No Fear

1 Samuel 13:8-14

8He waited seven days, the time set by Samuel; but Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and Saul’s men began to scatter. 9So he said, “Bring me the burnt offering and the fellowship offerings.” And Saul offered up the burnt offering. 10 Just as he finished making the offering, Samuel arrived, and Saul went out to greet him.

11 “What have you done?” asked Samuel. Saul replied, “When I saw that the men were scattering, and that you did not come at the set time, and that the Philistines were assembling at Mikmash, 12 I thought, ‘Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not sought the Lord’s favor.’ So I felt compelled to offer the burnt offering.”

13 “You have done a foolish thing,” Samuel said. “You have not kept the command the Lord your God gave you; if you had, he would have established your kingdom over Israel for all time. 14 But now your kingdom will not endure; the Lord has sought out a man after his own heart and appointed him ruler of his people, because you have not kept the Lord’s command.”

Introduction

I came from a countryside village when there was no electricity. And, the surrounding was so dark at night. People have many stories of ghost. Old and young were scared at night. Overcoming fear of ghost was great achievement.

Have you ever been afraid of ghost? How did you overcome your fear of ghost? Some people don’t believe in ghost. Ghost stories had been associated with fear. The first Disciples of Christ have their own share of fear of a ghost.

It says in Matthew 14:26, When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear.

The Lord Jesus did not deny the possibility of ghost. After His resurrection, Christ appeared to the disciples and they were scared again. But, He told them in Luke 24:39, Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.”

Anyway, with video cameras or CCTV (closed-circuit television), image of ghosts have been posted in the internet. So, how can we overcome our fear of ghost? It says in 1 John 4:4, 4You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.

It is very advisable to ignore videos or movies about ghosts. Scary movies can manipulate weak minds to be afraid. Watching scary movies has similar effect to entertaining doubts and fear. Focus on what the Lord can to empower and enlighten us instead. The more we fill and saturate our heart and mind with God’s word, commands and promises, the more we’re encouraged, not scared.

When the Philistines assembled for battle, the Israelites were scared.

1. Scare

8He waited seven days, the time set by Samuel; but Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and Saul’s men began to scatter. 9So he said, “Bring me the burnt offering and the fellowship offerings.” And Saul offered up the burnt offering. 10 Just as he finished making the offering, Samuel arrived, and Saul went out to greet him.

Previously, Jonathan, the son of King Saul attacked the outpost of the Philistines, and it sparked war against them. With advanced military armament of the Philistines, King Saul and the Israelites can’t hide their fear of their enemies. When King Saul offered up burnt offering, it implies that he was scared. He tried to seek favor from the Lord. Does burnt offering prove that he believed in God?

We also have tendencies to do our best effort to solve our fear of problem, just like King Saul. Most often, we try every possible means to avoid difficulties.

It’s proper to be prudent and make necessary remedies for life problems. But, when everything has been done properly, where does faith in God come in? Are you a Christian who plays safe in your approach to life? As long as they have good testimony among Christian community, many believers are satisfied with it.

When Christ returns, would you expect to hear Him say, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’?

Problem is part of life. We can’t avoid it. But as we face or solve problems, remember to practice faith in Christ. God allows problems to seek His help. By faith, we can trust Christ in all of our activities, especially solving problems.

2. Solve

11 “What have you done?” asked Samuel. Saul replied, “When I saw that the men were scattering, and that you did not come at the set time, and that the Philistines were assembling at Mikmash, 12 I thought, ‘Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not sought the Lord’s favor.’ So I felt compelled to offer the burnt offering.”

Saul thought that burnt offering was the best solution to their problem. That should be very commendable for him to seek the Lord by burning the offering, right? But why did Samuel questioned and did not appreciate what Saul did? Being the king, Saul had to prove and exemplify to his soldiers that he did what’s best for everyone. He wanted to appease those who were scared. Samuel told Saul to wait for him yet, Samuel was nowhere to be found. The Israelites had scattered. Saul had to do something and disregarded the promise of Samuel.

Apparently, Saul doubted that Samuel will really come. Samuel was God’s messenger, and Saul was ignorant that when he doubted Samuel, he doubted also if God really cares about their safety from the Philistines.

Parental Problem

What problem do you wish to solve quickly? The immediate problem of parents is how to provide for their family, and pay monthly bills. Most Christians can’t wait upon the Lord. They’d rather find quick solution to financial problem.

A young pastor who got married was pressured to provide the best lifestyle for his family. So, whenever he had time, he engaged in chicharon or fried pork business as additional income. His part-time business was very promising, and great business requires much time. As a result, he left the full-time ministry.

1 Timothy 5:8 says, Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

That is something to remember but it may also puzzle many believers, too.

In Matthew 10:37, “Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.

How can we prioritize the Lord without disregarding the needs of our love ones?

God had assigned particular ministry for believers. Things needed for godly life had been given if we seek God and let His righteousness prevail in our lifestyle.

3. Seek

13 “You have done a foolish thing,” Samuel said. “You have not kept the command the Lord your God gave you; if you had, he would have established your kingdom over Israel for all time. 14 But now your kingdom will not endure; the Lord has sought out a man after his own heart and appointed him ruler of his people, because you have not kept the Lord’s command.”

We don’t know God’s complete plan for us. So, every step we make, we need to seek the Lord to lead us to His plan. Similarly, Saul knew he was chosen king, but did not know God’s plan. He may have misunderstood what Samuel said in 1 Samuel 10:7, Do whatever your hand finds to do, for God is with you.

Truly, when the Ammonites attacked Jabesh Gilead, King Saul led the Israelites and defeated their enemies. So, when the Philistines prepared for war, it was possible that Saul thought that he should do whatever he needed to do because the Lord was with him, anyway. But, Samuel told him that it’s foolish.

Not Ideal

David was the man after God’s own heart. He’s not ideal father, husband or leader but David always sought to inquire of the Lord in all his decisions.

When the Amalekites took their families as captives, David and his men didn’t rush to pursue them. Instead, David inquired of the Lord what to do. It says in 1 Samuel 30:8, 8“Shall I pursue this raiding party? Will I overtake them?” “Pursue them,” he answered. “You will certainly overtake them and succeed in the rescue.”

David and his men should have been very furious and worried about their families. They should be quick to rescue their families without any hesitation, right? What’s the need of inquiring of the Lord? It shows David prioritized God!

Most often, when we are emotionally affected, we can easily make mistake of rushing to conclusion or making unwarranted decisions. Ephesians 1:17 says, Keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.

To prioritize Christ is to believe He’s the answer to problems. How? We seek empowerment from the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, and He will show the best solution to problems He allows us to encounter.

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