I Samuel 9:9 (Beforetime in Israel, when a man went to enquire of God, thus he spake, Come, and let us go to the seer: for he that is now called a Prophet was beforetime called a Seer.
You probably recall all the pageantry, pomp, circumstance, liturgy, and tradition that went into the coronation of King Charles. I remember at the time the news mentioning that some of the liturgy of the British coronation of a king went all the way back to traditions taken from the Bible regarding Israel. How interesting it is to see how God anointed the first king of Israel. It is anything but grand with pomp and circumstance, anything but tradition for there was no tradition. This was the first king who had ever reigned in Israel. We are talking about Saul.
I Samuel 9 gives us the story of how Saul came to know he would be the first king and how God revealed Saul would be the first king. In short, Saul was a young man that I Samuel 9:2 calls “a choice young man, and a goodly.” He was a standout, taller than everyone else. His father Kish said one day, “Saul, I’m missing some of my donkeys. Take one of the young men and go find them.” Saul went out on a fruitless searched for his father’s donkeys. He decided to go ask the prophet if he knew where the donkeys were. In the meantime, God had told Samuel the prophet, “I’m going to send you a man and you are going to anoint him king over Israel.”
What you find is a level of significance and awareness. In verse 3 you find that Saul sought donkeys. Saul thought the reason he was making this journey was simply to find his father’s donkeys. It reminds me of David years later when he would show up on the battlefield to fight Goliath and people reminded him how young and tender he was. He said, “Is there not a cause?” He wasn’t talking specifically about the cause of fighting the Philistines. He was saying, “Dad sent me here to bring food to my brothers. I’m not here without reason. I’m here because Dad sent me.” Saul could have said the same thing. He wasn’t seeking to be king. He was seeking his dad’s donkey and he could have said, “Why am I out here in the wilderness? Isn’t there a cause? Dad told me to.” So, in verse 3 Saul sought donkeys.
In verse 16 God sent Saul. He told Samuel, “Tomorrow about this time I will send thee a man out of the land of Benjamin, and thou shalt anoint him to be captain over my people Israel.” Saul showed up to ask the prophet if he could tell him where to find the donkeys, but God said, “He is not seeking; I am sending. I’m sending him because you are going to anoint him the king.”
That just reminds me that God is always looking ahead. About this time of year we think about graduation from college, high school, or even kindergarten. Graduation is from a word gratis which just means “steps.” It is the next step. As Saul was just taking a step at a time, doing what he knew to be right, God was sending him to the prophet.
In verse 27 Samuel showed Saul. It says, “But stand thou still a while, that I may shew thee the word of God,” Samuel revealed to Saul that he would be the king. So, you find levels of significance here. What is abundantly clear is that God sees beyond the problem of the moment. We are so focused on the problem right now, and we think it is about donkeys when really it is about the first king of Israel.
I don’t know the significance of the matters I face today, but God does. That is why it is so important that I do the right thing right now because I am not smart enough to know if it is important or not. I’m not smart enough to know the significance of my words, actions, or attitudes in any given moment of today. God sees beyond the problems of the moment and He is looking to something bigger.
The lesson we can learn is our focus changes as we choose to accommodate what God sees. What did Saul see? He saw a small problem, a small obedience to his dad, a journey into the wilderness, and a prophet who might help him, but he wasn’t really seeking; God was sending.
Verse 9 is an explanatory verse for people like me. He says, “(Beforetime in Israel, when a man went to enquire of God, thus he spake, Come, and let us go to the seer: for he that is now called a Prophet was beforetime called a Seer.)” Why was a prophet called a seer? It was because he could see what others could not. He could in some constrained measure see what God Almighty chose to show him. God may be sending when we think we are seeking. We may be seeking something small like a job, a spouse, or some thing, but God really may be sending. Faith is looking beyond what you can see to what God knows. What can I see? Very little. What does God know? Everything.
Today, your focus will change as you accommodate what God sees. I don’t know what God knows, but what I can know is God, and if I will obey, then God will accomplish His purpose through me today even through my small problems. Maybe you are wrangling children, driving someone to school, going to the office, garage, or college campus. Maybe you are doing something that seems insignificant. We are not smart enough to know what is significant and what is not. Every act of integrity, character, and obedience to the authorities we can see relates to the authority we cannot see, God, and things we cannot see, the future.
So, what did God have in mind? He had in mind anointing Saul king. What did Saul have in mind? He was obeying his dad and finding the donkeys. Just do you duty today and don’t count God out of your future.