Have you ever been given a list of things to do? Ever complete ‘most’ of the things on the list? Did you expect partial credit for partial obedience?
In 1 Samuel 15, the Lord tells King Saul to attack the city of Amalek and to “utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass.”
Samuel came to Saul, and Saul said to him, “Blessed are you of the LORD! I have carried out the command of the LORD.” (1 Samuel 15:13)
But in truth, Saul had not carried out the command of the LORD. He had left the king alive. He had saved the best of the livestock. And what was Saul’s reason? The people were going to sacrifice them to the LORD.
God had ordered 100 percent destruction. Saul had delivered less than 100 percent. Samuel clearly called Saul’s actions disobedience (1 Samuel 15:19) and likened it to rebellion and insubordination (1 Samuel 15:23).
Are we obeying all of God’s word? If we are not, then we are guilty of all. (James 2:10)
[...] Obedience must be complete. · Partial obedience = complete disobedience [...]