Blood of Bulls

Do you ever do something you know that you just shouldn’t do? 

“ one headband short of looking like an 80’s pilates instructor”

I really enjoy working out through body weight exercises—pull-ups, L-sits, pistol squats, etc. Well, not long ago my mother bought me some weighted straps that can attach themselves around arms, legs, or a waist…if you’re thin enough I suppose…and at first I didn’t want to use these in public, as I—with my weighted limbs—was just one headband short of looking like an 80’s pilates instructor. However, after working with them in private a few days I decided to reject my decade-themed fears and heroically drove to the courthouse steps to flaunt about my weighted companions. Let me take a minute to say that I love leg day; plyometrics, running stairs, running distances, and squat variations are my favorite. As a result, leg days tend to run long as I find it easier to push and motivate myself, unlike arm and back days where when I get tired, I’m done.

That in mind, I was nearing an hour and a half long workout with my sand-filled friends as I mustered up my last bit of strength for a final set of squat-box jumps. For the past half hour each time I topped the steps I would do 10 weighted squat jumps onto a concrete ledge that sat mid-thigh-height and, at completion, would run down, then repeat. 

I was so tired this final round. Whether it was pride, “The Greatest” (a perfect workout song by Sia), or desire for a six-pack that kept me jumping, I continued up the steps filled with some sort of motivation. As I was running up the stairs I thought to myself, “I’m gonna jump into that concrete ledge. It’s just gonna happen…I can feel it. My foot’s gonna get caught or something. Maybe I shouldn’t do this last set.” Sia drowned out all of my efforts to turn back and I found myself jumping, panting, and wanting to be done.

“Five!…..ungh…..Six!…..BLAGHHHH….Seven!…..Lagufunahup!!!!….Eight!” 

Then it happened. My left leg retired pre jump and caused the crash between my shin and the greedy concrete ledge, willing to take anything that rubbed against it.

I shouldn’t have pursued that last jump. I knew my body wouldn’t make it. But I did it anyway. And now my shin is still swollen.

As of late I have been reading in the book of 1 Samuel and what has transpired in the story is a story of similar veins. Israel has turned to the priest—Samuel—and demanded a king that they might be “like all the nations.” They knew God desired to be their only king, but I suppose it’s easier to follow a man than it is to follow God. So God, in his great mercy, presents to them Saul, a man to lead them in their wanderings. We pick up our story in chapter 11, where Saul’s first recorded act as king of Israel unfolds: the step-brother land of Jabesh-gilead has been taken hostage by a foreign nation and is being forced to have each right eye plucked to form a ‘peace treaty’ with the captors. Once Saul hears of this, the nation is brought together to war to deliver the countrymen.  The beauty of life and work is displayed on a platter and used to call forth a view of mercy and providence as Saul is used by the Lord to war for justice.

Verse 7 struck me the most when I first read through the chapter, “He [Saul] took a yoke of oxen and cut them in pieces and sent them through all the territory of Israel by the hand of the messengers, saying, “Whoever does not come out after Saul and Samuel, so shall it be done to his oxen!” Then the dread of the Lord fell upon the people, and they came out as one man.”

What an interesting call. When people don’t show up for church, this makes it tempting to send them part of an ox with a letter saying, ‘So shall it be done to your dogs if you don’t come next Sunday!” Fortunately the staff here at FBCG won’t do that; I love your pets (only) because I love you. Back to the call…what was this a call for?

“An ox was multiple things to this people, it was an image of work, property, commerce, preparation, the means to have crops to sustain a life and family.”

On the surface, and most plainly, it was a call to war. Yes. Check that box. Good job. But what else was it a call to? As he decides to cut up to a couple of oxen, a hue to the call is being developed. An ox was multiple things to this people, it was an image of work, property, commerce, preparation, the means to have crops to sustain a life and family. A yoke of oxen, made more familiar to us New Testament folk, is a picture of fellowship, balance, and rest. When Jesus speaks of rest he does so by inviting us to a tailored yoke. But here, the ox serves as a sacrifice atop the altar of a yoke. It was a picture displaying the severity of the time at hand, the weight of the call being made. What was the call? Set down work, property, safety, family and come follow. Sounds familiar, right? (Luke 14:25-28)

Since we’re looking at what Jesus said, it’s pretty neat to see Jesus represented in this story. There is a Messenger to deliver a Sacrifice that leads people to King and High Priest and brings them out as one man. Fun stuff.

Anyway, what else is in this call? It was a call for unity in a kingdom divided. (Ironically, the way God chose to unite his people was by dividing the sacrifice.) This was more than a physical uniting, it was a combining of hearts into one.

More than these though, I feel this was a call to see. To see what? Let’s take a look at the call itself. Verse 6 says that the “Spirit of God rushed upon Saul…and his anger was greatly kindled…” then he delivers the cut-up-ox-message. At its surface, the Spirit through Saul looks like a threat to the people—doubtless a majority of the people probably took it this way. 

“Threats don’t draw men or unite them.”

Was this a threat? No. Threats are made with the intent and in the weight of evil (What the enemy nation was doing was a threat.) and don’t draw men or unite them.** Along with this, threats are done to force people to do something, God has no need to threaten anyone, for there is nothing he cannot do on his own. But, even when God brings calamity, loss and pain upon a man or woman, even when he breaks someone, or a loved one dies, or someone gets sick, it is for our good and His glory. Making threats neither incites or excites God; His glory does. And this is quite possibly the biggest thing at stake with this call and these people. God’s glory. It is a call to see this glory.

“When God is showing them the ox, He is not threatening them, He is showing them grace.”

When we see it in this view, the bull becomes less of a sacrifice of call, and more of an image of grace and glory and mercy to His people. When God is showing them the ox, He is not threatening them, He is showing them grace. The fact that they had asked for a king when they already had a perfect one, or left their countrymen out unprotected, or that their response to someone being hurt was weeping without war, or just the plain fact that they, and we, are all sinners, God was gracious in NOT having taken all of their oxen already! The fact that there was still livestock in the nation was a blessing to point to the kindness and mercy of an affronted God.

So if it was not a threat, what caused the dread? Again, for many in the nation I fear they felt threatened and went in fear of losing what they had if they didn’t go. But for those who fear the Lord and not losing their stuff, where was their dread founded? I believe it was for the brothers in harm’s way; an urgency for the men actually being threatened.

Now it is this threat that sparked the story and caused the nation to weep. To deeper understand the call, lets take a look at before it was sounded. Saul sees the upset people and asks, “What is wrong with the people, that they are weeping?” If you grew up in church, you know that the correct answer to nearly every question asked is one of two, “Jesus” or “sin.” Saul asks quite plainly and powerfully, “What is not right or correct with you?” And what a beautiful picture God paints. At the point where man is not right, God provides a sacrifice that directs their attention to some body that can be the salvation they so desperately need.

And notice the state of Saul as he comes up on the scene—he is at work. What a picture! Now, Saul’s being at work caused him to not know what was ailing the people and lended him to miss some things. The call of the ox was just as much for him as it was for everyone else. Fortunately for us, though, God is always at work and always knows when we are in need. When he asks “what is wrong?” it is not because of his ignorance, but because so often we don’t even realize what is wrong.

“But when we sin, when we leave and forsake God, He so quickly rushes upon us...”

A final thought in the story is the way in which God moves—he rushes. He rushed upon Saul. Rushed. Like when you are late to work and still haven’t dropped the kids off. He rushed. But not out of penalty or being late. When it comes to His plan, God is always on time. He will never leave us or forsake us, he will be there. But when we sin, when we leave and forsake God, He so quickly rushes upon us and when He does what happens? Our hatred of sin is kindled. God doesn’t rush because His timing is imperfect—for that is far from the truth—but because we are imperfect. Oh that we might be a people who rush to those weeping and threatened by evil.

This is where the call fits. It is a call to save a village, yes, but still more. It is a call from the Lord saying, “Even as you have attempted to gouge out your right eye in asking for a king (or some other foolishness), I am rushing in to deliver you.”

For us today I feel the call is much the same. First, will we turn and rush to such a delivering king? Second, when we see someone prepared to sell their soul, or already selling their soul, do we rush in to point them to Christ? Do we put down our yokes, oxen, families, smart phones, calendars, and selves to pursue them? For this is our call.

And since the Lord has made His battle cry and call to us, would it be just of Him to kill our oxen? Or would he let them live? In other words, do we let work and life get in the way of our call? If so, our work will amount to nothing but loss, nothing but skin scraped against the concrete.

**Here in Texas, if anyone were to threaten your livestock or family, you wouldn’t sit back and submit or listen to them, you’d shoot ‘em! This call is not a threat from a young, awkward, new king that united the men, for they would have had no devotion to follow the monarch. It is only the grace of God that fully unites men to God and men to man.