Home Page   Contact Us    Service Times   Sermons   Are You Going To Heaven?

NOTICE:   THESE SERMONS ARE FREE TO BE USED BUT ARE NOT TO BE SOLD!

THE TRAGEDY OF A LIFE GONE BAD

1 SAMUEL 28:3-25 & 31:1-6

INTRODUCTION

Have you ever known someone who had a great life, but they threw it all away. Its tragic isn’t it?


I’ve known some men who had a good family but threw it all away for a brief few moments of pleasure in an adulterous affair.


I’ve known some young people who once had great potential for the Lord, but they threw it all away through making some wrong decisions in their lives.


I’ve even known some men of God who had great ministries, but they threw it all away because they got their eyes off of the eternal things and got them on the temporal things of life.


Such is the life of a man named Saul. In his life we see a life that once had great potential, but through disobedience it became a life gone bad.


And we will see how very tragic it was for both him and many of those around him.

 

 I.           GOD’S GRACE WAS ON THE LIFE OF SAUL.

              (1 Samuel 9:1-2)

              A.        God Created Saul By His Grace. 

1.        The Bible says he was from an influential family. (9:1)

 

                          2.        The Bible says he was a choice young man. (9:2)


                          3.        The Bible says he was a goodly young man. (9:2)

 

4.        The Bible says that he was the best among his peers. (9:2)



              B.        God Chose Saul By His Grace.

The Bible says that God chose Saul to be the first King of Israel. (9:15-17)


              C.        God Changed Saul By His Grace. (10:6-7; 9-12)


              D.        God Companied Saul By His Grace.

The Bible says that God gave Saul a band of men whom God had touched. (10:26)


              E.        God Certified Saul By His Grace. (1 Samuel 11)                            

                          1.         The Spirit of God Came Upon Him . (Vs 6)


                          2.         God gave him the victory. (Vs11)


                          3.         Saul gave God the credit. (Vs 13)


              F.        God Cautioned Saul By His Grace. (12:14-15)

 

G.        All of these things were by the grace of God upon Saul’s life!

 

II.         THE PROOF OF A LIFE GONE BAD.

              A.        Saul Refused To Hear God’s Man.

                          ( 1 Samuel 13:13-14)


              B.        Saul Rejected To Heed God’s Mandate.

                          (1 Samuel 15:26)


              C.        Saul Resorted To Heathen Godless Methods.

                          (1 Samuel 28:7)

                          1.         God Would Not Hear Him. (1 Samuel 28:6)

 

                          2.         He Resorted To Witchcraft.            

              

III.        THE RESULT OF A LIFE GONE BAD.

              A.        Saul Lost His Position. (1 Samuel 15:28)

He had disqualified himself from being king in the eyes of God.


              B.        Saul Lost His Peace. (1 Samuel 18:12)

His life was a troubled life after disobeying the Lord in the matter of the Amalekites.

 

                          He became jealous over David.

 

The Bible speaks repeatedly of Saul being troubled by evil spirits.


              C.        Saul Lost His Power. (1 Samuel 18:12)

                          His life became characterized by fear.

 

You do not see him prevailing over his enemies as he had before.

 

He was willing to let a boy go out and do the battle that he wasn’t willing to do.


              D.        Saul Lost His Prayer Life. (1 Samuel 28:6; 15)

Isaiah 59:1-2–“Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear: But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear you.”

 

Psalm 66:18–“If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me.”

 

              E.        Saul Lost His Perception.

                          He lost his senses.

 

He tried to kill his own son Jonathan because of jealousy over David.


                          He enquired of a witch to try to find out his future.


              F.        Saul Lost His Physical Life. (1 Samuel 31:1-6)

                          He sinned the sin unto death.


Conclusion

God Has Been Gracious To Us.

1.     God Has Been More Gracious To Some Than To Others.

        1 Corinthians 4:7–"For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou

        didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?"

 

2.     Whatever Potential And Advantages That We May Have In Life, We Have By God’s Grace.

 

3.     The More We Have Been Given, The More We Will Have To Give Account To God For At The Judgment.

        Luke 12:48–"For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of

        him they will ask the more."

 

4.     We Need To Be Sure That We Make The Most Of God’s Grace In Our Life So That The Tale Of Our Life Is Not One That

        Is Gone Bad.

Home Page   Contact Us    Service Times   Sermons   Are You Going To Heaven?

NOTICE:   THESE SERMONS ARE FREE TO BE USED BUT ARE NOT TO BE SOLD!