Samuel Meets Saul (1 Samuel 9:1-25)

5/7/2010 8:30 AM

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY

 

My Worship Time                                        Focus:  Samuel meets Saul

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                        Reference:  1 Samuel 9:1-25

 

            Message of the verses:  “1 ¶  Now there was a man of Benjamin whose name was Kish the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Becorath, the son of Aphiah, the son of a Benjamite, a mighty man of valor. 2  He had a son whose name was Saul, a choice and handsome man, and there was not a more handsome person than he among the sons of Israel; from his shoulders and up he was taller than any of the people.

    3 ¶  Now the donkeys of Kish, Saul’s father, were lost. So Kish said to his son Saul, "Take now with you one of the servants, and arise, go search for the donkeys." 4  He passed through the hill country of Ephraim and passed through the land of Shalishah, but they did not find them. Then they passed through the land of Shaalim, but they were not there. Then he passed through the land of the Benjamites, but they did not find them. 5  When they came to the land of Zuph, Saul said to his servant who was with him, "Come, and let us return, or else my father will cease to be concerned about the donkeys and will become anxious for us." 6  He said to him, "Behold now, there is a man of God in this city, and the man is held in honor; all that he says surely comes true. Now let us go there, perhaps he can tell us about our journey on which we have set out." 7  Then Saul said to his servant, "But behold, if we go, what shall we bring the man? For the bread is gone from our sack and there is no present to bring to the man of God. What do we have?" 8  The servant answered Saul again and said, "Behold, I have in my hand a fourth of a shekel of silver; I will give it to the man of God and he will tell us our way." 9  (Formerly in Israel, when a man went to inquire of God, he used to say, "Come, and let us go to the seer"; for he who is called a prophet now was formerly called a seer.) 10  Then Saul said to his servant, "Well said; come, let us go." So they went to the city where the man of God was.

    “11 ¶  As they went up the slope to the city, they found young women going out to draw water and said to them, "Is the seer here?" 12  They answered them and said, "He is; see, he is ahead of you. Hurry now, for he has come into the city today, for the people have a sacrifice on the high place today. 13  "As soon as you enter the city you will find him before he goes up to the high place to eat, for the people will not eat until he comes, because he must bless the sacrifice; afterward those who are invited will eat. Now therefore, go up for you will find him at once." 14  So they went up to the city. As they came into the city, behold, Samuel was coming out toward them to go up to the high place. 15  Now a day before Saul’s coming, the LORD had revealed this to Samuel saying, 16  "About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him to be prince over My people Israel; and he will deliver My people from the hand of the Philistines. For I have regarded My people, because their cry has come to Me." 17  When Samuel saw Saul, the LORD said to him, "Behold, the man of whom I spoke to you! This one shall rule over My people."

    “18 ¶  Then Saul approached Samuel in the gate and said, "Please tell me where the seer’s house is." 19  Samuel answered Saul and said, "I am the seer. Go up before me to the high place, for you shall eat with me today; and in the morning I will let you go, and will tell you all that is on your mind. 20  "As for your donkeys which were lost three days ago, do not set your mind on them, for they have been found. And for whom is all that is desirable in Israel? Is it not for you and for all your father’s household?" 21  Saul replied, "Am I not a Benjamite, of the smallest of the tribes of Israel, and my family the least of all the families of the tribe of Benjamin? Why then do you speak to me in this way?" 22  Then Samuel took Saul and his servant and brought them into the hall and gave them a place at the head of those who were invited, who were about thirty men. 23  Samuel said to the cook, "Bring the portion that I gave you, concerning which I said to you, ’Set it aside.’" 24  Then the cook took up the leg with what was on it and set it before Saul. And Samuel said, "Here is what has been reserved! Set it before you and eat, because it has been kept for you until the appointed time, since I said I have invited the people." So Saul ate with Samuel that day. 25  When they came down from the high place into the city, Samuel spoke with Saul on the roof.”

            This is the beginning of the third section in Warren Wiersbe’s commentary on the book of 1 Samuel.  The section is entitled “Obeying the Lord,” and today’s SD title is the first sub-section of this section.

            This story if a very familiar story to me as I have read it on number occasions and just as Warren Wiersbe comments that the Lord works in strange ways, which were my thoughts when I read over this section on the times I read it.  God was calling a king for Israel, a king that they asked for and a king who was on the outside handsome and tall, but there is no evidence of any spirituality as one looks at Saul, which seems to be what the people of Israel were asking for.  They wanted a king who would fight their battles for them and defeat their enemies so that they could live without fear of being conquered by their enemies, and as for the spiritual things they did not care about them at all, they wanted comfort.  There is another thing that I learned for Dr. Wiersbe’s commentary that I surely had not thought about and that is that Saul was out looking for donkeys, while when Samuel goes to anoint David he was tending sheep.  Now at first glance that may not mean much, but sheep and shepherds are important ways in which the Lord describes His people, Him being the Shepherd and His people the sheep.

            It seems strange that Saul knew nothing about Samuel who lived not far from him, and it was his servant who had to tell him about Samuel.  This gives evidence that Saul was not a spiritual person for the Bible says that all Israel knew about Samuel for after all he was the leader of Israel at that time for not only was he a prophet, but he was also a judge of Israel.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I have made a statement that all things are spiritual in my life, whether they are for my spiritual growth or for my spiritual decline, something that others may not agree with me about.  Saul had no idea that because of the loss of his fathers donkeys that he would find out that he would be the first king of Israel, something that the Lord had planned and surely was a spiritual event. 

            One of the things that have been reinforced to me while reading this passage is that the Lord is the One who must be the ruler in my life, and that I am not to depend upon the government but am to obey them as long as they do not go against what the Lord speaks of in His Word.  My concern should be in obeying the Lord and not so much in the political arena.  The people of Israel were not necessarily looking for a spiritual leader, and they did not get one, but they were looking for a political leader and they got one.  My hope is in the Lord and in the plan that He has for this world, country, and for me.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:

 

1. Trust the Lord with all of my heart, and lean not upon my own understanding, in all my ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct my path.

 

5/7/2010 9:09 AM