12. Saul's Disobedience: The Cost Of Impatience Series

Saul’s Disobedience: The Cost of Impatience

May 14, 2024

Dr. Bradford Reaves

Crossway Christian Fellowship

1 Samuel 13

We’ve all felt the tension—when God’s timing seems too slow, and the pressure to act now feels overwhelming. In those moments, we face a critical choice: Will we wait in faith or rush in fear?

Years ago, a commercial pilot was cleared for takeoff. But as he taxied into position, a fog rolled in, and visibility dropped. He waited. No updates. No further instructions. The pressure from passengers and the schedule was building. So the pilot made the call—he took off without final clearance.

He made it into the air—but what he didn’t know was that another aircraft had just entered the runway from the opposite end. A collision was narrowly avoided, and the pilot’s license was revoked. Why? Because in aviation, trusting the tower is life or death. The moment you decide you know better—you put everyone at risk.

We live in a microwave world, don’t we? We tap our fingers when the 30-second timer seems too long. We refresh tracking numbers as if staring will make the package come faster. We get frustrated when God doesn’t move at the speed of our expectations. And that’s exactly where Saul was. Surrounded by enemies. Troops deserting.

Clock ticking. And God seemed late. The army was shrinking, the enemy was gathering, and the prophet was late. But instead of trusting God’s Word, Saul took matters into his own hands—and in doing so, he forfeited the future God had for him.

We want God to work like Amazon Prime. But He’s more like a seed planted in soil—slow, steady, and right on time. I once heard someone say, “I have a perfect sense of timing—unfortunately, it’s about five minutes ahead of God’s.”

And that’s exactly where Saul was…

I. The Test of Trust: When Obedience Requires Waiting

1 Saul lived for one year and then became king, and when he had reigned for two years over Israel, 2 Saul chose three thousand men of Israel. Two thousand were with Saul in Michmash and the hill country of Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan in Gibeah of Benjamin. The rest of the people he sent home, every man to his tent. 3 Jonathan defeated the garrison of the Philistines that was at Geba, and the Philistines heard of it. And Saul blew the trumpet throughout all the land, saying, “Let the Hebrews hear.”

4 And all Israel heard it said that Saul had defeated the garrison of the Philistines, and also that Israel had become a stench to the Philistines. And the people were called out to join Saul at Gilgal. 5 And the Philistines mustered to fight with Israel, thirty thousand chariots and six thousand horsemen and troops like the sand on the seashore in multitude. They came up and encamped in Michmash, to the east of Beth-aven. 6 When the men of Israel saw that they were in trouble (for the people were hard pressed), the people hid themselves in caves and in holes and in rocks and in tombs and in cisterns, 7 and some Hebrews crossed the fords of the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead. Saul was still at Gilgal, and all the people followed him trembling. 8 He waited seven days, the time appointed by Samuel. But Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the people were scattering from him. 9 So Saul said, “Bring the burnt offering here to me, and the peace offerings.” And he offered the burnt offering. (1 Samuel 13:1–9)

The scene is set: Saul is surrounded. The Philistines have mobilized a terrifying force—30,000 chariots, 6,000 horsemen, and soldiers “like the sand on the seashore.” (v. 5). His own troops are shaking in fear, hiding in caves and cisterns (v. 6), and the ones who remain are deserting fast. And to top it off? Samuel—the prophet, the one who was supposed to come and offer the sacrifice before battle—is late. The seventh day had come, but not Samuel. And with the weight of leadership on his shoulders and fear in his gut, Saul makes the call: he takes matters into his own hands. He offers the burnt offering himself—something only the priest was permitted to do.

What Saul teaches us in this moment is something many of us already know: Waiting is hardest when fear is loud. Fear is a powerful motivator. When the battle feels close, when people start leaving, when God seems quiet—our flesh wants to act. We want to fix it. We want to control it. We want to move the story forward because waiting feels like weakness.

But here’s the truth: obedience is never weakness—it’s spiritual warfare. Waiting on God is not inactivity; it’s faith in action. Saul wasn’t just facing an army—he was facing a heart test: Do I trust God’s Word even when the pressure’s rising and the clock is ticking? The bigger battle is not your circumstances or your enemies, it is yourself. Will you trust God?