Abounding Grace

Pastor Ed Taylor: When all is said and done, wouldn't you like to be known as a man or woman of integrity? It's a beautiful thing, I would say, that at the end of your life when you're old and gray—I don't know how many of us could stand up and say we're pretty close. I'm pretty close to this. I'm old and gray. I'm gray-headed, that's for sure. I'm getting there. What hair I have left, and I'm much older than I was before.

But toward the end of our life, whatever that is, it's a beautiful thing to stand before people and not be ashamed. To stand in righteousness, not perfection. We're not going to stand and go, "I never made a mistake," but we are going to stand and go, "You know what, I'm a man of God, I'm a woman of God, and I'm going into eternity knowing that I lived my life with integrity, with fidelity, with honesty, and you guys are witnesses of that."

Guest (Male): It is great to be with you today. Welcome again to Abounding Grace with Pastor Ed Taylor. We'll join Pastor Ed in 1st Samuel chapter 12 in just a moment. It's a transition time in the leadership of Israel as Samuel is about to humbly step down and Saul is handed the leadership of the nation. Pastor Ed doesn't want us to miss Samuel's attitude and approach here at the latter part of his life and ministry. We'll point out his humility and integrity and allow this to inspire you to live in a similar way.

Pastor Ed Taylor: Take your Bibles and open them to 1st Samuel chapter 12. That's where we are and where we left off. 1st Samuel chapter 12. It's not an easy time for Samuel in this season of his life. He's older. He's raised his kids. He has, you'll recall, lived a dedicated life to serving God. He experienced a miraculous birth. His mom prayed for a boy, and we learned that early on. Hannah was blessed with a boy and she said, "If you give me a boy, I'll dedicate him to serve you."

And that's what she did in a very literal way. Her dedication of Samuel meant that she would wean him and then leave him at the temple to serve Eli and his corrupt sons. But really, he wasn't serving Eli and his corrupt sons; he was serving God. Unfortunately, there's always those people that are in our lives, even sometimes spiritual leaders like Eli, that don't fully represent the goodness of God. But that didn't deter Samuel. He was able to navigate around imperfect people.

By the way, I believe that's an important principle, an important truth, an important skill that you need to learn. And that is to navigate around those men and women that are not helping you grow in grace. People are going to misrepresent God. People are going to make mistakes, some by accident, some on purpose. It's important that you learn to keep your eyes on the Lord firmly fixed. The Bible says "firmly fixed" to keep your eyes on the Lord, no matter what's going on around you.

Yes, we serve those that are around us, for sure. We need to learn how to serve them with love and grace. But for those that are not helping us, those that might just be misrepresenting, we need to learn how to navigate around. Samuel's a great example of that. He navigated around to be the man of God. And yet, at this season of his life, he's a rejected man, unexpectedly rejected. The elders, the leaders of the nation of Israel, see all the other nations around them with kings, and all they have is judges.

And they desire a king. Why do all the other nations have a king? We want a king. And they come to Samuel and demand a king. You remember what happened? Samuel was bummed out. He took it personally. In many ways, it was personal. They rejected Samuel's leadership as well as his sons because, unfortunately, Samuel's sons went astray as well. It discouraged the leaders, no doubt. And as they're looking around, they're like, "Well, we don't have a king. We've never had a king. We want a king."

They asked for—no, they demanded one. No longer did they want to be led by God directly. No longer did they want to be led by a spiritual man, but by a king just like all the other nations around them. It hurt Samuel, but don't miss this: it hurt Samuel deeply, but he did the right thing. He took it to the Lord in prayer. That's where he took his hurts. This very deep, personal wound, he took it to the Lord in prayer.

God told him and answered his prayer that they hadn't rejected him, Samuel, but in reality, they had rejected God from ruling over them. You know what God told Samuel to do? Give them a king. They want a king? Give them a king. Here is one of the sad scriptures I think describes this whole scenario in one scripture. It's just like the children of Israel wandering around in the wilderness, which is what this scripture is referring to, but I believe it's very appropriate here in this section of Samuel.

For every other one that is demanding something from God, but it's not God's best, it's this: Psalm 106, verse 15. It says, "And he gave them their request, but sent leanness into their soul." You never want your request to supersede God's desire for you, where you're demanding and demanding you're going to do it your own way. You're going to do it no matter what it takes, what the cost is, and you find that God gives you and allows your request, but now you have leanness in your soul because of that disobedient decision.

That's where we meet Saul. He's the chosen king. And as we've learned in previous studies, he has such great potential, so many great qualities in his life, a wonderful family. And yet, like many before him and so many after him, he didn't live up to his potential. He barely even tapped into it. I wonder if those listening to this Bible study right now, I wonder if you're going to be one that doesn't tap into the full potential that God has for your life. If you're the one that won't tap into all that God has made you and fashioned in you.

Well, let me show you. Before we even get to 1st Samuel, go to Matthew chapter 16. This is often the barrier for you and I not really tapping into everything that God has for us. I really don't know much about you in a personal way because I haven't asked you this question lately, but I can tell you for me: I want to tap into all that God has for me in the very few days or years that I have left on the earth. I want to accomplish all that God wants me to accomplish.

I want to be a part of all that God wants me to be a part of. I don't want to go down with anyone looking at me and going, "Oh, wasted potential. Such a sad story in Ed's life." I don't want to go down in flames. I don't want to go down in disgrace. I don't want to go down in sin. I don't want to go down not fulfilling all that God has for me. And here is the answer. I was putting this study together today, this morning, and this is the answer the Lord gave to me.

This is the passage: Matthew chapter 16. Notice with me in verse 24. You're like, "Well, Ed, I want that too. I want to tap into everything God has for me. I want to fulfill the call of God upon my life. I want to be used to the greatest potential." All right, here's the answer. Matthew 16, verse 24. Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it."

"For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, but loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?" That's the key for us following close. That's the key for us moving forward in the things of God: the denial of self. It's not the denial of something, and it's not the denial of a few things, but of our very selves. It's a dethroning of self and an enthrone of Jesus. Chasing after life and all that life has will leave you empty at the end and unsatisfied, stressed out, worried, fretting, and ultimately just wiped out.

Chasing the dream, chasing the dream, chasing the dream. But where life is found is in the denial of self. Life is found in Jesus. Every man and every woman and every child needs to make the decision that Joshua makes at the end of the book of Joshua, chapter 24, verse 15. He says, "And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you'll serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the river, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell."

"But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." Everyone has to make that decision. Saul never committed himself fully to the things of God, even though he had great potential, even though he did a few things right. We learn this when, a few chapters ago, we saw his faithfulness just to his dad. He's a grown man going out looking for his dad's donkeys. He could have copped an attitude and said, "Send somebody else. You've got all kinds of these servants. Why are you sending me after the donkeys?"

But we don't read that. We read a denial of self. We read of him going out. We read of his sensitivity toward his dad and thinking of his dad worrying and seeking out a man of God. We read so many great things. But in the future studies we're going to share together in Samuel, we're going to be discouraged. Saul's life is discouraging—of the great potential and the great position and the great responsibility just thrown away for his own selfish desires.

Today we'd call a guy like that a fleshly leader, a carnal leader, someone that serves his own appetites—selfish, self-centered. And it's too easy for us to make excuses for bad behavior. Have you noticed yet in your life? Have you noticed yet how easy it is to see bad behavior in others but really think the best about ourselves? How easy it is to point out the failures and weaknesses in someone else and yet not allow anyone to point them out in us?

According to Romans chapter 12, verse 3, it says, "For I say through the grace given to me to everyone who is among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith." Always excuses and reasons and explanations and justifications. I looked up the word excuse. This is what the definition is: to grant an exemption or release from. That's what an excuse is—to grant an exemption.

When we make an excuse, we grant an exemption for our behavior, our attitude, our situation. We release ourselves from the responsibility. They're often—excuses are often the response to conviction and confrontation in our lives. It's the natural response. Somebody comes and says, "You know, I think you're gossiping, brother." "No, no, no, I'm not. I'm just praying out loud. That's all, I'm just praying for a brother." "I know, but you're giving every single detail of their lives."

"Well, if I don't tell God, he won't..." No, you're a gossip. You shouldn't be talking about other people even if you call it prayer. But what do we do? We've got a reason. We've got a good reason why. Or someone comes up and says, "You know, you're a liar." And they may not be that bold, saying, "Hey, it was just a white lie." Oh, okay. As a matter of fact, 1st George chapter 3 says—for George, white lies are okay. We're just so prone to, "I didn't lie, I just stretched the truth a little."

Or someone has the boldness to come up and say, "You know what, you took something. That doesn't belong to you." "Oh, no, no, no, no, I just borrowed it for a while." Borrowed it? If you wanted to borrow it, you would have asked for it. But we're so quick. And much of our potential falls by the wayside with excuses. So much of what God wants to do in and through us simply disappears with an explanation of why we won't deal with the situation that's in front of us.

It seems like the easy way out at times, the quick fix. Yet the Lord Jesus Christ is looking for that man or woman that will rise above excuses, rise above reasons, rise above exemptions. You know what it says in 2nd Chronicles chapter 16, verse 9? It says, "For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth to show himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to him." And it's my prayer that the Lord finds those men and women here among us, in our fellowship, in our spiritual family.

Saul, don't forget him. Saul. He doesn't have a heart toward God. It's not that you wouldn't say that if you looked at him from the outside up to this point in our study. You'd say, "I think he's got a heart for God." But when you look at the totality of his life and the decisions that he makes and the attitude and the desire to kill David—the things that truly come out when the times get tough and there's testing.

Last time in chapter 11, we saw God use Saul to bring victory over the Ammonites. It's not that God won't use a vessel. He loves His people, so He'll use people—imperfect people, even people with a heart like Saul. You'll notice back in verse 12 of chapter 11, it says, "Then the people said to Samuel, 'Who is he who said shall Saul reign over us? Bring the men that we may put them to death.' But Saul said, 'Not a man shall be put to death this day, for today the Lord has accomplished salvation in Israel.' Great victory."

God gave victory through the leadership of Saul so quickly. Samuel says to the people in verse 14, "Come, let us go to Gilgal and renew the kingdom there." So all the people went to Gilgal and there they made Saul king before the Lord in Gilgal. There they made sacrifices of peace offerings before the Lord, and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly. And it's at Gilgal we pick up in chapter 12. You could say that Samuel here is humbly stepping down from his role in leadership.

He is honoring God, obeying God, recognizing before the people Saul's kingship and humbly bowing out with some of these final words. He's not going to disappear off of the scene. We're going to see Samuel many more times. But Samuel is now speaking and he says in verse 1, "Now Samuel said to all Israel: 'Indeed, I have heeded your voice in all that you said to me and have made a king over you.'" And I wonder if it's around this time that big tears start to well up in his eyes.

This is a sad occasion. It's a very victorious time in the children of Israel, but for Samuel personally, this is really sad. This is not what he thought would happen when he saw God begin to raise him up. It's not what he thought would happen as he tirelessly and sacrificially served the people of God. I don't believe this is what he foresaw at all, but the godly man that he was, I wonder at what point in this time that tears began to well up or his voice began to quiver as he's realizing the leadership that God has entrusted to him is going to be passed on.

He says in verse 2, "Now here is the king walking before you. And I'm old and gray-headed, and look, my sons are with you. I've walked before you from my childhood to this day. Here I am. Witness against me before the Lord and before His anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken? Or whom have I defrauded? Whom have I oppressed? Or from whose hand have I received any bribe with which to blind my eyes? I'll restore it to you."

And they said, "You've not defrauded us or oppressed us, nor have you taken anything from any man's hand." Then he said to them, "The Lord is witness against you, and His anointed is witness this day that you have not found anything in my hand." And they answered, "He is witness." Isn't it important to you that you're known as a man or a woman of integrity? Is that important to you? Do you hate it when people lie about you? Do you hate it really when people start lying about you on something you know is absolutely untrue?

If they're going to lie about me, lie about some of the gray areas. But this is an area of integrity. This is a black and white area for me. This is an area where I refuse to compromise. Ask my wife, ask my kids, ask my boss. And that's exactly where the enemy wants to touch: your integrity, especially those places that it is non-negotiable. That they could dig through all of your records, they could go through all the history in your website browser, they can take your phone and dissect it a thousand different ways, and you know you're right.

You have an integrity before the Lord. You're sincere. Your life is an open book. And just as Samuel is stepping down, he wants to establish his integrity. Why? Because when you recognize someone's integrity, it's validation and proof that you shared life with them, that you have a relationship with them. You know when you can vouch for someone's integrity when maybe they put you down on a job application and they want a reference. You know why they put you down? Because you know them.

When your name is put down on an application, it's because you know the person and they know that you're going to describe that person with the truth. And it would be a horrible thing if someone that you trusted would shoot down your integrity. Samuel, I'm sure being a human being, just wants to go down as a man of integrity. He realizes the seriousness of asking for a king, but I'm sure on a personal level, he's still not sure why.

He served their heart out for them. He gave everything. He is a man dedicated to the things of God. And very similar like Paul in Acts chapter 20, Paul makes the same appeal to the elders in Ephesus about his own integrity: "I didn't take anything from you guys. I didn't do anything wrong with you. You know me." That was what Paul kept repeating over and over again to the church in Corinth: "How could you believe the lies?"

Samuel goes down by saying, "I just want you guys all to agree: I've been a man of integrity." It's a beautiful thing to say that at the end of your life when you're old and gray—I don't know how many of us could stand up and say we're pretty close. I'm pretty close to this. I'm old and gray. I'm gray-headed, that's for sure. I'm getting there. What hair I have left, and I'm much older than I was before. But toward the end of our life, whatever that is, it's a beautiful thing to stand before people and not be ashamed.

To stand in righteousness, not perfection. We're not going to stand and go, "I never made a mistake," but we are going to stand and go, "You know what, I'm a man of God, I'm a woman of God, and I'm going into eternity knowing that I lived my life with integrity, with fidelity, with honesty, and you guys are witnesses of that." I love what Jesus would pray in John 17, verse 4. He said, "I've glorified you on the earth. I've finished the work which you've given me to do. And now, O Father, glorify me together with yourself with the glory which I had before the world was."

To go out strong. And unfortunately with so many falling in sinful disgrace, we may forget the years of faithful service and ministry today. Let's not do that. We have witnessed over the 20-plus years I've been walking with the Lord, I've seen a lot of pastors fall in disgrace, and it's sad and it's discouraging. But let's not forget the years that the Lord used them, the years that the Lord blessed His church with them.

And you have to understand—and I know it's a cliché—but clichés are pretty spot on. And there's a cliché that's used often, especially as we're looking at people that might have lost their integrity later on in life or one big bad decision where they lost everything, and that's this: "There but by the grace of God go I." We want to cling to the Lord, trusting Him so that we would trust in His grace and the sufficiency of His strength, not in our own wisdom and understanding.

Guest (Male): You're listening to Abounding Grace and part of Pastor Ed Taylor's study in 1st Samuel. You can hear it again at aboundinggraceradio.com, oneplace.com, or wherever you get your podcasts. Here in the month of September, we have picked out an excellent book from our friend in the ministry, Ron Rhodes. It's *The End Times in Chronological Order*. You'll learn when the important end times events will happen in relation to each other, who the major players in the end times will be, and how to interpret the signs of the times.

And we'll send it to you when you support Abounding Grace with a gift of $25 or more today. Reach us toll-free at 877-30-GRACE or go online to calvaryco.store. And thank you for your generous support. It helps us get the word out on stations like this all across the nation. Large or small, God is using your gifts in great ways. I wish I could share all the emails and phone calls that come in as evidence of that. To make a donation, just visit aboundinggraceradio.com or call 877-30-GRACE.

Our time together sure goes by quickly, but we're already looking forward to our next study in 1st Samuel right here on Abounding Grace with Pastor Ed. God bless. Abounding Grace is brought to you by Calvary Church Colorado here in Aurora.