As we began our discussion of grace and mercy on last week, we stumbled upon an a-ha moment. Although having read the stories of King Saul and the Apostle Paul previously, especially being that Paul is not just one of the most talked about Apostles of the bible, but he actually wrote books of the bible, it almost goes unnoticed that they shared the same name until I was writing last week's blog.

We of course know of King Saul, and we most definitely know that the Apostle Paul (was formerly referred to as Saul), but how many of us ever took the time to reflect on the joint stories of Saul and

Paul (formerly known as Saul) as it relates to grace and mercy?

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As we discussed in last week's blog, "Grace and Mercy: (Part One), grace and mercy are given to us by God without merit. Grace and mercy are not dependent on who we are or what we are. We were also reminded that God is free to bestow mercy on whomever He chooses.

 

We studied Romans 9:12-16, which reads: "What then shall we say? Is God unjust? Not at all!  For he says to Moses, 'I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.' It does not, therefore, depend on human desire or effort, but on God’s mercy" (NIV).

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This week, let's focus on verse 18 of that same chapter:

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"Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden" (NIV).

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When we look at King Saul and the Apostle Paul one may question the difference in mercy that God showed toward the two. We see that although Saul persecuted the saints, God transformed him. God changed his heart and made him a devout follower of Christ. Saul became an apostle who we refer to as The Apostle Paul. And then we see King Saul whom God had placed to reign over Israel, having the throne taken from him due to his disobedience, amongst other things. Although some things may seem unfair when we look with our natural eyes, our spiritual eyes provide better insight and revelation into things that may puzzle us or be unclear. God does not have to explain Himself to us, but it is always a privilege when He does see fit to reveal things to us. One of the first things we learn from King Saul and Apostle Paul is the fact that God is good to both the just and the unjust as Matthew 5:45 reminds us. Let's explore the stories of both Sauls.

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Saul-The Apostle Paul

We'll begin with the Apostle Paul. If we review Acts 9, we find that Saul was devoted to persecuting the saints of God. He was not just bent on destroying and threatening the disciples, but Saul was determined to stop them. He did not just speak against them, but Saul went as far as going to the high priest and requesting to be given a letter that he could take to the synagogues in Damascus to take any followers of Christ to prison in Jerusalem. God seeing all that Saul was doing could have chosen to bring destruction upon him as a means of stopping him. God could have had a severe punishment bestowed upon Saul for the harm that he was inflicting upon the saints. However, God instead showed Saul mercy. Right before Saul arrived in Damascus, Jesus called out to him. Now here's the interesting thing, and a clear indication as to why we shouldn't judge those who we think are not 'holy' or who might not have the lifestyle that some would consider worthy of being called 'a believer'. 

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Saul being a sinner, when Jesus called out to him said, "Who are you, Lord?" Here it is the man who was persecuting the saints refers to Jesus as Lord although not fully aware of who was speaking to him. Jesus however makes himself known to Saul saying, "'I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,' … 'Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.' " (Acts 9:5-6, NIV).

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Saul not only hears Jesus' voice, but he accepts that it is Jesus who is speaking to him and immediately follow's the instructions that Jesus gives him. He does not ask for a sign to make sure it

is Jesus, but he accepts it. If we continue to explore Acts 9, we find that Jesus speaks to Ananias, a disciple and tells him through a vision," 'Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a

man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying' " (v. 11, NIV). Not only did 'sinner' Saul hear Jesus' voice, not only did he immediately follow what Jesus told him to do, but he goes into prayer as he awaits Ananias' arrival. Here it is, the type of man that would be looked down upon by many who call themselves 'believers'  in a state in which he is hearing, yielding, obeying and praying to God. Ananias does as Jesus instructs and goes to Saul. Saul receives the Holy Spirit. Saul immediately goes to work proclaiming the Gospel of Christ. People were confused trying to figure out how could the same man that tried to imprison the saints now be proclaiming the Gospel. Saul was as powerful and an even greater follower of Christ as he was a persecutor of the saints. Instead of giving him the punishment that many might believe he deserved, God used him as a mighty vessel and at a significant time.

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A persecution against the church had broken out and the church had begun to scatter. There were people who were still speaking against the Jesus who was crucified, there were those who still refused to believe, there were those who were being persecuted for believing, and there were those who did not know what to believe.

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See it as no coincidence that God allowed Saul to become a powerful persecutor of the saints. God used his rise to power in persecuting the saints for His own glory. Saul had influence amongst the people. He had authority from the chief priests to arrest anyone who called upon the name of Christ. God allowed Saul to gain worldly authority and then filled him with the Holy Spirit and gave him an

even greater authority, not just natural but spiritual authority, to not just cause a movement but to become THE MOVEMENT of the Gospel. Because of the influence that Saul already had, his transformation became quickly known to those who formerly knew and witnessed him persecute the saints. Therefore, along with this talk of Saul becoming a changed person, coupled with that was the fact that he was now proclaiming the Gospel. Therefore, even those who did not believe in the Gospel was spreading the news of Saul's conversion, further highlighting Saul's transformation and God's agenda without even realizing it.

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God could have simply destroyed Saul much like he did the Egyptians to show His power, but God chose to show His power in a different way; not by destroying Saul but by instead transforming him

and raising him up to be used for His distinct purpose. God showed mercy to a man that many 'believers' would have thought deserved to be immediately destroyed but we must reflect on what brought about the greater reward for us all, destroying Saul in the act of his sin or showing him mercy, saving him through grace and then using him to proclaim the Gospel?

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Even when we are persecuted, mistreated, and harmed by individuals, we must be careful what we ask God to do to toward those who come against us. How many Apostle Paul's in our lives have we asked God to destroy because of the persecutor Saul within them that trespassed against us?  You simply never know!

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Saul's actions were unjust and to some it may seem that Jesus seemed to have it all wrong to choose him as a vessel. Even the disciple, Ananias had a "God, Are You Sure?" moment. When God first tells him to go to where Saul was, Ananias replied, " 'Lord,”…, 'I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your holy people in Jerusalem. And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name' " (Acts 9:13-14, NIV). In essence, on a level that we can all understand, Ananias, a firm believer in Jesus was saying, "What you talking bout' Willis?" Ananias was saying, "Jesus, do you understand who this man is?" Some might say that it was disrespectful for Ananias to question Jesus, but he had a very earthly, fleshly, normal reaction that many of us also may find ourselves to have when God calls us to show grace and mercy toward those who we don't consider deserving.

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However, Jesus also shows mercy on Ananias. Acts 9:15 states, "But the Lord said to Ananias, 'Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel' "(NIV). Jesus could have chastened Ananias for questioning Him, but He understood Ananias' reaction and simply reiterated His initial instruction, telling him again to "Go!"

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God's mercy against Saul (Apostle Paul) was used to help spread the Gospel which in turn saved many souls. It took saving the soul of one sinner to save the soul of many. We must be careful who we condemn.

 

Saul-The King

Now, let's talk about King Saul. My oh my, oh my. It is always good when we read stories in the bible to go back as far as we can to when the individual that we are reading about appears, in order to gain more insight into their story and the significance of who they are and what they endured. In our blog, "Good Deeds vs God Deeds", we briefly discussed the story of King Saul as it relates to a significant moment of downfall. In 1 Samuel 15 we are introduced to the following scenario. God sends Samuel to deliver a message to Saul who God had anointed as king over Israel. God has Samuel to deliver a message to Saul telling him that He is going to punish the Amalekites for what they had done to Israel. In 1 Samuel 15:3, God gives very specific instructions to Saul through Samuel, "'Now go, attack the Amalekites and totally destroy all that belongs to them. Do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys' " (NIV).

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There is nothing unclear about the instructions given to Saul.

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Saul goes and summons his army, and they attack the Amalekites. However, this is when the plot thickens, and Saul falls short. Instead of doing exactly as God instructs him to do,1 Samuel 15:9 in part reads that Saul took it upon himself to spare "Agag and the best of the sheep and cattle, the fat calves and lambs—everything that was good. These they were unwilling to destroy completely, but everything that was despised and weak they totally destroyed" (NIV). This angers God and God tells Samuel that He regrets that He made Saul king because not only had Saul turned against Him, but Saul disobeyed His instructions. If we read further, we find that not only did Saul disobey God be he also sets up a monument in his own honor.

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It was God that delivered the Amalekites into their hands, but Saul saw fit to honor himself instead of giving God the glory for the battle that was won. We find that when Samuel first approaches Saul after this war, Saul tells Samuel that he carried out God's instructions. Samuel replies by asking him if he

did indeed do as God instructed him, then why was there the sound of sheep being heard. Saul then goes on to explain that the soldiers brought back the best of the sheep and cattle to sacrifice to God but surely destroyed everything else. Samuel interrupts in a way that basically lets us know that he

was not going to entertain any more of Saul's attempt to make excuses for what he had done or to try

to make his obedience appear like a favor to God.

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Samuel tells Saul that he has a message from the Lord to give him. Saul listens. Samuel reminds him how God took him although he did not consider himself worthy of being used and made him ruler over His people only for him to turn his back on God and disobey the mission that He had sent him on. The question was then asked of Saul, "Why did you disobey the Lord?" However, Saul replies saying:

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            But I did obey the Lord, 'Saul said. 'I went on the mission the Lord assigned me. I                                   completely destroyed the Amalekites and brought back Agag their king.  The soldiers                             took sheep and cattle from the plunder, the best of what was devoted to God, in order          

           to sacrifice them to the Lord your God at Gilgal (1Samuel 15:20-21, NIV).

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And in Samuel's reply comes a phrase that many of us are familiar with but may not know the source from which it came. In Samuel's reply to Saul one of the statements that he makes is that

"Obedience is better than sacrifice." God was not going to honor the sacrifice that Saul and the army presented before him because it was through disobedience that these things that they were sacrificing were acquired. God saw Saul's actions as rebellion. And the fact that Saul set up a monument in his own honor rather than glorifying God for the victory was a clear indication of his arrogance which God considers to be like the evil of idolatry, which the children of Israel were constantly falling into the temptation of. It is with this that God sent the message to Saul letting him know that He was now rejecting him as king over Israel.

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In this dialogue, if we read further, we find that Saul then reveals that he indeed sinned. He admits that he disobeyed God's instruction and gave in to what the men wanted him to do out of fear of them. He listened to the commands of 'man' instead of the instructions of God. He turned his back on God.

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Now some might say that maybe God could have given him another chance as we know God to be a forgiving and compassionate God. If we go back to the other Saul (The Apostle Paul), he was a sinner persecuting the saints and God forgave him, had mercy on him, and made him a great Apostle. But this is why it's important for us to really explore the Word. If we go back to 1 Samuel 8, Israel had been asking for a king to rule over the people although ignorance on their behalf.

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They were rejecting Samuel as judge, and they had been rejecting God as ruler over them since He delivered them out of bondage. They wanted to be like all the other nations. As a warning, God sends them a word through Samuel about their wanting a king and what would happen if they were given one, but they reject the word of the Lord and insist that Samuel give them a king. Due to their insistence and their failure to take heed, God tells Samuel to give them a king. God gives them exactly what they are asking for.

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We then move to 1 Samuel 9 and read the story of when Samuel first meets Saul. We find in their very first interaction that Saul appears and reflects the nature of a humble individual. Even when Samuel

first approached him and starts to speak with him making it known that Israel is in favor of him, Saul's reply is," 'But am I not a Benjamite, from the smallest tribe of Israel, and is not my clan the least of all the clans of the tribe of Benjamin? Why do you say such a thing to me' " (1 Samuel 9:21, NIV)? This

was indeed showing the humbleness of Saul. In the opening verse, it tells us that Saul's father was of a certain status and that his family had power. It tells us that Saul was taller than all the others and was one of the most handsome young men in all of Israel. Yet, Saul considered himself nowhere near what the scripture describes him as. He did not see his worth. So, from this we know that Saul had the ability to be humble although we later find that pride and arrogance became his guide.

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We move on to 1 Samuel 12, where we find an important link to Saul's downfall for his disobedience.

1 Samuel 12:13-15 reads:

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            Now here is the king you have chosen, the one you asked for; see, the Lord has set a     

            king over you. If you fear the Lord and serve and obey him and do not rebel against his                         commands, and if both you and the king who reigns over you follow the Lord your God—                       good! But if you do not obey the Lord, and if you rebel against his commands, his hand

          will be against you, as it was against your ancestors (NIV).

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And here is our a-ha moment. The Israelites wanted so much to have a king, so God gave them what they wanted. He gave them Saul. However, God clearly delivers a message to the people of Israel through Samuel saying that if they feared God, served him and obeyed him then all would be well.

God made it clear to them that as long as both they and the king that He appointed over them followed God, all would be well. However, if they disobeyed God and went against His commands, His hands would turn against them.

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When Saul decided to turn from God's instructions and listen to what the men wanted to do instead of what God told him to do, when he did not destroy everything and everybody that he was supposed to destroy, when he then also set up a monument in his own honor, he fell victim to the consequence that he was warned about.

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The biggest a-ha moment is this. Saul's disobedience in his fight against the Amalekites was what we would call the 'straw the broke the camel's back'. It was not the beginning of his kingdom being taken away from him, it was not his first act of disobedience or arrogance, it was just the final straw which caused the throne to be completely ripped not just from his potential heirs but from his as well.

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In 1 Samuel 13, we find that Samuel gives Saul strict instructions concerning the war against the Philistines. However, Saul did not wait as instructed. He took it into his own hands to do what he thought was best, he made an unlawful sacrifice.

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If we explore 1 Samuel 13:11-14 (NIV) we find the following:

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11 “What have you done?” asked Samuel. Saul replied, “When I saw that the men were scattering, and that you did not come at the set time, and that the Philistines were assembling at Mikmash,

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12 I thought, ‘Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not sought the Lord’s favor.’ So I felt compelled to offer the burnt offering.”

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13 “You have done a foolish thing,” Samuel said. “You have not kept the command the Lord your God gave you; if you had, he would have established your kingdom over Israel for all time.

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14 But now your kingdom will not endure; the Lord has sought out a man after his own heart and appointed him ruler of his people, because you have not kept the Lord’s command.”

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Prior to the attack on the Amalekites Saul had already disobeyed God. During his battle against the Philistines, had he obeyed, God would have forever established his kingdom. It was at this point

during his battle against the Philistines, that his days as king became numbered. Therefore, when he disobeyed God's instructions once again, God did not just remove the kingdom from him and any of his descendants who could have reigned after him, but it was in this moment that God rejected him as king.

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Now if we would have just simply read 1 Samuel 15, many would think that God was unjust. Many would think that God expects us to be perfect and not make mistakes. Many may think that God could have given King Saul another chance to get it right. However, many are not aware unless they really take the time to explore the Word, that this was Saul's 'another chance' and yet and still he did not obey. Yet and still, he failed to trust and submit to God. Yet and still, he acted out of his own will.

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As lengthy as this dialogue might seem and as much as we could've just revealed 1 Samuel 13 upfront or discussed the command that was given in 1 Samuel 12 at the opening of King Saul's story, this is how God revealed it which brought about this revelation.

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It is easy for us to judge, have opinions, and make assumptions about the decisions that God makes in our lives and the lives of others as it concerns grace and mercy. Many might have seen God as unjust in his decision to take the throne from Saul due to what they might have thought was one mistake if they only read 1 Samuel 15. However, when we fully gain the whole story, we realize that God did indeed show mercy toward Saul prior to him messing up this time around. God could have completely ripped the throne from under him when he first disobeyed, but He still allowed him to continue reigning although He had already made it known that his kingdom would not be established forever.

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It is easy for us to think that God is an unjust God when we don't know the backstory. And the reality is that, in most cases as it concerns God's decisions, WE WILL NEVER KNOW THE BACKSTORY! Sometimes out of grace and mercy toward us God will reveal certain things to us and maybe He won't, but we must simply TRUST THAT GOD KNOWS WHAT HE'S DOING!

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We cannot judge God's decisions even if and when we don't understand them. If we only read the one chapter, it will seem like God's decision was swift and harsh. Especially, since we all fall short by disobeying instruction. However, just like God gives us chance after chance, this was Saul's chance after chance. Sometimes we want mercy to be bestowed on others not because we really care that they have it, but because we want proof or we want to be able to remind God how somebody else messed up and he showed them mercy. We want to say, "God give them another chance!" not because it's truly in our hearts but because we know that we are not perfect and we want the benefit of the doubt if we find ourselves in the same situation. We want to withhold mercy to others as it benefits us and give mercy to others when it benefits us.

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Saul and Saul

Now back to our talk about the Sauls. While it may seem that God showed more mercy toward Saul (Paul the Apostle) than He did toward Saul (the king), the truth is God had mercy on them both.

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Initially, Saul (Apostle Paul) was ignorant to the ways of God. He had not come into the full knowledge of God. There was no command that he was yet obligated to follow as he was still of the world. However, once God showed him mercy and he received salvation through grace and came into the full knowledge of God, he not once turned his back on God. And he fully committed himself to God and God alone. Most importantly, he humbled himself and always gave God the glory for all the work that God did through him. Paul always acknowledged that the work he did was not his own but was done because of the Spirit of God that worked within him. Paul acknowledged God in all that he did. He knew it was not by his own strength that he was able to endure what he endured and overcome what he overcame. Paul gave all praise to God diminishing himself.

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King Saul, understanding the power of God, knowing what God could do, having been appointed by God and given strict instructions from God, chose to disobey. He reacted based on what he saw and what he experienced instead of doing what God instructed and commanded of him. His once humble demeanor turned into arrogance. He chose to do it his way based on his natural understanding of things. King Saul operated based on his natural knowledge of things while Saul, Apostle Paul operated based on his spiritual understanding of things. King Saul began to honor himself for the victories that he won. We also find throughout the book of Samuel that Saul cared about how the people saw him.

He cared about how 'man' recognized him. We even see how he has some inner turmoil over the fact that the people were in essence crediting David for being a greater warrior than he was. Saul felt threatened by David's success. Saul had a need to be praised. Regardless of who won the battle,

Saul always credited himself for the victory.

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GOD ALREADY KNEW!

Here's the thing we mustn't lose sight of, GOD ALREADY KNEW. He knew what the outcome of Saul (Apostle Paul's) call would be, and He knew what the outcome of King Saul's call would be. God was not ignorant to the choices that either Saul would make or how wholeheartedly they would or wouldn’t follow him.

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God knew what lay ahead. Jesus was already fully aware of the persecution that the Apostle Paul would receive as one who followed Him. When Ananias was hesitant about going to Saul as Jesus had instructed him to do, one of the things that Jesus said after again commanding Ananias to go was,

"I will show him how much he must suffer for my name" (Acts 9:16, NIV). Paul had to bear witness to the same persecution that he once afflicted upon the saints. He was made to experience the same strain that those he persecuted felt. However, grace and mercy were still on his side. Although now being victim of the same brutality that he once gave it was for Jesus that he was enduring. What he endured, might have hurt and caused some pain, but he did not allow it to cause him to abandon God. We see Saul (Apostle Paul) who was once in full control now being under the call and direction of God. He had no regrets about being in submission to God. He did not wrestle with no longer being accepted by 'man'. He was able to let go of his past and embrace the life that now stood before him. He did not have a need to feel higher than he was.

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God was always fully aware. He even warned Israel about what their desire to have a king would bring about, but they did not take heed. God warned Israel about the true nature and character of the king that would be placed over them, but THEY DID NOT TAKE HEED. THEY WANTED WHAT THEY WANTED. While Apostle Paul accepted his outcome, we see that King Saul struggled. Not only could he not accept that he did not have the praises from 'man' that he wanted but he could not accept that someone else had been appointed to rule over what could have remained his throne had he obeyed. David's success angered him. Saul could not let go of the throne. David's name was becoming more esteemed because God was with him while Saul was losing it all, because God's hand was no longer with him.

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Ever more so evident that God did indeed show mercy on King Saul was given in God's promise to David which we also reflected on in last week's discussion when God states to David, "But My mercy shall not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I removed from before you" (2 Samuel 7:15, NKJV). This passage occurs within the covenant that God made to David concerning his offspring.

And we see straight from the source who is God, an acknowledgement that he had indeed once

shown mercy toward King Saul and made a choice to depart it from him God chose to place someone over His people that would be after His own heart. Saul was after the "heart" of 'man'. He was all about pleasing the people and making a name for himself. God could never trust him because God knew

that he would disobey in order to do what benefited him and what pleased the people. However, God knew that David would completely follow Him. Although we see that David  messed up as well, God knew that David would obey. He knew that David would honor Him. He knew that David would glorify His name. He knew that David would seek His counsel. He also knew that David would fall. However, He also knew that David would repent and wholeheartedly dedicate himself to Him. He knew that

David had a desire to please Him. HE KNEW DAVID'S HEART!

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God also knew King Saul's heart. He knew that Saul was rebellious and centered on himself. He knew that His will would never be King Saul's will. From this we learn that it was not only Saul's disobedience that caused the throne to be taken from him, but it was his heart, his character, and his intent to glorify himself that aided in this. His desire was to please himself and the people. Saul would never give God the glory or honor that He deserved. Furthermore, the people of Israel with a king like Saul would be led further away. Saul loved himself too much to ever love God in the way that he needed to. God knew that Saul would continue to disobey.

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So, we see two Sauls both experiencing and partaking in acts of sin. However, we see one whom God bestowed grace and mercy upon who realized the value in it, honored God for it, and made a point to acknowledge the fact that he did not deserve it. We see one who saw how much of a gift and privilege it was to receive God's grace and mercy. We see one who yielded to being changed when his sins were revealed to him. We see this through Saul, referred to as The Apostle Paul.

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And then we see one who even when given grace and mercy, took it for granted. We see one who tried to make excuses for his disobedience. We see one who credited himself for his successes and thought that a mere sacrifice or a moment of worship would save him from consequence or change his situation even if his heart was not right while doing so. We see one who would do whatever it took to bring praise and honor upon himself. We see one that continued to rebel even after his sinful nature was made known to him. We see this though Saul, the king.

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What we see through the two Sauls is that while God showed mercy and changed both their hearts, one accepted the transformation while the other rejected the transplant. What will you learn from this?