Nothing but the Truth
Preached by Jason Abbott
June 12, 2016
I once officiated a funeral for a woman I did not know. She was the mother of a lady who attended our church. During a funeral, you typically try to celebrate any redemptive qualities the deceased person had—love for her children or spouse, a charitable disposition, or faithful service in the community. However, as I spoke with the family, it became clear that this woman was typically grouchy and rude and unforgiving with most everyone. (She was, by all accounts, a master gardener. So I made much of her gifts in the garden. But that was it.)What do you say at a celebration where there’s not much worth celebrating? What should I have said at that funeral? What should you say when that couple, who shouldn’t even be dating, tells you their engaged? What should we say? Usually, we say socially acceptable things or ambiguous things or nothing at all. (Usually, we’re tempted to make much of their gardening.)But, God speaks the truth. God’s word is relentless—even when it spoils what’s supposed to be a celebration; even when it stains Israel’s king’s coronation! God speaks the truth and nothing but the truth.Let’s read this passage together and then pray (page 297).
1 Samuel 10-11
10:1 Then Samuel took a flask of oil and poured it on his head and kissed him and said, “Has not the Lord anointed you to be prince over his people Israel? And you shall reign over the people of the Lord and you will save them from the hand of their surrounding enemies. And this shall be the sign to you that the Lord has anointed you to be prince over his heritage. 2 When you depart from me today, you will meet two men by Rachel's tomb in the territory of Benjamin at Zelzah, and they will say to you, ‘The donkeys that you went to seek are found, and now your father has ceased to care about the donkeys and is anxious about you, saying, “What shall I do about my son?”’ 3 Then you shall go on from there farther and come to the oak of Tabor. Three men going up to God at Bethel will meet you there, one carrying three young goats, another carrying three loaves of bread, and another carrying a skin of wine. 4 And they will greet you and give you two loaves of bread, which you shall accept from their hand. 5 After that you shall come to Gibeath-elohim, where there is a garrison of the Philistines. And there, as soon as you come to the city, you will meet a group of prophets coming down from the high place with harp, tambourine, flute, and lyre before them, prophesying. 6 Then the Spirit of the Lord will rush upon you, and you will prophesy with them and be turned into another man. 7 Now when these signs meet you, do what your hand finds to do, for God is with you. 8 Then go down before me to Gilgal. And behold, I am coming down to you to offer burnt offerings and to sacrifice peace offerings. Seven days you shall wait, until I come to you and show you what you shall do.”9 When he turned his back to leave Samuel, God gave him another heart. And all these signs came to pass that day. 10 When they came to Gibeah, behold, a group of prophets met him, and the Spirit of God rushed upon him, and he prophesied among them. 11 And when all who knew him previously saw how he prophesied with the prophets, the people said to one another, “What has come over the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?” 12 And a man of the place answered, “And who is their father?” Therefore it became a proverb, “Is Saul also among the prophets?” 13 When he had finished prophesying, he came to the high place.14 Saul's uncle said to him and to his servant, “Where did you go?” And he said, “To seek the donkeys. And when we saw they were not to be found, we went to Samuel.” 15 And Saul's uncle said, “Please tell me what Samuel said to you.” 16 And Saul said to his uncle, “He told us plainly that the donkeys had been found.” But about the matter of the kingdom, of which Samuel had spoken, he did not tell him anything.17 Now Samuel called the people together to the Lord at Mizpah. 18 And he said to the people of Israel, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘I brought up Israel out of Egypt, and I delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of all the kingdoms that were oppressing you.’ 19 But today you have rejected your God, who saves you from all your calamities and your distresses, and you have said to him, ‘Set a king over us.’ Now therefore present yourselves before the Lord by your tribes and by your thousands.”20 Then Samuel brought all the tribes of Israel near, and the tribe of Benjamin was taken by lot. 21 He brought the tribe of Benjamin near-by its clans, and the clan of the Matrites was taken by lot; and Saul the son of Kish was taken by lot. But when they sought him, he could not be found. 22 So they inquired again of the Lord, “Is there a man still to come?” and the Lord said, “Behold, he has hidden himself among the baggage.” 23 Then they ran and took him from there. And when he stood among the people, he was taller than any of the people from his shoulders upward. 24 And Samuel said to all the people, “Do you see him whom the Lord has chosen? There is none like him among all the people.” And all the people shouted, “Long live the king!”25 Then Samuel told the people the rights and duties of the kingship, and he wrote them in a book and laid it up before the Lord. Then Samuel sent all the people away, each one to his home. 26 Saul also went to his home at Gibeah, and with him went men of valor whose hearts God had touched. 27 But some worthless fellows said, “How can this man save us?” And they despised him and brought him no present. But he held his peace.11:1 Then Nahash the Ammonite went up and besieged Jabesh-gilead, and all the men of Jabesh said to Nahash, “Make a treaty with us, and we will serve you.” 2 But Nahash the Ammonite said to them, “On this condition I will make a treaty with you, that I gouge out all your right eyes, and thus bring disgrace on all Israel.” 3 The elders of Jabesh said to him, “Give us seven days' respite that we may send messengers through all the territory of Israel. Then, if there is no one to save us, we will give ourselves up to you.” 4 When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul, they reported the matter in the ears of the people, and all the people wept aloud.5 Now, behold, Saul was coming from the field behind the oxen. And Saul said, “What is wrong with the people, that they are weeping?” So they told him the news of the men of Jabesh. 6 And the Spirit of God rushed upon Saul when he heard these words, and his anger was greatly kindled. 7 He took a yoke of oxen and cut them in pieces and sent them throughout all the territory of Israel by the hand of the messengers, saying, “Whoever does not come out after Saul and Samuel, so shall it be done to his oxen!” Then the dread of the Lord fell upon the people, and they came out as one man. 8 When he mustered them at Bezek, the people of Israel were three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand. 9 And they said to the messengers who had come, “Thus shall you say to the men of Jabesh-gilead: ‘Tomorrow, by the time the sun is hot, you shall have salvation.’” When the messengers came and told the men of Jabesh, they were glad. 10 Therefore the men of Jabesh said, “Tomorrow we will give ourselves up to you, and you may do to us whatever seems good to you.” 11 And the next day Saul put the people in three companies. And they came into the midst of the camp in the morning watch and struck down the Ammonites until the heat of the day. And those who survived were scattered, so that no two of them were left together.12 Then the people said to Samuel, “Who is it that said, ‘Shall Saul reign over us?’ Bring the men, that we may put them to death.” 13 But Saul said, “Not a man shall be put to death this day, for today the Lord has worked salvation in Israel.” 14 Then Samuel said to the people, “Come, let us go to Gilgal and there renew the kingdom.” 15 So all the people went to Gilgal, and there they made Saul king before the Lord in Gilgal. There they sacrificed peace offerings before the Lord, and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.
As we study this text together, we’ll see three things: (1) God knows what’s in a man; (2) Saul shows what’s in a man; and (3) God delivers what’s in a man. Let’s look at each of these three lessons.
1. God knows what’s in a man (10:1-13).
Here the Lord is beginning to give the people what they’ve asked for, a king. A good looking and physically impressive king! A king like all the nations have! However, God knows that looks can be deceiving. He knows that men and women, without exception, hide what’s on the inside with as much polish as we can muster on the outside. God knows what’s in us.Consequently, God knows Saul’s true colors and that he’s been set up to fail. God knows that Saul cannot carry the weight of the people’s expectations for him. He knows that Saul won’t be smart enough, and that he won’t be brave enough, and that he won’t be king enough—because no man or woman is.So, God is merciful with poor Saul and gives him the secret way to success. He tells him his kingship will succeed if he follows him and fail if he does not. God promises to prosper him as long as he will faithfully do what God, by Samuel, shows “him” he “should do” (10:8).Moreover, since God knows what’s in a man, he makes Saul’s calling clear by multiplying very specific signs in order to encourage him in his kingship. Samuel prophesies for Saul:
When you depart from me today, you will meet two men by Rachel's tomb . . . and they will say to you, ‘The donkeys that you went to seek are found, and now your father has ceased to care about the donkeys and is anxious about you . . . Then you shall go on from there . . . and come to the oak of Tabor. Three men going up to God at Bethel will meet you there, one carrying three young goats, another carrying three loaves of bread, and another carrying a skin of wine. And they will greet you and give you two loaves of bread . . . After that you shall come to Gibeath-elohim . . . And there, as soon as you come to the city, you will meet a group of prophets coming down from the high place with harp, tambourine, flute, and lyre before them, prophesying. Then the Spirit of the Lord will rush upon you, and you will prophesy with them . . . Now when these signs meet you, do what your hand finds to do, for God is with you (10:2-7).
These signs are so incredibly specific that they can’t be denied. In these, God is irrefutably demonstrating, to Saul, his authority—an authority with which he promises to guard and prosper Saul’s kingship if he’ll just follow him. In short, God says: “Saul, you’re not alone. My power will work through your weaknesses. I know what’s in a man. Trust in me!”Friends, as with Saul, God knows what’s in you. God knows you’re weak. He knows you’re insecure. He knows you’re sinful. He knows you can’t save you. So he has given you his Son. He has given you his Spirit. He promises to always be with you and to equip you for every good work.Friends, we are not capable. We are mere men and women. But, if we trust in Christ Jesus, he is glad to accomplish his redemptive plans in and through us. Don’t hesitate to trust that God can use broken you.Well, even as God knows what’s in a man . . .
2. Saul shows what’s in a man (10:14-27).
God gives Saul all these signs, all this encouragement, all this confirmation. But, Saul gets home and meets his uncle:His uncle’s question: “What did Samuel tell you?”Saul’s answer: “Just that the Donkeys had been found.”Saul, with the strong fragrance of the anointing oil still lingering upon him, lies by concealing the most important news of his life from his uncle. Why lie? Why the deception? Well, what’s in a man?Then the big day comes. God, through Samuel, is about to publicly reveal, to all Israel, the king. The lots are cast and slowly the field narrows and narrows until finally Saul’s name is called. Yet, he’s nowhere to be found. He’s hiding! Why the doubt? Why the fear? Well, what’s in a man?Saul shows us what’s in him, and, if we’re honest, what’s in all of us as well. Each of us, on our own, is a deceptive coward. Though God is true, we’re all liars. Saul shows us what’s really in us.Do you remember that funeral I told you about? The one where I talked a lot about gardening? The one where I didn’t say much about the truth of the matter? Well, contrast how I handled that ceremony with how God handles this coronation. I spoke around the truth so as to not offend—so as to not ruin the commemoration. God, however, sends Samuel down to speak the truth—and nothing but the truth—even though it will sour Israel’s little celebration:
. . . today you have rejected . . . God, who saves you from all your calamities and your distresses, and you have said to him, ‘Set a king over us.’ (10:19).
Friends, do you ever sacrifice truth at the altar of what’s socially acceptable? Do you ever hide from the truth-telling calling of God on your life?It strikes me that Christians have been given the gospel—the only message of salvation. And, yet, we often hide it away or avoid sharing it with a dying world. We must not!Just consider what the famous magician Penn Jillette, an outspoken atheist, has to say about sharing your faith. He says:
How much do you have to hate somebody to not proselytize? How much do you have to hate somebody to believe that everlasting life is possible and not tell them that? If I believed beyond a shadow of a doubt that a truck was coming at you and you didn't believe it, and that truck was bearing down on you, there's a certain point where I tackle you. And this is more important than that.1
Friends, if we believe in the good news, we must not hide it away. Rather, we must allow the Spirit of God to lead us into gentle yet bold conversations, which God can and will use to save those who are dying. We must speak the truth.Well, this brings us to our last point . . .
3. God delivers what’s in a man (11).
Look, in these chapters, there are two Sauls whom we see. There is the Saul who is filled with a human spirit, and there is the Saul who is filled with the Spirit of God. There is the Saul who lies and hides, and there is the Saul who prophesies and conquers. The text tells us the Spirit will turn Saul “into another man” (10:6) and that “God gave him another heart” (10:9).There’s quite a contrast between Saul when he hides at his own coronation and when he rallies the Israelites to battle and victory over Nahash the Ammonite. Moreover, the Bible makes it abundantly clear who has caused this Bruce Banner into the Incredible Hulk transformation of Saul. We’re told:
. . . the Spirit of God rushed upon Saul when he heard . . . and his anger was greatly kindled (11:6).
Saul on his own is impotent, but Saul filled with God’s Spirit is powerful because the Spirit of God is powerful. God, in this instance, has delivered Saul from himself, from his own devices. God, in this instance, has delivered his Spirit to transform Saul.God has delivered, has given, what’s in this new man—Saul!Let me close by saying this. Too often, we flounder in our Christian lives because we’ve lost hope of seeing any real transformation. Yet, what God does with Saul temporarily—through the power of the Holy Spirit—transforming him into a new man and giving him a new heart—he promises us eternally in Christ. And he’s begun it already through the Spirit’s work in us.Friends, if you trust that Jesus has died in your place then be encouraged because he has risen and ascended and reigns and has sent his Spirit to live in you. So walk with his Spirit in freedom from sin (cf. Galatians 5).For, the same Sprit who transformed a lying coward like Saul into a king now enables us to live in truth and boldly defeat sin wherever we find it. Amen!
1 You can read a detailed account of his views here.
