Daily Affirmations - Day 5 - A Teachable Spirit - To Obey is Better...

Day 5: To obey is better...

We will obey the Lord our God so that it will go well with us

When Samuel reached him, Saul said, “The Lord bless you! I have carried out the Lord’s instructions.” But Samuel said, “What then is this bleating of sheep in my ears? What is this lowing of cattle that I hear?” (1 Samuel 15:13-14).

Almighty God, our Father, the apostle John sums up what it means to love You, This is love for God: to keep His commands. And His commands are not burdensome… (1 John 5:3).

But from early in creation, humanity chose to love self, and to pursue self-gratification rather than to love the God who had fashioned them after His own image (Genesis 1:26-27, 2:15-17, 3:6). And in their disobedience, humans developed the full-grown fruit of rebellion— cover up, deceit, deception, deflection, blame, excuses... (Genesis 3:8-13, 4:4-5, 8-9).

All this was the response of King Saul after he failed to carry out the divine instructions given through the prophet Samuel (1 Samuel 15:1-23). Like Adam and Eve, their son Cain, and the march of sinful humanity from then, Saul "dug in" to lies, half-truths, denial, deflection, distortions, manipulative reasoning, excuses, and blame.

But truth always surfaces; it cannot be suppressed forever, for You are God, and You are Truth. The sound of truth always bursts from confinement and into the light of the Judge of all the earth— in the rustling of fig leaves in the cool of the day (Genesis 3:7-11); in the blood of a brother crying out to God from the ground (Genesis 4:10); or in the bleating of sheep and the lowing of cattle (1 Samuel 15:14).

Saul's excuse was that the forbidden plunder was for the purpose of sacrifice. But Samuel replied, “Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord? To obey is better than sacrifice...” (1 Samuel 15:22).

Saul's disobedience and arrogance would cause You to reject him as king. David, whom You chose to succeed him, would later show us an example of true repentance after his own sin against You. He understood that sacrifice is not a substitute for obedience:

You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; You do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart You, God, will not despise (Psalm 51:16-17).

David demonstrated a heart of true humility. No wonder You called him a man after Your own heart! (Acts 13:22).

May we, too, have a humble heart— a heart like Yours— and a teachable spirit. For the message that Samuel conveyed so strongly to an unrepentant Saul rings down the centuries to Your people today: the end does not justify the means. We cannot ignore Your commands in order to offer a "sacrifice" of an ultimate good we imagine.

Lord, help us to love You and keep Your commands (John 14:15). But should we sin against You, help us not to persist in denial, rebellion, and excuse-making when confronted with our wrong. Teach us true repentance. You will not despise a broken and a contrite heart.

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