Do you remember the last time that you decided to make a big change in your life? I’m not talking about doing something that is a part of daily life and living – like really wanting to go watch a movie or having an ice cream cone – I’m talking about something really huge – something that would imply a major transition in your life: like getting married; quitting a really stable job in order to launch out on your own; relocating to a new city where you would have to make new friends, find a new place to live and work; or decide to go back to school to learn a new career. This kind of thing is huge and it implies a systematic re-orientation of our priorities, thinking, behaviors and attitudes.
Sometimes these adventures result in great and wonderful opportunities and sometimes they don’t. When it is an entire organization, society or nation that is going through this type of transition, the stakes are enormous. The capacity and integrity of the leader can make all the difference in the world. If the right person is in place when a transition happens – the chances of success improve. It doesn’t mean that things will be easy – just that the preferred outcome has a greater chance of becoming a reality.
The nation of Israel wanted to make a change – a big change. They were a theocracy – a nation whose head of state was God. They saw that the nations around them all had kings – and so they decided that they too wanted to be led by a human king. Samuel warned them. He told them about that the new king would implement a draft system and that the new king would tax them, but this didn’t give the people pause. They looked around and saw how the neighboring nations all had human kings and they decided that they wanted their own. The man tapped to lead them through the coming years was Saul.
Now Saul was a figure of a man. He stood head and shoulders above most others. He was handsome and presented himself admirably well. If you’ve been around the block a time or two, maybe the fellow that would epitomize this might be somebody like Tom Selleck. Further back in time we might be thinking of a Burt Lancaster or a Charlton Heston type. Closer to today the kind of guy that Saul was perceived to be is maybe a Russell Crowe – a sort of man’s man type of figure.
Now I’ve picked Hollywood actors for a reason. You see, much of who these folks are to the public, is image – what a PR firm promotes. The same issue was at play with Saul. He was a man who had a wonderful public image, and he really was a good warrior. But when things began to get really tough, some very serious questions about his integrity began to arise. Now, mind you, the shoes Saul was filling were and continue to be mighty large! Wouldn’t you hate to be the first leader - the first human king - of a nation that had heretofore been led by God? That person better epitomize integrity! That person better understand that all good things come from God. That person better understand that for things to go well, God’s hand of blessing must be upon him and nation. Unfortunately, Saul did not get that very well.
Saul was the poster perfect king, but he chose to disobey God. He set aside the clear commands that God had given to him and instead trusted in his own judgment. God had given Saul explicit orders about how he was to conduct his battle with the Amalakites. Saul chose to deviate from what God had commanded him – not a good idea for Saul nor for us in today’s day and age! You know, maybe the power and position got to him. Maybe the applause from the people made him think that he needed to give account to no one else. Maybe the victories that God granted to him gave Saul a big head. In the same chapter as our sermon text, it says that Saul erected a monument to himself after the battle. The boy had a bit of an ego!
At the end of the day, Saul failed to follow God’s commands. Saul’s sin was not obeying God. His sin was trusting in his own judgment more than God’s clear Word and direction. So God sent a message to Saul through the prophet Samuel: “Because you rejected the Lord, the Lord rejects you as king.” And after God removed his hand of blessing – Saul became more and more despondent and self absorbed.
How do we know? - We can see it in how Saul began to go off track more and more. Time and again we see Saul fearful when he went into battles. He failed to confront Goliath and instead left that job to a little shepherd boy. He was afraid of the Philistine army. Saul’s leadership began to be characterized by jealousy and ineptitude. Saul slowly began to lose the support of his people. Finally, in his last days, Saul resorted to the most brazen form of idolatry - instead of trusting God for help and direction, Saul went to get advice from a witch – the witch of Endor. His end was tragic – Saul committed suicide. Saul lost the important position that he had been given. Saul became the king who fell from grace.
There are a number of important lessons for us in the story of Saul. Let’s begin with the clear understanding that we are not to be fooled by the external appearances. Saul was tall, handsome and ruddy. It was easy for people to look up to him. Seemingly Saul had it all. And yet, by Saul’s failure to trust in God, we see how appearances can be so very deceptive. And yet we see that Saul was lacking in some very important fundamentals.
Contrast this with a couple of other personages spoken about in Scripture. For example, few would give a plugged nickel for the little shepherd boy, David. When God sent the prophet Samuel to the house of Jesse in search of Saul’s replacement, dad did not even bring David before Samuel as a candidate. Eventually, it was David who replaced Saul.
The same kind of thing was written about the coming Messiah – Jesus. The prophet Isaiah writes in chapter 53:
“He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.” (vv. 2-3)
So clearly, looks aren’t everything. There are qualities that honor God that go beyond appearances.
We also see that honoring God is not just about what we say or how we comport ourselves in public. It is about the walk… it is about how we engage the responsibilities that God has privileged us to have. It is about recognizing that the only real strength that we bring to the task is the grace of God richly and abundantly poured out on us.
Generally leaders who make an impact and who are able to help lead people through challenges – even enormous challenges – are people who have integrity and character - both gifts of God. And this is something that is lived out. It is seen in how people engage others, engage life, in how they live when other people are not watching. Saul’s failure in this area can teach us.
We also see that trust in God is absolutely vital. A leader who trusts only in himself is a leader headed for a fall. Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. (Proverbs 16.18) It is God who leads people in the way that they should go. God demands that we keep our eyes on Him and no other. Motorcycle riders know the secret to negotiating a difficult turn or motorcycle maneuver. They know that where they direct their eyes – that is where the motorcycle is going. It is the same with our walk in life. If our eyes are fixed on Jesus – God will keep us in faith through his Word and through his baptism and lead us toward Him.
Finally, from Saul’s life, we also see that God is not going to be deceived. He cannot be tricked or fooled. He knows how we engage life. He knows how we engage his commands. He knows when we stray and when we are faithful. God honors a life of obedience more than one that endeavors to look good on the outside.
Ultimately, dear friends, this whole episode asks of us: Why do you engage in that faith called Christianity? If we, as Saul did, only follow God in name only, we too will fall from grace.
You see, beloved, there is only one reason for us to engage in the Christian faith – his name is Jesus. Jesus is the one who provides the richness and depth and character. More than that, it is through Christ’s Cross and Resurrection that we receive what only Christianity offers: God’s grace and forgiveness. Jesus is the sine qua non of Christianity. (sine qua non is a 50% Latin phrase which simply means: “without which – nothing”). Any other reason – the singing, the friends, the fellowship, the nice facilities - is – well – wrong. Without the Cross and without the Resurrection – in other words, without Jesus – we have no reason to be coming together. Jesus is our reason for being Christian. Let me read to you a brief few words from Max Lucado’s book – Next Door Savior: (pp. 5 & 6).
Great words! May God grant you a blessed Lenten walk with him, beloved. Amen.
