Bible Devotion

Meditative Reflection
God is Faithful to His Servants

“Saul also went to his home in Gibeah, accompanied by valiant men whose hearts God had touched. ” (1 Sam. 10:26)

Although I know the eventual fate of Saul, I still admire his attitude toward this kingship, at least in the initial stage.

After the shock of being told by Samuel that God had chosen him to be the first king and of being anointed with oil had waned somewhat, he came to experience the reality of God’s promise and His choosing through the fulfillment of the three prophecies Samuel used to affirm him. This should give him full confidence in God’s calling and he could have announced it to all his family and friends. Yet, we find him keeping this calling close to himself, and would not even talk about it when asked by his uncle (10:16).

I believe it was not so much a case of faithlessness, but that he was a very cautious person and he was aware of the enormity of the task given to him. Yes, he still felt quite inadequate, and so he hid himself, albeit half-heartedly (10:22).

The way Samuel chose to introduce him as the new king was also interesting, in that given his authority and credibility as the spokesman of the Lord, Samuel could have simply announced God’s choice of Saul, but he used likely a lot-drawing process to show the people that indeed Saul was chosen by God Himself. That was also important to Saul — to know that Samuel did not act on his own, but it was God’s will through and through.

However, once he was appointed as king, he immediately faced opposition (10:27), but God graciously moved the hearts of some valiant men to accompany him. This was certainly another affirmation to Saul of not only God’s choice of him, but His empowerment as well.

As I reflect on my own calling by God into full-time gospel ministry, I could also see how time and again, God had seen fit to use many incidents to affirm His calling of me, knowing that I felt inadequate in being His servant and faced quite a few hurdles along the process of answering His call.

The story of Saul reminds me that whenever God calls a person, He will do everything necessary to affirm and empower us, but it is up to us to remain faithful to His call.

Meditative Reflection
Focusing on the Lord

“No one shall be put to death today, for this day the Lord has rescued Israel.” (1 Sam. 11:13)

The first battle led by Saul as the king of Israel was very meaningful to Saul, to the people and to Samuel as well:

- To Saul, it was a test of both his faith and his character and I have to say that he passed with flying colors. The Ammonites, in their arrogance, were bent on using their attack on Jabesh Gilead to humiliate all Israel, willing to wait seven days for the people of Jabesh to get help. As the Spirit of the Lord came upon Saul, he cut up the oxen into pieces to call all Israel for battle. However, Saul did not threaten to cut up those who would not answer the call to join him in battle, but only their oxen (11:7). This shows that Saul, though in his anger, was a person of restraint. Now after the enormous victory over the Ammonites, Saul refused to punish those who despised him (10:27). Even if he was not a forgiving man, he, at this stage, totally understood that it was God, not he who rescued Israel (11:13). In other words, he proved himself as a king who had the courage, restraint and the dependence on God to lead His people;

- This battle also helped the people to know that as much as they had angered the Lord with their rebellion, God has forgiven them and, as long as they and their king depended on and acknowledged God, God will continue to fight for them as their true king.

- The grief of Samuel also turned into joy, as he led the people to reaffirm the kingship of Saul and to offer fellowship offerings before the Lord. I believe Samuel’s reaffirmation of Saul as king had more to do with how Saul handled the victory and his opposition than the victory itself. Together with the fellowship offerings, Samuel sought to teach the people and Saul to focus their victory on God and God alone!

Meditative Reflection
Ministry is Prayer

“As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by failing to pray for you.” (1 Sam. 12:23)

Nobody is perfect, and neither was Samuel. However, he did exemplify the life of a true servant of the Lord.

We encountered him in the Bible as a little boy who was put in a “boarding school” even as a small child, and at the worst of times — when Israel plunged itself into a godless society where everyone did as they saw fit (Jdg. 21:25). Unfortunately, Samuel was schooled under one of the worst judges and priests, Eli, and was surrounded by two wicked young priests who were totally out of control. Yet, Samuel was not a bit tainted by what surrounded him — a character that could only be attributed to the grace of God, and no doubt, to the intercession of his mother, Hannah. If not for her prayers, we cannot find any other reason or positive influence that could explain the reverence, faithfulness and integrity of Samuel.

Therefore, we should not be surprised to hear Samuel reiterate his commitment to pray for the people towards the end of his life: “As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by failing to pray for you” (1 Sam. 12:23). He knew first-hand how important and powerful prayers were in his own life.

Samuel was not making a new commitment in view of the latest rebellion of the people for asking for a king, he was simply reiterating what he saw as his most important ministry as a prophet and a judge — that was to pray for his people!

As I was serving in a para-church organization, I had the privilege of walking alongside other servants of the Lord, including reviewing their ministries on an annual basis. At one such review, it became obvious that one of our colleagues was very negligent in his prayer life, especially in intercession for his people. I used Samuel’s commitment to pray for his people to remind him about the fact that true ministry had to be under girded by intercession. Honestly, I was and still am not worthy of making such a criticism against him. I was making it as a mutual reminder then, and I am making it now to you.

Meditative Reflection
Manipulating God

“When I saw that the men were scattering; and that you did not come at the set time, and that the Philistines were assembling at Micmash...So I felt compelled to offer the burnt offering.” (1 Sam. 13:11b-12)

The offering of sacrifice by Saul was not so much an expression of trust in God, but a manipulation of God and trust in men.

From a human point of view, what Saul did appeared to be absolutely understandable:

- The Philistines did not only outnumber them, but were far more well equipped.

- The people were so afraid that many hid in caves, and those brave enough to follow Saul were quaking in fear (13:7).

- For whatever reason, Samuel did not show up at the appointed time and the people began to leave.

- Saul’s so-called army now dwindled down to six hundred (v. 15), and had to face the Philistines who were “as numerous as the sand on the seashore” (v. 5).

Under such a circumstance, what could Samuel expect Saul to do? Would you not panic? On the surface, as much as Saul should not be so presumptuous as to usurp the role of the priest to offer sacrifices, he did it to seek “the Lord’s favor” (13:12). Really?

It is obvious his whole intention was to stop his people from scattering, and he was using the offering of sacrifice to achieve this goal. In other words, his trust was not in God, if it was, he would have just waited for Samuel even though most of the people have fled, because ultimately it was not how many soldiers he had, but that he had God!

To use the offering of sacrifice to God as a means to stop the people from fleeing was a blatant act of manipulation. I wonder which was worse — his trust in men, or his manipulation of God?

Meditative Reflection
Prayer in Action

“Nothing can hinder the Lord from saving, whether by many or by few.” (1 Sam. 14:6)

We like to say, “Like Father like son” to point out the inevitability of some family traits being passed on from one generation to the next. However, there are always exceptions, especially in the hands of God.

We have just considered the beginning of the fall of Saul when he presumptuously offered sacrifices to the Lord — it was something only the priest could do according to the law of Moses. But, his sin went beyond that of disobedience to the law, and showed his reliance on the number of fighters he had, and his manipulation of God in the process.

All these, no doubt, were observed by his son, Jonathan. Being his son, Jonathan must have been privileged to see the entire process of his father’s calling — from Saul’s initial humility before God to the kindness he showed to his opposition. Unfortunately his admiration of his father must have turned to one of concern and worry, as he saw how his father manipulated the sacrifice and offended the Lord. He knew he could no longer count on his father to lead them out of this crisis.

As much as the Bible does not mention that he had prayed to God before he took the risk to test the Philistines at their outpost, his attitude could be summed up in two words, faith and courage.

- Faith: He knew very clearly that the battle belonged to The Lord, and thus their deliverance from the hands of the enemies depended not in “many or few”. With God, they were a majority already!

- Courage: He did not worry too much about the safety of his own life. He knew that under the circumstances, someone needed to take the first step of courage, even if it meant risking his own life. I have no idea if Jonathan was as tall as his father, but he was certainly a very capable warrior. Together with his armor-bearer, he took out twenty Philistines.

Of course, it was more than obvious that he was prompted by God to do so, and God used an earthquake to finish the job of deliverance for him.

I find the contrast between Saul and Jonathan quite meaningful:

- Saul relied on the number of fighting men, and Jonathan disregarded the number and looked only to The Lord.

- Saul prayed to God using the offering of sacrifices to disguise his lack of faith, and Jonathan offered no fancy prayers, but acted totally out of trust in God.

Not that I wish to downplay the importance of prayer, but a prayerful act speaks much louder than a fanciful show of prayer.

Meditative Reflection
Who Sinned Against The Lord?

“And Jonathan and Saul were taken by lot, and the men were cleared...And Jonathan was taken.” (1 Sam. 14:41-42)

When Saul wanted to pursue the Philistines, it was the priests who reminded him that he should first enquire of the Lord. I can imagine how embarrassed Saul was:

- First he was rebuked by Samuel for having acted presumptuously in offering sacrifices to God.

- Then it was not he, but his son whose courageous act led to the routing of enemies.

- Out of a sense of pride and shame, he made all the people vow not to eat anything until they wiped out their enemies — a most inconsiderate, egoistic and unnecessary move on his part.

- His unreasonable action directly led to the sinning of the people in eating meat with blood.

- Now in a demonstration of self-righteousness, Saul built an altar to the Lord, except that God did not answer him at all.

I have no idea how he got the idea that it was sin that had caused the Lord not to answer his inquiry, but he resorted to drawing the lot to find out. It is interesting to note that the draw ended with him and Jonathan. Without further drawing, everyone knew that he was the one who sinned — everyone except himself!

No, it was not the final draw that showed who sinned against the Lord, because the final lot fell on Jonathan; it was the people who clearly pointed out who was not the sinner, “Should Jonathan die — he who has brought about this great deliverance in Israel...for he did this today with God's help” (14:45).

To sin is bad enough, to blame someone else for your sin is pure evil!

Meditative Reflection
Grieving the Lord

“I am grieved that I have made Saul king, because he has turned away from me and has not carried out my instructions.” (1 Sam. 15:11)

Today, we have the privilege of knowing the beginning and the end of Saul’s life and his kingship. As we see how he turned from such a humble and soft-hearted person to one who was increasingly egoistic and hard-hearted towards God, we cannot help but sigh. However, as we sigh, we learn that God grieved and Samuel was troubled — troubled not just because of Saul’s rebellion, but also the fact that God grieved—and so he cried out to the Lord all that night (15:11).

I cannot help but ask myself, “Have I caused the Lord to grieve too?”. Behind grieving is expectation, is high hope, is a feeling of being let down and is hurt!

God grieved because He had made Saul king: He had placed His trust in him. He bestowed on him great honor and delegated to him the sacred task of leading His people to be a kingdom of priests, a holy people separated for Himself and yes, a Chosen People belonging to Him. So, God expected Saul to accomplish His plan; God had high hopes that he would be an example to the people; and now God felt let down because he had not carried out His instructions; and God was hurt because he had turned away from Him.

May I suggest that you and I too, spend a moment in reflection on whether we have grieved the Lord:

1. What is His expectation of you?

2. What is the high hope He has in you?

3. Have you made Him feel let down?

4. Have you hurt Him and grieved Him?