There’s a darkly funny episode in 1 Samuel’s history of Saul’s disintegration. It’s funny, but it’s also a bit bizarre and scary. And it can really increase our understanding of God the Holy Spirit…
David’s on the run from murderous King Saul, and he flees to Ramah where Samuel has a group of prophets. Then this happens (19:19-20): `Word came to Saul: “David is in Naioth at Ramah”; so he sent men to capture him. But when they saw a group of prophets prophesying, with Samuel standing there as their leader, the Spirit of God came on Saul’s men, and they also prophesied.` Now let’s be clear: these people who suddenly find themselves prophesying are not girls with long hair and long dresses. These are the kind of thugs you see as bouncers outside city bars, with shaved heads, and Millwall, or Spartak Moscow, tattooed on their scalps. Saul’s sent his heavy security, guys who can safely be trusted to rub out the man who’d killed Goliath. But then they get within the zone of the Spirit: wham! And the glory of the Lord swamps them. (Imagine. It must have been worth watching as these thugs started involuntarily prophesying God’s glory.) One day every tongue, even Millwall, even Spartak, every knee will bow.
Well, v21: `Saul was told about it, and he sent more men, and` – wham! – `they prophesied too.` The Spirit says, Just don’t try to touch my anointed. (And He says that about you and me too! We are so safe in the love of God!) And Saul – not the fastest learner, he – `sent men a third time, and` – wham! the Spirit of God fell upon them too. And (v22) we can imagine Saul saying, Do I have to do everything myself? And so, ignoring the Spirit, he sets off for Ramah… `But the Spirit of God came even on him, and he walked along prophesying… He stripped off his garments, and he too prophesied in Samuel’s presence. He lay naked all that day and all that night.` Wow! When God so wishes, the glory of the Lord swamps the earth…
It’s worth noting that this – wonderful, yes – experience of prophesying, and of God’s direct, amazing presence, doesn’t lead at all to Saul repenting or being any better because of it. (Three chapters later Saul will actually massacre the priests.) Samson likewise was no better morally after the Spirit of God came upon him temporarily in Judges 14 and 15. In fact there’s a terrible thing here: as far as we know Samuel has nothing to say to Saul; even though he’s in Ramah to kill God’s anointed. The implications are terrifying: in all this prophesying, the Word of the Lord is happening but has nothing to say to him at all. Catastrophe. He has become, in Romans 9’s terms, a `vessel for God’s wrath.` Disobedience has finally left him outside God’s blessing.
But what will enrich us here is what this history tells us about the Spirit in the old testament. We may not have grasped how far God’s Spirit there is the Spirit of huge power. In Genesis 1:2 God’s Spirit is the ruach, the hurricane, bringing the world into being. In Judges 14:6 `Suddenly a young lion came roaring towards Samson. The Spirit of the LORD came powerfully upon him so that he tore the lion apart with his bare hands as he might have torn a young goat.` Good night. `The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the Spirit of the LORD blows on them`, says Isaiah 40:7, `Surely the people are [like] grass.` Here is the Spirit of God, unpredictable by us, utterly powerful, utterly overwhelming.
The Spirit is not a toy; we don’t play games with the Holy Spirit. C S Lewis got this right in Narnia: two girls are playing tag with Aslan; one swipe of a paw and they’re dead. But no, they’re safe because this is Aslan. But never forget, we’re repeatedly told, He’s `not a tame lion’. This is reality, how it is with the Holy Spirit; the Spirit of power, the Spirit who is and demands holiness.
Isn’t this what we learn, what God needed to show us, in the hard story from the early church in Acts 5? Ananias had the Holy Spirit, and lied to the Holy Spirit, and next minute he was dead meat. Likewise Sapphira straight afterwards. And `great fear seized the whole church`, and more and more people believed. The Holy Spirit is a Holy Spirit. In 1 Samuel both Saul’s heavies & Saul himself are flattened. The Spirit is not a toy, not a tame lion. This should warn us against a double life?- attending church, but quietly having sex against God’s will? Attending church, but quietly giving ourselves to money and greed and possessions, or to pornography? Attending church, but quietly giving ourselves to power, or lies, or malice? The Holy Spirit is a Holy Spirit. Let’s think of Saul’s men and remember, the double life is not a good idea.
But let’s take this away too: we may tread confidently, because we are the Spirit’s people. Saul and his elite special troops never got near David. No real harm will get near you because you’re God’s, because since you were converted, `born of the Spirit` as Jesus says, God the Holy Spirit is in you always, and watching out for you. Let’s tread confidently; tread gently; tread humbly. God the Spirit is an overwhelming force; not Someone to toy with!- but Someone who most surely can look after His people.
So let’s pray that we seek out, and recognize, and amputate, any trace of the double life in ourselves. Let’s renew our commitment to live a life that fits the Holy Spirit (look at Gal 5:16-25), and not the flesh. And just as real harm could never get near David, it will never get close to us…
