Top of Page Top of Page LECTURE HALL Obeying God and Consequences Written by Lisa Kane 3/18/2021 1 Samuel 15:1-9 NKJV ​ 15 Samuel also said to Saul, “The Lord sent me to anoint you king over His people, over Israel. Now therefore, heed the voice of the words of the Lord. 2 Thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘I will punish Amalek for what he did to Israel, how he ambushed him on the way when he came up from Egypt. 3 Now go and attack[ a ] Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and do not spare them. But kill both man and woman, infant and nursing child, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.’ ” 4 So Saul gathered the people together and numbered them in Telaim, two hundred thousand foot soldiers and ten thousand men of Judah. 5 And Saul came to a city of Amalek, and lay in wait in the valley. 6 Then Saul said to the Kenites, “Go, depart, get down from among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them. For you showed kindness to all the children of Israel when they came up out of Egypt.” So the Kenites departed from among the Amalekites. 7 And Saul attacked the Amalekites, from Havilah all the way to Shur, which is east of Egypt. 8 He also took Agag king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. 9 But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all that was good, and were unwilling to utterly destroy them. But everything despised and worthless, that they utterly destroyed. ​ In the above scriptures, you can see that Saul and the people decided on their own to pick and choose what they would save vs destroying. God has a reason for destroying this race. They’re descendants from the giants and God cursed them before the flood. He was using Israel to fully destroy them completing His word against the giants. Another words, this was a race that had mixed blood between spirit realm and humanity. This is what the giants did when the watchers mated by taking humans wives for themselves. Genesis 6:1-2 NKJV 6 Now it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them, 2 that the sons of God saw the daughters of men, that they were beautiful; and they took wives for themselves of all whom they chose. Isaiah 1:18 NKJV 18 “Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the Lord, “Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be as wool. ​ We may not always understand why God has certain commandments in place, but we need to obey them. We can go to Him and ask Him for understanding but the end act still results in obedience, otherwise there are consequences and having God reject you is an awful consequence you do not want to experience. 1 Samuel 15:10-23 NKJV 10 Now the word of the Lord came to Samuel, saying, 11 “I greatly regret that I have set up Saul as king, for he has turned back from following Me, and has not performed My commandments.” And it grieved Samuel, and he cried out to the Lord all night. 12 So when Samuel rose early in the morning to meet Saul, it was told Samuel, saying, “Saul went to Carmel, and indeed, he set up a monument for himself; and he has gone on around, passed by, and gone down to Gilgal.” 13 Then Samuel went to Saul, and Saul said to him, “Blessed are you of the Lord! I have performed the commandment of the Lord.” 14 But Samuel said, “What then is this bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?” 15 And Saul said, “They have brought them from the Amalekites; for the people spared the best of the sheep and the oxen, to sacrifice to the Lord your God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed.” 16 Then Samuel said to Saul, “Be quiet! And I will tell you what the Lord said to me last night.” And he said to him, “Speak on.” 17 So Samuel said, “When you were little in your own eyes, were you not head of the tribes of Israel? And did not the Lord anoint you king over Israel? 18 Now the Lord sent you on a mission, and said, ‘Go, and utterly destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they are [ b ]consumed.’ 19 Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord? Why did you swoop down on the [ c ]spoil, and do evil in the sight of the Lord?” 20 And Saul said to Samuel, “But I have obeyed the voice of the Lord, and gone on the mission on which the Lord sent me, and brought back Agag king of Amalek; I have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. 21 But the people took of the plunder, sheep and oxen, the best of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal.” 22 So Samuel said: “Has 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 heed than the fat of rams. 23 For rebellion is as the sin of [ d ]witchcraft, And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He also has rejected you from being king.” Notice two things going on here. The king blamed the disobedience on the people in essence lying to God about obeying His commandments. Second, he kept twisting his response to say that yes, he did obey God’s commandments ‘for the most part’. (That part is implied but God knows the truth.) Question, do you think Saul was aware of what he was doing? I’m pretty certain he was and when dealing with other people in a situation like this, you usually can talk your way out of the disobedience, but Saul learned quickly he couldn’t talk his way out of this one with Samuel. Then Saul tried another approach. 1 Samuel 15:24-29 NKJV 24 Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord and your words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice. 25 Now therefore, please pardon my sin, and return with me, that I may worship the Lord.” 26 But Samuel said to Saul, “I will not return with you, for you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel.” 27 And as Samuel turned around to go away, Saul seized the edge of his robe, and it tore. 28 So Samuel said to him, “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today, and has given it to a neighbor of yours, who is better than you. 29 And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor relent. For He is not a man, that He should relent.” ​ Saul tried repenting with a lie. By still blaming the people in saying he obeyed their voice vs God’s voice, he said he was sorry but in reality, he still blamed the people and didn’t take responsibility for his sin. Samuel still didn’t fall for the false repentance. ​ Look what happened. God removed Saul from being king over Israel and because Saul realized that it was too late and tried to physically man handled Samuel into accepting his repentance, and ending up tearing his robe, Samuel proclaimed the kingdom will be torn from him. ​ 1 Samuel 15:23 NKJV 23 For rebellion is as the sin of [ d ]witchcraft, And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He also has rejected you from being king.” Because Saul rejected the word of God, God rejected him from being king. Every time you reject God, He rejects you. And some of the things you reject have permanent consequences, such as Saul no longer being king. There are consequences but it’s not too late. Humble yourself and repent. Return to God and heed His Word. Exodus 15:26 NKJV 26 and said, “If you diligently heed the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am the Lord who heals you.” Romans 10:9-10 NKJV 9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. To repent, confess with your mouth and be sincere. Don’t be like Saul. Say this out loud: Dear Jesus, forgive me of my sins and come into my heart and be my Lord and savior. I’m sorry that I’ve disobeyed Your Word but I choose to no longer do that. In Jesus’ Name, Amen! Now seek God’s Word and find out what His commandments are so you can walk in obedience. Note, you’re still responsible in ignorance. And don’t depend on people or non-biblical sources to tell you what God’s commandments are. Find out direct from the source – The Bible. And once you find out, obey them. Once you place God’s commandments first in the center of your life, everything lines up. Blessings come your way and God says He knows you. Does God know who you are? If He knows you, you’re protected. Psalm 91:1-16 NKJV He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust.” 3 Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the [ a ]fowler And from the perilous pestilence. 4 He shall cover you with His feathers, And under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and [ b ]buckler. 5 You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, Nor of the arrow that flies by day, 6 Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday. 7 A thousand may fall at your side, And ten thousand at your right hand; But it shall not come near you. 8 Only with your eyes shall you look, And see the reward of the wicked. 9 Because you have made the Lord, who is my refuge, Even the Most High, your dwelling place, 10 No evil shall befall you, Nor shall any plague come near your dwelling; 11 For He shall give His angels charge over you, To keep you in all your ways. 12 In their hands they shall [ c ]bear you up, Lest you [ d ]dash your foot against a stone. 13 You shall tread upon the lion and the cobra, The young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot. 14 “Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will [ e ]set him on high, because he has known My name. 15 He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him. 16 With [ f ]long life I will satisfy him, And show him My salvation.”