Contrasting Saul and Jonathan

Returning again to 1 Samuel, chapter 13 finds Saul preparing to attack the Philistines. Samuel, who at that time served as Israel's chief priest, had commanded Saul to wait for Samuel's arrival, so that Samuel could present a sacrificial offering to God before battle.

With the Philistine army mobilizing, and with his own troops' grumblings, Saul became impatient with waiting for Samuel's arrival and proceeded to offer his own sacrifice. (Israelite law separated the duties of kings and priests, so Saul's actions were illegal.)

Needless to say, Samuel wasn't pleased when he finally arrived, (1 Samuel 13:13, ESV),

You have done foolishly. You have not kept the command of the Lord your God, with which he commanded you.

Now compare Saul's actions to those of his son, Jonathan. In chapter 14, Jonathan leads Israel to military victory, and he does so by placing his faith and trust in God, (1 Samuel 14:6, ESV),

It may be that the Lord will work for us, for nothing can hinder the Lord from saving by many or by few.

So on one hand, Saul lost trust in God and took matters into his own hands, which started his long downward spiral in fortunes. On the other hand, Jonathan placed his full faith and trust in God, and came out victorious.

Unfortunately, I think we more often resemble Saul than Jonathan. We grow impatient with situations in life, and we craft schemes -- including schemes that run counter to God's will -- in order to achieve our goals.

Today, let us pray that our faith can more closely resemble Jonathan's.