Title Ebenezer God / 1 Samuel 7:3-12
Content Ebenezer God / 1 Samuel 7:3-12
Three years have already passed,
This is the testimony of butler Hyung-Joo Yoon, when he bought a merchandise department store in the summer of 1995.
At the same time that the department store collapsed, butler Yoon promised to have dinner with his wife.
And I diligently go to Sampoong Department Store, why are the cars so blocked on that day
It was even more crowded that day, although traffic in downtown Seoul is usually not congested.
So I couldn't keep my appointment.
But my wife had a similar experience at home.
I made an appointment with my husband and tried to go to the department store on time.
Suddenly my head started to hurt.
And I couldn't go outside because of the headache.
At the very time they promised
Sampoong Department Store collapsed.
What a terrifying moment.
What would have happened if the time difference had not been blocked on that day?
And what would have happened if you hadn't had a headache at that time?
After this great adventure, the couple say they don't complain when their car is blocked.
Also, he said that he does not resent even if his head hurts.
Because the traffic was blocked, and the headache saved a noble life.
Dear saints,
If we look at the events of hardship with spiritual eyes, rather they become events of blessing.
It's not just that things are going well and you're prosperous.
Sometimes it is a blessing to be blocked, to fail, to get sick, and to suffer.
Through hardships, God is working out a more beautiful work of salvation.
In fact, how much pain have we experienced this year?
We have experienced great trials that we do not even want to remember.
However, at this point of ending the eventful year of 1998 and welcoming a new year,
We will have to calmly evaluate our lives.
Calm your excitement, restrain your simmering anger,
We need to look at our lives with a humble heart, taking responsibility before God, soberly.
Today's text is from the time Samuel was the leader of Israel.
In other words, it is a transitional situation where the era of the judges ends and a new era of kingdoms arrives.
In short, it was a bad time for Israel.
Because the people did not live according to God's will, they were often ruled by neighboring countries.
And in recent years, it has been attacked by the Philistines several times.
In the end, the Philistines took away the ark of God, the most precious thing to keep.
However, because of God's powerful work, the ark returned to the land of Israel after 7 months. Then the Israelites began to cherish the ark of God.
I have longed for God deeply in my heart.
In 1 Samuel 7:2,
“From the day the ark entered Kiriath-jearim, it lasted twenty years.
All the house of Israel longed for the LORD.>
Through bitter failure, the people of Israel were transformed.
I have regained my precious faith in God.
This is the great blessing of God.
On the other hand, Samuel, who was called to be the leader of Israel, in verse 3
He says to the people of Israel:
<If you will return to the LORD with all your heart, remove foreign gods and Ashtaroth from among you.
Turn your hearts to the LORD and stop serving them.
He will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.>
It is a prescription for a series of events that the people of Israel recently experienced.
The root cause of all problems was sin.
The failure was in not having a right relationship with God.
So, in order for the people of Israel to go on the right path,
Samuel emphasized that the problem of sin must be solved first.
He urged them to repent of all their mistakes in not standing right before God.
I could only live by repenting to God with my whole heart.
So Samuel had the whole congregation of Israel gather at Mizpah.
At this time, the people of Israel were the people of God,
He obeyed Samuel and did the following three things.
First, come before God, draw water, and fast,
repented of their sins.
in verse 6
“They gathered at Mizpah, drew water, and poured it out before the Lord, and they fasted that day.
There he said, "We have sinned against the LORD God."
When the country was in crisis, the Israelites checked their weapons,
I didn't check the soldiers.
First, they came to God and repented of their sins.
They repented and confessed their sins thoroughly before God.
This is where the clues to all the problems are solved.
All problems will be resolved in the place of repentance.
Repentance is when a person who has turned away from God returns to God.
Those who have turned away from God are drawing near to God.
Those who have harassed God please God.
A person who has lived centered on himself is living centered on God.
Those of us who believe can never succeed when we distance ourselves from God.
Without trusting in God, we cannot live righteously.
You can never be happy without God.
You can never live a blessed life apart from God.
But how did we live this year?
Have you been truthful before God?
Have we lived up to our neighbours?
Did you live in harmony?
Have you been giving?
Did you live your faith right?
Did you carry out your mission diligently?
If not, let us humbly repent of our mistakes and transgressions and turn to God.
Let's serve God with our whole heart.
It is here that we can begin to live a true life.
Second, the Israelites ask God for salvation.
In other words, when faced with difficulties, they prayed to God.
When the Israelites heard that the Philistines were coming,
Samuel asks:
“Cry without ceasing to the LORD our God for us,
Save us from the hand of the Philistines.>
When faced with difficulties, the Israelites did not rely on their own strength or abilities.
I found the servant of God.
I completely depended on God.
I prayed to God.
What a huge change is this?
But what about us?
Who do you turn to first when you are in trouble?
Are you looking for your servant?
Are you looking for a church?
Are you praying to God with all your heart?
Now our country is facing difficulties in every way.
Are you moving towards a bright future? Or are you regressing? I am at a crossroads.
are you excited are you ruined? It's at a crossroads.
But without prayer, can we expect a bright future?
So, for the country, for the church,
And above all else, we must pray hard for our family.
Third, Samuel took a suckling lamb and offered a whole burnt offering.
Verse 9 says, “Samuel took a suckling lamb and offered a whole burnt offering to the LORD.
They cried out to the LORD for Israel, and the LORD answered them.
The whole burnt offering here refers to our sacrifice to God.
This means that I will eventually die.
This is the rule of victory that only us Christians understand.
God wins only when he loses in the world.
I have to die to live.
A new life arises only through sacrifice.
You can only get it by giving.
That's right.
God's rule of victory is to offer me as a burnt offering, and I must die first.
That's what our Lord says.
<Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies,
It remains as a single grain, and when it dies, it bears much fruit.>
<He who loves his life will lose it,
He who hates his life in this world will preserve it for everlasting life.>
When we kill myself and offer it as a burnt offering, we refer to worship.
The burnt offering also refers to our worship to God.
Worship in spirit and in truth is the perfect burnt offering.
Worshiping God should be the number one priority in our lives.
This worship that glorifies God and exalts God's name
It should be the center of our lives.
After all, what happened when you offered a burnt offering to God?
The work of God's powerful and powerful miracles appeared.
In verse 10 of the text
“As Samuel was offering the burnt offering, the Philistines came near to fight against Israel.
On that day the LORD sent a great thunder to the Philistines, and they confused them.
They were defeated before Israel.
The men of Israel went out from Mizpah and followed the Philistines and struck them down to Bethgar.>
Dear saints,
The works of miracles only appear to those who exalt the name of God.
During worship, the greatest miracle works will appear.
Therefore, we must first stand in a right relationship with God.
We should cherish this time of worshiping God the most.
Only when we win the spiritual battle can we win the physical battle.
That is why the writer of 3 John prayed like this:
<Dear one! I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in good health as your soul prospers.>
<Dear one! I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in good health as your soul prospers.>
When we stand in a right relationship with God, when all of us become worshipers of God
I believe that we too will experience the wonderful miracles of God.
When God worked, the Israelites who won the war against the Philistines
To commemorate God's grace without forgetting, we built a monument to Ebenezer.
in verse 12
“Samuel took a stone and set it between Mizpah and Shen, and said,
They say that the LORD has helped us up to this point, and he called his name Ebenezer.
Samuel, a man of God, never forgot God's grace.
I gave the joy and glory of victory completely to God.
We remembered that God had helped us up to this point and thanked God.
This is exactly what we should imitate.
The way to keep God's blessings forever is to not forget God's grace and give thanks.
When you do not forget the grace of God and remember it forever in your heart
We will be able to live a life of gratitude no matter what circumstances we are in.
Dear saints,
As we spend the last Sunday of this year, we celebrate the grace of God bestowed upon us in the past.
You will have to reflect deeply in your heart and be grateful.
We should build a monument to Ebenezer in our hearts.
When we count the grace of God that we have received, even our mouths are everlasting!
We can confess that God has helped us up to this point.
And God, who helped us up to this point, today,
And he will protect our lives in the future.
And he will lead us to the kingdom of God in the future.
“Samuel took a stone and set it between Mizpah and Shen, and said,
They say that the LORD has helped us up to this point, and he called his name Ebenezer.