How can we tell the difference between a real God and a false god? How can you know that the God you worship is real?
The Israelites and the Philistines both believed with great sincerity that the Gods they worshipped were real. The Israelites thought that if they brought the ark of the covenant with them into battle they’d win because their God was the true and living God who made heaven and earth. When the Philistines defeated the Israelites they were convinced that it was because their gods were more powerful than the Israelites’ God. So how can we know?
Let’s look at 1 Sam 4. "In those days the Philistines mustered for war against Israel, and Israel went out to battle against them; they encamped at Ebenezer, and the Philistines encamped at Aphek." Ironically Ebenezer means "stone of help." Maybe the Israelites thought it would be a good omen for them to camp by the "Rock of Help." Certainly, as they soon discovered, they needed all the help they could get!
Then the battle begins. The Philistines spread out and the Israelites are defeated. 4000 men are killed and the armies return to their camp. The Israelites call a council of war to discuss this defeat and the first question that comes up is ’Why?’ ’Why has the Lord put us to rout today? We thought we were fighting with the living God on our side and yet we’ve been decimated by these pagan Philistines. What are we going to do about it?’
Then someone has a bright idea. ’Let’s bring the ark of the covenant of the LORD up from Shiloh so he’ll come among us and save us from the power of our enemies.’ What a great idea! If we want God fighting for us, then let’s get him here.
Now can you see the problem with this approach? Can you see what’s wrong with their theology for a start? They understand God’s presence and the ark as being one and the same thing. They haven’t really understood that the ark is just a visual cue to help them understand God’s presence with them. And they think that if God is with them they’ll win. They have what’s really a superstitious understanding of the presence of God with them. They think that if the ark is physically present then God will be too and so everything will be all right.
But they also have a problem in their approach to working out the will of God. In fact they don’t stop to answer their own question, do they? They’ve asked "Why has the Lord put us to rout today?" But they never stop to find the answer. Instead they find their own solution to their dilemma.
Now can I just say that they’re not alone in that error. Lots of us take the same approach when we encounter difficulties in life. We have a problem so we jump in with the first solution that springs to mind. We don’t stop and ask God if he’s trying to tell us something. We don’t stop and ask God if he has a suggestion for us. Instead we rely on our own ingenuity. And sometimes we even revert to a superstitious approach just like the Israelites. We think if only we change something in the way we’ve been acting everything will be better. Or we try bargaining with God. Or we look for omens that’ll point us to the right way to go. Some people even use religious items, a Bible or a prayer book, a cross, or a religious painting of some sort, almost as good luck charms.
You know, the Israelites actually had an alternative to this approach that we’re told about at the very start of the passage, but they didn’t even consider it. The passage begins with the statement "And the word of Samuel came to all Israel." They have in their midst someone to whom God has revealed himself and who’s able to bring them a message straight from God. But they don’t even think of using him.
If you think about it, we’re actually better off than them, aren’t we? We have the word of God given to us in written form to teach us, to reprove us, to correct us, and to train us in righteousness. And each of us has our own direct line to God. We don’t need to go through an intermediary. We don’t need a Samuel in our midst to bring us God’s words. We can ask God directly for guidance through his Holy Spirit who lives within us. We can ask him to lead us and guide us as we read his word. We don’t need to resort to superstitious approaches. We have the Living God present within us waiting to lead us and guide us if only we’ll ask.
Well, the Israelites try this bright idea of theirs. Eli’s sons, Hophni and Phinehas bring the Ark of the Covenant down from Shiloh and the strategy seems to be working. When the ark arrives in the camp the army’s confidence rises tremendously. A bit like Muttiah Muralitharan arriving to play for the Sri Lankans the other day. And as the Israelites’ hopes rise the Philistines’ fall to the same degree. They know about this God of Israel who’s already defeated the Egyptians. And they’re scared stiff. The Israelite Elders think they’ve done it. This’ll make all the difference! And so the fight resumes next morning and unlike Sri Lanka vs Australia, this time Israel loses again and this time 30,000 soldiers die! What’s more, the ark of the covenant is captured and Hophni and Phinehas are killed. Finally, when Eli hears about it he too dies.
And then we realise why God has allowed the Israelites to be defeated. He’d already predicted what would happen back in ch 2. God was using this defeat to punish Eli and his sons. The defiling of the Temple worship had an effect not just on those who worshipped, or even on the corrupt priesthood, but on the fortunes of the nation as a whole. The wife of Phinehas also dies, in childbirth, and on her death bed names her son Ichabod, because, she says, the glory has departed from Israel, for the ark of God has been captured.
Well, in fact the glory has departed from Israel not because the ark is lost but because the worship of God has been corrupted by her husband and brother-in-law. God has withdrawn his support because he’s angry with the way worship has being conducted.
But in fact his glory isn’t diminished. This defeat doesn’t indicate any lessening of his power. Nor does it indicate that his plans for Israel have ended. As we discover as we read on, his power is just as strong as ever. And as we read on we discover the difference between a real God and a false god.
The Philistines think they’ve won this great victory because their god is stronger than Israel’s God. That’s the way pagan people always think. The whole reason for worshipping a god is so he or she will help you in times of trouble. So they take the ark back to Ashdod where they place it in the temple of their god, Dagon, as a trophy of war, perhaps even as an offering to him.
But the next day when they return to the temple, what do they find? "There was Dagon, fallen on his face to the ground before the ark of the LORD." Whoops! Quickly pick him up and put him back on his stand. And the next morning when they come in it’s even worse. Not only is Dagon lying face down before the Ark in a position of worship, but his head and his hands are broken off and lying on the doorstep, as though they’ve been thrown away.
Mulder and Scully would have had a field day with this one wouldn’t they? How could this happen? The Philistines have defeated the Israelites and captured the Ark and now the Ark or at least the God who lives in the Ark appears to have destroyed the statue of Dagon.
But it doesn’t stop there. Not only is Dagon thrown down, but strange things begin to happen to the people of Ashdod. They experience disasters of various kinds, described here simply as things that terrify them. The people break out in tumours, or boils, painful growths.
It doesn’t take them long to work out what’s going on. This is one of those coincidences that people of those days understood. The ark of the Lord has been brought to Ashdod. People have been suffering ever since. Conclusion: we need to get rid of the ark. And so their superstitious minds lead them to a true conclusion. They shouldn’t have stolen the ark of the Lord. Having this sacred object that represents the presence of the God of Israel in their midst, as their captive so to speak, is a dangerous thing. So what do they do? They send it off to Gath, where exactly the same things happen. So they then send it off to Ekron.
Well, now the word has got around. The people of Ekron have heard what’s happened in Ashdod and Gath so they want nothing to do with it. They cry out. "Are you trying to kill us as well? Send it back where it came from." They at least understand the source of the problem and know what the only solution is. They can’t overcome the God of Israel so at least send him back where he belongs.
Now I want you to notice something here. The Israelites thought that if they brought the Ark with them into battle then God would be with them and they’d win. But it didn’t work like that. So was that because God wasn’t present with them? No. What happened when the Ark was taken off to Ashdod? God went with it. God had chosen to use the Ark as a symbol of his physical presence on the earth. So when it was moved from city to city he went with it and the plagues moved from place to place. So why didn’t the presence of the Ark help the Israelites win their battle? Was it perhaps because the battle was determined by what God wanted to achieve, not just by his being there? That particular battle was the means by which God would bring his judgement on Eli and his sons, so they were always going to lose it.
Now sometimes I think we wonder whether God is with us when things go wrong. Sometimes we think that maybe God has left us; that we’re suffering because he’s abandoned us. Maybe we feel guilty about something and think that God has left us because of our sin. But the fact that things go wrong doesn’t mean that God isn’t there. There may be all sorts of reasons why God allows things to happen, that we’re not even vaguely aware of.
Let me ask you another question. Why are you a worshipper of God, if that’s what you are? I think that’s a very good question for us to ask ourselves regularly. Are we in it for what we get out of it? The Philistines worshipped their god Dagon because they thought he brought them victory or wealth and prosperity. The Canaanites worshipped Baal and Asherah because they brought fertility to the soil. Certainly some of the Israelites thought it was good to have God on their side because he’d bring them victory. But what about us? Do we worship God for the reward of heaven? Do we worship him because we know he’ll look after us when we’re in trouble? Do we worship him because we hope he’ll give us prosperity? That’s certainly the message of some parts of the Christian Church. Or do we worship him simply because he is the true and living God? Because when he speaks the things he says happen? Because when he’s present all other gods fall down before him?
I was talking to someone the other day about why I believe that Jesus is the only way to God. I could have talked about this passage couldn’t I? You see there are lots of gods in this world. There are the gods of other religions. There are the gods of politics and the gods of commerce and economics. Here in Australia I think we’re well acquainted with the god of pleasure and self-indulgence. But none of these are truly God the way our God is. None of these can be relied upon to do what they promise the way our God can. I was reading the Age just last week and there was a report on the performance of Australian Super funds. These are the saviours of our age. These are the vehicles for our security as we all move towards old age. These are the product of the god of economics that’s been so dominant over the past 20 years or so. Well, super funds in Australia alone lost about $38 billion last year. That’s following losses of about $18 billion in the last financial year. So much for the god of economics!
But when God is captured by the Philistines what happens. They discover what a powerful God he really is. The idol they’ve been worshiping falls down before him. Then he breaks off it’s arms and head. He causes the people to suffer terrible diseases and even to die. And there’s nothing they can do about it. He’s so beyond them that all they can do is to send him somewhere else until at last they come to their senses and send him back to the Israelites where he belongs.
God is not someone we can control. He won’t just do our bidding. But he will do what he promises. As we’ll see as we continue on this study of 1 Samuel, God has great plans for Israel. He’ll establish them in the land as he promised to Abraham and to Moses. He’ll show himself to be the true and living God by the way he brings his people success and victory over their enemies.
So too, we can rely on him to do what he promises. You see, it’s good that God offers us the reward of heaven. It’s good that God promises to be with us and to lead us. That’s a sign of his love and grace towards those he loves. It’s something he does because he knows the sort of people he’s created. But the reason we worship him is not because of the reward. It’s not because of what he might do for us. It’s first and foremost because he is the one true and living God. Because before him all other gods fall down. Because before him and his son Jesus Christ, every knee in heaven and on earth will bow down and every tongue confess that Christ is the Lord to the glory of God the Father.
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