Is Partial Obedience Disobedience?

1 Samuel 13:1-14; 15:1-2

"To obey is better than sacrifice."  Part of I Samuel 15:22

Since the Israelites insisted that they wanted a king like all the other nations, God gave them one.  Samuel introduced Saul as the new king to the Israelites.  He looked the part.  He was very handsome and was a head taller than all the other Israelite men.  The people were pleased and had a great celebration at Saul's coronation in Gilgal.

Samuel had given Saul these instructions before the coronation celebration,  "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."  I Samuel 10:8.

After he was crowned king, Saul attacked the Philistines who had been enemies of Israel for a long time.  The Philistines gathered a large army for a counter attack, and Saul's soldiers became frightened and began to scatter.  Saul became impatient.  Samuel had not appeared at Gilgal, so Saul took it upon himself to offer the burnt offering, a ministry only the priests were allowed to perform.  Just as he finished, Samuel arrived and asked Saul what he was doing.  Saul explained that Samuel had not yet come, and he didn't want to go into battle without God's favor.  But Samuel said to him,  "You have not kept the Lord's command."  Saul yielded to the temptation to take things into his own hands rather than trusting God and waiting on Him.  This is an ever present temptation for us all.

Later Samuel was preparing to battle the Amalekites, and he received these very specific instructions from God through Samuel,  "This is what the Lord Almighty says:  I will punish the Amalekites for what they did to Israel when they waylaid them as they came up from Egypt.  Now go, attack the Amalekites and totally destroy all that belongs to them.  Do not spare them; put them to death, men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys."  I Samuel 15:2-3  Saul was victorious over the Amalekites. but he spared Agag the king and the best of the livestock.  When Samuel found the new king, Saul greeted him with these words,  "The Lord bless you.  I have carried out the Lord's instruction."  I Samuel 15:13b  "But Samuel said,  "What then is this bleating of sheep in my ears?  What is this lowing of cattle that I hear?"  I Samuel 1514.  Saul played the blame game and gave an excuse.  He told Samuel that the soldiers brought the best of the sheep and cattle to sacrifice to the Lord but destroyed the rest.  PARTIAL OBEDIENCE IS DISOBEDIENCE!  If we do not obey God in everything, we have disobeyed God.  And there is nothing that we can do that will make God satisfied with our disobedience.  Samuel's words to Saul should be seared into our memory banks, "To obey is better than sacrifice."  In fact, to obey is better than anything else!  There is no substitute for obedience.

After Saul disobeyed, he asked Samuel to come with him to worship God so he wouldn’t lose face before the people.  He was more concerned about his reputation than his character.  He was more interested in being popular than pleasing God.  He was sorry he got caught, but he didn’t have that Godly sorrow for sinning that leads to true repentance.

Father, obedience is not an option but an essential if we want to walk in fellowship with You.  May we confess and repent of any disobedience in our lives as soon as we are aware of it.  Amen.