Real People – Real Problems
Part 13
“Then what is that sound that I hear?”
Today is our last official sermon from our series in 1 Samuel
Titled Real people -Real problems
We will come back for a wrap up sermon in 2 weeks following our Thanksgiving service
As I like to recap and tie all the sermons in a series together
So no lose ends are left dangling
Today we are going to take our last look at Saul as God’s chosen King
And see how his selective obedience
Picking and choosing
Which rules
Laws
Commands
He wants to follow
Cost him
The kingdom
But more importantly
His relationship with God
For today’s text we will be back in
1 Samuel
Chapter 15
Please open there and be sure and put your bulletin or gum wrapper if you prefer in there
As we will return here several times as we look at Saul’s disobedience
1 Samuel 15 beginning in verse 1
“One day Samuel said to Saul, “It was the LORD who told me to anoint you as king of his people, Israel. Now listen to this message from the LORD! 2 This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies has declared: I have decided to settle accounts with the nation of Amalek for opposing Israel when they came from Egypt. 3 Now go and completely destroy[a] the entire Amalekite nation—men, women, children, babies, cattle, sheep, goats, camels, and donkeys.”
This is a very hard passage of scripture for the New Testament Church
We are taught that God is Love
And we experience teaching of Jesus
That we are to love our enemies
But in this passage
We see God though Samuel
Instruct Saul to completely annihilate the Amalekites
In order to process and understand this passage
We must first understand
Who the Amalekites were
And why God
Wanted them destroyed
We are first introduced to these vicious people in the book of Exodus
Where when the Israelites were
Weakened and vulnerable in the desert after excaping from bondage in Egypt
Were brutally attacked by the Amalekites
Just a side note you may remember that Moses assisted by Arron and his brother in law
Held his hands high to the Lord as Joshua led the army in battle
After the battle God gave Moses a message
Exodus 17:14
14 After the victory, the LORD instructed Moses, “Write this down on a scroll as a permanent reminder, and read it aloud to Joshua: I will erase the memory of Amalek from under heaven.”
So we see here that the Amalekites are bitter enemies of not only God’s people but of God himself
But we still must try and understand the severity of God’s command to utterly wipe them out
If we look at Deuteronomy chapter 20
Concerning war
For the nation of Israel
Deuteronomy 20:10-18
“As you approach a town to attack it, you must first offer its people terms for peace. 11 If they accept your terms and open the gates to you, then all the people inside will serve you in forced labor. 12 But if they refuse to make peace and prepare to fight, you must attack the town. 13 When the LORD your God hands the town over to you, use your swords to kill every man in the town. 14 But you may keep for yourselves all the women, children, livestock, and other plunder. You may enjoy the plunder from your enemies that the LORD your God has given you.
15 “But these instructions apply only to distant towns, not to the towns of the nations in the land you will enter. 16 In those towns that the LORD your God is giving you as a special possession, destroy every living thing. 17 You must completely destroy[a] the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, just as the LORD your God has commanded you. 18 This will prevent the people of the land from teaching you to imitate their detestable customs in the worship of their gods, which would cause you to sin deeply against the LORD your God.
It is important to clarify here
That these commands were given to a certain people
The Israelites
At a certain time in history
The inhabiting of the promised land
Against a certain people
The pagans who inhabited the land
This passage of scripture is not instructions for us
For today
Even though it does have application for us
The pagans which included the Amalekites
If left in the land
Would as we see
Corrupt the Jewish society
With their idols and rituals
So God
In an effort to maintain
Spiritual purity in his people
Said in cowboy terms
You must rub them out
All of them!!
As we know they did not follow God’s commands
And as a result
The very thing God had warned them about happened
And now it was time to finish the job
So
Samuel instructed Saul to do just that
Verses
4-6
4 So Saul mobilized his army at Telaim. There were 200,000 soldiers from Israel and 10,000 men from Judah. 5 Then Saul and his army went to a town of the Amalekites and lay in wait in the valley. 6 Saul sent this warning to the Kenites: “Move away from where the Amalekites live, or you will die with them. For you showed kindness to all the people of Israel when they came up from Egypt.” So the Kenites packed up and left.
In this same passage
God shows that he is a merciful God
And that the friends of his people are a friend to him
The Kenites
Had helped the people in their time of need
And God was showing them mercy
Verses 7-9
7 Then Saul slaughtered the Amalekites from Havilah all the way to Shur, east of Egypt. 8 He captured Agag, the Amalekite king, but completely destroyed everyone else. 9 Saul and his men spared Agag’s life and kept the best of the sheep and goats, the cattle, the fat calves, and the lambs—everything, in fact, that appealed to them. They destroyed only what was worthless or of poor quality.
Havilah to Shur was the home lands of the Amalekites
So we see that
Saul took the battle to them
Pursued them
But
God in the beginning of this chapter had told him
To destroy everything
Men- women- children
Animals
And to take no plunder for themselves
In verse 8 we see that Saul almost did what God said
He destroyed everyone except The King
And he destroyed almost all of the animals
Except for the good ones
This is where we come to today for our lesson
Saul
Followed the commands
Kind of
He chose the ones he liked
And disregarded the ones he did not
And was shocked that God was not pleased with him
In verse 10 we see God’s sorrow over Saul
Verse 10
10 Then the LORD said to Samuel, 11 “I am sorry that I ever made Saul king, for he has not been loyal to me and has refused to obey my command.” Samuel was so deeply moved when he heard this that he cried out to the LORD all night.
It is important to note here
God was not admitting to a mistake
God never makes mistakes
God did not change his mind
Simply his attitude towards Saul
Because
Saul’s heart
No longer was focused on God
We also see that Samuel also grieved or Saul’s heart
Here is where we start getting to the meat for today
Verses12
12 Early the next morning Samuel went to find Saul. Someone told him, “Saul went to the town of Carmel to set up a monument to himself; then he went on to Gilgal.”
I want you to notice here
Saul set up a Monument
But he set it up to himself
Not God who had made him King
Not God who had fought for them
Saul shows his heart
And his pride and arrogance here
He shows that he is far more concerned about himself than he is about God
And then he even tries to pretend that he has done what God told him to do
Verse 13
13 When Samuel finally found him, Saul greeted him cheerfully. “May the LORD bless you,” he said. “I have carried out the LORD’s command!”
I have carried out the Lord’s command he says
I did what he asked
I love this part
Verse 14
Samuel ain’t buying Saul’s lie
14 “Then what is all the bleating of sheep and goats and the lowing of cattle I hear?” Samuel demanded.
Really Saul
You did what I told you to do
Then why do I hear the sound of Amalekite Livestock
And why is King Agag Still alive?
So Saul starts with excuses
He tries to justify his actions
Tries to minimize his actions
He once again threat to shift the blame for his actions
Verse 15
15 “It’s true that the army spared the best of the sheep, goats, and cattle,” Saul admitted. “But they are going to sacrifice them to the LORD your God. We have destroyed everything else.”
We was going to dedicate them to God
We kind of followed the rules
Our hearts were in the right place
We did it for God
He claimed
So
God through Samuel calmly reminds Saul of what he was told to do
Verses 16-19
16 Then Samuel said to Saul, “Stop! Listen to what the LORD told me last night!”
“What did he tell you?” Saul asked.
17 And Samuel told him, “Although you may think little of yourself, are you not the leader of the tribes of Israel? The LORD has anointed you king of Israel. 18 And the LORD sent you on a mission and told you, ‘Go and completely destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, until they are all dead.’ 19 Why haven’t you obeyed the LORD? Why did you rush for the plunder and do what was evil in the LORD’s sight?”
But Saul still won’t admit that he has been disobedient
Verses 20-21
20 “But I did obey the LORD,” Saul insisted. “I carried out the mission he gave me. I brought back King Agag, but I destroyed everyone else. 21 Then my troops brought in the best of the sheep, goats, cattle, and plunder to sacrifice to the LORD your God in Gilgal.”
I did what God instructed
Kind of
My heart was in the right place- kind of
We were going to honor God with the spoils
We were going to offer sacrifices
We were going to----------
Verses 22-23
22 But Samuel replied,
“What is more pleasing to the LORD:
your burnt offerings and sacrifices
or your obedience to his voice?
Listen! Obedience is better than sacrifice,
and submission is better than offering the fat of rams.
23 Rebellion is as sinful as witchcraft,
and stubbornness as bad as worshiping idols.
So because you have rejected the command of the LORD,
he has rejected you as king.”
Samuel gives Saul and us in the process
God’s opinion on sacrifice and how he feels about half hearted service
As we have studied in the past weeks
God wants our obedience as a sacrifice
He wants all of our obedience
Not just part of it
Not just the parts we like
He wants us to fully submit to him and his commands
And it is only then that he is fully pleased
Verses 24-25
Then Saul admitted to Samuel, “Yes, I have sinned. I have disobeyed your instructions and the LORD’s command, for I was afraid of the people and did what they demanded. 25 But now, please forgive my sin and come back with me so that I may worship the LORD.”
Ok you got me Samuel
Yes
Messed up
Yes
I disobeyed
But
But
They made me
The people
They expected something for their trouble
I was afraid they would reject me
So ---I gave into peer pressure
And I disobeyed
I want you to notice here
Saul asks for forgiveness
But he is not repentant
He is still making excuses
He is still justifying his actions
He is still passing the buck
He may be sorry
But his is sorry he got caught
Not repentant
Samuel saw right through it again
Verses 26-29
26 But Samuel replied, “I will not go back with you! Since you have rejected the LORD’s command, he has rejected you as king of Israel.”
27 As Samuel turned to go, Saul tried to hold him back and tore the hem of his robe. 28 And Samuel said to him, “The LORD has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today and has given it to someone else—one who is better than you. 29 And he who is the Glory of Israel will not lie, nor will he change his mind, for he is not human that he should change his mind!”
But Saul was having trouble accepting the truth of his disobedience
Verses 30-31
30 Then Saul pleaded again, “I know I have sinned. But please, at least honor me before the elders of my people and before Israel by coming back with me so that I may worship the LORD your God.” 31 So Samuel finally agreed and went back with him, and Saul worshiped the LORD.
Once again
I know I messed up
But
Then we see his pride
Arrogance
And his self -centeredness rise up again
Yes, I know
I was disobedient
I know I did not follow the rules
I know I keep the best
Of the stock
And I know I was planning to parade Agag around as a trophy
But
Honor me by coming back with me
He does not say Honor God
Saul is more worried about appearances than he is obedience to God
Saul is more concerned with losing face than he is in losing the Kingdom
His relationship with God
Or even the blessings of God
Let me go ahead and wrap up this chapter and this series with the final words from
1 Samuel 15
Then we can apply this to our own lives
Verses 32-35
32 Then Samuel said, “Bring King Agag to me.” Agag arrived full of hope, for he thought, “Surely the worst is over, and I have been spared!”[b] 33 But Samuel said, “As your sword has killed the sons of many mothers, now your mother will be childless.” And Samuel cut Agag to pieces before the LORD at Gilgal.
34 Then Samuel went home to Ramah, and Saul returned to his house at Gibeah of Saul. 35 Samuel never went to meet with Saul again, but he mourned constantly for him. And the LORD was sorry he had ever made Saul king of Israel.
Samuel finished the job that God had asked Saul to do
This shows that God’s plan continues even when the one asked to do it
Refuses
And then
Samuel turned his back on Samuel and the die was set for
The selection of a new King
Saul intended to follow God’s command
But he failed
We often fail as well
And for many of the same reasons Saul did
Pride
Saul was unable to keep God’s command due to his own pride
He believed his way was better
That
His plan made more sense
That God was just being old fashioned
Or irrational
Pride caused Saul to disobey
And pride causes us to as well
We think we have a better plan
A better way
That our feelings
Or our pleasure
Or our Self esteem
Our popularity
Our pocket books
Is more important than following God’s rules
So we almost keep them
We bend them just a bit
Or break just the little ones
Or pick and choose which ones we follow
Our pride causes selective obedience
Which is disobedience
Listen it is impossible to be a little bit pregnant
You either are or you’re not
It is just as impossible to be a little bit obedient
You either are or you’re not
Pride – arrogance – self centeredness
Caused Saul not to be obedient
It can and does cause us to fail in this area as well
Saul tried to rationalize his disobedience
Claiming he was doing wrong for the right reason
Or that it was the popular thing to do
Or that doing the right thing would make him the object of ridicule
We do this as well
Doing wrong for the right reason is still doing wrong
No matter the intent
Selective obedience is disobedience regardless of the reason
Doing right sometimes makes us unpopular causes us to be made fun of, shunned by some
God does not really care if you are popular
He cares if you are obedient
And selective obedience is still disobedience
Saul was remorseful
He was sorry
But he was not repentant
He was more concerned with pleasing others
Pleasing himself
Than he was with pleasing God
And even after Samuel showed him how the kingdom would be torn from him
He was still only concerned with the appearances
Listen
As I close this morning
I ask you to search your own heart
Identify areas where you are picking and choosing
I am not going to single out those areas
You know what they are
We all have some areas in our lives that we need to surrender to God
I ask you this morning to
Identify those areas in your life that are not fully under the control and supervision of God
Identify areas where your pride
Or self -centeredness is keeping you from full obedience to God
Look at the areas in your life where
You are doing the wrong things if even for what you believe are the right reasons
Think about the things in your life that you are doing to keep up appearances while disobeying God
The things that you do to please others
Yourself
Instead of the God who created and loves you
This is so important
If you get nothing else from today’s sermon
I want you to fully understand
Selective obedience is disobedience
Any way you try and slice it
And disobedience is not pleasing to God
He does not want our sacrifices
He wants our obedience as a sacrifice
But here is the good news
God loves us so much that he gave his one and only son to pay the penalty of our disobedience
He wants us to feel remorse
We should feel sorry when we disobey
But he wants us to repent
Which simply means stop
We often hear and use the term that we have to die to ourselves daily to describe our loyalty and obedience to God
And often times this is not understood
In really simple terms this means
Stop doing the things you want to do
And start doing the things he wants you to do
And he wants you to obey his word
Jesus says – if you love me – do what I say
Close from the heart
Pray
