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Articles
A Troubled Saul
Over the course of the past few weeks, we have surveyed the life and reign of king Saul. Saul was the first king of the United Kingdom and reigned over Israel for forty years. The reign of Saul is like so many others, in the Old Testament, whose lives were filled with the ups and downs in their service toward God. The beginning of Saul’s reign was ripe for success, but those moments were ultimately overshadowed by his choices as he fell away from God in the end. Saul’s life serves as a reminder to all that one cannot simply rest upon his/her laurels, but rather that there is an expectation for consistent growth throughout our lives. Where Saul failed to grow in his trust toward God, we must learn from the consequences of his choices and mistakes.
One of the great flaws in Saul’s life was his dependence upon others and not upon the Lord. When the Philistines were assembled to fight Israel, Saul did not wait for Samuel’s arrival to give the burnt offering, but rather he acted impetuously. When questioned by Samuel for his actions, Saul said – “Because I saw the people were scattering from me…” (1 Samuel 13:11a). Saul was quick to shift the blame for his actions to the people or even Samuel’s tardiness, but those excuses were not viable. Saul allowed the pressure of others to supersede his reliance and trust in the Lord.
A similar occurrence of this same flaw is found in Saul’s disregard of the Lord’s command to utterly destroy the Amalekites. The command of the Lord was clear and precise, but once again Saul failed to fulfill the command because of the influence of others. When Samuel approached Saul and heard the bleating of the sheep and lowing of the oxen, Saul was quick to have an excuse for Samuel. Saul said – “They have brought them from the Amalekites, for the people spared the best of the sheep and oxen, to sacrifice to the Lord your God; but the rest we have utterly destroyed” (1 Samuel 15:15). Saul tried to find his own restitution in the people receiving the blame, but once again this excuse was not viable.
Samuel continued his rebuke of Saul and seemed to have finally convinced Saul of his disobedience, because he confessed - “I have sinned; I have indeed transgressed the command of the Lord and your words, because I feared the people and listened to their voice” (1 Samuel 15:24). But this moment of clarity only lasted for a few moments. When Samuel told Saul that he would not return with him, Saul reached out and seized Samuel’s robe and it tore. Samuel told Saul - “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today and has given it to your neighbor, who is better than you” (1 Samuel 15:28). Saul is not provoked by this rebuke of his reign and continued disobedience, but rather seems to only care about his perception among the people. Saul responded – “I have sinned; but please honor me now before the elders of my people and before Israel, and go back with me, that I may worship the Lord your God” (1 Samuel 15:30). In the end, Saul cared more about how he was seen by his fellowman, then by the God of Israel.
What a sad reality it would be to live one’s entire life being more concerned about the attention of others than being seen as faithful in the sight of God. The life of Saul is one illustration of how these types of decisions can affect us both presently and for all eternity. Saul truly had a troubled soul and the consequences of his actions were severe. We may be quick to point out Saul’s failures, but are we as honest when we examine our own decisions and lives?
The effect of peer pressure is not limited to only those years between 6th and 12th grade, but rather it is found in a person’s life from their toddler years and beyond. Our innate desire to gain the attention of others will have us do things at times contrary to the instructions of our parents and even worse the commands of God. We will always have to battle against the influence of others in our lives. Saul failed to rise above this influence in his own life, and it lead him down a path contrary to the will of God. What will be written or remembered about our lives?
