I Samuel 10- Finding God's Will

 

Read Samuel 10

10 Then Samuel took a flask of oil and poured it on his head, and kissed him and said: “Is it not because the Lord has anointed you commander over His inheritance? ² When you have departed from me today, you will find two men by Rachel’s tomb in the territory of Benjamin at Zelzah; and they will say to you, ‘The donkeys which you went to look for have been found. And now your father has ceased caring about the donkeys and is worrying about you, saying, “What shall I do about my son?”’ ³ Then you shall go on forward from there and come to the terebinth tree of Tabor. There three men going up to God at Bethel will meet you, one carrying three young goats, another carrying three loaves of bread, and another carrying a skin of wine. ⁴ And they will greet you and give you two loaves of bread, which you shall receive from their hands.

 Often we wonder and ask the question "How do we know God's will for our lives?" And we wish that He would be this clear. We would love for a man of God, that is known for prophesying with 100% accuaracy, to come over to us, anoint us with oil, tell us God's plan, some exact steps, and then give like 3-4 prophecies to watch for just to confirm it, and have them all fulfilled in a matter of hours to days! Can you imagine? But here is the thing. Remember we read a couple chapters ago, that this was a time when the word of God was "rare."  Priests were thee only ones that had communication with God. But today it is different. The veil was torn, and we have access to the throne of grace. And just like Saul was given steps to confirm God's will, we are given steps too. But we don't always follow them. When I give my kids a job to do, more often than I would like, they get distracted, and then come and actually ask me for something! Hey mom, can we go swimming? Hey mom, can I have a cookie? Hey mom, can you make me a snack? And it goes on and on. But my response is always the same. "Did you do what I asked? No? Then don't ask me for anything until you do.." Quite often it is the same with God. He has given us something to do. Sometimes it is the regular tasks of reading His Word, spending time in prayer, and fellowship with other believers, serving together in a church home. Other times it is the out of the ordinary, those specific, "I am pretty sure He wants me to do this one hard thing, but I just can't" and we get stuck. And other times we are in between tasks 1 and 2 and just waiting to hear the next word. Waiting. Obedience and trust in the waiting. So we go back to the regular tasks with greater intensity for strength while we wait, trusting that even if we make a "wrong" decision, a man plans his way, but the Lord directs his path. (Prov. 16:9)

⁵ After that you shall come to the hill of God where the Philistine garrison is. And it will happen, when you have come there to the city, that you will meet a group of prophets coming down from the high place with a stringed instrument, a tambourine, a flute, and a harp before them; and they will be prophesying. ⁶ Then the Spirit of the Lord will come upon you, and you will prophesy with them and be turned into another man. ⁷ And let it be, when these signs come to you, that you do as the occasion demands; for God is with you. ⁸ You shall go down before me to Gilgal; and surely I will come down to you to offer burnt offerings and make sacrifices of peace offerings. Seven days you shall wait, till I come to you and show you what you should do.”

About to embark on this unbelievable new journey to become the first earthly king of Israel, God made sure to surround Saul with those that could sing and encourage and prophesy right into his life. And he became a new man! And we can choose to do the same. Surround yourself with people that are seeking God and praising His name, and this will equip you for those days, and for the wait.

When Saul got back.....

¹⁵ And Saul’s uncle said, “Tell me, please, what Samuel said to you.”
¹⁶ So Saul said to his uncle, “He told us plainly that the donkeys had been found.” But about the matter of the kingdom, he did not tell him what Samuel had said.

For some reason we do not know, Saul held back some of the story. And there is wisdom in that. Matthew 7:6 says not to throw your pearls before swine. Maybe Saul knew that there was no way that his uncle was going to understand or fully grasp all that had just transpired. So better that he find out the truth when there is no denying it. Sometimes we can share too quickly some great thing we believe God is going to do in our lives, and often it is met with a most discouraging response from those that are just not able to see.

 ²⁶ And Saul also went home to Gibeah; and valiant men went with him, whose hearts God had touched. ²⁷ But some rebels said, “How can this man save us?” So they despised him, and brought him no presents. But he held his peace.

Modern day version: Haters gonna hate. When you have done A,B and C and have confirmations D,E, and F, there will still be people that will despise you. Just hold your peace. God is faithful to direct and equip. We must be faithful to obey.