Victories Must Not Define Us

Saul's anger doesn't take long to expose itself on the pages of scripture. He's made king in 1 Samuel 10 and the text notes that worthless fellows derided him but he kept silent. Evidently, Saul was waiting to channel that anger in the right direction. So when Nahash comes against Israel and embarrasses them with humiliating terms of peace Saul finds his outlet:

1 Samuel 11:6–7 (ESV) And the Spirit of God rushed upon Saul when he heard these words, and his anger was greatly kindled. 7 He took a yoke of oxen and cut them in pieces and sent them throughout all the territory of Israel by the hand of the messengers, saying, “Whoever does not come out after Saul and Samuel, so shall it be done to his oxen!” Then the dread of the LORD fell upon the people, and they came out as one man.

There are a few things to note about this action in comparison to the king who will follow Saul. It would appear that Saul relies on fear to motivate the nation. He cuts up oxen and sends the pieces through Israel. Remember where we heard of this action previously in the Biblical narrative. It was Judges 19 when the Levite cut up his raped and murdered concubine to send a message of Israel's moral decay. That act roused all Israel AGAINST which tribe? Benjamin, Saul's tribe. It would appear that not only is Saul pent up with anger about how worthless fellows regarded his kingship, but he's also well versed in his tribe's civil conflict with the rest of the nation. 

We see at the beginning of Saul's kingship a taste of things to come. Saul will be overwhelmingly concerned with how he looks and what people think of him. This is not the attitude of a long-term king as Saul's weakness for human approval will be his undoing. The Lord's king needs to be free from needing the approval of those he serves or he would never make the tough choices that would be good for them.

Perhaps you think, "But the text mentions Saul being empowered by the Spirit so his deeds were righteous!" And you need to look closer. For in a very rare instance, the Biblical text uses the general term for "God" (Elohim) in that passage instead of the more common "spirit of the Lord (Yahweh)". There are hints that while Saul's actions may be inspired by God, they do not fully carry the weight of his reputation. Yet God uses Saul's flawed leadership to accomplish a great victory for the people.

What should not be ignored is the noble actions of Saul on behalf of the Lord's people. He does all this to save the nation from certain humiliation and disability. He also wins a great victory. And at the end of the battle Saul shows chivalry.

1 Samuel 11:12–13 (ESV) Then the people said to Samuel, “Who is it that said, ‘Shall Saul reign over us?’ Bring the men, that we may put them to death.” 13 But Saul said, “Not a man shall be put to death this day, for today the Lord has worked salvation in Israel.”

Saul is noble in victory and does not want to disparage a moment that should focus on the Lord's victory in order to enact personal revenge. If only Saul had captured this spirit for the rest of his life. But unfortunately, he's going to let this victory go to his head quite quickly. In two chapters he will foolishly offer the sacrifice at the sight of his fearful armies and it will cost him the kingship. But all of this points to one very important lesson we will see repeating in Saul's life. 

We all know we should not let failure or defeat define us. But we should be equally cautious of allowing victory to define us. Wins can go straight to our head and give us anxiety about protecting whatever reputation we have gained. Then we play the game of leveraging our reputation instead of listening to God and His Word. In the end people need a leader who is more concerned with pleasing God than people, for only when we truly seek to please the Lord can we lead His children.