Homily for January 15, 2018 “Why then did you not obey the voice of the LORD? Why did you swoop on the spoil, and do what was evil in the sight of the LORD?... I have obeyed the voice of the LORD … But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the best of the things devoted to destruction, to sacrifice to the LORD your God in Gilgal.” 1 Samuel 15:19-21. Our first reading this morning contains a rather painful episode of Saul’s rejection as king of Israel. When we put ourselves in the shoes of Saul, this reading suddenly comes alive and we realize we are like Saul in many ways. From this reading, we can see that there is no such thing as partial obedience. It is either we obey or do not obey. For Saul, his refusal to completely exterminate the Amelekites as instructed was justified in that he wanted to offer the booty as a sacrifice to God. However, as Samuel would clarify, obedience is better than sacrifice. Indeed, obeying God’s commandment i...