Impossible!

I've been enjoying 2 scriptures from Hebrews that tell us about 2 things which are IMPOSSIBLE.

"For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins" (Heb 10:4)

How wonderful it is for believers to appreciate once again that our sin has been fully dealt with once and for all by the Lord Jesus Christ at the cross of Calvary! Hebrews tells us all about this better sacrifice, and it should warm our hearts as we refresh our souls and consider it once again.

The writer to the Hebrews tells us that the Lord Jesus gave himself as "one sacrifice for sins forever" and again that he "put away sins by the sacrifice of himself". Amazing words, especially when we consider that our verse here tells us that no amount of sacrifices of bulls, goats or any beasts would take away sin or deal with its penalty or power. This was an impossibility! Nothing we could ever offer to God would deal with sin and make us right with God once and for all, nothing would fully satisfy the claims of a righteous and holy God against sin. The blood of sacrificed beasts would only cover sins for a season, this was never a permanent solution.

We thank God that there was a better and perfect sacrifice in the person of his beloved Son and Hebrews tells us that he "offered himself without spot to God". This was the difference, here was a perfect spotless sacrifice! The Lord Jesus was the Lamb of God, which was sent to take away the sins of the world (as John the Baptist correctly identified). The scriptures tell us that his precious blood cleanses us from all sin, so we can have every confidence that this once and for all sacrifice has fully dealt with our sins, as he has paid the price with his precious blood and we are saved, forgiven and redeemed!

"but without faith it is impossible to please him (God)" (Heb 11:6)

We realise as believers in Christ that we were (and still are) sinners, and as such we could never offer anything to God, and we have seen this already as Hebrews makes this very clear. Hebrews also illustrates the importance of faith, and this is the response God looks for in men and women today. To respond to that perfect sacrifice by repenting of that sin that took his Son to Calvary to bear it away and to turn to him putting faith and trust in Him!

We thank God for the day we realised we were sinners and that Christ had died for our sin and put faith and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ and his finished work at Calvary.

Day by day let us remind ourselves of these things and offer thanks and praise to God!

Yours in Christ, Mark.

 

Some thoughts on "all things"

Dear fellow believers, I had been thinking a few weeks ago at the beginning of a New Year about the phrase "all things new". This phrase comes from Revelation 21 as the Lord announces the new heavens and the new earth after all prophecy has been fulfilled and the Lord brings in a new heavens and a new earth fit for the eternal state.

As we look around at the world around us, we can't help but contrast this wonderful prospect with the sin and misery that we see around us! Surely we can echo the words of the apostle: "For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now."

This sparked my interest in a short study of other mentions of "all things" and I found it most profitable.

Where to start then? I often find myself thinking this and end up starting at the beginning, common sense I suppose!

"All things were made by him" John 1:3

There are other scriptures as well which would testify to the creatorial power of our Lord Jesus Christ (Colossians 1 for example) and of course this would point us into the past, showing us that the Lord Jesus was there at the beginning, displaying his power and deity bringing all things into being. This would surely reinforce to us his eternal sonship, there was never a time when Christ was not there!

"They wondered every one at all things which Jesus did" Luke 9:43

This scripture would direct us not now into eternity past but to the time when he walked upon this earth and his earthly ministry. An alternative rendering would read as follows; "they were marvelling at everything he was doing" what a lovely thought this is! We remind our hearts that everything our Saviour did was incredible and amazing! He was so different to the men of the day, in fact he is unique, his actions, words and motives marked him out as special. He was the sinless, spotless Son of God, and  because this so evidently flowed out into his daily ministry, men were constantly marvelling at him. Here was God walking amongst them!

"He hath done all things well" Mark 7:37

Here is another statement regarding the Lord's earthly ministry, and really it means "commendably and nobly". How unlike men! How pure and refreshing it must have been to see the Lord at work, to witness his great love and compassion for the people of his day. As you read the gospel records you become acutely aware that the Saviour continually reached out and touched people's lives and made a life-changing impact! Of course this he still does today, through his so great salvation which is freely offered to all and has the power to change lives for all eternity.

"Behold we go up to Jerusalem and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of Man shall be accomplished" Luke 18:31

It never ceases to amaze me when I remind myself that the Saviour knew "all things". He knew all that the prophets had written concerning his life and death, for he was the very Word that was made flesh. He knew the evil and wickedness in mens hearts and all that they were capable of and exactly their intentions toward him, and yet he came and allowed himself to be taken. Philippians 2 really brings this out:

"But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross."

We praise God that the Saviour was willing to go to that cross and endure all things and fulfil all things, despite knowing all that this would entail and mean for him. Because he did, we are saved!

"Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt" Mark 14:36

It is sobering and humbling to think again that all things were possible for God, but he spared not his own Son! That was one thing he would not do, as Romans tells us. He made the heavens and the earth, he is all-powerful, all-knowing and all-present, he cannot fail, he cannot lie but he would not spare his only beloved Son who was daily his delight the shame and suffering of Calvary. He bore the judgement for our sin, in his own body on the tree:

"Death and the curse were in our cup;

O Christ 'twas full for thee!

But thou hast drained the last dark drop;

'Tis empty now for me;

That bitter cup, love drank it up - 

Now blessings draught for me"

 

"He hath given all things into his hand" John 3:35, "He hath put all things under his feet" Ephesians 1:22

I realise that these statements were ever true of the Saviour, and in particular the Lord's words from John's Gospel were before the cross, but it is refreshing and encouraging to think about these in the present and future contexts. Today he sits at his Father's right hand and he is over and above all things, and he has been given all things into his hand. He who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death is now exalted higher than the heavens and is over all things! Hebrews reminds us that at present we don't yet see all things under him, so although God has given him this position we do not yet see him fully exercising it. But one day soon he will - God has decreed it and it is as certain as if it were a present reality! We have quoted from Philippians 2 already and it is good to read on in that chapter which tell us so much about the lowly place he took:

"Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

"That in all things He might have the pre-eminence" Colossians 1:18

The Amplified version is good to refer to here: "so that he alone in everything and in every respect might occupy the chief place..." What powerful and challenging words! We have learned that he is over everything in terms of creation but now we are learning that he is over all the Church, and should be at the centre of everything we do.

Of course it is very easy for Christ to fall from pre-eminence, just take a look at wider Christendom where men have replaced Christ as the focal point. How sad should that be the case for us whether in our private lives or as a collective in our local churches. On the flip side it is probably very easy to give him the pre-eminence on a Sunday morning or even throughout the whole day, but may God help us to give him that rightful place all the time! I found this very challenging and readily acknowledge my own failing and weakness in this fundamental aspect of Christian living.

May God help us to ensure he is at the centre of our lives both privately and collectively and may he be the focus of all our activities for Him. May our testimonies and service be strengthened by this resolve!

Yours in Christ, Mark

 

 

 

 

"Great David's Greater Son"

Sometimes we can enjoy looking at types and shadows of Christ in the scriptures, but recently I've been enjoying looking at the contrast between David's son Absalom and as the hymn writer puts it "great David's greater Son" our Lord Jesus Christ. What can we learn then?

Absalom's outward appearance:

"but in all Israel there was none to be so much praised as Absalom for his beauty: from the sole of his foot even to the crown of his head there was no blemish in him"

Clearly Absalom was a very good-looking man, the best in fact! However inside it was a very different story. Inside there was sin: hatred, malice, pride, ambition, ruthlessness and arrogance to name but a few!

How different from our Saviour! Here was one who had no outward beauty:

"he hath no form nor comeliness, when we shall see him there is no beauty that we should desire him"

However inwardly of course we know that like Absalom on the outside, there was no blemish at all! The scripture records that he knew no sin, he did no sin, and in him is no sin.

What about the character of Absalom?

Certainly he was a man characterised by pride and vanity, hatred and malice, and bitterness as well! His behaviour with his half-brother Amnon in 2 Sam 13 certainly bears this out, no matter what you think about Amnon. He was also a proud and arrogant man. Just look at his obsession with his appearance and growing and cutting his hair (2 Sam 14:25,26); his entourage that travelled with him (2 Sam 15:1); and his clamour for position and power (2 Sam 15:4). He was a man with mis-placed ambition, he wanted a position that was not his to claim!

What a contrast with our Lord Jesus Christ. Philippians 2 says that "he humbled himself" and that "he made himself of no reputation" and that he "thought it not robbery to be equal with God" and prophetically it was said of him "I am meek and lowly". Here was one who knew nothing of pride or self-promotion.

In contrast to Absalom our Saviour was kind, gentle, gracious and compassionate. "When he was reviled he reviled not again, and when he suffered he threatened not."

What about his relationship with his father?

The record shows that Absalom usurped his father's authority and rebelled against him, scheming for the kingdom and stealing the hearts of the people away. He also took glory from David and brought shame on him instead. Remember that following the incident with Amnon he fled from his father to Geshur to his grandfather, such was the severity of his behaviour! Furthermore he fulfilled the prophetic judgement of Nathan when he defiled his father's concubines in view of the whole nation.

With the Lord Jesus we can immediately see the contrast as he did "always those things that please the Father" he was "daily thy delight" and the Father was delighted and well pleased with his Son. He  did not seek a position that was not his to have, the position he has at the Father's right hand over and above everything else is his by right, given to him by his Father! In addition the Lord Jesus ever brought glory to his Father: "I have glorified thee on the earth". What a contrast to the rebel Absalom!

[caption id="attachment_216" align="alignright" width="230" caption=""And Absalom rode upon a mule, and the mule went under the thick boughs of a great oak, and his head caught hold of the oak, and he was taken up between the heaven and the earth; and the mule that was under him went away.""][/caption]

What can we learn about Absalom's death?

This very interesting, as it records in 2 Sam 18 that Absalom was "taken up between the  heaven and the earth"  as he rode upon his ass away from the battle in the woods of Ephraim. So like the Saviour he died on a tree, however there the similarities end. Absalom was there against his will, held there by his hair - that symbol of his fleshly pride and arrogance!

The Lord Jesus also hung on a tree between heaven and earth but of course he was there voluntarily as a willing victim. He was there according to the Father's will. The prophet records that "they pierced my hands and my feet" Unlike Absalom this is what held him to the tree at Calvary! His hands - symbols of his gracious works and acts of compassion! His feet - symbols of that perfect pathway and righteous walk whilst down here.

The epilogue that followed the death of Absalom:

Remember the abject grief of David? "O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! would God I had died for thee, O Absalom, my son, my son!" There can be no doubt that David was grief-stricken and would have done anything to save his son from death, to the extent he would have died in his place! It is with profound thanks and praise that we read in Romans 8 "He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all" God would not spare his Son, but delivered him up to die for us all!

Finally there is a further interesting point concerning Absalom. He was very concerned about his legacy: "Now Absalom in his lifetime had taken and reared up for himself a pillar, which is in the king's dale: for he said, I have no son to keep my name in remembrance" We read in 2 Sam 14 that Absalom did have 3 sons born to him but they must have died in early life and so here was a man who was paranoid about having sons to remember him and a legacy left behind!

How lovely to compare this to the Lord Jesus. Unlike Absalom he has many sons who remember his name! "bringing many sons to glory" Heb 2:10 We have been made "by grace sons of God" We are His sons! We are in this blessed and privileged position through his grace and we gather together to keep his name in remembrance:

"this do in remembrance of me"

"for as often as ye take this bread and drink this cup ye do show forth the Lords death until he come"

How wonderful it is to return as grateful and blessed sons and offer up our praise and worship to our father God for our Lord Jesus Christ!

We trust that these simple thoughts will be enjoyed and bring benefit to our souls and much worship to God. As always, all comments are welcome.

Yours in Christ, Mark

 

Are you a jealous person?

It is little wonder that jealousy is known as "the green-eyed monster", for it is indeed a dangerous and sinister force that can damage and weaken the testimony of the Lord's people. As we read through First Samuel we can see that Saul himself seems to have fallen victim to its destructive influence.



Notice how that in 1 Samuel 13 that the victory that Jonathan had won over the Philistine garrison at Gera quickly becomes Saul's victory:

"And Jonathan smote the garrison of the Philistines that was in Geba, and the Philistines heard of it. And Saul blew the trumpet throughout all the land, saying, Let the Hebrews hear.

And all Israel heard say that Saul had smitten a garrison of the Philistines..."

How easy it was for Saul to twist the message so that the people were under the impression that it was his hard-fought victory! We see this again of course, famously in chapter 18 after David had defeated Goliath:

"And the women answered one another as they played, and said, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands.

And Saul was very wroth, and the saying displeased him; and he said, They have ascribed unto David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed but thousands: and what can he have more but the kingdom?

And Saul eyed David from that day and forward"

Saul's attitude seems churlish and petty, but I think this is perhaps more common than we think amongst the people of God today! I know this because I have witnessed it myself, whether it be a spirit of bitterness or a sly comment that is meant to take away from a fellow brother or sister's good work. At the heart of it is jealousy, that someone else should be progressing and being used of God instead of us! Our pride and flesh puffs up and we feel aggrieved and sorry for ourselves, and just like Saul here our thoughts turn dark and destructive as the flesh takes hold and gets the better of us.

Just look at how this unsavoury part of Saul's character festers and takes root, soon he is hurling javelins at David in fits of rage and experiencing wild mood swings. I'm not sure a true believer would go this far (!) but it surely shows us the ultimate end of such an unhealthy attitude! God give us the necessary grace in our lives to have a right outlook and right relationships with our fellow believers.

Remember that Paul speaks much about pride and jealousy in his letter to the Corinthians:

Paul warns - "that no one of you be puffed up for one against another"

And again he exhorts the believers - "Love suffereth long, and is kind; love envieth not; love vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,

Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;

Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;

Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things..."

I think these verses are most challenging, may God help us to realise their import in our own lives!

Yours in Christ, Mark

Saul: Outwardly Good, Inwardly Bad

I wonder if our inside matches our outside? What I mean by that is that it's very easy to put on a front and appear spiritual on the outside, to be at the meetings and look the part etc. But what about on the inside, where it matters? Do we have a love for the Lord? Do we have an interest and passion for the things of God? Are we concerned with living a holy life, where Christ comes first?

I want to look at Saul's early life to show you what I mean.

[caption id="attachment_205" align="alignleft" width="193" caption="The important lesson with Saul is not to judge people on their outward appearance, a bit like books by their covers..."][/caption]

Directing our attention to 1 Samuel 9, this chapter introduces us properly to Saul, the first king of Israel. It is important to note that despite Saul's weaknesses and failures that he was God's choice for the people at that time, v16+17 of this chapter would make that clear I feel. Let's look at a few things in this chapter and make some applications to Saul and learn some lessons.

Saul and the asses

Whereas David is associated with sheep when we first meet him,(a picture of his gentle & caring shepherd character) Saul on the other hand is associated with asses. These beasts are wild and unruly, stubborn and belligerent. Looking at Saul's later life, it's not heard to see similarities between the two! It is not clear that Saul himself lost his fathers asses (that would be conjecture, although a possibility!) what is clear is that Kish felt it wise to send Saul with a servant to handle the task. In the light of Saul's attitude later on, perhaps Kish knew his son's character better and didn't trust him by himself to do it!

See in v5 how easily Saul gives up, it certainly comes across in the text that Saul seems to be looking for an excuse to go home! He again looks for excuses in v7, anything to get out of continued searching! As I read this I certainly found this challenging in relation to my attitude to hard work in my Christian life, and my work within the assembly - do I shy away from hard work, or am I a 'fellow-labourer'  as Paul would say?

Saul meets Samuel

In fact, the servant seems to show more drive and determination than Saul! He shows a willingness and resourcefulness to get the job done, and also a good deal more spiritual discernment. Note that it is the servant who knows about the man of God (Samuel), Saul certainly didn't he didn't even know him when face to face with Samuel in v18! The servant knew where Samuel lived and he also had something to give him, Saul on the other hand was ignorant and totally unprepared. Don't forget that Samuel was long-established as a prophet, priest and judge in Israel (see chapter 3:20 and 4:1) and the scriptures tell us that he judged Israel all the days of his life, so for Saul to be completely oblivious to this shows a real lack of interest and spirituality I would judge.

It seems as though God chose Saul to show the people that rule by man instead of God was going to be far from perfect. Also, by choosing someone physically impressive to lead them was also wrong thinking. The people of God needed strong spiritual leaders (and we still do!) and Saul was not that. Saul was externally very impressive, verse 2 makes that clear! But as God later said to Samuel when selecting David, "man looks on the outward appearance but the Lord looks upon the heart..." God had a different set of criteria, and Saul's failure would lead to God installing David instead, a man after his own heart.

The Lord challenge our hearts as we strive to be internally what we appear to be externally!

Yours in Christ, Mark

"make us a king"

Our article today focusses on the disappointing desire of the people of God to prefer the rule of man to the direct rule of God.

The situation is like this: Samuel is now old and sadly his sons are rebellious and do not follow in his ways. Unfortunately it appears that it took the people to point this out to Samuel, as there is no mention of their behaviour previously. It presented a problem to the people as they were not sure what would happen when Samuel died, perhaps they were selfishly thinking, "what's going to happen to us? Who is going to judge us then?"

Quite wrongly they make their request - "make us a king to judge us like all the nations" 1 Sam 8:5



After all they had experienced, after all the history of divine blessing, guidance and provision they no longer want God to rule over them.It seems that they no longer appreciated that they were different and distinct from the nations. They seem to have forgotten that God singled them out for blessing and separated them to himself: "for thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy God, and the Lord hath chosen thee to be a peculiar people unto himself, above all the nations that are upon the earth" Deut 14:2

Let us be clear that this is exactly what they were insinuating, for the request displeased Samuel, and God made it clear to him that "they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them" 1 Sam 8:7

Remember that the people had tried this once before, in the book of Judges chapter 8 the people approach Gideon - "rule thou over us... for thou hast delivered us from the hand of Midian" and we recall the wise and magnanimous response of Gideon, which is useful to remember here - "I will not rule over you... the Lord shall rule over you"

Of course, we know what happened, God gave them what they wanted and so began a line of kings marked largely by failure, weakness and wickedness. Even the best of the kings failed at some point, as they were only sinful men at the end of the day, just like us! The kings basically teach us that man is a poor substitute for God, and as the Psalms say - "It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man"

I am sure most of us will understand that one day there will be a perfect king who will reign in righteousness, the king of kings and Lord of Lords, our blessed Lord Jesus Christ! Isaiah 32:1 and Psalm 24 would make this clear to us.

Going back to our account in 1 Samuel 8 though, we would apply the broad lesson to ourselves today and ask ourselves the following searching questions:

• Do we honour men more than we honour God?


• Do we value and respect the thoughts and opinions of men more than the truth of the Word of God?


• Do we prefer to identify ourselves with fellow-men or with God?


• Do we appreciate the fact that we ourselves are distinct and different from the world, that we are sanctified positionally and separated unto God?

Let us be challenged by the import of this sad account in the nation's history.

Lessons concerning the ark (1 Samuel 6)

The ark is sent back by the Philistines following 7 months in their land. They send it back on a cart pulled by 2 dairy cows and it makes its way to Bethshemesh, west of Jerusalem. The men of Bethshemesh rejoice to see the ark return to them and show their joy by offering a sacrifice to God there and then using the cows and the wood of the cart.

There can be no doubting that this was an admirable and appropriate response - they were so glad to see that which spoke of the things of God again, that they spontaneously made sacrifices to God using the available materials to hand! They didn't wait, they didn't put it off, they didn't go home to do other things first! Their hearts were ready to worship there and then and they wouldn't let anything get in the way of that. This should speak to us today...

Are we slow to worship? Of course we are not solely talking about on a Lord's Day morning, for worship can be given at any time! Are our hearts in a state of readiness to worship?  Do we let other things get in the way of giving worship? Are we too lazy to worship, or to prepare to worship? Perhaps for the younger men who may be reading this - are you too self-conscious to worship publicly? Too concerned with what others may think of your contribution? Let me encourage you in this: prepare something simple, that your heart is taken up with and go for it. "Just do it" - as the Nike slogan says. If your nerves or insecurity is stopping you from publicly worshipping, then let me tell you, the best remedy is to take the plunge or forever sit in silence! What a tragedy this would be, but very sadly it happens.

[caption id="attachment_198" align="alignleft" width="264" caption="An aerial shot showing some ancient ruins at Bethshemesh"][/caption]

The attitude of praise from the men of Bethshemesh stands in stark contrast to what happened next. For some reason, which is not given or described, the men of Bethshemesh decide to look into the ark. Did they not know there would be consequences? Did they do it out of ignorance? Or did their curiosity get the better of them and cause them to knowingly disobey the commandment of God? We do not know, but the holiness and righteousness of God demanded that there be judgement for such a transgression, and he smote the men of Bethshemesh so that 50,070 lost their lives.

Here is what I learn from this; praise and worship is good and needful, but we must also be knowledgeable of God and his ways. We should always show reverence when handling the holy things of God and be obedient to his Word! What does Samuel later say to Saul in chapter 15:

"Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams."

We do well to heed the lessons of 1 Samuel 6 - Worship is vital, it should be spontaneous, natural and also genuine and from over-flowing hearts. However we must also recognise that we deal with a holy and a righteous God when we come into God's presence, and we handle holy things when we handle his Word. But moreover, God values more than anything else obedience to his Word and a willingness to do his will, to honour him and put him first in our lives.

God give us help and discipline to put this into practice in our lives.

Yours in Christ, Mark

Lessons concerning the ark (1 Samuel 5)

Moving on from chapter 4 I think there is also a strong challenge to our hearts concerning the ark in chapter 5. Once again the picture is of the ark as the things of God in our lives, and this time we break into the story with the ark captured and in the land of the Philistines.

Chapter 5 - The Ark is Demoted

The ark is taken by the Philistines to Ashdod and into the temple of Dagon where it is placed by the statue of Dagon. Most of us will know the story; in the morning the idol had fallen on its face before the ark, and on the second day it had fallen to the earth with its hands and head cut off!

[caption id="attachment_195" align="alignleft" width="220" caption="Dagon - Fish god of the Philistines"][/caption]

The Philistines had made the mistake of demoting the ark (symbolic of the power, glory, holiness and grace of God!) to an object to be placed alongside their heathen idol Dagon. I wonder if we too are sometimes guilty of the same? What do you mean, I hear you say? Well, I believe that we believers can also be guilty of idolatry in our lives! An idol can be anything that we have promoted in our lives that takes a disproportionate amount of our time, resources, affections and interest. It is something that takes the place of God in our lives, and assumes the dominant object in our hearts affection. It can be something in our life that we value and treasure above everything else, it can be an object, an interest, a sport or a passion/hobby. Remember the words of God himself - "Thou shalt have no other gods before me... for I the LORD they God am a jealous God"

God is jealous of our time and attention, he wants to be number one in our lives, and what's more he deserves to be, for he has intervened in grace and saved us from judgement and hell! He has bought us with a great price, the precious blood of his dear Son, and we belong to Him and He is our Lord and Saviour. Dare we relegate God to just another 'interest' or just another 'hobby' in our lives? As we look around churches today, perhaps we can see examples of people who have done just that. They don't see God as any more valuable or important in their lives than all the other things they are interested in, in fact in many cases the things of God have sadly slipped WAY down the pecking order. How tragic!

I think this is extremely challenging for myself as I survey my own life and how I spend and divide my time and resources!

I am glad that God reminds us of the futility of idols in His Word, and perhaps we should consider this as we assess our own interests and priorities in life:

"The idols of the heathen are silver and gold, the work of men's hands. They have mouths but they speak not; eyes have they, but they see not; They have ears, but they hear not; neither is there any breath in their mouths. They that make them are like unto them: so is every one that trusteth in them." Psalm 135:15-18

I believe God shows this in our passage in 1 Samuel, as it is interesting that Dagon's head and hands were severed as he lay face down before the ark! Here was God demonstrating to one and all that Dagon was empty, hollow, subservient to the ark and the power of God, he had neither intelligence (the head) or power (the hands).

May God preserve us from modern-day idolatry and unhealthy interests and unbalanced priorities! May we take up the challenge and reassess our priorities and ambitions and may they be for the things of God and his Son the Lord Jesus Christ. May we never demote the things of God in our lives in favour of earthly interests or worldly pursuits.

Yours in Christ, Mark

Lessons concerning the ark (1 Samuel 4)

Summarising these chapters 4 through to 6 in 1 Samuel, I notice that the ark of the covenant is prominent and there are 3 simple but challenging lessons we can learn here.

The ark speaks powerfully of the things of God, it represented Gods presence with his people at this time and spoke of his glory, it spoke of worship, priestly service, the Law and his provision for them.

Chapter 4 - The Ark is Lost

Here is a sad event. The people call for the ark to be brought to the battle with the Philistines, and it is clear that they had demoted it to nothing more than a weapon, a symbol of military might and power to serve their purposes.

"let us fetch the ark... it may save us out of the hand of our enemies"

They did not seek Gods help or presence, and crucially they showed no faith in God. They simply rushed to use the ark as a mere object or tool! Perhaps there is a danger for us too to view the things of God in this way? Are we simply taken up with the things of a God as an 'object' in our lives to serve our purposes? A tool that we simply refer to when we are in need of help or a 'boost'? Do we forget the person and character of God and our personal relationship with him? Have we lost the true enjoyment and appreciation of the things of God?

Look at the fallout from this towards the end of the chapter. Although the spiritual condition of the land was poor at this time, it seems there were individuals who felt the huge sense of loss. Eli, the ageing priest who had in many ways failed to be a strong spiritual character and lead by example, falls backward off his chair at the news that the ark had been lost. Note that he was also given bad news about his 2 sons, but it is the news regarding the ark that evoked such a powerful reaction! Finally, note the tragic case of the wife of Phinehas, who went suddenly and violently into labour and lost her life as a result of hearing the news regarding the loss of the ark. Her reaction to this awful news seemed to be the main reason she calls her soon to be orphaned child Ichabod, as the glory had departed from Israel - the ark was a symbol of the glory of God! She clearly far more spiritual than her wicked husband Phinehas, and there is a lesson here too in wisely choosing our husband or wife!

[caption id="attachment_190" align="alignright" width="300" caption="The Ark of the Covenant - It spoke of God and his wonderful character"][/caption]

I wonder if we put similar value and regard on the things of God in our lives? Of course I know we don't have a physical symbol like the ark to treasure and hold dear but we are using this as a picture of our enjoyment of the things of God in all the forms that this can take. I challenge myself; Do I have a driving passion for the things of God? If these things were taken from me would I too be heartbroken and devastated? Notice that in both examples the news of the loss of the ark ultimately caused their deaths! They were nothing without the ark, there was no life without it! Simply put; if we lose the value of the things of God it will ultimately lead to spiritual death. We become empty and shallow Christians, no good for worship or service. We may go through the motions but ultimately we have lost the heart and soul of our Christian lives.

May the Lord challenge our hearts in this matter.

Yours in Christ, Mark

Samuel's spiritual growth

As we move on into First Samuel we can chart the growth and development of the boy Samuel. It is of course encouraging to see that he not only grew and developed physically but that he also grew spiritually in the things of God!

Let's look at this from the text.

2:11 "And the child did minister unto the LORD before Eli the priest."

When Samuel was a child he served as a child, and here we see that he humbly serves under Eli, assisting in the daily duties in the tabernacle at Shiloh. He was just a child the verse reminds us, but he was still able to serve the Lord in a simple way! Our spiritual or physical age is no barrier to simply serving God. However, it would not have been appropriate for the child Samuel to have started lecturing the people and preaching at them, so as a young boy he serves God in a simpler way until such time that he has grown spiritually in order to take on a more public responsibility for God.

This verse is also poignant as it mentions that Elkanah his father went home to Ramah where the family home was, but Samuel of course stayed and served the LORD in Shiloh. It must have been hard for parent and child alike to be separated, but what an opportunity for Samuel to serve God! What a lesson for us, it is necessary sometimes to separate ourselves in dedication to the things of God, to study and learn more of him in order to grow spiritually. Sometimes this will mean that we have to spend less time with other legitimate things in order to spend time with the Lord, but he will reward them that honour him in this way.

2:26 "And the child Samuel grew on, and was in favour both with the LORD, and also with men."

Here we see that Samuel's spiritual growth is beginning to have an effect on those around him! The people can see that there is something different and appealing about this boy Samuel. His attributes are beginning to shine through, and his growth is recognised by God and the people. Of course we shouldn't strive to impress those around us with spirituality or make an outward show of 'all the things we are doing for God', but people in our churches or even in secular circles should be able to see that there are signs of spiritual life, and there should be a testimony for God.

This too is proof that the simple service in the Sanctuary has had an effect on our lives and that we are developing spiritually. The years Samuel spent serving Eli had a positive effect on his life as he was serving God and learning more about him.

3:19-21 "And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground. And all Israel... knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the LORD... the LORD revealed himself to Samuel..."

The LORD blessed Samuel, he was with him and fulfilled his purposes and will through him. This is what is meant by "and let none of his words fall to the ground". In other words, God fulfilled his prophecies that were spoken by his servant Samuel. God saw fit to actively use and work through Samuel! The same can be said of us if we apply ourselves to the things of God and grow spiritually.

Here we see the ultimate fulfilment of  what we spoke about in our previous point - all Israel, from the very north to the very south of the country, knew that Samuel was going to be something for God. May we strive to merit the same reputation, by growing spiritually and being an example to others!

The LORD revealed himself to Samuel - what a tremendous privilege and blessing, but one that can be ours as well! By growing in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, he will reveal himself to us if we live closely with him day by day and apply ourselves to his Word.

4:1 "And the word of Samuel came to all Israel."

Here we see Samuel fully moving into a public sphere of ministry now, and his words come to all the people. Please note that he has grown substantially, I would judge that he is certainly no longer a child! He has served faithfully in the tabernacle all those years, humbly and simply, yet quietly and obediently. This was a crucial stage in Samuel's growth and development, and so it must be for every believer! We cannot expect to launch ourselves into public service if we have not grown spiritually, and known God in the Sanctuary first. Even the Apostle Paul, who went into public service very soon after conversion, still spent several days (without sight and without food and drink) engaged in prayer to God!

7:15-17 "And Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life. And he went from year to year in circuit to Bethel, and Gilgal, and Mizpeh, and judged Israel in all those places. And his return was to Ramah, for there was his house; and there he judged Israel; and there he built an altar unto the LORD."

Finally here we see firstly, the faithfulness of Samuel, that he judged Israel ALL the days of his life. What a commendation and testimony! We also see something of his constant service and activity, for he travelled through the area on a constant circuit serving God in the locality. Please note that these places were all fairly local to where he lived in Ramah. He didn't travel to places hundreds or thousands of miles away which would have taken him far away from his home town, he certainly had a burden for Ramah and the nearby cities and towns. I think this is possibly relevant for us today, to have a burden primarily for our localities and the place where we live. However I fully appreciate that modern methods of transport make it far easier for those of us engaged in public service such as preaching to travel around and get to places further afield without detriment to our local assemblies or our families!

I think it's touching that Samuel set up home in Ramah, the place where he was born and where his parents home was. I'm not saying there is a lesson here for us to stay where our parents live, as God will move people wherever he will to serve him! I do think though that it is touching that Samuel returned to Ramah from Shiloh after he had fully grown and matured, to operate and serve God in his home town. No doubt his parents would have been thrilled to have him close by and to see their son fully grown and serving God in such a way! There can be no doubt that it is encouraging to see younger ones growing in the things of God, and never underestimate how encouraging this is for older believers!

May the Lord bless as we apply ourselves to our own spiritual growth and development.

Yours in Christ, Mark