Title: Faith and the Center of Life
Contents
The center of faith and life (1 Samuel 7:1-12)
The Age of Judges is a dark age of faith. It is an era of decline. It was a time when people's voices were louder than God's voices because they followed their own opinions.
(Judges 17:6, Judges 21:25) At that time there was no king in Israel, so everyone did what was right in his own eyes.
- He lived according to his own will. Sins of all kinds of injustice and corruption spread throughout the country.
* Even the priests were corrupted and defiled (1 Samuel 2:12-17).
Because they did not know God, they were the children of the priests for the fun of stealing the sacrifices offered to God.
* Corruption and corruption were rampant. It was a time when people lived in their own way without any right place.
As a result, because of these sins, the Israelites continued to be harassed by the Philistines.
Nevertheless, the Israelites forget that it was because of their sins and do not repent.
* Even the Ark of the Covenant, a symbol of God's presence, was a shameful era in which the glory of God was taken away from the battlefield.
It was a time when we were spiritually broken, society was corrupted, and the Word of God disappeared. did not repent at all.
If you look at verses 1-2 in the main text, this era continued for as many as 20 years. They were buried in disaster.
No matter how much the Philistines looked at Israel, they came together as they wished (7).
Are you spiritually weak? The Philistines are playing a game. Now you don't have to go any further. There must be spiritual renewal and restoration.
- He taught us how to overcome that crisis and raised Samuel to teach us how to do it (3-4).
1. We must return to God and serve only Him.
- If you return to the center of God and serve only him, he will deliver you from the hand of the Philistines (3).
That's right. There is only one solution that can solve the crisis in the time of the prophet Samuel or the reality of our country today.
You must serve only God.
To whom are these words addressed? It's not meant for unbelievers.
He is not speaking to the spiritually dead, but to the chosen Israel.
If you and I who have believed in God listen to these words and go to a place where only God is served, we can defeat the Philistines today.
- Why have you been tormented by the Philistines for 20 years?
Is it because the Philistine army is strong, economically superior, and a difficult foe to deal with? The Israelites thought so.
But what God is saying through Samuel is not that. And then, in Samuel's day, God brought about an inner change that made known the reason for the pain and sorrow inflicted by the Philistines, the ruthless conquerors.
Dear brothers and sisters, why does our country have to be afraid and tremble in this economic crisis?
No other reason. This is because the churches everywhere where God shed His blood are falling apart in the midst of the world without knowing it.
It is because I and you who believe in God have been violated without knowing the purity and purity of that faith.
The reality of the country we live in today has become like a lamp in the wind.
So is our personal life. It's not because I'm not there. It's not because I didn't follow the environment and circumstances.
The presence of the Philistines is a sign and opportunity to seek God. You must return to God.
The saints and the church must return to God. Despair, sighs, worries, fears, and anxieties are signals to turn to God. It is the call of grace that God will meet you.
Therefore, we must listen carefully to the word of God given through Samuel.
The church must return its members to God. And stop serving.
I bless you in the name of the Lord to become those who long for the Lord.
- What should I do to return to God and stop serving?
* We must begin by longing for God (2).
All our gazes, interests, and thoughts come from our eyes, our judgments, our thoughts, and our desires, and we must start by longing for God. Then you can live. We must listen to the voice of God.
* You must turn around with all your heart (3).
This is the word to put away all interest in other places and serve God with all your might.
This is the only way to get Israel out of the hands of the Philistines. We must serve God as the only God.
I bless you in the name of the Lord that you and I will be freed from the chaotic state of faith of service and serve God only by holding on to God. God wants to take charge of our lives and bless us. The Philistines will defeat you.
2. We must obey the Word. We must be built centered on the Word (4-6).
Gathering together at Mizpah... Draw water and pour it over... I have sinned by fasting.
It is not right to pray and pour water on the altar while building the altar. Going to a mountain or a valley to bring water and pouring it in battle is absolutely not reasonable and reasonable.
But we must obey because it is God who defeats the Philistines.
If you obey, God works.
3. We must gather together to serve Mizpah.
- A place where we can entrust our lives, recharge our energy, find rest, and find happiness.
Where should be built to defeat the Philistines? Mizpah is the place where the power to defeat the Philistines is demonstrated by being built centered on God and obeying the Word. Mizpah is the place where we go there to serve and dedicate ourselves according to God's commands (5-9).