[an error occurred while processing this directive] TheBible.net: Are You An Idolater?
Are You An Idolater?
by Jody L. Apple
    Sounds like a rather presumptuous question, wouldn't you say? But if you continue reading, perhaps you will understand the reasoning for such an apparently inflammatory question.

We Want a King

    After God delivered the children of Israel from the iron furnace of Egypt (in fulfillment of the promise made to Abraham - cf. Genesis 12:1ff; 15:1ff; Deut 4:20; 1 Kgs 8:51; Jer 11:14), the people of God: (1) wandered in the wilderness for forty years (Num 14:33-34; 32:13); (2) conquered the land under the leadership of Joshua (Joshua 1-24); and then (3) lapsed into a period during which they wondered to and fro in their obedience to God under the judges (cf. Judges 1-21). At the conclusion of this period, specifically during the life of Samuel, who served as both a prophet (1 Sam 3:2) and a judge (1 Sam 7:6, 15), the nation demanded that they have a king (1 Sam 8:4-6).

    God, eternally omniscient, knew of their desire. Hundreds of years before, during the last days of Moses' leadership, God revealed the criteria requisite for a king should the nation of Israel ever desire one (Deut 17:14-20). In spite of the demands that a king would make on them (1 Sam 8:11ff), the children of Israel insisted they be given a king (vs 19ff).

    Their reasoning was as follows (1 Sam 8:5ff): (1) Samuel was old; (2) his sons were wicked; (3) they wanted to be like the nations around them; (4) they were willing to pay the high cost of taxes and losing their sons and daughters to the service of the king; and (5) they wanted a king to fight their battles for them.

    That God served them as their king and fought their battles for hundreds of years didn't deter their demands (1 Sam 12:12). Samuel balked at the people's request, but God let Samuel know that it was He (God) not Samuel that was being rejected (1 Sam 8:7).

God Provides a King

    Samuel's "search" for a king yielded Saul, son of Kish, a Benjamite (1 Sam 9:1ff; (God actually sent Saul to Samuel). He was, literally, a head taller than everyone else (1 Sam 9:2), and a man that seemed most humble in his deportment (1 Sam 10:21-22).

    Nothing could be better. The people got what they wanted, and God, through Samuel, inaugurated a man of his own choosing, Saul, as the first king.

    Sad to say, the perfect solution didn't last long enough. To be sure, God knew this from eternity, and provided us with prior insight into His will concerning the kings of Judah. He not only referred to the coming Messiah as the "seed of woman" [Gen 3:15 - fulfilled in Christ (Gal 4:4)], He also referred to Him as the "seed of Abraham" [Gen 12:1ff, fulfilled in Christ (Gal 3:16)], and even more specifically as a scepter/lion from the tribe of Judah (Gen 49:9; Rev 5:5). The Messiah, according to the prophecy later made to David by Nathan, would be of the "seed of David" [2 Samuel 7:11ff, fulfilled in Christ (Matthew 1:1-21; 22:42; Luke 1:32ff; Jn 7:42; 2 Tim 2:8)]. David, not Saul, was a descendant of Abraham and Judah. David and his descendants, including Jesus the Christ, fulfilled the prophetic utterance of Jacob concerning the coming of Shiloh (Gen 49:9). Saul did not fulfill this prophecy.

    But it was more than God's eternal plan and prophetic declaration that brought about Saul's undoing. God, though He knew what would happen, did not "cause" (force, or determine, in a fatalistic way) what was about to happen.

    Saul, though a man of great spiritual character initially, was a soul created in the image of God (cf Gen 1:26ff), and thus was in full possession of the freedom either to conform to, or rebel against, God's will. He chose to change his will and become a different man. The positive references to Saul's character prior to becoming king were as follows. Saul was:

(1) a choice and handsome man (1 Sam 9:2)
(2) a head taller than all others (1 Sam 9:2; 10:23)
(3) an obedient son (1 Sam 9:3ff)
(4) anxious about his father's feelings (1 Sam 9:5)
(5) respectful of the prophet of God (1 Sam 9:7)
(6) modest regarding himself (1 Sam 9:21; 10:16, 21-22; 15:17)
(7) obedient to the words of Samuel (1 Sam 10:1ff)
(8) like no one else in Israel (1 Sam 10:24)
(9) a man of great courage (1 Sam 11:5ff)
(10) a man of forgiveness (1 Sam 11:13)
(11) a man who trusted in God (1 Sam 11:13)

    Sad to say, but as great as Saul seemed to be prior to becoming king, his demeanor and behavior did not remain that way for long. Note the following two incidents in his life which show how Saul changed.

Saul and the Sacrifice

    After he was king for two years (1 Sam 13:1ff), Saul and his armies were involved in battling the Philistines. Prior to battle, Samuel was going to offer a sacrifice and make supplication to the Lord on behalf of the children of Israel (1 Sam 13:8-12). When it appeared that Samuel was not going to arrive in time, Saul brazenly went ahead and offered a burnt offering on his own (vs 12).

    When he arrived "Samuel said to Saul, 'You have done foolishly. You have not kept the commandment of the LORD your God, which He commanded you. For now the LORD would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. But now your kingdom shall not continue. The LORD has sought for Himself a man after His own heart, and the LORD has commanded him to be commander over His people, because you have not kept what the LORD commanded you.' " (1 Sam 13:13-14)

    It was not Saul's right to offer sacrifices, but it was Samuel's right. Saul was king, but he was not a priest. Samuel, though not a king, was a prophet, a judge and a priest (1 Sam 2:35; 9:12ff; Ps 99:6). Samuel was supposed to offer sacrifices, not Saul. For this reason, Samuel told Saul "you have not kept what the LORD commanded you."

Saul and the Amalekites

The second incident, involving Saul and the Amalekites, plainly demonstrates Saul's departure from God's will. The text of 1 Samuel 15:1-3 records God's commands for Saul:

Samuel also said to Saul, "The LORD sent me to anoint you king over His people, over Israel. Now therefore, heed the voice of the words of the LORD. Thus says the LORD of hosts: 'I will punish Amalek for what he did to Israel, how he ambushed him on the way when he came up from Egypt. Now go and attack Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and do not spare them. But kill both man and woman, infant and nursing child, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.'"

    Saul's actions in response to the commands of God are seen in verses 7-9:

And Saul attacked the Amalekites, from Havilah all the way to Shur, which is east of Egypt. He also took Agag king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all that was good, and were unwilling to utterly destroy them. But everything despised and worthless, that they utterly destroyed.

    The next time Saul saw Samuel we learn:

Then Samuel went to Saul, and Saul said to him, "Blessed are you of the LORD! I have performed the commandment of the LORD."

    Notice that Saul plainly declared to have "performed the commandment of the Lord." From this statement, one would assume that Saul kept all of God's commands. Please observe, however, that God's commands necessitated that all Amalek, including man and beast, be destroyed. Note also that Saul spared the life of Agag, king of the Amalekites, as well as the best of the livestock.

    Samuel's reply shows that he was not fooled: "What then is this bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?" (vs 14). He knew that if Saul completely obeyed the word of God, no noisy livestock would have remained.

    In his defense, Saul blamed the people: "the people spared the best of the sheep and the oxen, to sacrifice to the LORD your God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed" (vs 15).

    Samuel repeated the command of God: "Now the LORD sent you on a mission, and said, 'Go, and utterly destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they are consumed.' " (vs 18) He continued by asking: "Why then did you not obey the voice of the LORD? Why did you swoop down on the spoil, and do evil in the sight of the LORD?" (vs 19)

    Saul, again in self defense, said: "But I have obeyed the voice of the LORD, and gone on the mission on which the LORD sent me, and brought back Agag king of Amalek; I have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. But the people took of the plunder, sheep and oxen, the best of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice to the LORD your God in Gilgal." (vs 20-21)

    Samuel said: "Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, As in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, He also has rejected you from being king." (vs 22-23)

    It was only after Samuel accused Saul of witchcraft and idolatry that Saul finally admitted he sinned (vs 24). Up to this point Saul repeatedly insisted that he obeyed the Lord: (1) when Samuel first came to him, Saul said "I have performed the commandment of the LORD;" (2) after Samuel indicated that the sound of the sheep and oxen proved that Saul did not obey, the king said "the people spared the best of the sheep and oxen;" (3) when Samuel repeated the initial command of God and asked why Saul took spoils from the Amalekites, Saul insistently stated: "But I have obeyed the voice of the LORD." He declared that he had "gone on the mission on which the LORD sent me." (4) Furthermore, he claimed to have been fully obedient to God when he said "I have utterly destroyed the Amalekites." Observe that Saul made this claim while simultaneously admitting that he "brought back Agag."

Saul the Idolater

    Samuel's stinging accusation of Saul sounds incredible. Saul was the king of Israel. He was a good man, a valiant soldier and was formerly obedient to the Lord. But on this occasion, as on the one noted earlier, Saul acted presumptuously. He was rebellious, and because "rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft," he might as well have been a witch. He was insistent on doing what he wanted, rather than what God wanted. He was stubborn, and as "stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry," Saul might as well have worshipped idols.

    In spite of the explicit instructions given by God, Saul did what he wanted to do. The text states that they (i.e., Saul and the people) "would not utterly destroy them" (KJV, ASV, RSV). "Would not" is sometimes rendered as "unwilling" (NKJV, NASB, NIV). Though Saul claimed to do what God wanted, claiming to obey God is no guarantee that one is really doing what God said. In reality, Saul was unwilling to submit to all that God demanded.

    At best, Saul's actions were only a partial obedience to God's word. But partial obedience - only doing as much of God's word as we feel like doing, and ignoring the rest - is really disobedience. And disobedience is idolatry.

Are You an Idolater?

    Can people claim to follow God while really following their own will? Surely, we must admit this is possible. Jesus, in Matthew 7:21-23 said:

"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!' "

    It was just this sort of claim that Saul made. He insisted he had obeyed the word of God. But a simple comparison of what God said ("utterly destroy") with what Saul did ("spared" Agag and the livestock) shows that Saul did not obey. Jesus likewise warned those who said "Lord, Lord" but did not do "the will of My father in heaven." Claims without corresponding obedience were, and are, equivalent to idolatry.

    Surely we must admit that it would be preposterous to claim to follow God while worshipping idols of stone, wood or precious metal. But, even though we might not fall down before physical idols, we must realize that we don't have to actually worship idols to be guilty of idolatry. We can be guilty of idolatry if we claim to do what God says, and then act however we want. We simply assume that our acts are in harmony with God's will. Rather than conforming our will to God's word, we-in effect-ignore His will and do as we please, all while claiming to follow His word.

    Examine all of your beliefs and actions. Compare each one of them with the word of God. Do not claim to follow God, and then live according to your own will. To do so is rebellious, and stubborn. To do so is to be guilty of idolatry. When we act this way, we worship our wills and our ways, not God's.

This item originally appeared in The GoodNewsPaper


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