Build Your Altar

Bible's with you. Let's open up to 1st Samuel chapter 14. It'll be our last sermon out of chapter 14. We uh we were cruising through Samuel, right? And then we hit chapter 14 and bam, four sermons out of it. But it's a rich chapter because there's there's a whole bunch to it just to catch all up. Um start it this way

before the we hear the clash of swords in scripture for the first time. Um, we hear a greater sound. We hear a sound of a finished work. And it's a finished work that that from eternity, God determined that his son would triumph over this course of this uh weekend, this fall meeting. Uh, we heard about that. Brother Dicki spoke out of Genesis chapter 3:15 where the Lord and the creation time said to the serpent, "Hey, we're going to crush your head. The plan's already been set in motion." And all of that was determined before the first sound of swords. Right? So we as children of God are operating from a position of victory. We we're we're not operating and fighting for victory. We're operating from victory. And and let me tell you something. When we talk about victory, we're not talking about something fragile waiting on our effort to complete it because we're talking about something that's already been secured. And I say that because the children of Israel in 1st Samuel chapter 14 encountered an impossible battle. There 36,000 Philistines and just uh less than 600 Israelites. And Saul was absolutely terrified and he was hiding in place. But he had a son, son by the name of Jonathan, who one day when they're sitting around the camp, he looked over at his armor bearer and he said, "Hey, let's go on up against the Philistines." Because the Lord is able to save by many or by few. That's the God that we have. We serve a God who can take two fish and five loaves and feed 5,000 people on one side of the lake of gas and then on the other side he can feed 7,000. That's the God that we serve. We we serve a God who can take a stick and part the Red Sea. We serve a God who can take a stone and fell a giant. That's the God that we serve. We serve a God who tells you to go get empty vessels and not a few because a itty bitty ounce of oil is going to sustain you for years. That that's the God that we serve. And he's very active today. And in 1 Samuel chapter 14, that God was still very active. But Saul was terrified. Even though his nation, the nation of Israel, was the nation that was chosen. It was the nation that blessed. Well, Jonathan never forgot who he was. He was an Israelite, part of the family of God. And he knew about this God that had all power. So, he turns to his armor bearer and he says, "Hey, let's go on up because the Lord is able to save us by many or few." And then he made that climb. And if you ever see the pictures of this area of Israel and Mcmash, it was a difficult climb. I mean, he's he's crawling up there. Dirt is under his fingernail. He's sweating. And then he stops. He says, "Okay, here's what we're going to do, buddy." Uh, if they insult us, then we know that God's given us the battle. If they don't insult us, then we know that he hasn't given us the battle. All right? And they go on up and insult the the Philistines insult them and they're like, "All right, God's given us a battle. Let's go." And so they go on there. The Bible tells us within a half acre of land they they slew dozens dozens. I mean, it's just like Yoda going around fighting the Sith Lords in Star Wars and they're all fallen. And then the Israelites who are hiding in the camp just a little bit off, they see they hear the battle, they see the smoke, and they get encouraged and they charge on up there and they win. It's cool because God's given him the Bible. But then Saul, silly Saul, decides to put this stupid curse on them. And he says, "Curse should be anybody uh who eats until evening. Go get the Philistines." Now, why would Saul do that? Maybe because he wanted to press the battle, but the go Lord had already given them the victory. I think it might be because Saul said, and this is what he said, "Cursed be anyone that eats." uh till we get the Philistines so that I can be avenged. Somehow he took this great victory of God and he made it all about himself and being avenged. Avenged what? Well, in 1 Samuel chapter 13, we read that because Saul was impetuous and he didn't wait on Samuel according to the appointed time that he went ahead and started to offer a sacrifice up that he was not authorized. And so the kingdom, Samuel says, "Hey, the Lord would have established your kingdom forever, but because you've done this, he's taken his kingdom from you." In other words, you're not going to have a monarchy. In other words, your son's not going to be a king. Other words, it's over for you and your kingship. So Saul hearing that just in the very next battle, he's like, "I want you to pursue the Philistines so that I can be avenged." And that word has this connotation to it. He was going to try and earn God's favor back through his performance. But here's the thing. As children of God, we have God's favor. He can't love us any more than he does right now. He can't love us any. And he had given them the victory. But the Israelites in this battle when Saul laid that curse and oh by the way, scripture never authorizes Saul to give a curse. It was a stupid thing to say. And the people weren't going to be cursed that they ate. They were just disregarding some silly thing that the king said, but they were operating like it was the voice of God. It was not the voice of God. It was stupid Saul with stupid curse. And they were all scared. And then we get to verse 31, and this is where we're going to pick up today. And it says, "And they smoked the Philistines that day from Mcmash to Agelon. And the people were very faint." So here they are. They're they're standing in victory, but they're grasping for their breath. And and the enem is retreating. The promise is fulfilled, but the soldiers of Israel can hardly lift their head. Something is wrong when the people of God faint on a field of triumph. Something is wrong when redemption feels like exhaustion. And the problem isn't Saul's strength in this passage. It's the the the problem is not God's strength. It's Saul's vow here. Saul had made that stupid oath that says, "Look, I want to be avenged on my enemies." And have you ever slipped up on pride that I may be avenged? And what he did is he wrapped his spirituality. He wrapped his ambition with spirituality. And look, the reason I I point this and last week we spent a lot of time on what legalism is. legalism but by definition is trying to make yourself right with God by what you do. It's death to grace. It's antithetical to grace. But here every generation has this kind of vow. It's a subtle theology of performance. We tell ourselves, look, if I work harder, maybe God will notice. If I sacrifice more, maybe he'll love me more. If I fast long enough, pray loud enough, serve tirelessly enough. If I don't smoke, drink, dance, or hang out with people that did, maybe God will be pleased with me. Look, Saul's command right here only produced hungry soldiers. It never produced holy ones. And so, the battlefield here, what we're saying is it's littered with spoils that they were forbidden to taste. The trees were literally dripping with oil. The golden fragrant god-given and untouched because of man man-made curse. But the and I don't want you to miss this because the blessings are hanging within reach of the people who are starving under vows that God never spoke. And so what we learned last week is Jonathan never heard the oath. He sits there. He dips a stick in honey. And it says his eyes were enlightened and he was refreshed. And and and then it goes on verse 32, "And the people flew upon the spoil." So they're pursuing from Mcmash. This is a a field of battle goes about 17 miles and they're pursuing them and they're exhausted and they're fainting. And it says, "And the people flew upon the spoil and took the sheep and the oxins and the calf and slew them on the ground. And the people did eat them with the blood. And then they told Saul, saying, "Behold, the people sin against the Lord, and that they eat with the blood." And he said, "Ye have transgressed. Roll a great stone on me this day." So, I want y'all to dig what's going on here. Because they've pursued them for 17 miles. They haven't been able to eat all day. They're starving. They're figning. And they come upon the spoils. I guess the evening sun is setting because they finally start to eat and they're so hungry that they don't even let the food cook properly and they start to eat it with the blood in it. The reason that's important is because of Genesis 9. The reason that's important is because of Leviticus 17, which forbids people from eating undercooked meat that still has the blood in it. You couldn't do it because the blood in the Old Testament always pointed to Christ. It's just a consistent pointing. The life is in the blood. It's repeated over and over in the Old Testament. So God had a very simple command. Hey, cook your meat. At least get it medium rare, but cook it. Don't be eating it with the blood in it. But these people are so famished. They are so hungry that they just can't wait. Here's one of the pernitious things about legalism. It actually produces worse sin. Because what legalism does is it makes you feel like you're not accepted by God because you're not performing right. You're not thinking right. You're not enough. What grace says is enough. God loved you. He died for you knowing that you weren't enough and he made you. That's what grace for when we were enemies. He has reconciled us unto himself. We are God's children not because of anything we did, said, acted, or behaved. We're God's children because of his grace. So if you ever allow this mentality of I've got to do this, I've got to do this, I've got to do this, just beware that that kind of mentality actually produces greater sin, does it here? And hey, it also ought to make us aware because parents love your children, you know, and and parents just that withhold love from I just want to give you an example. We are commanded to love our children or for their good. Parents that withhold love from their children produce promiscuous children looking for love. Parents that overdisipline their children produce children who go astray and they will leave as soon as they're free from your restraint. So be careful about adding to the words of the Lord and and do what he says because right here restraint had broken out and chaos followed and the people were so desperate that they were devouring raw meat. And yet notice this, God doesn't withdraw his victory. He let his faint, fumbling people eat and recover. And I love that because grace stays with you even when order collapses. Pick up with verse 34 because it says, "And when Saul said, Disperse yourselves among the people, and say unto them, bring me hither every man his ox, and every man his sheep, and slay them here, and eat, and send not against the Lord, and eating with the blood." and all the people brought every man his ox with him that night and slew them there. Then it says in verse 35, "And Saul built an altar unto the Lord." The same was the first altar that he built unto the Lord. And I don't know if you underline your Bibles, but you may want to underline that last passage. The same was the first altar that built that he built unto the Lord. He had been king for over 20 years. Why is this the first altar he's ever building to the Lord? But there's actually a lot of encouragement right here because this scene is chaos. Israel's been fighting all day. They've been fasting because of Paul Saul's rash oath. And by the time the sun goes down, they're starving. The smell of roasted meat fills the air. Someone breaks the law, starts to eat it with the blood. It's gross. It's forbidden. It's a full-blown mess. And right here in the middle of the cleanup, Saul builds an altar. I love that because sometimes God meets us not after we get our act together, but right in the middle of the cleanup operation. You've been there. You know, you finally realize that you made a mess and you're standing there with your mop bucket in the middle of it, your spiritual mop bucket, and you didn't plan to sin, but here you are explaining it to God anyway. And just when shame tells you to hide, God says, "Hey, let's build something here." This is Saul's first altar, leading Israel for years, fighting, commanding, conquering, but he never stopped long enough to build an altar until now. It's as if God is saying, "Hey, I'll take your altar even if it comes too late. I'll take your altar even if it's built on the ashes of disobedience." And that's good news because God doesn't wait for perfect timing or polished hearts to begin his work. He's just looking for some surrendered ground. And that's what Saul's doing right here. You don't I love this because you don't need a fresh start. Really, what you need moment moment where you say, "Lord, I blew it, but I am still yours." Saul might have had the kingship stripped away from him, but he was still an Israelite who was still one of the the people of God. Sometimes the most powerful altars are built on regret and restoration instead of perfection. And that's where God's plan shines brightest, right where we thought it was over. So, let's look at some of the sovereignty in the story. Because if we step back right here, we see who's really steering the story. Saul might think he's managing the cleanup duty, but God's managing the redirection. And I love that because even when leaders wobble, the Lord's hand doesn't. Even Israel didn't deserve mercy that night, but they still got a meal. Saul didn't deserve to build an altar, but God's going to meet him here. He's going to be it's going to be different, but he's going to meet him here. And there's this thread that runs throughout all of scripture. God works through imperfect people and that's a great encouragement for me. He works through imperfect moments. That's an encouragement at least for me. He works his perfect plans through this. And he doesn't need your strength. He's just looking for your space. Jesus says, "Come unto me all ye who are heavy laden, and I'm going to give you rest." Let's come take our fears and our discouragements and our doubts. Let's take him those moments. It's like the Lord is saying, "Let me have the place where you thought you failed and I'll make it holy ground." And I imagine when I'm looking at this story, someone looking at Saul and say, "Really, Saul? We finally get to eat. You want to stop and have a worship service?" But sometimes, I guess that's how God operates. You know, interrupts the appetite with an altar. And maybe that's us, too, because we want to get on with life. God keeps pausing us and helping us to remember who he is. It's almost like he's saying, "Don't just enjoy the victory. Acknowledge the victor." And sometimes I think the best thing that we can do after a long day is to stop and build an altar before we take a bite. Because 1st Samuel 14 reminds us that God can turn any battlefield into a sanctuary, including the one that you're fighting right now. And the same ground that is stained by failure can become the foundation of worship. And that God is still writing the story even when we're cleaning up ours. So before we rush to fix the problem, before we rush to fix what's wrong, remember to pause and build your altar. Because the altar is not about what you bring, more about who you meet while you're there. Let's pick up with verse 36. Because

Saul was impetuous in chapter 13 when he decided to to have the to have the sacrifice without Samuel in contrary contravention of God's law. He's going to be impetuous again because he's going to make plans without approval. Let's see how that works out for him. Verse 36. And Saul said, "Let us go down after the Philistines by night and spoil them until the morning light, and let us not leave a man of them." In other words, let's kill him, every man, woman, and child. And they said, "Do whatsoever seemth good unto thee." Then said the priest, "Let us draw near hither unto God." And Saul asks counsel of God. Shall I go down after the Philistines? Will thou deliver them into the hand of Israel? But he answered him not that day. So y'all get the picture, right? Saul's been hustling all day, commanding, chasing, cleaning up after his own mistakes. He finally builds his first altar, and he prays. But this time, God doesn't answer. Have you ever been there?

You finally decide to talk to God after running full speed ahead in your own direction, and heaven feels like it's hit the moot button. You open your Bible, you whisper a prayer, and all you get is a a quiet. Like, really, Lord, now's the time when you choose to be silent. That's Saul's moment. Sometimes it's our moment. But here's the truth of it. And here's what's beautiful. Even in the silence, listen to me. Even in the silence, God is still speaking. Because many times silence is not rejection, it's redirection. I want to say that again. God is still speaking even in the silence because many times silence is not rejection. It's reflection. It's God saying before I give you a new direction, let's deal with your heart. Let's deal with what's on the un inside. And Saul wants to rush into another battle. He's ready to attack. He's he's he's he wants to go through the night, but the priest steps in thankfully and says, "Hey, idea." Just throwing it out there, Saul. Let's talk to God first. And there's a sermon all by itself right there. But sometimes the holiest thing we can do is to slow down before we mess up. Because we live, I live in a move fast and fix it later mentality. But Saul had that mindset, too. He's like, "Let's go down. Let's not leave a single Philistine." But the priest reminds him, "Hey, look, you don't necessarily need another victory right now. You kind of need some direction." Maybe that's where some of us are today. That we're praying about the next move, but God's not answering because he's still healing us from the last move. He's not ignoring you. is actually protecting you from proceeding into something prematurely. And this story shows us that God's mercy doesn't necessarily shows up when things get right. It it shows up in the in between the awkward gap moments between the sin and the restoration, between the striking and the the surrender. And here it is. Look, Saul's altar, we can all admit it's late. I mean, it's the first one he had built in 20 years. We can all admit Saul's altar was late. His prayer was delayed. His leadership was shaky, but God is still present. And I got to be honest with you, if I was the Lord God Almighty, I'd be thinking, "Oh, now you ask Saul." But thank goodness he's not like me. His mercy doesn't expire with bad timing. He He waits, not because he's cruel, but because he's kind enough to teach us what his voice sounds like again. And sometimes the silence of God is the mercy of God. Because when you've been charging ahead without him, silence is what should slow down your soul enough to notice his presence. And I can almost see Saul standing here with his sword in his hand. The altar till smoking saying, "All right, God. Ready when you are." And heaven's like, "Well, actually, we're going to hold off for a minute." And that's a humbling moment. And you know what? Sometimes we need that divine pause before we can pray like Saul, asking God to bless a plan that we've already decided on. It's like, "Hey Lord, please lead me." But so, you know, I've already sent the email. We said, "Oh, Lord, give me some revelation." But we've already taken the action. And I love that God loves us enough to interrupt that like he's saying before you go into your next battle.

Let's build an altar and remember who's really in charge. And so Saul built his first altar. It's almost poetic because the next verse says that God did not answer him that day because the altar is not about getting answers. It's about acknowledging God's authority again. And the breast the best prayers that we have are not the ones that get a yes and a no. They're the ones that put you in a position to trust whatever he says even when he says no. So here God is. He's silent. And that's not the end of the story. is actually an invitation to wait at the altar. And what excites me is that the same God who stayed silent in 1st Samuel 14 would one day stay silent on a Saturday on a Friday afternoon when Jesus hung between heaven and earth. Because that silence wasn't his absence, it was his accomplishment. And the son of God was securing for us what Saul could never win. a relationship that was not based on a performance but based on a promise. So when you pray and heaven feels quiet, I encourage you don't panic. Maybe God is just saying pause. I'm still here. Remember, take this time to remember that I am the king. Verse 38. And Saul said, "Draw ye near hither all the chief of the people, and know and see wherein this sin hath been this day. For as the Lord liveth, which saveth Israel, though it be in Jonathan, my son, he shall surely die." Though there was not a man among all the people that answered him. The irony is so thick here. It's Saul's rash oath that caused this. And yet, he's looking for a reason. So he builds an altar. He doesn't hear from God. And so he starts putting thought bubbles above God's head. How many of y'all are good at putting thought bubbles above other people? You are all liars and sinners because every single one of you do it. Every single hand should have gone up in this congregation. And for some of you, two hands should have gone up. Y'all putting So he doesn't hear from God and he's putting a thought bubble. I mean, God has literally given him a chance to just wait and remember that he's the king and wait for an answer. But Saul's like, "Nope, not answering me because he's angry at me and he's angry at me because of something you people did and we're going to figure it out and you're going to be punished. Even if it cost me my son's life, you're going to be punished." What a stupid thing to do. And so what the scriptures say is that they cast a lot between Saul, Jonathan, and people. And it came down to Saul and Jonathan. And then they cast a lot between Saul and Jonathan themselves. And it falls on Jonathan. Saul's like, "What did you do?" Jonathan says, "Tasted the honey." And Saul says, "You're going to die for tasting honey."

What are you thinking? But do you see how the snowball effect of one rash vow, one legalistic rule that God didn't add, it starts to pile up, and starts to add on, and then it becomes this kind of force that goes with it. That's why we got to be careful to really diligently protect the grace of God. It goes out to sinners hurting people. And so Jonathan's like when when when Saul says that, Jonathan's like, "Okay, I'm willing to do it." Let's pick it back up. Verse 40 and 42. Then he said unto Israel, "Be ye on one side, and I and Jonathan, my son, will be on the other side." And the people said un Saul, "Do what seemth good unto thee." Therefore Saul said unto the Lord God of Israel, "Give me a perfect lot." Saul and Jonathan were taken, but the people escaped. And Saul said, "Cast lots between me and Jonathan, my son." And Jonathan was taken. See, Jonathan, listen, let's be really clear right here. Jonathan had not sinned. He disobeyed a king's command. That is not a sin. He disobeyed a king's stupid command. That wasn't a sin. It was disobeying a king's command. He tasted honey. God given honey, by the way, because honey doesn't sit on the ground and float down trees. Then it says in verse 43, "Then Saul said to Jonathan, tell me what thou hast done." And Jonathan told him and said, "I did, but tasted a little honey at the end of the rod that was in my hand. And lo, I must die." And Saul answered, "God, do so and more also, for thou shalt surely die." Jonathan, there's parent of the year award. So, here's Saul's vow, devouring reason. He's he's willing to execute his own son to protect a vow that God never required. And that's what religion without relationship will do. It will sacrifice people to preserve appearances. It will crucify the innocent to cover up insecurities. And Jonathan, to his credit, steps forward, calm, resolute. Yeah, I ate the honey. Yeah, I gotta die. He's innocent. He doesn't argue. He doesn't run. He stands in the gap. Sound familiar? Because that's what Jesus did. The really innocent son. The one who brought salvation. The one who tasted joy. The one who obeyed perfectly. The one who trusted completely. The one who was condemned by a broken system of man's pride. And he tasted sweetness, too. But it wasn't honey. It was for the joy that was set before him. It was you. He didn't deserve it. And at Calvary, Jesus became the curse that should have fallen on us. I want to see the people's intercession here because in verse 45, the people are like, "What? Jonathan, who actually is the reason that we won? You're going to kill him? Shall Jonathan die who hath wrought this great salvation? God forbid not one hair on his head shall fall. And so at last at last at last some reason returned. The people intercede. They recognize that Jonathan's actions had actually brought about that victory. And you know in an imperfect way that's kind of a gospel echo. Salvation came by another and Jesus the faithful son lived perfectly. Then it says in verse 47, "And Saul took the kingdom over of Israel." It's kind of like a postcript and fought against all of his enemies on every side. Verses 48 and 49 read like the chronicles of the king. And what we really have going down now is kind of the closing ending chapters. Although Samuel Saul will continue on in 1 Samuel, his kingship and kind of bringing to a close right here. And that's why the verbiage is such. It says the key words I want to get is so Saul took over the kingdom of Israel and fought against all his enemies on every side. He had an impressive looking resume, but there's no song of joy. And let me tell you something, y'all. Activity can camouflage emptiness. It says he fought on every side, but he inner peace, it always eluded them. We see that in the final verse, verse 52. And there was sore war against the Philistines all the days of Saul. And when Saul saw any strong man, any valiant man, he took him. So he's just going out there collecting people to be part of it. But he didn't have peace for his entire kingship. And so first Samuel right here closes without peace. Saul is restless. Jonathan is spared. Israel is uncertain. What this story does is beg for a better king. And that king is Jesus. Where Saul said, "Cursed be the man who eats." Jesus said, "Take, eat. This is my body." And at his table, hunger ends. So if you find yourself faint, running hard but hollow, I want you to hear our Lord's gentle call. Stop striving. Sit down. Enjoy the honey of my grace because the battle is over. The curse is broken and our king, our king is good and he still reigns. If you'd like to worship Jesus as we do here at Camp Creek Church as one who has accomplished what he came to do, the finished work of Christ is completed and you just want to enjoy it, not for relationship but for fellowship. We give you that chance. Stand and sing hymn number him number 22. We'll sing the first and last and open the doors of the church for the reception.

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