1 Samuel 13:1-12 | Food for Thought
1 Samuel 13:1-23
Food for Thought:
War Time, Peace Time. On the heels of raising 330,000 troops in Chapter 11 to defeat the Ammonite threat, Saul now sends most of them back home. Only a handful of troops are now stationed with Saul and Jonathan. And yet, Jonathan goes on the offensive anyways, and the ramifications send people - both the Philistines and the Israelites - running!
How much of your life do you feel like is proactive vs. reactive? Why? Do you want that to be any different?
We’re not sure what led Saul to send the troops home or what led Jonathan to go on the attack. But we probably can deduce some things about what they were thinking, what was on their mind, what they thought they should be doing, etc. How are they thinking about things differently?
Flip back to 1 Samuel 11. How does Saul respond differently there than he does here? What’s the difference in him? In the situation?
What difference does the Holy Spirit make in the way we can respond to life? …the way we get to purposefully, proactively advance things in life?
What would it look like for you to go “on the offensive” in your life for the kingdom? How do you wish you responded to the trouble of the world differently?
How can the gospel and God’s spirit help you approach both in a new way?
From Hiding to Hurrying. While God’s people are busy scattering away from the impending battle, Saul hurries into offering sacrifices and getting ready to rush into battle before Samuel arrives. This causes some trouble… for everyone!
Do you ever feel like you’ve been stuck between a rock and a hard place? As if there were only two options: do the right good and have bad things happen, or do the wrong thing and have good things happen? Say more!
Refer back to 1 Samuel 10. Saul was supposed to wait for 7 days for Samuel to arrive at Gilgal, at which point Samuel would offer sacrifices and tell Saul what to do next. What do Saul do instead?
Why does Saul feel forced to to this? Can you sympathize with him at all?
What’s Samuel’s reaction? What changes now because of Saul’s disobedience?
What do we learn about the importance of keeping God’s command? Are there exceptions? What about when it seems foolish? When it’s hard? When we’re not sure of the outcome?
Does it feel freeing to know that our job is simply to obey, or does it feel imprisoning? Explain.
Outnumbered, Ill-Equipped. Saul counts the number of people he has left, and realizes they are vastly outnumbered and outgunned. And yet, they show up for battle anyway.
It’s natural to want to look at yourself and what you have as the measure of your strength and ability - to size up a situation. Where does that leave the Israelites in this circumstance?
Saul is left without many supporters, without the priest and instructions of God, and without any weapons. Who are we in this life apart from all that God has given us - the church, the Word, the Spirit?
How does this picture of a “…to be continued,” scene encourage us to not measure ourselves by what we can see, but God’s ability on which we depend?