Your Bible Boost
By Pastor Leonard Navarre
Need Advice??
I Chronicles 16:11
Many of us need advice from time to time. We all have decisions on what path to take or what job to accept or which medical procedure to follow. So we turn to family, friends or those we consider experts to give us their opinion and their advice.
The chronicle of King Saul is tragic in several aspects but especially one. Who do I consult? Plus, I feel, many times, we also make this mistake when we seek advice. We remember that King Saul had a very successful beginning. Prophet Samuel points out in I Samuel 10:24, “there is none like him among all the people…”! He was intimidating physically (I Samuel 10:23) standing a head and shoulder above everyone else. Also, he was very humble, in the beginning (I Samuel 10:22). But, as in the case of many, the power and popularity that came to him began to corrupt his life.
It was only a short time after the coronation of Saul that he begins to offer unlawful sacrifices (I Samuel 13). The Prophet Samuel brings this warning to King Saul, “but now your kingdom will not continue, but the Lord has sought a man after His own heart…” (I Samuel 13:14)
King Saul’s plunge into the abyss of sin gains speed after this time. It climaxes with the witch of En Dor, when he persuades her to conjure up dead Samuel so that he could consult him about the impending battle. It was a bad move and even worse to seek advice from a dead prophet. Prophet Samuel tells King Saul,“…tomorrow your sons will be with me…” (I Samuel 28:19) The sons die the very next day.
WHY did this tragedy take place? Why this mistake? How did a promising young leader go so radically wrong? Well, the writer of Chronicles gives us the answer! I Chronicle 10:14 states, “…he did not inquire of the Lord…”! His unfaithfulness in offering unlawful sacrifices, his loss of confidence in seeking the advice of the godly prophet, Samuel, and his lack of purely keeping the Word of God, ALL resulted from NOT CONSULTING THE LORD!
We should learn a lesson from King Saul. When we need advice, when we seek direction, or when we are confused may we heed the advice of I Chronicles 16:11, “Seek the Lord and His strength; seek His presence continually”!!!
