When God is silent
Posted on June 9th, 2021 by Redeemed1 Samuel 28:6 And when Saul enquired of the LORD, the LORD answered him not, neither by dreams, nor by Urim, nor by prophets.
Silence can mean different things at different times. There is a time to be quite and reflect on things, pondering on how well one has done. Whether we have made the right decisions in life and where those decisions have taken us.
It is in moments of silence and reflections that secrets and hurdles are unfolded to great minds. That being said, silence in itself can be very scary when what you need is a simple answer. In silence you are not sure what the responses is, and in such a state, confusion, fear, and anger will likely result.
A great king of Israel was faced with a situation, such that he needed to hear from God really badly. He had being in this kind of situation before now, when the battle line was drawn between Israel and the army of the Philistines. A young man by the name of David, whom the Spirit of the Lord rested by reason of the Anointing oil poured on him by the prophet Samuel came with the answer to the challenge the giant Goliath posed to the army of the Lord. And so the yoke was broken from off Israel that day by the power of the Spirit resting on David when he slew Goliath with a stone flung from his sling. We were told Israel pursued the enemy and slew them and a great victory was won that day because the Lord heard the insult of the giant Goliath and through his chosen vessel dealt with the enemy.
Simply put, God choses, prepares and empowers his servants for the assignment he has called them. Working with God therefore demands Obedience and humility. One must be humble enough to know that it is not by power or might, but by the Spirit of the Lord. Like David, we must learn to say, I come against you in the name of the LORD, whose army you have defied. Self sufficiency is the mother of pride, It gives birth to death.
Saul as a result of disobedience and pride had fallen out of favour with God. Like many of us, he started well but along the way, he felt he knew what God needed more than God Himself. I have reserved the best of the sheep to offer sacrifices to the Lord, said saul. Samuel would hear none of it. He knew too well where this path leads. His predecessor Eli, as a result of the disobedience of his children and over familiarity with God is a lesson still fresh in his mind. He would have none of the foolish talk of Saul, and told him plainly he had acted foolishly, for to obey is better than sacrifices, and the sin of disobedience like that of witchcraft.
So Saul as a result of carelessness and persistence disobedience lost the Presence of the LORD. And an evil spirit tormented him – when the Spirit of the LORD leaves, what happens? Your guess is as good as mine – anything!
God would not communicate with Saul in anyway. A famine of God’s word ensued in Saul’s life; he was dry and thirsty like the Sahara desert. He wandered in the dark, all hope lost.
I tremble as I see in my minds eyes, the state of King Saul. Like a rudderless ship he drifted on sea, heading in no direction in particular, driven by the mercies of the wind and waves. A ship heading for the wreck! What a disaster, the consequences of rejecting instructions. Knowing therefore the terror of the LORD, we persuade men! 2 Corinthians 5:11.
It came to pass therefore, that Israel again was posed to do battle with the Philistines. This time, there was no Samuel, for HE was dead and buried and no David nearby, for he ran for dear life because of Saul's jealousy. Saul as the king and leader of the army was to lead them into battle. Low and behold, he couldn’t call on God and receive his help, his pride and disobedience had brought him to ruin. Trust in the Lord and He will order your steps. Scriptures said of him and the people ‘But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice unto the LORD thy God in Gilgal. 1 Samuel 15:21.
Leadership is great responsibility, and it demands accountability. When in position of Leadership we must learn to seek God’s help especially in critical moments to do what is right because when time of reckoning comes, the leader is the accountable person certainly not the followers.
And so God was silent, he would not answer Saul either by dreams, nor by Urims, nor by prophet! Saul became desperate, he wanted to know what the outcome of the battle would be.
Like Saul many of us have not been careful walking with God, we did as we liked – no one, not even God should tell us what to do. We have it all planned and are determined to live as we liked. It’s okay with God if you chose to minus Him from your affairs – after all He gave man a free will, but when trouble comes calling, and you come to the realization that only God can help you, what would you do?
In Proverbs 16:25 we are told, “There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death”. The high and easy way, where anything and everything is allowed will ultimately lead to destruction - there are no two ways about it. When God instructs us, it is to help us avoid the dangers that are ahead, the pitfalls we don’t see. The help of man most times is not enough; we must lean on the Rock which will not give way.
Saul eventually went to seek help from a medium – he had proscribed them earlier, who told him what he dreaded most. Death and defeat was certain and the kingship and kingdom given to another!
When God is silent in the life of an individual or a nation, it simply mean one thing - the end; for vain is the help of man.
I pray for wisdom for everyone reading this, to live as God would want us and to seek God’s help early, to ask for forgiveness when we stray.
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