The passage mentioned above (1 Samuel 15:22-23) is taken from the very last conversation prophet Samuel had with king Saul. Before we go any further, it is important to know that offering sacrifices and burnt offerings before God without obeying His commandments in its entirety would be a vain effort to please God. Since Samuel and Saul were called by God as instruments in His hands to carry out His purpose, let us examine the lives of Samuel and Saul – how did they respond to God’s call upon them for God’s special tasks.

First of all, let’s look at the life of Samuel: Samuel was born to Elkanah and Hannah as the result of their prayer, especially Hannah’s prayer for a son (1 Samuel 1:10-11). God blessed them with a son and they named him Samuel because Hannah asked the Lord for him (1 Samuel 1:20). His parents dedicated him for the service of the Lord for his entire life (1 Samuel 1:24-28). Starting from childhood until the death, Samuel faithfully served the Lord his God in various capacities:

*Samuel served as a priest in Israel (1 Samuel 2:11, 18; 3:1; 7:9; 10:8):

Samuel began ministering before the Lord under Eli the priest immediately after he was dedicated to the Lord by his parents Elkanah and Hannah. 1 Samuel 1:1 states that he was an Ephraimite (also called a Zuphite, 1 Samuel 1:1; 9:5-6) from the hill country of Ephraim. According to 1 Chronicles 6:33-38, Samuel was from the tribe of Levi, but he was not a descendant of Aaron the high priest. When the land was divided among the Israelite tribes in the promised land Canaan, the Levites were not given a territory of their own in Israel like the other tribes (Deuteronomy 10:9; 18:1-2; Joshua 13:33), but they were given pasture lands to live in throughout Israelites’ territories (Numbers 35:1-8 [refer Genesis 49:5-7]). Perhaps, Samuel’s ancestors got a piece of pasture land to live in among the Ephraimite clans. Samuel was trained under Eli the priest (who was also a Judge in Israel for forty years 1 Samuel 4:18); and, perhaps, succeeded Eli the priest after his death to carry out the priestly duties in Israel (1 Samuel 2:11, 18; 3:1; 7:9; 10:8).  Psalm 99:6 states that Moses and Aaron were among his priests, Samuel was among those who called on his name; they called on the Lord and he answered them. So, without a question, we can understand that Samuel served as a priest in Israel (1 Samuel 2:18; 7:8-10a).

*Samuel served as a Judge/Leader in Israel (1Samuel 7:6; 13-17):

Samuel served as powerful Judge in Israel and he was the last judge to rule in Israel (Acts 13:20b). At the end of his life, the Israelites asked for a king and the Lord their God granted their request/demand by raising a king in Israel (1 Samuel 8:1-5, 22). Samuel, upon God’s command, anointed Saul son of Kish as the first king in Israel, which marked the end of God’s direct rule over His people Israel (Theocracy) and beginning of Monarchy in Israel (1 Samuel 9:1-2, 15-17; 10:1, 17-25). In theocracy, God ruled over His people through individuals whom He chose (Exodus 3:10; Numbers 12:6-8; Joshua 1:2-5; Psalm 105:26-27), and in Monarchy, the person who is in power and authority (a king or queen) uses all the available resources to establish their rule (1 Samuel 8:9-18). However, in Israel’s case, the king (monarchy) must follow God’s authority (theocracy) because He is their Lord God (King forever) and He chose them to be His special people. Therefore, the human king must follow God’s authority as he rule over God’s people Israel and fulfill God’s purpose in their lives. This means, the king and the kingdom must follow the divine laws, rules and regulations set forth by God. Although God is ruling over His chosen ones from the beginning, the real Theocracy started from the time of Moses (when Israel became a nation) and lasted until the time of Samuel, the last judge. Prior to Samuel death, Saul son of Kish was chosen to be the king over the Israelites upon people’s demand for a king (1Samuel 8:4-9, 22). As years passed, king Saul failed to follow God’s supremacy in Israel, and, as a result, God rejected him as king over His people Israel. On the other hand, king David, who was chosen to be the king over God’s people Israel followed by king Saul, accepted God’s supremacy in his personal and kingdom’s life, and God made a covenant with him, saying: Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever (2Samuel 7:16).

*Samuel severed as a prophet in Israel (1 Samuel 3:19-21):

According to 1 Samuel 9:18-19 and 1 Chronicles 9:22, Samuel served as a Seer in Israel. Seers are the ones who foresee the future things through their spiritual eyes and interpret it for people to understand it. A Seer is also known as a prophet (1 Samuel 9:9). The Scripture says that all Israel from Dan to Beersheba recognized that Samuel was attested as a prophet of the Lord (1 Samuel 3:20). Perhaps, a new era of prophetical ministry began in Israel from the time of Samuel (Acts 3:24; 13:20b).

Thus, Samuel served the Lord faithfully during his entire life (1 Samuel 12:24). The selfless ministry that Samuel carried out brought glory and honor to God as well as blessings to people (1 Samuel 9:6; 12:18;16:4-5). Prophet Jeremiah noted Samuel along with Moses who stood between God and His people Israel as intercessors before the Lord (Psalm 99:6; Jeremiah 15:1).

Secondly, let us examine the life Saul son of Kish. The situation in Israel brought Saul into the picture frame of Israel’s political and religious history when all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah and demanded of him to appoint a king to rule over them like all other nations (1 Samuel 8:4-5). As a result, God directed Samuel to choose Saul son of Kish to be their king (1 Samuel 9:1-2, 17). At first, Samuel anointed Saul as the king of Israel very privately – only God, Samuel, and Saul were present (1 Samuel 9:27-10:1); then Samuel made him king over entire Israel publicly before all the Israelites (1 Samuel 10:17-25). Saul was chosen to be the king of Israel (as the very first king in Israel) because there was no one equal to him at that time in Israel (1 Samuel 10:24; 13:1). Saul’s beginning was very humble because he himself testified who he was (1 Samuel 9:20b-21), and later Samuel also stated the same remarks about Saul (1 Samuel 15:17). However, as time passed, king Saul was not able to keep up with the Word of God and he failed to obey God’s commands in many areas as the anointed king of Israel (1 Samuel 13:5-14; 15:17-19). As result, God rejected him as the king of His people Israel due to his failure to obey God’s commands willingly (1 Samuel 13:11-14; 15:17-19).

As it is mentioned earlier, the Scripture for the Week passage (1 Samuel 15:22-23 written above) for this week is part of the very last conversation Samuel had with king Saul. Within our given time and space, let us examine the key thoughts in the passage and be warned of the dangers of not following the Word of God wholeheartedly:

• • The Lord does not delight in burnt offerings in the place of obedience (15:22a)
  • The Lord does not require sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord because to obey God is better than bringing sacrifice to Him (15:22b)
  • The Lord does not require the fat of rams than to heed His Commands (15:22c)
  • Not obeying the commands of God is like rebellion against Him
  • Rebellion against Him is like the sin of divination (15:23a)
  • Arrogance against the Lord is like the evil of idolatry (15:23b)
  • Saul rejected God and His Word by not obeying Him (15:22c)
  • God rejected Saul as king over His people Israel (15:22d)

Saul was chosen by God to be the king over His people Israel, but he failed to obey God’s commands fully and he yielded to fulfill the desires of himself and others around hm (1 Samuel 15:19-21). God is righteous and He does everything according to His righteousness. God wants our word and deed to go hand-in-hand with His Word and commands. Jesus said, Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former (Matthew 23:23). Saul defeated the Amalekites upon God’s commands but he did not obey God’s commands in its entirety. Remember, partial obedience is counted as incomplete, and, thus, it is equal to disobedience. God spoke through prophet Jeremiah that,

This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Go ahead, add your burnt offerings to your other sacrifices and eat the meat yourselves! 22 For when I brought your ancestors out of Egypt and spoke to them, I did not just give them commands about burnt offerings and sacrifices, 23 but I gave them this command: Obey me, and I will be your God and you will be my people. Walk in obedience to all I command you, that it may go well with you (Jeremiah 7:21-23).

In addition to Saul’s example, we can also find several other individuals in the Scripture who were called by God for His purpose but failed to obey or honor God wholly, which caused God’s judgement to fall upon them. For instance, the lives of Eli the priest and king David. Eli the priest who led Israel for forty years (1 Samuel 1:9; 4:18) did not obey God’s commands in its entirety or honor God with due reverence. As result, God rejected him as priest (1 Samuel 2:27-33). God’s judgement fell upon king David when he failed to follow God’s commands in its entirety (Psalm 51:3-4). He realized that God does not delight in sacrifice or burnt offering, if His commands are not fully obeyed. He said: For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not be pleased with a burnt offering (Psalm 51:16). However, when he repented and confessed his sins before God and asked for God’s forgiveness in his life (Psalm 51:6-12), God punished him for the sins he committed but did not break the covenant He made with him (2 Samuel 7:8-17). At the end David praised God saying: I will praise God’s name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving. This will please the Lord more than an ox, more than a bull with its horns and hooves (Psalm 69:30-31).

Offering sacrifices and burnt offerings to God (in our context, worship services and spiritual duties) without obeying His commands in its entirety will result in the rejection of the burnt offering and sacrifices offered before God. It is because king Saul rejected the Word of the Lord, that the Lord rejected Saul as king over His people Israel (1 Samuel 15:22). God does not care about our outward appearance (handsome or healthy), educational eligibility (wise or knowledgeable), social status (wealth or position), or anything as such, but He cares about whether He can trust us or not, whether we honor God or not, whether we are dedicated/trustworthy or not, whether we are willing to obey His commands or not, and so on. Although the Israelites demanded for a king to rule over them, it was God who chose Saul to be the king over His people Israel. According to 1 Samuel 9:1-2, Saul was the most eligible person at that particular time to be chosen as the ruler of Israel. However, as time passed, he changed from who he was then to who he is now, which resulted in God’s rejection of him as the king over Israel. When God rejected Saul as the king over His people Israel, the Lord said to Samuel, Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart (1 Samuel 16:7).

According to 1 Samuel 2:2 There is no one holy like the Lord; there is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God. The Lord our God is omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent. He knows all about us, as king Solomon noted: He who weighs the heart perceives it (Proverbs 24:12b) and He who guards your life knows it (Proverbs 24:12c). He knows when we sit down and when we rise up; He knows when we go out and when we come in; He knows when we lie down and when we get up; He also perceives the thoughts of our hearts and the words of our mouths even before a word is uttered (Psalm 139:2-4). The Lord said to the Prophet Jeremiah: I the Lord search the heart and test the mind, to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds (Jeremiah 17:10). Therefore let us love the Lord our God with all our heart, and with all our soul, and with all our mind, and with all our strength (Mark 12:30) and obey His commandments wholeheartedly (Deuteronomy 10:12-13; 1John 5:2b-3). If we love God and obey His commandments in its entirety, He will accept our worship (sacrifices and burnt offerings) and bless us and make our life a blessing to others, especially to our family members and those around us. May the Lord God Almighty bless us all! Amen!