Ever ask why King Saul failed as a leader? Why not ask that (good idea), or crack the Book open, pray and find out.
I'd say he was egotistical, rebellious and he acted out of fear when David kept responding with obedient faith.
Why did David do that? Well, he knew that the kingdom was God's, but Saul thought the kingdom was his own.
Godly leaders do not operate out of fear or self-promotion, but out of biblical faith.
Remember the television series “Fear Factor” debuted in 2001 and presented contestants with an opportunity to win cash prizes by overcoming fear. The terror-inducing challenges included submersion in a rat pit, jumping between two speeding trailer trucks, and eating slugs.1 The victor of each episode won a cash prize in the neighborhood of $50,000.
In a 2014 study, one-thousand Americans answered the question: “Which common fears scare you most?”2 Break into teams and rank these common fears according to what you believe would scare an average American, most to least.
A. Flying on an airplane
B. Blood
C. Snakes
D. Heights
E. Being closed in a small space
F. Public speaking
G. Needles and getting shots
H. Clowns
I. Spiders
J. Dogs
K. Crowds
L. Darkness
M. Mice
Answer: C (64% of those surveyed were frightened of snakes), D (57%), F (56%), I (48%), E (42%), A (38%), M (30%), G (29%), K (24%), L (24%), B (20%), J (17%), H (13%)
God was giving David some wonderful victories and it drove Saul completely mad! All this jealousy inside and lust after control did that to him. Wouldn't it do that to anyone if they made similar choices? Six times we see him throwing a spear. Was it one time at his own son Jonathan? What kind of weird anger is this?
Some feel so desperate for spiritual preeminence and they stay unsatisfied.
Other than Saul and Absalom, who else in the Bible Loved the Preeminence?
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| Photo by Nathan Mcgregor |
Notice: It's hard for people to grow and develop godly character when they come into rulership fast and easy without some trials, tests, hard won battles to learn from.
Religious Saul was fired, but he didn’t pack up his box and leave. Mr. Lucifer is like that too.
Talk about 1 Samuel 9. What went on? There were donkeys. A donkey was a prized animal (Job 1:3) and even sought out at times. Donkeys were used by royalty back in the day (See 1 Kings 1:33–34), but would you expect to find a nation’s first king out seeking for, hunting for, looking for lost donkeys? Naww, you and I wouldn't really.
Saul’s obedience to his father, and his concern for his father (v. 5) was nice. His willingness to persevere in a donkey-task seemed to show us that he'd have good character and future success in what he undertook. Would that be the case for him?
How strange that Saul and company didn't know about the great man of God named Samuel. Interesting -- the only reason they visited Samuel was to find their lost animals!
Going to a man of God to solve a practical problem. It happens today. Nevertheless, the Holy Spirit knowing the future used all of these circumstances to bring Saul to Samuel.
Faithfulness in small duties led Saul to a new friend who acted like a real friend.. cuz he was a true friend. It led him into a new calling and into a new career opportunity to serve God. Would Saul do that well?
Man, had he remained a humble servant, loyal to his heavenly Father, things would have turned out much different in his life there in Israel (See v. 21; 1 Sam. 15:17). But good beginnings are never a guarantee of good endings. You and I want a good ending with the Lord!
Saul could not understand how a man like himself could lead the nation of Israel (let's talk about 1 Samuel 10 now), so God gave him a series of “signs” to assure him for his new duties and responsibilities.
A smart leader must in faith go to God first when they have a personal need or a fear or some struggle inside.
Asking in prayer is the primary way that God the Father has ordained to meet the needs of his kids. A godly leader must trust God to provide for, and to solve the problems for the people as well (vv. 1–2). Yes, they need to earnestly pray that God will provide for their needs as well (vv. 3–4), and to give themselves and to others the equipping, the wisdom and the power needed for righteous service (vv. 5–7).
A wise leader must know how to hear God’s Word and know how to wait obediently on the Lord without running ahead of Him to take matters into their own hands (v. 8). Saul began his ministry in the strength of these assurances. Yes, he had some strengths, but as time went on, Saul trusted more and more in himself and then he rebelled against the Authority of God’s Word. Not smart!
His early modesty in saying nothing about the kingdom (v. 16) and his self-control in not answering his critics (v. 27) were commendable, but what about his hiding on that coronation day? That was strange. Was he genuinely humble, or was he unwilling to take good responsibility at that time? This much is sure: Saul did a great deal of “hiding” all they way through those years of his leadership in Israel, but guess what.. God found him out cuz God sees it all. As the book of Proverbs warns, “He who covers his sins will not prosper” (28:13).
Why Saul failed as a leader seems multi / manifold to me. David knew the kingdom was God's from the get go, but Saul thought the kingdom was his own.
It drove the control-freak of a king mad from all the jealousy he felt inside.
Six times we see a spear thrown.. I believe it was one time was at his own son. Not sure if this happened more and wasn’t recorded.
Listen, I ain’t a doc, but much of schizophrenia involves the demonic, not all but much of it does. Factoid people can still be possessed but Christians cannot be. Was Saul? He was certainly oppressed and harasser by an evil spirit.
Goliath was the easiest giant David ever had to down. Saul was the other giant of sorts that he had to face.
All the Giants after Goliath were not as easy for David to dealing with! Saul was the hardest one for David to deal with.
It's hard to develop godly character when you come into rulership fast and easy without some hard won battles. If you come into power, please don’t let the giant of your fleshly nature cause you to fall. Be careful with your mind.. with your mouth-gate, with your eye-gates and ear-gates. Stay pure and tight in fellowship with God.
Religious Saul’s kingship was ended, he was fired, but he didn’t leave. Man, Mr. Lucifer is sorta like that too. The cross at Calvary ended his future hopes of rulership and gaining the top spot. He so craved to be worshipped, but he’ll get the lake.
Diotrephes - “The man who loved the preeminence” would face his own consequences. He wanted to remain the church boss due to his hardhearted arrogance.
“I have sinned,” Saul replied. “Please honor me now before the elders of my people and before Israel. Come back with me, so that I may worship the LORD your God.” 1 Samuel 15:30
King Saul wanted to be and stay the boss in the Kingdom and to do things his own way for life.. in a kingdom that wasn't even his. Wasn’t going to happen. When David was king he knew it wasn’t his kingdom and that he was a steward of it.
Choose not to become merely religious and puffed up -- have a real relationship with God, and stay humbly obedient to His Word. What are religious people and leaders like? Dead.
“Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.” 2 Timothy 3:5
“Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men..” Isaiah 29:13
“Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.” Habakkuk 2:4
King Saul’s life seems to get ignored as the writer focuses on his death (in 1 Chronicles 10). Yes, Saul was a man with a fairly decent beginning and yet a very tragic ending. The top reason is given in verses 13–14: he was unfaithful to the Lord and disobeyed His Word.
See 1 Samuel 13–31 where it's recorded that Saul’s decline was gradual. What did Saul do? He ran ahead of the Lord and offered a sacrifice. He spared King Agag when he should have, and then he lied to the Lord about all that. He craved honor from the people and he wanted recognition from Samuel. He was rebellious and yet wanted respect from the people even though God had deserted him. He envied blessed David and repeatedly tried to destroy him. He turned to Satan for help and ended up committing suicide. He wasted his God-given opportunities for repentance. Not sure if he did that even as he was dying.
Saul not belonging to the tribe of Judah, he was never really meant to establish his dynasty (Gen. 49:10), but that was not the cause of his sins. Saul could have made much better choices. He could have been a godly servant leader, a good example by preparing the way for David, but Saul was inverted. He was egotistical, power-hungry, selfish and he would not obey the Lord.
Alexander Whyte quoted a relevant comment by Thomas Shepard: “Oh, the grievous shipwrecks of some great ships! We see some boards and planks lying in the mud at low water, but that is all!"
Saul’s second crisis came after he started to build a standing army (1 Samuel 13). He failed in four ways during this crisis.
1.) He failed to act decisively (vv. 1–4). It was Jonathan, not Saul, who declared war by attacking one of the Philistine garrisons. Saul took the credit and blew the trumpet to rally the people.
2.) He failed to inspire the people (vv. 5–7). Some ran away, some hid, and some left the country! (People still dodge military service in the same ways.) Those who were faithful were fearful and the future looked bleak. Draw upon the Word to inspire the people. Pray the word reminding the Lord of His good promises, and preach the word uncompromisingly. Let the Bible speak for itself--don't add to, don't take away from. Your opinions and mine aren't always worth so much. Minister from the word clearly for understanding sake and wise application sake. Don't water it down any.
3.) He failed to wait (vv. 8–9; see also 1 Sam. 10:8). This was the first step in his rupture with Samuel and his rebellion against the Lord. Patience is a mark of character, and Saul’s character was weak (James 1:1–8). We each must wait upon the Lord for his perfect timing.
4.) He failed to tell the truth (vv. 10–15). When David sinned, he came with confessions; when Saul sinned, he had only excuses. He lied to his best friend, and it cost him his crown. And Saul would do it again (1 Sam. 15:15). From that point, his course was downhill.
We really have no time for distractions and excuses today and Saul didn't back then.
Evangelist Billy Sunday defined an excuse as “the skin of a reason stuffed with a lie.”
Benjamin Franklin said, “I never knew a man who was good at making excuses who was good at anything else.”
Adam made the first excuse for his sin (see Gen. 3:12), and many excuses have followed his bad example since then. I've made some too before and regret that. Excuses only make matters worse, never better.
Saul had been fighting the wrong enemy for so long that when the real enemy appeared on the scene (1 Samuel 28), King Saul was totally unprepared.
God was not with him, and prayer was not answered (Prov. 1:20–33).
When Saul began his reign, it was “the dawning of the day” (1 Sam. 9:26), but now he was walking in the darkness.
Saul did not disguise himself (v. 8); he revealed his true self and faulty character. Throughout his kingship he hid. During his reign he had been pretending as a poser, and the truth was coming out about this.
Saul turning to and depending on demonic forces, the medium he visited planned to impersonate Samuel, but did the Lord permitted Samuel to actually appear?
Christians need to stay completely away from the occult and cultic groups. Stick with God, with His people and with the truth of the Bible. God forbade Israel to dabble in the occult (See Exod. 22:18; Lev. 19:31; 20:6; Deut. 18:9–14), and these clear warnings should be heeded today, as well. Yep daily! Sorcery is one of the works of the flesh that must be rejected (Gal. 5:20). Both Peter (Acts 8:9ff.) and Paul (Acts 13:6ff.) had harsh direct words for sorcerers. Seemingly innocent games that border on the occult can open the door up to serious oppression and greater problems. As for seances, go read what see Isaiah 8:19 has to say.
He felt like he needed to talk with godly Samuel. Was it this friend Saul so grieved in life, and that he called for in his decline? Man, too late do we learn to appreciate those spiritually healthy believers and leaders who really tried to help us.
Too late do we humble ourselves. There's no regeneration after a person reaches room temperature. Saul’s disobedience in the past led to scary darkness in the present and to defeat and to death in his future. When God gave him opportunities to confess and repent, he simply ignored God and those opportunities. He did as he felt like. He did as he wanted. He was his own lord during life.. not “seek the LORD while He may be found” (Isa. 55:6 Read more about Saul).
