Walking in the plan of God will require us to make a stand. It will require us to drive the proverbial stake in the ground. We must make a firm commitment to follow the plan of God even if doing so kills us.
If we have compromise in us, we will not accomplish what God has planned for our lives. This is why each one of us must make a stand.
And Samuel said, What hast thou done? And Saul said, Because I saw that the people were scattered from me, and that thou camest not within the days appointed, and that the Philistines gathered themselves together at Michmash; Therefore said I, The Philistines will come down now upon me to Gilgal, and I have not made supplication unto the Lord: I forced myself therefore, and offered a burnt offering.
1 Samuel 13:11-12
Saul knew that it was wrong for him to offer the sacrifice. He compromised as a result of pressure being placed on him by people.
When Samuel confronted him, Saul had an excuse. There will always be an excuse for wrong choices. He said that he “made supplication” and this is what many Christians are doing today. They plead and beg God to do things He either told them to do or that they know are wrong.
Saul compromised and there were results.
And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done foolishly: thou hast not kept the commandment of the Lord thy God, which he commanded thee: for now would the Lord have established thy kingdom upon Israel for ever. But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the Lord hath sought him a man after his own heart, and the Lord hath commanded him to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the Lord commanded thee.
1 Samuel 13:13-14
The result of his compromise was that God removed his right to be king over Israel. God had planned to establish Saul’s kingdom “forever”. His disobedience resulted in all of his descendants losing the right to inherit the plan of God.
And Jonathan said to the young man that bare his armour, Come, and let us go over unto the garrison of these uncircumcised: it may be that the Lord will work for us: for there is no restraint to the Lord to save by many or by few. And his armourbearer said unto him, Do all that is in thine heart: turn thee; behold, I am with thee according to thy heart. Then said Jonathan, Behold, we will pass over unto these men, and we will discover ourselves unto them. If they say thus unto us, Tarry until we come to you; then we will stand still in our place, and will not go up unto them.
1 Samuel 14:6-9
Jonathan was Saul’s son. His decision to attack the Philistines ended with a mighty deliverance being manifested for Israel. This happened after Saul sinned.
Then Jonathan and David made a covenant, because he loved him as his own soul. And Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was upon him, and gave it to David, and his garments, even to his sword, and to his bow, and to his girdle.
1 Samuel 18:3-4
Jonathan would have been the heir to the throne of Israel had his father not sinned and offered the burnt offering. David was chosen in his place. These two still had a covenant between them and were like brothers.
David was Jonathan’s replacement but still he humbled himself. He was an example of godliness unlike his father. Jonathan would have made an awesome king but his father’s decisions disqualified the whole family.
Samuel told Saul that he would have ruled forever. That was the plan of God. If he had not sinned we might not have heard of David.
David was not God’s first choice! This is an important point for us to consider. God does have a plan for our lives but the decisions we make can disqualify us from being able to walk in.
Saul was not made king to fill the position until David came along. He was God’s first choice.
And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done foolishly: thou hast not kept the commandment of the Lord thy God, which he commanded thee: for now would the Lord have established thy kingdom upon Israel for ever. But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the Lord hath sought him a man after his own heart, and the Lord hath commanded him to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the Lord commanded thee.
1 Samuel 13:13-14
I believe that we would be talking about Saul today instead of David if not for his sin. David was the second choice. It amazes me to read through the account of David and see all that God was able to accomplish through His second choice.
Samuel told Saul that He had sought out a “man after his own heart, and the Lord hath commanded him to be captain over his people”. This occurred in the second year of Saul’s reign. Saul was king for forty years.
David was thirty years old when he became king at the end of Saul’s reign. With the difference in age we can see that Samuel’s statement was made eight years before David was born!
Samuel said that God sought out a man after his heart and commanded him to be captain over the people. David had not even been conceived yet! He was commanded to be king eight years before his conception!
Once again, David was not the first choice. He was chosen as a reaction to someone else’s sin. David became king only because Saul failed to do what God had called him to do.
Let me finish this post be saying that none of us should be second guessing ourselves. If we have missed God, He will have mercy on us. His plan B for our lives will be better than we can imagine His plan A would have been. The key is not what we should have done but to start where we are and seek God.
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