Seeking to be Impressive

Do we seek to be impressive to others, or to be impressed with God? You could say that most of the Bible is concerned with this question, especially in the book of 1 Samuel. Last night at the young men’s Bible study, we contrasted the life of Saul and the life of David. Both were impressive men… but Saul was impressed with himself, whereas David was impressed with God.

What are we often impressed by? Last night there was a mix of answers… cars, creation, Barry Bond’s arms, etc. There’s so much in our culture that we see as impressive, from the latest innovation of science to the ability of men to accomplish great feats. I think about Erik Weihenmeyer, a world-renown climber. He climbed the 29,000 feet to the very top of Mount Everest… and never saw the view. Why? Because Erik has been blind since he was 13. That is indeed impressive… a feat of man that we can honestly say that there is no parallel to.

The people of Israel, in much the same way, were impressed with the nations around them. In 1 Samuel 8, they demand that Samuel appoint over them a king, so that they might be like the nations around them. God, rather than rebuking and punishing them… grants their prayer, and in doing so shows them that their heart is not with God. They were to be different… God Himself was going to be their King, and that’s how He would bring glory to Himself. But the people wanted their own glory.

The first king that God appointed was an Israelite that had no equal among his people. Look at how Samuel describes him in 1 Samuel 10:23-24:

And they ran and fetched him thence: and when he stood among the people, he was higher than any of the people from his shoulders and upward. And Samuel said to all the people, See ye him whom the LORD hath chosen, that there is none like him among all the people?

Saul was impressive according to man’s standards, but as we read the story of his life, we discover that he was doing it all for show. He was in it for the glory… his own glory, not God’s. We basically see Saul’s life in a snapshot in the last 20 or so chapters or 1 Samuel, as his reign begins very promising, but slowly spirals into total oblivion. The point of no return for Saul is in chapter 15, where we find Saul going and defeating the Amalekites. In doing so, he spares their king, Agag, and the best of the Amalekite’s animals. He thinks he has obeyed God, but then Samuel arrives. We know of the famous “what means the bleating of the sheep?” where Samuel calls Saul on the carpet after Saul lied to him about it. Saul goes on to blame the people for taking the best animals for themselves, and then states that they were saving them to sacrifice to the Lord. What does Samuel say?

Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.

Saul realizes that he’s done wrong, and tells Samuel of his repentance. No dice, Samuel tells him in 15:26-29. God had made up His mind, and Saul was going to be replaced. But then we see what this is about in Saul’s own mind, probably what it was about from the beginning. 15:30…

Then he said, I have sinned: yet honour me now, I pray thee, before the elders of my people, and before Israel, and turn again with me, that I may worship the LORD thy God.

Saul wanted to be honored in front of the people despite his sin. He wanted the praise of man, the glory for himself. He was indeed impressive, but he was impressed with himself… and God was not at all impressed with that. Next blog, we’ll look at Saul’s replacement… a man who was indeed impressive, but was himself impressed with God: David.

Posted on 5/20/2008 under Daniel Viezbicke's Blog. Comments RSS feed.
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