Failure or Finish (Part 3)

The Bible also contains many examples of leaders whose lives ended in failure and defeat:

Samson: Who was a great judge of Israel and had great physical strength given him from God.  He began to deliver Israel from the Philistine enemy.  Through involvement with a heathen woman, Samson was taken captive and died while yet a prisoner of the enemy.

Uzziah: He became a king when he was 16 years old and as long as he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, he prospered.  Uzziah sinned by entering the temple and performing duties which only the priests were permitted to do.  God smote him with leprosy and he died. 

Saul: Saul was the first king of Israel, adored by the people, and a man upon whom the Spirit of God rested.  Because of disobedience, Saul was rejected by God and another king was selected to complete his task. Saul's life ended in failure, disgrace, and suicide.

Eli:  He was originally a great priest in the house of the Lord.  Because of disobedience,  Eli and his sons died in disgrace.

Judas:  Judas was a disciple of Jesus during His earthly ministry.  He witnessed the great miracles of Jesus and heard His teachings.  Yet he betrayed Jesus and ended his own life by suicide.

 WHAT MADE THE DIFFERENCE?

Some of these leaders recovered from their failures and went on to be great men of God.  Others never changed. Their lives ended in defeat.  What made the difference?

To answer this question, let us examine in more detail the lives of two great leaders of the nation of Israel, the kings David and Saul.  First, read the story of David's failure in  II Samuel chapters 11-12.  Then read the story of Saul's failure in I Samuel chapter 15.

In our human reasoning, David's failure seems so much greater than that of Saul.  Saul simply brought back some oxen as spoil from battle when God had directed him not to do so.  David committed adultery with another man's wife.  When it was discovered she was pregnant, he had her husband killed to try to cover the sin.  Saul was rejected by God as king, yet David remained on the throne and was called "a man after God's own heart.”

Why did one man's life end in failure while the other went on to future successes?  The answer is one word: Repentance.  When the prophet Samuel confronted Saul with his sin, Saul said...

...I have sinned: for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord, and thy words:  because I feared the people, and obeyed their voice. Then he said, I have sinned; yet honor me now, I pray thee, before the  elders of my people and before Israel, and turn again with me, that I worship the Lord thy God.  (I Samuel 15:24 and 30)

Saul was caught in his sin and he admitted it.  He was sorry, but only for being caught.  Being sorry for sin is not enough.  That sorrow must lead to repentance:
 
For godly sorrow worketh repentance  to salvation not to be repented of:  but the sorrow of the world worketh death.  (II Corinthians 7:10)

Saul admitted he had failed, but he blamed his failure on other people.  He wanted Samuel to honor him before the leaders of the people so he would not be disgraced.  He wanted Samuel to worship God with him to show to the people he was still a spiritual man.

Saul never confessed his sin to God, repented, and asked forgiveness.  He refused to accept personal responsibility for his actions.  He offered God worship when God wanted repentance.  Saul was more concerned about his reputation among the people than his relationship to God.  He saw the Kingdom not as God's Kingdom, but as a way to build his own empire. 

Because of this, Samuel told Saul:

...The Lord hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a neighbor of thine, that is better than thou.  (I Samuel 15:28)

The kingdom was taken from Saul and given to David.  

When the prophet Nathan confronted David about his sin, David immediately acknowledged:

I have sinned against the Lord.  (II Samuel 12:13)

He did not try to blame others.  He did not blame Bathsheba.  He admitted his failure and humbly repented before God.  David's great prayer of repentance is recorded in Psalms 51.  Read this entire Psalm in your Bible.  David acknowledged his sin and asked forgiveness: 

For I acknowledge my transgressions:  and my sin is ever before me.

Against thee, thee only have I sinned and done this evil in thy sight... Create in me a clean heart O God; and renew a right spirit within me.  (Psalms 51:3,4,10)

When confronted with failure, David repented and changed direction.  Saul did not.  He strayed farther from the will of God and his life ended in failure, defeat, and suicide.