Dark Days for Saul - Life of Saul - 7

We have observed Saul's reign as king of Israel begin with great promise, but then disintegrate right before his eyes due to his own dishonesty and disobedience. This evening we want to look at a very dark period in the life of king Saul. Remember that we are looking at Saul's life with the goal and purpose of learning from his mistakes. In his letter to the Corinthians, Paul noted that the things that were recorded from Israel's history were given to be examples to each of us today (1 Co. 10:11). We began this study with the admonition of the Lord, Himself, to be careful that we do not lose our 'crown' (Rev. 3:11). With that in mind, as we look into this 28th chapter of 1 Samuel we see a period of time in the life of king Saul that must have been horrible for him. It was a time of darkness, many question whether a 'saved' person could ever sink so low as Saul did here. I believe that it is possible for a person to become so deeply entangled in their sin that they begin to act like and 'unsaved' person. We also need to heed this warning by way of example.

I. The Circumstances. v3-6

II. The Dark Act of Desperation. v7-25

Dark days indeed for the king. How could this have happened? He had such promise in the beginning. But we are reminded that it matters little how we begin the race, what matters is how we finish. His sinful pride kept him from doing right before God, and there is no one to blame for his failure but himself.

The application is clear enough isn't it? Circumstances, other people, life's unexpected developments, none of these things are valid excuses for not doing what is right. We fail to obey and then wonder why we must face the consequences of our own disobedience. We need to learn from king Saul's example.