Samuel continued, “Although you once considered yourself unimportant, haven’t you become the leader of the tribes of Israel? The LORD anointed you king over Israel and then sent you on a mission and said, ‘Go and completely destroy the sinful Amalekites. Fight against them until you have annihilated them.’ So why didn’t you obey the LORD? Why did you rush on the plunder and do what was evil in the LORD’s sight?” 1 Samuel 15:17-19 CSB
In our Scripture passage, King Saul had been ordered by the Lord to go and annihilate the Amalekites. He was specifically instructed to go and attack the Amalekites and completely destroy them and everything they have in 1 Samuel 15:3. In verse 4 he is instructed to not spare them but to kill men, women, infants, nursing babies, oxen, sheep, camels, and donkeys.
Saul captured the king and brought him back alive but destroyed the rest of the people. He also spared the best of the livestock. He destroyed all the worthless and unwanted things (1 Samuel 15:9). This was not what God told him to do.
God was very specific in what He told Saul to do. Saul failed to do as he was commanded to do. We can all learn a lesson from Saul.
God is very specific in what He tells us to do. He writes it clearly in His holy word. This is why Bible study is so important. The Bible is not only God’s love letter to us but His manual which instructs us on how to live our lives.
We are to obey all of the instructions, not some of the instructions. When we fail to obey some of the instructions, we are failing to obey His commands. No good comes from this.
With parolees and probationers, I often found they would pick and choose the orders of the court or the parole board they wanted to obey. If they were found to be in violation, they would be sure to let you know about the orders they were not violating. This didn’t matter, they were expected to obey all the orders issued to them, not just some of them.
In my job, I had parts of it I didn’t like. I couldn’t just do those parts. I had to do my entire job even the things I disliked. The Bible does not say we can pick and choose which commandments we will obey. We are told to obey God’s commands.
Would you marry someone who told you upfront they only intended to keep some of your marriage vows?
In John 14:15, Jesus said, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” He didn’t say you will keep one or two of my commandments. He said you will keep my commandments, meaning all of His commandments.
When Jesus was asked what the greatest commandment was, he summed it up by saying we are to love the Lord our God with all our hearts, all our souls, and all our minds. He said the second greatest was like it in that we are to love our neighbors as we love ourselves (Matthew 22:37-39).
Are you obeying some of God’s commandments hoping it will be enough? Are you obeying Him a little bit hoping He will appreciate that so much He will cut you some slack? Good luck with that.
Don’t let the devil convince you that you can do some of what God wants you to do and be okay. Remember he’s a liar. There are no loopholes in God’s laws. There are no gray areas, and it is not open to interpretation. Study your Bible so you won’t be deceived.
God wants total obedience, not partial obedience. Surrender your all to Him today, not just parts of you. Trust in Him in all you do, not just in some things. Trust Him to guide your every step, not just some of them. This leads to peace that passes all understanding (Philippians 4:7) and unending joy.
God’s not going to let you split your time between heaven and hell. You will spend eternity in one or the other, so choose to be totally obedient today.
Have a great day!