ADULT STS LESSON 209: SAUL’S DISOBEDIENCE AND REJECTION

MEMORY VERSE: “And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams” (1 Samuel 15:22).

 

 TEXT: 1 Samuel 13:1-23; 15:1-35

The account of the early days of Saul on the throne in our text resounds with important lessons for privileged servants of the most high God, whether in the palace or the pulpit. The injunction to “…love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul…” at all times and in every situation should manifest in total obedience to all the commandments of God. As a matter of fact, to enjoy the blessings meant for those who serve in the King’s business, one must “…be willing and obedient” (Isaiah 1:19; 2 Chronicles 7:17-22). Obedience to God is non-negotiable among His servants, everywhere. When they derail from the path of obedience, He shows His displeasure. If they repent, He forgives; otherwise, they come under His recompense and retribution.

 

It is sad that Saul, the first king of Israel, who had a humble beginning and obeyed and obeyed the Lord’s commandments through Samuel, is portrayed in the texts as a backslidden and disobedient servant. As a result, he descended into the mire of shame and rejection. Ministers and members in the household of faith need to know that their spiritual standing and acceptance before the Lord is dependent on their continual obedience to the word of God (John 8:31). Christian workers should love the Lord of the work more than the work of the Lord. It is the neglect of this mantra that caused Saul’s rejection as a king in Israel. We should remain humble and be willing to obey the word of God and the leading of the Holy Spirit.

GOD’S SIMPLE COMMANDS TO SAUL (1 Samuel 13:1-12; 15:1-9; 10:8; Exodus 17:8-16; Deuteronomy 25:17-19; 1 Samuel 12:14,15)
Saul was commanded: “…seven days shalt thou tarry, till I come to thee, and shew thee what thou shalt do (1 Samuel 10:8) and “…go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass” (1 Samuel 15:3). The first command was given after Saul had reigned over Israel for two years. Unfortunately, he lost the strength to wait as he was told because a few people had begun to desert him. Therefore, he forced’ himself and offered the sacrifices. As soon as he finished, Samuel arrived. In the second instance, he failed to obey God implicitly.

 

The command to destroy Amalek came out of the Lord’s sense of retribution. “And the LORD said unto Moses, Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua: for I will utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven” (Exodus 17:14). Moses reiterated it during his farewell message to Israel with a strong emphasis: “thou shalt not forget it” (Deuteronomy 25:19). The command to Saul was different and peculiar from the normal practice of war in Israel. God permitted the Israelites to enjoy the spoils of war and in some cases, a certain percentage of the spoil was to be dedicated to Him (Numbers 31:21-54; Deuteronomy 20:1,19,20; Joshua 11:14). Even in Jericho, God permitted some things to be spared for His treasury (Joshua 6:19). He reserves the prerogative to dictate what He wants His people to do.

 

Unfortunately for Saul, in carrying out God’s command concerning Amalek, he allowed common- sense and the desire to please the people derail him from obeying the Lord implicitly. He “spared Agag, and the best of the sheep…” (1 Samuel 15:9). There are important lessons from Saul’s disobedience.

 

First. Samuel’s delay turned out to be a test of Saul’s patience and obedience to God. God often uses little things to test our virtues of obedience, faith, patience, humility or generosity.

 

Second, He is pleased only when our obedience is total and complete. Though Saul waited till the seventh day, he did not wait till the end of the day.

Third, deviating from God’s commandment by adding to or subtracting from it amounts to disobedience.

 

Fourth, Saul’s disobedience stresses the need to continue to watch and pray. It also shows the need for entire sanctification so that the root of sin can be uprooted. Saul was humble and non-retaliatory at the beginning of his reign (1 Samuel 10:21-27; 11:11- 13), but afterwards relapsed into pride and self-will.

Fifth, concern for God’s glory through obedience to His word should supersede our drive to succeed in battle.

 

Sixth, believers must learn to wait for God even when there is an apparent delay in the fulfilment of His promises. The proper attitude to maintain when under pressure is to be patient and allow the peace of God to rule our hearts.

 

Seventh, Saul’s waiting for Samuel (1 Samuel 13:8- 10) may be likened to that of believers waiting for the coming of the Lord, Jesus Christ. We should not be moved by any pressure from the world to turn away from Him while He tarries.

GOD’S SEVERE SENTENCE FOR SAUL’S DISOBEDIENCE (1 Samuel 13:13-15; 15:22-29; Proverbs 28:13; Isaiah 1:16-20; Ecclesiastes 8:11-13; 1 Samuel 15:10-29; Proverbs 21:3; Hosea 13:11; 1 Kings 11:31)

The Lord was unsparing as He commanded Samuel to pronounce Saul’s rejection because of his disobedience. “And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done foolishly: thou hast not kept the commandment of the LORD thy God… But now thy kingdom shall not continue… (1 Samuel 13:13,14). Similarly, the second act of disobedience brought him and his reign under God’s displeasure. His excuses did not shield him from the wages of sin. “For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king” (i Samuel 15:23).

 

Rather than repent, Saul gave excuses and blamed Samuel for coming late. Thus, he aggravated his sins by trying to justify his disobedience. God rejected him and terminated his dynasty. Justifying a sinful act, making excuses for wrong-doing, blaming others and trying to make them responsible for our own blunders are signs of weakness, hard-heartedness and impenitence. When David sinned and was confronted with it, he repented and was forgiven (2 Samuel 12:13; Psalm 51:1-17). Genuine repentance always averts God’s wrath, but the impenitent will experience His judgment (Isaiah 1:16-20; Proverbs 28:13; Jeremiah 3:12,13; 1 John 1:9). Saul’s resort to blame-shifting and excuse-making could not spare him the sentence of judgment. While it might be easy for some to blame him, the errors he fell into are with us today.

 

Many professing Christians disobey God in clear violation of His revealed will in many areas such as covetousness, unequal yoke in marriage, association with the world, unfaithfulness in service, indulgence in besetting sins, self-will, over- familiarity with God and presumptuous sins. Therefore, we should learn from his misadventure and pray like the psalmist: “Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me: then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression” (Psalm 19:13). To escape this great danger, believers must remain humble and teachable, pay greater attention to details when handling divine instructions, eschew self-interest or self-praise, do nothing out of pride or vainglory, and disallow the sense of duty from crowding out our personal devotion to God. Moreover, when a believer discovers that he or she has violated any portion of the word of God. repentance and restitution should be embarked upon immediately. The pronouncement of God’s judgment on Saul shows clearly that He detests haughtiness, when we are no longer “little” in our own eyes (1 Samuel 15:17).

 

Saul was no longer humble as he was when God chose him to lead Israel. Secondly, he did not obey the voice of the Lord but his own will and that of the people. Thirdly, he flew upon the spoil”; that is, he sought personal material advantage, which God did not permit on this occasion. The Scripture reveals that obedience is better than sacrifice (Proverbs 21:3). In His sight, disobedience and stubbornness equate witchcraft and idolatry.

GOD’S SORROW OVER SAUL’S APPOINTMENT (1 Samuel 15:30-35; Exodus 9:27-34; 10:16; Numbers 22:34; Joshua 7:20; Proverbs 28:13; Luke 15:18,19, Isaiah 57:15-21)
It is very sad that rather than repent upon hearing the divine sentence for his disobedience, Saul was only interested in his personal honour before the people. Then he said, I have sinned: yet honour me now, I pray thee, before the elders of my people, and before Israel, and turn again with me, that I may worship the LORD thy God” (1 Samuel 15:30).

 

Even Ahab, with his tendency to do evil because of his wife’s influence, humbled himself before God when he was rebuked by the prophet of God (1 Kings 21:21-29). Saul’s confession that “I have sinned” was a mere lip service, he followed in the ill-steps of the likes of Pharaoh, the hard-hearted king of Egypt, who later perished without remedy (Exodus 9:27,34; 10:16), and Balaam, the false prophet of Midian, when confronted by the angel of God (Numbers 22:34). Confession of sin alone without readiness to forsake them cannot bring the mercy of God (Proverbs 28:13). “Then came the word of the LORD unto Samuel, saying, It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king: for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments.

 

And it grieved Samuel; and he cried unto the LORD all night” (1 Samuel 15:10,11). The Lord is displeased when His servants turn back from following Him. He regretted choosing Saul to be king over Israel. Though Samuel went back home to intercede for Saul, he would not be an accomplice in his disobedience. Instead, he (Samuel) executed God’s judgment upon the king of the Amalekites by slaying him. Saul’s experience and rejection throw up a number of lessons for heaven-bound saints. One, God expects absolute obedience to His commands, as partial obedience does not equate obedience. Two, believers should possess and manifest the virtue of patience at all times. Three, we should not allow human pressure lead us to disobey God’s revealed will. Four, our eternal security lies in abiding in God’s will.

 

Though Saul was chosen and enthroned, he lost his position because of sin. Five, when we are confronted with our failings through the word of God, we should not feign sorrow but repent genuinely. Six, we should not prefer public applause to divine commendation. Instead of Saul to repent sincerely, he pleaded with Samuel to honour him in the eyes of the people. Finally, we learn that God is no respecter of persons: He deals with people of power as well as the lowest in the society. “Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come” (1 Corinthians 10:11).

Questions for review:
1. Mention some ways to demonstrate our love for God in daily living.
2. State things that tend to compete with obedience to God’s word in a believer’s life.
3. What steps can a believer take to avoid falling into Saul’s error?
4. Distinguish between false confession and true repentance.
5. What is the danger in disobeying God?
6. What does God expect sinners and backsliders to do to avert His wrath?
7. Point out one major difference between Saul and David in matters of transgression.