Hearing the Voice, Part 2

Two anointed kings, one kingdom. David has learned to hear the voice of God, but Saul has not. Saul is still listening to Samuel to direct him, but then...

Samuel dies.

Now Saul has a really big problem, especially the next day when the Philistines attack. The only voice he has ever listened to for advice has been Samuel because Samuel heard from God. So he goes to the only other voice he knows can give answers - the witch of Endor.

While Samuel was alive, he and Saul had commanded that all the witches be destroyed. Saul had tried to cleanse the land and people, and live holy while Samuel was encouraging him. Then when Samuel died, the thing Samuel and Saul had worked so hard to get rid of was the very thing Saul sought. We can clean up our houses and teach our kids to stay away from all kinds of sin, but unless we teach them to hear God’s voice for themselves, once we are gone, they will seek out the very things we worked so hard to remove.

 So Saul, with the help of some servants, finds the witch of Endor. He asks her to call up Samuel, which gets interesting. Some people believe Samuel did talk to Saul, but others believe it was a demon taking the form of Samuel, because the Bible says in 1 Samuel 28:14 that “Saul perceived that it was Samuel.” The spirit also told Saul that Saul and his sons would die the next day and be with him (the spirit).

I don’t want to mess up your theology if you don’t go with the spirit in 1 Samuel 28 being demonic, but I want to bring out the point that there are a lot of voices in the world that claim to be religious, claim to have the word of God, but are not of God. They are there to deceive us, and will not help us in our time of need. The spirit that Saul saw was correct, because Saul and his sons did die in battle the next day. Not only Saul, but also his children, died because Saul failed to hear God’s voice for himself. They met with a terrible end.

 But look at David! He hasn’t met with a terrible end. In Psalm 23 he writes, “Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil, for thou art with me.” In Psalm 142:3 he writes, “When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, then thou knewest my path.” Look at the difference between David and Saul! Saul and his sons died, but look at David’s sons. His family became a long line of kings that eventually led to the King of Kings, Jesus. He has been referred to as the Son of David.

Jeremiah 29:11 says, “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.” When we learn to hear God’s voice and follow it, He has a good end in mind for us! He has good plans, better than we ever could have accomplished on our own!

 Looking at the lives of Saul and David, you can see how vital it is to hear God’s voice. It not only affects you, but it affects your children and grandchildren. Pray that God will teach you to hear His voice, no matter what it takes. Also ask Him to allow you to teach others to hear His voice for themselves, and He can change this generation.