LIFE SCRIPTS

1 Samuel 7:1-17 NIV
[1] So the men of Kiriath Jearim came and took up the ark of the Lord. They brought it to Abinadab’s house on the hill and consecrated Eleazar his son to guard the ark of the Lord. [2] The ark remained at Kiriath Jearim a long time—twenty years in all. Then all the people of Israel turned back to the Lord. [3] So Samuel said to all the Israelites, “If you are returning to the Lord with all your hearts, then rid yourselves of the foreign gods and the Ashtoreths and commit yourselves to the Lord and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.” [4] So the Israelites put away their Baals and Ashtoreths, and served the Lord only. [5] Then Samuel said, “Assemble all Israel at Mizpah, and I will intercede with the Lord for you.” [6] When they had assembled at Mizpah, they drew water and poured it out before the Lord. On that day they fasted and there they confessed, “We have sinned against the Lord.” Now Samuel was serving as leader of Israel at Mizpah. [7] When the Philistines heard that Israel had assembled at Mizpah, the rulers of the Philistines came up to attack them. When the Israelites heard of it, they were afraid because of the Philistines. [8] They said to Samuel, “Do not stop crying out to the Lord our God for us, that he may rescue us from the hand of the Philistines.” [9] Then Samuel took a suckling lamb and sacrificed it as a whole burnt offering to the Lord. He cried out to the Lord on Israel’s behalf, and the Lord answered him. [10] While Samuel was sacrificing the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to engage Israel in battle. But that day the Lord thundered with loud thunder against the Philistines and threw them into such a panic that they were routed before the Israelites. [11] The men of Israel rushed out of Mizpah and pursued the Philistines, slaughtering them along the way to a point below Beth Kar. [12] Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far the Lord has helped us.” [13] So the Philistines were subdued and they stopped invading Israel’s territory. Throughout Samuel’s lifetime, the hand of the Lord was against the Philistines. [14] The towns from Ekron to Gath that the Philistines had captured from Israel were restored to Israel, and Israel delivered the neighboring territory from the hands of the Philistines. And there was peace between Israel and the Amorites. [15] Samuel continued as Israel’s leader all the days of his life. [16] From year to year he went on a circuit from Bethel to Gilgal to Mizpah, judging Israel in all those places. [17] But he always went back to Ramah, where his home was, and there he also held court for Israel. And he built an altar there to the Lord.

This is a story of sin, repentance, deliverance and restoration. Isn’t that what we desire as believers? The Ark of the covenant remained in Kirjath Jearim for 20 years. It wasn’t in the place it was meant to be. But Samuel rallied the people towards God. He encouraged them to put away the idols in their lives and turn back to God. Leadership is about pointing people to God. As I live out my daily life, do I point people to Christ? What are some ways I can point people to Christ? By being a person of integrity, being committed to my family, being committed to serving others, being committed to obeying God’s word. In the midst of a nation that had departed from God, a nation that was doing things the best way they know how, Samuel arose with a heart committed to God and chose to point people to God. Remember that during these times, God’s voice was rare. However, God spoke through the voice of a man, Samuel. Situations around your life may be dark. Hopelessness may be setting in. But am I sensitive to God’s voice? I can choose to take command of my environment and the point the people around me towards God. So the Israelites abandoned their gods and committed themselves to Jehovah. They even fasted and stayed at Mizpah as they repented of their sins. God is pleased by a broken spirit. That spirit He will not despise just as it is said in Psalm 51. But an interesting analogy can be drawn from this portion of the story. As Israelites sought God, the enemy, the Philistines were conjuring up a strategy to attack them. Isn’t that so even in our daily lives? When we turn to God, isn’t it amazing how many things sometimes go wrong all around us? Truth is when we choose God, we reject the evil one, and that doesn’t make him happy at all. Small wonder that we are tempted in many ways when we choose to serve the true God. But let’s look at Israel’s response once besieged by the enemy. They cried out to God even more. They even asked Samuel to intercede for them. We have an intercessor in Christ Jesus. Just like Samuel of old, He can intercede on our behalf before God. But even beyond that, He is the lamb that was slain for our deliverance just like Samuel offered that suckling lamb before God. When the enemy is encamped around us, all we need to do is to call upon Jesus, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. He takes away our sin and sins. Sin because of the original sin of Adam and Eve…sins because we sin everyday and seek forgiveness from Him. So, as Samuel was offering up the lamb, God responded and confused the enemy. The Israelites then pursued and slaughtered them. God responds to the plea of the vulnerable. Picture this…the Israelites seemed trapped. They were not prepared for war, and yet the powerful Philistine army was ready to slaughter them. The Israelites were vulnerable and depended solely on God. And the God they depended on never disappointed. Let’s look at the times in our lives when we’ve been cornered and are out of options. The enemy and his agents are set all around us, and we don’t even have the strength to put up a fight. Probably we are caught between a rock and a hard place…we can’t look forward or backward, but we can lift up our eyes and wait upon the One we depend on, Jehovah. So the enemy was routed before their very eyes. Scripture reminds us of this fact in Psalms 23 “…He prepares for me a table before enemies…”. Not only will God thunder, confuse, and defeat the Enemy and enemies. He’ll also restore to us what was stolen. Israelites not only won the war but retook their towns from the enemy. What the enemy has stolen will be given back to you. That’s the God we serve.