And The People

And The People

12/2/18

Does it make a difference when a single person decides to follow through with their own plan versus an entire nation, what about a single entity placed in the same position?  This type of question many do not care to take into account or even consider but it is one that we need to understand for when a nation works together in a specific direction the results can be glorious even though complete disobedience occur during the process.  It seems like this is a common theme that God has been showing us for a while now, I guess we have not listened thoroughly and adequately enough to move on to the next topic that He wishes to show us.  God calls us to repent and to walk in the ways that He has provided according to His Word and for us to leave the world alone and drop the selfish intentions even when it is completed for religious activities.

How much do we rely upon the promises that God gives us?  It is safe to say that once we hear about how God is going to do something in our lives, we wait for its appearance and thus our claims of fulfillment according to what God has spoken, most of the time ignoring the work that it requires for that promise to come to pass.  Many times in my life I have heard testimonies from people who have received such magnificent promised gifts that fall within this setting and yet there are some that continue to wait for His faithfulness to appear.  I can only imagine how my parents must have felt ever since the promises of God not coming to pass as had once been prophesied over my life, but now witnessing their promise in an unusual and unique way that only God can ordain.  I know I would have never guessed that God would use me in such a capacity and in such a way as this but He does have a wonderful sense of humor that shines through all of us and forms a part of our definition through Hid brilliant Creative instincts.

When we read the passage at hand, we see that Israel will be going into battle against a hated foe and one that God has given specific instructions on how they are to be handled.  As in previously written articles, we know that the reason for the complete destruction of the Amalekites including every one of their livestock.  Now, more than ever the people of Israel need to be on guard and totally prepared to do battle with an enemy for they have sought after an earthly king and will thus place their lives on the line under a human authoritative figure in a trying position instead of relying on an eternal and perfect leader.  Numbers to God really do not mean much because He has everything already under His control; however, verse 4 tells us that Israel has 210,000 men ready to do battle against the Amalekites, a number that should be sufficient for the job and task at hand.  God has not left the people of Israel but it is clear in this passage, as we shall see, the people have definitively separated themselves from the obedience of God and thus place their own existence at risk.

In verse 5 we find that Saul makes the journey to the land of the Amalekites and then waited for things to be set in order for the upcoming battle.  Verse 6 of this passage states as follows: “And Saul said to the Kenites, Go, depart, get you down from among from the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them: for ye shewed kindness to all of the children of Israel, when they came up out of Egypt.  So the Kenites departed from among the Amalekites.”  Saul warns tribal friends about the impending devastation that he is about to impose on the Amalekites and how they should leave the area immediately or he will take it as a sign of solidarity with the enemies of Israel and include them in the destruction process.  This verse says that the Kenites took the advice of Saul and immediately left the area not to get caught up in the upcoming conflict.  Saul is playing the authoritarian here, being in command and clearing the way for the battle which has already been decided, a task that is hard for many to understand but an aspect of God’s definition that He wishes to share with every child of His if we are linked to Him in all areas of His Ways.

Verse 7 arrives with the battle in full swing and the outcome not in doubt with God and His Will being orchestrated with perfection.  While not many details concerning the battle are present, the outcome is clear and through the cooperation of Saul and the people the battle is quickly put to rest and the cleanup portion of the encounter comes to an end, but not without some controversy and direct disobedience thrown into the mix.  Saul, who demonstrated such authority when talking with the Kenites before the battle, presents a status change when it comes to the people for in verse eight it gives us a clue about how Saul has now blended in with the people as an equal a status that the people wanted.  See, After everything God had done for the children of Israel, God still kept His authoritative position and not waiver on any details or overlooked any type of missed patterns from the people, but Saul was different a human king and one that they found out could be manipulated in doing what the people wanted even though God had given him a new heart not too long before.

Saul and the people scored a great victory over the Amalekites one that fulfilled the prophecy that God had previously promised to Samuel as a sign of completeness over the enemy of God.  However, we see that in verse 8 it says that Saul captured Agag the king of the Amalekites and kept him alive while destroying the remaining members of that tribe and kingdom.  But in the Prophecy that God showed to Samuel another part was to be followed by Saul, one that was not adhered to which caused the huge rift between God and Saul.  It is clear from verses 7&8, that Saul and the people fought together in this battle and had no issue in killing all of the people within the enemy camp save Agag the king.  It was this minor action that caught the eye and heart of God and it was this detail that would begin the process of changing Saul’s heart back to what it was before God changed it in 1 Samuel 10:9.  On paper, this unity between the people and the king of Israel would seem a great victory to any military historian’s eye but according to the originator of the deal, it was a gross misconduct that could not be overlooked.

So, why would it be so important to keep one person alive after a great victory over the enemy?  This person represented an enemy of God and of Israel and really should serve as a symbol of authority over another, but what Saul failed to recognize is that it is the spiritual aspect of sparing Agag’s life that mattered all the way up until this very day, for today Israel continues to battle the Arabs and their belief in the total destruction of Israel and of every Jew that is alive; this all stemmed from the disobedience of Saul by not eliminating all of the enemy and what seemed like a harmless act of human mercy has grown into a continual death trap for Saul’s people down the road.  What is more devastating to understand is that it was their own doings of allowance through disobedience that proved standard to this current fiasco thousands of years later.  Verse 9 also tells us that both Saul and the people agreed that Agag should live, all of the worthless animals be destroyed and to keep the ones that were good to the eye alive as well, the growth pattern of disobedience was already being physically presented and elevated in the kingdom and a sign of what was to come in the future.  However, this verse does show us the belief that when humans do things together that their actions even if in disobedience will automatically accepted by God if done through the name of God.

Furthermore, Verse 9 gives us a glimpse that the people were proud of their decisions and had no problems dealing with the results and actions of the cohorts and with the blessings of the king as they paraded their spoils in front of him in approval, what could go wrong and from all indications of allowance nothing wrong was done.  This action should not come as a surprise to anyone for it is a “normal” tendency of humans to do things just to see what they can get away with and to what level of approval concerning authority will stand by and allow it to occur.  It is this selfish power grab and looting by the people that forms the foundation of a rebellion against God that not only fuels the hearts of Israel when it comes to them thumbing their noses at God but also forms a reciprocal effect in Agag and his followers down the road through that disobedience door that was opened for them by the people and by the actions of Saul.  From the actions of opportunity that the Amalekites took against the Israelites in the wilderness after their freedom from Egypt proves that their intentions towards their enemies was not completed and now they had been humiliated by the Israelites at least two times so why wouldn’t any enemy seek revenge by any means necessary in the future with a track record such as this?  As we shall see in a few verses down the line, the people had plans on taking these “good” animals and offering them as sacrifices to God as gifts of thanksgiving for their victory.  How wrong is this thought process?  Yet, all of us do the exact same thing when we try and do things for God by our own methods through worldly ideas and lifestyles.

When an enemy is allowed to continually surface then resurface in the face of another, tension and turmoil can only result and even if the enemy does not physically present themselves to you their presence is always in the back of your mind usurping your time by forcing you to wonder if and when they will appear again.  Logically, it would seem like an easy decision to once and for all take out the enemy that has plagued you for countless amounts of time and to be able to accomplish such a defeat with the authority and blessing of God.  How many times have we watched the news and heard reports about all the fighting and other violence that occurs in the Middle East on a daily basis and ask ourselves why do they continue to do this?  Well, it is because it stemmed from this story in the Bible and it will now continue as is for things were not dealt with in the appropriate manner deemed by God because of disobedience and succumbing to the people around him.  How more of a specific example of how a status is taken away from a leader because of failure to set aside peer pressure can one receive, and if God takes away an individual’s leadership capacity He sure can and will do it on a national level as well.

Church, we have lost our leadership position and have succumbed to the people of the world and now we are stuck in a way that we have lost favor with our Creator and Establisher of our mission.  I speak to you directly as one who has been a part of the people for a well-defined portion of my life and I first handedly admit that it is not a state that we need to function within.  I put on a game face for so long and it was hard to maintain but I did so in order to hold up my reputation according to who I wanted to be and not who God wanted me to become.  Even as I strolled through this time in my life believing that I had everyone fooled God knew exactly what the condition of my heart was like and if need be told it was obvious to some people that I was living a lie during that time.  God has shown us some difficult opportunities throughout our past and no doubt shall show us even more both on a local level and on a national one as well.  It is time that we stop forcing God’s hand in order for us to see what we need to be doing in the first place, it is appalling that we walk around with our pious attitudes and noses in the air yet snub them at the One who we are supposed to be following and acting as.  It is time we stop playing our worldly games and turn back to God before we see a nasty and devastating proclamation from God.  It is our responsibility to tell and to show the people of the world that they need God not for us to be a part of the people of the world.  The question that we all must ask ourselves is as follows: if the children of Israel were not allowed to get away with disobedience when God was their sovereign leader, what would make them believe that they could get away with disobedience after they were no longer under the direct covering of God?  It is that question that we need to ask ourselves Church!

If we take this passage of Scripture and this article that God has given us today to heart, we shall understand that when we become a part of the world we cannot help but act as the world does which is one thing and that is to go against anything God tells us to do or not to do.  The people in this passage are humans just as we are, and given this fact, we shall act as they did when we place our faith and trust on worldly things for it is a natural process for us to do such a thing especially when we are born into the same position as they were.  God never meant for us to have to make decisions like the ones that demand our choosing between good or evil, but His only desire was for us to live in perfect harmony under His guidance.  How many gross pains do we have to go through in our lives because we did not take care of business at an earlier date?  No deed that is left undone shall be the same later when encountered it shall always be greater and stronger with far greater potential of destruction in its path.  We have been given the authority to stop this evil that runs our lives today but instead, we lick its wounds and set it back on its feet again only to have it attack us at some point in time once again.  Christ wants this cycle broken not only in our lives but in those precious individuals who do not know God and it is our responsibility to ignore all the issues that do not matter to God and to focus on the eternal aspect of all our lives.

DLB