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Can God Get Glory from My Life?

    by Dominique Henderson

The Obedience Series: "The Importance of Obedience"
Date Posted: September 6, 2009

Samuel said to Saul, "I am the one the LORD sent to anoint you king over his people Israel; so listen now to the message from the LORD. This is what the LORD Almighty says: 'I will punish the Amalekites for what they did to Israel when they waylaid them as they came up from Egypt. Then Saul attacked the Amalekites all the way from Havilah to Shur, to the east of Egypt. He took Agag king of the Amalekites alive, and all his people he totally destroyed with the sword. But Saul and the army spared Agag and the best of the sheep and cattle, the fat calves and lambs - everything that was good. These they were unwilling to destroy completely, but everything that was despised and weak they totally destroyed. Then the word of the LORD came to Samuel: I am grieved that I have made Saul king, because he has turned away from me and has not carried out my instructions." Samuel was troubled, and he cried out to the LORD all that night. But Samuel replied: "Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams. (1 Samuel 15:1ff)

In this last installment of obedience, it is crucial to bring to light the importance of obedience. Each of the previous installments focused on some of the rewards associated with obedience, but this study would be incomplete without showing the other side. What happens when we don’t obey? Of course the Word of God is filled with examples of individuals who chose not to obey him and the consequences of their decision. This week the focus is on King Saul, the first king of Israel. Let’s attempt to highlight the ignorance of his decision and the parallel that can be present in our lives when we fail to obey God. Why? It is crucial that we guard against the faulty logic he used to justify his mistake.

First, let’s focus on what keeps us from being obedient? Start with any past circumstance or event in life that was obviously difficult. I was taught that just because something is hard to do, does not mean anything. In the words of my father, “Son, you do what you want to do”. He meant that that trials and tribulations in life don’t excuse disobedience. So we must take some time and effort to address the real problem, which I feel is a lack of trust. When I discuss with my preteen daughter a wrong decision she made, more often than not she responds that she disobeyed me because it was hard. However, as we dig further it is really because she did not trust the instructions that were given to her. This is usually for any number of reasons (or excuses). If you doubt the reason behind doing something it is easier to disobey. In fact, it is more likely that you will disobey. The key to removing the likelihood of disobedience is replacing your doubt with faith. For example, take the precept of tithing. The Bible clearly teaches that God requires that we trust him with the first part of our increase (income). Every believer I talk to that does not consistently obey this precept, does so because they doubt enough money will be left for some necessity or desire. Well this is an issue of trust. And because doubt is present it is very hard to obey God’s instructions about tithing. So why did Saul have such difficulty obeying what amounted to a very clear instruction from the Lord via Samuel? Let’s look at the steps taken starting at verse 1:

1. God reminds King Saul who has put him in position. This is a clue to us of God’s total authority and power. Any charge we have been given to obey him should take precedence in our life. After all, the Almighty Lord (Elohim) has commanded us. To truly understand this concept will remove any doubt we have.

2. Clear instructions are given of what to do. This is clue to us of God’s merciful, longsuffering nature with his finite creation. The creator takes the time to spell out each and every detail in order that we have not the excuse to disobey. In most cases though, the problem is not that we don’t hear God’s crystal clear instructions as was the case was Saul.

3. Saul’s gathering of the army. Based on this fact, I’d like to believe that Saul did not intend to disobey from the onset, otherwise why take such a huge force? In previous wars not as many men were taken (see 1 Samuel 13:2,14:2). The size of the force suggested that Saul intended to obey the instructions of the Lord to destroy the enemy. Further he asks the neighboring Kenites to remove themselves in order not to be destroyed along with the Amalekites. So what happened?

4. After the fighting began, focus was lost. Through verse 8 of 1 Samuel 15, Saul’s name is mentioned without the army. But in verse 9, it reads: But Saul and the people…Here is the great tragedy in this story. Saul’s propensity to be influenced by the people caused him to forget who had given him the command. He forgot who had made him king. He forgot the clear instructions that were given to him. He forgot why he had 200,000 soldiers at his disposal.

5. Saul blames after he is caught in disobedience. In verse 13, Saul takes credit for the victory as he should being the king. I have performed the commandment of the Lord. But after Samuel’s rebuke he blames the army for why the command of the Lord was not obeyed in verse 15. They brought them from the Amalekites.

6. God’s judges and reveals Saul’s thoughts. Here we are finally told why Saul disobeyed. (Watch for how this applies to your life!) In verse 19, Saul is told that his desire to fly upon the spoil triggered his disobedience. What did this mean? God essentially told him that your greed for things which has manifested itself as your lack of trust in me to provide for you has caused your sin. If God was able to take him and anoint him king over Israel when he was a lowly no-body, could he not provide for his personal needs (see 1 Samuel 15:17,19)?

The lesson is that if we do not trust God to provide for us, we will find ourselves committing sin (by disobeying) to provide for ourselves. You fill in the blank for yourself:

When (your name) does not trust God to ______, (your name) sins to get ________.

For this act of disobedience, Saul was tormented emotionally and mentally for the rest of his life because he could not accept God’s discipline in his life. He went on to commit suicide and his kingdom and legacy was taken from him (see 1 Samuel 28:16-20; 31:4-6). There is such an importance in obeying God, even if we do not understand why. Faith is required to obey God (see Hebrews 11:6)—not intelligence.

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Biography Information:
Dominique Henderson is a believer in the one and only Son of God - Jesus Christ.  After being a believer for many years, he didn't begin to realize the purpose God had for him until the age of 30.  He has a passion for fellow musicians and worship leaders that have allowed Satan to distract them from their God-given gifts.  He now lives day by day following the lead of the Holy Spirit--not perfectly but diligently. He enjoys writing and spending time with his wife, Briana, and their three children.
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