Insecure

I once heard a speaker say that the most confident person can be brought to the knees standing in front of a room of teenagers. While we all have moments of insecurity in specific situations, what about spiritual insecurity? Spiritual insecurity may be defined as a lack of confidence in our God or our position as God’s children.

At some level, we all have spiritual insecurity. Some might define this as a lack of faith. I do not think that is an accurate way to phrase this. A lack of faith may result from our spiritual insecurity, but it is not the cause. Rather, our spiritual insecurity stems directly from one of these places…God or us in God.

King Saul often seems to be an example of what not to do, and so it is again today. Saul exemplified insecurity from the moment of his call. God called and anointed him, but he failed to believe in himself. Scripture reminds us that he hid among the baggage at his public anointing.

Read 1 Sam 15:17-23.

A lot is happening in these few verses, but I will explain this. I first want you to notice that Samuel the Prophet cuts off the King to give him a word from the Lord. Samuel knew who he was in God and walked in that authority. Thus, he was willing to approach the king and correct him. There are too many among us today who know God; they love God, but they fail to walk in the authority that is theirs.

Concerning insecurity, Samuel says, “You may think little of yourself.” Then he reminds Saul that he was chosen to be the King of Israel, God’s chosen people. He was to help wipe out sin in Israel, including destroying some of the evil nations around them. Instead, Saul increased the wickedness of his people and disobeyed God when it came to their enemies.

The challenge here is that Saul believed he had obeyed God. We see this often in our culture. The problem is we approach obedience through our standards rather than God’s. Someone asked me this week how I talk to an unbeliever about standards they see as morally wrong. I must remind them and myself that we do not follow men’s standards but God’s. God set the standard. I did not. My role is to be obedient to the best of my ability, even if those around me do not understand.

Saul believed he would honor God by sacrificing, so he disobeyed. God did not ask for sacrifices; he asked for obedience. Partial obedience is disobedience.

Verses 22-23 are a poem with a pronouncement of judgment in the final two lines. Samuel reminds us that obedience is better than sacrifice, a principle repeated repeatedly in the NT.

Jesus says in John 14:15, “If you love me, obey my commandments.”

In his first epistle, 2:4, John writes, “If someone claims, “I know God,” but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth.”

I wonder where Saul’s insecurity comes from. Arrogance is often a mask of insecurity. Humility, then, is a mark of security in God. You all know there are many places where Saul seems like a real jerk. He was arrogant, yet Samuel says, “You think little of yourself.”

Saul argues with Samuel and tries to justify his disobedience. Sacrifices are good, but not to the detriment of better things. Samuel calls Saul to examine his motivation for sacrificing. At this time, a sacrifice was a ritual to physically show one’s devotion to God. That can’t be bad, right? It is when God says destroy the enemy and keep no plunder.

I think here Saul’s arrogance and insecurity collided. Saul wanted to save face and show his authority in front of Israel, but actual authority is demonstrated in humility and obedience. Saul was confused. Being religious does not make you righteous.

Saul stands at Gilgal, where he was called king, and now the kingdom is removed from him there. Throughout his life, Saul failed to recognize his success was the power of God in him. When he met the prophets on the road as a young man, the Spirit of God came to him and empowered him.

Like Saul, we are all insecure. There are moments when we do things our way out of fear of failure, lack of trust, to save face in front of those watching, or the fact that we do not recognize our authority is in humility.

We are all insecure at times, so how do I live in confidence rather than insecurity?

First, know who God is.

Second, know who you are in God.

Third, Live like it.