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1507 - Sabbath School - 14.Sep Wed
Self-Reliance
When Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden, it wasn’t simply because she
doubted God’s word. At the heart of the problem was her belief that she had
enough wisdom to decide for herself what was good and right. She trusted
her own judgment. When we rely on our own judgment as opposed to trust-
ing God’s Word, we open ourselves up to all sorts of problems.
The story of Saul describes his steps to self-reliance and the tragedy
that so quickly follows. Samuel anointed Saul as God’s king (1 Sam.
10:1). Then he gave Saul specific instructions (1 Sam. 10:8), but Saul
disobeyed.
Read the next part of the story in 1 Samuel 13:1–14. What did Saul do
that led to his own downfall?
There are three steps that led Saul down the road to self-reliance so
soon after having been made king. The problem is that none of the steps
were that bad in themselves. Yet, they contained the seeds of tragedy
because they were each taken independently of God. Notice the order
in which Saul’s fall occurred.
1. Saul said, “I saw” (NIV)—the scattering of his troops and Samuel’s
absence (1 Sam. 13:11). Saul was under pressure, and he evaluated with
his own eyes what was happening.
2. Saul moved from “I saw” to “I said”—that the Philistines would
conquer them (1 Sam. 13:12, NKJV). What he saw with his own eyes
shaped what he said, or surmised, about the situation.
3. Saul moved from “I said” to “I felt”—compelled to offer sacrifice
(1 Sam. 13:12, NKJV). What Saul thought now shaped his feelings.
All of us have done this: we rely on our own human eyesight, which
leads us to rely on our own human thinking, which leads us to rely on
our own human feelings. And then we act on these feelings.
Why do you think it was so easy for Saul to follow his own judg-
ment, even though he had God’s clear instructions still ringing in
his ears? If we know that we are so fragile and have such imper-
fect knowledge, why do we still try to rely on ourselves? What
can we do to learn to trust in the Lord’s commands more than
trusting in ourselves?
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By Believes Unasp
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Self-Reliance
When Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden, it wasn’t simply because she
doubted God’s word. At the heart of the problem was her belief that she had
enough wisdom to decide for herself what was good and right. She trusted
her own judgment. When we rely on our own judgment as opposed to trust-
ing God’s Word, we open ourselves up to all sorts of problems.
The story of Saul describes his steps to self-reliance and the tragedy
that so quickly follows. Samuel anointed Saul as God’s king (1 Sam.
10:1). Then he gave Saul specific instructions (1 Sam. 10:8), but Saul
disobeyed.
Read the next part of the story in 1 Samuel 13:1–14. What did Saul do
that led to his own downfall?
There are three steps that led Saul down the road to self-reliance so
soon after having been made king. The problem is that none of the steps
were that bad in themselves. Yet, they contained the seeds of tragedy
because they were each taken independently of God. Notice the order
in which Saul’s fall occurred.
1. Saul said, “I saw” (NIV)—the scattering of his troops and Samuel’s
absence (1 Sam. 13:11). Saul was under pressure, and he evaluated with
his own eyes what was happening.
2. Saul moved from “I saw” to “I said”—that the Philistines would
conquer them (1 Sam. 13:12, NKJV). What he saw with his own eyes
shaped what he said, or surmised, about the situation.
3. Saul moved from “I said” to “I felt”—compelled to offer sacrifice
(1 Sam. 13:12, NKJV). What Saul thought now shaped his feelings.
All of us have done this: we rely on our own human eyesight, which
leads us to rely on our own human thinking, which leads us to rely on
our own human feelings. And then we act on these feelings.
Why do you think it was so easy for Saul to follow his own judg-
ment, even though he had God’s clear instructions still ringing in
his ears? If we know that we are so fragile and have such imper-
fect knowledge, why do we still try to rely on ourselves? What
can we do to learn to trust in the Lord’s commands more than
trusting in ourselves?