Life Lesson from Saul, King of Israel – the man who refused to learn.  1 Samuel 10:1-9

Saul was annointed King of Israel by Samuel.  He was given three tasks and one standing command to help prepare him for his role as king.  These things were simple in themselves but were profound lessons intended to instruct the man in humility and reliance upon the Lord.

I.  The Instructions given.  1 Samuel 10:3-8

1. He was to go to Rachel’s sepulchre.  

1 Samuel 10:2  When thou art departed from me to day, then thou shalt find two men by Rachel’s sepulchre in the border of Benjamin at Zelzah; and they will say unto thee, The asses which thou wentest to seek are found: and, lo, thy father hath left the care of the asses, and sorroweth for you, saying, What shall I do for my son?

He could note three things here –

  1.  His humility.  Samuel prophesied correctly revealing himself to be truly the man of God.

  2.  His heritage.  She was the mother of Benjamin, Saul’s tribe.

  3.  His humanity.  She died young, giving birth to Benjamin.

B.  He would meet believers going to Bethel, the House of God. 

1 Samuel 10:3-4  Then shalt thou go on forward from thence, and thou shalt come to the plain of Tabor, and there shall meet thee three men going up to God to Beth-el, one carrying three kids, and another carrying three loaves of bread, and another carrying a bottle of wine: And they will salute thee, and give thee two loaves of bread; which thou shalt receive of their hands.

  1.  Sacrifice – they were taking their offerings to the Lord.

  2.  Supply – they supplied Saul with bread for his journey.  (bread of the offering.

• He would approach the hill of God and meet a group of prophets. 

1 Samuel 10:5-7  After that thou shalt come to the hill of God, where is the garrison of the Philistines: and it shall come to pass, when thou art come thither to the city, that thou shalt meet a company of prophets coming down from the high place with a psaltery, and a tabret, and a pipe, and a harp, before them; and they shall prophesy: And the Spirit of the LORD will come upon thee, and thou shalt prophesy with them, and shalt be turned into another man. And let it be, when these signs are come unto thee, that thou do as occasion serve thee; for God is with thee.

  1.  He was see the power of the world.

  2.  He would sing the praise of God.  God is greater than the world.

• He would go to Gilgal upon any emergency and wait on the Lord. 

1 Samuel 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 shew thee what thou shalt do.

  1.  He would not lead the country through his own wisdom.

  2.  He would call the people together and wait on the Lord for direction.

II.  The instructions rejected. 

Each lesson taught humility and reliance on the Lord.  We know from God’s Word the Saul did not learn from these lessons.  He categorically rejected each one.

  A.  He forgot his heritage. 

        He had received the message of his father’s great concern for him because he did not know what had happend to him.  Now he ordered the execution of his son, Jonathan, for disobedience (even though Jonathan had not heard Saul’s command) 

        1 Samuel 14:26-28; 43-45

  B.  He forgot his humility.

    1.  God had supplied Saul with bread from His own table.

    2.  God’s priests were murdered by Saul for giving David bread for his journey.

1 Samuel 21:6  So the priest gave him hallowed bread: for there was no bread there but the shewbread, that was taken from before the LORD, to put hot bread in the day when it was taken away.

1 Samuel 22:13-15  And Saul said unto him, Why have ye conspired against me, thou and the son of Jesse, in that thou hast given him bread, and a sword, and hast inquired of God for him, that he should rise against me, to lie in wait, as at this day? Then Ahimelech answered the king, and said, And who is so faithful among all thy servants as David, which is the king’s son in law, and goeth at thy bidding, and is honourable in thine house? Did I then begin to inquire of God for him? be it far from me: let not the king impute any thing unto his servant, nor to all the house of my father: for thy servant knew nothing of all this, less or more.

1 Samuel 22:18-19  And the king said to Doeg, Turn thou, and fall upon the priests. And Doeg the Edomite turned, and he fell upon the priests, and slew on that day fourscore and five persons that did wear a linen ephod. And Nob, the city of the priests, smote he with the edge of the sword, both men and women, children and sucklings, and oxen, and asses, and sheep, with the edge of the sword.

  C.  He forgot his praise for the Lord. 

1 Samuel 16:23  And it came to pass, when the evil spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took an harp, and played with his hand: so Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed from him.

    1.  He rejected the Lord.

    2.  He was rejected by the Lord and had no more song of praise to give.

  D.  He forgot his reliance upon the Lord. 

1 Samuel 13:6-14  When the men of Israel saw that they were in a strait, (for the people were distressed,) then the people did hide themselves in caves, and in thickets, and in rocks, and in high places, and in pits. And some of the Hebrews went over Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead. As for Saul, he was yet in Gilgal, and all the people followed him trembling. And he tarried seven days, according to the set time that Samuel had appointed: but Samuel came not to Gilgal; and the people were scattered from him. And Saul said, Bring hither a burnt offering to me, and peace offerings. And he offered the burnt offering. And it came to pass, that as soon as he had made an end of offering the burnt offering, behold, Samuel came; and Saul went out to meet him, that he might salute him. And Samuel said, What hast thou done? And Saul said, Because I saw that the people were scattered from me, and that thou camest not within the days appointed, and that the Philistines gathered themselves together at Michmash; Therefore said I, The Philistines will come down now upon me to Gilgal, and I have not made supplication unto the LORD: I forced myself therefore, and offered a burnt offering. And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done foolishly: thou hast not kept the commandment of the LORD thy God, which he commanded thee: for now would the LORD have established thy kingdom upon Israel for ever. 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.

We need to pay attention to the results of rejecting the counsel of God.

1 Samuel 15:16-29  Then Samuel said unto Saul, Stay, and I will tell thee what the LORD hath said to me this night. And he said unto him, Say on. And Samuel said, When thou wast little in thine own sight, wast thou not made the head of the tribes of Israel, and the LORD anointed thee king over Israel? And the LORD sent thee on a journey, and said, Go and utterly destroy the sinners the Amalekites, and fight against them until they be consumed. Wherefore then didst thou not obey the voice of the LORD, but didst fly upon the spoil, and didst evil in the sight of the LORD? And Saul said unto Samuel, Yea, I have obeyed the voice of the LORD, and have gone the way which the LORD sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice unto the LORD thy God in Gilgal. And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king. And Saul said unto Samuel, I have sinned: for I have transgressed the commandment of the LORD, and thy words: because I feared the people, and obeyed their voice. Now therefore, I pray thee, pardon my sin, and turn again with me, that I may worship the LORD. And Samuel said unto Saul, I will not return with thee: for thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, and the LORD hath rejected thee from being king over Israel. And as Samuel turned about to go away, he laid hold upon the skirt of his mantle, and it rent. And Samuel said unto him, The LORD hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a neighbour of thine, that is better than thou. And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent: for he is not a man, that he should repent.

Are you doing what you know God wants you to do?  Over the years, God’s Word has been preached and taught and you have heard the counsel of God.  The question is – are you doing what you know to be God’s will?

James 4:17  Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.

As believers, we need to listen to God through the words of Paul –

Romans 12:1-2  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.