Read 1 Samuel Chapter 15
It might seem strange to claim that Saul's real enemy was not the Philistines nor the Ammonites nor any of the many heathen nations which surrounded the small state of Israel. His greatest enemy was himself. In short, Saul put his own needs and interests before complete obedience to God. Here is a quotation from Sidlow Baxter from his Bible commentary called, "Explore the Book."
The Philistines were not Saul’s worst enemies. His worst foe was himself. Every man who lets “self” fill his vision till it blinds his inner eye to what is really true and Divine is “playing the fool.” All of us who live for self in preference to the will of God are “playing the fool.” [J Sidlow Baxter: Explore the Book]
Saul had proved to be a reasonably effective military leader but his greatest weakness was his reluctance to obey God. There were two instances where he did not do what God had commanded him via the mouth of the prophet, Samuel. Samuel had told him to wait for him to offer up a sacrifice to God before going into battle against the Philistines. A week passed and Samuel had not arrived. The soldiers were becoming restless and Saul was afraid that some would desert and make their way back home. So Saul took matters into his own hands and he decided that he did not need a priest. He simply dispensed with the services of the priest and he offered the sacrifice himself without Samuel. He had just finished the offering when Samuel arrived. Here is his strongly worded condemnation of Saul's actions.
[13] And Samuel said to Saul, “You have done foolishly. You have not kept the command of the LORD your God, with which he commanded you. For then the LORD would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. [14] But now your kingdom shall not continue. The LORD has sought out a man after his own heart, and the LORD has commanded him to be prince over his people, because you have not kept what the LORD commanded you.” [1 Samuel 13:13-14 ESV]
You have done foolishly is a blunt indictment of Saul's disobedience due to his impatience. I am reflecting on Samuel's words as I am word processing this blog. Have there been times in my life when I have acted precipitously because I was not prepared to wait for God to respond? Have I been too impatient and not prepared to wait for God to work? Maybe these are questions all Christians need to ask themselves.
Saul's second act of disobedience is recorded two chapters later in chapter 15 of First Samuel. Saul is given a clear, unambiguous command which he fails to carry out.
[2] Thus says the LORD of hosts, ‘I have noted what Amalek did to Israel in opposing them on the way when they came up out of Egypt. [3] Now go and strike Amalek and devote to destruction all that they have. Do not spare them, but kill both man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.’ [1 Samuel 15:2-3 ESV]
The idea of 'devoting to destruction' causes offence to critics of Biblical ethics but Saul was not concerned about the idea of conducting a mass slaughter of an enemy of Israel. He instructed his soldiers to wipe out the Amalekites but he stopped short at completely following out Yahweh's command. He spared Agag, the king, as well as the best of the sheep and the oxen, the fattened calves and the lambs.
[9] But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep and of the oxen and of the fattened calves and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them. All that was despised and worthless they devoted to destruction. [1 Samuel 15:9 ESV]
When Samuel challenged him, Saul showed no remorse for his failure to carry out the Lord's instructions. First of all, he lied and claimed that he had done what he had been asked. And Samuel had to probe deeper and asked him, somewhat sarcastically, to explain why he could hear the bleating of so many sheep and the lowing of the oxen. Saul also sought to dress up his disobedience in pious terms by claiming that he preserved the best of the animals so that they could be offered in sacrifice to the Lord. Rather than accepting full responsibility as king for this act of disobedience, Saul tried to shift the blame to the people. Is it not tragic that when someone points out our failure, we seek to defend ourselves - usually by shifting the blame to others.
Samuel made a statement which has been quoted many times but it is worth reflecting on again.
Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams. [1 Samuel 15:22b ESV]
This verse stresses the absolute necessity of obedience. It is the sine qua non of the Christian faith. It is what God expects from His people. There is no substitute for obedience. And nothing we do can replace obedience or compensate for disobedience. One of my many favourite hymns has this lovely chorus:
Trust and obey for there's no other way
To be happy in Jesus
But to trust and obey.
I began this blog with a quotation from Sidlow Baxter who was the pastor at Charlotte Chapel in Edinburgh. I want to finish with three other quotations on the same theme - our obsession with self and the damage this causes to our spiritual wellbeing. Saul put his own needs, interests and perspectives before obedience to God. His welfare mattered more than pleasing God.
The first quotation comes from Andrew Murray (a South African writer, teacher and Christian pastor 1828 - 1917):
Self is the great curse, whether in relation to God, or to our fellow-men in general, or to fellow-Christians, thinking of ourselves and seeking our own. Self is our greatest curse. [Andrew Murray: Absolute Surrender page 16]
The second quotation comes from Charles Spurgeon:
Beware of no man more than of yourself, we carry our worst enemies within us. [C.H. Spurgeon]
The third quotation comes from A. W. Tozer whose sayings are frequently repeated in sermons today.
To be specific, the self-sins are these: self-righteousness, self-pity, self-confidence, self-sufficiency, self-admiration, self-love and a host of others like them. They dwell too deep within us and are too much part of our natures to come to our attention till the light of God is focused upon them. The grosser manifestation of these sins, egotism, exhibitionism, self-promotion, are strangely tolerated in Christian leaders even in circles of impeccable orthodoxy. They are so much in evidence as actually, form any people to be identified with the gospel. I trust it is not a cynical observation to say that they appear these days to be a requisite for popularity in some sections of the Church visible. Promoting self under the guise of promoting Christ is currently so common as to excite little notice. [A.W. Tozer: The Pursuit of God pages 33-35]
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