God rejected King Saul primarily for stubborn disobedience and rebellion, failing to fully follow explicit commands, such as the total destruction of the Amalekites, and for acting presumptuously (offering sacrifices) instead of waiting for the prophet Samuel, showing his heart wasn't fully devoted to God's word but rather his own will, which ultimately led to his kingdom being torn from him.
The simplest answer is that God rejected Saul because Saul rejected God. More specifically, Saul rejected God's word delivered by Samuel, God's prophet. Right before Saul's battle against the Philistines, Saul does not wait for Samuel as he is instructed.
In the end, King Saul's greatest sin was pride. He convinced himself that his status as king gave him a special right to act in ways God had not allowed. In other words, Saul developed an inflated view of his own importance, his own significance, and his own rights.
{1 Chronicles 10:13-14} “So Saul died for his unfaithfulness which he had committed against the Lord, because he did not keep the word of the Lord, and also because he consulted a medium for guidance. But he did not inquire of the Lord; therefore He killed him, and turned the kingdom over to David the son of Jesse.”
Answer. 1 Samuel 15:11 I am grieved that I have made Saul king, because he has turned away from me and has not carried out my instructions. Samuel was troubled, and he cried out to the LORD all that night.
13:14; 15:23), removed his Spirit from Saul (1 Sam. 16:14), and sent an evil spirit upon him (1 Sam. 16:14). God wasn't tempting Saul with the evil spirit; he sent it as an act of judgment in response to Saul's stubborn rebellion.
Saul's acts of disobedience caused the Lord to take away his kingship. Samuel told him that because of his foolish choices, Saul would be replaced on the throne. His final days were filled with the obsessive hunt for David, as well as other manic and destructive behavior.
In essence, Saul's root character flaw is self-exaltation and self-deception. He thinks he knows better than everyone else, including God. The biggest tragedy is that he's not even aware of it. The story shows he is completely blind to his arrogance and always believes he's in the right.
Saul believed he was defending God's honor and the sanctity of Jewish law by persecuting those who followed Jesus, viewing them as heretics or apostates endangering the Jewish community.
After disobeying God's command, Saul admitted his sin to Samuel but was more concerned with maintaining his public image than truly repenting: "I have sinned. But please honor me now before the elders of my people and before Israel" (1 Samuel 15:30).
But when Saul went to Gilgal, he did not wait long enough but took the initiative to offer the sacrifices himself. Because of this blatant disobedience to a revealed command, God rejected Saul's kingdom. That is, the Lord determined not to give Saul's family a lasting dynasty to reign over His people (vv. 8–15).
So Saul died for his unfaithfulness; he was unfaithful to the LORD in that he did not keep the command of the LORD, and also consulted a medium, seeking guidance, 14 and did not seek guidance from the LORD. Therefore the LORD slew him, and turned the kingdom over to David the son of Jesse.
Paul's greatest regret was the way he persecuted the church.
Before becoming a follower of Jesus, he was killing followers of Jesus. He later wrote, “For I am the least of all the apostles. In fact, I'm not even worthy to be called an apostle after the way I persecuted God's church” (1 Corinthians 15:9).
He failed to see the broader perspective, including God's will and the needs of his people. This narrow view caused him to make decisions that ultimately led to his downfall. As the preacher points out, the root cause of Saul's problems was his inability to look beyond his own viewpoint and consider God's perspective.
When threatened by a Philistine attack, Saul disobeyed the Lord by offering a sacrifice instead of waiting for Samuel to do it. Jonathan and Saul led the Israelites to victory in battle against the Philistines.
Saul had many character flaws. Saul disobeyed God publicly and privately. Saul was self-absorbed, insecure, competitive, jealous, and ambitious.
Because Saul was unable to put his trust in God's faithfulness, he lived his life enslaved to fear. We learn that freedom from enslavement to fear is possible through putting our faith in God and his unlimited power.
In Samuel 15:11, God says to Samuel, “I regret that I made Saul king, for he has turned away from following me and has not carried out my instructions” (CSB) and later in 15:35 it says, “the Lord regretted he had made Saul king over Israel” (CSB).
Because Saul spared Agag and the good livestock, he was guilty of turning away from God. To turn away from God's instruction is the same as turning away from God. This shows that Saul did not respect God.
The price of David's sin of murder and adultery was high. He spent the rest of his life regretting it. In one psalm he expressed his mental torment and pleaded for forgiveness.
Saul began with the Spirit and ended with spirits. He abandoned the Spirit of the Lord for evil spiritual manifestations because he had strayed. He led his people into defeat. Perhaps a more honourable man would have acknowledged his fall and stepped aside earlier for the new Lord's anointed.
His obedience was compromised, not wholehearted. His half-hearted obedience would be his downfall. 1 Samuel 15 opens with God giving Saul a clear command to conquer the Amalekites and to spare nothing—not even the animals. But Saul refused to follow all of God's instruction.
Philippians 3:13 No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead… Paul knew that even though he sinned, Jesus had forgiven him. So Paul needed to forgive himself too. He needed to forget that past and look to the future.
According to tradition, he was in Rome in 63/64AD during the rule of the Roman emperor Nero. In 64 AD Nero blamed the christians for a disastrous fire in the city. Peter was one of the christians who was taken prisoner and was sentenced to death by crucifixion.