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To Obey Is Better Than Sacrifice
To Obey Is Better Than Sacrifice
In 1 Samuel 15 we read that Samuel instructs Saul to execute the Lord's judgment against the Amalekites. This was not an order for ethnic cleansing but a judicial sentence upon sin. God was very explicit in the instructions: "Do not spare them, but kill both man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey" (1Sam. 15:3).
Saul defeated the Amalekites (vs.7). Then we read that "Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep and of the oxen and of the fattened 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" (vs. 9).
God's response was immediate as He spoke to Samuel saying: " I regret that I have made Saul king, for he has turned back from following me and has not performed my commandments" (vs. 11).
Interestingly, Saul saw things a bit different. When he met Samuel he said: "I have performed the commandment of the Lord" (vs. 13). When that statement is challenged by Samuel, Saul makes an excuse. First, making an excuse implies that he knew he was wrong. He gives his 'reasons' for not obeying the Lord but in reality there are no reasons for not obeying God.
Samuel stops him as he speaks. Samuel directly indicts him for not obeying the voice of the LORD and for doing what was evil in the sight of the LORD (vs. 19). Again Saul tries to justify his actions. It is an interesting argument that I take as "I am not done yet. I am going to destroy them all - but I will destroy them by sacrificing them to the LORD."
It is at this point that Samuel responds: "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. 23 For rebellion is as the sin of divination, and presumption is as iniquity and idolatry" (vs. 22-23).
There is a contrast that is implicitly stated here: obedience or rebellion. Saul chose rebellion and presumption rather than obedience. When one unilaterally changes the commandment of God, he does so presumptuously. When one disobeys the commandment of God he has rebelled against God. When one is confronted with a commandment of God he can either choose obedience or rebellion.
God has always desired obedience. He wants a trusting heart that will obey His will out of love. His commands are for our good so our obedience is for our good. God provided for those times when men sin by allowing a sacrifice of atonement. Such sacrifice though means that one has in fact sinned against God.
People have often had the wrong impression about such sacrifice for sin. They often reason that as long as the sacrifice is offered that means the sin is OK. Such an attitude says that while we can be careless concerning sin and disobedience, we must be careful about the offering of sacrifice. Instead of seeking a life of obedience and righteousness they emphasize the offering of the sacrifice. Such people would try to substitute sacrifice in place of obedience. No amount of religious ritual can substitute for doing what God commands. When one obeys God, there is no need of an atoning sacrifice. Truly, God desires obedience and not sacrifice.
Religion is indeed about obeying God in everything. It does make allowance for those times of weakness wherein we disobey. The very essence of religion is to walk humbly in obedience unto God as Micah wrote: "He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?" (Micah 6:8).
