I can’t think of anything in this life that does not have a replacement. Parts on a car go bad, and you buy a replacement. Your body becomes unable to process gluten products, so you buy replacements. Sports figures make bad plays or get hurt, so the coach sends in a replacement. There are replacements all around us. While we may think people can not be replaced, sometimes God has another plan. He has replacements, too.
In I Samuel 13:13-14 God is removing Saul from his position as king. He had disobeyed God and did not have a repentant heart. God sends Samuel, the prophet, to tell Saul. “And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done foolishly: thou hast not kept the commandment of the LORD thy God, which he commanded thee: for now would the LORD have established thy kingdom upon Israel forever. But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the LORD hath sought him a man after his own heart, and the LORD hath commanded him be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the LORD commanded thee.”
God removed Saul. He was chosen by the people of Isreal because they wanted an earthly king like other countries, and they wanted Saul because he was tall and presented a kingly presence, but that was not God’s qualification for a king. When Saul disobeyed God and led the Israelites away from God instead of closer to Him, He replaced him with David. He was a young man when God chose him. God told Samuel in I Samuel 16:7 “Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.” David was by no one’s standard perfect. However, when David sinned, he showed sorrowful repentance. He was serious about serving God, and that is why God used him as a replacement for Saul.
Act 13:22 “And when he had removed him, he raised up unto them David to be their king; to whom also he gave testimony, and said, I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfill all my will.”
Another replacement that is familiar to us in scripture is found in Acts 1:24-26. Judas had been one of the twelve that Jesus chose to be his disciples. He had seen the miracles and felt the love of the Savior, yet he chose money over his Master. He was so distraught after he betrayed Christ that he hung himself. He had a choice, but he made the wrong one. Yet, his choice did not stop God’s plan. He replaced Judas with Matthias.
Act 1:24-26 “And they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen, That he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place. And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.”
God has a plan for each of our lives. When we refuse to follow His plan, He can and will replace us, too. We are left here to be a witness for Him. We are to tell the good news of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. We are to live out what He has done for us on the inside. For us to pick and choose the things we will do to further the gospel puts us too on dangerous grounds for a replacement. He will work in our lives to get our attention, but if we refuse, we can be placed on the shelf, and He will call someone else to do His work. We will be the losers in this case. We will never be fully satisfied and at peace in our souls until we determine we will obey at all costs.
Are you fulfilling your call by the Master? Are you looking for opportunities to witness for Him? Are you seeking to be a blessing to someone else, or have you, like Saul and Judas, turned your thoughts and actions inward, seeking what pleases you?
