Broken Before the Lord

Introduction

A. Perspective is how we see things. It is the mental image we get of a situation when it is explained to us. It is how we visualize truth when presented. There are clear perspectives, i.e., we see things physically and mentally as they really are. There is a clouded perspective which comes when things are fuzzy. Having the proper perspective is important. ILL “Perspective: Seeing the big picture.”

1. Sometimes we lose perspective about who we are. Listen to this reading from 1 Peter 2:9-10. It gets fuzzy sometimes living in this world. But we are God’s people called to declare how good our God is.

2. Sometimes we lose perspective about the future. Listen to this reading from 2 Peter 3:10-13. We get caught up in the things of this world. It is hard at times to remember the truth about the future. This is all temporary and we look forward to the home of righteousness.

3. Sometimes we lose perspective about our relationship with God. Listen to this reading from Romans 3:21-24. It is true that all are sinners, but all who come to God through Jesus Christ are pronounced “not guilty” because of what Jesus did on the cross. God wants us to be confident of our relationship with him.

B. Having the correct perspective is important. We have come into the presence of a strong and mighty God who has completely and sufficiently taken care of our sin. Through the death of Jesus he has forgiven our sins. Through the resurrection he has empowered us with life for the time when we will be with him forever. Through the ascension he has promised to come again. We serve a God who provides for our every physical and spiritual need. Let’s praise him. And in our praise let’s remove the cloud of doubt which impedes our seeing clearly what God has done for us. [Praise and Prayer.]

God’s Place

A. The Philistines captured the Ark of the Covenant. It was a trophy of their victory. The carried it with great pride back to, Ashdod, one of their major cities. They placed it in the temple of their god, Dagon. Dagon was the god of grain. He was the god who provided life and harvest. In a culture in which different gods are worshiped, even a lesser god could be helpful. The Ark is left in Dagon’s temple. Dagon was a statue. He was not a representation of a god. The statue was the god. The God of Israel and the god of the Philistines are next to each other for one night.

B. The next morning the priests go into Dagon’s temple and find him face down in front of the Ark of the Covenant. Wouldn’t you have liked to have heard their conversation? “How did this happen? It didn’t storm. Could this be a sign?” Dagon is put back into his place. Do you see the irony? A god who is worshiped as provider has to be provided for. He has to be physically lifted back into place. The leave the two gods together for another night.

C. The next morning they go into the temple and discover that Dagon is again flat on his face but this time his head and his hands have broken off and have completely separated from the body. This god is now headless which means he can’t think and he is without hands which means he can’t do anything. This time the irony is not lost on the priests. They realize that their god was doing fine until the Ark had been brought in. In addition to the fallen god, the people of Ashdod are afflicted with a terrible disease which results in death. There is real panic in the city. The reaction of the people is clear and concise. “We must get rid of this Ark of Israel because his hand is heavy upon us and upon Dagon our god.”

D. They knew who was making the difference. Everything had been fine before the Ark of Israel had been brought in. The people of Ashdod knew they had to get rid of the Ark. The God of the Ark was causing all kinds of problems. So after a brief committee meeting they sent the ark to Gath and after the same thing happened there then on to Ekron. There the Ekronites knew what was coming and didn’t want the ark in their city at all.

E. Our God is powerful and worthy of praise. All other gods fade in his presence. In his presence we all need to get on our faces and acknowledge him as the only God. He is the only provider. He is our strength. [songs exalting God]

Lessons

A. What lessons are we to learn from this text? The first lesson we have already covered. Our God is all powerful and worthy of praise. There is none like him and all rivals are insignificant in comparison to him. All other gods have to be propped up in order to exist. All other gods are unthinking, powerless entities. Only God can provide and sustain.

B. The second lesson has to do with perspective. When Israel brought the Ark of the Covenant onto the battlefield at Ebenezer to battle against the Philistines, they treated the Ark as some kind of magic charm. Bring God into camp and he will make everything turn out okay. They cheapened the power of God. He served them rather than they serving him. They only wanted God’s power for a few moments. According to 4:3, the Israelites believed God wasn’t with them. That God was, in fact, working against them. But the Philistines in 5:7 have a different perspective. They see that God is stronger than them and their god. The Philistines’ perspective honors God. The Israelites’ perspective dishonors. The Israelites see God as a failure, but the Philistines see God as awesome and full of strength. Which is the clearer perspective?

1. The people who were God’s chosen ones had grown indifferent about God. They didn’t appreciate him or his power. He was simply an object to be used. The Philistines had a greater appreciation for God than the Israelites.

2. Sometimes we underestimate the power of God. We have spent so much time with God that we lose our appreciation for who he is and what he has done. In fact, there may be times when like the Israelites we become smug about our heritage and our position and assume that God is bound to honor us when we want him to.

3. ILL. “Perspective.” Some of us just go through the motions. Our perspective about life and about worship are just the same — lifeless. We don’t have a clear perspective. What we think we see and what is real are two different things.

4. What will clear our perspective? Sometimes we have to have a crisis like Israel to appreciate what we have. In chapter 6, the Ark is returned and the people at least for now have learned their lesson about trusting God. According to 6:20, the people finally learned about the holiness of God and humility.

C. The third lesson is found in verse 12. No one has a corner market on God. The Ark of the Covenant is being passed from city to city. In each and every city the presence of the Ark brings death and panic. None of the Philistines want the Ark around. Even their god, Dagon, is unable to help them. He is powerless in comparison to the God of Israel. So the people cried out to heaven. Listen to me. They understood something about the God of Israel that the Israelites had forgotten. Why didn’t they pray to the box? Because they understood this God was not limited by a box.

1. So they did what they knew to do — they looked to the heavens and cried out for relief. According to chapter six, God answered their prayers. No one has a corner market on God.

2. As people who want to know truth and search for truth, we are not the only ones doing that. We cannot claim God as just for us. Others in desperate times call out to God to deliver. This passages suggests that He hears and answers. ILL. “Perspective” from Halftime.

D. It is hard to get a clear perspective at times. What we must not forget is that God is powerful. He alone is worthy of praise. And when we fail to see or understand him clearly it has something to do with our clouded vision rather than something wrong with God. God has already paid a great price for you to be his child. Will you accept his gift? Invitation

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