1 Samuel 15:20 (NKJV)
“And Saul said to Samuel, ‘But I have obeyed the voice of the Lord, and gone on the mission on which the Lord sent me, and brought back Agag king of Amalek; I have utterly destroyed the Amalekites.’”

If someone constantly focuses on self-defense when confronted with an area of failure, then that person’s case may be beyond help. Although no situation is beyond redemption, one crucial element in finding grace is being able to accept correction and rebuke. Unfortunately, many people aren’t open to and willing to do this.

While correction is health to the soul, accepting correction is soul therapy. God’s way of healing and remolding us is through sending us words of correction. The Bible says that He sent us His Word, and He healed us. Healing comes to those who hear and receive God’s word. The opposite happens when we reject the Word of God sent our way.

After Samuel reached out to Saul to correct him, rather than own up to the situation, he said, “But I have obeyed the voice of the Lord, and gone on the mission on which the Lord sent me.” At this point, we can’t tell if this was intentional craftiness at work or self-delusion, but one thing is sure; he was not ready to admit his fault. Why was this so?

Why is it so hard for us to admit our failures and weaknesses? Why is it so hard for us to accept rebuke and correction? Why is there always some kind of inner revulsion of being exposed? All these come from the root of sin that we inherited from Adam. It’s part of our fallen DNA.

Remember that when Adam and Eve fell in Eden, their first reaction was to hide. When the Lord confronted Adam about it, rather than own up, he blamed the Lord and blamed his wife. Ever since then, Man has operated under the curse of hiding sin and rejecting correction, even when simply admitting fault could lead to complete healing and restoration.

As pilgrims on our life journey, let’s be quick to admit where and when we have failed. Knowing the frailty of our human frame, it is understandable, and indeed expected, that at some point in our journey, we will fail. In His love, God will send us His Word of correction and healing. Exposing the failure is part of the healing process. Let’s not fight it.

Since we no longer bear Adam’s old nature, let’s prove our new life by always being open to correction and rebuke. Despite the pain of being found faulty, let’s rise up in the power of God’s Spirit and celebrate correction, rather than abhor it.