Listening to the crowd is always easier in the short-term but you’ll pay for it in the end. King Saul was the first king of Israel but not the most memorable (that would belong to his successor David). The reason God ultimately rejected Saul as king is simple: Saul chose to listen to the crowd rather than trust in God. In 1 Samuel 15 God gave King Saul a task: destroy the Amalekites, enemies of Israel that had ambushed them years before. And His instructions were specific: “Now go and totally destroy the Amalekites and all that belong to them” (1 Samuel 15:3). But Saul didn’t fully obey God. “But Saul and the army spared Agag and the best of the sheep and cattle, the fat calves and lambs—everything that was good. These they were unwilling to destroy completely, but everything that was despised and weak they totally destroyed” (1 Samuel 15:9).

When the prophet Samuel confronts Saul about his disobedience, Saul ultimately confesses, “I have sinned. I violated the Lord’s command and your instructions. I was afraid of the men and so I gave in to them” (1 Samuel 15:24). Did you catch that last part? “I was afraid of the men and so I gave in to them.” Saul listened to the crowd, and it had lasting consequences because God rejected Saul as king for this act of disobedience.

We still face the same temptation today, to listen to the crowd. Perhaps it’s the crowd that’s telling you to soften up on your devotion to God. Maybe the crowd is telling you to give up on your marriage, that you deserve to be happy, that your heart wants what it wants. Your coworkers might be telling you to cut corners, fudge reports, take off early. Your supervisors might be pressuring you to cheat a little because that’s the only way to survive in your industry. Maybe your family struggles with their weight so there’s pressure for you to have a cheat day everyday too. Or maybe you’re retired and your crowd is telling you to kick your feet up and relax, that you have no more responsibilities besides sitting in that recliner and waiting on the other side to come knocking.

Whatever your crowd is, you have one. And they’re telling you to do things that you know God doesn’t want you to do. Just like King Saul, you have to make a choice: do you listen to the crowd or do you obey God? The choice is up to you, but never forget: listening to the crowd has lasting consequences.