Today we see Saul's downfall. Though he is, of course, quite alive and well, newly anointed as king, his decline has already begun. What were the instructions God gave Saul through Samuel? He was to report to Gilgal and wait for Samuel to come and make sacrifice. This is a very simple instruction. No doubt Saul understood what Samuel had said perfectly well. And Saul even began following the instructions. What happened?
In his trust of himself and mistrust of the Lord, Saul tried to make everything move on his schedule rather than the schedule the Lord had. He was afraid the sacrifice would not be done in time. Fearful for his safety he went ahead and made the sacrifice. One problem - Saul was never authorized to make sacrifice. He was therefore acting outside of God's revealed will. He was claiming glory for himself, doing this work in his own authority. This was the beginning of Saul's downfall. He has shown that his trust is in himself rather than in God. This is always a recipe for failure in the Bible.
How do we do? Do we trust ourselves rather than what God has said? Do we look for our own solutions to problems that God has already solved? Do we try to do things in our authority? Is our concern over our timing rather than the Lord's timing? Do we really trust that the Lord will accomplish what he sets out to accomplish through his Word? In fact, we fail daily. We consistently walk into the error of Saul. We trust our own ability rather than God's ability.
May the Lord grant us repentance, reminding us that Christ died for this kind of sin as well, and that he lives to proclaim forgiveness.
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Dave Spotts
blogging at http://capnsaltyslongvoyage.blogspot.com and http://alex-kirk.blogspot.com
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