## Three Tests: Three Failures - Life of Saul - 4

Saul had defeated the attack from the Ammonites and had established himself as the true leader of Israel. He started out great, but now his leadership would be tested again. As we said last week, it isn't how we begin that matters most…it is how we end the race. Unfortunately, at this point in Saul's life as the king of Israel he will begin to change. Let's look at three tests of Saul.

I. Would Saul be Patient? 1 Sa. 13:1-23

A. The Philistine's Defeat. v1-8

1. After defeating the Ammonites there was peace.

2. But it was short-lived.

3. Now the Philistines threaten Israel.

4. Saul chose an army of 3000 and Jonathan took 1000 of these men and won a great victory over the garrison of the Philistines in Gibeah.

5. This meant that Philistines would come against them in full force. (…Israel also was had in abomination…)

6. Saul regroups now Gilgal to prepare for battle.

7. When the people saw the great force of the enemy they ran and hid themselves while others left the country! v6-7

8. Saul remained in Gilgal, everyone was frightened. (…followed him trembling.)

9. He was there to wait for Samuel; but Samuel was late and the people began to leave him.

B. Saul's Disobedience. v9-23

1. Saul offered up an offering in Gilgal. v9

2. Almost immediately he is confronted by Samuel in reference to his act of disobedience.

3. On the surface this may seem to be an insignificant event.

4. But note that there are a number of things that this act signifies for the king.

a. It reveals his unbelief.

1) Samuel asks, "What hast thou done?"

2) Saul begins to make excuses for his behavior.

3) Saul said, "Because I saw…"

4) He had started walking by sight and not by faith.

5) Samuel had instructed Saul as to what he should do.

(1 Sam 10:8) "And thou shalt go down before me to Gilgal; and, behold, I will come down unto thee, to offer burnt offerings, and to sacrifice sacrifices of peace offerings: seven days shalt thou tarry, till I come to thee, and show thee what thou shalt do."

6) But Saul got tired of waiting on Samuel and decided to take matters into his own hands.

7) He had been afraid, and fear resulted in unbelief…nothing in battle would be the same anymore.

b. It reveals his impatience.

(Isa 28:16) "Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste."

1) Impatience is a mark of immaturity.

2) This is a manifestation of pride.

3) Perhaps he thought he could disregard the instructions of Samuel because, after all, he was the king!

4) There is a lesson for us in this…

5) We must not run ahead of the Lord, no matter how afraid we might be, or how impatient we might be.

6) The consequences were great.

(1 Sam 13:14) "But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the LORD hath sought him a man after his own heart, and the LORD hath commanded him to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the LORD commanded thee."

c. Next, we see him respond dishonestly.

1) Samuel confronted him and asked what he had done.

2) He began to play the blame game…and this would not be the last time he would play.

3) He blamed the people, the enemy, and Samuel.

4) Even when he was caught…he refused to accept responsibility for his action.

5) It wasn't his fault! He wasn't honest with himself, and he wasn't honest with Samuel.

6) Samuel tells him, "Thou hast done foolishly!"

7) The kingdom will be given to another, one after God's heart.

5. It is interesting, at this point there is not response from Saul.

a. Samuel leaves…

b. Saul numbers what is left of his army and joins Jonathan in Gibeah.

c. They are unprepared for the battle that is coming.

C. Saul fails his first test, next week we look at chapter 14 and see how he does with #2.

We are looking at three tests and three failures of King Saul. Last week we saw him tested in the area of patience. He failed because he ran ahead of the Lord in disobedience to God's command. Tonight we will see how his hesitation to act cost him a great victory.

II. Would Saul Be Victorious?

A. Ignorance of the Battle. v1-15

1. Consider Saul's Position v2

a. With an enemy to fight and a battle to be won, Saul was 'tarrying'.

b. He was just hanging out waiting for who knows what; maybe he was sulking.

c. When he should have been leading his army into battle, he seemed to be unconcerned.

d. Reminds me of another king who failed to go to battle with his army.

2. Consider Jonathan's Faith v4-7

a. While his father was 'tarrying', Jonathan was making plans to attack.

b. Notice his courage and his faith! v6

c. He was a leader…note his servant's response to him. v7

3. Consider God's Enabling v8-15

a. Jonathan had a plan…Saul had a pomegranate tree.

b. Jonathan stepped out by faith…

c. God responded to that faith and sent an earthquake.

B. Observance of the Battle v16-23

1. Three kinds of people.

a. Those who make things happen

b. Those who watch things happen

c. Those who don't know that anything is happening.

2. Saul's indecision v16

a. His lookouts reported that the Philistine army as it 'melted away'.

b. Saul's first reaction was to check to see who was responsible for this.

c. Then he called for the priest to inquire of the Lord.

d. He couldn't make up his mind about what to do.

(James 1:8) "A double minded man is unstable in all his ways."

3. Too little too late

a. Finally he decided to join in the battle.

b. What he found was the Philistines were killing each other.

c. Then the deserters began to rejoin the army. (fair-weather patriots)

d. What they found was that the Philistines were on the run.

e. Note: Not from Saul and his army.

C. Hindering the Battle v24-45

1. Through a wrong motive

a. Saul was motivated by vengeance and pride.

b. Saul wasn't thinking about the glory of God…

c. He was trying to be the leader, now that the battle was nearly over.

d. He was doing it for a show of his power, not for God's glory.

e. As a result the battle was hindered.

2. Through a foolish vow v24

a. In his attempt to look the part of the spiritual leader of Israel…

b. Saul forced the army to abide by a vow of no food…

c. Fasting and fighting do not go well together, the army was 'distressed' (driven like animals).

d. Note: v28 tells us they were 'faint'

e. This foolish vow hindered the strength and stamina of the army.

3. Through a rash oath v44

a. Jonathan had not heard the vow that Saul had placed upon the people.

b. He was involved in the actual battle, not just talking about it.

c. Consequently, Jonathan ate of the honey that was discovered.

d. When confronted with this, he admitted that his father had 'troubled' the people.

e. He pointed out the foolishness of such a vow in this time of battle.

f. The result was that the people ate of the honey and then ate of the all the spoil because they were 'very faint'.

g. When Saul discovered that it was his son Jonathan who had first eaten of the honey, he said that his son must die.

D. Retreating from Battle v45-46

1. His people refused to follow him. v45

a. The people were not fooled by Saul's phony show of spirituality.

b. They knew who had been used of God to bring the victory that day.

c. They refused to allow Saul to put Jonathan to death.

2. He refused to follow after the enemy v46

a. Saul then turns away from the battle.

b. He refused to go after the enemy.

c. Perhaps in anger because the people chose Jonathan over him.

d. The result was clear…the enemy was allowed to escape back to the safety of their land.

3. Consider the contrasts

a. Jonathan was a man of action, but Saul was a man of empty words and broken promises.

b. Jonathan showed great faith, while Saul tried to appear as a man of faith with his oaths and vows.

c. Jonathan was a man of courage, while Saul hesitated and waited to enter into the battle.

d. Jonathan brought out the best in others, while Saul's primary concern was himself.

Saul's Third Defeat I Samuel 15:1-35

Saul went down in history as a great failure at a time when Israel needed a great success. He lost God's blessing, his crown, and his life. Saul is to blame for his own failures. He abandoned God's way and he began to live on substitutes. In this fifteenth chapter we find several substitutes, which Saul made.

I. He Substituted Saying For Doing. (vl-14)

A. The commandment is given in v1-3

1. It is clear and concise

2. There is no room for misunderstanding

B. Saul acts upon the commandment in v4-9

1. He makes preparation for the battle

2. He devises a plan of attack and proceeds

3. However, he disobeys God in v8-9

C. God reveals Saul's sin to Samuel in v10-14

1. Samuel is heartbroken over this latest failure and spends the entire night in prayer with tears.

2. Samuel confronts Saul the next morning upon his return.

3. Saul 'said' he had obeyed the commandment of God, but his actions spoke louder than his words!

D. It is easy for us to do the same thing, but God doesn't want words in place of actions.

1. Jas. 1:22, "Be ye doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves."

2. 1 Jn. 1:6,8,10 "If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth." "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us." "If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us."

3. To substitute saying for doing results in terrible deterioration of our spiritual life.

4. Our walk must be in harmony with our talk.

II. He Substituted Excuses For Confession. (v15- 21)

A. Note Saul's excuses:

1. In chapter 13 Saul blamed Samuel for not arriving when he was supposed to.

2. In chapter 14 Saul blamed Jonathan for the failure of Israel to destroy the Philistines because he had eaten some honey.

3. Now, Saul blames the people for his failure to obey God's command.

B. An excuse is a refusal to be honest and to accept responsibility for our actions.

C. Prov. 28:13, "He that covereth his sins shall not prosper, but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy."

D. If you and I have disobeyed God, we must be honest about it and confess our sin.

E. "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." I Jn. 1:9

III. He Substituted Sacrifice For Obedience. (v22-23)

A. God is not glorified in disobedience.

1. Obedience leads to victory while disobedience results in defeat.

2. As a result of Saul's continued disobedience, rebellion, and stubbornness Saul was rejected by God from being king over Israel.

B. We must be careful not to substitute empty words or outward displays of spirituality for true service and obedience to God.

C. Ps. 51:17, "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, 0 God, thou wilt not despise."

V. He Substituted Reputation For Character. (v24-35)

A. Note Saul's response to the rejection.

1. More excuses, now he admits sin, but he places the blame on the people.

2. Here we find confession, but there is still no repentance.

3. He wanted an 'easy' forgiveness for his sin, he didn't want to face the consequences of his disobedience.

B. Samuel again declares that God has rejected Saul.v26-29

1. As Saul tore the skirt of Samuel's mantle so has (not will, God had already rejected Saul) God torn the kingdom of Israel from Saul.

2. God would not repent.

3. Saul should have truly repented of his sin, but instead he refused and made excuses.

4. In v29 Samuel makes his point quite well when he states that the 'Strength of Israel' will not lie as Saul did, and He will not change His mind.

C. Saul responds to Samuel in v30-31

1. At first glance it might seem that Saul has truly repented.

2. However, note that Saul asked that Samuel turn again and worship with him "before the elders, of my people".

3. He was still more concerned with what people thought of him than he was with what God thought.

4. He substituted reputation for character.

a. Reputation is what men think we are.

b. Character is what God knows we are.

D. Samuel finishes the task that Saul was to do. v32-35

1. He calls for King Agag, and Agag thought that he was safe since the man of God had called for him.

2. Samuel utterly destroys the king.

3. He then mourns over Saul's disobedience.

E. If we start living to please people we are headed for trouble.

1. If we are only thinking of our reputation, then we will start cutting corners and making excuses like Saul.

2. God never called us to be popular or to have a great reputation.

3. He called us to be faithful and honest before Him.

God had warned Saul about rebellion in 12:15 and 24. When we fear the Lord we don't have to fear people. Saul was living on substitutes and as a result he lost more than he bargained for. He lost his character, his crown, his victory, and his good friend Samuel.