In 1 Samuel chapter 15, we see that Saul felt like his disobedience to God was justifiable. We often feel the same way, after all, isn’t preserving lives a good thing? Saul preserved the life of King Agag and he also saved the best of the flock’s to be used as an acceptable sacrifice unto God. The issue is that we don’t get to decide what is acceptable and we don’t get to substitute sacrifice for obedience.

Samuel also said unto Saul, The LORD sent me to anoint thee to be king over his people, over Israel: now therefore hearken thou unto the voice of the words of the LORD.
Thus saith the LORD of hosts, I remember that which Amalek did to Israel, how he laid wait for him in the way, when he came up from Egypt.
Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass.
And Saul gathered the people together, and numbered them in Telaim, two hundred thousand footmen, and ten thousand men of Judah.
And Saul came to a city of Amalek, and laid wait in the valley.
And Saul said unto the Kenites, Go, depart, get you down from among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them: for ye shewed kindness to all the children of Israel, when they came up out of Egypt. So the Kenites departed from among the Amalekites.
And Saul smote the Amalekites from Havilah until thou comest to Shur, that is over against Egypt.
And he took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword.
But Saul and the people 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 every thing that was vile and refuse, that they destroyed utterly.

1 Samuel 15:1-9

Three steps to disobedience

1. Rebellion, refusing to hearken unto the voice of the words of the Lord
2. Hardness of Heart, refusing correction when it was offered
3. Spiritual Blindness, refusing to acknowledge his error

Saul was anointed and dedicated for service unto the Lord, if you are a Christian today, you have also been dedicated for service unto the Lord:

And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.

1 Corinthians 6:11

Rebellion is the first step

Rebellion was Saul’s first step towards disobedience, and if we are not careful it will also become our first step as well.

But they rebelled, and vexed his holy Spirit: therefore he was turned to be their enemy, and he fought against them.

Isaiah 63:10

For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.

Galatians 5:17

Saul spared King Agag and the best of the flocks

But Saul and the people 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 every thing that was vile and refuse, that they destroyed utterly.

1 Samuel 15:9

Saul spared King Agag and the best of the flocks, which at first glance may not seem like a big deal. After all, isn’t sparing lives and sacrificing to the Lord good? Until you realize the history that the Amalekites had with Israel, the Lord’s commandment may seem a bit severe, but as we read in Exodus chapter 17, we see that the Amalakites attacked Israel when they were coming out of Egypt.

Then came Amalek, and fought with Israel in Rephidim.

Exodus 17:8

And the LORD said unto Moses, Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua: for I will utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven.
And Moses built an altar, and called the name of it Jehovahnissi:
For he said, Because the LORD hath sworn that the LORD will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.

Exodus 17:14-16

Saul did not consider his lack of utterly destroying the Amalekites as a failure to perform the command of the Lord. We can see the difference in his viewpoint from the Lords viewpoint by looking at verse 11 as compared with verse 13:

Then came the word of the LORD unto Samuel, saying, It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king: for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments. And it grieved Samuel; and he cried unto the LORD all night.

1 Samuel 15:10-11

And Samuel came to Saul: and Saul said unto him, Blessed be thou of the LORD: I have performed the commandment of the LORD.

1 Samuel 15:13

Saul felt justified in his partial obedience, but selective obedience equals rebellion. God views incomplete obedience as total disobedience.

Hardness of Heart is the second step

And Saul said unto Samuel, Yea, I have obeyed the voice of the LORD, and have gone the way which the LORD sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites.
But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice unto the LORD thy God in Gilgal.

1 Samuel 15:20-21

Justifiable Disobedience

Rather than confessing his sin, Saul sought to justify his disobedience

And Samuel said, What meaneth then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?
And Saul said, They have brought them from the Amalekites: for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen, to sacrifice unto the LORD thy God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed.

1 Samuel 15:14-15

After Saul claimed to have performed the commandment of the Lord, Samuel asked him, then why do I hear all of these animals? In other words, if you had performed the commandment of the Lord, then all of these noisy animals would not be alive to make such sounds. Samuel was pointed out to Saul that he had not, in fact, performed the commandment of the Lord, but Saul believed that his partial obedience was good enough, because it was for a worthy purpose. They had planned to use the flocks as a sacrifice unto the Lord. There are two issues with this plan of Saul’s:

1. He was told to utterly destroy the flocks, not to sacrifice them
2. Sacrifice must cost you something, or else it is no sacrifice at all

And Araunah said unto David, Let my lord the king take and offer up what seemeth good unto him: behold, here be oxen for burnt sacrifice, and threshing instruments and other instruments of the oxen for wood.
All these things did Araunah, as a king, give unto the king. And Araunah said unto the king, The LORD thy God accept thee.
And the king said unto Araunah, Nay; but I will surely buy it of thee at a price: neither will I offer burnt offerings unto the LORD my God of that which doth cost me nothing. So David bought the threshingfloor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.
And David built there an altar unto the LORD, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. So the LORD was intreated for the land, and the plague was stayed from Israel.

2 Samuel 24:22-25

Saul hardened his heart towards the things of God, instead of accepting the correction that was offered to him through Samuel.

Spiritual Blindness is the final step

But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

1 Corinthians 2:14

Saul demonstrates his Spiritual blindness by persisting to call his actions obedience, and by trying to lay the responsability of not utterly destroying the Amalakites, and their flocks on the people that he was responsible to lead.

God desires reality over ritual, sacrificing things unto God is a good thing, if that is what the Lord has told you to do. But obedience is better because obedience involves the sacrificing of ourselves. We can’t compensate for our lack of obedience with a sacrifice.

A sacrifice must be offered to God on his terms, not ours, what has the Lord commanded you to sacrifice? Remember, partial obedience is rebellion, you can’t just go halfway with the Lord. That is what Saul attempted to do, he went where he was commanded to go, but he didn’t do everything that he was told to do while he was there. How about you?

Our hope at Irvington Bible Baptist Church is that this podcast provided some encouragement and has helped you to develop a closer relationship with the LORD Jesus Christ.