Good Morning Friends,
Samuel gave clear instructions from the Lord to
Saul. “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. Now
go, attack the Amalekites and totally destroy everything that belongs to
them.’” (1 Samuel 15:2-3)
Saul went out to do battle against the
Amalekites and God gave him a great victory. But Saul was unwilling to
completely follow God’s instructions. “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.” (1 Samuel 15:9)
When confronted by Samuel, Saul had an answer
for his disobedience to the instructions. “Saul answered, ‘The soldiers brought
them from the Amalekites; they spared the best of the sheep and cattle to
sacrifice to the Lord your God, but we totally destroyed the rest.’" (1
Samuel 15:15)
Saul had two excuses for his disobedience:
1. It wasn’t his fault, it was the soldiers who
kept the sheep and cattle.
2. It was for a good reason, not to keep, but
to make a great sacrifice to the Lord.
“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. For
rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance like the evil of
idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, he has rejected you
as king.’” (1 Samuel 15:22-23)
Samuel’s word for Saul was simple: God desired
obedience more than ritual and ceremony. He still does!
His, by Grace, Steve
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