The Sad State of Saul

Saul was a Choice Young Man — (Chapter. 9 Vs. 1-2)

A. He was a Honest Young Man — (Vs. 2)

B. He was a High Headed Young Man — (Vs. 2)

C. He was a Humble Young Man — (Vs. 21-22)

Saul was a Chosen Young Man — (Chapter 9 Vs. 15-17, Chapter 10 Vs. 24)

Saul was a Commissioned Young Man — (Chapter 10 Vs. 1)

Saul was a Changed Young Man — (Chapter 10 Vs. 6, 10-11)

Saul was an Accompanied Young Man — (Chapter 10 Vs. 27)

Here’s a man who has it all going for him! He’s a Choice young man who’s been Chosen and Commissioned by God. God’s Changed his mindset and given him His Spirit to help accomplish the task at hand and even given a company of men to go with him and help him but somehow the story from here only begins to spiral downward from Saul, ultimately ending in his defeat, demise and death.

So, what was it that caused such a downward spiral for someone who had it all going for them?

Saul was a Conflicted & Condemned Young Man

I believe it was because Saul never chose God.

You see, God chose Saul but Saul didn’t choose God.

Saul was commissioned by God but he was never committed to God’s mission.

God gave Saul another heart but in his old heart would he only trust.

Saul began with an attitude of humility but in the end it would be his pride that brought him low.

To be head and shoulders above everyone else, Saul cowered in fear to those he led.

From the onset, Saul was fearful of the calling that God had placed on his life and he feared man more than God.

If you look at the end of Chapter 10 Verses 20-23 you will see as Samuel had gathered all the tribes of Israel to Mizpeh to announce Saul as the newly appointed King they had requested, he calls the elders of the tribes, then he calls for the tribe of Benjamin to step forward, then he calls for the family of Matri from which Saul, son of Kish, was to be taken but when Samuel calls Saul’s name he is nowhere to be found!

The Bible tells us they had to enquire of God where the young man had went and where did they find him? Hiding amongst the baggage and personal items of travelers!

He was fearful of the call that God had placed on his life from the get go!

And this fear only compounded the further on down the road Saul went!

If you look over in Chapter 13 you will find where Saul didn’t follow the commandments of God and went ahead and made sacrifice to God before Samuel's arrival.

Samuel had told Saul to wait 7 days and that he would come to him and show him what to do but on that seventh day when Samuel hadn’t showed up yet, Saul took matters into his own hand and disobeyed the command of God.

This would become a common theme over and over again in Saul’s life!

Flip over to Chapter 15 and we find God telling Saul to go and “utterly destroy” the Amalekites and not to leave one thing alive!

What does Saul do?

He once again deliberately goes his own way, and does it his way and not God’s way!

He spares the choicest animals and the King of Amalek, Agag.

Samuel comes on the scene and the first thing Saul begins to do is boast about how he followed God’s commandment and one of my favorite parts of the whole Bible, Samuel says, “then what is this bleating I hear in my ear!”

Saul begins to make excuses, which had become a normal occurence for him, and says, “oh the people spared the animals to make sacrifice to God but notice there is no excuse as to why he allowed Agag to live!”

He even admits to bringing Agag back alive when God said to utterly destroy everything!

Samuel says to Saul in Verses 22-23....

1 Samuel 15:22–23 — 22 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. 23 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.

Once again, Saul had done it his way and not God’s way but this would be the final straw for Saul!

Saul begins to try and ask for forgiveness but look at how he goes about it in Verses 25-31.

1 Samuel 15:25–31 — 25 Now therefore, I pray thee, pardon my sin, and turn again with me, that I may worship the Lord. 26 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. 27 And as Samuel turned about to go away, he laid hold upon the skirt of his mantle, and it rent. 28 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. 29 And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent: for he is not a man, that he should repent. 30 Then he said, I have sinned: yet honour me now, I pray thee, before the elders of my people, and before Israel, and turn again with me, that I may worship the Lord thy God. 31 So Samuel turned again after Saul; and Saul worshipped the Lord.

The problem with Saul’s worship is it only lip service and not heartfelt.

Jesus said of the Pharisees in...

Matthew 15:8 — This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.

Saul was a prime example of this saying. He worshiped God with his lips but his heart was far from God.

The kingdom would now be rent from his hand and given to a man after God’s own heart!

From this point, Saul’s demise and decent only gets worse and worse!

It’s kind of like a snowball gaining speed rolling down a hill.

The further it goes, the bigger it gets, the faster downward it rolls!

In Chapter 16, we see the Spirit of God is taken from Saul and placed upon the new King, a man that God knew would fear Him and follow Him with all his heart!

After the Spirit was taken of Saul, we see that God replaced it with an evil spirit!

This is a prime example of what the Bible says in...

Romans 1:21–32 — 21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, 23 And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. 24 Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: 25 Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen. 26 For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: 27 And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet. 28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient; 29 Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, 30 Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, 31 Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: 32 Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.

Listen friend, God is only going to deal with a person for so long and if you continue, over and over and over to deny Him and deliberately go against His agenda, then He’s going to allow you to be overcome by your own bad habits!

From here, Saul’s life turns to one of evil, going as far as to fight against God by trying to kill the man that God had anointed as King over His people to take Saul’s place (David).

And then, Saul even stoops to the level of asking a witch from Endor to help him call Samuel up from the grave for advice!

Sadly, the advice he sought after was not what he had hoped for!

1 Samuel 28:15–19 — 15 And Samuel said to Saul, Why hast thou disquieted me, to bring me up? And Saul answered, I am sore distressed; for the Philistines make war against me, and God is departed from me, and answereth me no more, neither by prophets, nor by dreams: therefore I have called thee, that thou mayest make known unto me what I shall do. 16 Then said Samuel, Wherefore then dost thou ask of me, seeing the Lord is departed from thee, and is become thine enemy? 17 And the Lord hath done to him, as he spake by me: for the Lord hath rent the kingdom out of thine hand, and given it to thy neighbour, even to David: 18 Because thou obeyedst not the voice of the Lord, nor executedst his fierce wrath upon Amalek, therefore hath the Lord done this thing unto thee this day. 19 Moreover the Lord will also deliver Israel with thee into the hand of the Philistines: and to morrow shalt thou and thy sons be with me: the Lord also shall deliver the host of Israel into the hand of the Philistines.

These very words the next day came true just as Samuel had stated and Saul, the one who started with it all, would see his sons fall prey to the Philistines and then ultimately commit suicide by falling upon his own sword!

Such a sad state of affairs for a man who had everything going for him!

Now some of you may be saying...

“Ok Bro. Bobby. That was a very sad story but how does this apply today?”

First off, when God calls answer!

Don’t be afraid but be courageous and know that if God has called you, He’s going to equip you and guide you through whatever it is He’s called you to do!

Saul’s successor, David, was the perfect example of this!

Saul was a giant compared to most of those around him but cowed to men of low estate. David on the other hand was a small, ruddy little fellow but put his faith in the God he served and slew a giant the rest of the world feared!

Never be afraid to tackle the whatever it is that God is asking you to do!

Secondly, put your trust in God and not in yourself!

Be obedient to God’s will and not your own!

Saul’s biggest problem was the problem of self!

He couldn’t get out of his own way long enough to accomplish the wonderful things God had in store for his life!

Don’t make the same mistake Saul made!

Thirdly, as the old hymn goes, don’t spurn the invitation till the Spirit shall depart, for then you’ll see your sad condition unprepared to meet thy God!

Saul spurned God’s invitation to salvation and eventually the Spirit of God departed and he was left alone with a reprobate mind and a lost soul!

One of the saddest verses in my opinion is when Saul went to call Samuel up from the grave and he says this....

1 Samuel 28:15 — I am sore distressed; for the Philistines make war against me, and God is departed from me, and answereth me no more, neither by prophets, nor by dreams: therefore I have called thee, that thou mayest make known unto me what I shall do.

God had cut off communication with Saul because of his disobedience.

God tried and tried and tried, time after time, to give Saul a chance to turn to him when he was a young man but over and over and over Saul decided he was going to do things his way and not God’s way and it ended sadly, and badly for him.

Please don’t make the same mistakes Saul made this morning.

If God is dealing with your heart, won’t you come while the Spirit is still dealing with you!

Don’t let the same Sad State of Saul become your sad state as well!