WEBVTT

00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.639
Day 77, or March the 18th. Leaders, be followers

00:00:05.639 --> 00:00:11.039
where God's concerned. Our thoughts today are

00:00:11.039 --> 00:00:15.740
from 1 Samuel chapter 13, verses 8 and 9. He

00:00:15.740 --> 00:00:19.260
waited for seven days, the time set by Samuel,

00:00:19.519 --> 00:00:23.339
but Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and Saul's

00:00:23.339 --> 00:00:26.940
men began to scatter, so he said, Bring me the

00:00:26.940 --> 00:00:28.899
burnt offering and the fellowship offerings.

00:00:29.480 --> 00:00:34.259
and Saul offered up the burnt offering. First,

00:00:34.380 --> 00:00:37.920
the big picture surrounding these verses. Saul

00:00:37.920 --> 00:00:40.380
hadn't been king very long before he started

00:00:40.380 --> 00:00:44.700
to bypass God's guidance and substitute his own.

00:00:45.259 --> 00:00:49.119
It was to be the ruin of him. Foolish actions

00:00:49.119 --> 00:00:53.159
and unwise vows resulted in a dreadful word from

00:00:53.159 --> 00:00:58.149
God to Samuel. Chapter 15, verse 11. I am sorry

00:00:58.149 --> 00:01:01.750
that I ever made Saul king, for he has not been

00:01:01.750 --> 00:01:05.409
loyal to me and has refused to obey my command.

00:01:06.090 --> 00:01:09.810
Saul had done his best, but failed to grasp that

00:01:09.810 --> 00:01:14.349
God wanted him to do God's will, not try harder

00:01:14.349 --> 00:01:20.129
and work in his own strength. And now our action

00:01:20.129 --> 00:01:24.049
step for today. Saul is about to fight the Philistines

00:01:24.049 --> 00:01:27.170
and is waiting for Samuel to arrive to make the

00:01:27.170 --> 00:01:30.769
appropriate sacrifices to God. Samuel doesn't

00:01:30.769 --> 00:01:33.890
turn up on time, and the situation is beginning

00:01:33.890 --> 00:01:37.790
to fall apart in the mind of Saul. So Saul takes

00:01:37.790 --> 00:01:41.810
everything into his own hands and decides to

00:01:41.810 --> 00:01:45.420
offer the sacrifices himself. Saul was a member

00:01:45.420 --> 00:01:48.040
of the tribe of Benjamin, but the sacrifices

00:01:48.040 --> 00:01:50.920
could only be offered by a priest from the tribe

00:01:50.920 --> 00:01:55.500
of Levi. Saul simply takes the law into his own

00:01:55.500 --> 00:01:59.319
hands and makes the offerings, and then Samuel

00:01:59.319 --> 00:02:04.099
turns up. Saul had allowed circumstances to determine

00:02:04.099 --> 00:02:07.459
his actions. It's a problem many of us experience

00:02:07.459 --> 00:02:10.750
from time to time. Have you ever had one of those

00:02:10.750 --> 00:02:13.770
days when you were firmly resolved to take a

00:02:13.770 --> 00:02:16.610
particular course of action and it starts to

00:02:16.610 --> 00:02:19.810
go wrong? Of course, there are times when we

00:02:19.810 --> 00:02:22.930
need to be flexible, but sometimes we let other

00:02:22.930 --> 00:02:26.330
pressures succeed in our lives when a gentle

00:02:26.330 --> 00:02:29.689
self -reminder would help us firm up on where

00:02:29.689 --> 00:02:33.129
we are going. Don't let others determine your

00:02:33.129 --> 00:02:37.550
actions and reactions today. Stay in tune with

00:02:37.550 --> 00:02:41.419
the Holy Spirit. and be swayed by him, not by

00:02:41.419 --> 00:02:43.659
anything or anyone else.