New Millennium, Old Problem

New Millennium, Old Problem In the people’s eyes, Saul had the two most important qualifications for being king: he was “handsome” and “taller than any of the people” (1 Sam. 9:2). One translation puts it this way: “he stood head and shoulders above everyone else.” As we enter the third millennium things haven’t changed much. The most important qualifications for leadership are still captured in the shallow cliche, “He looks like a leader!” But as far as God was concerned, looking like a leader wasn’t enough. God’s leader needed supernatural qualifications, so God made Saul a new man with a new heart, and even a new ability: “The Spirit of God came upon him, and he prophesied” (1 Sam. 10:6,9,12). So what went wrong? As king, Saul had real potential, but he didn’t draw upon the spiritual resources God had given him. In other words, he trusted the old Saul instead of the new. Two examples stand out. First, when the Philistine army threatened, he took matters into his own hands and offered a burnt offering - something only the priest should do. The prophet Samuel called this foolish disobedience (1 Sam. 13:13). Then, after being told to destroy the Amalekites and everything associated with them, he again disobeyed, sparing their king, the best animals, and all that was good. When Samuel again confronted him, Saul lied, blaming the people for “sparing the best ... to sacrifice to the Lord” (1 Sam. 15:9,15). Saul’s problem is still with us as we begin the third millennium. When God saves us, He gives us everything we need to serve Him - a new nature, a new outlook, spiritual gifts and even the power to obey. Yet we continue to trust the old nature rather than the new, the old self we were rather than the new person we are in Christ. We continue to do what we think is right rather than what God says is right. How can we change? We can start by reading the features in this issue and asking God to help us live out this truth: His way is better than ours. By Larry Ondrejack