The People's King: Saul 1 Samuel 9-10 · Join the Journey

The Peoples King: Saul

1 Samuel 9-10

If I told you we're looking for a king, what would you expect him to look like? Tall? Strong? Confident? Charismatic? Successful? Someone who walks into a room and everybody notices? Someone who looks like he belongs in charge?

We are really good at choosing things based on how they look.

We choose a house because we like the way it looks.

We buy a car because we like the way it looks.

We choose a restaurant because the pictures look good.

We are constantly making judgments based on what we can see.

And the problem is, What looks good to us isn't always what is good for us. Israel was about to make that mistake. They wanted a king like all the other nations because they didn't want to trust God as their King. And when God gave them one, He gave them a man who looked exactly like what they thought a king should look like. His name was Saul.

The Bible tells us Saul was a head taller than everyone else. He looked the part. He looked like a king. But over the next several chapters, we're going to discover something really important: Looking like a king and being the kind of king God wants are two very different things.

Last week we kicked off our fall teaching series looking at the kings of Israel. We saw that Israel rejected God as their king and demanded for an earthly king so they could be like everyone else. We reject God as our King and put other things on the throne of our hearts.

Today we are going to meet the first of Israel’s kings. And we're going to see that the king we want isn't always the King we need—and we're going to ask what happens when we put ourselves or something else on the throne that belongs to God.

If you have your bibles turn with me to 1 Samuel. Left side. Comes right after Judges and Ruth right before 2 Samuel.

1 Samuel 9:2-3

1 Samuel 9:2–3

The tribe of Benjamin was the smallest of all the tribes of Israel, and Saul’s clan was the least in the tribe of Benjamin. But his father Kish was a man of standing and Saul stood a head above anyone else. Saul at least looked the part of King.

I remember a few years ago we were at CCYC with our teens, and we were standing in the hall outside of the main room with the crowds of students waiting to go in. But in the crowd as I looked across one guy stood out. He was at least a foot taller than everyone else. So, I asked some friends, and they told me oh that’s Bam Adebayo. Now this was before he played for Kentucky or the Miami Heat. He must have been a freshman in High school. But he still stood a head taller than everyone else.

This was Saul. Now Saul’s father Kish had lost some of his donkeys. So, he sends Saul and a servant to find them. But Saul would find something he never wanted. The responsibility of kingship.

For 3 days they search without any sign of the lost donkeys. Saul finally says let’s return home, because surely my father has stopped worrying about the donkeys and has started worrying about us.

But Saul’s servant had one last idea. There was a man of God, a seer, a prophet in the town. He said let’s go ask him.

Unknowingly to Saul God had already prepared for Saul’s visit. God had told Samuel the day before that Saul would come and that he would be the one that would govern His people. And just as God said, Saul comes looking for donkeys but will leave anointed as king.

1 Samuel 9:18-21

1 Samuel 9:18–21

Saul was looking for their lost donkeys. But Samuel tells Saul that what all of Israel was looking for was him. Saul couldn’t understand. My family is the least of the smallest tribe of Israel. But Saul this unlikely candidate was God’s choice for Israel’s first earthly king. Astonished, Saul could only reply that he was unworthy of this high honor. At this point, Saul certainly doesn't appear arrogant. In fact, he seems almost shocked that God would choose someone like him.

Samuel places Saul at a place of honor bringing a special meal. The next morning Samuel would anoint Saul as king, and soon that calling would be proclaimed to the nation.

Samuel anoints Saul with oil a symbol of setting him apart for this divine purpose, as leader of God’s people. Samuel tells Saul the donkey he was looking for had been found and as he returned to his father, he would come across 3 groups of people. These would be signs confirming God's calling on Saul.

He would meet two men near the tomb of Rachel who would tell him where his lost donkeys are.

He will then meet three men that will give him two loaves of bread.

And finally, he would meet a procession of prophets and would remarkably join them prophesying as the Spirit of the Lord enabled him and would change Saul into a different person.

Much like the Spirit of the Lord had enabled the judges of Israel to lead during their time. The Spirit would make the inexperienced and unworthy Saul able to assume the kingly responsibilities before him. But Saul was still unsure.

1 Samuel 10:9

Saul returns home and reports to his uncle what had happened with the donkeys but kept what Samuel had said about the kingship to himself. But soon enough everyone will come to know that God had chosen Saul to be Israel’s king.

1 Samuel 10:17-19

1 Samuel 10:17–19

Samuel calls all the people together and reminds them that God had rescued them not only from Egypt but all the kingdoms that oppressed them. and that they had rejected God who saved them. They had demanded, “Give us a King” like all the other nations. They asked for this.

So Samuel had them gather by tribe, clans and cast lots. The lot fell on the tribe of Benjamin, on Saul’s clan, then on the family of Kish and finally on Saul. But Saul was nowhere to be found. Saul knew what was coming so he hid among the supplies. But they came looking.

1 Samuel 10:23-24

1 Samuel 10:23–24

God gave Saul and the people signs confirming that Saul was the man He had chosen to be Israel's king. But not everyone was convinced.

1 Samuel 10:26-27

1 Samuel 10:26–27

There are a couple things we can learn from Saul.

1. Don't choose your king by what looks impressive

Saul was impressive by human standards. He was tall, strong, from a respected family, and he looked exactly like what Israel imagined a king should look like.

But Scripture warns us about making our judgments based on what we can see.

After Saul fails turning away from God’s instruction, God has Samuel select another king. David. And This is what God tells Samuel.

1 Samuel 16:7

“Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

That is something we need to remember because we are naturally drawn to what looks impressive.

We are impressed by success.

We are impressed by confidence.

We are impressed by wealth.

We are impressed by talent.

We are impressed by influence.

And sometimes we assume that because someone looks successful, they must be successful. Because someone looks like a good leader, they must be a good leader. But God doesn't measure people the way we do.

And maybe that's not just a warning about how we choose leaders. Maybe it's a warning about how we choose our own lives.

Because sometimes we look around and say, “That's the kind of life I want.” We see what everyone else has, what everyone else is doing, what everyone else is celebrating, and we think, “If I could just have that, then I'd be happy.”

That's exactly what Israel did. They wanted a king like all the other nations. And sometimes we do the same thing.

We look at the world around us and say, “Give me what they have.” But just because something looks good doesn't mean it's good for us.

Proverbs 14:12 says:

Proverbs 14:12

There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death.

So don't choose your king by what looks impressive. What looks good to us isn't always what is good for us.

2. Don't let “I'm not enough” keep you from obeying God

Saul's response when Samuel tells him that God has chosen him. Saul basically says, “Why me? My tribe is the smallest. My family is insignificant. Why would God choose me?”

And honestly, there's something admirable about that humility. But eventually Saul hides among the supplies. And I wonder how many of us do the same thing.

God gives us an opportunity to serve, and we say, “I'm not qualified.” God puts someone in our life who needs to hear about Jesus, and we say, “I'm not good at that.” God calls us to lead, to serve, to give, to forgive, to step out in faith, and our response is, “Somebody else could do this better than me.” And sometimes what we call humility is actually fear.

There's a difference between saying, “I can't do this without God,” and saying, “Because I can't do this, I won't do it.” Those are not the same thing.

Look at what God says to Saul in 1 Samuel 10:6:

“The Spirit of the LORD will come powerfully upon you... and you will be changed into a different person.”

God wasn't calling Saul because Saul had everything he needed. God was calling Saul because God would give Saul what he needed.

And that principle carries throughout Scripture.

Paul was being questioned about his ministry, and apparently some people thought he needed letters of recommendation. But Paul says the Corinthians themselves were his letter of recommendation. Why? Because his competence didn't come from himself. It came from God.

2 Corinthians 3:4-6

2 Corinthians 3:4–6

Such confidence we have through Christ before God. 5 Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. 6 He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

So maybe there's something God has been asking you to do, and you've been hiding among the supplies. You've been saying, “I'm not enough.” And God would say, “You're right. You're not enough. But I am.” You don't have to be enough. You just have to be willing to trust the God who is. And be used by Him.

3. Pay attention to what gets the final say in your life

Samuel reminds Israel exactly what they've done.

1 Samuel 10:19:

“But you have now rejected your God, who saves you out of all your calamities and disasters. And you have said to him, ‘No, appoint a king over us.’”

Notice what Israel is doing. God had rescued them. God had provided for them. God had protected them. God had been their King. And yet they said, “No. Give us another king.”

And before we're too hard on Israel, we need to recognize that we do the same thing. We may not bow down to a statue. We may not crown a man. But we can put other things on the throne of our hearts.

So, Who gets the final say in your life?

Because that's what a king does. A king gets the final word.

When God's Word says forgive, but you say, “I'm not forgiving them,” who's king?

When God's Word says give, but you say, “I'm keeping it,” who's king?

When God's Word says trust God, but you say, “I'm going to trust myself,” who's king?

When God's Word says go, but you say, “I'm staying here,” who's king?

When what God wants conflicts with what you want, who gets the final say? Because the person who gets the final say is the person sitting on the throne.

Israel wanted a king for the wrong reason and in the wrong way because they were rejecting God's rule. But getting what you ask for doesn't necessarily mean you've gotten what is best.

That's an important lesson for us.

Sometimes we pray:

“God, give me this job.”

“God, give me this relationship.”

“God, give me this opportunity.”

“God, give me this thing.”

Sometimes the most loving thing God can do is not give us what we're demanding. And sometimes, in His sovereignty, He allows us to have what we insist on—and we discover that it wasn't what we really needed. Because when God becomes our King, He begins to reshape what we want.

4. Saul was the king the people wanted—but Jesus is the King we need

Saul was impressive. Saul was chosen. Saul was anointed. Saul was the people's king. But Saul couldn't ultimately give Israel what they needed. Because Israel's deepest problem wasn't that they needed a better human king. They needed God. They wanted a king so they wouldn't have to trust God as King.

Jesus comes as a very different kind of King. Saul stood head and shoulders above everyone else. Jesus came as a servant. Saul would eventually become concerned with his own honor. Jesus humbled Himself. Saul eventually failed. Jesus remained faithful. Saul couldn't save Israel. Jesus came to save His people.

Philippians 2:8–11 Paul says of Jesus:

Philippians 2:8–11

7 rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross! 9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Israel said: “Give us a king.” And God eventually gave them the King they really needed. Not a king who simply looked impressive. Not a king who would make them look like everybody else. Not a king who would simply make their lives easier. A King who would lay down His life to save.

So the question this morning isn't simply, “Do you believe in Jesus?” The question is: “Is Jesus your King?”

Saul didn't become a bad king overnight. The man hiding among the supplies would eventually become the man who repeatedly chose his own will over God's. The question isn't merely whether God is your King today. It's whether He gets the final say when obeying Him costs you something.

Because it's possible to want Jesus as your Savior while still wanting to be your own king. We want Jesus to forgive our sins. We just don't always want Jesus telling us how to live. We want Jesus to rescue us. We just don't always want Jesus ruling us. But Jesus doesn't come asking for a place on the throne.

He comes as King. So who gets the final say in your life? If it's you, today is the day to get off the throne.

If you've never surrendered your life to King Jesus, today is the day to get off the throne. Turn from your sin. Put your faith in Jesus. Surrender your life to Him and meet King Jesus in baptism.

At the beginning I asked you, ‘What does a king look like?’ Saul looked like a king. He was tall. He was impressive. He looked the part. But Jesus shows us that God's King doesn't look like what the world expects. Saul was the people's king. But Jesus is the King our hearts were made for.