SERIES: DAVID - A MAN AFTER GOD’S OWN HEART:
PART 11: I SHALL NOT BE HEADLESS
1 SAMUEL 31: 1 Now the Philistines fought against Israel; the Israelites fled before them, and many fell dead on Mount Gilboa. 2 The Philistines were in hot pursuit of Saul and his sons, and they killed his sons Jonathan, Abinadab and Malki-Shua. 3 The fighting grew fierce around Saul, and when the archers overtook him, they wounded him critically. 4 Saul said to his armor-bearer, “Draw your sword and run me through, or these uncircumcised fellows will come and run me through and abuse me.” But his armor-bearer was terrified and would not do it; so Saul took his own sword and fell on it. 5 When the armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he too fell on his sword and died with him. 6 So Saul and his three sons and his armor-bearer and all his men died together that same day. 7 When the Israelites along the valley and those across the Jordan saw that the Israelite army had fled and that Saul and his sons had died, they abandoned their towns and fled. And the Philistines came and occupied them. 8 The next day, when the Philistines came to strip the dead, they found Saul and his three sons fallen on Mount Gilboa. 9 They cut off his head and stripped off his armor, and they sent messengers throughout the land of the Philistines to proclaim the news in the temple of their idols and among their people. 10 They put his armor in the temple of the Ashtoreths and fastened his body to the wall of Beth Shan. 11 When the people of Jabesh Gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul, 12 all their valiant men marched through the night to Beth Shan. They took down the bodies of Saul and his sons from the wall of Beth Shan and went to Jabesh, where they burned them. 13 Then they took their bones and buried them under a tamarisk tree at Jabesh, and they fasted seven days.
INTRO: DAVID: A MAN AFTER GOD'S OWN HEART PT. 11: I SHALL NOT BE HEADLESS
1. Saul Starts Off Well: Extremely Tall & Handsome: (I Samuel 9:2). Saul Was Charismatic, Admired & Respected, Courageous in Battle, Humble & Respectful. He Was Charitable & Selfless. Per the Talmud (the body of Jewish civil and ceremonial law and legend), he gave his fortune to the poor; helped pay for needs of poor brides-to-be; paid soldiers out of personal treasury, not public funds. Saul Epitomizes Self-Sacrifice. He went to war with the Philistines after hearing the prophecy that he and his sons would be killed (I Sam. 28:19). Others would have run away. Most Of All: Filled with the Holy Ghost, prophesized, Had Samuel as prophet, etc. Thus he defeated the enemies of Israel - Ammonites, Philistines, Moabites, Amalekites. Only the Philistines remained a threat. In 2½ years, he united the tribes.
2. List Of His Weaknesses / Failures: Saul’s Presumptuous Sacrifice At Gilgal (1 Samuel 13) / He refuses to kill Agag the King of Amalek / Erects Monuments For Himself / Would kill Samuel if he heard of David’s Anointing / Begins To Resent, feel insecure, Envy & Fear David / Has A Wounded Pride, Violent Temper, Spirit Of Murder / Influenced By Public Opinion / Tries To Kill Jonathan / Kills 85 Priests & families & Cattle in Nob / Consults Witch At Endor.
Why Was Saul Killed? Two Reasons: I Chronicles 10:13So Saul died for his trespass which he committed against the Lord because of the word of the Lord which he did not keep and also because he asked counsel of a medium, making inquiry of it.
TO SUM IT ALL UP - SAUL IS A FOOL – FROM HIS OWN MOUTH
I Samuel 26:21Then said Saul, I have sinned: return, my son David: for I will no more do thee harm, because my soul was precious in thine eyes this day: behold, I have played the fool, and have erred exceedingly. No one likes to be called a fool. But fool has more than one meaning. Webster Collegiate Definition (Secular): FOOL - Without well-developed reason, a person who lacks the basic skills or ability to judge rightly; One who acts unwisely; a feeble-minded person; one who can be easily imposed upon, etc. Saul played the fool.
THE BIBLICAL DEFINITION OF FOOL IS NORMALLY TWOFOLD:
1. First Meaning Of Fool Is: Someone Who Sees Or Knows Right From Wrong But Prefers To Select The Wrong. Psalms 14:1:The fool has said in his heart, there is no God. Proverbs 1:7:The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction. I Corinthians 1:18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. I Corinthians 2:14But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
2. The Second Meaning Of Fool Is Found In Mainly The NT: Someone Who Chooses To Follow Christ And That Person Is Seen As Wasting His Or Her Life. I Corinthians 3:18: Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise. I Corinthians 4:10: We Are Fools For Christ.
THREE (3) KINDS OF FOOLS
1. The Worldly Fool:They believe in this world more than God. For some, there is no God. But if God exists, He does not matter. Rich Fool (Luke 12:16): He has so much money that refuses to see any other god but his money. He says to himself: Soul, you have enough, now eat and drink and be merry. But God says today your soul is required of thee - The Rich Young Man (Mark 10) Religious Fool: They say all roads lead to God. Moral Fool: I am good. I bother no one. Even better than people who go to church. E.g. Rich Man & Lazarus. Procrastinating Fool: I still have time to decide when to get serious. 2 Cor. 6:2 Accepted time is Now. E.g. 5 foolish virgins. Educated / Influential Fool: They put their trust in their education. Solomon tried everything – vain (Eccl. 3). Ecclesiastes 12:1 & 13-14 Fear God and keep His commandments.
2. The Carnal Fool: Neither hot nor cold – they know about God, his power, and holiness. They have tasted of the Word of Life, prefer to play church. They are in the church but slaves of the world. They even attempt to bring the world into the church.
3. Godly Fool: This is the life of a true Christian, a child of God. The world cannot understand the true Christian. I Cor. 4:10-13We are fools for Christ's sake…
SAUL STATED THAT HE HAD PLAYED THE FOOL? WHAT DOES IT MEAN?
Saul Neglected His Godly Friends.
Saul Went On Enterprises For God Before God Could Send Him.
Saul Disobeyed God In Small And Big Matters.
Saul Thought He Was Doing God’s Will When He Was Not.
Saul Tried To Cover His Disobedience With Religious Excuses.
Saul Allowed Small Matters Or Jealousy To Corrupt Him.
Saul Knowingly Fought Against God.
Saul Sought To Kill David Out Of Jealousy.
Saul Killed The Men Of God And Their Families Because He Envied David.
He Also Attempted To Kill His Own Son Jonathan Because Of His Love For David.
Saul Turned From God And Sough Alternatives In Witchcraft.
BECAUSE OF ALL HIS DISOBEDIENCE, LOOK AT THE PASSAGE.
1. God Refuses To Speak To Saul - "By Dreams Or Urim Or Prophets" (Samuel 28:6).
2. Saul’s "Solution" To Not Hearing From God – See A Witch (1 Samuel 28:7).
3. You Will Need God’s Help One Day - Make Way Now.
4. Samuel’s Sentence On Saul (1 Samuel 28:12-19).
5. When Anointing Is Revoked, Bearings Are Off.
A LOOK AT SUICIDE: STATEMENTS OF SUICIDAL PEOPLE / KIDS
1. "Sometimes I get so lonely it’s unbelievable. Life has been so good to me. I’ve got a great wife, good kids, money, my own health—and I’m lonely and bored . . . I often wondered why so many rich people commit suicide. Money sure isn’t a cure-all." Words of O. J. Simpson in 1978.
2. My name is Brandy. I’m 13 years old and I’ve tried to kill myself 6 times. I had some problems with my mom and I felt I couldn’t live anymore.
3. Lori was 14 years old when she was baptized at the local church - Blue Springs Community Church. Few months later, she dropped out church. The pastor and his wife visited her several times, but failed to persuade Lori to return to church. Everyone was concerned for her, but no one suspected the real reason for her absence. Lori was pregnant. About a month before she was to deliver, Lori tidied her room, emptied her school locker, and wrote a note to her mother: “You kept asking me if I was OK and I kept telling you I was, but I wasn’t OK. I’m sorry, Mom. I’ve got too many problems. I am taking the easy way out.” Lori left that day before her mother arrived home from work. She walked to the railroad tracks near her house, knelt between the rails, and folded her hands over her little round belly as Amtrak 168 barreled down upon her. The train engineer, a man who had a fourteen-year-old daughter of his own, later said that when he saw Lori, it was too late to stop the train. She was killed.
Statistics On Suicide: People every day consider “ending it all.” Suicide is the 3rd leading cause of death among 15-24 year olds. According to statistics, 18 teenagers per day kill themselves in the United States. Every 80 minutes a teenager commits suicide. Over a hundred teens per week, and 6,500 per year. Not only that, but over 1000 teens per day attempt to take their own lives. That’s almost 1 teen per minute. Suicide Is Not A New Idea.
THE BIBLE RECORDS SEVEN SUICIDES.
1. Samson (Judges 16:25-30): Samson died for a cause he believed in and for revenge.
2. Ahithophel (2 Samuel 17:23): Ahithophel was bitter because his advice was not followed.
After arranging his worldly affairs, he hanged himself.
3. Zimri (1 Kings 16:15-20): He was the chariot commander who murdered King Elah and all his family members and succeeded him. However, Zimri reigned only 7 days, because the army elected Omri as king. Finding his position untenable, Zimri set fire to the palace and killed himself.
4. Judas (Matthew 27:3-5): Depressed, Judas felt trapped by materialism, greed, and guilt.
5. Saul’s Armor-Bearer (1 Samuel 31:5): He wanted to die with his boss. 40% of teenage suicide is impulse. (fell on own sword).
6. Saul (1 Samuel 31:4): Saul was stressed out, felt rejected and a failure (fell on own sword).
HERE ARE FOUR PRINCIPLES THAT THIS PASSAGE GIVES US TO PONDER.
1. Suicide Is Not What God Wants For Us: Saul was concerned that the enemy not humiliate him by torturing him, so he took it upon himself to end it all. Hitler was the same. Rather than praying for forgiveness, Saul was worried about image - what the enemy would do to him.
2. Cremation Is Not Condemned By Scripture: When the Philistines found the bodies of Saul and his sons they did what Saul had feared most - made a side show of them. They paraded all 4 decapitated bodies and made sport of them. Beth Shan is a stone’s throw away from the very spot where Saul had been inaugurated King. Some Israelite warriors heard of the desecration, stole into the city, took down the bodies of the King and his sons and burned them. Some wonder about cremation and some condemn it. We cannot argue on an issue in which the Bible is silent.
3. Grief Is Necessary But Not Permanent: 1 Samuel 31:13 “Then they took their remains (ashes) and buried them beneath the tamarisk tree at Jabesh, and they fasted for seven days.” The fasting here was a display of grief for the passing of Saul. (1) Grief is normal - a healthy response to death and needs to be expressed. (2) Although grief is natural and important, there is a time to return to the mainstream of life. Prolonged sorrow is unhealthy. Ecclesiastes 3:4 "There is a time for everything, a season for every activity under heaven…
ANALOGIES BETWEEN SAUL’S DEATH AND THE DEATH OF JESUS CHRIST.
1. Saul’s Death Appeared To Be The End Of All National Hope For Israel. At the end of his reign Israel is no better off than before. He died less than a miles away from where he was inaugurated – Beth Shan. In fact it’s probably worse off. The people are scattered, the Philistines are in the ascendancy and the nation is without a leader. By contrast, Jesus’s disciples were scattered, but Jesus is found to be the true king, the Messiah who has come to save his people.
2. When Saul Died It Seemed That Israel’s Adversary, The Philistines, Had Won The Final Victory. When Jesus died it seemed our adversary, Satan, had won the final victory.
3. Saul’s Death Paved A Way For An Entirely New Plan Of Operation: David. Jesus’s death paved a way for an entirely new plan of Operation: Salvation.
4. Saul’s Death Opened The Throne Room To David The New King. Jesus’s death opened the throne room to all believers who can now live with the King.
5. Saul’s Death Ended An Era Of Dissatisfaction And Failure. Jesus’s death ended an era of law and turned it into forgiveness & grace. Because of His death and resurrection we can now have hope for eternal life.
6. As Dishonorable As Saul’s Death Has Become, There Are Still Some In Israel Who Remembered Him With Kindness. The people of Jabesh Gilead, just across the Jordan, still remember Saul as the new king who had rescued them from the cruelty of Nahash the Ammonite. They raised a force to go and bring back his mutilated body, along with his sons, to give them a decent funeral. Likewise, one of Jesus followers, Joseph of Arimathea, arranges with Pilate to have Jesus’ body taken down from the cross and given an honorable burial.
7. As A King, Saul Is A Total Failure. At the end of his reign Israel is worse off than when he started. The entire northern region of the country is now under Philistine occupation. The people are scattered, refugees without a home to return to. They have no king and no prophet. By contrast, as much as Jesus’ death may have looked like failure, 3 days later it’s a different story. After his death, the body of Saul was desecrated by the enemies of Israel. He was beheaded and his head sent from city to city as a grotesque symbol of the Philistine victory. His body, along with the bodies of his 3 sons were taken to Bethshan and nailed to the city walls. The great king of Israel became a symbol of mockery to the enemies of God.
8. It Appeared That The Enemy Had Won: The Philistines occupied the Israelite cities; they mutilated the corpses of Saul and his sons; they sent Saul’s head from city to city as a testimony to the power of their gods; and they rejoiced in their victory over Israel. It looked like the enemies of the people of God had been victorious! It must have looked like Satan and his minions had won the battle against God the day Jesus died on Calvary. I can picture the demonic hordes as they rejoiced in the death of the Messiah.
9. It Allowed The Introduction Of A New People – David Was Not In The Human Line To Ascend To The Throne. The way was opened for him by the death of another. The death of Jesus on the cross opened the way of salvation for people who had no hope otherwise. The poor Gentile had no hope or chance of salvation; but Jesus opened the way for us to come to Him by faith when He died. That is why the Bible tells us that Jesus alone is the path to salvation.
10. It Allowed The Introduction Of A New Promise – The reign of Saul had been a time of failure and terrible dissatisfaction among the people of Israel, 1 Sam. 22:1-2. When he died, a new era was ushered in. When David came to the throne, he brought a season of prosperity and hope to Israel like they had never known. When Jesus died on the cross, His death signaled the end of an era of guilt and law and brought in an era of grace!
A LOOK AT KING SAUL
I Shall Not Be Headless: The head represents your ability to be, to think, to accomplish. The enemy wants to decapitate you, your dreams. Suicide is Stan’s way of a premature life. Refuse it. We see a sad picture of a man’s last day of life that has been tarnished and humiliated by the death blow of disobedience. He was once known as a “choice young man” (1 Samuel 9:2). In the end all of the potential of his life has vanished in the rubble of sinful choices. The nation he leads is defeated (v:1), three of his sons are killed (v:2), he commits suicide (v:4), his head is cut off (v:9), his dead body fastened to the enemy’s wall. What do think would be on the tombstone of King Saul?
1. “Here Lies A Man Who Turned His Back On God”
2. “Here Lies A Man Who Was Controlled By Jealousy And Anger”
3. “Here Lies A Man Who Had Much Material Wealth But Lost His Spiritual Wealth”
4. “Here Lies A Man Who Wasted Most Of His Life Chasing Fleas And Dead Dogs (1 Sam. 24:14)”
CONCLUSION: THE WAYS OF A FOOL. DO NOT LET IT HAPPEN TO YOU.
1. Fools Neglect Their Mentors (1 Sam. 10:8; 13:8-9). There are people in my life who have had major spiritual impact on me - mentors. You must have someone you can listen to. They tell you the truth, even if you don’t want to hear it. Saul did not listen to Samuel.
2. Fools Disobey God (1 Sam. 10:8; 13:13). As we have just seen, Saul didn’t wait for Samuel to officiate the burnt offering. Instead, he took it upon himself to offer the sacrifice. This is called getting ahead of God, which is always disobedient.
3. Fools Make Excuses For Their Disobedience (1 Sam.13:11-12). See Saul’s reasons for getting ahead of God’s instructions. In verses 11-12 he says, “I saw my men scattering from me, and you didn’t arrive when you said you would, and the Philistines are at Micmash ready for battle. So I said, ‘The Philistines are ready to march against us at Gilgal, and I haven’t even asked for the LORD’s help!’ So I felt compelled to offer the burnt offering myself before you came.”
4. Fools Allow Jealousy To Reign (1 Sam. 18:9). After David started defeating the Philistines, the women from all the towns began to sing about Saul killing his thousands but David killings his ten thousands. This made Saul very angry and he said “Next they’ll be making him their king.” (1 Sam. 18:8). Then in verse 9 it says, “So from that time on Saul kept a jealous eye on David.” Anytime you feel jealous or envious, you are rejecting your own uniqueness.
5. Fools Turn Against God (1 Sam. 28). Because Saul had disobeyed his mentor and God, he had nowhere to turn when he really needed advice. With the Philistines gathered for battle, Saul was frantic with fear. He asked God what he should do but the Lord wasn’t answering him. Nothing ever good comes when we turn against God and seek other advice. The best advice Saul ever got was to obey God and watch God bless him. But fools don’t listen to advice.
6. Fools Commit Suicide (1 Sam. 31:4). Not everyone who commits physical suicide is a fool. Many people are so mentally unstable they no longer understand their own actions. But there is also a moral and spiritual suicide we can commit. This is when we take our own life into our own hands and become our own god and judge our own life by our own standards. This is what happens when we start to turn from God and walk away from our Jesus who loved us to death.
INTERCESSION: FINAL WORD: COMMIT TO GOD FULLY & SEEK ADVICE SPIRITUALLY.
Chorus: Nah You, Jesus Nah You Ooo, Nah You Made My Life Better, Nah You. 1) If Not For You Papa, That Who Will Know Me Today. You Brought Me From The Corner Of Nowhere, And You Brought Me To A Place Of Honor. I Say… / 2) You Brought This Useless From Nowhere, And You Made My Life Useful, You Made Me A Solution, No One Could Have Done This For Me. You Full My Mouth Papa… / 3) My Days Of Crying, Weeping, Mourning, Papa, You Turned Around, You Turned Around For My Good / Refrain: Jesus You Make Me To Dance, You Make Me To Shake, You Make Me To Bump / Nah You Turned My Story Around, That You Changed My Life Around, / Glory To Glory Jehovah, Jesus Nah You Oooo
