“But I did obey the Lord,” Saul said. “I went on the mission the Lord assigned me. I completely destroyed the Amalekites and brought back Agag their king. ²¹ The soldiers took sheep and cattle from the plunder, the best of what was devoted to God, in order to sacrifice them to the Lord your God at Gilgal.”

²² But Samuel replied:

“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.”

²⁴ Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned. I violated the Lord’s command and your instructions. I was afraid of the men and so I gave in to them. ²⁵ Now I beg you, forgive my sin and come back with me, so that I may worship the Lord.”

²⁶ But Samuel said to him, “I will not go back with you. You have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you as king over Israel!” 1 Samuel 15:20-26

Read the book of Samuel for the rise and fall of Israel’s King Saul who was followed by King David to understand the full impact of what it means to trust and obey but here is a quick summary:

When the Philistines gathered to attack Israel at Geba, the Israelites were badly outnumbered. King Saul grew tired of waiting for Samuel, God’s prophet who anointed Saul as King of Israel, to instruct him about the battle at hand. Samuel delayed, and Saul’s men began to desert; so, he proceeded in his panic to resolve the issue at hand—relying on his own wisdom. God will not come near to the heart who disobeys Him.

Upon Samuel’s return, he knew King Saul had disobeyed all that God told the King to accomplish—rid the land of the evil Amalekites along with their leader King Agag.  God was with King Saul and blessed him if he obeyed God.  But when the battle seemed to be too overwhelming, King Saul took matters into his own hand in disobedience to God.

To make matters worse; King Saul arrogantly disobeyed God’s command when he brought King Agag back with him so he could humiliate King Agag in front of the people of Israel as a sign of victory and power which led to building up his own arrogant pride.  He sought and reveled in the praises of the people of Israel who put him on a pedestal of perfection as their leader.  (Many leaders today are tempted to fall for this age-old trick of our real Enemy, the devil, who prowls like a lion among God’s people seeking whom he may distract, deceive, and ultimate devour. 1 Peter 5:8.)

King Saul fell to the real Enemy who distracted him from the mission God gave him.  King Saul had a choice, even in panic, to obey God in all the details.  He chose to disobey and reap the curses of arrogance and pride which is detestable to God.  Instead of admitting his sin of disobedience he then tried to cover it up or put his own spin on the sin—”but look all we brought back to sacrifice to God!”

As with all leaders who rise to fame in disobedience to God; pride goes before a fall. 

I wonder, did God tell Moses to remind the people to obey ALL his commands knowing what King Saul will do generations later?  Of course, God knows.  God knows all our hearts and teaches the importance of trusting and obeying all of God’s commands in all circumstances. Saul lost his kingdom because he disobeyed God. Saul was pressured by his officers to act before all his men deserted. Lack of patience cost him everything.

This is what it means to trust and obey—for there is no other way to reap the blessings of God to whom all praise is due. Our obedience to God demonstrates our love for God!

Deuteronomy 11

Love and Obey the Lord

Love the Lord your God and keep his requirements, his decrees, his laws and his commands always. ² Remember today that your children were not the ones who saw and experienced the discipline of the Lord your God: his majesty, his mighty hand, his outstretched arm; ³ the signs he performed and the things he did in the heart of Egypt, both to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his whole country; ⁴ what he did to the Egyptian army, to its horses and chariots, how he overwhelmed them with the waters of the Red Sea as they were pursuing you, and how the Lord brought lasting ruin on them. ⁵ It was not your children who saw what he did for you in the wilderness until you arrived at this place, ⁶ and what he did to Dathan and Abiram, sons of Eliab the Reubenite, when the earth opened its mouth right in the middle of all Israel and swallowed them up with their households, their tents and every living thing that belonged to them. ⁷ But it was your own eyes that saw all these great things the Lord has done.

⁸ Observe therefore all the commands I am giving you today, so that you may have the strength to go in and take over the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess, ⁹ and so that you may live long in the land the Lord swore to your ancestors to give to them and their descendants, a land flowing with milk and honey. ¹⁰ The land you are entering to take over is not like the land of Egypt, from which you have come, where you planted your seed and irrigated it by foot as in a vegetable garden. ¹¹ But the land you are crossing the Jordan to take possession of is a land of mountains and valleys that drinks rain from heaven. ¹² It is a land the Lord your God cares for; the eyes of the Lord your God are continually on it from the beginning of the year to its end.

¹³ So if you faithfully obey the commands I am giving you today—to love the Lord your God and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul— ¹⁴ then I will send rain on your land in its season, both autumn and spring rains, so that you may gather in your grain, new wine and olive oil. ¹⁵ I will provide grass in the fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied.

¹⁶ Be careful, or you will be enticed to turn away and worship other gods and bow down to them. ¹⁷ Then the Lord’s anger will burn against you, and he will shut up the heavens so that it will not rain and the ground will yield no produce, and you will soon perish from the good land the Lord is giving you. ¹⁸ Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. ¹⁹ Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. ²⁰ Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates, ²¹ so that your days and the days of your children may be many in the land the Lord swore to give your ancestors, as many as the days that the heavens are above the earth.

²² If you carefully observe all these commands I am giving you to follow—to love the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him and to hold fast to him— ²³ then the Lord will drive out all these nations before you, and you will dispossess nations larger and stronger than you. ²⁴ Every place where you set your foot will be yours: Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the Euphrates River to the Mediterranean Sea. ²⁵ No one will be able to stand against you. The Lord your God, as he promised you, will put the terror and fear of you on the whole land, wherever you go.

²⁶ See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse— ²⁷ the blessing if you obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today; ²⁸ the curse if you disobey the commands of the Lord your God and turn from the way that I command you today by following other gods, which you have not known. ²⁹ When the Lord your God has brought you into the land you are entering to possess, you are to proclaim on Mount Gerizim the blessings, and on Mount Ebal the curses. ³⁰ As you know, these mountains are across the Jordan, westward, toward the setting sun, near the great trees of Moreh, in the territory of those Canaanites living in the Arabah in the vicinity of Gilgal. ³¹ You are about to cross the Jordan to enter and take possession of the land the Lord your God is giving you. When you have taken it over and are living there, ³² be sure that you obey all the decrees and laws I am setting before you today.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW WILL WE RESPOND?

Read and take to heart the helpful comments of Max Lucado who encourages us why with how to trust and obey God—

Moses told the Israelites that they could flourish and have good, long lives in the promised land. However, they needed to fully obey God’s commands, love him completely, and not worship other gods. They were to remember the good things God had done and teach their children about them.

When we’re facing battles on the way to our promised land, we can find hope in remembering his faithfulness and goodness in the past.

Rather than say, “God, why?” ask, “God, what?” What can I learn from this experience? “Remember today what you have learned about the LORD through your experiences with him” (v.2). Rather than ask God to change your circumstances, ask him to use your circumstances to change you. Life is a required course. Might as well do your best to pass it.

God is at work in each of us whether we know it or not, whether we want it or not. “He takes no pleasure in making life hard, in throwing roadblocks in the way” (Lamintations 3:33 MSG). He does not relish our sufferings, but he delights in our development. “God began doing a good work in you, and I am sure he will continue it until it is finished when Jesus Christ comes again” (Philippians 1:6 NCV). He will not fail. He cannot fail. He will “work in us what is pleasing to him” (Hebrews 13:21). Every challenge, large or small, can equip you for a future opportunity.”—Lucado, Encouraging Word Bible

Lord,

Thank you for the benefits of trusting and obeying you who created all, is in all, above and over all in the heavens and on earth.  Thank you for supplying the details and delighting in the details of our lives. Thank you for direction and purpose. Thank you for giving us experiences with opportunities to grow in our relationship with you while developing your character traits as we trust and obey you. Thank you for forgiveness when we fall by your redeeming blood shed by your once and for all as the only truly acceptable sacrifice for all who believe!  Lead me, Lord.  Help me to trust and obey—for there’s really no other way to enjoy the benefit of your blessings.

In Jesus Name, Amen