The Making of a King, Part 3: Learning to Lead Through Opposition

Finding Your Strength in God's Purpose

We're continuing in the series "The Presence of God" as we look at the story of King Saul becoming a king. Saul was a regular guy learning to step into the purpose God created for him. When you're learning to step into the purpose that God has created for you, it can be frightening and alarming because God will start challenging you to do things you've never done before, stretch your capacity in ways you never envisioned, and push you beyond what feels safe.

Today's message comes from 1 Samuel 10:26 through chapter 11. Last week we covered verses 26-27, but let's use those as our foundation.

The Cost of Anointing: Handling Opposition

When God anoints you, not everyone will stay with you—and that's okay.

They left us but they were not really with us; if they had been they would have stuck it out with us loyal to the end. In leaving they showed their true colors—they never did really belong. But you belong. The Holy One anointed you and you all know it. (1 John 2:19-20)

One of the most important lessons is learning to properly let people go and release them. Not everyone who leaves is your enemy. Sometimes people are simply not called to go with you. Maybe your friendship was only supposed to last two years. Maybe they were there for a weaker version of you, but this version doesn't need that same support anymore. Maybe the trauma bonds you shared have been healed, and you've moved past them.

When people leave, you can still be kind. You can still say hello if you run into them. But it's learning how to release them in love, the way God wants you to.

Here's the truth: when you're anointed, it's okay that everybody won't be able to stay. But everything you need, God will make sure you have.

So you need to get out of desperation. When God brings people into your life who are supposed to be there, you don't have to beg them to be seen, to love you, or to support you. God will lead them to do that. You must be able to say, "God, if it's just me in this season, I'm good with that."

When Your Anointing Attracts Attacks

But there were some scoundrels who complained, "How can this man save us?" They scorned him and refused to bring him gifts. But Saul ignored them. (1 Samuel 10:27)

When God anoints your life, understand this: your anointing solicits attacks.

People complained about Saul immediately after his anointing. They talked badly about him, spoke negatively about him. But here's what Saul did—he ignored them. He didn't get caught in a verbal battle trying to prove who he was to people who wouldn't recognize his anointing.

It takes real discipline to hold your peace while being attacked. It takes strength not to be pulled into every petty argument and negative word spoken about you.

You cannot be anointed and not be attacked. Attacks come with the territory.

You cannot be overly sensitive when walking in your purpose. Some of you are too sensitive, crying too much. It hurts when people say things, but that's part of the game—people are going to talk. There will be negativity, but you've got to have thicker skin. You cannot cry every time you're flicked. You have to learn to simply keep going.

You are a warrior. You cannot respond to false accusations. Nothing you say will make a liar tell the truth. Your grandmother was right when she said that no matter how much you argue, you're not going to make a liar tell the truth. They'll die with that lie. You have to let it go.

The enemy is hoping you get caught in your feelings and emotions, responding to the noise instead of responding to God. Don't get so emotional that you're trying to prove a point to people who are insignificant. Put that down and keep asking God, "What are you telling me to do? What are you saying in this season? How do I stay focused on what you have for me?"

Nehemiah said it best:

I'm doing a great work and I cannot come down. (Nehemiah 6:3)

Every time you respond to negativity, you come down off your assignment, off your anointing, off your wall. There are some things too small that don't deserve your attention, your energy, or your focus.

Standing Strong When Fear Attacks

About a month later, King Nahash of Ammon led his army against the Israelite town of Jabes Gilead. But all the citizens of Jabes asked for peace: "Make a treaty with us and we will be your servants," they pleaded. (1 Samuel 11:1-2)

The enemy saw that Israel had just gotten a new king and hadn't built up an army yet. So the enemy thought they could attack while they were young, while they looked weak. But here's the mistake the enemy makes: just because you're getting started in your purpose doesn't mean your anointing is brand new.

Don't think that because someone is just getting started that they're weak. They may have history with God that prepared them for this position.

But look at what fear did to the people of Jabes—they became so afraid that they, children of God, were willing to be servants of men, settling for something beneath their worth.

Fear will have you accepting less than what you're worth. Fear will have you accepting less than God's best for you.

So many of you have been in that space where you're afraid and you accept it. The only reason you keep accepting mistreatment at your job is because you don't believe God has something better for you. The only reason you're stuck in a relationship where you're not even happy is because you don't believe God has someone better for you. And because you can't see what God is doing, you stay with what you see.

The fear of your future will leave you stuck in your past.

You're afraid of being lonely, so you stay with what's beneath you. You're letting fear lead you instead of letting faith lead you. But faith is being able to trust God even when you can't see what God is doing. Faith is saying, "God, I may not see what's happening in this spirit realm, but I refuse to accept what I see with my natural eyes. I'm trusting you that you have something better reserved for me."

For God has not given us the spirit of fear and timidity, but of power and love and a sound mind. (2 Timothy 1:7)

When God gave you your spirit, your spirit was supposed to be powerful. Why are you hiding like a grasshopper when God made you a warrior?

Anytime fear shows up, it's trying to push you into a place God didn't create for you. Every single time fear is present, you have to ask yourself: What is the enemy trying to trick me about? Because when fear is on your life, that means the enemy is trying to get you to see him and miss God.

The Enemy's Strategy: Blinding You

King Nahash said, "I will only agree to make a treaty with you on one condition: I will gouge out the right eye of every one of you as a disgrace to all Israel." (1 Samuel 11:2)

The enemy didn't just want them to serve him—he wanted to humiliate them, to make them half blind. Don't that sound like the enemy? He wants to blind you. He wants you to miss what God has for you.

Ask yourself: What is the enemy trying to blind me on? What is he trying to get me to miss?

You will completely miss what God has for you when you're double-minded and trying to be submitted to both God and the enemy. The enemy wants to trick you.

I've lived this. I tried to get saved when I was eight years old. I got saved every day because I was sinning so much—I'd get saved after church and sin again, then get saved the next day. When I went to college, I thought I was living it up. I thought my life was lit and I was having fun, but the whole time the enemy was robbing me, cutting away my identity, cutting away my purpose, cutting away the calling of God on my life while I thought I was having fun.

He wanted to blind my spiritual vision. When you're living in that reality, you can't even see what God wants to do in you. You're missing it the whole time.

The Power of Unified Action

The messengers came to Gibeah, where Saul was, and told the people about their plight. Everyone broke into tears, and Saul had been plowing a field with his oxen. When he returned to town, he asked, "What's the matter? Why is everyone crying?" They told him about the message from Jabes. The Spirit of God came powerfully upon Saul, and he became very angry. (1 Samuel 11:4-6)

When the Spirit of God came upon Saul, he didn't become more loving—he became angry. This is what we call righteous indignation: justified anger or outrage in response to sin, evil, or unrighteousness. It is a duty for godly people to hate evil while loving what is right.

Some of you don't realize that the anger you feel when you see a child being wronged is actually the Spirit of God coming over you. Righteous anger drives you to take action—not just to talk, but to do something.

I've seen this in social justice work. When you see somebody bleeding out on the street wrongfully, and you say nothing, you are complicit with the wrong. You're telling God that you agree with the evil happening in the earth. Righteous indignation makes you say, "God, how can I see people die and say nothing? How can I know Milwaukee has the number one most incarcerated zip code in the world and hide in the church? How can I know Milwaukee is top three in the world for human trafficking and do nothing?"

If we really love our neighbor the way we love ourselves, we should cry when someone's daughter is taken. We should march when someone's son is taken. We should have the same passion for others that we want them to have for us.

He took a pair of oxen and cut them into pieces. He sent the pieces by messengers throughout Israel, proclaiming, "This is what will be done to the oxen of anyone who does not follow Saul and Samuel." The terror of the Lord fell on the people, and they all came together as one. (1 Samuel 11:7)

Here's the real issue: the reason we can't get things done is because the church has to be one.

People don't believe in the faith because church is against that church, and that pastor is talking about that pastor. These Christians are against that Christian. "My church does this, my church does that." The world looks at us and laughs because Jesus said that they will know us by our love, by our unity, by our togetherness.

When Saul mobilized them at Bezek, he found that there were 300,000 men from Israel and 30,000 men from Judah. Saul sent messages back to Jabes Gilead: "We will rescue you by noon tomorrow." And there was great joy throughout the town. (1 Samuel 11:8-9)

I love this part. Saul didn't say, "We hope to rescue you." He didn't say, "We'll try." He said, "We will be here tomorrow at noon." He had his brothers' backs completely. That's boldness. That's faith.

The men from Jabes told their enemies, "Tomorrow we will come out to you, and you can do to us whatever you wish." But before dawn the next morning, Saul arrived, having divided his army into three detachments, and launched a surprise attack against the Ammonites, slaughtering them all morning. The remnant of their army was so badly scattered that not two of them were left together. (1 Samuel 11:10-11)

Look at this transformation: These people went from being terrified one day to defeating their enemies so badly that their soldiers were scattered in every direction the next day.

What if fear is the only thing holding you back? What if you're stronger than you even know, but you never fought back to find out? What if you've been waiting for God to move, but God has been waiting for you to fight?

Your Bible says:

God teaches my hands to war and my fingers to fight. (Psalm 144:1)

There are certain times when you need to be still and trust God. But there are other times when God is saying, "Put your war clothes on. Take the shield of faith, the sword of the Spirit, the helmet of salvation, the breastplate of righteousness, the belt of truth, the shoes of peace. Get out here and be ready to fight."

You cannot be called a soldier in the army of the Lord if you don't know how to fight.

Joshua understood this:

This is my command: be strong and very courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. (Joshua 1:9)

They picked up courage when they realized they were fighting for God, not for themselves. If God is for us, He's greater than the world that's against us. We walk with the courage that God told Joshua to have.

Real Leadership: Refusing Vengeance

Then the people exclaimed to Samuel, "Where are those men who said 'Why should Saul rule over us?' Bring them here and we will kill them!" But Saul replied, "No one will be executed today, for today the Lord has rescued Israel." (1 Samuel 11:12-13)

Look at what a real man of integrity does. Saul could have had them executed. Instead, he got out of the way and gave credit to God. But here's something crucial:

You cannot carry vendettas as a child of God.

You cannot be waiting for God to bless you just so you can gloat with the blessing. Some of you—the reason you haven't received what God has for you is because God knows that if He blessed you with it right now, your heart would be so full of pride that you wouldn't even be able to help your enemies.

You forgot:

He prepares a table before me in the presence of my enemies. (Psalm 23:5)

You have to fix your heart before God can trust you with the next level of leadership.

Write this down: Authority is a dangerous weapon in the hands of someone who has a point to prove.

As a pastor, I can never live with a vendetta or have a point to prove. It doesn't matter what somebody has done against me—it's not my job to get anybody back. It's God's job to handle whatever is done against me.

I used to think that when God shuts the mouth of my enemies, something bad would happen to them. But I realized there was something wrong in my heart—I wasn't praying for mercy; I was waiting for something bad to happen.

So I asked God, "What does it look like for my enemies to see me blessed? You said you'll make them my footstool. What does that look like?"

God said, "I'm going to let them live long enough to watch me bless you. I'm going to keep them alive so they can see that every word they spoke against you was actually a building block I was using to take you higher. Every stone they threw at you became a stone you built with. It became something you grew with. It became something you elevated with."

But if you don't fix your heart and you have authority, you become a danger to society because you will damage people to prove your point.

Proving Your Anointing Through Victory

Then Samuel said to the people, "Come, let us go to Gilgal to renew the kingdom." So they went to Gilgal and in a solemn ceremony before the Lord they made Saul king. Then they offered peace offerings to the Lord and Saul and all the Israelites were filled with joy. (1 Samuel 11:14-15)

Notice they did not affirm Saul as king right away, even though he was already anointed. They didn't have the ceremony until after he defeated enemies.

The calling and the sending don't happen at the same time.

God will anoint you, yes. But you are not ready to lead until you can prove you can defeat some enemies. I know people trying to lead others to victory while they're losing in their own private lives. You can't lead others to victory when your life looks like loss, when you can barely make it, when you've quit fifteen times in the last thirty days.

There ought to be seasons in our lives where God has us wait just so we can win the private battles before He elevates us publicly.

God says, "You're anointed, but you've got to prove that anointing by how you handle the enemy. You have to prove that anointing by how you win in the face of adversity. Your anointing has to be tested in order for it to be true."

The battles in your life are meant to prove your calling, not make you question it.

Your Purpose Is Already Proven

When you think about purpose, the fact that you are alive here and listening to this message is proof that you have purpose for your life. There's never a person that God created and didn't give them purpose.

You may be trying to figure out your purpose, but let me prove this to you: All of the things that could have killed other people could not take you out. Everything you've lived through and you're still here in church giving God praise. Everything you've experienced and you're still on Sunday morning showing up. You've been through stuff that will make some people cry, that will make some people quit, that will make some people throw in the towel.

You've been through stuff that will make some people question their faith, but through it all you still kept trusting God.

That doesn't make you question your calling—that's the proof that God's hand has been on you way before you ever acknowledged God. That's the proof that what the enemy tried could not work. That is proof of the purpose over your life.

A Final Prayer

Father, this is my prayer over your people. For those going through a season right now—some of you went through some crazy stuff, but others of you are going through some crazy stuff right now. You're in the fight right now, you're in the battle right now, you're trying to figure it out right now.

I pray for the ones in the war for their life right now—that you would give them strength to stand consistent in you. I pray for those saying, "God, what am I supposed to do with what I'm dealing with? I'm in war right now, I'm in a fight right now, my family's under siege right now. What am I supposed to do?"

I pray, God, that you would teach their hands to war and their fingers to fight. I pray that they would know you are not asking them to suffer quietly, but you're giving them the spirit of a warrior, the spirit of a soldier, the spirit of one who will stand and fight in the faith and authority and anointing of God.

Lord, you've called them sons and daughters of the King. You've given them an assignment. They don't have to just sit there and take a beating. The kingdom of God suffers violence, but the violent take it by force.

God, give them strength in their spirit. Give them the helmet of salvation, the breastplate of righteousness, the shield of faith, the sword of the spirit, the shoes of the gospel of peace, and the belt of truth. As they walk with you and trust you, may they see your victory in this next season of their life.

The victory is theirs. They are already declared more than conquerors to Him that loves them. In Jesus' name, amen.