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Welcome to the live big broadcast with Derek Greer. We believe this teaching from God's Word will empower you to live a full, impactful life in Christ. Let's dig in.

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We're going to be in First Samuel, chapter 16, verse 1. Now, the Lord said to Samuel, Samuel was a transitional figure in the Bible. He. He was relevant in two time periods. He was the final judge of Israel. But he was also the man that God chose to anoint the first king of Israel, King Saul. And today there's really nothing more fast moving than change. You know, we just kind of entered the Internet age. Now we're talking about AI and you know, the government's talking about they're spotting UFOs. I kind of wonder about all that. But, you know, this stuff is changing constantly. And even we're talking about AI. Then I got some stuff beyond AI that's coming out. And, you know, things are just moving at a breakneck speed. And the only things that I've learned in my life that we can hold onto in times of change is, you know, people change, times change, you know, things change, but God never, ever changes. And he's the one that we got to learn to hold on to. 1st Samuel 13:3 and verse 19. I want you to listen to what the scripture says about Samuel. So I want to introduce Samuel as I introduce King Saul as well. And it says this about Samuel in 1st Samuel 3, 19. So, Samuel, what grew? And may this be our testimony as it relates to the year we just went through, 2024. And may it be that. And our testimony be that we didn't just get all older, but we what grew. You know, we may be products of the past, but only growth will keep you from becoming a prisoner of it. So Samuel, what grew? I often say to you, you gotta grow through what you gotta go through. So Samuel grew whatever he went through. Watch this. And the Lord was with him. That's really all I know. I want in my life is for God to be with me. Because if God's with me, it doesn't really matter who's not with me, you know. But watch this, this next clause. And let none of his words fall to the ground. Samuel was a true prophet. But I want you to imagine living life like the prophet Samuel. Every breath you take, every move you make, every step you take, God is watching over your word to perform it. But this was his life and this was his experience. Back to Samuel 16:1. Now the Lord, now that you know a little bit something about Samuel said to Samuel, the greatest Leaders in history tend to be transitional leaders. Abraham helped transition the world from idolatry back to worshiping the one true God. Moses transitioned the Israelites from Egyptian slavery through the wilderness. Then Joshua transitioned the people of God from the wilderness into the promised land. And Jesus transitioned the people of God from the old covenant unto the new covenant. All of us are going through some form of transition in life in one way or another, whether you're just moving from youth hood to adulthood or middle age to older age. Our circumstances may change, but God's promises never do. He's the one constant that we can have in such times. But then we hear something, because whenever you're in a period of change, some people choose to be left behind. Everyone who starts with you will not necessarily finish with you. And that is often a heartbreaking experience. So as prophetic as Samuel was, as accurate as he was with the word of the Lord, Samuel was still a person. He had feelings, and he had come to love King Saul. But God says to him, how long, Samuel, will you mourn for Saul? And I feel like God's saying to some of us in this room, how long will you mourn? Fill in the gap. Now, there's a time for mourning. There's a time to mourn, but there's also a time to move on. And if you didn't know the Bible, you may not understand that God clearly told Samuel to anoint Saul to be Israel's first king. And sometimes, because things go south in our life, we think we didn't hear God in the first place. But God knew Saul would go south because he knows everything. But he still appointed him to be king. And when King Saul got started, he was so humble, he actually hid from God. He didn't feel that he had the qualities and the traits necessary to be a king. He started off very humble, very dependent on God, and he was very successful initially. But over time, he forgot about God's interests and began to serve only his interests. And this could happen to each of us in this room. We could start off really, really well looking at, oh, God, what do you want me to do with this? What do you want me to do with my money? What do you want me to do with my time, what you want me to do, this decision, this job, et cetera. But then after a while, it's all about, well, God, I want you to do this for me, and this don't quite fit in, and I'm. I'm going in this direction. You see, there's a big difference between people who take care of themselves and people who only take care of themselves. And this was the trap that Saul fell into. He said, how long, Samuel, will you mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? Now, this is important. Letting go doesn't necessarily mean you stop caring. That's not what letting go means. It just means that sometimes moving on is the only way to move on. And God's plan for us doesn't end just because of the absence of one person. God's plan for your life will not end just because of the failure of one person. That person may be gone, but it's also a disrespect to the God who gives you life for you to crawl into a grave alongside them while you live. Y' all gonna come alive in a moment. And then the Lord speaks to Samuel. He says, I need you to do something. And I need you to do something that's future oriented, has nothing to do with the past. Fill your horn with oil. Now. The Bible speaks of the oil of gladness. Often oil speaks of gladness and joy. And what he would say. I need you to. I need you to revive your heart. I need you to cheer up. I need you to start being forward looking versus stuck in the pa. I know the king didn't quite work out the way you wished he would. I know that he wasn't the man you thought he would have been. But not everyone again who starts with you will finish with you. But despite that, God still has an anointing and a purpose for you and your future. Fill your horn with oil. Watch this. And go. And what? Go. You know, sometimes with just one person missing, it seems like the entire world is empty. But what God is trying to say to the prophet here is God always has new horizons, new adventures and fresh plans. He said, fill your horn. Get ready to do something that prepares you for the future. And go. I'm sending you to someone new. Knew Jesse, the Bethlehemite, a man you never met, a man you probably never heard of. But I was working a plan even as Saul was doing what he was doing. You know, I like the picture that I've shared with you before. When Abraham, you know, was taking his son Isaac up the mountain to be sacrificed, that Abraham, you know, went up, him and his son were carrying, you know, the wood and. And Isaac was like, you know, where's the ram? You know, where's the sacrifice and all that. And they're walking up one side of the mountain. And as Abraham put pressure on his arm to bring the knife down to slay his son. And by the way, all that was a picture of Jesus, that God would sacrifice his son for us. But with Abraham, God stopped him. But again, he was painting a picture to the Jewish nation and what God himself would do, even though Abraham wasn't required to do it. But with that said, when God said, no, no, don't touch the boy, don't do that, he looked up. The Bible said he saw a ram in the bush. So I want you to imagine the picture from God's vantage point. He saw Abraham coming up one side of the mountain, but on the other side of the mountain, there was a ram coming up as well. You may not be able to see the provision that God has for you, but God has it for you. And at the right moment, you will see it. If you're obedient, if you do what God says he tells you to do, and keep going up that mountain, even though you don't really see the answer or way out, there's always a ram in the bush. So, yes, Saul failed, but there was also little David shepherding some sheep. He said, I'm sending you to Jesse, the Bethlehemite from Bethlehem. That's why Jesus was born there, son of David, for I have provided myself a king amongst his sons. Again, Saul messed up, but God had already provided a ram. People might have messed up in your life. Don't fall apart. Don't go back down the mountain. I'm quitting this obeying God stuff. No. Look up and lift your head to heaven and you will find a ram caught in a thicket, For I have provided myself a king amongst his sons. Do not limit God to your ability to figure things out. I've made this mistake a million times. I can't figure it out. God, I just like God's like, when's the last time you've been God? I mean, like, you know everything that you know. And in those moments, I just have to trust him. Because eyes haven't seen, ears have not heard, neither has it entered into the heart of man what God has prepared for those who love him, those who keep going up the mountain, even though it doesn't make sense, even though they don't see the answer and the provision. But they keep going. And when they get to that final place of obedience, believe me, God will Show himself strong. 1st Samuel 13. 1. So the question you might ask, well, what went wrong with Saul anyway? I'm so glad you asked. The Bible says, in Samuel 3. Two, Saul chose for himself 3,000 men of Israel. This was the nation's first step toward a standing army. Before this time, all they had were judges and judges kind of, you know, they raised up armies on an as needed basis. So if they had a certain enemy, you know, Gideon would be raised up and he would defeat the Midianites. And you had Samson with the Philistines, but the nation didn't have a standing army. And this was Israel's first step to becoming a major military power. And despite the insecurity we're about to see in King Saul, he and his son Jonathan were both really very capable military leaders. So watch this, verse 3. And Jonathan attacked the garrison of the Philistines that was in Geba. And the Philistines heard of it. Then Saul blew the trumpet throughout all the land saying, let the Hebrews hear. Now all Israel heard and said that, heard it, said that, you know, this attack had happened and Saul rose up against the Philistines and that Israel watch this had also become an abomination to the Philistines. I'd like to sum that up for you. Israel had peace with the Philistines as long as they remained in their place, as long as they stayed weak, as long as they stayed subjugated, as long as they stayed defeated, the Philistines were fine. And by the way, there's some people in your life that will love you as long as you're beneath them. But you come up just a little bit, you about to find out who your friend is. I don't know why I'm speaking that way, but it just came out my mouth. But as soon as the Israelites found courage to stand up for themselves, as soon as they found their own voice, watch this. They became an abomination to the Philistines. If you must be less for someone to love you more, you don't have a friend, you have a captor. Verse 7. As for Saul, he was in Gilgal and all the people followed King Saul trembling because this is, you know, this is the first standing army, if you will. And they were afraid of the prospect of really full scale war here. And they needed a secure leader that would kind of anchor them in the midst of this storm. But we're about to see here that the greatest test of character is not how we are on our best days, it's how we are on our worst days. So watch what happens here, because what happens with King Saul here has happened with many of us. And my prayer is, we do better next time. Then he waited seven days according to the time set by Samuel. So again, the prophet is supposed to meet the king. And the prophet for whatever reason, delays. As far as Samuel's concerned, God was late because the prophet represented God. And how many of you have some things by this point in your life, you felt it was supposed to be a certain way, but then it's not that way. And because it's not the way you want it to be, you feel you have license to kind of improvise and do some things that God really doesn't approve of. Because after all, you're a little bit mad at God because by this time he has ought to have come through. Thank you. Yes I am. Thank you. Thank you. Yes I am. So Samuel though didn't come to Gilgal. What do you do when God seems late? Can you still wait when God's only answer to your prayer is wait? Samuel didn't come. And when the prophet didn't come, the word of the Lord didn't come. The people began to scatter from Saul. I cannot count the number of times in my pastoral ministry that this has happened to me. I had to choose whether to wait on the Lord or to respond to loud voices of certain people. But I've learned the quickest path to shipwreck is to look around without looking up. If all you're doing is responding to the circumstances and the people around you and not listening to the God above you, you're about to end up in the position of Saul. So watch what Saul says here. He feels a little bit sorry for himself because the Lord didn't show up. And he said bring a burnt offering and peace offering here to me. Here's the problem. Saul was king. He was not a priest. He had no anointing, no grace, no assignment to offer anything to God before the people. But he was feeling sorry for himself. I'm a little bit ahead of myself. But self righteousness is when whenever we feel justified doing what God has forbidden us to do. And most self righteousness manifest in, in in the form of self pity. So we don't receive the mercy of God. So we pity ourselves. And that self pity makes us feel justified in doing what doesn't align with God. So Saul said bring a burnt offering and a peace offerings here to me. And he offered the what burnt offering Saul crossed align. Saul needed to be able to trust the king if the king was going to accurately represent him to the people. God wants to bless you, but can he trust you with the blessing? A lot of folks, they want power, but if you got power, would you still listen to God or would you Just follow your own imagination and justify your behavior. Now, it happened as soon as he had finished presenting the burnt offering that Samuel came. Uh. Oh, Samuel is a righteous man. Samuel's a genuine prophet. And Saul went out to meet him that he might greet him. So he greeted him with the classic, praise the Lord. You know, you know, God is good all the time, and you know all the cliches, but Samuel looked right through them, and he said, what have you done? Samuel was heartbroken. Samuel loved King Saul, but one of the hardest tests in life is patience. And Saul failed. He failed trying to please people. And in doing so, he alienated God. So watch Saul's response. Typical here for Saul at this point and stage. When I saw that the people. He blamed the people. What did Adam say? Yeah, Lord, it's that woman you gave me. Yes, she gave me to eat. Now, if you didn't give me that woman. The problem is that the woman you gave me is not me. It's that woman. How many guys kind of run your house that way? Lord, if you. Yes, let's keep. Let's just keep. Let's just keep. Let's just keep reading here. Saul said, when I saw that the people were scattered from me, almost implying if the people weren't so weak, I would have been strong. But with people like Saul, it's always somebody else's fault. But you can't grow blaming others because it causes you to avoid the truth about yourself. And even if 90% of the problem is somebody else's fault, 10% is still mine. I gotta own my 10%. I gotta work on my 10%. And as I work on my 10%, God looks at me and says, you're doing the right thing. And he starts working on that other person's 90%. Skip to verse 13. And Samuel said to Saul, watch this. Now, he's the prophet, and the king has the power of the sword. But Samuel was a bad boy. He looked him in the face. He said, Governor, he said, Mr. President. He said, congressperson, he said, you have done foolishly. And by the way, that's why I like it when those Congress people come, because we get some private conversations in the back room. I get to tell them things that y' all don't have to hear. But you need people in your life to tell you when you're wrong. So Samuel said. He said, you've done foolishly. You have not kept the. He looked all religious and spiritual. He's offering a sacrifice to God that looks good to people. And some of us, we could worship great songs and all the rest, but God sees the obedience or lack of it. Despite what others can see, you have not kept the command. It wasn't a suggestion, Saul. It wasn't an idea that God was kind of postulating. You have not kept the commandment of the Lord, your God, which he commanded you. It said frontwards and backwards to make it clear, boy, you were under authority. God spoke to you and used his author. He wasn't just suggesting. He commanded you for now because of your disobedience. Because God can't trust you. Listen, Saul, the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. Meaning God's plan for him was good, but also the devil had a plan for him. God would have established Saul's. Instead of us talking about the sweet mercies of David, we'd be talking about the sweet mercies of Saul. For all I know. Maybe Jesus would have been in the line of Saul. He said the Lord would have. I had great plans for you, but so did the devil. We often don't realize the large matters attached to some of our small decisions. But now, because you wouldn't submit to my authority, I can't trust you. And your kingdom shall not continue. For the Lord has sought for himself somebody who will listen to me. A man after his own heart. And the Lord has commanded him to be commander over the people. And he keeps repeating it because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you. What has God told you to do over and over and over and over and over and over again. But you come up with excuse after excuse after, excuse me. The people, the dog ate, the homework, all these different things. When sometimes the issue is not even a thing you do, as much as you wouldn't listen, he can't trust you. God understands human nature. If we cannot be trusted with the little things, the little things we say with our mouths and do it. Our bodies, et cetera. We can't be trusted with the big things and the rest. We want great gifts of, you know, healing or great platform, whatever. But if he can't trust you in the privacy of your room, two o' clock in the morning. You hear what I'm saying? Trust you not to make that phone call. I'm messing with something. Let's skip a few years forward. It was getting a little painful in here. First Samuel 18:6. Now it happened as they were coming home when David was returning from the slaughter of the Philistines. That the women had come out to the city. The opinions of the opposite sex matter much more than we have imagined, or most of us would admit. And if you're honest, a man's ego is often as fragile as a woman's heart. And listen, ladies, please. Never compare yourself, your husband, to your pastor in a way where they get the short end of the stick. It is unwise. I mean, the people that we're so enamored with, you know, we see them somewhere and, you know, they're putting on their best face. But that joke is with you. Sun up, sunrise, sunset. Good breath, bad breath, makeup, no makeup. You know, good day, bad day. And then you talk about. You want him to be like somebody else. Be careful about that. You don't really know everybody else, he said. And the woman. Well, I'm stuck on that point. Let me just. Ladies, you need to fill that man up. Treat him like a king, and he might act like one. Call the king out of the man instead of the fool out of the man. Like all men are dogs. And it's like, yeah, that's why he act like a dog. Cause yesterday. See, now I gotta take time to talk about all the exceptions. Every now and then you just get a buster. Everyone, you get a bust. That joker you can't fix, you can't do nothing with. But most of us, God is good people in our lives that just need a little bit of work. And one thing the Lord taught me early in my marriage. But I had a friend. It was a female friend that I had from before my wife and I were married. And the thing was, you know, my wife, she's, you know, she's from another culture. English is not her first language. It's kind of her second language. So she learned another language before she learned English. And this other friend, she had been a friend for years, was easy to talk to. So I found myself talking to her quite a bit. And I don't know if it was six months into the marriage. I said, what the heck am I doing? How is my wife and I going to ever learn to talk if I'm talking to what's easy instead of what's at that time, a little bit hard? And the scripture rose up in me. The Bible said we're to drink water from our own cistern. And from that point in our marriage, I decided, if I can't get it from my wife, I just don't get it. I don't care what it is. I don't get it. And that has kept us. It has kept me. But now I think I can move on. And the women had come out of all the Cities of Israel singing and dancing to meet King Saul with the tambourines, with joy and musical instruments. I mean, it was excitement. So the women sang as they danced and said, saul has slain his thousands and David his tension or ten thousands. So what happens here is David's success begins to upstage Saul's. And here's what I know. Everybody likes you until you're competition. I mean, you're friends on a job until you both apply for the same job. You were girlfriends until you like the same guy. Everybody's for you until they see you as competition. I heard something on this side of the room right over there. Then Saul was very angry and the saying displeased him. And they said they have ascribed to David 10 thousands and to me only thousands. Now, what more can that joker have than my kingdom? You know, I've learned that I don't always have to be the best player in the game. I just want to be in the game. You know, when I played basketball in high school, I was the sixth man. I wasn't a starter, I was the sixth man, but I was. At least I made the team. And you're not always going to be the best at things, but, you know, you could look up at me, I'm in my lane. I'm doing what I'm assigned to do. I'm graced to do what I do right here. And it could look a certain way, but sometimes God blesses you a whole lot in one area, but leaves a whole bunch of minuses in some other areas. So when it comes to computers, I look like a complete idiot. But when it comes to scheduling stuff, man, I will double book, triple book. I mean, you can look up here, you could get. So you can get the wrong picture of things. In fact, when we have problems in my house, you know, the TV goes sideways, you know, I'm the man. I supposed to fix it. I hand it to my wife. She's the one that fixes the TV and the remote. And you gotta stay in your lane, and you gotta work with what you got. Don't be competing with other people got and stay in your lane. So what else could he have but the kingdom? So Samuel here anointed David in secret.