Still Blaming or Broken?

"So it was that the ark remained in Kirjath Jearim a long time; it was there twenty years. And all the house of Israel lamented after the LORD."

1 Samuel 7:2

After the Ark of the Covenant was taken by the Philistines to their country, it remained there for seven months.  Whilst the Ark was passed from city to city, God plagued the Philistines with great destruction.  The situation became so dire the Philistines decided the only remedy was to return the Ark to Israel with a trespass offering, and the five lords of the Philistines each providing a golden image of a rat that plagued the land and their tumours that caused them to suffer greatly.

The Israelites were harvesting wheat in Beth Shemesh when they saw the Ark of God on a new wooden cart amble into their land.  The people rejoiced exceedingly the Ark had been returned to them, and they promptly used the cart for firewood and sacrificed the oxen to the LORD as a burnt offering.  However, the joyous celebration ended in sorrow, for tens of thousands of men of Beth Shemesh died before the LORD when they transgressed by looking into the Ark contrary to the Law of Moses.  They wondered, "Who can stand before this great God?" They sent a message to the people of Kirjath Jearim and asked them to retrieve the Ark--which they did.  A man named Eleazar was sanctified as a caretaker of the Ark, and it remained in the home of his father Abinadab for 20 years.

While the Ark remained in Kirjath Jearim, all Israel lamented after the LORD for decades.  The prophet Samuel provided a path to restoration before God in 1 Samuel 7:3-4:  "Then Samuel spoke to all the house of Israel, saying, "If you return to the LORD with all your hearts, then put away the foreign gods and the Ashtoreths from among you, and prepare your hearts for the LORD, and serve Him only; and He will deliver you from the hand of the Philistines." ⁴ So the children of Israel put away the Baals and the Ashtoreths, and served the LORD only."  Brothers and sisters, recognise this:  grief, lamentation and sorrow over decades provided no penance for the people.  Their humiliation at the hand of their enemies or God was no substitute for humbling themselves before Him.  Regret was not repentance.  Samuel urged the people to return to the LORD by destroying their idols and preparing their hearts to seek and serve the LORD only.  The promise of deliverance from the Philistines God gave would be fulfilled in short order later in the chapter when God thundered against the Philistines who drew near to attack His people.

The Bible does not record the conversations the people of Israel had together over those 20 years of lamentation after the LORD, but I strongly suspect there was blame for their situation being thrown around without addressing their own idolatry.  There were likely people who blamed Hophni and Phinehas for bringing the Ark of the Covenant to the battle, and other blamed Eli who allowed them to continue "serving" in the priesthood.  Some blamed the Philistines for their brutality and oppression, and others blamed the men of Beth Shemesh for their own demise by looking into the Ark.  In a land and world full of sinners, there was plenty of blame to go around.  As long as they continued to blame others or even themselves without repentance, it revealed they were not yet broken for their sin.  It was after they accepted the blame for their own sin and repented of it they were restored to fellowship with God.  The Philistines remained idolatrous; the corrupt within Israel remained as corrupt as ever.  However, there was a sure hope of salvation for those who lamented after the LORD and prepared their hearts to seek and serve Him.

Today this pattern remains true as ever for God's people.  When we hear of tragedies and problems in the world, one of our first reactions can be to cast blame at the feet of a person, a political party, organisation or nation.  Lately the news has been inundated with reports of a "failed" referendum in Australia, a full-fledged war in Israel, a murder at a school in Sydney, and a mass shooting in the United States--and this only scratches the surface of the pain and suffering that overwhelms us.  Hear this:  as long as we are blaming we are not yet broken, and that is the place God desires to bring us to even if it takes decades!  In light of this, consider the value of brokenness before the LORD as it is written in Psalm 34:18:  "The LORD is near to those who have a broken heart, and saves such as have a contrite spirit."  Psalm 51:16-17 also says:  "For You do not desire sacrifice, or else I would give it; You do not delight in burnt offering. ¹⁷ The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart--these, O God, You will not despise."  Rather than lashing out at others for their wrongs, let us be crushed and broken before the LORD, repent of our sin, prepare our hearts before the LORD and serve Him only.

Glorify God's Holy Name

God is a Saviour Who gives eternal life to all who trust Him, a life so powerful it overcomes death.  As our risen LORD Jesus demonstrated through His death, burial and resurrection, the process to enter eternal glory often involves the physical death of the body.  This is true concerning those who come to faith in Christ and are martyred during the Great Tribulation.  As Jesus laid down His life for lost sinners on Calvary, so they will choose to lay down their lives for His sake.  It is a privilege and honour believers embrace by following in our Saviour's footsteps and surrender our lives for Jesus Who joyfully did so for us.

Revelation 15:2-4 describes a heavenly scene that includes this group of victorious martyrs:  "And I saw something like a sea of glass mingled with fire, and those who have the victory over the beast, over his image and over his mark and over the number of his name, standing on the sea of glass, having harps of God. ³ They sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying: "Great and marvelous are Your works, Lord God Almighty! Just and true are Your ways, O King of the saints! ⁴ Who shall not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name? For You alone are holy. For all nations shall come and worship before You, for Your judgments have been manifested."  Revelation 12 describes believers who overcame Satan by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony, and by faith in Jesus these worshippers were also victorious over the beast (the antichrist), his image, mark and number of his name.  This is only possible by the miraculous power of God at work in His people.

These redeemed believers sang the song of Moses found in Exodus 15 and the song of the Lamb.  The context of the song of Moses was after God lead His people to pass through the Red Sea and drowned the army of Egyptians that sought to pursue them.  They sang in Exodus 15:11, "Who is like You, O LORD, among the gods? Who is like You, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders?"  Both the deliverance from Egypt through the Red Sea and the overcoming of the antichrist during the Great Tribulation are miraculous.  As the children of Israel left Egypt in haste and were guided through the Red Sea, through tribulation many people will be ushered into God's presence in glory with exceeding joy.  Many who will be born again during the Great Tribulation will be martyred for their faith, yet the end will be unending joy and worship of our awesome God, victorious in His presence.

Praise God He will not subject His redeemed people to His wrath which will ultimately consume the heavens and earth.  All who fear the LORD, let us glorify His name because His judgments have been manifested to us through His word.  It has been revealed to us by the Gospel God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  The believers who praise God in the heavenly scene were justly in heaven because of the atonement for sin provided by Jesus.  How gracious is God Who has opened heaven to us and given us Himself, for the Holy Spirit has taken residence in our hearts by the Gospel.  The LORD God Almighty is just and true in all His ways, and let us praise our God Who is our strength and song forever.

Standing in God's Might

When people are born again by faith in Jesus, the Holy Spirit regenerates us spiritually and indwells us.  One aspect of His powerful influence and impact on our lives is described by Paul in Ephesians 6 through the analogy of amour that protects us in the spiritual battle we find ourselves.  Believers are called to understand how the Holy Spirit works in our lives and gives us victory over Satan's attacks so we can stand strong in the LORD and in the power of His might.

A passage I read in Gurnall's book, The Christian in Complete Armour, affirms something I long have believed:  rather than habitually "putting on the armour of God" daily, we are never to take it off, walking in the Holy Spirit to do what pleases God.  Should one of Satan's flaming arrows find its mark or we fall into sin, there can be a correlation with our negligence to appropriate all God has provided for our successful sanctification.  The exhortation to "put on" the armour of God is to utilise it, to exercise ourselves by faith in Christ by reliance on the Holy Spirit.  William Gurnall wrote:

It is not enough to have grace, but this grace must be kept in exercise.  The Christian's armour is made to be worn; no laying down, or putting off our armour, till we have done our warfare, and finished our course.  Our armour and our garment of flesh go off together; then, indeed, will be no need of watch and ward, shieled or helmet.  Those military duties and field-graces--as I may call faith, hope, and the rest--shall be honourably discharged.  In heaven we shall appear, not in armour, but in robes of glory.  But here these are to be worn night and day; we must walk, work, and sleep in them, or else we are not true soldiers of Christ.  This Paul professeth to endeavour.  'Herein do I exercise myself, to have always a conscience voice of offence toward God and toward men,' (Ac 24:16).  Here we have this holy man at his arms, training and exercising himself in his postures, like some soldier by himself handling his pike, and inuring himself before the battle. (Gurnall, William, and J. C. Ryle. The Christian in Complete Armour. Banner of Truth Trust, 2002. pages 63-64)

Paul told believers to put on the whole armour of God because it is likely we have failed to appropriate the power of the Holy Spirit given to us to protect our minds and hearts.  Many times we have walked around without traction and support of the Gospel of peace which is like combat boots or God's truth which is like a belt.  We have wandered unwittingly into a conflict without the shield of faith or left the sword of the Spirit (which is the word of God) in the sheath or at home.  We are able to "be" strong because this rests completely on Who Jesus is and the new creations He has made us to be.  Our identity in Christ does not mean we always or are currently using the full range of protection afforded us by God's grace, and thus we are called to put on the whole armour.

While soldiers sharpen their swords, knives and bayonets for hand-to-hand combat, we are told the manner which is to mark our preparing for and engaging in battle in Ephesians 6:18:  "...praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints..."  If we are not praying, it is likely victory will be an ideal instead of the continuous reality in practice.  We are told to pray without ceasing and in everything give thanks because this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning us.  Jesus told His disciples in Matthew 26:41, "Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."  When it comes to the spiritual conflicts, the Holy Spirit is able and willing to protect us from all harmful defeats.  If we are unwilling to pray, refuse to look to the LORD Jesus or yield to the Holy Spirit in obedience, we cannot stand in the power of God's might.

Trusting the LORD In All

"Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; ⁶ in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths."

Proverbs 3:5-6

It is one thing to trust the LORD Who rules and reigns over all to save us, and it is another to continue trusting Him in all our ways, all our days.  Should we experience anxiety, worry and troubled thoughts, it is evidence we are not trusting the LORD God with all our heart.  When we are overwhelmed with a current dilemma it is often because we cannot envision a remedy obtainable by our best efforts.  We are disturbed and restless when we lean on our own understanding which is finite, and thus we often forget about God's power and promises to us.

The children of Israel were obedient to God's command through Joshua as they approached Jericho, a massive stronghold they lacked the ability to conquer themselves.  After God miraculously gave them the victory, they turned their eyes to the next city that stood before them:  Ai.  They did not seek the LORD's guidance, consulted with one another, and sent 3,000 men to raze the city.  They were soundly beaten and fled before the men of Ai, and 36 of the Hebrews died in the skirmish.  How many times have we trusted God with the "big" things and leaned on our own understanding when comes to "little" things we are confident to do ourselves?  We are to trust in the LORD with all our heart and in all our ways acknowledge Him.  The one who does this will walk uprightly and have success in doing God's will.

The tendency to lean on our own understanding is as natural to us as sitting on a recliner designed to cushion the human frame.  The flesh is most comfortable to lean on our own understanding, our experience, or on other people rather than exercising faith in God.  This tendency to lean on our own understanding in our personal life can occur in church ministry as well.  There have been times over the years when I am aware the church is operating at a financial loss.  I have been tempted to broach the situation with the congregation to make the need known.  If this is done without seeking the LORD and receiving clear guidance from Him to do so, I can be guilty of leaning on my own understanding rather than trusting Him with all my heart and acknowledging Him in all my ways.  There is nothing inherently wrong with communicating the dire financial state of a church or business to members, but if it is not done by faith in God and obedience to Him it is sin.

How good it is when I have sought the LORD, chose not to make a public announcement, and had the opportunity to see God prompt His people to supply the needs at hand by His grace.  Seeing God's faithfulness to provide for all our needs and knowing He is LORD of all prompts us to keep trusting Him presently and in the future.  My experience echoes David's observation of God's provision in Psalm 37:25:  "I have been young, and now am old; yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his descendants begging bread."  God does not forsake His people, and He is faithful to provide our daily bread--and He speaks to us through His word to guide, comfort and satisfy us.  The fact our small church fellowship continues to meet and thrive is a testimony of God's grace, provision and faithfulness Who is worthy of our continual trust.