The Marvelous Message

There are times when we try to complicate the simple call of following Christ. Rather than faithfully heeding to His Word in humble obedience, we are like Naaman who just couldn't believe that to be healed from his leprosy meant only to exercise trust in God's command and wash in the Jordan river seven times. He sought to question why it was such a little demand and he wanted to be the object of some grand spectacle. It is so imperative as believers in Christ to remember that it is not about us! Oh how often we either try to add “how-to-get-spiritual-quick formulas” to our faith, or we attempt to throw in sneaky loopholes to whole heart commitment, so we can appear to be chest deep in the fruits of the Spirit, when all the while we're just grazing the surface of the Christian walk. This is what Saul did in 1 Samuel 15. Rather than stay focused on carrying out God's command to entirely wipe out the Amalekites, he started to come up with his own assumptions of what seeme...

For the past several weeks, we have studied about King Saul's behavior and foolish choices found in 1 Samuel 13-14. In these chapters, you will see that self reliance, pride, and impatience would begin to control Saul's steps. Probably though, the most glaring testimony of his fall from being a godly king and a faithful servant of the Lord is recorded in 1 Samuel 15. There is no set time-line given as to when this took place during Saul's reign. Only that from the very beginning of the chapter, Saul is commanded by God, through the prophet Samuel, to completely destroy the Amalekites. Not a single person or livestock were to be kept alive. Because of their cruel and wicked treatment of the Israelites, during the days of Moses, God had declared that judgment would fall on the people of Amalek. There were no spoils to be had in this battle, only that Saul would, “. ...claim everything they have for God by destroying it (1 Samuel 15:3 / GWT)” Upon hearing the Lord...

I will, Lord willing, continue my study on the pitfalls of Saul, but for now, I want to touch base on a subject that is of grave importance for the church. Concerning the coming of Christ, John the Baptist once declared to the the crowds that he baptized,  “I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire ( Matthew 3:11 / ESV ).”  Just before His glorious ascension into heaven, Jesus told all His disciples, “... for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now...But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth (Acts 1:5, 8 / ESV).” Indeed this mighty outpouring of power and holy fire would take place on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2). In his book,  Impossible People , ...

Once again, Saul's son, Jonathan, was the first one to strike a blow to the Philistines. In 1 Samuel 13, he fought under his father's direct orders, but in chapter 14, he chose to attack a Philistine garrison with only his amorbearer by his side. While everyone else was hiding and biding time, Jonathan slew over twenty men. He then witnessed an earthquake that shook the region and caused a chaotic scene within the camp of the Philistines. Once it was established that the Philistines were in great confusion---some fought each other while others fled---then King Saul commanded the Israelites to attack them. The tides had turned and Israel gained renewed vigor on the battlefield. In fool-heartiness and flippancy, Saul commanded that no one would eat anything until they had reigned vengeance down on his enemies. His brash statement would prove to be costly , because in time, his entire army would become weary and weak with hunger. Not knowing of his father's command, ...