Doesn’t God want me to be happy?

1 Samuel 15

Doesn’t God want me to be happy?

The instructions were clear. Israel had been commanded to do this sort of thing before and Saul is commanded to do it again to the Amalekites. Destroy everything; leave nothing alive, man or beast. Saul rallies an impressive fighting force, goes to battle, and then spares the king and the best of the sheep, cattle etc. He kills everything else, but takes the best. Wouldn’t God rather Saul be happy? He is king after all and this is what the other kings do so shouldn’t he get to enjoy at least some of the benefits of being king? Practically he “destroyed” it all right?

                God is angry and lets Samuel know what’s happened. As Samuel attempts to confront Saul about the matter (he can even hear the animals in the background), Saul tries to play it off like he was going to give them to God. Samuel knows better, God had already given him the scoop. When Saul realizes Samuel isn’t going to play his game then he tries to blame the rest of the army, nice leadership move by the way. Samuel has already told Saul that the kingdom won’t remain in his family because of previous disobedience but this time it seems even more sharp than before.

Here we get the famous quote “to obey is better than sacrifice”.

A couple of cool things that round out the chapter:

-          Old man Samuel hacks king Agag to pieces with a sword.

-          Saul panics (as well he should because if the people saw that God had rejected him he might not live to see the night)

-          Samuel still lets Saul worship God with him, probably to help prevent all out national panic.

Lessons: God wants us to worship and follow him on his terms, not ours. We don’t get to figure out what we do or don’t want to do and then tell God that we are worshiping, or sacrificing for Him. He has given us the Bible. He expects us to know it and follow what it says. Just like Saul we have been given clear instructions and have no excuse for not following them. The consequences could be drastic. What excuse do you have for not knowing what the Bible says?

Greatness without God = nothing, anyone with God = everything.

1 Samuel Chapter 14

Greatness without God = nothing, anyone with God = everything.

Although Saul still holds the office of king in Israel he has just been rejected by God to continue as such for his disobedience, the Spirit of the Lord has left him, his enemies are surrounding him and his army…and he and his son Jonathan are the only ones in the whole army that have swords. In case you were wondering, the narrator is intentionally painting a very dire picture as he sets up what is about to happen in Chapter 14. The Israelites have once again been boxed into a corner where success or even escape can only come from God and no one else.

Israel had chosen their king, but the methods they used to do so had nothing to do with seeking or honoring God. They wanted a king that had all the physical tools, a trophy king if you will. They wanted someone they could trust in other than God. This king with all the physical gifts has disobeyed and been rejected by God and is now impossibly surrounded by the Philistine army here in chapter 14.

Enter Jonathan stage right. He is intentionally contrasted with Saul who was, again, the trophy king that had been rejected by God and therefore was not successful. Two people, count them, just two, decide in this moment of hopelessness, when everyone else is hiding, to seek God and take on the entire Philistine army themselves. An important quote, again highlighting the theme is spoken by Jonathan “It may be that the LORD will work for us, for nothing can hinder the LORD from saving by many or by few.” Saul, with all his physical gifts but without God could not have success, but Jonathan is about to have amazing, impossible without God, success because he seeks and trusts in God and not himself. He is able to do an amazing thing because he puts himself in the proper place and allows himself to be used by God in a mighty way.

Beyond all odds the Philistine army is thrown into confusion, the Israelites come out of their holes and begin to rout them…and then Saul, relying on himself instead of God, bungles up the whole thing. First, he makes this stupid command that no one can eat while they chase after the Philistines is on with a penalty of death for disobedience, then, having not heard the command, Jonathan eats some honey, then Saul it totally getting ready to actually kill Jonathan until everyone else gets in his way. Saul, no longer hearing from God, has totally lost all sense of leadership. He was actually going to kill his own son, the hero of the battle. Thankfully everyone else present knew better and stood up against the King.

In the end, what could have been a total rout was only a moderate victory as the Philistines escaped. God works with the small and helpless to show His glory. Far too often rely on our own merits and do far less than we could have otherwise if we sought God’s glory and relied on his strength.

Lessons:

You do not have to let the sins of your parents or of others define you. You can choose to live for God and do what is right despite what has been done to you or the circumstances around you. Jonathan was in an impossible situation and still chose to follow God and God used him in an amazing way.

Greatness without God = nothing, anyone with God = everything. No matter who you are or what your situation is, God can use you if you seek his strength and power and seek his purposes for your life and not your own. Be a humble and willing servant and see God work in amazing ways. Conversely, if you think that God is lucky to have you or if you think that you can do your own thing in your own power, no matter what you do it will be worthless in the end.

Choose this day to use your life to point to God and His power. We must decrease so he can increase in our lives.