Sept 22, 2013
To obey is better than sacrifice
1 Samuel 15:13-23
13 Then Samuel went to Saul, and Saul said to him, “Blessed are you of the Lord! I have performed the commandment of the Lord.” 14 But Samuel said, “What then is this bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?” 15 And Saul said, “They have brought them from the Amalekites; for the people spared the best of the sheep and the oxen, to sacrifice to the Lord your God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed.” 16 Then Samuel said to Saul, “Be quiet! And I will tell you what the Lord said to me last night.” And he said to him, “Speak on.” 17 So Samuel said, “When you were little in your own eyes, were you not head of the tribes of Israel? And did not the Lord anoint you king over Israel? 18 Now the Lord sent you on a mission, and said, ‘Go, and utterly destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they are consumed.’ 19 Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord? Why did you swoop down on the spoil, and do evil in the sight of the Lord?” 20 And Saul said to Samuel, “But I have obeyed the voice of the Lord, and gone on the mission on which the Lord sent me, and brought back Agag king of Amalek; I have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. 21 But the people took of the plunder, sheep and oxen, the best of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal.” 22 So Samuel said: “Has 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 heed than the fat of rams.
23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He also has rejected you from being king.”
God had commanded Saul to kill all the Amalekites. However, Saul did not obey the Lord. He kept back the best of the oxen and sheep to sacrifice to the Lord and he spared King Agag. When Samuel confronted Saul, Saul lied, justified himself for his disobedience and blamed the people. He then wanted honor from Samuel so that he would not lose his image.
As a result, because Saul disobeyed God, God rejected him as king. In the end, Saul committed suicide.
Partial obedience or delayed obedience equals disobedience. God desires obedience more than sacrifice.
A king or leader who sets his own will above the command of the Lord ceases to be an instrument of the Lord. (Miyagi)
God is not interested in our independence apart from Him. He expects and demands complete dependence on Him and obedience to Him. When a leader makes himself a god and thinks that his own ways and thinking is good enough, God can and many times will remove this person from his position. God will humble him because he refuses to humble himself. That is what happened to Saul and that is what is happening to many pastors and church leaders in America.
Many believers think that if they will just give enough tithes to the church, or serve in one more ministry or be faithful to going to church, that this so-called sacrificial acts will somehow make up for their disobedience to the Lord. These deceived believers seem to think that they can sin against God and still be okay because they are doing all these so-called “holy services” for the Lord. Thus, they feel that they can do as they please, and obedience to the Almighty God is really optional. Little do they know that they are really serving the devil when they do that. How foolish to think like that. Either you are serving God or you are serving the devil (by default). The choice is yours. There is no neutral ground. If you are not serving God, you are probably just doing your own thing. When you are just doing your own thing (like many so-called Christians do), you are in reality serving the devil. The choice is yours. Serve God or serve the devil (by serving self, sin, or the world).
The life application for us (Miyagi and me) is that we are to continue to obey the Lord in what He has called us to do.
Miyagi’s identity is that he is a business consultant. He has a BBA in accounting, UH Manoa, 1978. He is also a minister of the Word. He is finishing his BA in Theology with emphasis on pastoral care and counseling at Life Pacific Bible College.
Miyagi’s purpose is to fulfill God’s high calling in his life which is Isaiah 61:1-3, Acts 2:42, and Matthew 28:19-20.
Miyagi’s function as a business consultant is to give professional advice on business matters and to help people stay in the business of life. As a minister of the Word, he holds Bible studies and prayer meetings like a pastor / teacher, gives spiritual advice like a prophet, sets up house churches like an apostle, and passes out tracts like an evangelist.
My identity is wife and helpmate.
My purpose is to support my husband and to cover his back.
My function is to take care of all the details..
Conclusion:
Obedience pleases God more than sacrifice. Not only is obedience to God commanded by God, it will save our life from danger and the snares of our enemies which is satan, sin, self and the world. A true believer will obey God. A false believer will obey his flesh, every time.
Poem:
When I was young and in the church
I thought that all church goers were holy
But I was wrong and so deceived.
They were not what they appeared to be
They sang the songs, they gave their tithes
They would lift up holy hands in praise
But they submitted to their carnal desires
And they operated in fleshly ways
A true believer will love the Lord,
will honor God and follow Him to the end
Those who just go to church to have their fun
is only following a trend
So get serious with God and learn of his ways
be faithful to Him every day
Love Him, serve Him, worship Him often
The key word is obey, obey, obey
Byword: A true believer obeys God. A false believer obeys his flesh and pretends to be a Christian.
Aldwin and Wendy Naruse
The Body of Christ Jesus Fellowship
Makaha, HI USA
Work Cited
Miyagi, Miyagi’s Commentary, The Body of Christ Jesus Fellowship, Makaha, HI 2013
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