Message from the Monthly Flyer April 2017
1 Samuel 28:8-10 CEV That night, Saul put on different clothing so nobody would recognize him. Then he and two of his men went to the woman, and asked, "Will you bring up the ghost of someone for us?" The woman said, "Why are you trying to trick me and get me killed? You know King Saul has gotten rid of everyone who talks to the spirits of the dead!" Saul replied, "I swear by the living LORD that nothing will happen to you because of this."
Now, here is Saul going to seek for help in the very thing that he had decided to fight in order to please God. We can ask ourselves: “what about his convictions then? In a sense, he was telling God: “God, if you don’t want to talk to me, I will do it my way.” In his desperation, but also because of His stubbornness, king Saul asked his servants if there is anybody left in the land who can call the spirits of the dead so that he will know what to do about the Philistines. His intention or his desire was to call on the dead prophet Samuel to tell him what to do about the war against the Philistines. When he realised that God would not give him any answer, he surely started telling to himself: “I hope that we have not killed all the mediums in the land yet, because now they are the only ones I can turn to for help. They are my only rescue…” In a sense, we can say that Saul returned to his own vomit because he lacked the genuine humility that alone is able to move God’s heart. This situation shows us that his heart was not fully set in doing what is right in the sight of God. He failed the test when pressure arose. The circumstances we face in life will reveal our true mindset about the things of God. They will tell if our mind is really made up to follow God’s precepts, no matter the cost. If we want to please God and have His favour, we must be true to
ourselves and be determined to follow God’s ways and not our ways,
regardless of how bad the situation may be. The pressures of this
life will always reveal whether we are truly determined to live for
God in humility and obey Him no matter the circumstances, or whether
we will look for the comfortable way that will ultimately cause us
to lose God’s favour and grace. The Bible says in Proverbs 14:12 KJV
“There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof
are the ways of death.” And again, in Proverbs 3:5-8 KJV “Trust
in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Be
not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil. It
shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones.” Will
we follow our own mind and plans when things are not going the way
we |
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