1 Samuel 15:10-23

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.

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.”

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!”

¹⁴ “Then what is all the bleating of sheep and goats and the lowing of cattle I hear?” Samuel demanded.

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.”

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?”

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.”

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.”

I’ve heard it preached that we, as believers in Jesus, are a lot like David. But I can’t say that I’ve ever heard a message that we, at times, are also a lot like Saul. No surprise there. Heroic tales of anointing and calling and cutting the head off a giant tends to outnumber those that cut to the heart.

Far more times than I care to admit, the Lord has anointed and appointed me to fulfill a mission in His name, and I’ve only done part of what He said. In truth, I simply rebelled and rejected His command. I decided to lead (pride), instead of being led by His Spirit (surrender). And once I got caught, or called out, I covered myself and hid behind shame and a list of excuses.

“I did obey the Lord, BUT…..”

Absolute foolishness.

Bound up in my heart.

God’s Word is very clear: partial obedience is disobedience. And disobedience is rebellion. And, “rebellion is as sinful as witchcraft, and stubbornness as bad as worshipping idols.” (emphasis mine)

Wait.

What?!

Witchcraft?

Idol Worship?

Yes. The Word of God cuts, doesn’t it?

Why?

Because He LOVES us!

He wants us to be like children, like David, who LOVED God with all his heart. Not like an orphan, like Saul, who said in his heart, “you’re not the boss of me,” or “don’t tell me what to do!”

Rebellion always leads to rejection, my friend. When we rebel against the Spirit of God or the Son of God, we reject God. Our heart becomes a divided kingdom. In our Spirit, Jesus is still King. But in our soul, WE ARE KING.

The King of kings, in His Sovereignty, will reject [oppose] our pride until the testimony of Jesus (the Spirit of Prophesy) comes with correction. The Truth- The Living Word- always cuts between soul and Spirit, convicting our heart of sin, and convincing it of righteousness.

And when we are convinced of His LOVE, we will always return to the Father’s house of prayer.

Remembering that the Son was pierced for our rebellion.

Rejoicing that His sacrifice covers all our sin and all our shame.

And THAT, my friend, is Good News!