THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST
SPREADING THE SOUL-SAVING MESSAGE OF JESUs
“King Saul—the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly”
Introduction by narrator accompanied by a cappella singing:
THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST. Spreading the soul-saving message of Jesus. And now, Ben Bailey.
“And the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Heed the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them’” (1 Sam. 8:7). One of the saddest days in Israel’s history was when the people dethroned God and placed a fallible human (Saul) on the throne as their king. Welcome to our study of “King Saul—the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.” We need to realize from the outset that God was not happy at the Israelites’ desire in asking for a king. We understand that through David and the others who followed him, Christ eventually came so that God could work His plan through that. But God never desired for the Israelites to have a king. How do we know that? Notice the words of Hosea 13:11—“I gave you a king in My anger, and took him away in My wrath.” God was angry at the people’s decision to ask for a king. The main reason for His answer was that they already had a king! Why did the Israelites need the human embodiment of a king when they already had God as their king? He was the same God Who had sent the plagues upon the Egyptians. He was the same God Who had led the people across the Red Sea as they came out of Egypt. He was the same God Who shook Mt. Sinai when the Covenant was given. That same God was still their King. There was no reason for the people to have another king. In fact, in 1 Samuel 8:11-18 God warned the people in great detail how that one day they would rue their decision to ask for a king. God told them that they would cry out, but it would be too late. And we see in 1 Samuel 19 that the people did exactly that when they realized they had sinned by asking for a king. Nevertheless, the people wanted a king. And they got a sad excuse for one in Saul.
From the outset, there is a valuable lesson here for Bible students to learn today. We need to be careful what we ask for and what we insist on—because we might just get it! We need to always pray, just as Jesus did in the Garden of Gethsemane, “Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me. But not My will, but Your will be done” (Mt. 26:39). When we ask for things or insist upon things that we think we need, we need to say, “If it is Your will, Father, and if it is best for us.” If we ask for something and insist upon it, and it is not good for us, we might just get those things—and then come to recognize that we did not need them after all (just as the Israelites realized that King Saul was not what they needed).
Let me now give you a little biographical information about Saul. He was of the tribe of Benjamin, and his father was Kish (1 Sam. 9:1). He was from the city of Gibea, which is about five miles due north of Jerusalem. Saul was appointed king of Israel around the year 1090 B.C. He reigned for forty years—up to the reign of David around 1050. Saul reigned forty years; David reigned forty years; and Solomon reigned forty years. Then Rehoboam arrives and the kingdom splits because of the foolish way in which he acted. Of the 120 years of the United Kingdom, Saul was the first king around 1090 B.C. Saul’s death in battle was due ultimately to the fact that he had been wounded by enemy archers (1 Sam. 31:3), after which he fell on his own sword and died (1 Sam. 31:4-5).The account of Saul’s life in Scripture is found in 1 Samuel 9-31, and in 1 Chronicles 10. This, then, gives us some background about Saul so that we can understand who he was and where he came from.
But now let’s talk about the good in King Saul’s life. There were not many good things in Saul’s life, but there were a few. For example, before being anointed as king, Saul did seem to have a sense of humility in his life. In 1 Samuel 10:20-21 we read,
“When Samuel had caused all the tribes of Israel to come near, the tribe of Benjamin was chosen. When he had caused the tribe of Benjamin to come near by their families, the family of Matri was chosen. And Saul the son of Kish was chosen. But when they sought him, he could not be found.”
Saul was not concerned about what was going on. He was out doing other things. His aspiration was not to be king. So, it appears as if he possessed a sense of humility. Humility is something that every person needs to have in his life. Both in 1 Peter 5 and in James 4 the Scriptures teach that God exalts the humble, but puts down those who think more of themselves than they ought to. In Luke 14:11 we are told, “Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” We need humility so that we will not think too highly of ourselves, and so that we can be ready to allow God to use us in this life.
Another good thing that we can say about Saul is that he excelled in physical stature and beauty above all those in Israel. In 1 Samuel 9:2 the Bible says of Kish,
“He had a choice and handsome son whose name was Saul. There was not a more handsome person than he among the children of Israel. From his shoulders upward he was taller than any of the people. “
I mention this here only because it is difficult to find something good about Saul. However, we must realize that God does not see as man sees. We learn this from the account of David. In people’s eyes, all of David’s brothers would have been a better choice for king than David. But not according to God—because He does not see as man sees, but looks upon the heart. Did God know that Saul had potential and ability? Sure. But did God also know that Saul would make bad choices? Sure He did. So let’s not place too much emphasis on the physical or outward. Rather, let’s look at the inward. Someone could be the most beautiful or attractive person in the world, yet be dark as night inside—which would cause his or her life to be full of ruin or death. Then again, someone else might not be what people would think of as the most physically attractive, might be one of the most spiritual people in all the Bible.
The Spirit of God initially came upon Saul and worked through him to accomplish God’s will. Notice the words of 1 Samuel 10:6—“Then the Spirit of the Lord will come upon you, and you will prophesy with them and be turned into another man.” Initially, Saul had the Spirit of God upon him and working through him. He was in accord with God, and was walking hand in hand, so to speak, with the Spirit of God so that he and God were working together. There was a point in Saul’s life when he did good things, and when walked hand in hand with God.
How we today need to walk hand in hand with God so that we can align ourselves with the Spirit of God that is found within His Word. How can God’s Spirit work through us today? We do not live in the time of the miraculous where we can perform miracles, speak in tongues, or do things of that nature. First Corinthians 13:8-10 teaches that that time period has ended. The ability to perform miracles was available only through the laying on of the apostles’ hands (Acts 8:12), and when the last apostle died, the ability to pass on miracles ceased. But does that mean that God and His Spirit cannot work in us? No. They can—through the pages of the Bible. The Bible is the Spirit’s Word. It is the power of God. As we put the Word of God into our hearts and minds, we can allow God’s Spirit to work through us so that we can be a powerful force for God today in doing good.
We also know that Saul accomplished much good in the Israelites’ battles against heathen nations. We read about in 1 Samuel 11, 13, and subsequent chapters. Saul initially did God’s will by defeating heathen nations and spreading the borders of God’s kingdom. This is when Saul was actually listening to Samuel and to God. But that was going to change. We can do a lot of good today in the battles that we face if we will listen to God and submit to His will. We must realize that we are in a battle. In 2 Corinthians 10:3-4 we read, “Though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God.” Yes, we live fleshly lives. But we do not fight fleshly battles. We are fighting against the spiritual hosts of wickedness (Eph. 6:10-12). If we will listen to God’s plan, put on God’s armor, and continue to fight the good fight of faith, then we, unlike Saul (who changed), we can remain the same and continue to win battles against God’s foes.
Now let’s think about the bad things in King Saul’s life. Saul’s first transgression was his unauthorized worship to God. In 1 Samuel 13 Saul officiated in a sacrifice to God, contrary to the Lord’s word. And he was punished for doing so. As a result, Saul’s dynasty died that day. Notice 1 Samuel 13:9-14,
“So Saul said, ‘Bring a burnt offering and peace offerings here to me.’ And he offered the burnt offering. Now it happened, as soon as he had finished presenting the burnt offering, that Samuel came; and Saul went out to meet him, that he might greet him. And Samuel said, ‘What have you done?’ And Saul said, ‘When I saw that the people were scattered from me, and that you did not come within the days appointed, and that the Philistines gathered together at Michmash, then I said, “The Philistines will now come down on me at Gilgal, and I have not made supplication to the Lord.” Therefore I felt compelled, and offered a burnt offering.’ And Samuel said to Saul, ‘You have done foolishly. You have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God, which He commanded you. For now the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. But now your kingdom shall not continue. The Lord has sought for Himself a man after His own heart, and the Lord has commanded him to be commander over His people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you.’ Then Samuel arose and went up from Gilgal to Gibeah of Benjamin. And Saul numbered the people present with him, about six hundred men.”
Saul had won a great battle in the past, but there would be more in the future. His enemies were approaching, and Samuel had not arrived. Saul felt like a sacrifice needed to be made, and that supplications needed to be made to the Lord so that His words could be heard. Saul thought he was in a difficult situation. So he offered the sacrifice himself. Was that acceptable? From what tribe did Saul come? Was he a Levite? No, he was a Benjamite. He had no right to offer a sacrifice. Samuel had been given that privilege. It was his duty and responsibility. Just because things were not working according to King Saul’s time schedule, he thought that he needed to rush things and take care of offering the sacrifice. From this lesson we can learn a very practical principle. God does not need my help or your help, especially when He has told us how He wants something done. If something does not work exactly on our time schedule, we need to be patient and trust in the Lord. If we will do that, everything will work out. Just because things are not going exactly as we think they should, we do not have the right to rush God or push things to make them work. We need to be still, and know that God will help us (Ps. 46:1-10). We need to put our trust in the Lord. We should never do something that is against God’s will in order to “force God’s hand” or even to seek God’s help. It is never right to do wrong. Saul, unfortunately, had to learn that lesson the hard way.
Saul’s second transgression was his disobedience and rebellion to God’s will concerning Amalek. In 1 Samuel 14 and 15 God told Saul to completely annihilate all the people and animals of the Amalekites. He was not to leave any oxen, flocks, or people alive. He was to utterly destroy everything. Saul did about 95% percent of what God had commanded him. Yet it was disobedience that caused God to dishonor Saul and eventually raise up David. Even though Saul did about 95% of what God had commanded, the Lord considered his acts to be treacherous and rebellious. Notice the words of 1 Samuel 15:22-23.
“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. For rebellion is as the sin of 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.”
Saul did 95%. But when Samuel approached Saul and asked, “What then is this bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear? And why have you left the king alive, and taken these beautiful garments?,” Saul said basically, “We did it for You, God. We kept back the best of the flocks to make a sacrifice. We kept back some of the gold and some of the best garments. And we are going to give it all to You. We did it all for Your glory.” Saul’s motives were good. He did about 95% of what God said. Yet God still said, “This is like rebellion and witchcraft!” Saul’s attitude was, “God, we were just trying to give You the glory. Even though we may have made a few small changes, we did it to honor You.” From this we learn that God expects us to do exactly what He says. He does not want us to change His Word—even if we think it will “help” God. God does not need that. When God says something, He means exactly that. It was this action by Saul that caused the kingdom to be torn from him and given to another. It also was this action that caused God to say in 1 Samuel 15:35 that He regretted having made Saul king. How we need to understand today that when it comes to our worship, God does not need our help. We are here to worship God. John 4:24 says, “God is a Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” When God tells us exactly what He wants—even if we do not like it, or if we think we might can “do it a little better” to honor God—God wants us to do exactly what He has said. If God had wanted our help, He would have told us.
For example, people often bring mechanical instruments of music into their worship. But the Scriptures clearly teach that we are to “speak to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart [not on an organ, guitar, or drum] to the Lord” (Eph. 5:19; Col. 3:16). Some people say, “I know that God said that, but it just sounds so good, and it makes our worship so much better even though God hasn’t asked for it.” But this makes us start to sound like Saul. “Even though God hasn’t asked for it, we’re going to give it to Him anyway.” God sees such acts on our part “as rebellion and witchcraft,” just as He did Saul’s actions. God does not need our help. When God tells us to do something, He expects us to do exactly that—nothing more, and nothing less. We are to take God at His Word.
Saul was obsessed with jealousy over David. The people of Israel sang a song: “Saul has killed his thousands, but David has killed his tens of thousands.” At the hearing of that song, Saul began from that very day to hate David. He hated him so much that Saul even took a javelin, threw it at David, and tried to kill him. God protected David, of course. But look at the jealousy that ate Saul up. From that day on, part of his mission was to destroy David. In so doing, his jealousy destroyed him. A practical lesson can be learned here as well. If we allow ourselves to be eaten up with jealousy, we will never be the people God wants us to be. Maybe someone else can do something better than I can. How ought I to feel about that? Instead of being jealous and trying to take advantage of that person or make them look bad, I ought to be thankful to God that the person has such a talent. I ought to encourage the person and help him to use his talent in any way possible. I may not have such a talent, but he does. We are not all the same. Thank God that the person has such a talent. We should not be jealous of other people because it will never do us any good.
Now we’ve seen the good and the bad in Saul’s life. So let’s look at the ugly. One of the ugliest acts in Saul’s life was his murder of the priests of God by the hand of Doeg the Edomite. In 1 Samuel 22:6-23 Saul gave Doeg permission to assassinate the priests of God. This act on Saul’s part was out of envy and jealousy. And it clearly expressed the lengths to which Saul was willing to go to keep his power. The high priest recognized that David was going to be the new king. Saul did not like that, so he sent Does his henchman to kill the priests. Saul sank so low that he actually killed the men who were officiating in worship to God—because they refused to agree with him. This was a power struggle. When we reach a point that we will do things to godly people so that we can keep our power, it is both sad and ugly.
Another ugly act by Saul was his consulting with a necromancer (a person who allegedly talks with the dead). This person is known in the Bible as the witch of Endor (1 Sam. 28). This was a despicable act because it was a clear violation of Scripture. What Saul himself had previously outlawed, he now was willing to use. Saul had outlawed sorcerers, necromancers, and mediums. Yet in his desperation he sank to the ugly point of actually consulting a witch. The Old Testament clearly prohibited the consulting of the dead. In Deuteronomy 18:10-11 we read,
“There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead.”
God had stopped communicating with Saul because David was on the rise. So, as a desperate act to try to communicate with the Lord, Saul consulted the witch of Endor in an attempt to speak with Samuel. By the power of God (not the witch), Samuel does come back. We can know the witch was a fake because of her response at the sight of Samuel. This was the hand of God, not the power of the witch. In 1 Samuel 28:12 Samuel comes back, and the witch herself is scared! If she thought this was going to happen, why was she frightened at the sight of Samuel? She did not believe she could raise Samuel’s spirit. But God used this one last act to show Saul his foolishness. The state in which we see Saul is ugly indeed.
The last disgraceful act of Saul is his own suicide. Saul was wounded in battle (1 Sam. 31). The archers had shot and hit Saul, but it was not a deadly blow. He sees his enemies coming over the horizon. He does not want to die at his enemies’ hands because it would be disgraceful. It would be the ultimate sign of God’s having left Saul, and would be a disgrace to his whole family. So now he asks his armor bearer to run him through with his own sword. But the man refuses to do that. So Saul falls on his own sword. He is so desperate to look good in people’s eyes, to be held in esteem, and to be looked up to that he kills himself so that it will not look like God has left him and allowed his enemies to kill him. When we sink to levels that low, how sad it is. Saul was a despicable leader. He had great talent and potential. And for a short time—when he was walking hand in hand with God—he did great things. But he became full of pride and full of himself. He thought that he was “the best thing out there,” that everyone needed him, and that he could “do it on his own.” He stopped listening to God’s law, and started making sacrifices himself. He then did “almost” everything God said, but decided to “help God out a little bit.” He thought God needed his help. Then he began to be jealous and hateful toward others—to the point that he even wanted to see David (whom the Scriptures describe as “a man after God’s own heart”) die.
From Saul’s life, we can learn a powerful lesson. The moment we stop listening to God and stop doing what He has told us to do, is the moment that our downfall will occur. How we need to hear the voice of God! In Revelation 2 and 3 we find a common refrain: “To him who has ears to hear, let him hear.” Let’s hear God’s Word today.
What does God say about salvation? God says that in order to be a saved, a person must first hear the Word of God (Rom. 10:17). Then a person must believe that Jesus is the Christ, the King of kings and Lord of lords (Jn. 8:24). A person must be willing to repent and change his life. He cannot remain hard hearted. He cannot think that he can “do it himself.” Her must repent and turn to God (Acts 3:19). A person also must make the good confession. Romans 10:10 says, “With the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” Then a person must be immersed in water for the forgiveness of sins. On the Day of Pentecost recorded in Acts 2, when the Jews cried out, “Men and brethren, what must we do?,” the answer was, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins” (Acts 2:38). If God says that baptism is “for the remission of sins,” and we want to do everything that God has said, then we will be baptized in order to be saved (Mk. 16:16). Are you living your life as a life of goodness? Or, are you “almost” doing what God has said? Do not be like Saul. Rather, be like David and be a person “after God’s own heart.” Obey the Gospel of Christ.
Narrator accompanied by a cappella singing:
THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST is brought to you by loving, caring members of the church of Christ. The McLish Avenue church of Christ in Ardmore, Oklahoma, oversees this evangelistic effort. For a free CD or DVD of today’s broadcast, please write to:
THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST
607 McLish Ave.
Ardmore, OK 73401
You may call 580-223-3289. Please visit us on the web at www.thegospelofchrist.com. We encourage you to attend the church of Christ, where “the Bible is loved and the Gospel is preached.”
“King Saul—the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly”
1. What is the context (found in 1 Samuel 8:1-7) of the Israelites’ request of Samuel that he anoint a king to rule over them?
2. What does Hosea 13:11 tell us about how God viewed the Israelites’ request for a king?
3. What important warning (found in 1 Samuel 8:11-18) did Samuel give the Israelites (on God’s behalf) about how a king would treat them?
4. According to 1 Samuel 9:1, who was Saul?
5. According to material presented in this lesson, approximately when did Saul reign over Israel, and how long did that reign last?
6. According to material presented in this lesson, what good trait of Saul’s is presented in 1 Samuel 10:20-21?
7. What important information is found in Luke 14:11?
8. What does 1 Samuel 9:2 say about Saul?
9. According to 1 Samuel 10:6, what unusual thing happened to Saul at one point in his life?
10. According to material presented in this lesson, what was Saul’s first transgression against God, and what was the result of that transgression?
11. According to material presented in this lesson, what was Saul’s second transgression against God, and what was the result of that transgression?
12. In 1 Samuel 15:13 Saul told Samuel after returning from an assignment on which God had sent him, “I have performed the commandment of the Lord.” What question did Samuel ask the king in the very next verse (14) which showed that Saul was not telling the truth?
13. According to material presented in this lesson, what sinful emotion ran amok in Saul’s life in regard to his successor, David?
14. What effect did the emotion mentioned in question #13 (above) have on Saul?
16. According to material presented in this lesson, what is the second ugly thing that Saul did as king?
17. According to material presented in this lesson, what is the last (and truly final) ugly thing that Saul did as king?
THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST, 607 McLish Ave., Ardmore, OK 73401; (580) 223-3289; www.thegospelofchrist.com