Ⅳ
God commanded Saul to "strike the Amalekites" and to "utterly destroy all that they have" and not spare them, but he did not obey Jehovah's command—1 Sam. 15:3-9:
A
Saul killed the Amalekites, but he spared Agag the king and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all that was good—vv. 7-9.
B
Saul and the people's sparing the best part of the things that they should have utterly destroyed portrays the fact that, experientially, we treasure the good aspects of our flesh, our natural life, and do not wish to destroy them:
１
Whatever we do apart from God's grace and apart from depending on Him and trusting in Him is of the flesh—Phil. 3:3-4.
２
Every aspect of the flesh, whether good or evil, is in opposition to grace and God's kingdom and keeps us from enjoying Christ; therefore, we must hate every aspect of the flesh and be absolute in destroying the flesh—Rom. 8:13; Gal. 3:3; 5:2-4.
C
God did not want Saul to use the best of the cattle as a sacrifice to Him—1 Sam. 15:15:
１
Anything presented and sacrificed to God that has its source in the flesh is evil in His sight—v. 19.
２
To offer something to God according to our own will is presumptuous and is sinful—Gen. 4:5; Matt. 7:22-23.
Ⅴ
Doing good according to our own will is actually an act of rebellion against God's throne and His economy—1 Sam. 15:22-23; Exo. 17:16:
A
Saul's disobedience exposed him as being a rebel against God and an enemy of God—1 Sam. 22:17.
B
Saul was utterly rebellious toward God; he had no subordination to God, nor did he take God as his King and Head.
C
He was constituted with rebellion, which is as evil as the worship of idols—15:23.
D
What Saul did was as evil as contacting an evil spirit for the purpose of carrying out the intention of that spirit, not God's intention—v. 23.
E
All rebellion is a matter of presumption, a matter of daring to do things without God.
Morning Nourishment
1 Sam. 15:22-23 …Does Jehovah delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of Jehovah? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed, than the fat of rams. For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and insubordination is like idolatry and teraphim. Because you have rejected the word of Jehovah, He has also rejected you from being king.The Amalekites rose up to frustrate the establishing of God’s kingdom, and Saul was charged to destroy them. In 1 Samuel 15:3 Jehovah said to him, “Go now and strike the Amalekites; and utterly destroy all that they have, and do not spare them, but kill both man and woman, infant and suckling, oxen and sheep, camel and donkey.” In charging Saul to utterly destroy the Amalekites, which typify the flesh as God’s unique enemy, God wisely put Saul on the spot in order to test him. (Life-study of 1 & 2 Samuel, pp. 72-73)
Today’s Reading
Saul utterly destroyed all their people, but he “spared Agag and the best of the sheep and of the oxen and of the fatlings, and the lambs and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them; but everything that was despised and worthless, this they utterly destroyed” (1 Sam. 15:8b-9). For Saul, this was an opportunity to make himself rich. He was trying to build up his own monarchy within God’s kingdom.It was told Samuel that Saul had gone to Carmel and had set up a monument for himself (v. 12). Saul built this monument not for the kingdom of God but for the remembrance of himself because of the victory that made both him and his monarchy rich. This was a strong indication that Saul’s intention was to build up his monarchy.
When Saul declared that he had fulfilled the word of Jehovah, Samuel asked, “What then is this bleating of sheep in my ears and the lowing of oxen that I hear?” (vv. 13-14). Saul explained that they had been brought from the Amalekites, for the people spared the best of the sheep and oxen to sacrifice to Jehovah and destroyed the rest. Samuel then told Saul to stop and he would tell him what Jehovah had spoken to him the night before. Then he went on to say, “Though you are small in your own eyes, are you not the head of the tribes of Israel? And Jehovah has anointed you king over Israel. And Jehovah sent you on a journey and said, Go and utterly destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they are consumed. Why then did you not obey the voice of Jehovah, but flew upon the spoil and did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah?” (vv. 17-19). Saul responded by claiming that he did obey the voice of Jehovah but that the people took sheep and oxen of the spoil to sacrifice to Jehovah (vv. 20-21).
In verses 22 and 23 Samuel continued by speaking a very strong word to Saul…. Samuel seemed to be saying, “Saul, you say that you spared the best of the sheep and oxen to sacrifice to Jehovah, my God. But God prefers that you obey His word. He told you to utterly destroy the Amalekites and all that they have. Instead of obeying this word, you kept some of the sheep and oxen for yourself. This morning you raised up a monument for yourself. You did not raise up anything for God. Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed, to take care of, God’s speaking is better than the fat of rams. Saul, you have rebelled against God, and rebellion is like the sin of divination, like the sin of witchcraft. What you did was just as evil as contacting an evil spirit for the purpose of carrying out the intention of that spirit, not God’s intention. You did not subordinate yourself to God as your Head but acted presumptuously, according to your ways and by your will. Now your kingship is over. Because you have rejected the word of Jehovah, He has rejected you from being king.” Saul was thus exposed as being a rebel against God and an enemy of God. (Life-study of 1 & 2 Samuel, pp. 73-75)
Further Reading: CWWL, 1979, vol. 2, “Basic Lessons on Service,” chs. 17-18