“Do you see the man the Lord has chosen? There’s no one like him among all the people.” —1 Samuel 10:24
1. Recognize that subtle disobedience to God is
Saul offered a sacrifice that he had no right to offer. He had been instructed to wait for Samuel. (1 Samuel 13)
He directly disobeyed a specific instruction from God to kill King Agag. This final act of defiance cost him everything. (1 Samuel 15)
“To obey is better than sacrifice…” —1 Samuel 15:22
Recognize sin for what it is and
2. Identify the areas where I’m trying to
Now the Spirit of the Lord had departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord tormented him. …David would take his harp and play. Then relief would come to Saul; he would feel better, and the evil spirit would leave him. —1 Samuel 16:14,23
Do whatever’s necessary to
3. See envy and resentment as
All Israel and Judah loved David because he was so successful at leading his troops into battle. —1 Samuel 18:16
When the men were returning home after David had killed the Philistine, the women came out from all the towns of Israel to meet King Saul with singing and dancing, with joyful songs and with tambourines and lutes. As they danced, they sang: “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands.” Saul was very angry; this refrain galled him. “They have credited David with tens of thousands, but me with only thousands. What more can he get but the kingdom?” And from that time on Saul kept a jealous eye on David. —1 Samuel 18:6-9
Carrying a grudge is a loser’s game. It is the ultimate frustration because it leaves you with more pain than you had in the first place. Recall the pain of being wronged, the hurt of being stung, cheated, demeaned. Doesn’t the memory of it fuel the fire of fury again? Do you feel that hurt each time your memory lights on the people who did you wrong? Your own memory becomes a video within your soul that plays unending reruns of your old rendezvous with pain. The only way to heal the pain that will not heal itself is to forgive the person who hurt you. Forgiving heals your memory as you change your memory’s vision. When you release the wrongdoer from the wrong, you cut the malignant tumor out of your inner life. You set a prisoner free…you.
—Lewis B. Smedes, Forgive and Forget
SPIRITUAL DISINTEGRATION
subtle disobedience
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distance from God
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poisoned relationships
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toxic heart
Samuel had died… And Saul had banned from the land of Israel all mediums and those who consult the spirits of the dead. He asked the Lord what he should do, but the Lord refused to answer him, either by dreams or by sacred lots or by the prophets. Saul then said to his advisers, “Find a woman who is a medium, so I can go and ask her what to do.” His advisers replied, “There is a medium at Endor.” So Saul disguised himself… (and went to the witch of Endor). —1 Samuel 28:3,6-8
Discussion Questions
1. How can disobedience to God be subtle?
2. If you ever tried to dull the pain of your sin, how did it affect your relationship with God?
3. Why is envy so toxic? In what ways do you feed it?
Answers
1. sin
2. repent
3. dull the pain
4. get back to the bonfire of God’s love
5. poison
6. Confess
7. Forgive