PASTOR’S CORNER, David Harris, Fellowship Baptist Church, Liberal
The First Book of Samuel tells the story of two kings: the ungodly leader that Israel desired in their quest to be like the other nations (Saul) and the kind of leader upon whom God put his heart (David). The story of 1 Samuel is a series of contrasts between these two leaders. Of course, to read this Christianly, we should be quick to acknowledge that the ultimate purpose of this book is to point to the Greater David to come, the Son of David, Jesus the Christ. If David is a picture of godly authority that looks ahead to the ultimate Personification of godly authority, Saul is something very different – a narcissistic, obsessive, undevoted picture of decidedly ungodly authority.
A prime example of Saul’s unholy leadership comes at one of the times he is at war with the Philistines. It reads “And the men of Israel had been hard pressed that day, so Saul had laid an oath on the people, saying, “Cursed be the man who eats food until it is evening and I am avenged on my enemies.” So none of the people had tasted food. Now when all the people[g] came to the forest, behold, there was honey on the ground. And when the people entered the forest, behold, the honey was dropping, but no one put his hand to his mouth, for the people feared the oath. But Jonathan had not heard his father charge the people with the oath, so he put out the tip of the staff that was in his hand and dipped it in the honeycomb and put his hand to his mouth, and his eyes became bright. Then one of the people said, “Your father strictly charged the people with an oath, saying, ‘Cursed be the man who eats food this day.’” And the people were faint. Then Jonathan said, “My father has troubled the land. See how my eyes have become bright because I tasted a little of this honey. How much better if the people had eaten freely today of the spoil of their enemies that they found. For now the defeat among the Philistines has not been great.” (1 Samuel 14:24-30 ESV)
Do you know what is happening here? Saul is exercising ungodly leadership by showing no concern for the sustainability of the people God entrusted to him. And this is precisely the mark of ungodly authority that strikes me. For Saul, there is a logic to declaring a freeze on the nutrient intake of his men – no food meant no wasted time eating it. The returns on this in the short term were obvious. But such a foolish legislative decision was far more costly than it was rewarding for the long term cause for which God’s people were fighting. Temporarily, soldiers without lunch breaks are more available for use in the plan– but they quickly become unable to fulfill that plan, or any plan really, when they are hungry and drained.
The corollary of the story is just as true – godly leaders show concern for the sustainability of the people God entrusts to them. How might this look in our lived theology?
If you are a teacher, don’t drive your students so hard in an attempt to improve their minds that they lose heart.
Employers: overworked and under-rested employees may serve you well in the short term, but burnt out employees will not be around long enough to accomplish your vision.
Parents should remember that fewer rules well explained in the home are better than an infinite list of unstated and unexplained rules. Constitutional democracies are best when their laws are written down and clear, and totalitarian dictatorships whose laws are at the mercy of the dictator’s mood have people live in fear (just like we see in 1 Samuel 14!) Do you parent in a way that makes your children afraid of you? That’s ungodly.
I think this text is especially meaningful to me when it comes to church ministry. If you lead volunteers in the church, are you overbearing? Do they faint because of your expectations? Do you every offer a chance to step away if their soul needs a break? Have you become their King Saul?
The principle of this text is so often missed in church ministry. Now to be clear, my church does a wonderful job at this as it takes care of its pastors! In fact I am writing this during a week of rest in North Carolina, where my church sent me to enjoy a conference, be with friends in Christ, and be with God. Yes, I am stepping away from my personal evangelism, counseling, and teaching the Bible. But my lead pastor wants me to be able to do these kinds of things years from now and not burn out – he's letting me eat some honey, so I can keep fighting to have a faithful ministry, to borrow an image from our text. The pastor who says “I’m busy, I don’t have time to get away and go sit on some retreat– I have a church to pastor!” is thinking more like Saul, less like God. Two dangerous assumptions stick out – he takes for granted that in his denial of rest, this sabbatical-avoiding, self-confident pastor will be qualified to minister in the future, and he assumes that his church will want such a person to continue to lead them! These assumptions are often false.
Think about your sphere(s) of authority. Do you show concern for the sustainability of those God has entrusted to you, or not?
How you answer that question, in part, determines if you use your God-given authority in godly ways.
