1st And 2nd Samuel (2015)

Do you know someone who thinks they’re better than everyone else and even thinks they know better than God what is best for them? Listen to this lesson to learn that all of us are arrogant and self centered. See what God thinks of arrogance. Learn about the sin nature we are born with which basically makes us evil, including even the sweetest looking baby. Find out about our trends and our evil desires and how we try to hide our arrogance by doing good deeds to impress others. See the contrast between arrogance and humility and how submitting to God and delegated authority is the only means to rejecting arrogance and boasting in our life.

Thinking is hard work. It’s easy to rely on clichés and automatic responses but to actually think through something can be exhausting. Listen to this lesson to see how Hannah oriented her thinking away from herself and her problems and concentrated on the greatness of God. Living in a fallen world with demonic influences makes it even more important that we understand that God is the only one who solves our problems. Gain an understanding of how our thinking can be brought into line with God’s thinking as we learn Biblical truth. See how one way of thinking leads to blessing and stability and the other to cursing and disaster.

Me? Write a prayer or a poem? That’s too hard! Listen to this lesson to see how Hannah’s happiness overflowed over all that God had done for her and she wrote this powerful prayer song. See how Hannah moves from the trauma in her own life to God’s ultimate victory over Satan. Find out who our three basic enemies are and realize that our enemies are God’s enemies. Begin seeing that everything that happens in our life is part of God’s grand design and that our happiness should never be based on the circumstances of our life.

Get ready! Life is a battleground as cosmic warfare rages around us. Listen to this lesson to learn about the spiritual warfare that involves God and Satan. As Christians we are assaulted continuously and just as Hannah prayed for deliverance and received it, we can trust God’s sovereign control of history. Learn that the Book of Psalms, which are the songs of the Bible, can strengthen us as we read and sing hymns about God’s victories in our life. Learn how to choose hymns, both the lyrics and the music, that will sustain us as we face our battles.

“Nobody knows the trouble I’ve seen. Nobody knows but Jesus.” This well-known old folk song is how we often feel when we’re laid low by suffering. Listen to this lesson to see how Hannah poured out her troubles to the Lord and made a vow to Him. See God’s purpose for adversity in a believer’s life and understand the difference between adversity and stress. Learn about ten problem-solving spiritual skills that we can apply in our lives. See how God answered Hannah’s prayer and understand that we, too, can cast our cares on the Lord instead of giving in to despair or anger.

What can we learn from intense grief and sorrow? Are they just emotional reactions that are out of our control? Listen to this lesson to learn the Biblical truth about sorrow. See how Jesus agonized in the Garden of Gethsemane concerning His coming crucifixion. Follow Paul’s remarks to the Corinthians concerning sorrow. Find out the meaning of Godly sorrow and how it can lead us to repentance. Learn how to comfort those who are mourning and experience a new level of truth about grief and sorrow as you learn to depend on God.

Can we trust our feelings and reactions to determine what we should do? Or do our responses lead us astray? Listen to this lesson to learn the correct role for emotion in the Christian life. Learn that emotion, in and of itself, is not wrong but that we cannot run our lives based on our feelings alone. Hear examples of weeping in the Bible and see that weeping can be for legitimate reasons or a sign of self-pity and manipulation. Instead of depending on emotions to guide our actions, we need to learn to depend on the Word of God.

Whom the Lord loves He makes comfortable? No, the Bible doesn’t teach that our aim in life should be comfort. Instead, listen to this lesson to learn about Hannah, who suffered from her inability to have a child and went through many painful emotions as she sought an answer from the Lord. Hear the doctrine of the barren woman which was one of the hardest burdens for a woman to bear in Old Testament days. Find out what “bitterness of soul” means and whether or not it is a sin. Understand what the Bible has to say about weeping and emotions and get a clear understanding that counseling is mainly being taught the Word of God from the pulpit and applying it to our circumstances.

Desperately longing for a child, Hannah cannot be comforted by her loving husband. At the tabernacle one day she prays silently, pouring out her troubles to the Lord and the high priest assumes she’s drunk. Listen to this lesson to see God’s marvelous answer to her prayer. Learn about Hannah’s devotion to the Lord. Understand that heartaches and trouble should always drive us to God for the solution, knowing that it may take time to learn to trust Him fully. See that no matter how hard our difficulties are, God’s grace is always sufficient.

In a collapsing world filled with violence and chaos comes a little known, sorrowful woman who humbles herself before God and trusts in Him for help. Listen to this lesson to hear the story of how one woman and the son who was the answer to her prayer changed the course of history for Israel. See how God is always in control and honors humility and faith. Find out how Samuel stood at the crossroads of one of his country’s darkest hours and set in motion their deliverance from the Philistines. Hear the striking comparisons between Samuel and Moses and how each was used by God for seemingly insurmountable tasks. Instead of succumbing to hopelessness in the face of all that is happening in our country today, turn to God for the answers that are always available.

Get ready for a high-stakes adventure as God is at work preparing to deliver Israel from what seems like a hopeless situation in the time of Samuel. See that the people of the land were evil and disobedient, including the priests in the Tabernacle. Listen to this lesson to hear that one obscure, anguished woman trusts God and gives her son, Samuel, to the Lord. Change comes slowly as God is disciplining the people and teaching them lessons they must learn. Find out how the angelic conflict is involved when there is anti-Semitism. Understand that God is always in control and nothing is too hard for Him when people turn back to God and trust Him for deliverance.

What this country needs are some good leaders to turn it around. Wrong! Listen to this lesson to see that what any country needs are people who turn to God and His Word for guidance. Hear about Israel under the judges which had reached a low ebb and had no respect for God or His Law. See how when a nation rejects objective truth it becomes subjective and each one only does what is right in his own eyes. Note the contrast between Samson and Samuel. Find out about a grandson of Moses who was a failure. Hear a story of decadence and immorality about a woman who was raped and murdered, leading to almost the complete destruction of one of the twelve tribes. Instead of longing for a leader to magically turn things around, put your trust in God and share the gospel with others.

What does the ancient country of Israel in the time of Samuel have to do with us today? Listen to this lesson to see that just as Israel neglected to obey God’s commandments and began to act just like their pagan neighbors, so we slip into thinking that we have no need of God, also. Find out the purpose of the book of Samuel and why it is categorized with the prophecies. Understand the negative cycle the Israelites went through that culminated in divine discipline to bring them back to God. Learn about nine Biblical purposes of human government. As a believer, live your life in accordance with God’s Word so people around you will want to know what you have and you can witness to them.

What can we learn from history to help us solve the enormous problems we face in our country today? Listen to this lesson to learn that only when a period of history is based on revelation from God can it be instructive. Follow a timeline of the history of the nation, Israel, and see that they cycled from periods of spiritual truth to disobedience to God where they deteriorated into hopelessness, economic downturn, and despair. Learn that when they turned back and walked in obedience to God they were blessed once more. So it is for us. When we let things spiral out of control through disregard for God’s Word, we need to turn back and walk in the Lord to have stability in our lives.

If you’ve always thought of the Bible as an obscure, pious book filled with stories of great Biblical heroes, think again. Listen to this lesson to learn about a country dominated by earthy, flawed, and sinful men, much as we have in our country today. Follow a dark period in Israel’s history and learn about three very different men, Samuel, Saul, and David. Learn about a murderous king influenced by demonism. See that as the book begins, God is working behind the scene, preparing to deliver Israel by bringing change. As you approach the study of this book, ask yourself if you’re like many in those days, trying to be a covert believer rather than living in open obedience to God’s Word.

Attention all history buffs! Get ready to begin a study of ancient history that addresses challenging events in a nation in chaos that would be right at home on our nightly news. Learn about Samuel who was a prophet, priest, and judge and why he cannot be the sole author of this book. Understand the difficulty of dating when the book was written and follow a timeline of the chronology of events that take place in it. Learn that this book was written for the Jews in Solomon’s generation as a warning to teach them the importance of obedience to God to bring prosperity, success, and victory over enemies. Accept that the message for today is that the people of our nation must either have a massive return to positive volition to God’s Word or we will feel the force of a repressive government.