Psalm 54; I Samuel 26-30
In Saul we see the desperation of a man who is quick to accept the LORD’s help when it suits his own ambitions, but who steadfastly refuses to surrender to the LORD otherwise. We see that refusal in his persistence in hunting David, despite David’s proofs of innocence and despite Saul’s outward displays of “repentance”. Saul “inquires of the LORD”, seeking guidance, but his heart is not inclined toward obedience, and the LORD is suitably silent.
Rather than turning in true repentance to the LORD, Saul sinks still further. Although the LORD had expressly forbidden sorcerers, mediums, and necromancers (Ex. 22:18; Lev. 19:31; 20:27; Dt. 18:9-14), and Saul himself enforced that policy, Saul resorts to engaging a medium, the witch of Endor, in order to consult the dead Samuel. (I Sam. 28:3-25) Samuel’s words to Saul are telling:
And Samuel said, “Why then do you ask me, since the LORD has turned from you and become your enemy? The LORD has done to you as he spoke by me…”
I Samuel 28:16-17a
In other words, “How do you expect to get around the LORD by coming to me? What can you possibly hope to hear from me that I haven’t already told you?” Samuel goes on to pronounce only doom upon Saul and his sons and the entire army of Israel at the hands of the Philistines. For years Saul has neglected faith. Now he has only fear. Saul has had years in which to repent. Now it is too late.
Let’s not take Saul’s path. Let’s not treat God like a genie that grants us wishes, but whose wishes we can ignore. And let’s not look for alternate paths, ways of bypassing the LORD to get what we want, to hear what we want to hear. Let’s instead surrender to the LORD. Let’s seek the LORD Himself, not just His blessings. If your conscience is pricking you about anything, if the Holy Spirit is convicting you of any sin, then repent! And do it now. Don’t wait. But don’t play games with half-baked repentance or feigned remorse. You can’t fool God. So give it up and really surrender to Him.
Of course, I say all that not just from reading Saul’s story but out of my own experience. That is, I see myself in Saul. I see my own pride. I see the twisted devices of my own sinful heart. But unlike Saul I also know the Gospel, that the LORD delights in removing my sin from me as far as the east is from the west. (Ps. 103:12) Note that I did not say that the LORD removes just the penalty of my sin, while I continue to cling to the sin. No, the LORD delights in removing the sin itself. But for that to happen, I must relinquish it and nail it to the Cross of Christ. In doing so — in repentance — I find His abundant mercy. And so can you.
See also: June 2 (2022) / Psalms 53-54