FEAR-INDUCED PRIDE

• DAY 166
• FEAR FILES: KING SAUL
• SCRIPTURE: 1 SAMUEL 15

““But I did obey the Lord,” Saul insisted. “I carried out the mission he gave me. I brought back King Agag, but I destroyed everyone else. Then my troops brought in the best of the sheep, goats, cattle, and plunder to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal.” Then Saul admitted to Samuel, “Yes, I have sinned. I have disobeyed your instructions and the Lord’s command, for I was afraid of the people and did what they demanded. Then Saul pleaded again, “I know I have sinned. But please, at least honor me before the elders of my people and before Israel by coming back with me so that I may worship the Lord your God.””

‭‭1 Samuel‬ ‭15‬:‭20‬-‭21‬, ‭24‬, ‭30‬ ‭NLT‬

Some weeks ago we discussed a dangerous fear called the Fear of People. We looked at how that made Aaron mold a calf for Israel. His symptom was timidity. He was so afraid that he couldn’t stand up for himself and the word of God, so he became a yes-man (read it here). Today we have the other extreme of that fear. It’s called pride.

If you ask a proud person, they will tell you that they are afraid of nobody but watch what happens when people try to take their focus off them. Watch what happens when something tries to “fall their hand.” Pay close attention to how pleased they are when they win the approval of people. Their entire game depends on how high people place them, how much people praise them, and how well they can keep that going. A proud person always has a reputation to protect, a boast to defend, and a point to make.

Saul was the kind of man that always cared about how people reacted toward him. In our previous study, he disobeyed God and offered unsanctioned sacrifice because he didn’t want people to leave him. In our text today, he told Samuel that he carried animals to sacrifice because he was afraid of the people. I suppose he wanted to look good in their eye. He wanted to show his might and power perhaps, or prove that he was amazing. Because what else was the reason he took all that he disobediently gathered from war to the place where he built a monument for himself? What happened to his home in Gibeah? That’s a power play.

Can’t Go Wrong

Saul was so conceited that he couldn’t even fathom the idea that he did something wrong. He defended himself even after Samuel told him what God said. But when he realized that his defense was flawed, he accepted fault. This is typical of a proud man. They cannot accept wrong, they cannot be corrected, everything they do is right and there’s a reason for it somewhere. They will justify their standing till their last breath. If you have these traits, now is a good time to repent.

Admitting wrong didn’t humble Saul, not in the least. In the face of his sin, his focus wasn’t to make amends with God. There was no godly sorrow, he didn’t suspend everything to repent. He didn’t own up before the people and make them repent too. No! That would tarnish his perfect image. He was more concerned about how he looked. He said,

“I know I have sinned. But please, at least honor me before the elders of my people and before Israel by coming back with me so that I may worship the Lord your God.” -1 Samuel 15:30

Keep The Rep

He wanted to protect his reputation more than his fellowship. He was so desperate to look good that he tore Samuel’s clothes. You would think that he would have grieved the news that the kingdom would be taken from him or that the spirit of God has left him with the same desperation and passion. But the fear of people will always make a man despise the Lord.

Beloved, these things don’t always stare us in the face but they can destroy our lives. We have to constantly check the state of our hearts or we would find ourselves in the unpleasant trap of fear-induced pride. There is no pedestal worth sin. Men aren’t even creatures you should trust their praise and allegiance. Their “hosanna” can change to “crucify him” in a twinkle of an eye. We should fear God more and seek to please him at all costs. Let those people think whatever they like about you as long as you are pleasing God. Because guess what? when the ways of a man please God, He makes his enemies to be at peace with him.

Take a moment to examine yourself and pray this simple prayer from Psalm 139:23-24

Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; And see if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting.

Shalom