Reading: I Samuel 12-14:23
And Samuel said, What hast thou done? And Saul said, Because I saw that the people were scattered from me, and that thou camest not within the days appointed, and that the Philistines gathered themselves together at Michmash; Therefore said I, The Philistines will come down now upon me to Gilgal, and I have not made supplication unto the Lord: I forced myself therefore, and offered a burnt offering. And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done foolishly: thou hast not kept the commandment of the Lord thy God, which He commanded thee: for now would the Lord have established thy kingdom upon Israel for ever. But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the Lord hath sought Him a man after His own heart, and the Lord hath commanded Him to be captain over His people, because thou hast not kept that which the Lord commanded thee(I Sam. 13:11-14).
Nowhere in Scripture are we given any indication that Saul did not believe in the existence of the one true God. We have no reason to think that Saul ever engaged in idol worship or bowed before false gods. As a matter of fact, we are given ample proof that Saul publicly acknowledged God as Lord of Israel. And Saul built an altar unto the Lord: the same was the first altar that he built unto the Lord (I Sam. 14:25). Yet despite his public religious persona, Saul was inwardly an empty man; for all his ‘knowledge,’ he lacked the simple assurance of faith.
Because he was acting without faith, Saul was unable to relinquish control to God. Saul trusted, first and foremost, in his own abilities; his decisions and actions were self-serving. What he believed he needed at any given moment would always be given more weight in his decision-making process than God’s directives. Because of this lack of faith, God removed the kingdom from Saul’s care. The Lord hath sought Him a man after His own heart, and Saul had proven that he was unwilling to turn his over to God.
God knew when he first called him to the position that Saul would utterly fail as king, but that does not mean that God set Saul up for failure. Far from it. And it was so, that when he had turned his back to go from Samuel, God gave him another heart: and all those signs came to pass that day (I Sam. 10:9). When God called Saul to be king, He gave to Saul another heart (the gift of faith), just as He would one day give to David (I Sam. 16:13). The difference between the two men is that Saul chose to ignore the gift and ultimately lost it (16:14), whereas David embraced it and allowed it to determine the course of his life.
For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God (Eph. 2:8). Faith is a gift from God, but it is not something that He forces on us. If we refuse to accept it and refuse to allow it to have any sway in our lives, then it will fade away into nothingness as if it were never there in the first place. Saul consciously chose to place his trust in himself rather than God, and that choice ultimately cost him his kingdom and his life.
But without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him(Heb. 11:6).
Thought for Today: God may elevate us to positions of authority over our fellow man, but we should never make the mistake of believing that He has pulled us closer to heaven in the process.
Christ Revealed:By Samuel the intercessor (I Sam. 12:23). Right now, Jesus is interceding for believers. It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us (Rom. 8:34; Heb. 7:25).
Word Studies:12:4 taken ought = received a bribe; ought = anything; 12:21 vain = worthless; 13:10 salute = welcome, greet; 13:17 spoilers = raiders; 13:20 share . . . coulter . . . mattock = agricultural tools.
Pray for Staff:Judy McCrary • Government Officials: Rep. Norma Torres (CA) • Country: Israel (7,707,042) In the Middle East • Major Languages: Hebrew, Arabic • Religious Freedom (governmental and legal discrimination against non-Jews and non-Orthodox streams of Judaism continued) • 75.1% Jewish (mostly secular); 17.4% Muslim (largely Sunni); 2% Christian; 1.6% Druze; 3.9% Other • Prayer Suggestion: Remember that the Lord is faithful to keep His promises (Heb. 10:23).
Optional Reading:Acts 5