I. Obeying God is better than success.
A. 1 Samuel 14:47-48 is a summary of Saul’s successful reign as king. Saul could look all around Israel at the end of his reign and see victory over Israel’s enemies. From the standpoint of Israel’s history, Saul is a success. Saul was successful in defeating Israel’s enemies. But from God’s point of view, Saul was not a success. Saul was a failure. Saul did not have a heart for God. The king showed his lack of love for God by his regular disobedience. 1 Samuel then gives two assessments of Saul’s life. Both of these assessments are true. But only one matters.
II. Obeying God is better than judgment.
A. There are two people who are judged by God for their disobedience in chapter 15: King Saul and the Amalekites. In 1 Samuel 15 the words listen, hear, and obey are used 6 times. God’s prophet Samuel is telling King Saul over and over again, “Your first priority as the king of Israel is to obey God’s commands. Nothing is more important.” But Saul clearly disobeyed God’s command in vs. 3. See verse 9. In judgment God would remove Saul from his position of authority (vs. 24) because Saul had rejected the authority of God’s Word. Since Saul rejected God as king over him, God rejected Saul as king over his people.
B. What God commanded against the Amalekites is not ethnic cleansing. It’s ethical cleansing. It’s an act of God’s judgment against sin. If God looked the other way when His people were violated, how good would God really be? God will protect His people, and God will judge the enemies of His people. Revelation 6:10: “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” To escape God’s judgment, you need faith. Your faith in Jesus will naturally lead to obedience to God. We see this in Romans 1:5: “Through (Jesus) we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations.”
III. Obeying God is better than ritual.
A. The main excuse Saul made for his disobedience was that he kept the animals alive to sacrifice them to God. He was saying, “I did it all for God.” But what does God really want? We find the answer in vs. 22. What God wants most of all is our obedience. Obedience is better than any religious ritual. Why does God take such delight in our obedience? It’s because of what Jesus said in John 14:15: “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” Obedience equals love. Your obedience says that you have a heart for God.
Application: Do you listen to God? Do you obey Him?
Sources:
The book of 1 Samuel
Commentaries on 1 Samuel by Robert Bergen, Dale Ralph Davis and Tim Chester
Sermon Discussion Questions
1) How do you respond to God’s command to destroy the Amalekites? Do you need to pray more about your response or think more about it?
2) Do you make excuses for your sin like Saul did? How so?
3) The main point of the passage is that “to obey is better than sacrifice.” But how great is that ultimate sacrifice which is itself perfect obedience (see Hebrews 10:9-14)?