This week we see the beginning of kingship in Israel. You can read 1 Samuel 8:4-20, 11:14-15 here. A quick history of Israel: After God brought the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt, they went to the “promised land.” They set up their own society there, but unlike the other nations of the area (including the ones that the Israelites went to war with for this land), the Israelites did not have a human king. Their “king” was God. This was great in theory, but in practice it was much more difficult. The book of Judges chronicles the pattern that emerged: things would get worse and worse until God raised a judge (read: governor) to lead Israel. Then things would generally go along all right until the judge died. And the cycle would start again. Samuel, who we met last week, was the final judge.

In this week’s reading, the people of Israel know that Samuel is getting older, and they want him to appoint a king. After all, all the other nations have kings. And the judge system has been pretty unreliable and inconsistent. So Samuel prays about it (good call), and God says, “Yeah, yeah, it’s fine, they’re always rejecting me. But tell them what a king will do.” Samuel proceeds to list all the ways that a king will exploit the Israelites. Their response? “No! but we are determined to have a king over us, so that we also may be like other nations, and that our king may govern us and go out before us and fight our battles.” (“Go out before us” is another way of saying “fight our battles.”) Over the next few chapters, Samuel finds and anoints Saul as Israel’s first king.

I think the Israelites’ reasoning is interesting. They want to be like everyone else. They want someone to make decisions for them. They want someone to fight their battles.

What do I do so that I can be like everyone else? I clean. I put on make-up. I arrive on time. I write a blog. But what’s wrong with being like everyone else? Everyone else seems to be much more together than I am. Everyone else seems to have their life in line better. Everyone else seems to know what they’re doing.

But that’s the problem. Because I’m sure you’re all thinking, “Wait, I don’t have it together. She must not be talking about me.” But I am talking about you, because that’s how you all look to me. None of us know how un-together another person feels, and a wise person once told me: Don’t compare your insides to someone else’s outsides. Just because someone seems to me to have it all figured out, that doesn’t mean that’s how that person experiences his or her life. It’s not fair to compare like that. With the Israelites, God knew that the kingship systems that seemed ideal were in fact flawed, just like any other system. The Israelites were comparing their insides to the other nations’ outsides.

What about having someone else make decisions? There are definitely times that this would be amazing. And there are even times when we encourage this in church: turn it over to God, let God decide, listen to where God is calling you. These things are all good. But one of the greatest gifts that God gives us is the gift of free will. If we give that up entirely, we’re not doing God or anyone else any favors. God wants to help guide us, yes, but God also wants us to think for ourselves. That’s why God gave us these giant amazing brains. God does not ask us to give up our free will, only to use it in ways that bring more love into the world.

Finally, the Israelites want someone to fight their battles. In a time when they had just kicked out several other nations from the land that they were now occupying, this was a very real concern. There were battles to be fought.

This part is hard for me to deal with for a couple of reasons. First, I’m not really sure that they should have been fighting these battles at all. The Israelites were basically invaders – one theologian compares the Israelite takeover of Canaan, and the associated slaughter, with the European takeover of the United States and the killing of Native Americans. Not good. Second, even if I try to interpret this metaphorically and imagine spiritual battles – with the devil, with procrastination, with social injustice – I’m really not sure that battle is the best way to think of those things.

In our baptismal vows, we promise “to resist evil and injustice in whatever forms they present themselves.” Resistance seems to be more in line with Jesus’ command to turn the other cheek. Martin Luther King, Jr. resisted evil and injustice. Gandhi resisted evil and injustice. Jesus resisted evil and injustice. They all lost the “battles.” But their resistance continued even then. Maybe the best kind of resistance holds within it the willingness to lose a battle.

The kingship thing ended up working out all right for the Israelites for a little while, before it divided the nation completely. Whether it was good for them to have a king or not, though, their reasoning for wanting a king has not gone away. I still want someone to make me like everyone else, to make decisions for me, to fight my battles. But when I let those things happen, I’m giving up my identity, my free will, and one of the best forms of resistance around. Today, I pray for God to help me to take the responsibility that you have given me. Lord, hear my prayer.