Quote
The important thing is not that we have done something for God, but that we have done what God wanted us to do! ~ Larry Stockstill
There are so many jewels in 1 Samuel 15 and 16. This is the section of scripture in which God rejects Saul as king of Israel and chooses David to take his place. Saul was told to destroy the Amalekites for their treatment of Israel after the Exodus (making them go around the area). Rather, they destroyed everything deemed of little worth but spared the king and the choices of items and livestock. Samuel approaches and calls Saul out on this, as God had revealed it to him and announced that Saul would no longer be king. This chilling passage is such a reminder to us that God doesn’t want us to give him anything; he wants obedience.
“Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices
as much as in obeying the LORD?
To obey is better than sacrifice,
and to heed is better than the fat of rams.
²³ For rebellion is like the sin of divination,
and arrogance like the evil of idolatry.
Because you have rejected the word of the LORD,
he has rejected you as king.”
Likewise, in the next chapter, Samuel assumes he knows who the next king will be. Saul was strong and tall and Jesse had a son who fit the bill! God responds to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.””
This type of belief is held strongly by many in the progressive Church today; however, we must weigh this against Scripture! This does not mean that a well meaning person is “safe” because God knows they were trying their hardest. No. Saul had brought back the choicest animals so he could sacrifice them to God. Was that not him being well intentioned? Yet God Judges him severely for it. When God says he looks at the heart, he doesn’t mean he sees intent. He sees intent, sure, but he is looking for obedience and humility. In chapter 15, Samuel tells Saul “you once were small in your own eyes but…” This is a better understanding of what “God sees the heart” means. He wants humility. He wants faith. He wants love. He wants obedience. He wants a child, a partner, a friend, a servant. Be what God wants and don’t assume you know better.
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God does not want sacrifice God wants righteousness, not sacrifice
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