The Culture of Hope Founded on Faith
To Obey Is Better Than Sacrifice
When I was eleven years old, I disobeyed my parents and my punishment was to write lines. That was not the only time, nor the last time, that I was disciplined for disobedience; but it was among the most memorable.
The lines Dad chose for me to write were from 1 Samuel 15:22, “To obey is better than sacrifice.” And as is typical for me, I did not get away with the shortcut of writing the word over and over again in a column, then writing the next word in a column beside the first. Mom caught me trying it and increased the penalty from 300 lines to 500 lines‒the entire sentence from start to finish each time.
Although it fit my misdemeanor, the phrase technically has nothing to do with my infraction as a young girl. The biblical context is King Saul’s defiance of God’s instructions given him by Samuel. The Amalekites were to be completely annihilated in retribution for their earlier treatment of Israel. Saul saved King Agag’s life and kept livestock ostensibly as sacrificial animals to offer to God. But God’s will was that they be completely destroyed along with everything else in Amelek. As a result of Saul’s disobedience, the crown of Israel was removed from him and his descendants.
One aspect of sparing anything from Amalek was the destructive nature of the Amalekites. Anything or anybody left would remain a thorn in the flesh of the Israelites until the end of time. In the same way, any unconfessed sin in our lives tends to control us and destroy any ministry we are called to do. Like Amalek, the sin that so easily besets us has to be annihilated. Therefore, as Christians we need to frequently ask ourselves two question: What do I hold onto that is rebellion against my Lord? What do I hold back for self from the sin that requires annihilation in my life?
The passage also refers to the futility of religious ritual lacking spiritual genuineness. The sacrifice is meaningless when it comes from defiance of God’s will. The rebellion of Saul stems from his lack of devotion to God. Even his appeal to Samuel in verse 30 shows the narcissistic self-interest of Saul when he pleads, “I have sinned: yet honor me now…before the elders of my people, and before Israel….” His desire was not so much that he pay homage to God as it was to appear to the people to be doing so.
As a result of my experience with it as a child, 1 Samuel 15:22 has become a cornerstone verse for me. With it in mind, I often check my motives when I believe I am following God’s daily direction in my life to make sure it is not from self-interest. Likewise there are times that I double-check that what I am doing is not outside God’s will or contrary to His Word. I sometimes find myself “wrestling with God” on what appear to be minor details of my actions. To God they are not minor, though, and He makes that clear through circumstances, hindrances, and other communication with me. In order for all this to work, however, I have to be paying attention and listening for His still, small voice.
