Under The Oakes

Imagine you’re driving along & you see a caution sign for sharp S curves coming up. How many of those signs would you need to see before you reduced your speed? I can remember taking my family to go see the Creation Museum & the life-size replica of Noah’s Ark back in 2021. Our Airbnb was just over a mountain from the Creation Museum. When we would drive that mountain, we would be coming down the mountain & they had such a sharp S curve, it was essentially a 90-degree turn. I remember the first time I approached it, I saw a sign about 1/4 mile away, & I let my foot off of the pedal a little. As I got closer, the signs got more & more dramatic & ominous. I am a well-accomplished driver, so I figured that was just for new drivers & sissies…. I must say, I hit that curve the first time going WAY too fast. I remember thinking, “They didn’t put enough signs to describe the urgency of that turn!” Not only was it a sharp turn, but it was going up/down a mountain. There was a guardrail, but at the speed some go, that is just a formality…..

How many times do we ignore signs from God? I want to take us to 1 Samuel 9-10 today. At this time in Israel’s history, they have decided they NEED a King. Why do they need a king? Simply, because all the other nations have a King…. Well, what a great reason! If only there were a commandment by God telling us not to covet… oh wait, there is. However, God grants them this request. However, before He gives them a King, He tells His prophet Samuel to go & warn them of all the things that accompany having a King. Samuel doesn’t hold back & lays out how terrible it will be with a King. They STILL want a King. That goes to show a great deal about the nation’s depravity.

So God tells Samuel to be on the lookout for a Benjamite who will see him & he will be their first King. That is where 1 Samuel 9 picks up. Here we read that Saul, a Benjamite, is sent out with a servant to find some lost donkeys for his father. The servant tells Saul that he knows of a seer(or prophet) in that area whom they could go see & maybe he could tell them where to find the donkeys. So Saul obliges & they go knocking at the door of Samuel. Samuel learns Saul is a Benjamite, so he invites him in for the night & puts him up as his guest. When they leave in the morning, Samuel sends the servant on ahead so He can be alone with Saul.

He then anoints Saul as the chosen King. Let’s pause there….. Saul left his father the day before to find some donkeys. Scripture doesn’t say whether or not he packed an overnight bag, so we don’t know how long he was planning to be gone. He ends up at the house of a prophet, who invites him in for the night (while also assuring him the donkeys are found & no longer an issue). Then Saul is told that He is to be the first king of Israel. I am sure he is a little uneasy, thinking this prophet may be a crazy man, or a false prophet at least. However, before Samuel sends Saul away, he gives Saul 3 very specific signs that He is, in fact, the first King of Israel.

Sign #1 – Samuel tells Saul that on his journey home, he will come across 2 men by Rachel’s tomb (a landmark of the matriarch Rachel, one of Jacob’s four wives, & his favorite) & those two men will tell Saul that the donkeys are found, they are now home, however Saul’s father is worried about Saul as he is still not back. It is for sure unsettling when the donkeys, which were the missing items, return home before Saul, the seeker of those donkeys, returns home. If that one sign isn’t enough for Saul, Samuel gives him a 2nd sign.

Sign #2 – Samuel tells Saul that when he comes to the Oak of Tabor, Saul will come across 3 men. One man will be carrying 3 goats (at one time?! what would that look like), one man will be carrying 3 loaves of bread, & the last man will be carrying a wineskin. In a little “side sign”, Samuel tells Saul that the men will greet Saul & offer him 2 loaves of bread. He even tells Saul to accept the gift, which I have always felt is an odd detail for Samuel to tell him. One footnote in my Bible talks about him receiving the bread as an indication of his Kingship. I am sure it is a cultural thing that is lost on us, the 2026 Christian. Regardless, the fact that Samuel calls out not only how many men he is to meet & where he is to meet them, but he also calls out the exact items they will be carrying, & where they are headed (Bethel). He even says they will give him a gift, what the gift is, & to accept it. VERY specific details. Samuel is proving he is not some crazy or false prophet.

Sign #3 – Samuel tells Saul that upon arriving at Gibeath-elohim, Saul will meet a group of prophets prophesying & playing music. He promises Saul that the Spirit of the Lord will rush upon you & he will be transformed & changed into a new man because of this. While this may be the easiest sign to summarize, it is by far the most powerful sign. The reality is that as believers, we should be changed when we accept Christ. Truthfully, changed isn’t the right word; we should be made new, 100% transformed. Dead to our sins, alive to Christ! This is what Samuel tells Saul will happen for the 3rd sign!

All 3 of these signs are proven correct EXACTLY as Samuel told Saul they would. Remember, the purpose of these signs is to show Saul that God has chosen Saul to be the 1st King of the nation of Israel. I would hope that after the whole donkey ordeal, the promise of these 3 signs & the verifying of them, if it were me, I would have enough faith to trust God that he had chosen me! But will Saul? Will this all be enough for Saul? Will he confidently step into the throne as the rightful chosen one that the Lord has chosen? We can find that answer in 1 Samuel 10:17-27. Here, we read that Samuel comes to Mizpah to announce to Israel who their 1st King will be. He comes & calls the entire nation together, then he casts lots to see which tribe the King will come from. Then he calls all Benjamites forward & casts lots again to see from which clan within the tribe of Benjamin the King will come from. He then calls all the Matrites forward to cast lots and see from which house the King will come. He then announces the first King. You can imagine the anticipation & tension in the air at that moment. He then loudly proclaims, “YOUR 1ST KING WILL BE SAUL, SON OF KISH FROM THE TRIBE OF BENJAMIN!” What happens next?

Crickets….. No Saul…. I am sure they are all looking around, watching, waiting for him to come forward. Yet, still no Saul. So where is he?! Did he not get the memo about this meeting? Is he again out looking for donkeys? In chapter 10, verse 22 tells us that Saul could be found hidden among the baggage! Actually, verse 22 tells us that the Lord tells them to go find him hiding among the baggage. This removes any kind of doubt that he was just helping put bags away & got distracted. God tells us that he was hiding. Why?!?!? Why would he hide? God had chosen him as King, & Samuel had given him all these signs proving he was chosen by God to be King.

Let me wrap this up. I believe Saul was hiding because he was afraid. Why should he be afraid? God had clearly called him to this new role. I totally understand feeling unprepared or not feeling qualified, but when God has called us to something, we should be able to boldly approach the task, not because of us, but because of God. When God has called us to something, we can know that He will be with us. Saul had no reason to fear; he only needed to trust in God.

As I close, I need to issue a disclaimer. Please don’t mishear me. If you read this story & your takeaway is that you can do anything, if you just have enough faith, you have read it wrong. Sadly, there are many people in our world today who are adamant that they can do anything, simply because of their faith, & through that they are working outside the will of God. I believe scripture is very clear that we can do it IF God has called us to it AND it is part of His will. Which, truthfully, if He has called us to it, it is part of His will, right? So maybe you have been called to something that you don’t feel worthy or strong enough to do. The reality is, you’re not, God is! So trust in Him! Lean on Him! If God will lead you to it, God will lead you through it. It is by His power we can do these things, so boldly come to them in the faith that God will take care of you. Saul starts as a good King, despite this hiccup in his coronation, but it goes downhill fast! Why? Because he does things his way, instead of being obedient to God. Pursue Him, honor Him, glorify Him, in ALL you do! Be blessed!