ESOCS Devotional 11 October 2022
TEXT: 1 SAMUEL 4:1-18
MEMORY VERSE: “So the Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and every man fled to his tent. There was a very great slaughter, and there fell of Israel thirty thousand foot soldiers. Also the ark of God was captured; and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, died” 1 Samuel 4:10 & 11
0 And the apostles, when they had returned, told Him all that they had done. Then He took them and went aside privately into a deserted place belonging to the city called Bethsaida. 11 But when the multitudes knew it, they followed Him; and He received them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who had need of healing. 12 When the day began to wear away, the twelve came and said to Him, “Send the multitude away, that they may go into the surrounding towns and country, and lodge and get provisions; for we are in a deserted lace ”
God commanded Moses to build the Ark. It was to be kept in the tabernacle where Israel worshiped God. It contained manna; the food the Israelites ate in the wilderness and the tablets of stone on which the Ten Commandments were written. Thus it was a symbol of God’s covenant and care for His people. Importantly, it was also the symbol of God’s presence among His people; a presence that caused great and mighty things to be done in their midst and because of them. In Egypt when the presence of God came down, Pharaoh and all Egypt were brought to their knees before God and His children Israel. With the Ark going before the Israelites into River Jordan, the big river parted in two and the children of Israel passed on dry ground. With the Ark going before the Israelites, the wall of Jericho fell as a pack of cards when they shouted praises to God.
The Israelites had every reason to believe that with the Ark in their midst, God was in their midst and He will as usual do mighty things and defeat their enemies. But alas, instead of deliverance, they were slaughtered beyond imagination. But the Ark was still sanctified and great deeds still followed it for when it was placed in the hall of Dagon, Dagon fell face down before the Ark and when the people of Ashdod raised it up, in the second day it fell down again and was broken head and arms. Furthermore, the hand of the Lord was against the people of Ashdod because of the presence of the Ark of the Lord among them, and the Lord destroyed them and smote them with diseases (1Sam 5:1-12). Thus there is no doubt on what the Ark stood for and the power and great deeds that God manifested as a result. Yet Israel went to war carrying the Ark of the Lord and instead of victory, they were slaughtered and disgraced. God had turned His back on them. He was not in their midst in spite of the presence of the Ark of the Lord. They learnt the hard way that it is not about the physical Ark, but their relationship with God of which the Ark was only a symbol. When the real thing is jeopardized, the symbol serves no purpose.
Israel had sinned against God. Their leaders as represented by Eli and his sons had sinned against God. Eli’s sons desecrated God’s sacrifice and defiled the temple of God by sleeping with harlots. God had made a decree against them and all Israel were to share in the consequences of their sin for when a leader sins, he brings guilt on his followers.
In sending for the Ark, they lost sight of its true meaning, which the sin of Israel contravened; for the Ark symbolized the holiness of God; the need to hold God in awe and approach Him with the deepest respect, reverence, and honour. Thus when sin is not dealt with, even that which symbolizes God’s presence, His covenant, and commitment to His people rather than work in their favor will work against them. People of God lose not just their salt but covering when sin is not dealt with. Relying on God’s covenant or on His mighty acts as a basis for having hope is futile when sin is not dealt with.
CHALLENGES
- Are there things in your Christian life that are to you or to your church what the Ark was to the Israelites? Enumerate them.
- What three important lessons do you learn about them from the experience of the Israelites?
PRAYERS
- Our heavenly Father, give us the grace to be true to you. May our hearts be attuned to you. Forgive us all our sins and help us to walk in uprightness before you. Amen.
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ESOCS Devotional 11 October 2022
