This fascinating chapter details how the Philistines returned the Ark to Israel.
“[The Philistine diviners] said, ‘If you send away the ark of the God of Israel, do not send it empty, but by all means return him a guilt offering. Then you will be healed, and it will be known to you why his hand does not turn away from you… Five golden tumors and five golden mice, according to the number of the lords of the Philistines, for the same plague was on all of you and on your lords. So you must make images of your tumors and images of your mice that ravage the land, and give glory to the God of Israel. Perhaps he will lighten his hand from off you and your gods and your land. Why should you harden your hearts as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts?’ ” (v2-6a abr)
The Philistines, who are a pagan polytheistic nation, realize that the God of Israel is more powerful than any of their household gods. He smote the image of Dagon in their temple, and caused great plagues upon the Philistines. Later in the chapter God strikes down 70 Philistines who look upon the Ark. Clearly God has made a great impression on this people – so great that they even offer gold and burnt offerings (sin offerings) to Him as they ask Israel to take the Ark back.
I find it interesting that the Philistines follow “laws of repentance” and “laws of restitution” when returning the Ark. Not only do they give back what they stole, they give extra compensation (gold) and burnt offerings to acknowledge their actions against God and His people (ie. sin). Laws of restitution as detailed in Ex 22 were given to Israel, but it may have been normal for other cultures to follow such laws as well. Or, maybe restitution and repentance were not their custom, and the Philistines followed a Israelite laws to show their deep sincerity – it’s entirely possible.
Though God no longer requires burnt offerings when we sin against Him (thank Jesus, literally), he does still require sincerity of heart and physical actions to reinforce our repentance. The definition of repentance is “to make a radical turn from one way of life to another, an absolute and unconditional surrender to God as Sovereign.” The Greek word for repentance, metanoia, literally means to turn away from. God wants us to turn away from whatever sin we committed, and turn toward Him.
Just as the Philistines had to physically return the Ark and sacrifice some of their worldly possessions, we too need a physical component to our repentance. What is God calling us to sacrifice / turn away from today? Is it an activity, an unhealthy relationship, or perhaps sacrifice some resources in order to draw nearer to Him? True repentance always requires a sacrifice, but that sacrifice isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
My encouragement today is to embrace true repentance and sacrifice. Each time we sacrifice something of little / temporary value in obedience to God, we gain something of far greater value – a deeper relationship with God which will last an eternity. Let’s also keep in mind that sacrifice is not a natural flesh behavior – it’s a Christlike behavior that takes time to develop. With practice, it can become a treasured form of worship in our lives.
Father God, our Sovereign Lord and King, You are truly worthy of our praise and obedience. There is no one greater than You. Thank you for teaching us how to have contrite hearts, and willingness to obey You. Thank you for the Fruit of Your Spirit, which enables us to sacrifice the worthless things of this world in obedience to You. Please continue pointing out anything that detracts from our relationships with You, and then provide the strength and wisdom to rid our lives of it. We ask this in the powerful name of Jesus, who was the ultimate and final sin sacrifice, amen.
~ Conqueror in Training