We all know about Saul from the Bible. The first king chosen by God and revealed through the prophet Samuel. He was a great king who led his army into battle against many powerful enemies, such as the Philistines. Though his reign as king started off strong, it didn’t end that way. He succumbed to what we all deal with as humans: temptation and sin.

Let’s dive deeper into the end of Saul’s reign as king and what we can learn from it.

Saul was instructed by God to wait until Samuel arrived to burn offerings to Him, so that they may win the battle and that Saul would reign over Israel. But when Saul saw that his army was dwindling, he became anxious. He waited seven days for Samuel before deciding to burn an offering to the Lord himself. As soon as he was finished, Samuel appeared and asked him what he had done.

Though it may seem silly that Saul was punished for doing what Samuel was going to do, it is because Saul was given direct orders from the Lord, and he chose to do things his own way, believing that he knew what was best. In disobeying, Saul proved that he cared more about his success than about trusting in God’s plan and acting in obedience. If he had trusted God and gone with what he had been told and waited for Samuel, he would not have sacrificed his reign as king or condemned his line from it either.

God showed justice to Saul in this story. He had chosen Saul as an image of his own heart, a king who could unite Israel and rule the kingdom he was creating. But when Saul chose his own selfish ways instead of doing what was asked of him, he proved that he prioritized his own desires and opinions over God’s. God could not let that slide; he is a just God, and He gives out punishment where needed. Saul no longer deserved to be king or any of the riches he had been promised. Those were things promised to him if he waited on Samuel and carried everything out as God had instructed.

If God had given it all to him anyway, it would be the same as if you promised a child a piece of candy for putting their toys away. If you decide to give the child candy even when they ignore the request and don’t put away their toys, it is more likely that they will continue to not put their toys away. You are rewarding disobedient behavior at that point. They assume they will get the candy regardless, so why clean up their toys?

In a similar light, God cannot reward Saul for his disobedience for a couple of reasons. The first, like the above example, is that it won’t help his obedience to God to reward him for his actions. Secondly, the Israelites needed a leader who would lead them by example, an example taken from the heart of God. Sin had controlled Saul, and God could no longer trust that he would lead the people in the best way possible. That is why Saul was punished for burning the offerings himself.

So, how can we put this into action in our own lives?

Saul was human, just like us. Though people in the Bible can seem very different from us, they also struggled with sin and trusting God, just like we do. We can learn from Saul that temptation will try to pull us away from God, but we must trust Him. Just because something feels right to us doesn’t make it so.

Trusting in God’s plan may be easier said than done, but here are some ways to implement that into our daily lives:

• Put effort into prayer instead of stress about getting a job after college
• When something feels uncomfortable or off, listen.
• Read the Bible and pray so you can hear His voice when He calls
• Know how to spot sin – ask yourself, “Does this align with what the Bible tells me?” If you can’t say yes with confidence, you may be falling into sin.

Young adults are very susceptible to sin because they are figuring out life without their parents’ direct influence. Following God will lead you through more challenges than not, but that is how you grow closer to Him and come out stronger on the other side. Take Saul’s story to heart and lean on God instead of yourself. Grand Canyon University has many small groups and Bible studies that are easy to join if you need someone to help keep you accountable. Join a life group and discover how you can turn from sin in your everyday life.