people of God, chosen and claimed by a God who loves us and
who is at work in our lives, revealing God’s self through us. And that’s not
because of anything we do or say but because of who God is. However,
when we listen and strive to look through the lens of faith and Divine
dreams, our beautiful eyes reflect the love, justice, mercy and grace of God
that this world so sorely needs. The world needs more of God’s vision and
less our own worldly interjections. This story of David, while a Royal tale,
also speaks to us as people claimed by God, loved and chosen. The
question for us is what will we do with it? Will we be afraid of the people like
Saul – and fail to follow where God leads? Or will we let our heart and our
eyes reflect the promises God holds for all of creation – where Justice Rolls
down like water and righteousness like an ever flowing stream? Where
there is peace like a river, and all people are seen as Divine images of God
and are treated with dignity, love and equity. May our stories and our lives
and our eyes be reflections of our creator ,redeemer and sustainer. Today
and Every day. Amen.