Written by: Neville & Isabel Willerton

1 Samuel 6 v 7-12
“You must build a new cart and get two cows that have just had calves. These must be cows that have never had yokes on their necks. Hitch the cows to the cart, and take the calves home, away from their mothers. Put the Ark of the LORD on the cart and the gold models for the penalty offering in a box beside the Ark. Then send the cart straight on its way. Watch the cart. If it goes toward Beth Shemesh in Israel’s own land, the LORD has given us this great sickness. But if it doesn’t, we will know that Israel’s God has not punished us. Our sickness just happened by chance.”
The Philistines did what the priests and magicians said. They took two cows that had just had calves and hitched them to the cart, but they kept their calves at home. They put the Ark of the LORD and the box with the gold rats and models of growths on the cart. Then the cows went straight toward Beth Shemesh. They stayed on the road, mooing all the way, and did not turn right or left. The Philistine kings followed the cows as far as the border of Beth Shemesh.

Notes
So often we think that God will do our every wish that all we have to do is click our fingers and he will come running like some kind of obedient lap dog. Well surprise! God doesn’t work like that. Notice within our reading that God asks the Philistine leaders to make a brand new cart, God directs them in what to do, but he doesn’t do it for them. So often, even in Christian teaching, we are told all we have to do is click our fingers. However, most of the time God asks of us and directs us to be the answer to our own prayers.

The Philistine leaders could not cope with the power of the Lord which was represented in the Ark of the covenant, they could not cope with the power of the Lord because their lives had not been surrendered to the Lord, so they could not cope with his presence.

The thief on the cross beside the dying Jesus (Luke 23 v 39 - 43) turns to Jesus and in his dying breath asks of the Lord to ‘remember me when you come into your Kingdom’. In those words he surrenders his all to Jesus, he had in those few words given over his future life to the mercy of Jesus. And the Lord remains gracious to him and says ‘today you will be with me in paradise’. Today give Jesus a chance to make a difference in your life. Surrender your all to him, now in this time of prayer entrust this hour, this day, this life to him. The only way that we can cope with the presence, or the power of the risen Jesus within our lives is to allow the sacrifice of his life to cleanse our lives. 

1 Samuel 6 v 13-16
Now the people of Beth Shemesh were harvesting their wheat in the valley. When they looked up and saw the Ark of the LORD, they were very happy. The cart came to the field belonging to Joshua of Beth Shemesh and stopped near a large rock. The people of Beth Shemesh chopped up the wood of the cart. Then they sacrificed the cows as burnt offerings to the LORD. The Levites took down the Ark of the LORD and the box that had the gold models, and they put both on the large rock. That day the people of Beth Shemesh offered whole burnt offerings and made sacrifices to the LORD. After the five Philistine kings saw this, they went back to Ekron the same day.

Notes
The Ark of the Covenant which is mentioned within our reading today symbolises the presence of the Lord. When the Philistines captured the Ark, Israel believed that God’s Spirit had departed from Israel, which is recorded a couple of chapters back. Just as Samson received strength from his hair being long and being set apart for the Lord, (Judges 16), so also Israel found strength from the physical presence of the Ark. It is significant that as the Israelites have the Ark of the covenant restored to it’s rightful place that it is done with sacrifice. In two places in this reading it mentions sacrifice. We can only be surrendered and be in the presence of the Lord through sacrifice. This was expressed in the greatest way through Jesus Christ. He is our sacrifice so that our lives can be surrendered to his and that we can cope with his presence. ‘And once again I look upon the cross where you died I’m humbled by your mercy and I’m broken inside, once again I thank you, once again I pour out my life’. (Matt Redman).

As God is restored to the rightful place within our lives, it is through the sacrifice of his Son for us that we can know his power in the centre of our beings. It is through sacrificing the things that are not of God that he can own the central place within us. Ask yourself this question: What have you given up for the Lord recently? What parts of your life have you said, ‘These are yours Lord, I give them up for you’. Today ask the Lord to show you what must be given up for him in your life. 

1 Samuel 6 v 17-21
The Philistines had sent these gold models of the growths as penalty offerings to the LORD. They sent one model for each Philistine town: Ashdod, Gaza, Ashkelon, Gath, and Ekron. And the Philistines also sent gold models of rats. The number of rats matched the number of towns belonging to the Philistine kings, including both strong, walled cities and country villages. The large rock on which they put the Ark of the LORD is still there in the field of Joshua of Beth Shemesh.
But some of the men of Beth Shemesh looked into the Ark of the LORD. So God killed seventy of them. The people of Beth Shemesh cried because the LORD had struck them down. They said, “Who can stand before the LORD, this holy God? Whom will he strike next?”
Then they sent messengers to the people of Kiriath Jearim, saying, “The Philistines have brought back the Ark of the LORD. Come down and take it to your city.”

Notes
Seventy men in our reading thought that they ‘could check God out’. They thought they could ‘do’ God as they would ‘do’ lunch or go to the movies. They were not right, their hearts were not seeking him, but only seeking a buzz. They were judged because of it. Today seek Jesus for his presence, not for the next buzz, not to look good, not because someone would like you to be a good Christian, but simply because it’s his presence that you thirst for.

I encourage you to ‘check God out’ because he has been good in your life because he deserves our every minute, our every breath and eagerly desires our thoughts and our actions to be for him and in him. He literally is dying for you. He gave his all so that you could know him. His body was busted on the cross for you and for me. Imagine how much love it must have cost him to do that for you!

Once, one of my friends drew away from the Lord and during that time I quizzed my great Aunt (aged 100) on what causes people to move away from God and how do we stay close to him? (Asking older Christians questions is one way you grow in the faith). She encouraged me to look at the cross of Christ and for that to be my greatest inspiration for spending time with the Lord and to prevent me from slipping away from him. We all need those moments to keep us close to him, otherwise we could drift from his presence. Today remind yourself what the Lord has done for you, Galatians 6 v 14 ‘May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ’.

1 Samuel 7 v 1-4
The men of Kiriath Jearim came and took the Ark of the LORD to Abinadab’s house on a hill. There they made Abinadab’s son Eleazar holy for the LORD so he could guard the Ark of the LORD.
The Ark stayed at Kiriath Jearim a long time—twenty years in all. And the people of Israel began to follow the LORD again. Samuel spoke to the whole group of Israel, saying, “If you’re turning back to the LORD with all your hearts, you must remove your foreign gods and your idols of Ashtoreth. You must give yourselves fully to the LORD and serve only him. Then he will save you from the Philistines.”
So the Israelites put away their idols of Baal and Ashtoreth, and they served only the LORD.

Notes 
Samuel speaks to the whole group ‘you must give yourselves fully to the Lord and serve him only’. The people of Israel were returning to the Lord but they were retaining some foreign gods and idols for themselves. They were making a new beginning but it needed to be a fresh start, they needed to be sold out for God and him alone. In the Jim’s youth project, (www.jimsniteclub.com) which we run in Northern Ireland, we have a youth church called ‘Souled Out’, where we encourage young people to be sold out for Jesus just as he was for us when he died in our place. 

So often we think that we can pick and choose what we want and need within our lives. One young person, brought up as a Christian said that her attraction to another Faith was because, ‘It’s an easy religion to fit into your everyday life. I’m comfortable with it’. We can have a packet of pick and mix sweets and sometimes in our lives we mix everything up to fit our lifestyle. We take a bit of religion and a bit of the world, a bit of alcohol and bit of sex and then we try a bit of Christ.

God would have us be real and committed to him with our whole lives not just a part of it. We can do this by the power and help of his Spirit, as he accepts us and forgives us for all our sin. But he would challenge us and urge us to return to him, just as our reading states ‘give yourself fully to the Lord and serve him only’. Today determine to give yourself fully to the Lord.

1 Samuel 7 v 5-9
Samuel said, “All Israel must meet at Mizpah, and I will pray to the LORD for you.” So the Israelites met together at Mizpah. They drew water from the ground and poured it out before the LORD and did not eat that day. They confessed, “We have sinned against the LORD.” And Samuel served as judge of Israel at Mizpah.
The Philistines heard the Israelites were meeting at Mizpah, so the Philistine kings came up to attack them. When the Israelites heard they were coming, they were afraid. They said to Samuel, “Don’t stop praying to the LORD our God for us! Ask him to save us from the Philistines!” Then Samuel took a baby lamb and offered it to the LORD as a whole burnt offering. He called to the LORD for Israel’s sake, and the LORD answered him.

Notes 
This is a wonderful passage of hope and encouragement. It is remarkable that the Philistines are the confident ones but were not anointed by God, yet the Israelites are afraid but the anointed, those chosen by God. Maybe you are a Christian and don’t feel very confident within your life. Maybe you don’t feel very confident in your faith or assured that God is real and loves you. Maybe you are afraid about what your future may bring. Then take courage you are in the same place that these Israelites were.

However knowing this, they passionately call out to Samuel to be at prayer constantly as they faced the Philistines. I would encourage you today to call out to God for the power, strength and faith you need for your life. Also ask your Minister, youth leader or other respected Christians to pray for you, just as Samuel, as the respected prophet, is called on to pray for his people. Take every opportunity to receive prayer.

As Christians we are called by the Lord to pray for our generation, that they would seek the Lord, just as Samuel called out to God for his generation and his people thousands of years ago. The Lord answered Samuel as he called out to him in prayer to save the people of Israel. Today, he listens and answers us as we call out to him to save our generation. Take time now to call out to him to meet the needs of your generation that their hearts would be turn back to God.

1 Samuel 7 v 10-11
While Samuel was burning the offering, the Philistines came near to attack Israel. But the LORD thundered against them with loud thunder. They were so frightened they became confused. So the Israelites defeated the Philistines in battle. The men of Israel ran out of Mizpah and chased the Philistines almost to Beth Car, killing the Philistines along the way.

Notes 
My greatest sporting hero is Tiger Woods, (the golfer, for those who are uneducated). He can drive the ball off the tee up to 350 yards - a long way! However, he only achieves this through his commitment in practice, working out in the gym, driving bucket of balls on the practice tees. It is only because he has put that practice and effort into his game that he gets success on the golfing circuit. It is estimated that he will earn 2 billion throughout his lifetime.

Here in this reading is victory, but it is through the place of prayer, and sacrifice, through the place of seeking his presence that the people of God know and experience his triumph. By seeking the Lord the Israelites are given the victory from their most hated enemies, the Philistines.

Samuel knew the only way that the people of Israel would win this battle against the Philistines was through the place of prayer. Within our lives, it is through the place of prayer that we discover God’s victory within our lives. The place of victory over sin, over temptation, over the evil one is through the place of prayer. We cannot live this Christian life without the power of God within our lives. Be a person of victory, be a Christian who is committed to the victory that God has for your life and for your generation. 

Jim Graham once said ‘Prayer touches three worlds at one time. Prayer touches heaven and God as nothing else can, Prayer touches earth and affects man as nothing else will, and prayer touches hell and disturbs the devil more then any other human enterprise’. 

Prayer has the power to change your life, your situation, the eternal destiny of those that you love, be at prayer.

1 Samuel 7 v 12-17
After this happened Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named the stone Ebenezer, saying, “The LORD has helped us to this point.” So the Philistines were defeated and did not enter the Israelites’ land again.
The LORD was against the Philistines all Samuel’s life. Earlier the Philistines had taken towns from the Israelites, but the Israelites won them back, from Ekron to Gath. They also took back from the Philistines the lands near these towns. There was peace also between Israel and the Amorites.
Samuel continued as judge of Israel all his life. Every year he went from Bethel to Gilgal to Mizpah and judged the Israelites in all these towns. But Samuel always went back to Ramah, where his home was. There he judged Israel and built an altar to the LORD.

Notes 
Here Samuel does two significant things. Firstly he sets a stone between Mizpah and Shen, naming it Ebenezer, which means ‘The Lord has helped us to this point’, (maybe it wasn’t the catchiest of phrases, but it was important). Then at the end of the reading he builds an altar to the Lord. These things at the end of our week are crucial to our lives today. Samuel wanted the people of Israel to remember that the Lord had been good. Israel were constantly forgetting that the Lord had been good to them. They were in the desert and spent the time complaining to the Lord and their leader Moses. Then the Lord would provide for them (water from a rock, bread from the heavens, parting of the waters on two occasions) and they would be overjoyed but a while later, they would forget all that God had done for them. Therefore, as they had forgotten about the Lord’s provision it wasn’t long before they moved away from the Lord in relationship. 

Someone once said that we don’t need teaching but to be reminded. We are forgetful people, who constantly need reminding that the Lord is good, that he is gracious and merciful towards us. We need to set up things within our lives to remind us what God has done for us. Write down today what God has done for you and thank him for it in worship and prayer. Remind yourself that the Lord has helped you to this point, and he will continue, today encourage yourself with these words. Psalm 103 v 2 ‘Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits – who forgives all your sins…. Who satisfies you with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagles’. 


word-on-the-web uses the Scripture text taken from the Youth Bible, New Century Version (Anglicised Edition) copyright 1993 by Word Publishing Milton Keynes