• 1 samuel 31 READ Israel flees from the Phlistines because they are losing. Philistines follow after Saul and his sons, Saul is severely wounded. He asks his armor bearer to kill him to save him from being tortured. They wouldn’t do it, so Saul falls on his sword to save himself from the torture. Saul, the armorbearer and his sons all died that day including Jonathan. Israel leaves the cities, the philistines take over the cities. They come and find Saul, cut off his head, strip him and use him as a trophy to warn people to not mess with them. The men of Israel heard what had happened to Saul, so they go down and retrieve his body and burned them there and then buried their bones under the tamarisk tree and then they fast.
• This is the end of Sauls life. The culmination of his reign as king of Israel. He started out strong, but ended bad. David is supposed to be King, and he resisted it the whole time.
• Through this book we see that God demands obedience. Jesus will be a perfect King
• If you are a Christian this morning, you should want to end well. If you’re not, you’re probably sitting here wondering where you’re at with God and if you want to follow him.
• Here’s the problem with Many Christians- they have a goal identity instead of grow identity
• We should want to grow in our relationship with Christ every day all day. You never arrive
• NFL- Trying for touchdown even when behind- why? You can’t regain momentum. FORWARD
• We cannot become complacent in our relationship with God- Relationships fade with no growth
• 2 Corinthians 3:18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.
• If you’re not transforming into the image of Christ- you’re going backward. You can’t stay same
Did Saul improve over his life, or did he Fall into disrepair and destruction?
• Lets put some stuff in the positive column of Sauls life
• God chose him to lead Israel, 1 sam 9:17 “There he is, the man of whom I spoke to you. This one shall reign over My people.”
• God Changed him 1 sam 10: 6 Then the Spirit of the Lord will come upon you, and you will prophesy with them and be turned into another man.
• God Gave him another heart 1 Sam 10:9 So it was, when he had turned his back to go from Samuel, that God gave him another heart; and all those signs came to pass that day.
• God spoke through him 1 Sam 10: 11 And it happened, when all who knew him formerly saw that he indeed prophesied among the prophets,
• So God chooses him, God Changes him, God Gives him a New heart, God speaks through him
• Those are some pretty spiritual things- God moved mightily through Sauls life-
• These are the same promises of any believer in Jesus Christ- that God would save us, change us, give us a new heart- that he would use us and change us and live in us and speak through us
• When you live for Jesus the promises of God are yea and amen-
• He promises to forgive us of sin, make us new, give us new life, peace with him, joy, love
• 2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
• We are NEW creations in Christ Jesus- MADE NEW- OLD IS GONE
• We just got rid of the trees in the parking lot (reasons) Just like sin, gone- Cant ever put it back
• Ezekiel 36:26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.
Now lets look at some of the negative aspects of Sauls Life
• He started to believe he was above correction, rebuke, or destruction. Forgot who made him king
• Saul is utterly destroyed and made an cautionary tale of what happens when Pride comes
• What leads up to this level of destruction? How do you go from King to destruction?
• Saul was chosen as king, but he gave himself over to hatred, jealousy and murder. Most of what he did as king was characterized by failure and rebellion- He loved his title more than GOD
• Met MG of 1st Cav- Wonderful man. Became a 4 star general- Then--- affair in DC and nothing
• How do you go from 1 sam 9:17 So when Samuel saw Saul, the Lord said to him, “There he is, the man of whom I spoke to you. This one shall reign over My people.”
• Then the Lord said 1 sam 15: 11 “I greatly regret that I have set up Saul as king, for he has turned back from following Me, and has not performed My commandments.”
• Then God Stopped talking to him 1 sam 28: 6 And when Saul inquired of the Lord, the Lord did not answer him, either by dreams or by Urim or by the prophets.
• To where he is now? He totally disobeyed God in 1 sam 15, broke the Law of God by stepping in and acting like a priest in 1 sam 13, Spent time with Evil Spirits, had an extended amount of time where murder reigned in his heart towards David, Even tried to murder his own son, Murdered a bunch of Priests, Wasn’t obedient to God.
• Saul was not a great dude- Think about Hebrews 11- the Hall of Fame of our Faith- Is he mentioned? Nope- David and Samuel are- but he is conspicuously missing
• No references outside of 1 Samuel in a positive light. He’s just dead and the story moves on.
• Saul was so deceived that he didn’t even know that God wasn’t with him anymore
• The slippery slope of sin pulled him away from his calling and his life with God
• The JC Penney Pants story- never went there- set a limit- Thankful- Don’t want to go there
• Saul didn’t set a limit- He didn’t notice the trend. He didn’t respond to rebukes
• There wasn’t any repentance at the end of sauls life- He didn’t turn back to God-
• Since Genesis- the only thing that has pleased God is righteousness by faith- Believing God
THE BIG QUESTION IS- IF SAUL FELL AWAY AFTER SERVING GOD, WHAT ABOUT US?
Is it possible that Christian can fall into disrepair and end poorly?Scriptures about falling away
• Matt 24:11 Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. 12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved.
• 1 Timothy 4:1 Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons,
• Heb 6:4-6 READ
• Hebr 3:12 Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God;
• Revelation 2:5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent.
• 2 Peter 2:20-22 READ
• John 15:6 If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.
• Which one of these do you think Saul was in? Living in God’s grace or falling away?
• Did Saul Abide? Did He depart? Evil heart? Did he repent? He’s not ending well.
• The truth is that he did NOT end well. He killed himself in battle, lost his sons and kingship
• His life is a cautionary tale to the believer of how to not end well
• Life of Saul should challenge us Not an afternoon from destruction- but its slight drifting
How do we protect ourselves from falling away? How do we not become a saul?
• Matt 7:21-23 READ You have to KNOW Jesus and NOT practice lawlessness
• You KNOW him Through an abiding relationship with him- Worship, Fellowship, Discipleship, Service, Giving, You LIVE in him- He is Your LIFE- He is What you are about.
• Not a PART of your life- he IS your life. You are consumed with the things of GOD
• ALSO- You don’t practice lawlessness- You don’t live in habitual unrepentant sin-
• 1 Corinthians 6:8-10 READ CONTINUAL UNREPENTANT SIN- Don’t expect you’ll make heaven
• READ 1 Tim 4:1-5
• Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith,
• 1. Don’t Giving heed to deceiving spirits- Be filled with the Holy Spirit. Seek after the infilling of the Holy Spirit- Have HIS spirit inside of you- (telling Cult people- I don’t want ANYTHING to do w)
• 2.Watch your doctrine Not watching your doctrine- v2 giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons,
• There is good doctrine and bad doctrine: Bible isn’t for today, only red letters, weird spiritualism
• Good doctrine-CENTRAL themes as Christians- love, grace, forgiveness, die to self, worship God
• We are saved by GRACE- it was Jesus has DONE now what we DO that saves us
• Delicate balance- you can go from believing that Christ did it all to YOU must do it all
• but also from believing that he must do it all and you must do nothing
• Yes- Jesus saved us from sin- he did not save us TO sin- If you persist in Sin, not good
• Philippians 2:12-13 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; 13 for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.
• THE TWO WORK TOGETHER- Work out your own salvation- For it is GOD who works in you
• 3. Protect your mind- having their own conscience seared with a hot iron,
• Bible says we are transformed by the renewing of our mind- we must not allow our minds to no longer be open to the rebuke of the word or the spirit
• Minds become seared when you resist the holy spirit convicting you of sin- happened to SAUL
• 4. Stay away from Legalism- 3 -4 Forbidden to marry, not to eat certain foods etc
• Bad doctrine leads to seared minds which leads to outward things that tell you that you’re saved
• Going to church does not save you, giving does not save you, serving does not save you
• The Grace of God saved you and if you REALLY got that down in your mind you would hate sin because you know what it took and you don’t want to go back to it and fall away
• Even NOT Sinning doesn’t save you- You have to get your heart right- I’m not not sinning because I want to make heaven but because of what Jesus has already done on the cross
• You can live a perfect external life and still go to hell without Jesus- you are an offense to God
• 5. Finally- Stay in the WORD and PRAYER 5 for it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer.
• When you STAY in the WORD and prayer you know good doctrine so you don’t get led astray by deceiving spirits or doctrines of demons, your mind does not get seared, the holy spirit still speaks,
• Commit today to an identity of GROWTH not a GOAL of growth. Who you ARE not what you DO
