Category: Why did you not obey the Lord? 1 Samuel 15:19

Today’s Scripture: 1 Samuel 15:1-35 The Lord’s patience is amazing. He gave Saul one more test. Samuel instructed him to attack another enemy—the Amalekites—for their previous actions against Israel (see Exod. 17:8-16; Deut. 25:19). Saul’s instructions were clear: Totally destroy everything . . . do not spare anything or anyone. Saul and his army experienced a great victory over the[…]

Today’s Scripture: 1 Samuel 14:24-45; James 4:6 On day three of this devotional, we read the seven stipulations that were established for Israel’s king. Number seven states he was not to think of himself more highly than others by expecting others to obey it while he disobeyed. This requirement was tested after Saul had been king for a while. For[…]

Today’s Scripture: 1 Samuel 10:8, 13:1-14 Right after anointing Saul, Samuel gave him explicit instructions, “Go down ahead of me to Gilgal. I will surely come down to you to sacrifice burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, but you must wait seven days until I come to you and tell you what you are to do.” Most Bible scholars believe Samuel[…]

Today’s Scripture: 1 Samuel 9:21; 10:1-9, 22-23 When Saul was singled out as the first chosen king, he was a shy, awkward, and somewhat confused young man. Wasn’t he from the smallest clan in the smallest tribe? He might have been physically impressive, standing a head taller than anyone else in Israel, but he lacked confidence in his ability to[…]

Today’s Scripture: Deuteronomy 17:14-20 In order to give the people what they insisted on having, the Lord gave Moses specific stipulations that were to be followed when it came to choosing a king: The person selected was to be an Israelite, not a foreigner The king was not to acquire a great number of horses (a sign of strength and[…]

Today’s Scripture: 1 Samuel 8:1-22; John 14:15 God has given man a free will—an ability to make choices, going all the way back to Adam and Eve. While they were in control of the garden of Eden, they were cautioned not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The precaution was given—If you eat of[…]

Today’s Scripture: 1 Samuel 8:1-22; Romans 12:2 Years ago, there was a popular teaching—and debate—around God’s permissive will vs. His perfect will, based on Romans 12:2. Some argued that obeying God’s permissive will was better than no obedience at all. Personally, I believe there is only one safe route when it comes to obeying the Lord—His perfect will. “Permissive will”[…]