Let's pray. Father, I pray that it would be Christ that is heard, the Lordship of Christ that is seen, that Your Word will be preached accurately through the power of Your Spirit, and that You would work in all of us to obey You in all things as You deserve to be obeyed. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. My brothers and sisters, please turn to 1 Samuel chapter 15. I'm taking a brief break from Romans as we are the last Sunday of the year. We're going to be looking at this entire chapter, but we're going to be honing in on v. 22. 1 Samuel 15 v. 22. It says this, And Samuel said, Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams." The name of this sermon is simply, Obedience is Better Than Sacrifice. Now, obedience is essential to inheriting the kingdom of God. There is a frightening warning that we are told in the New Testament over and over and over again, and it is four simple words. Do not be deceived. When we ask the Bible, who are these deceived people that will not inherit the kingdom of God, it is the disobedient every time. 1 Corinthians 6, 9 says, Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkard, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God." You see what's happening here. There is a group of people that are disobeying the Lord as a lifestyle, and yet they think that they are fine. And if you were to ask them, is it well with your soul? What would they say? They would say yes. Well, why would they say yes? They would talk about faith in Christ. Remember, this is written to the church in Corinth, what I just quoted to you. They would talk about salvation by grace alone, but Paul says, do not be deceived. How were they deceived? They thought that they could live a life of unrighteousness, of disobedience, and still inherit the kingdom of God, and therefore, Paul had to tell them, don't be fooled. Don't be deceived. Don't let anyone trick you. They were wrong. They were doing their own thing, going their own way, as though the king of the universe had not spoken. But he has. Now we may say, but it is by faith alone, and amen. But remember, even what we looked at in Romans 1, he says, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about, what, the obedience of faith. Which means, even faith. has to do with obedience. We are commanded to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and we must obey. Salvation has everything to do with obedience. Jesus went forth proclaiming, preaching, repent, and believe the gospel. And if you do not obey that command, you will perish. Even faith has to do with obedience. And in addition to that, we all know this, what is the evidence that we have believed? Is it not a life that is marked by obedience? What did Jesus say in Matthew 7? We know this. Not everyone who says to Me, Lord, Lord, will inherit the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of My Father who is in heaven. On that day, many will say to me, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and cast out demons in your name and do many mighty works in your name? And then will I declare to them, I never knew you. Depart from me, you workers of what? Lawlessness. You workers of disobedience. Who are the ones who do not inherit the kingdom of heaven? Those who do not obey the Father who is in heaven. Do you obey Him? Now, I'm not talking about perfection. But the question is this, is your life marked by obedience or disobedience? The people who know you best, your children, your spouse, your parents, your siblings, your co-workers, those people who know you, would they say that you live a life of obedience to the King of kings and the Lord of lords, or would your life be marked by disobedience? Jesus said, if you love Me, what will you do? You will keep My commandments. The year is almost over. and why it is not a good thing to constantly be examining yourself to see if you're in the faith. From time to time, it is good and wise and right to do an assessment of our Christianity, of our profession, of our claims to be a follower of Christ and see, is it real? Is it genuine? Is it true? And so, in our text, we see something shocking. That is a warning for us all. It shows that Saul was actually convinced that sacrifice was better than obedience. And how do we know that? Because Samuel had to tell him obedience is better than sacrifice. Now if I were to ask any of us here, is it better to do what the Lord says or what you think? No one would say what I think, right? And yet so many professing Christians continue to live a life that is completely opposed to the word of God. And so I want to help you, I want to help myself, and examine the tragic fall of Saul. Learn from His bad example. As Paul said, these things were written for our instruction that we would not be idolaters as some of them were. That we would look at the life and fall of Saul and go forward in obedience to the Lord. Because I want all of you to hear on that day, well done, good and faithful slave. I don't want any of you, as I don't want for myself to hear, depart from me, you workers of lawlessness. And one quick word before we dive in. One quick word of caution. Don't listen to this sermon for someone else. Don't think of all the people that need to hear this message. Don't think of all the people that you can start to imagine who really need to be told and rebuked and all of that, but for the sake of your own soul, hear the Word of the Lord to you. Now, I've gone through the events of this chapter, and I saw five things that we can gain wisdom from so that none of us end up like Saul. One, Saul was given a clear command to obey. Two, Saul was proud of his performance. Three, Saul made excuses for his sin. Four, Saul thought that he was justified even though he was disobedient. And finally, Saul thought that everything was going to be okay. So let's look at each one. May the Lord help us. First, Verse 1, Samuel said to Saul, the Lord sent me to anoint you king over this people Israel. Now, therefore, listen to the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord of hosts, I have noted what Amalek did to Israel in opposing them on the way when they came up out of Egypt. Now go and strike Amalek and devote to destruction all that they have. Do not spare them, but kill both man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey. Now, as I said, the first instruction that we can get from the life and fall of Saul is that he was given a clear command to obey. But before I even do that, I have to deal with the elephant in the room. This is a really difficult thing to hear. And I just read to you. It sounds harsh. And so I just want to address that so that we can move on without that being a distraction. One, there is a reason behind this wrath. He said, I have noted what Amalek did to Israel in opposing them on the way when they came up out of Egypt. The point being that God has reasons for what He does. He's not flippant. He's not just random in His wrath. He's calculated. And if you go back and you look at what Amalek did, they attacked men, women, and children. And at the end of this chapter, you see to Amalek, you made women childless and now it shall be done to you. There is a reason for this wrath. The second thing that we are shown that we are bothered by this verse, it shows that we value men more than God. We hear men and women and children and infants killed. We groan, we shake our heads, we say, that just doesn't sound right. And yet the truth of the matter is that God is sinned against and that is the highest crime. And yet we are more heartbroken over infants and children and women who are killed than our God who is blasphemed, rebelled against, and disobeyed. And that's not right. And the third thing that we see by the fact that we are often bothered by such passages in the Bible is that we stand as the judge of God. I mean, have you ever thought about how often you and I, as human beings, judge the God who made us? He is the righteous one, and yet we put ourselves above him and say, you should not do such things. It's arrogance, it's idolatry, it's sinful. So he has a reason for his wrath, He's calculated in it. There is a reality that we value man over God, and that's not right, and we judge God, and that is not right. Now, the truth is that this is a difficult command to obey. None of us would disagree with that. He was commanded to wipe out entire families. That is hard. And yet, difficult commands are still supposed to be obeyed, aren't they? The fact is that some of the Lord's commands are more difficult to obey than others. For example, children, if your parents tell you on Monday, clean the whole house, and then they tell you on Tuesday, go and play. Both are commands from your parents. Which one would be more difficult to obey? Clean the whole house. And yet, both commands must be obeyed. Likewise, some commands from the king of kings are easier to obey than others, and yet, just because they're more difficult does not mean we have an excuse to disobey. The command to preach the gospel to all nations may be easier for some of you than to live in a manner that's worthy of the gospel, and yet both are commanded by our king. So if you're taking notes, the first reality we can see is that the Lord's commands to Saul were clear. Now, there are debates in the Christian life, right? Questions of, well, head coverings, or musical instruments in worship, eschatology, there are debates within the body of Christ. As Peter said, some of the things that Paul wrote are difficult to understand, but the majority are clear. Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the church. Difficult to obey? Clear to understand. Wives, submit to your husbands in everything. That's not unclear. Maybe difficult to obey, but it's understandably clear. Children, obey your parents in all things. Difficult, but clear. So it was with Saul. He knew exactly what the Lord wanted him to do. He understood it, and he was able to perform it. Saul was the king of Israel. He was not some random soldier. He could not do this massive task if he was just a foot soldier. He had the position. He had the authority. He had the armies of Israel with him. He was able to carry out this command. He understood it. and he was able to perform it. Likewise, Christian, the commandments of the Lord are not burdensome. He commands you and me to follow Christ. He commands you to forgive those who sin against you. How many times? 70 times seven, clear as glass. Hard to do, easy to understand. The question is, are you doing it? He commands you to flee youthful lust, clear to understand. But are you doing it? Love your enemies. Pray for those who persecute you. Do good to those who hate you. Are you doing what you've been commanded to do? You have been given clear commands by the Lord. And if you are a Christian, you've been given power. You've been given the ability to do them. Deny yourself, take up your cross daily and follow me. You could not do this unless the Spirit of God dwells within you. And if you are a Christian, then you have the Spirit of God who enables and empowers you to obey the command. Do not present your members as instruments of sin. The grace of God is with you to help you, as we just sang. Not I, but Christ through me. You may say, but what about the lost? I'm here, I'm lost. I don't have the power, what about me? And no one can save themselves? And unless the Lord draws you, you can't believe, amen. You can't come to the Son unless the Father that sent you draws you. But what does the Bible say? Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. He commands everyone everywhere to repent. This is what Paul preached to those lost men in Athens. Repent. It's by faith, it's by grace, but you are not told to just wait for the power to come. He tells every poor sinner here to repent and believe the gospel, not to wait to be given power from on high, but repent and believe. We are not hyper-Calvinists here. God gave Saul a command that he could have obeyed. He had everything that he needed to obey. He understood it, but he didn't do it. And likewise, my brothers and sisters, if anyone does not believe the Gospel of Jesus Christ, it's very important that we understand that it's not because you are unable to, it's because you don't want to. Acts 7.51, you stiff-necked people. Chris was telling us about Stephen, this from his sermon. You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears. Listen to what he says. You always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you. Who was the blame being put on? Not on God, but on them for resisting. Matthew 23, 37, our Lord Jesus, oh Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets, stone those who are sent to it. How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing. John 5, 39, 40, he says, the Lord Jesus, again, you search the scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life, and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life. Do you see what I'm saying here? The scriptures Again and again and again, though we believe in the sovereignty of God, we believe in election, we believe that unless man is drawn by the Spirit of God they cannot believe, never does the Bible give an excuse to man because they are dead in their sin that they cannot respond to the repentance command given to all men. And if you're lost here today, it's not because Christ isn't merciful to save you, it's not because his blood isn't able to wash you, it's not because the offer of salvation as a free gift is not a genuine offer. No, it's because you love sin more than God and you want to keep your sin. We will all stand before the throne of God on the day of judgment and no one will be able to say, I didn't believe because you didn't save me. No, on that day every mouth will be shut and no excuse will be given. God has given you a clear command to obey, repent and trust in Christ, follow Him. Brethren, what has the Lord commanded you to do? Clearly, you've been given a clear command to obey. Are you obeying what you know to do? What's been your response? The second reality that we see in the life of Saul is that he was proud of his performance. Look at verse 12, 1 Samuel 15. And Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning, and it was told Samuel, Saul came to Carmel, and behold, he set up a monument for himself. Now, here's what is so amazing about this. Jump up, excuse me, verse seven. Saul defeated the Amalekites from Havilah as far as Shur, which is east of Egypt. And he took Agag, the king of the Amalekites, alive and devoted to destruction all the people with the edge of the sword. But Saul spared Agag and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatted calves, and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them. All that was despised and worthless, they devoted to destruction." So Saul blatantly disobeyed the Lord. He did some things, but not all of it, and he was happy with his performance, so much so that he built a monument to his victories. He was proud of his performance. Now, he's about to be rebuked. He's about to be judged. And yet, he was so infatuated and impressed with what he did, that he missed the fact that the Lord was angry with him. Likewise, if you are still in your sin, you have not come to know the Lord Jesus Christ, you're still rejecting the free gift of mercy and grace, forgiveness, Yet you may have many religious and good things that you do and that you are proud of those things. You may have an entire list of the good things and you will point to them and hold them up before men and God. Do you know the insanity? Chris always talks about the insanity of sin. On the day of judgment, some people, I hope no one in this room, some people will actually seek to hold up their monuments on the day of judgment. to qualify them for entrance into heaven. How do we know this? I showed you earlier, Matthew 7. But Lord, didn't I cast out demons in Your name and do many miracles in Your name and many mighty works? What is that? Monuments. Statues. Pillars. You know what? Casting out demons in His name may impress your friends. And projecting His name I'm sorry, proclaiming the truth in his name may impress the church, and doing many mighty works in his name may impress the world, and books may be written about you and me. Just as some were in awe at the monument of Saul, but the Lord was not moved by it, and he will not be pleased by the statues we build to our own good works either. Now as a Christian, And again, we speak to those who are lost and we speak to the church. There's clear distinction there. And the reality is we know that we are only accepted because of the Beloved. We know that the only reason we live is because He lives. We know the fact that we are heard is only because He makes intercession for us. You know that you have grace because He got wrath. But brethren, is it not true that spiritual pride can creep into the Christian's heart as well? That you can begin to think well of yourself because of victories over sin and the defeat of enemies as well. The temptation comes, I did that. You can begin to think that you've done something worthy of setting up a monument to your strength, to your resolve, to your spirituality. You know, technology is so advanced today that someone can have no legs and be given a prosthetic limb. Prosthetic, children, just means a fake limb. It looks like a leg. It acts like a leg. In fact, it's so advanced today that they can run and jump, compete in Olympics. and they can begin to think, I'm walking, I'm jumping, I'm running. But is it really them? No, because if you would remove the prosthetic limb, they would be lame. They would be unable to move. So it is. We can think, I'm doing this by my power, by my might. Look at this monument to my spiritual maturity. And the reality is, the Lord will remind you and me, the only reason you stand is by my might and my grace and my power. And many of the falls of the Christian is because we forget the only reason we stand is by His grace. And He will remind us, no monument should be built to you. Don't we sing, here I raise my Ebenezer. Nothing wrong with setting up monuments. First Samuel 7.11, in fact our brother Jason was telling the children, here I raise my Ebenezer. Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen and called its name Ebenezer for he said, till now the Lord has helped us. If you raise a monument to the victory that comes from his help, amen, the danger comes when you think it's you. and spiritual pride creeps in, and you begin to look down on others, and you become proud of your performance. Let me ask you a question. Do you look to your performance for assurance? Or do you look to the finished work of Christ? Do you trust in how repentant you are? How many tears you shed? Or do you trust in the finished work of Christ? Are you finding your joy in your obedience? Yes, obedience is better than sacrifice, but we rejoice in the obedience of Christ, and that's why we can be obedient. Or is it, because of you. Why did Saul slip? Why did he fall? Because he disobeyed, he did some things, and he set up a monument because he was proud of his victories, and he lost sight of the fact that God was angry because he was in rebellion. I mean, isn't that why we just celebrated Christmas? Unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, because as our brother Chris just pointed out from Acts chapter six, we were slaves to sin and could not free ourselves. We dwelt in a land of deep darkness, but on us, upon us, a great light has shined. Christ is the reason that we have any growth or movement or life or victory at all. Are you setting up monuments to your victories or to the Lord's? Saul was given clear commands to obey and he disobeyed. Saul was proud of his performance and he set up a monument to his victories. The third reality that we see is that he made excuses for his sin. And when I looked at this chapter, I saw that his excuses could be broken down into two categories. Blame shifting and good intentions. Yeah, like Bodie says, if you can't say amen, you ought to say ouch. First, notice how he speaks and shifts the blame. First question, who was given the command to obey? It was Saul. Notice verse 15 and 16 here. Saul said, or actually, let me ask, verse 13. Samuel came to Saul and Saul said to him, blessed be you, to the Lord, I have performed the commandments of the Lord. And Samuel said, what then is this bleeding of the sheep in my ears and the lowing of the oxen that I hear? Saul said, they have brought them from the Amalekites, for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen to sacrifice to the Lord your God. And the rest, notice how the language shifts, we have devoted to destruction. You see what he did there? They, Them, when it was disobedience. We, when it came to the good. He shifted the blame. The people spared, but we devoted. Look at verse 21. But the people took the spoil, sheep and oxen, the best of the things devoted to destruction, to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal. Why did he disobey in his thinking? Them, it was their fault. The people did that. It wasn't me. In fact, if you look at what I did, I was a part of the obedience we devoted to destruction. They're the ones who spared. Not himself. The reason for his disobedience is laid at the feet of other people, and this is a bad sign. Blaming other people for your sin is a very bold red flag. They kept the animals. They spared the flock. He's blame shifting the whole time. Where do we first see this? Genesis, don't we? What did Adam say? It was that woman you gave me. What did the woman do? Did she take responsibility? It was the serpent. The serpent is the only one who didn't blame anybody, interestingly enough. You see another example of this in Exodus. Here's Moses. He is before the face of God, receiving the law of God, the righteousness of God, to give to the people. He comes down hearing the sound. He thinks it's war. It's not war. It's feasting. It's festivities. It's celebration. The people are having a party. What are they doing? They're worshiping a golden calf. Moses is He comes down, he sees his brother Aaron, the man who was supposed to be the one leading the Levite priesthood. What have you done? Exodus 32, 22, and Aaron said, let not the anger of my Lord burn hot. You know the people. that they are set on evil. For they said to me, make us gods who shall go before us. As for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him. And listen to what he says. Children, this is hilarious if it wasn't sad. So I said to them, let any who have gold take it off. So they gave it to me. I threw it into the fire and out came this calf. That's not how statues are made. That's not how idols are made. Yeah, them, you know the people, and they gave me this stuff. I just threw it into the fire, and the fire magically, miraculously created this calf. I had nothing to do with it. What is he doing? He's shifting the blame. He's pointing. They're the reason. It's their fault. I didn't have anything to do with this. And Saul, in classic fashion, is pointing his guilty finger at others, blaming them for their sin. And once again, so many people will point to others as their cause for their disobedience. The Lord has given a clear command. Repent and believe the gospel. and rather than doing exactly what He's told you to do, you point to people and you say, but Christians are hypocrites, so I won't believe the gospel. Or you say, I've never been welcomed in a church, or I had a bad experience. I would repent of my sins and trust in Christ for eternal life, but you don't understand what my family is like. You don't understand what my church history has been like. Think of the madness of this. Hell is waiting for you. John says that the wrath of God is abiding upon you even now. Forgiveness is waiting, mercy is waiting, grace and kindness and the love of God is waiting, eternal life. You say, I will not trust Christ and receive forgiveness for my sins and I will go to hell because these people sinned. It's madness. Will you actually give up eternal life, the forgiveness of sin, salvation from the infinite wrath and anger of God because somebody else sinned? Blame shifting is a deadly thing, and there are many people today who are in hell forever because they pointed to someone else and said, I won't come to the cross because of my father, or because of my mother, or because of that pastor, or because of this church, or because of that person, or that person, or another. And they're in hell. Some go as far as to blame God. Well, I'm not one of the elect. I've asked God to save me. I've tried to repent. No one can come unless He draws them. I'm waiting for Him to save me. He hasn't saved me, so who's being blamed? God. But what does James teach us? Let no one say when he is tempted, I am being tempted by God, for God cannot be tempted with evil, and He Himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire, by his own lust. And my brothers and sisters, we're not above this. How many men continue How many men continue in sexual sin because of how women are dressing? I wouldn't fall into sin if it wasn't for these women and how they're dressing. They're accountable for how they dress, but you can't shift the blame. How many sisters covet and fall into discontentment and even being a temptation, looking at those same women and saying, well, I don't wanna be shackled by legalism, or those men and their eyes and their lust is the problem, not me. Shifting the blame. I had one man tell me, the reason why he repeatedly falls into sin is because no one disciples him. No one checks up on him. You don't know how difficult they are to live with, to talk to, to be around. Therefore, in the mind, they have permission to sin. But brothers and sisters, is there ever any circumstance when the Lord allows you to sin against him? Are you ever allowed to give into your sinful anger, or your pride, or your greed, or your selfishness? Is there ever a situation or scenario that gives you permission to disobey the God who made you? How often do you and I make excuses for our sin by pointing to other people and the devil loves it. He loves it because it's deception. Because the thought is, I shifted the blame so I'm free from responsibility. And that may work in conversations, but not before the Lord. Saul shifted the blame and he thought he was safe. And the sadness of this is if you don't recognize that the fault is yours, then you won't go to the throne of grace to receive help in a time of need. If you keep pointing the blame to someone else for your sin, then you can't go and get help to be cleansed and washed and help to overcome this sin. As long as it's their fault, you will never grow. You will never be helped. Only when we take accountability and responsibility for what we do can we repent. I can't repent for your sins and you can't repent for mine. And yet, it happens all the time, doesn't it? In marriage, I'd love her if she respected me. I'd respect him if he loved me. Parents, do not provoke your children. Well, I wouldn't provoke them if they obeyed me. Children, obey your parents. I'd obey them if they didn't provoke me. And what are we doing? Shifting the blame, and the Lord is the one who's being sinned against. He's the One who has given the command to obey. He's the One who's worthy to be obeyed. He's the One who sent His Son to die for our sins, that we might obey Him. And He's the only One who's really being sinned against. As David said, against you and you only have I sinned and done this evil in thy sight, O God. And the sad reality is when we're doing all this blame shifting, we're not thinking about him at all. Not only are we never given a license to sin, in fact, Jesus actually says when someone sins against us, how are we supposed to respond? If someone hates you, you're commanded to love them. Paul says if you're married to an unbeliever, live in such a way that they will be one without a word. We're not to shift blame but to obey regardless of the situation we're put in. So the first thing we see there is that he's shifting the blame. The other thing is that he has good intentions for his disobedience. I don't mean where the Lord says, Man looks on the outward, God looks at the heart. I'm not talking about that. That's beautiful. You may have good intentions and you may not be able to complete the work, but God sees your heart. I don't want to in any way discourage that. That's a beautiful reality. Praise God. You go out and you preach the gospel, and no one gets saved, but God sees the intention of your heart. You wake up in the morning early, ready to get into the Word, and you're struck with sickness, and you're never able to open the Bible. God sees the intention of your heart. I'm talking about Saul thought that his good intentions for sinning would be okay. Look at verse 15. Look at the language that he uses there. The people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen to sacrifice to the Lord your God. You see, the reason why it was spared, it was for sacrifice to the Lord. It's a good intention. Yeah, it's disobedience, but it's for a good reason. Verse 21, sacrifice to the Lord your God. For the Lord, The other way, it's good stuff. Verse nine, all that was good. Verse 15, the best. Verse 21, the best. Paul thought that he had some very noble and logical reasons to disobey the Lord. After all, he was gonna use what was spared to sacrifice to the Lord. That's a good reason, right? I mean, it's not like he was gonna use that to expand his kingdom. Good motive. Shouldn't that make a difference? But what was the command? Devote everyone and everything to destruction. What did he do? He spared some for the purpose of sacrificing to the Lord. But God didn't care about his intentions because he commanded him to destroy them all. And what does verse 19 tell us? Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord? Why did you pounce on the spoil and do what was what? evil in the sight of the Lord. The intention of his heart didn't matter because it was evil. To disobey the Lord is always evil. And these so-called sacrifices were in clear rebellion against the very Word of God. Think of the madness of it. To think, I could blatantly disobey God, but I'm going to worship Him with what I'm disobeying Him with. and all the unbelievers that are here, and those that are at home listening to this, when God says in his word, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved, when God says in his word that you are to come by faith alone, and you say, but I have works, I have sacrifices, I'm giving to the poor. I'm inviting people to church. But are you repenting of your sin and trusting in Jesus? Children, I'm obeying my parents. I'm memorizing scripture. I'm being nice to my siblings. But are you looking to Jesus Christ and being saved? Because all this religious activity you can muster, as much as you can say it's for the Lord, as much as you can say I have good reasons for doing it, if it's disobedience to Him, it's evil in His sight. What does Isaiah tell us? That all your righteous deeds are as a polluted and filthy garment. Faith means faith. From faith, for faith, as it is written, the righteous shall live by faith. We are saved by the finished work of Jesus Christ alone. And Christians, we can do the exact same thing. How many missionaries have neglected their wives and children for the sake of the Gospel? left them behind, put their children in this boarding school, left their wife back in some country sick and dying because I'm going for the kingdom. Clear disobedience, but it's for the Lord. It's good intention. How many wives, I'm serving over here, and I'm serving over here, and I'm helping here, and I'm helping there, but they are not loving their husband, they're not serving their children. Clear commands to obey. I'm doing it for the Lord as though he's going to be pleased with disobedience. I'm not saying that families don't have to make sacrifices. I'm not saying that you have to spend all your time at home, sisters. I'm not saying that at all. Hear what I'm saying. Obedience is better than sacrifice. And do you say like Saul, but it's for the Lord? Isn't that why there are a ton of women pastors and preachers? There are no men around to preach, so I'll do it. Nope. The Lord has given a clear command. Saul also said, it's valuable, it's good stuff. He only kept the best, he only kept the good. He reasoned within himself. Why get rid of that which is good? It's good, it's useful, it's helpful. And when it comes to sin, you may say, well yes, you know what, I'm gonna get rid of all the stuff that's despised. I'm gonna quit cursing, I'm gonna quit the sexual immorality, I'm gonna quit all that stuff, but a lack of compassion keeps me from getting tricked. A lack of transparency keeps me from getting hurt. I don't want to be humble because humble people get stepped on. I don't want to be vulnerable because vulnerable people get scarred. And so, these so-called respectable sins are committed in clear disobedience to the Lord, because in the mind, it's good, it's useful, it's helpful, it benefits me. And yet, at the end of the day, it's under the category of disobedience. And this world is filled, especially here in the South, God, family, country. They don't swear, they don't do drugs, they don't do anything blatantly evil, and yet they're full of iniquity. And it's amazing that Saul would say, but I have obeyed the Lord. I am looking to him in faith. Four, he made a justification for his sin. Verse 13, he says, I have performed the commandment of the Lord. Verse 20, I have obeyed the voice of the Lord. I have gone on the mission on which the Lord sent me. I have brought Agag, the king of Amalek. I have devoted the Amalekites to destruction. It's amazing. He's given a clear command to obey. He disobeys it. He starts pointing to others as the reason for why he didn't do all that he was supposed to do. He thinks that because he had good intentions and he could shift the blame that it would be it would be actually a righteous and pleasing thing in the sight of God. Saul is corrected by Samuel, and his response is not brokenness, it's not confession, it's justification. I've done some. I've done some. My unconverted friend, Do you see yourself in the behavior of Saul? The Bible tells you repent or perish. And some would say, but I have repented. I've repented of some things, but to follow Christ means to leave it all behind. It doesn't mean perfection. Again, I don't want to communicate that in any way. Sanctification is the reality justified by faith in Christ alone, and He grows us by His grace and His patience to be conformed to the image of Christ. But if you are going to follow Jesus Christ, you must turn from the world, turn from your own way, turn from being the Lord of your own life. Let it go and follow Him. and some say, but I have, and yet, like Samuel, we can say, what is this sound of sheep that we hear? Why do we see Agag over there? You say that you've repented, but your life is still dominated by sin. Yes, you can point to this good thing and that good thing, but why are you holding on to this and that? If you're gonna follow him, follow him. Doesn't Revelation say something about Luke warm? Doesn't it say something that it's better to be hot or cold, but those who are lukewarm will be vomited out of his mouth? What is that lukewarm? It's middle ground, it's being on the fence, it's kinda in, kinda out, it's being in the middle. Yeah, I wanna be involved with the church, but I wanna be involved with the world. Go to the world or go to the church, but don't play around with the Lord. Don't play around with your soul, more importantly. Well, not more importantly, but just as real. Years ago, I was getting my car fixed in San Antonio, and our mechanic was actually a believer, and a drunkard stumbled into the shop. And the mechanic, he was talking to this man about Christ, and the man said, as he was barely standing, I am a Christian. What is that? Look at Agag. Listen to the sound of sheep. The Gospel message is repent and believe. If you repent without believing, you're seeking to be justified by the law and you're condemned. If you seek to believe without repenting, then you're lawless and you're condemned. You must be obedient to the command to repent and believe. Brothers and sisters, we must be on guard against this as well because partial obedience is not obedience. And sin is so deceitful that compromise can sneak up on all of us without us even noticing. And a brother can come to you and say, brother, I've seen some of your posts on social media. I've heard you talk about you wanting to see this film and that film that's filled with immorality. I've seen some of your interactions. I'm concerned with your purity. And you can say, but I have obeyed the Lord. I am walking in purity. A sister can come to you and say, sister, I've observed how you respond to your husband. I see your frustration with your children. I'm concerned about your submissiveness and your anger. And you can reply, but I am submissive. I'm not angry. I see how you respond to your parents when they talk to you. You don't even look in their face. You just walk away. I'm concerned about your obedience to your parents. And you respond, I am obedient to my parents. Beware, Saul sought to justify himself, though he was disobedient. And lastly, he thought it would all work out in the end. Saul thought that everything would be okay. Look at verse 24 and 25. Saul said to Samuel, Finally, I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord and your words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice. You see, still, point and blame. Now therefore, please pardon my sin and return with me that I may bow before the Lord. And then verse 34 and 35. And Samuel went to Ramah, and Saul went up to his house in Gibeah of Saul. Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death. But Samuel grieved over Saul, and the Lord regretted that he had made Saul king over Israel. What do we see here? Things were never the same after this. Saul thought he would make sacrifices, and things would be cool again. He'd say, sorry, no big deal, but this was a big deal. Sin is always a big deal and things changed drastically for him. How? Samuel did not return with him. The kingdom was torn from him and his family. He never saw Samuel again until the day of his death. My lost friend, please listen. Children, you don't know the Lord. Please listen. You've heard the commandment of Christ. Repent and believe the Gospel. Jesus said in John 8.23, I told you that you would die in your sins, for unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins. You've heard it today. You've heard it again and again in the songs. You've heard the message. Repent and believe today. Today. Today. You may say, why do I keep saying today? Because tomorrow's not promised to you. And neither is the rest of today. But now, right now on the day and the time that you're here, harden not your heart. Why? Because the reality is this, there comes a point when it's over. There comes a point when the offer ceases to be offered. There comes a point when you are so hardened, you resist for so long that you are unable to repent. Remember Pilgrim's Progress, the man in the iron cage, he could not repent. Esau, he sought repentance with tears, but none were found for him. There comes a point when it's over. And there are many people who began this year, who thought they would make it to the end of this year, and they died before the year ended. The rich, the poor, celebrities, the normal, regular. You realize that everyone has a final opportunity to repent and believe before the door of mercy and forgiveness is closed. And this is not a new concept. The ark, the door remained open many days. And then the day came when the Lord shut the door and everyone outside perished. Sodom and Gomorrah had their time and the Lord said enough and fire and brimstone rained upon them. The Egyptians had their time, and then the Lord said, enough, and sent plagues. The Amalekites had their time, and the Lord said, enough, and sent his people to devote them to destruction. Saul had his time to disobey the Lord blatantly, and the point came where it was enough, and the kingdom was torn from him. And you too will be given a final chance to repent, a final opportunity before the Lord says, you've been given more than enough chances. The door is shut. That might be today. This sermon might be your final offer of mercy. Do not harden your hearts on the day you hear Don't put off until tomorrow what you have opportunity to do today. And brethren, you know like I do. Salvation is forever. You cannot lose your soul if the Lord has saved your soul. You cannot lose your salvation when the Lord has given it to you. Eternal life is eternal. But you also know the reality that there are people who claim to follow Christ who make shipwreck of their faith. You know the reality that there are those who claim to walk with Jesus who prove otherwise and they're never able to come back. They fall away. They looked good, they ran hard, they seemed faithful. I can see them in my mind now, all the faces of so many who went out evangelizing in San Antonio, even here in Austin and in Temple. People who went out with us, who were worshiping with us, praying with us. They were so encouraging, but they're gone. And they're seven times worse than they were when they came. And there are people who keep playing with the same sin over, and over, and over, and the Lord is gracious, and He's gracious, and He's gracious, and the Spirit tells you, repent, leave it alone, don't go back to it, but people keep going back, and they keep going back, and they keep going back, and there comes a point where the Lord says, enough! Like Esau. Like Esau. You're cut off. Remember Samson? Judges 16.20, he said, I will go out as at other times and shake myself free. But he did not know that the Lord had left him. And the same is true. You can keep on playing with that sin, you can keep on hiding that thing, you can have these secrets and think, you know what, it'll be okay, it'll be okay, but the point comes where the Lord says enough. So what should we do? Look, don't play with your sin. You know, He says to kill it, kill it, leave it alone, be done with it once and for all. Look to Jesus Christ in faith. Obedience is better than sacrifice. So how do we deal with our sin? And here's the final word. 1 Samuel 15, 32, 33. This is not what Saul did, but Samuel shows us the way to deal with every one of our sins. Then Samuel said, bring here to me Agag, the king of the Amalekites. And Agag came to him cheerfully. Agag said, surely the bitterness of death is past. And Samuel said, as your sword has made women childless, so shall your mother be childless among women. And Samuel hacked Agag to pieces before the Lord in Gilgal. John Owen famously has said, kill your sin or that sin will kill you. Put it to death by the power of the Spirit and live. Submit yourself to Christ and follow Him. And when you fall, fall forward and cast yourself upon the mercy and grace and help of Christ Jesus. You cannot do this by yourself, and neither can I. But that's why Jesus came, and that's why He died, and that's why He rose, and that's why He sent His Spirit to empower you and I to go forward and make war on our sin. Do not let agag live. Every one of us has an agag that we need to hack to pieces by the sword of the Spirit. And may we do it by the grace and mercy of God. So as we come to the end of this year and you think about how you spent it, if it's been marked by disobedience, brothers and sisters, repent. If you're here as an unbeliever sitting under the Gospel, Sunday after Sunday, Wednesday after Wednesday, day after day, be done with it. Fall to your knees before the throne of grace and have mercy given to you. Cry out for forgiveness at the cross. For we don't know when the day will come when it will be all over. Thank you for the warnings that are meant to draw us to the throne of grace. Thank you for the danger that we can see the foolish ways of others who have fallen and been destroyed so that we can learn from their bad example to never go that way. Help us, Lord, to look to Christ for strength and help, but to never make an excuse for our sin. Throwing off our responsibility when there are clear commands to put to death that which is still earthly in us by the power of the Spirit. And may we do it for Your glory, Lord. In Jesus' name, Amen.