Israel, chosen by grace, had a history with very few righteous moments. As far back as the giving of the Law at Mount Sinai, the nation continued to pull further and further away from the Lord. Not even Joshua or David were able keep the nation righteous for a long period of time. Israel’s history betrays our sin nature: sin is always humanity’s default mode.

In chapter 16 of the Story we see the pattern of human sin, God’s justice and His hope. Despite His people’s disobedience, God delivered a promise through Isaiah – a new King, a suffering Servant, a Saviour, the Messiah.

Have you ever noticed that sermons on Mother’s Day tend to gush over mums, while on Father’s Day they tell us dads to shape up? This Sunday, we will celebrate dads. It is our hope that we can encourage and challenge fathers to dream big, take risks for God, embark on an adventure, charge ahead, and be a man.

In a sense, listening is easy – or hearing is easy. It doesn’t demand the initiative and energy required in speaking. But despite this ease, or perhaps precisely because of it, we often struggle against it. In our sin, we’d rather trust in ourselves than another, accumulate our own righteousness than receive another’s, speak our thoughts rather than listen to someone else.

In chapter 15 of The Story, we see that Israel has forgotten what it means to listen. They have become complacent, disobedient, and rebellious. They no longer show the love of God to the surrounding nations. But God is still speaking today. Will we listen, or will we ignore his message like the Israelites did?

In military aviation, it is said, “The accident occurred already; we’re just waiting for the plane to arrive at the crash site.” When there is an accident, it is an indicator that a fatal error has been made miles earlier. Back in Chapter 13, 1 Kings 11, we see the fatal error that caused the crash of the nation of Israel, but it’s not Jeroboam’s error. It’s Solomon’s. At one time or another all of us are impacted by someone else’s decisions or actions. When we suffer the negative consequences of another’s wrongheaded decision, God can redeem the situation. God can work, and often does what seems to us as his best work, in situations that seem the most difficult.

Much like the frog in the kettle analogy, Solomon – the wealthiest and wisest of kings – started swimming in lukewarm waters. As the waters heated up, Solomon ignored the signs until his life was ruined, and his kingdom eventually divided by civil war. This week in The Story, we learn from King Solomon the importance of keeping watch over our heart and the consequence of not living in godly community.

As Christians, we are called to point people to God by the way we live our lives, prioritise, make decisions, treat people, and speak to people. We are to live each day with the conviction that we are to be Jesus to the people around us. This also includes how we handle life when we sin. This week in The Story, we see how David’s response to the consequences of his sin reveals the character of God. We see that God maintains his role as holy and just. But we also see a gracious and loving God who restored his relationship with David.

Jesus once told a group of people that in order to judge correctly they needed to look beneath the surface. Our world judges on externals, by how we look on the outside. God does not make judgments on externals. God looks at the heart. God also wants his people to resist judging on externals. We see this truth in The Story as we come to the anointing of David as Israel’s king.

Happy Mother’s Day from The Bridge Church.

Some of us are blessed with a long history of faith while others are the first in the family to have faith. But all of us have a faith family tree. People have influenced our journey. While we have influenced the faith of our children or parents or friends. This Sunday, we will look at the faithful influence of Hannah upon her son, Samuel.