Will We Pass or Fail?

Verse of the Day: 1 Samuel 15:10-11, Now the word of the LORD came to Samuel, saying, 11 “I greatly regret that I have set up Saul as king, for he has turned back from following Me, and has not performed My commandments.” And it grieved Samuel, and he cried out to the LORD all night.

This is a very sad day for Saul, even though he does not know it yet, and a very sad day for Samuel and the LORD. However, what I would like us to focus on is how God responds to Saul’s disobedience, and Samuel’s response to God’s communication regarding Saul’s forfeiture of the throne. First, we need to understand this one thing; God finds no pleasure in having to discipline His children, and He takes no pleasure in having to take these types of actions against His people. The word regret used in God’s statement means to be “moved to pity”, “have compassion” or “to console oneself”. Even in His anger, the last thing that God desires is to have to punish, discipline, or destroy His creation. His preference is that we come to repentance, as we are told in 2 Peter 3:8-9. This is why we are told that His goodness is what leads us to repentance in Romans 2:4. Knowing this, and all that being said, this should put a different perspective on what it means to love and pray for our enemies, and those who spitefully use us and persecute us (Matthew 5:43-48). Samuel, even though Saul replaced him as God’s leader to Israel, and even though he already saw a glimpse of Saul’s heart and tendency to rebel in chapter 13 when he made the unlawful sacrifice to the LORD, did not take this opportunity to take advantage of the situation and regain his position. Instead, as God was grieved by Saul’s actions, so Samuel was grieved. When we truly have a heart for the LORD, that which bring God joy will bring us joy, and that which grieves God will also grieve us. I say this to point out that many of us have the wrong idea of what it means to pray for our enemies. When we are hurt by others, our first tendency is often to go to God seeking for Him to punish that person who hurt us. We pray that God will allow something bad to happen in their life so they know what our pain feels like. Yet, God’s desire is that we pray in accordance to God’s will, which is that the person repents of what they have done, turn to God in confession, as well as seek to correct the wrong they committed. The fact that God already told us that He would take vengeance on our behalf does not excuse ill prayers toward those that harm us or desire to harm us. Romans 12:20 instructs us to feed our enemy if they are hungry and give them something to drink if they are thirsty. Proverbs 24:17-18 clearly tells us, “Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, and do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles; 18 Lest the LORD see it, and it displeasing Him, and He turn away His wrath from him.” In other words, let God decide what price our enemy will pay, and if they do not turn in repentance, and God has to carry out His vengeance on them, we are to mourn their lack of willingness to turn from their wicked ways. I will ask this to put this matter in perspective. Let us say that we have someone that we love dearly. What if they were to cause harm to someone, and we know that they have committed this wrong? Would we want God to punish them (if they are not saved) or severely discipline them (if they are saved), or would we be praying that they turn to God and avoid the pain that comes with either situation? I believe, that in this case, we would be praying that they turn to God before it is too late. Would it not be rather hypocritical if we then failed to pray for the person who harmed us in such a way as to seek God’s mercy and grace toward them if that is what will turn them to God? Stop and think about what Jesus said in Matthew 5 when He tells us to “love your enemies”. He is talking about agape love. He is talking about love that is an action; hence, why we are to give our enemy something to eat or drink if they are hungry or thirsty. When we read God’s definition of love in 1 Corinthians 13, if we treat our enemies with the kindness that God commands, pray for them the way that we ought, and refuse to rejoice when we see them suffer the consequences of hardening their hearts, then, and only then, will we be responding with the same heart that God responds to those who hurt us. Yes, they may deserve nothing but God’s judgment, but so did we. Yet, when we called on Jesus, even though we deserved eternal condemnation, He gave us eternal life. That is the heart of God. Are we not supposed to be growing to be more and more like Jesus? This will be one of the most difficult tests of our growth in Christ. When that test comes, if it has not already, will we pass or fail?

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His gift of salvation (Rom 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive Him and His gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).