A drunken sailor falls off the boat. His mother was devout Christian. His father was a rebellious sea captain. When his mother died, he followed the ways of his father. He strayed so far and had no fear of the Lord.
His life was total moral bankruptcy. He reached such a low point that one day he was drunk on the ship fell overboard and no one wanted to dive in to save such a wretch. They only harpooned his leg and drug him back on the boat.
The life of King Saul is one of the tragic stories of what happens when a leader rebels against God. His failure is one of the massive failures of history. Saul had so much potential, and he wasted that potential.
Saul is the story of how sin can destroy anyone. Nobody should think that they are exempt from sins destructive power. Saul shows the collapse of a man who looked to be the greatest leader of all time.
The story of Saul begins with Israel wanting a king. It was the end of what we know as the period of the Judges. Samuels sons were taking the realms of leadership and they were corrupt. Israel was looking at the other nations and how a king unified the people and they asked for a king.
In 1 Samuel Chapter 8 we read that Israel demands a king. The Lord warned Samuel that there would be negative consequences of a monarchy. They would be cruel to Israel. Rehoboam even boasted that he would be a more cruel king than his father. But Israel wanted to be like the other nations.
Whenever God’s people seek to adopt the world’s standards, then look out for trouble coming. Despite the warning of the Lord through Samuel then Saul became the first king of Israel. He was a young man of stature standing head and shoulders above everybody else. He had a good family background coming from a family of wealth. He looked good he was tall, rich and handsome.
The people wanted a king despite the warning. God told Samuel to anoint Saul King of Israel. The period of the Judges ended. The period of the monarchy began with the anointing of Saul as King.
His downfall has been so complete that it seems hard to remember that when King Saul started out it seems like he would be the best king of all times. The story found in 1 Samuel chapter 11of how he rescued Jabesh Gilead by uniting the nation was phenomenal. The Ammonites would have disfigured and disgraced Jabesh and the disgrace would have been the disgrace of all Israel.
Saul rallied the nation as one man and routes the Ammonites. He did so with a humble spirit and gave all the glory of the victory to God. He does not take revenge on those that opposed him as king, even when some called for revenge.
This is where Saul’s downfall begins. In Chapter 13 Saul is to wait for Samuel 7 days to make a sacrifice to the Lord. Saul disobeys the command because he is not willing to trust the Lord and wait the prescribed time. His son Jonathan was used mightily by God to win victory but Saul’s victory days were short lived and behind him now. Saul’s sin results in his descendants no longer being on the throne of the monarchy.
In chapter 15 things go from bad to worse for King Saul. He disregards the command of the Lord and sets up an altar to himself. This is when Samuel tells him, obedience is better than sacrifice.
But Samuel replied: “Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices
as much as in obeying the LORD? To obey is better than sacrifice,
and to heed is better than the fat of rams. (1 Samuel 15:22)
In other words, sacrifices are meaningless from a disobedient heart. Going to church does not cut it when you recklessly disobey God. What a downfall for King Saul. With his potential the only thing that could prevent him from being the greatest leader of all time was his disobedient heart.
Saul brought on his own destruction. Saul became a person who feared man instead of fearing God. Every leader needs to know that no matter what height they obtain that their position is from God, and they never are above keeping God’s law.
Saul fortified his kingdom, but from here on out the focus in on David. Saul was outwardly impressive with a heart far from God. David is the opposite. He is the man after God’s own heart and even his own father could picture any of his sons as king, but not David.
The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7)
There are chapters of scripture recording how low Saul sank. Samuel anoints David as king and Saul becomes a vengeful jealous leader.
The LORD said to Samuel, “How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king.” 2 But Samuel said, “How can I go? If Saul hears about it, he will kill me.” (1 Samuel 16:1-2)
The results of rebellion against God produced bitterness, jealousy, resentment, and there was no peace for Saul. There is a new refrain from the people. David is the hero of the Lord, this made Saul extremely angry. He can’t be content seeing others having the victory.
As they danced, they sang: “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands.” 8 Saul was very angry; this refrain displeased him greatly. “They have credited David with tens of thousands,” he thought, “but me with only thousands. What more can he get but the kingdom?” (1 Samuel 18:7-8)
As a jealous bitter man Saul tried to destroy others, but he only destroyed himself. From that time on Saul tried to kill David. This became the obsession of Saul’s life.
Now the Spirit of the LORD had departed from Saul, and an evil[a] spirit from the LORD tormented him. (1 Samuel 16:14)
Saul was afraid of David, because the LORD was with David but had departed from Saul. (1 Samuel 18:12)
Destroying David became the obsession of Saul’s life.
Saul became still more afraid of him, and he remained his enemy the rest of his days. (1 Samuel 18:29)
Saul told his son Jonathan and all the attendants to kill David. But Jonathan had taken a great liking to David 2 and warned him, “My father Saul is looking for a chance to kill you. Be on your guard tomorrow morning; go into hiding and stay there. (1 Samuel 19:1-2)
The results of rebellion and turning away from God destroyed King Saul. Saul was plunging to new Depths of rebellion against the Lord. He was seeking guidance from the spirits of the dead, not the Lord. That is the account of the witch of Endor where he asked a medium to bring up Samuel’s spirit for consultation.
So Saul disguised himself, putting on other clothes, and at night he and two men went to the woman. “Consult a spirit for me,” he said, “and bring up for me the one I name.” But the woman said to him, “Surely you know what Saul has done. He has cut off the mediums and spiritists from the land. Why have you set a trap for my life to bring about my death?” Saul swore to her by the LORD, “As surely as the LORD lives, you will not be punished for this.” Then the woman asked, “Whom shall I bring up for you?” “Bring up Samuel,” he said. (1 Samuel 28:8-11)
Saul is powerless without God and now desperate. He seeks God for his own ends. Philistines gathered and Saul has nowhere to turn. Sin had ruined his own relationship with God.
Samuel said, “Why do you consult me, now that the Lord has departed from you and become your enemy? 17 The Lord has done what he predicted through me. The Lord has torn the kingdom out of your hands and given it to one of your neighbors—to David. 18 Because you did not obey the Lord or carry out his fierce wrath against the Amalekites, the Lord has done this to you today. 19 The Lord will deliver both Israel and you into the hands of the Philistines, and tomorrow you and your sons will be with me. The Lord will also give the army of Israel into the hands of the Philistines.” (1 Samuel 28:16-19)
Saul was lower than the drug addict on the street that drags his family down with him. All of this and he could have been the greatest leader of all time. It finally comes to end with suicide on the battlefield for Saul.
Saul said to his armor-bearer, “Draw your sword and run me through, or these uncircumcised fellows will come and run me through and abuse me.” But his armor-bearer was terrified and would not do it; so Saul took his own sword and fell on it. (1 Samuel 31:4)
The destruction of Saul’s moral life resulted in the destruction of his physical life. This was the king Israel asked for. Israel was more harassed by the Philistines at the end of Saul’s monarchy than they had been at the beginning.
His reign as king began with a battle and ended with a battle, but what a difference. It all started with the rescue and honor of Jabesh Gilead. They were the only ones who still honored King Saul. They remembered his for the good at the beginning of his monarchy.
When the people of Jabesh Gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul, 12 all their valiant men marched through the night to Beth Shan. They took down the bodies of Saul and his sons from the wall of Beth Shan and went to Jabesh, where they burned them. 13 Then they took their bones and buried them under a tamarisk tree at Jabesh, and they fasted seven days. (1 Samuel 31:11-13)
Remember that drunken sailor who fell off the boat and harpooned out of the water? That was John Newton who experienced amazing grace on repentance and wrote the Hymn Amazing Grace.
The results of rebellion against God is self-destruction. Rebellion destroys and repentance restores.
