1 Samuel 14:24-52
Context:
1 Samuel 14 marks the beginning of Saul’s demise as king of Israel. Last week we saw Jonathan placing complete confidence and trust in the Lord to go up and take the Philistine outpost alongside his armor-bearer. We saw that nothing can hinder the Lord from saving by many or by few.
Please stand for the reading of God’s Word.
Romans 8:5-6
5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. 6 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.
This week the attention turns back to Saul and his poor leadership. In 1 Samuel 14, a great spiritual dichotomy is laid before our eyes. On the one hand, the first part of chapter 14 describes Jonathan, a man led by the Spirit of God, seeking to take initiative in the Lord. On the other hand, this morning, the second half of chapter 14 shows us Saul, a man led by the flesh.
Caveat: Now a common pitfall we want to avoid is to somehow distance ourselves from Saul. To somehow think that we are immune to the same self-centeredness that plagues his leadership. We cannot look down on Saul. We all are prone to wander. We all are one heart posture away from leading our lives in the flesh.
(…pause…)
So, I dare you to probingly ask yourself this morning, “How am I like Saul?” If you do see yourself in Saul, like I do, then the next step for us is crucial. Look to Jesus. (…pause…) Look to Jesus, and let your heart be melted afresh by seeing Jesus as the fulfillment of everything Saul fails to be as Israel’s king.
You see, the character of king Saul draws our hearts to long for a true and better King. A King who came to serve rather than to be served. A true and better King who came to give His life as a ransom for many rather than a self-centered king who pronounces death by a curse.
Main point for today: Understand the difference between leadership in the flesh and leadership in the Spirit.
The Burdensome Oath (v24-32)
The Blame Shifting Leader (v33-35)
The Brash Leader & the Silence of God (v36-41)
The Blaming Father & the Son’s Ransom (v42-46)
The Burdensome Battle (v47-52)
The Burdensome Oath (v24-32)
24 And the men of Israel had been hard pressed that day, so Saul had laid an oath on the people, saying, “Cursed be the man who eats food until it is evening and I am avenged on my enemies.” So none of the people had tasted food.
Why does Saul make such a burdensome oath?
Self-centered purposes (until…I am avenged on my enemies)
Instead of looking to the needs of his people, Saul wants to look pious before his people by proclaiming this fast
He assumes God will bless their military efforts if they fast
But this superstitious leadership move becomes a great burden on his people (they needed nourishment after expending energy in battle)
What’s the difference between leadership in the flesh and leadership in the Spirit in this verse? Leadership in the flesh is self-seeking, can be very religious, and disregards the needs of others (reference the Pharisees)
I’m guilty of such leadership too! Marriage and parenting will show you just how self-centered you truly are!
“How exhausting is the misery of self. How energizing are the joys of living for another.”
― Dane C. Ortlund, Gentle and Lowly
And so, Saul’s oath, although appearing religious is self-centered
Whereas leadership in the Spirit seeks to do the will of the Lord and involves self-sacrifice and self-denial for the good of others
Contrast to Jonathan earlier in the chapter and Esther proclaiming a fast
Contrast to Christ’s leadership in the Spirit: Garden of Gethsemane (not My will by Yours be done)
Instead of laying burdens on His people, Jesus takes our burden and gives rest to our souls.
Matthew 11:28-29
28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
25 Now when all the people came to the forest, behold, there was honey on the ground. 26 And when the people entered the forest, behold, the honey was dropping, but no one put his hand to his mouth, for the people feared the oath.
27 But Jonathan had not heard his father charge the people with the oath, so he put out the tip of the staff that was in his hand and dipped it in the honeycomb and put his hand to his mouth, and his eyes became bright. 28 Then one of the people said, “Your father strictly charged the people with an oath, saying, ‘Cursed be the man who eats food this day.’” And the people were faint.
Jonathan’s innocent breaking of Saul’s burdensome oath leads to his eyes becoming bright
This contrasts to the people feeling faint
Notice how this phrase “the people were faint” gets repeated in v31
Saul’s leadership in the flesh leads to weariness
“And the people were faint”
Contrast to Christ’s leadership in the Spirit (Jesus seeks to meet the needs of others to prevent the people from fainting)
Matthew 15:32
Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I have compassion on the crowd because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. And I am unwilling to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way.”
29 Then Jonathan said, “My father has troubled the land. See how my eyes have become bright because I tasted a little of this honey. 30 How much better if the people had eaten freely today of the spoil of their enemies that they found. For now the defeat among the Philistines has not been great.”
Jonathan spells out Saul’s leadership as troublesome
His leadership in the flesh had the cascading effect of troubling the people and specifically “the defeat among the Philistines had not been great”
In other words, the battle against the Philistines was much harder for the Israelites because they were faint from not eating any food
31 They struck down the Philistines that day from Michmash to Aijalon. And the people were very faint. 32 The people pounced on the spoil and took sheep and oxen and calves and slaughtered them on the ground. And the people ate them with the blood.
Notice how the people “pounced on the spoil” in v32
The phrase “pounced on” can also be translated as “rushed greedily upon”
And so, the people sin against the Lord by eating the animals with the blood (breaking Levitical law)
Application for us today: following unnecessary rules can only be kept up for so long. Sooner or later you will wear yourself out, become faint, and give into sin.
Contrast to leadership in the Spirit:
Acts 15:10-11
10 Now, therefore, why are you putting God to the test by placing a yoke on the neck of the disciples that neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? 11 But we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will.”
The Blame Shifting Leader (v33-35)
33 Then they told Saul, “Behold, the people are sinning against the Lord by eating with the blood.” And he said, “You have dealt treacherously; roll a great stone to me here.”
Here we see Saul’s leadership in the flesh leading him to blame shift and point the finger at his people
Instead of taking ownership for his foolish and burdensome oath, Saul shifts all of the blame onto the people for eating in a sinful manner (when they were most likely crazed with hunger)
Application: Leadership in the Spirit means we take ownership for the part we played in the sin of those under our charge
Christ’s leadership in the Spirit (Instead of pointing the finger at us, Jesus took the blame for our sin even though He had never sinned)
1 Peter 3:18
18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit,
34 And Saul said, “Disperse yourselves among the people and say to them, ‘Let every man bring his ox or his sheep and slaughter them here and eat, and do not sin against the Lord by eating with the blood.’” So every one of the people brought his ox with him that night and they slaughtered them there. 35 And Saul built an altar to the Lord; it was the first altar that he built to the Lord.
Saul has everyone bring an ox for sacrifice to atone for the sin of eating the animals with the blood
He still doesn’t take ownership for the part he played in the people’s sin
Saul builds an altar to the Lord (his first)
On the surface, Saul’s action of building the altar appears very spiritual and religious
But the next verse reveals that Saul’s leadership in the flesh is cloaked in the pretense of religiosity.
The Brash Leader & the Silence of God (v36-41)
36 Then Saul said, “Let us go down after the Philistines by night and plunder them until the morning light; let us not leave a man of them.” And they said, “Do whatever seems good to you.” But the priest said, “Let us draw near to God here.”
As I said…Leadership in the flesh cloaked in the pretense of religiosity…it’s almost as if Saul built the altar to the Lord, patted himself on the back, and said to himself, “Okay, I’ve done my religious duty. Now God owes me a victory against my enemies. Let’s go take out the Philistines!”
We are prone to do the same kind of thing!
The people’s words of “Do whatever seems good to you” are reminiscent of that of Jonathan’s armor-bearer in v7, but unlike the armor-bearer, the people’s faith in Saul is misplaced
Saul’s leadership in the flesh is brash and seeks to rush into things without first seeking the counsel of the Lord
V36 But the priest said, “Let us draw near to God here.”
In effect the priest says, “Woah, woah, woah, Saul. Let’s pump the brakes and draw near to God here to seek His counsel before rushing into battle.”
Application: Do you have people in your life who will slow you down before you rush into something and say to you, “Wait a minute. Let’s draw near to God here.”?
Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you (James 4:8).
Drawing near to God means unhurried stillness before the Lord
“Stillness before God transforms us into unhurried love. It is in the stillness of silent prayer that God turns over the soil of our hearts, revealing our desires to us and the source of their fullest satisfaction. When we stop moving, stop talking, and arrive present and quiet before God, He takes all of our disordered desires, distorted attachments, and codependencies and transforms them into love.”
-Tyler Staton, Praying Like Monks, Living Like Fools
Leadership in the Spirit always seeks to draw near to God before taking action.
37 And Saul inquired of God, “Shall I go down after the Philistines? Will you give them into the hand of Israel?” But he did not answer him that day.
God is silent with Saul (v37)
His intimacy with God is absent
It wasn’t the sin of the people that separated Saul from God, but the posture of Saul’s heart (after Saul, God puts David on the throne—a man after His own heart)
What is your heart’s posture before the Lord?
Leadership in the Spirit:
James 4:10
10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.
What do you do when you experience the silence of God?
What did Saul do when he slammed against the brick wall of the silence of God?
38 And Saul said, “Come here, all you leaders of the people, and know and see how this sin has arisen today. 39 For as the Lord lives who saves Israel, though it be in Jonathan my son, he shall surely die.”
Saul’s prideful leadership in the flesh means he’s willing even to sacrifice his own son
In v39, Saul makes another brash oath, but this time he does so in the name of the Lord. Warren Wiersbe comments that this is an example of taking the name of the Lord in vain because Saul’s heart is impure before the Lord.
Mark 7:6
6 And he said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written,
“‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me;
Now how do the people respond to Saul’s words in v39?
V39 But there was not a man among all the people who answered him.
Notice here that not only does God not answer Saul, but none of the people answer him either (v39)
None of the people wish to rat out Jonathan (he had won their hearts)
40 Then he said to all Israel, “You shall be on one side, and I and Jonathan my son will be on the other side.” And the people said to Saul, “Do what seems good to you.” 41 Therefore Saul said, “O Lord God of Israel, why have you not answered your servant this day? If this guilt is in me or in Jonathan my son, O Lord, God of Israel, give Urim. But if this guilt is in your people Israel, give Thummim.” And Jonathan and Saul were taken, but the people escaped.
In v41, Saul asks God why He’s been silent with him. Saul’s strategy is to find the guilty party. He uses a process of elimination by means of the Urim and Thummim.
Notice how Saul uses prayer primarily as means of getting information out of God rather than as means to enjoy God for who He is
Saul wants answers, and he wants them now!
Transactional prayer vs. the Practice of the Presence of God (Brother Lawrence)
“That his prayer was nothing else but a sense of the presence of GOD, his soul being at that time insensible to everything but Divine love: and that when the appointed times of prayer were past, he found no difference, because he still continued with GOD, praising and blessing Him with all his might, so that he passed his life in continual joy;”
― Brother Lawrence, The Practice of the Presence of God
Christ (spending hours in the presence of His Father)
Luke 6:12
12 In these days he went out to the mountain to pray, and all night he continued in prayer to God.
The Blaming Father & the Son’s Ransom (v42-46)
42 Then Saul said, “Cast the lot between me and my son Jonathan.” And Jonathan was taken.
The casting of the lot reveals Jonathan was the guilty party (he had innocently broken Saul’s burdensome oath without knowing about it in the first place)
43 Then Saul said to Jonathan, “Tell me what you have done.” And Jonathan told him, “I tasted a little honey with the tip of the staff that was in my hand. Here I am; I will die.” 44 And Saul said, “God do so to me and more also; you shall surely die, Jonathan.”
You see the hardness of Saul’s heart here. He puts the blame completely on Jonathan for breaking the oath that troubled all the people—an oath that Saul had made foolishly
Saul is so blinded by his pride and insecurity as a leader that he’s willing to put his own son to death for “justice” in his eyes
Contrast to leadership in the Spirit: seek justice and mercy. Saul shows no mercy. At the cross, Jesus perfectly fulfills justice and mercy.
45 Then the people said to Saul, “Shall Jonathan die, who has worked this great salvation in Israel? Far from it! As the Lord lives, there shall not one hair of his head fall to the ground, for he has worked with God this day.” So the people ransomed Jonathan, so that he did not die. 46 Then Saul went up from pursuing the Philistines, and the Philistines went to their own place.
The people side with Jonathan. They realize the faith he had in the Lord to launch the attack on the Philistines. In v46, they summarize Jonathan’s actions by saying, “he has worked with God this day.”
Working with God is the essence of leadership in the Spirit. May we be led by the Holy Spirit. May we be utterly dependent on the Holy Spirit. And others will say of us, “Those people work with God.”
Illustration of sharing with Michael at the pool (if you have time)
The Burdensome Battle (v47-52)
47 When Saul had taken the kingship over Israel, he fought against all his enemies on every side, against Moab, against the Ammonites, against Edom, against the kings of Zobah, and against the Philistines. Wherever he turned he routed them. 48 And he did valiantly and struck the Amalekites and delivered Israel out of the hands of those who plundered them.
49 Now the sons of Saul were Jonathan, Ishvi, and Malchi-shua. And the names of his two daughters were these: the name of the firstborn was Merab, and the name of the younger Michal. 50 And the name of Saul's wife was Ahinoam the daughter of Ahimaaz. And the name of the commander of his army was Abner the son of Ner, Saul's uncle. 51 Kish was the father of Saul, and Ner the father of Abner was the son of Abiel.
Sidebar: these verses serve to introduce us to characters who will come up later in the narrative (i.e. Michal & Abner)
52 There was hard fighting against the Philistines all the days of Saul. And when Saul saw any strong man, or any valiant man, he attached him to himself.
Note the phrase “hard fighting”
Another translation of this is “severe” (NASB)
When you put confidence in the flesh your battles are severe, exhausting, and burdensome
Saul always looked for the strong and valiant man to join his army
Contrast to Psalm 146:3, 5
Psalm 146:3, 5
3 Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation.
5 Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God,
Conclusion:
Understand the crucial difference between leadership in the flesh and leadership in the Spirit. How are you similar to Saul? In what ways does your flesh take over? Look to Jesus, and see that He is the fulfillment of everything Saul fails to be as king. After Jesus died, resurrected, and ascended, He sent us an Advocate, the Holy Spirit. And through the Holy Spirit, we can put our flesh to death, and we can let Him lead us into life and peace.
Romans 8:5-6
5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. 6 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.
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