“Saul remained at Gilgal, and all the troops with him were quaking with fear. He waited seven days, the time set by Samuel; but Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and Saul's men began to scatter. So he said, ‘Bring me the burnt offering and the fellowship offerings.’ And Saul offered up the burnt offering. Just as he finished making the offering, Samuel arrived, and Saul went out to greet him.” (1 Samuel 13:7-10)
Saul was preparing for battle against the Philistines. The army of Israel had been assembled. The Philistines were gathered, ready to attack. And Saul waited at Gilgal. He waited because before he went into battle he wanted to seek God’s favor by sacrificing and praying to Him. Samuel had instructed Saul to wait for him at Gilgal and he would come to offer the sacrifice on behalf of the army of Israel. But Samuel was delayed in coming and Saul grew impatient. Saul was afraid the Philistines would attack before Samuel came. Saul was afraid that the battle would begin before they had sought the favor of the Lord. So Saul took matters into his own hands. He disregarded Samuel’s instruction to wait for him and made the sacrifice to the Lord himself.
It seemed like the right thing to do. Saul was afraid. He wanted God’s favor. He knew he needed God’s favor to do battle against the Philistines. The Philistine army was larger and much better armed than the army of Israel. If Israel hoped to have victory, it would only come from the Lord. But even though it seemed right and Saul was acting out of a desire to receive God’s favor, he was disobedient to God’s instructions. He acted out of fear and not out of faith. In acting out of fear, he disobeyed the Lord.
When Saul told Samuel what he had done Samuel responded: "You acted foolishly," Samuel said. "You have not kept the command the LORD your God gave you; if you had, he would have established your kingdom over Israel for all time. But now your kingdom will not endure; the LORD has sought out a man after his own heart and appointed him leader of his people, because you have not kept the Lord’s command." (1 Samuel 13:13-14)
It was fearful. It was foolish. It was disobedient. And because of his unwillingness to obey the Lord, to respect God’s commands, Saul’s family would be removed from the kingship of Israel.
It’s an illustration of how important faith, respect, and obedience are to the Lord. Say “no” to fear, to doing what you want, to disobedience. Say “yes” to faith, to respecting God’s instructions, to obedience.
His, by Grace,
Steve
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