Devotional on 1 Samuel

2015 – Beeds Lake State Park – Hampton, IA

Grace at work here
1 Samuel 16: At that very moment the Spirit of God left Saul.
Over in Bethlehem a secret meeting between Samuel and David is taking place. With his brothers as witnesses, David is anointed king of Israel. This young man is God’s pick to replace Saul. Of course, Saul is unaware of all this. If he knew…well, David wouldn’t survive the day. However, in a strange way Saul knows something has happened. A spiritual light in his life is gone. In its place is a darkness that frightens him. Itโ€™s been some time since Saul’s failure with the Amalekites. It was back then that God rejected Saul as king of Israel. The interesting thing is that, according to this scripture, God’s Spirit has remained with Saul, even though God is in the process of replacing him. I can’t help but wonder why that is. Here are my two possible answers, and it really isn’t an “either/or” proposition. First, it might be that, in spite of the absolute language about Saul that the Lordโ€™s willing to give him time and help to turn it around. The scripture tells us that Samuel grieves Saul’s failure. I can’t help but think that God does too. Maybe the Spirit of God has continued to tug at his heart even when it is almost certain that itโ€™s too late. Second, it could be that God has continued to bless Saul for the sake of Israel. Failure or not, Saul has the power and authority in Israel. His days are numbered but as long as he remains in office God will help him — not for his sake, but for the sake of Israel. Iโ€™ve heard stories of ministers who had some secret, devastating sin going on. When it was made public people were amazed because of the power of their ministry with many lives being changed. Maybe we have a similar situation with Saul. God continues to bless his leadership and even provide personal strength for his own purposes. The sun’s setting and a new leader will take his place, but for now the Spirit of God remains with Saul. I like both scenarios. I like the idea that God gave Saul a “second chance” and I also like the idea that God took care of his people even through such an imperfect leader as is Saul. In either (or both) case(s), I see the grace of God at work.
Take Away: God is the God of Second Chances; also, the Lord cares for his people even through imperfect leaders.

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